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The Heir’s Bestowment
T/N: Translated by Jen on Broken Jinsei! Please do not repost my translations! All translations outside of Broken Jinsei are stolen and reposted without permission!
Shen Lan Chi picked two girls, one called Jin-niang[1], good at playing the pipa, and the other called Wan’er, able to produce a wonderful sound. The two of them although both have a good set of skills, they were nevertheless already over twenty. In places such as entertainment houses and brothels, those that lose their beauty usually won’t have a good ending. The girls of the lowly class, when reaching this age, if not getting married, then it was just redeeming themselves out of here. Ones like the two of them who continue to stay in Flying Immortal Alley truly were rare. Perhaps, it was counting on a guest to have them bought out of here sooner and change to the respectable class[2], so towards Lu Qi Yang, Jin-niang and Wan’er were extremely enthusiastic. Although already at the age where they were old enough to be a mother, the two of them were unwilling to give up, still using a delicate and sweet voice, their watery eyes full of seduction, their body full of charm.
“My lord, how about this servant play another piece for you?”
“My lord, this cup of wine, this servant toasts to you.”
“My lord, do you have a wife at home?”
The two older sisters’ voices were more tender and delicate than the last, just hoping that the heir can respond.
Unfortunately, Lu Qi Yang didn’t respond a single word. He steadily and firmly sat upon the small round stool, his body motionless, his expression also frozen, like a stone statue. That bitter and resentful expression was just like having gotten forced to study by his father Zhennan Wang.
Seeing the two little gold cups moving closer before him, the two older girls fought to make him drink the wine. Lu Qi Yang suddenly shot up from the round stool, dryly saying, “This young master will go…….go……..to the bathroom.”
After saying this, he retreated towards door with a heavy face, and shortly after, swiftly bolted out, just leaving behind Shen Lan Chi and the other two girls looking to one another in dismay.
Shen Lan Chi although was dressed in men’s clothes, anyone can tell that she was a girl. Seeing on behalf of the money, Jin-niang and Wan’er just pretended to not know. But, a girl can’t help the two of them redeem themselves out of here after all. As such, the two of them properly sat back down, not having any intention of feeding Shen Lan Chi wine.
“Forget it. When the two of you are here, the heir is very reserved and uptight.” Shen Lan Chi rubbed her brows and said, “Why don’t the two of you go down to rest first.”
When Jin-niang and Wan’er heard, they bent their knees in a curtsy and went out carrying the pipa and wooden clappers[3].
Shen Lan Chi waited for a good while, but still didn’t see Lu Qi Yang come back. She got somewhat impatient, getting up to go look for him. Looking around left and right, she finally found Lu Qi Yang with the help of others pointing the way.
The person was found, but……..
The scene before her really was very frightening.
Under the hot summer sun, the esteemed Zhennan Wang Manor’s heir had actually taken off his outer robe and inner garment, tying them to his waist, leaving his top half bare, like a farmer working in the fields, chopping wood in the backyard. The axe in his hand raised and lowered. And that firewood on the ground cracked in half with a ‘ka-cha’, uniform and even, not the slightest bit off, like as if lines were drawn with ink beforehand.
The sunlight was scorching, his back hanging with a bit of sweat, don’t know how long he’s been chopping.
“What are you doing here?” Shen Lan Chi said with slight surprise, “Why did you run into their backyard to chop wood?”
“Just casually giving a helping hand, that’s all.” Lu Qi Yang let go of the axe and wiped the sweat on his forehead, saying, “Not like I will lose a piece of flesh. Just helping since I can.” After saying this, he moved out of the way, revealing the old man sitting on top the firewood pile behind the house, who was currently vigorously sucking water from the water pouch.
TN: All translations outside of Broken Jinsei are stolen and reposted without permission!
Seeing Shen Lan Chi staring at him, the old man placed down the water pouch, exhaling a breath and smilingly saying, “Aiyaa! This young man really is a kind person. Seeing that I, this old man, was tired from chopping wood, he voluntarily helped me have the wood chopped. This kind of good heart like a bodhisattva is hard to find even with a lantern!”
