nashuaworldcup Chapter 305: Bestowing a Name
Chapter 305: Bestowing a Name
Chapter 305: Bestowing a Name
Shen Bin remained silent, looking at Ji Meiqing with a hint of exasperation at her impatience. He clapped his hands, and several women emerged from behind the screen. Each of them was beautiful, tall, slender, and with unique features. While not exactly stunning beauties, they were certainly lovely.
Ji Meiqing was somewhat stunned, while Shen Bin, standing to the side, remained expressionless, making Ji Meiqing think he was a blockhead, and that he might not even have a chance to find a wife in the future. Ji Meiqing secretly smiled to herself as she thought this.
Shen Bin smiled at her, but he didn't know why, and continued drinking his tea. Ji Meiqing looked at the three beautiful women and walked over, saying, "I wonder if the three ladies are proficient in all the arts, including music, chess, calligraphy, and painting?" Ji Meiqing wanted to know how capable Shen Bin really was.
"Young ladies, we are proficient in all the arts, including music, chess, calligraphy, and painting," the three women said, bowing in unison. Ji Meiqing was overjoyed; it seemed they were quite capable. Smiling, she looked at the three and named them Xiao Chun, Xiao Mei, and Xiao Lian. Since these three had been bought by Shen Bin, they should all share his surname, Shen.
"Thank you for bestowing names upon us, Miss!" the three women said happily, bowing respectfully as Ji Meiqing had just named them. Seeing them, Ji Meiqing suddenly felt she was being too vulgar and, somewhat embarrassed, told them not to be so polite. Ji Meiqing gave them some instructions and then returned to the inn. As she left, she saw Shen Bin looking at her with a predatory expression. Ji Meiqing secretly smiled as she left the inn, while Shen Bin, looking at the three women around him with a dark expression, felt utterly exasperated.
Ji Meiqing returned to the inn and went to her room. Seeing Lu Yu still asleep, she tucked him in and then went to Zhao Ning'er's room. Zhao Lei opened the door, holding a candied hawthorn. Seeing Ji Meiqing, he quickly hid the candied hawthorn behind his back, looking at her nervously. Ji Meiqing smiled at him, indicating that Zhao Lei didn't need to be alarmed.
Ji Meiqing entered and saw Zhao Ning'er happily eating candied hawthorns. She smiled slightly. Zhao Ning'er thought Zhao Lei had returned and turned around to see Ji Meiqing. Suddenly, her face flushed, and she lowered her head, looking at the candied hawthorns in her hand. The atmosphere was a little awkward. Ji Meiqing walked over, took her hand, and said, "What's wrong? Aren't you afraid to eat the candied hawthorns?"
Seeing Ji Meiqing's enthusiasm, Zhao Ning'er said somewhat nervously, "No...no, it's delicious, it's delicious." Ji Meiqing smiled at her, gesturing for her to finish eating, as she had some things to do later. Zhao Ning'er looked at Ji Meiqing, unsure whether to eat or not. Ji Meiqing, seeing her hesitation, had no choice but to get up and return to her room.
Lu Yu was still sleeping in bed, looking exhausted, no one knew what he'd been up to lately. Ji Meiqing walked over and stroked his face, noticing he seemed to have lost weight again. She leaned down and kissed his forehead, but before she knew it, Lu Yu had woken up and pinned her down.
His eyes were slightly bloodshot as he looked at Ji Meiqing, who looked at Lu Yu with a pang of heartache. Lu Yu slowly approached her, and when his cold lips touched Ji Meiqing's, he wanted more, prying open her teeth to enjoy the softness and sweetness of her lips.
"Sister Ji, are you there?" A voice suddenly called out from outside. It was Ning'er. Ji Meiqing immediately reacted, pushed away Lu Yu who was on top of her, and looked at Lu Yu with a flushed face. Lu Yu lay on the bed, smiling wickedly at Ji Meiqing. Ji Meiqing lightly punched his chest and said coquettishly, "You're so annoying."
