indianbanksassociation #164 - Chapter 164: Purple Jade and Green Lotus
#164 - Chapter 164: Purple Jade and Green Lotus
The two sat down in the Hibiscus Pavilion.
Several slender and graceful maids then walked in.
On the low tables in front of them were placed seasonal dried fruits and candied fruits.
Li Yuan saw that they were walnuts, almonds, melon seeds, and plums.
Besides the seasonal dried fruits,
four plates of pastries were also placed: lotus酥 (lotus酥), jujube泥饼 (jujube paste cake), osmanthus糕 (osmanthus cake), and lotus蓉包 (lotus seed paste bun).
In the middle of the table was a pot of fine welcoming tea, exuding a delicate fragrance.
The young Marquis next to him noticed the box beside Li Yuan.
He was a little curious and asked.
"Earl Qingyuan, what is this?"
Li Yuan smiled slightly.
"Didn't the young Marquis say he wanted to taste what that Immortal Brew tasted like?"
"What's in this box is it."
The young Marquis's eyes instantly revealed a look of surprise.
"Earl Qingyuan, you really have good means. I searched for that Immortal Brew all afternoon in the capital, but couldn't find a second bottle."
"I didn't expect you to actually have it here."
Li Yuan opened the box, inside were four bottles of Forget-Worry Brew.
These four bottles of wine were naturally obtained from the Dragon Marquis Mansion today.
The young Marquis was a little curious, he saw that the Immortal Brew bottles seemed to be exquisite five-colored porcelain bottles.
But what Li Yuan took out of the box were just ordinary white porcelain bottles.
However, he didn't ask much, if Earl Qingyuan said this was Immortal Brew, then it must be.
Just then, the enchanting Madam Wang walked in and asked.
"Two honored guests, would you like to invite some familiar girls to accompany you?"
The young Marquis turned his head and asked.
"Are Ziyu and Qinglian here?"
"This...."
Madam Wang hesitated.
Ziyu and Qinglian were the top courtesans of the Drunken Flower House, with outstanding looks and superb poetry and painting skills.
But these two girls were dressing up, because they had been booked by Young Master Shen to add to the fun of the poetry meeting.
The madam dared not hide anything and told the young Marquis the truth.
"Young Marquis, these two girls have already been booked by Young Master Shen."
"They will be attending his poetry meeting later."
"The deposit has already been given, and we can't have one woman serving two guests."
With a crisp sound of 'pa'.
Madam Wang was so frightened that she trembled all over.
She saw the young Marquis slap a gold ingot on the table, which looked like it weighed ten taels.
The young Marquis took out the arrogance he usually used when hanging out on the streets, and said leisurely.
"Madam Wang, do you think this money is enough?"
"If it is, quickly invite the two girls here."
"Lest I get unhappy and do something messy in this Drunken Flower House."
Madam Wang naturally knew of the young Marquis's prestige in the capital.
Compared to those scholars and literati, she dared not provoke this master even more.
Having been in the pleasure business for so long, the madam could also see.
Today, the young Marquis's purpose was probably to deal with Young Master Shen Moxuan.
The two were going to compete in this Drunken Flower House, what could she do?
If things really got tense, her Drunken Flower House would suffer.
But right now, she naturally had to appease the arrogant young Marquis first.
So Madam Wang quickly got up and said.
"This old servant understands."
"Please wait a moment, two honored guests."
"I will go and invite the two girls."
Hearing this, the young Marquis nodded in satisfaction.
He waved his hand at Madam Wang and said.
"Go and come back quickly."
After the worried Madam Wang left.
The young Marquis muttered coldly.
"Shen's kid."
"I didn't snatch that Immortal Brew from you, but the girls in this Drunken Flower House."
"I won't let you have them again."
Li Yuan laughed and said.
"Young Marquis, don't worry, that Immortal Brew."
"I'll let you taste it now."
After speaking, he took a white porcelain wine bottle, tapped it lightly with his hand, and opened the sealing mud.
Instantly, an indescribable aroma of wine wafted out.
The young Marquis was stunned, and immediately sniffed.
A look of surprise appeared on his face.
He had just seen that Li Yuan's wine bottle was just an ordinary white porcelain bottle, which was very different from the five-colored porcelain bottle of Immortal Brew.
He had some doubts in his heart.
But he didn't expect that after opening it, the taste would be so mellow and rich.
Li Yuan filled the wine cup and said to the young Marquis.
"Come, Young Master Zhao, taste how this tastes."
The young Marquis respectfully took the wine cup and took a small sip.