Shen Lan Chi: “…….”
For the sake of avoiding those two older sisters in the room, Lu Qi Yang really sacrificed a lot.
What happened to the ‘romantic and suave wastrel little heir’?
Lu Qi Yang tidied his clothes and straightened his collar, turning back into the esteemed noble heir. He had a bit of hesitation, carefully asking, “That Jin-niang and Wan’er, is still in the room?”
“I let them leave.” Shen Lan Chi answered.
“……” Lu Qi Yang slightly relaxed a breath. Afterwards, his complexion changed and said with a snort, “Why did you let them leave? This young master still hasn’t played enough?”
“Oh? Is that so?” Shen Lan Chi said with interest, “Then, I’ll call the two of them back again?”
“Wai—–wait a minute!” Lu Qi Yang immediately said, “Making them run back and forth, that’s not the least bit gentle to the beauties. Just let them nicely rest. Having you serve this young master is also the same.”
Shen Lan Chi nearly laughed out loud.
“Granted, granted.” Shen Lan Chi said.
“You wait here.” Lu Qi Yang turned around and walked before that wood-chopping old man, taking out a small box and saying, “This is Tianren House’s pain relief ointment, precisely that thing I told you about earlier. Whenever it’s a gloomy or rainy day, old mister can apply a little. In about half a month, this leg pain of yours will probably get better. My father precisely relied on this thing to cure his leg and foot pain.”
“Oh! How much does this cost?” That old man revealed a delighted look, but said in distress, “Young man, this old man can’t pay this kind of money.”
“Don’t need money.” Lu Qi Yang laughed in a carefree manner, “This young master doesn’t lack money.”
After saying this, he followed Shen Lan Chi back to the private room.
Jin-niang and Wan’er were long gone. The servant girl had also withdrawn. Inside the room, only the two of them remained. With the others gone, Lu Qi Yang’s shamelessness came back up again. He kicked off his brocade boots and tossed them aside, a pair of long legs propping up on the couch, lazily saying, “Hey, Shen second miss, come hammer your young master’s legs.”
“Hammer what leg?” Shen Lan Chi casually pinched his waist and said, “Wanna believe that I’ll break your legs?”
“Sss—ouch! Pain.” Lu Qi Yang inhaled a breath of cold air, immediately grabbing her hand and saying, “If unwilling to hammer the legs, then can at least massage the shoulders, right? This young master invited you here to have fun. Since you’re not paying, then should at least provide some labor.”
“You want this young lady to massage your shoulders?” Shen Lan Chi asked, her smile extremely gentle, her voice also extremely gentle. But her movements with her hands were nevertheless the exact opposite. She flexed her wrist, her fist eager for action. This look made Lu Qi Yang subconsciously swallow his saliva, as if seeing a tiger.
Half a while later, Shen Lan Chi’s shoulders moved, and a pair of tender white hands gently landed on Lu Qi Yang’s shoulders.
“I’ve only massaged my mother’s shoulders before.” She said. “If the strength isn’t right, remember to tell me.”
Lu Qi Yang didn’t speak, just closing his eyes.
Shen Lan Chi’s fingers were slender and snow white. Tied on her wrist was a half-old red string that she has worn since childhood. A streak of bright color amidst that lotus white made her skin appear even more glowing and flawless, like a pear blossom.
Suddenly, Lu Qi Yang grabbed her hand.
“What?” Shen Lan Chi asked, “Is it because my strength too small, master is dissatisfied?”
“Not at all. This young master has a little thing to give you.” He half opened his eyes, his gaze still lazy.
After saying this, Lu Qi Yang took out something and pushed it onto her wrist. Turns out, it was a rather antique-style jade bracelet. The transparency level was extremely clear, just quite a few small cracks were hidden in its body, like the ice surface that was about to melt in winter. However, some gold wires were pinched over these fine cracks, the blemish not obscuring the luster of the jade, instead revealing a bit of a broken aesthetic.
