Since Fifth Miss Niu was soon to be married, Seventh Miss Niu, hoping to curry favor, had arranged lunch at Xiyingmen Restaurant. A bamboo curtain hung in the private room, shielding them from outside gazes while allowing Fifth Miss Niu to remove her veil to dine.
Two tables were set in the room. Seventh Miss accompanied her sister, reluctant to let Sang Shisi sit alone outside. Having servants but not using them—she just liked to torment him. When the waiter brought in dishes, Seventh Miss Niu would say, “My sister dislikes seeing outside men.” Thus Sang Shisi became an unpaid server—responsible for taking trays at the door and passing them to the Niu family’s maids.
When Yang Jingyuan pushed open the door, Sang Shisi’s formerly dejected face instantly brightened. He was so delighted he nearly burst into tears as he gave Yang Jingyuan a bear hug.
Through the misty bamboo curtain, Fifth Miss Niu glanced at Yang Jingyuan, her lips curling in contempt.
Seventh Miss Niu happened to catch this and, being straightforward, quickly asked, “Sister, what are you smiling at?”
The room wasn’t large, and Fifth Miss Niu’s voice, neither high nor low, reached Yang Jingyuan’s ears clearly: “I’m smiling because the Third Young Master of Yizhou’s Brocade King Yang family failed to win his lady’s favor and has slunk back with his tail between his legs.”
Sang Shisi drew in a sharp breath: “Third Brother, you abandoned me to chase after a young lady?”
Yang Jingyuan irritably pushed him away: “What do you mean, abandoned you to chase after a young lady? I’m not interested in men!”
“You wouldn’t dare even if you had the courage!” Seventh Miss Niu threatened with a smile, burning with curiosity. “Sister, how did you know?”
Fifth Miss Niu picked up a deer tendon for her and chuckled softly: “The peach blossom mark on his forehead is red, but there’s black ill fortune within. Naturally, his love life isn’t going smoothly.”
He had only returned because he’d promised Sang Shisi he would accompany him shopping and dining with Seventh Miss Niu today. He wouldn’t have come back otherwise, not wanting to break his word to Sang Shisi. Yang Jingyuan was already harboring anger, and hearing Fifth Miss Niu’s needle-sharp mockery, his temper instantly flared. He stood up abruptly and called out to the figure behind the bamboo curtain: “Fifth Miss Niu, for Sang Shisi’s sake, I’ve been patient again and again. If you continue with your sarcastic remarks, don’t blame me for being discourteous!”
Behind the bamboo curtain, Fifth Miss Niu straightened her back and challenged: “This is how I like to speak—how do you plan to be discourteous?”
Seeing the situation, Seventh Miss Niu hurriedly swallowed her deer tendon and stepped out from behind the curtain, face full of anticipation: “You’ve studied martial arts with that Daoist master on Mount Qingcheng for years. I’ve always wanted to test my skills against yours—want to have a match?”
The image of her lifting several hundred-pound Taihu rocks suddenly struck Sang Shisi’s mind. He hugged Yang Jingyuan and urgently advised: “Third Brother, don’t stoop to quarreling with women!”
“Let go!” Yang Jingyuan was in no mood to stay any longer. “Shisi, in the future, when Fifth Miss Niu is present, don’t blame me for not accompanying you.”
As he broke free from Sang Shisi’s grasp to leave, Fifth Miss Niu’s voice turned sharp: “What’s so great about you? Have you earned even a single coin of the silver you spend? You’re just a concubine-born son whose mother gained favor through her looks!”
She had bloodily torn away Yang Jingyuan’s facade of wealth. He slowly turned around, his usually gentle smile completely gone, veins bulging on his forehead in anger. Since the Yang family’s rejection of marriage, this woman had enjoyed provoking him. He stared at Fifth Miss Niu behind the bamboo curtain, as if he could see her tightly pressed lips and the excited light in her eyes.
Sang Shisi had never seen Yang Jingyuan like this. Like a cold stone statue, his entire being emanated a forbidding, violent aura. His heart ached terribly, feeling as if Fifth Miss Niu’s humiliation was directed at himself.
“Silence!” Sang Shisi’s blood rushed to his head as he stepped forward to shield Yang Jingyuan, saying to the Niu sisters, “Kind words warm like silk and cotton. Harmful words cut deeper than spears. Is this how the Niu family teaches their young ladies? I, Sang Shisi, would never deign to marry a Niu family daughter!”
“Sang Shisi! What did you say?! Are you taking the outsider’s side? You dare speak of breaking our engagement?!” Seventh Miss Niu was already shocked that Sang Shisi had grown bold enough to speak for Yang Jingyuan. Hearing his last words, her face changed dramatically in anger, and without thinking, she reached out to grab him.
Born with supernatural strength, if Seventh Miss Niu caught hold of him, Sang Shisi’s arm would at least be dislocated. Coming from a military family, Seventh Miss Niu didn’t consider such pain significant, and in her extreme anger, she didn’t think to use less force.
