"My wife said she wanted to go to Jade Sound Pavilion to listen to music, so we went.
He walked upright and honestly, with nothing to be guilty of.
The Jade Sound Pavilion was not far from here; a short stroll hand in hand brought them to the destination.
Today, the Jade Sound Pavilion had noticeably more guests than the previous days.
Li Nuo looked around and realized he might have misunderstood Phoenix.
The poems she wanted were not for herself.
The ten poems he selected for Phoenix were hung on the walls of Jade Sound Pavilion, each accompanied by a portrait of a girl from the pavilion.
To be precise, every girl of the Jade Sound Pavilion was matched with a poem.
The article, ’Phoenix Seeking His Mate,’ had been placed in the most conspicuous spot.
Though her portrait was not paired with it, everyone knew it referred to her, Phoenix.
Many guests stood beneath these portraits and poems, looking up and commenting.
Especially under ’Phoenix Seeking His Mate,’ where the crowd of guests was thickest.
"There is a beauty, unforgettable at sight, missed crazily if not seen even for a day..."
"This poem, with its ancient style, would be considered a masterpiece of romantic poetry even in that era."
"I’m curious to see how beautiful this Phoenix lady is; to miss her for a day and go mad with longing, unless these are just exaggerated words. There was a poem last time that spread everywhere, saying how a lady from Hundred Flowers Building was incredibly beautiful and graceful; it cost me ten taels of silver just to see her, and she turned out to be just average..."
"To see this beauty written about in ’Phoenix Seeking His Mate’ costs fifty taels of silver, and hearing her play a tune costs one hundred taels."
"Let’s pool our silver, I really want to feast my eyes today."
"Hey, this money won’t be wasted; I’ve seen the Phoenix lady before, a true unparalleled beauty. In terms of looks and figure, both are top-notch, truly a rare creature on this earth, it’s just a pity..."
"What’s a pity?"
"Before this ’Phoenix Seeking His Mate’ appeared, we used to see Phoenix lady often, sometimes she would even perform in person, but since this poem appeared, she no longer shows herself, and seeing her now costs money..."
Li Nuo stood frozen in place.
He had felt somewhat embarrassed earlier when he sold a poem about Phoenix for a hundred taels of silver.
He hadn’t expected her to earn it back just by playing a tune.
No, wrong.
’Phoenix Seeking His Mate’ was just an add-on, this was truly a business without any capital.
Fifty taels to see her, a hundred taels to hear her play.
In one day, she could earn back all the money spent on her.
Someone couldn’t help but complain, "It’s all because of that fellow, writing such a ’Phoenix Seeking His Mate.’ If it weren’t for him, seeing the Phoenix lady wouldn’t have become so difficult..."
"Must be some talented suitor of the Phoenix lady, this piece couldn’t be written without great talent."
"I have a little inside information, the day after the son of the Minister of Justice left the Phoenix lady’s room, this poem started circulating, it’s actually a token of his affection for her..."
"That man has such talent?"
"Nonsense, look who his father is! I heard that all ten poems on the wall were written by him for the girls of the Jade Sound Pavilion."
"Being so openly affectionate towards the Phoenix lady, it seems the rumors of his impending divorce are mostly true..."
As their conversation got even more ridiculous, a voice said, "Gentlemen, your words are too superficial; if you believe this poem is merely a romantic plea, you’re rather shallow..."
A handsome young man stepped forward and added, "The ’beauty’ mentioned in the poem superficially refers to a beauty, but actually symbolizes ambition and ideals..."
Before he could finish, a man waved his hand dismissively, "Enough, what do you know? This is clearly a love poem, even someone like me who doesn’t understand poetry can see that..."
At that moment, another young scholar stepped forward, "You admit yourself that you don’t understand poetry; how could someone who can write such a poem be as superficial as you..."
Li Nuo was gratified; there were still connoisseurs here.
The scholar continued, "On the surface, this poem is about a beauty, but it actually has a deeper meaning. I believe, the author is using a metaphor; the beauty symbolizes a wise ruler. A capable and wise king is like an unattainable beauty. Our Emperor has neglected the court for ten years now, hardly a praiseworthy ruler. The author hopes this poem can awaken the Emperor, urging him to stop pursuing elusive elixirs of life and to rule wisely..."
The scholar approached Li Nuo and asked, "Do you share this view, brother?"
Li Nuo hastily waved his hands, "Not me, don’t involve me!"
These academy students, bold as brass, one more stubborn than the next.
With Daxia’s laws, pinning a charge of defaming the Emperor could lead to exile as a light punishment.
Others had already stepped back a few paces to keep their distance from him.
The scholar, gazing at the poem, couldn’t help but remark, "By ostensibly pursuing a beauty but actually expressing the difficulty of finding a wise ruler, who would have thought that the son of the sinister Li Xuanjing could harbor such lofty sentiments? This ’Phoenix Seeking His Mate’ will be remembered through the ages..."
"This poem... is it really that good?"
A voice came from behind. The young scholar turned back to see a woman standing beside the handsome young man. He explained, "Not just good, even without delving into its deeper meanings, it remains an exquisite love poem. Phoenix lady will be remembered by posterity, but the connotations of this poem are profound, having immense literary value. None of the other love poems can compare...
None of the other love poems can compare.
So this poem was that good.
Song Jiaren turned and left Jade Sound Pavilion, with Li Nuo following, asking, "Wife, are you not listening to the music anymore?"