A mouthful of strong wine entered his throat, and the aroma of the wine instantly spread in his mouth.
The mellow and sweet aroma of the wine hit his taste buds directly.
The young Marquis's eyes lit up immediately, and he murmured.
"Good wine! Really good wine!"
"So this is what Immortal Brew tastes like!"
The wine brought by Earl Qingyuan tasted more mellow, sweet, and refreshing than the Celestial Brew he had tasted at noon.
The young Marquis closed his eyes, savoring the aroma of the wine in his mouth, with a look of intoxication.
Now the young Marquis believed that the white porcelain bottle that Li Yuan took out contained Immortal Brew.
But he was puzzled as to why the so-called Immortal Brew had two kinds of packaging.
Before he could ask in detail.
Just then, he suddenly heard someone in Peach Blossom Lane below say loudly.
"Young Master Shen, didn't you say you bought a top-quality wine to use as a prize?"
"Hurry up and take it out so we can all see it."
Shen Moxuan smiled and said to the scholars.
"Don't worry, everyone, I'll go get it."
After speaking, he carefully took out the five-colored porcelain bottle from the box beside him.
He raised the bottle and said proudly to everyone present.
"This wine is called Immortal Brew, I tasted it once at the Left Chancellor's house."
"The taste is sweet, mellow, and rich, it is a celestial product among wines."
"I searched for a long time before I found a bottle in the Golden Jade Building."
"This bottle cost me fifty strings of cash."
Hearing that the price was as high as fifty strings of cash, the scholars exclaimed in surprise.
Seeing everyone around him looking at the wine bottle with anticipation, Shen Moxuan was very proud and continued.
"The shopkeeper said that this wine is the only bottle in this capital city."
"It can be said to be extremely precious."
"Whoever writes a good poem later, we will reward him with a cup, what do you all think?"
Everyone cheered loudly.
"Drinking Immortal Brew and appreciating Young Master Shen's poetry."
"It is truly a joyous thing."
The young Marquis took another sip of Forget-Worry Brew, looking at the noisy scholars below.
He couldn't help but find it funny.
Just then, he heard voices in the corridor outside the house.
It seemed that a woman was acting coquettishly.
"Madam, haven't we been booked by Young Master Shen?"
"Why do we have to serve others again?"
"What! It's that young Marquis!"
"That guy... Madam... I don't want to go."
Then, there was another soft argument, obviously the madam was reprimanding the girl.
After waiting for a while, Madam Wang's voice came from outside the door.
"Two honored guests, you have been waiting for a long time, the girls have arrived."
"Ziyu, Qinglian, come in and greet the guests."
Only a sound of the Hibiscus Pavilion's door opening was heard.
Li Yuan looked up.
Two graceful and slender women appeared before his eyes.
He saw that these two girls were not very old.
Standing on the left was the girl Ziyu, this woman's eyebrows and eyes were picturesque, and her facial features were cold and beautiful.
She wore a light cyan Luo skirt, with a few orchids embroidered on the hem.
Outside, she wore a moon-white satin gauze dress, as thin as cicada wings, vaguely revealing the exquisite embroidery inside.
This girl Ziyu had a refined and ethereal temperament, and was indeed a rare beauty.
The other girl, Qinglian, had lively features and seductive eyes.
She wore a green brocade Luo skirt, embroidered with peonies in gold thread.
Her outer garment was a scarlet gauze, which was also exquisitely crafted.
This girl Qinglian was also a stunning beauty.
The appearance and temperament of these two women far surpassed the other women seen in the building.
Li Yuan nodded slightly.
However, what surprised Li Yuan a little was that the expressions on the faces of the two women were a little strange.
The reason was that before the two women came in, they were actually full of resentment.
Today's poetry meeting of Young Master Shen specially booked these two girls to be the finale.
Shen Moxuan was known as the number one talent in the capital, and he was considered handsome.
He also had a good reputation on this Qiluo Street.
Ziyu and Qinglian of the Drunken Flower House were not only excellent in appearance, but also proficient in everything from music to chess to calligraphy to painting.
If they could get a poem written for them by the number one talent in the capital at the poetry meeting.
And if the story of the talented man and beautiful woman spread out.
That would be a good story to make a name for themselves on the flower street.
So these two girls were very much looking forward to attending the poetry meeting today.
As a result, Madam Wang asked them to accompany some young Marquis first on the way.
The two girls were naturally full of sorrow and resentment.
They had been very awkward along the way, deliberately walking very slowly.