After saying that, she went to open the door. Zhao Ning'er saw Ji Meiqing's flushed face and said, "Sister Ji, what's wrong with you..." Before she could finish speaking, Ji Meiqing closed the door from the outside and pulled Zhao Ning'er to her room.
As soon as Ji Meiqing entered Zhao Ning'er's room, she quickly drank a few cups of tea. Zhao Ning'er almost laughed, and Zhao Lei, who was sitting on the bed, also held back his laughter. It was the first time he had seen Ji Meiqing so impulsive. After finishing her tea, Ji Meiqing quickly sat down to rest for a while, and Zhao Ning'er sat beside her to keep her company.
After an unknown amount of time, Ji Meiqing finally spoke, "Ning'er, do you and your brother know how to sing?"
Zhao Ning'er said happily, "Yes, Father used to take me out to listen to other people sing songs." Ji Meiqing was also very happy to hear Zhao Ning'er say this.
"Ning'er, I'll teach you a rather special tune called Huangmei Opera." Ji Meiqing was also a lover of traditional opera in modern times, and her favorite was Huangmei Opera.
Zhao Ning'er looked at Ji Meiqing with a puzzled expression. Ji Meiqing didn't know how to explain, so she sang a verse for Zhao Ning'er.
"Leaving home to save Li Lang"
Who would have thought that the imperial examination would produce the top scholar?
The top scholar wore a red robe
Wearing palace flowers in your hat is nice!
How fresh!
As Ji Meiqing sang, she also performed some actions. After she finished singing a section, Zhao Ning'er and Zhao Lei clapped and cheered. Ji Meiqing lowered her head shyly.
"This is a traditional opera called 'The Female Imperial Envoy.' A young girl and a young boy were childhood sweethearts, and their families were old friends, so they were betrothed. Later, the boy's family was framed, and he was implicated and taken to the capital. The girl's family, seeing that the boy's family had fallen on hard times, wanted her to break off the engagement. But the girl truly loved the boy, so she disobeyed her parents' wishes and went to the capital alone to find him. In the capital, she saw the imperial edict, and she knew that if she became the top scholar, she could become an official and rescue the boy. So she tore down the edict and eagerly went to the examination hall." Ji Meiqing stopped here. Zhao Ning'er and Zhao Lei, who had been listening intently, were somewhat disappointed when Ji Meiqing suddenly stopped.
"From now on, you'll be performing Huangmei Opera at the restaurant. After each performance, you can ask the customers for tips. Even if there are no tips, I'll still pay you a monthly wage." Ji Meiqing realized she had said too much in one breath and quickly drank some water.
Zhao Ning'er seemed to understand but not quite. Seeing that it was their first time encountering Huangmei Opera, Ji Meiqing decided to spend two days teaching them.
Teaching only the movements and singing style wasn't enough, so Ji Meiqing had to go back to her room to get the remaining brushes, ink, and Xuan paper. Watching Zhao Ning'er and Zhao Lei diligently learning Ji Meiqing's movements, Ji Meiqing felt very gratified.
Ji Meiqing sat down to write the lyrics and annotated the movements. Zhao Ning'er and Zhao Lei watched, singing a section of the lyrics together as they came across it. Ji Meiqing occasionally offered guidance. Seeing that their movements were a bit stiff, she said, "Don't be too stiff. No matter what the movement is, it should be neither too fast nor too slow. Before the female lead passed the imperial examination, she was a weak woman. After passing, she had to act like a man because of her status."
Both of them listened intently to what Ji Meiqing had to say, and slowly made changes to anything that seemed inappropriate.
An hour later, Ji Meiqing had finished writing the lyrics, three copies in total. This puzzled Zhao Ning'er, but Ji Meiqing didn't explain, keeping the extra copy a secret and leaving everyone in suspense. Seeing that the time was almost up, Ji Meiqing wanted to see how Zhao Ning'er and Zhao Lei would perform.