Sang Shisi regretted his words as soon as he’d spoken them. Seeing Seventh Miss Niu’s furious lunge toward him, his legs shook so badly he wanted to kneel and beg forgiveness. He closed his eyes, thinking that having finally shown some backbone once, he might as well let Seventh Miss Niu hurt him—it would provide an excuse to break off the engagement.
Yang Jingyuan’s anger had largely dissipated at Sang Shisi’s gesture. He pulled Sang Shisi back by his collar while his arm, soft as a snake, gently caught Seventh Miss Niu’s hand. With a shake and a tremor, he neutralized her strength. His fingers struck the pressure points on her arms, directly pushing her into Sang Shisi’s embrace.
He stared at Fifth Miss Niu behind the curtain and said lazily: “So what if I’m a concubine’s son and useless? You’re eager to marry, but I don’t want to marry you!”
A teacup flew from behind the bamboo curtain, hitting the curtain before shattering on the floor.
Fifth Miss Niu shrieked: “Who wants to marry you!”
Yang Jingyuan laughed: “Let me tell you the truth—that time you threw yourself into my arms, the powder fell from your face like snow, enough to make a bowl of dumplings. I got goosebumps on both arms that didn’t go away for three days. It’s best you’re not interested—I’m terrified!”
Fifth Miss Niu dug her fingers into her thigh to keep from jumping up in rage. She shouted: “I’m marrying the Zhao family’s Second Young Master next month. Even if you wanted to marry me, you wouldn’t have the fortune!”
“Third Brother Yang, how can you speak of my sister this way? That time she twisted her ankle coming down the stairs—her ankle was swollen and took half a month to heal!” Seventh Miss Niu, her body half-numb, leaned in Sang Shisi’s embrace, unable to struggle free, and called out anxiously.
Yang Jingyuan couldn’t be bothered to say more. He turned to Sang Shisi: “Take Seventh Miss somewhere else to eat.”
“Third Brother, she, I… I…” For the first time holding Seventh Miss Niu, Sang Shisi was frozen like his pressure points had been struck, not daring to move.
Yang Jingyuan gave him a sideways glance: “Hopeless!”
With that, he pushed open the door and left.
Sang Shisi held the beauty in his arms, his forehead beading with nervous sweat.
All the maids in the room lowered their heads, trembling and not daring to speak.
Fifth Miss Niu suddenly began to laugh softly, her laughter growing louder and louder.
“Sister, stop laughing!” Seventh Miss Niu tried to push away from Sang Shisi, but her arms had no strength. She turned to glare at him, “Let go!”
Sang Shisi blinked, seemingly unable to believe that Seventh Miss Niu hadn’t kicked him away. When he looked up, he saw Yang Jingyuan watching him and shaking his head. That expression of disappointment was almost identical to how his father, Secretary Sang, looked at him. From somewhere, he found a burst of courage, and gripping Seventh Miss Niu’s hand, he walked toward the exit, lecturing her as they went: “Your sister’s face has gone bad, and her mind has problems too. Stop letting her order you around and use you as her weapon! Otherwise, I’ll divorce you!”
Did he dare to threaten her? But he looked so handsome like this… Seventh Miss Niu’s mind went blank as she stared at Sang Shisi, stumbling as he pulled her out. Seeing this, her maid could only hurriedly bow to Fifth Miss Niu, calling out “Seventh Miss” as she chased after them.
Fifth Miss Niu was still laughing. With half the people gone, the private room felt overwhelmingly empty. She suddenly shouted: “All of you, get out!”
Her two serving maids didn’t dare raise their heads as they hurriedly retreated. After the door closed, the sound of things shattering came from inside.
She had fallen for him. When she fell down the stairs and he caught her, that’s when she fell in love with him.
She played the zither beautifully and painted wonderfully. She could cook a table full of delicious dishes. She had tried every way to invite him to her home, to show him everything she could do. But he had disdained it all.
The Yang family had politely refused the marriage. Fine, let him be a Daoist priest and never marry! What nonsense about practicing celibate martial arts—who was he trying to fool? Wasn’t it just because he despised the spots on her face? They could be covered with powder. What woman didn’t use powder? She just used a bit more.
What if the Yang family was the Brocade King? They were still just merchants. They had made her the laughingstock of Yizhou City—even a merchant family’s concubine-born son looked down on her. Who would marry her now?
He wouldn’t marry her; he even avoided her like a poisonous snake.
“Yang Jingyuan, what’s so great about you! You’re nothing but a superficial creature who judges by appearances!” Fifth Miss Niu furiously smashed bowls and plates, and hearing the crisp shattering sounds, she ground her teeth and said, “I will help the Zhao family crush the Yang family under their feet. I will make you penniless, kneeling at my feet begging for food!”