LUO YAN walked silently towards the bamboo forest. He was quite surprised to see that there wasn’t even one guard around. Are they so confident that a group of courtesans couldn’t do any harm to the prince’s manor? He stealthily walked to the direction of the shadows that he saw. When he heard two voices talking, he immediately hid himself behind tall bushes of bamboos.


    He peeked behind the bamboos. Then he saw two people – a man wearing an exquisite green robe and a young woman wearing a maid costume. The man was holding the maid in his arms.


    What’s this? A rendezvous?


    Then the maid pushed the man away. "No, we can’t do this, Young Master An. You’re about to be married to second young miss."


    "That marriage is just something our parents decided. You’re the one I love, Meigui!" the man said, trying to hug the maid again.


    The maid tried to dodge and push the young man away. "D-don’t say that, young master. I- I feel sorry for second young miss," she said, tears in her eyes.


    "I don’t care. I don’t care about that woman at all! Even if we marry, you’re the only woman I’ll love." Then he forcefully hugged the maid.


    "Young Master An—"


    "Don’t say anything. I’ll marry Lin Ke. But after that, I’ll immediately make you my concubine. That way, no one wouldin."


    "Young master..." The maid looked moved. Then he raised her head towards the man as if waiting for a kiss.


    "Meigui..."


    When it seemed like the man was about to kiss the maid, Luo Yan turned around and quietly walked out of the bamboo forest.


    What was that? A forbidden love between a maid and a young master? If he understood everything correctly, the man in the green robe was the fiancé of the second miss of the prince’s manor. Considering the prince’s age, that second miss was most probably his granddaughter.


    Even if the prince was the Emperor’s brother, that didn’t mean that his descendants would have the title of princes or princesses. Unless the Emperor bestowed that title to them.


    Anyway, this man engaged to the second miss was obviously in a secret rtionship with the maid. If you considered the usual drama, then that maid was most probably the maid of that second miss. She probably seduced that young master. Ah, what a white lotus b*tch."


    But what did that scene he witnessed had to do with anything? Surely, it meant something. That scene wouldn’t be put here, some ce near where he – someone who reced an NPC – would be. Unless, of course, it’s rted to one of the mysteries. Wait- how would he know what’s a mystery and what’s not anyway?


    When Luo Yan entered the courtyard, Madam Ru only nced at him before she continued talking with the yellow robed girl he first met earlier. After almost 15 minutes of waiting, the two maidservants who led them here arrived and told them that it’s time for their performance.


    They led them out of the courtyard and into one of the manor’s gardens. The plum blossom garden. It’s where the banquet was being held. While walking, Luo Yan truly understood just how big this manor was. It almost seemed like a huge park.


    After a few minutes of walking, they saw rows of beautiful blooming plum trees at the distance. They could hear the sound of celebration. When they entered the area of the banquet, Luo Yan immediately saw the people there. All of them were men. Because back in ancient times, during celebrations like these, men and women had separate areas.


    Luo Yan secretly stared at each of the guests. Not so surprising, he saw that man wearing a green robe who had a rendezvous with that maid in the bamboo forest. Then he moved his gaze to the main seats.


    The one sitting on the very top spot was a teenager who looked to be about 15 or 16. He was wearing a blue brocade robe with golden cloud embroideries. Probably because of his age, he looked a bit delicate. But one could still see that once he shed his youthful features, he’d definitely grow into a handsome young man. Considering his seating position, this teenager was definitely the crown prince. Because he was the one with the highest rank here.


    One seat below him was an old man wearing a white robe. There were creases and lines on his face, the most prominent were on the corners of his eyes. A sign that he was definitely someone who loved tough. He looked like a jovial old man. The type of grandfather that kids would love. This one could only be the birthday celebrant – Prince Lin Rong.


    There were two men sitting closely beside his seat. One was probably in his 40s, wearing a ck robe and had simr facial features to Prince Lin Rong. He even had the same friendly temperament. The other one was pretty young, maybe just in his 20s. He was also wearing a ck robe. Unlike the first one, he looked handsome and heroic. These two were most probably Prince Lin Rong’s son.


    Luo Yan heard that the prince also didn’t have a lot of sons. But he had at least two, which was one more than the Emperor.


    "Father, for your birthday, I invited the most talented girls of Yuexing Pavilion to perform for you. I hope you will enjoy and like it," the man who looked simr to the prince said.


    "I’m sure I will," the prince said with a smile on his face.


    "This prince heard plenty of good things about Yuexing Pavilion. This prince hope they would not disappoint," the crown prince said with a bit of arrogance in his voice.


    "I assure you, cousin will definitely enjoy it," Prince Lin Rong’s younger son said.


    Then the courtesans from Yuexing Pavilion were called to the center of the banquet area. Four girls positioned themselves at the back – two holding guqins and the other two holding bamboo flutes. Then five girls walked to the front, Luo Yan standing at the very center.


    Soon, melodious sound erupted from the musical instruments the four girls at the back yed. The sound was serene and soft. It just simply warmed the hearts of the people listening to it. Just by that music alone, it could already be considered as a wonderful performance. But then, the four girls at the front started moving alongside the music. Adding more vor to the performance.


    Luo Yan raised his head. Almost all the men there gasped at the sight of him.


    And then he danced.