Shen Lan Chi immediately recognized it at a glance. This was the bracelet that Lu Zi Xiang was carefully inspecting in his hand that day when she encountered him in the palace. At the time, she heard Lu Zi Xiang say that this bracelet was brought over by Lu Qi Yang. Unexpectedly, after going around in a circle, this bracelet in the end still entered her pocket.
“Reportedly, it’s said that this was the old dynasty’s Renyizhenshun[4] Empress’s beloved object. It originally should’ve been buried in the tomb when Zhenshun Empress was buried. But, the palace servants were greedy for wealth, so had it stolen out, selling for thousands of gold, thus having remained until now.” Lu Qi Yang spun that bracelet, his tone frivolous, “Seeing that you’ve served diligently, this young master will just bestow you this bracelet.”
Shen Lan Chi lifted her wrist and carefully examined that bracelet. That bracelet against her arm, unknown as to whether it was the jade contrasting the skin, or the skin contrasting the jade, caused both to become exquisite and translucent. She opened her mouth and praised in a murmur, “Pretty.”
“Pretty, right?” Lu Qi Yang’s eyes slightly curved from smiling, the smiles in his eyes practically about to overflow.
“Oh you……” She raised her lower arm vertically. That jade bracelet slid downwards, hiding into her sleeve, just leaving behind a cut of her lustrous white arm on the outside. “You said that you wanted to pacify my anger. Turns out, it was finding such a bracelet to give me. Lu Qi Yang, haven’t you always hated me? How come you’re this good to me now?”
He blanked for a moment, lowering his eyes, softly saying, “I wished that…….wished that I really hated you.”
Shen Lan Chi felt that these words were somewhat familiar.
Wished that he really hated her?
Through the clothes, she caressed that bracelet, but her thoughts already quietly wandered to another place. She remembered, the night before she married Lu Zhao Ye, Lu Qi Yang once attempted to take her away from the capital. At the time, she said this——–
“Lu Qi Yang, haven’t you always hated me? Why come to take me away now?”
“I wish that…….I wish that I really hated you.”
She fell in a daze, her emotions inside bubbling. Shortly after, she softly muttered, “Heir, do you still remember, I said that I had a dream, and in the dream, I’d lived through the entire second half of my life.”
“Remember, what about it?”
“In that dream, I got married…….”
“You didn’t marry me, right?” Lu Qi Yang teased, “Certainly wouldn’t be me.”
“How do you know it was not you?” Shen Lan Chi casted him a glance, propping up her cheeks and saying, “The day I married, you did this to me…..”
“En?” Lu Qi Yang made a sound. The sound was like as if it came from his chest.
She lifted the hair by her ear and leaned down, lightly kissing the his forehead.
“Guess, was the person I married you?” She got up, laughing as she nonchalantly spoke.
She originally wanted to tease him for fun, thus bloomed with smiles, just waiting to see him embarrassed and at a loss for what to do. But, who knew, what awaited her was not the heir’s nervous and flustered face, but the heaven and earth turning.
In merely a blink of an eye, she already got pulled onto that luohan couch[5] by Lu Qi Yang. His body pressed onto hers. Through the thin summer fabric, she seemingly got burned by the heir’s warm body, quickly moving her hands.
Her arm hung down from the couch. That old dynasty empress’s bracelet slid down along her wrist, reflecting a warm jade color.
“I’m guessing……” Lu Qi Yang stared at her, the bottom of his eyes seemingly containing a flickering sea where the sun and moon rose and fell.
“The one you married wasn’t me.”
After saying this, he used his fingers to swipe aside the hair that landed on Shen Lan Chi’s cheeks and kissed her.
[1] Niang is a very commonly used female suffix, often used as part of a nickname.
[2] The class system here I’d written an explanation before on my historical notes page.
[3] A type of traditional chinese instrument
[4] This is a posthumous title, Ren(benevolent) Yi(virtuous) Zhen(loyal) Shun(agreeable), so fully in english her posthumous title would be the Benevolent Virtuous Loyal and Agreeable Empress. Posthumous titles have always been lengthy.
[5] See below.
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