Song Jiaren replied, "I don’t feel like listening anymore."
She headed straight for the Song Residence.
Li Nuo tried to hold her hand, but she walked too fast, and he couldn’t keep up...
Li Nuo looked back.
Not seriously studying in the academy, wandering around for what!
Wandering around and then making wild analyses here.
Even Sima Xiangru doesn’t understand ’Phoenix Seeking His Mate’ as well as he does.
And, he himself, really!"
Phoenix seeks refinement, one can choose another poem; there are plenty of refined poems.
He merely felt it wasn’t easy for her, a frail woman, to remain unblemished by the squalor around her. He didn’t want her to feel disrespected...
Visit freewёbnoνel.com for the best novel reading experience.
Let it be, it’s more important to go back and please his wife.
As Li Nuo had just reached the street, he suddenly turned back.
A man led two government officers into the Jade Sound Pavilion and pointed at the academy student, loudly saying, "It’s him, it’s him who just spoke ill of His Majesty!"
A constable from the County Magistrate’s Office looked at the young student and asked, "Is what he said true?"
This unknown academy student did not show any fear upon hearing this, but instead straightened his chest and loudly retorted, "So what if I said it? Am I wrong? His Majesty hasn’t bothered with state affairs for ten years, chasing after some elixir of life. He doesn’t count as a wise emperor. Aren’t people allowed to speak now?"
As he spoke, an invisible aura suddenly surged from within his body.
This aura was not perceptible to ordinary people.
But Li Nuo could feel a righteous energy hitting him, and a look of surprise appeared on his face.
Vast Righteous Qi.
This was his first encounter with a true Confucian Disciple.
No wonder he was so bold, even daring to curse the emperor.
Only such a person could cultivate Vast Righteous Qi.
The two constables, just as they were about to take the disrespectful person away, a figure stepped forward and said, "Even daring to arrest a scholar from the academy, won’t Lord Pei skin you alive when you get back?"
Seeing Li Nuo, the men shivered and respectfully said, "Young Master!"
Li Nuo waved his hand and said, "This has nothing to do with you anymore, go back to your duties..."
At the command of the young master, they dared not disobey, and they quickly ran off.
The surprised student then looked at Li Nuo, fist-palmed his hands in thanks, and said, "Thank you for your help, may I inquire the distinguished name and surname of my benefactor..."
Li Nuo waved his hand and replied, "Sorry, my house is on fire, perhaps we’ll meet again if fate allows..."
...
By the time Li Nuo returned to the Song Residence, he still hadn’t figured out how to mollify his wife.
Who would have thought that his wife suddenly wanted to go to the Jade Sound Pavilion and happened to encounter a nosy and self-righteous individual?
Luckily, he had told her everything the day before, otherwise, the situation might have been worse.
As Li Nuo entered the small courtyard, pondering how to start speaking, suddenly he saw his wife run out of the room in a panicked state.
Li Nuo, having never seen her with such an expression before, quickly approached and asked, "What’s wrong?"
Song Jiaren looked at him and murmured, "My paintings, my paintings are gone..."
Moments later, Li Nuo quickly stepped into the room.
To say that the paintings were gone wasn’t exactly precise.
After a theft last time, Li Nuo had re-painted one for her, which hadn’t been stolen this time.
Apart from that one, several other paintings had been taken.
But strangely, why didn’t they steal it last time and chose to split it into two occasions...
Perhaps the thief felt good about the last stolen painting and decided to return?
Apart from these paintings, nothing else of value was missing from the home.
Clearly, it was the same person as before.
No traces of forced entry were on the outside of the cabinet, but it was opened, and the wife detected a remnant of True Qi on the lock.
The thief who stole the paintings was a High Realm Martial Artist, at least from the Fourth Realm.
With the wife absent, a martial artist from the Fourth Realm entering the Song Family was not a difficult task.
However, why such a high-level expert would go into someone else’s home to steal things, and only inexpensive paintings at that, is puzzling...
Li Nuo thought of the Jade Ruyi stolen last time, if it was the same thief, everything made sense. Someone from the Fourth Realm could Retrieve objects from the air using True Qi, the Song Family’s maid, of course, couldn’t notice.
That theft of the Jade Ruyi nearly embarrassed his wife in front of all friends and family of the Song Residence.
His wife cherished those paintings, so the person specifically targeted her paintings.
The loss wasn’t significant, but it was extremely insulting.
Clearly, this thief bore a grudge against her.
From a young age, she offended too many people, so it’s impossible to pinpoint a suspect.
Song Jiaren looked hopefully at Li Nuo.
He would paint a few more for her, wouldn’t he?
Li Nuo looked at his wife and suddenly realized something.
It seemed—the roles had reversed!
The paintings were of little value, but only he in the Song Family could paint them.
This little thief had indeed chosen an opportune moment.
This time, Li Nuo did not initiate the conversation.
Initiating too often might seem desperate.
He planned to wait for her to ask him first.
Seeing his lack of immediate response, Song Jiaren softly called out, "Husband…"
See, she had already started calling him ’husband.’
Li Nuo said nothing but reassured her, "It’s okay, it’s just a few paintings, nothing else was missing, I will paint more for you when I’m free…"
After a moment of silence, Song Jiaren said, "Husband, about that ’Phoenix Seeking His Mate’..."
Li Nuo replied, "I’m free now, I will repaint it for you right away…"