(8)
After this battle, no obsessed person dared to harbor evil thoughts towards the two wandering artists who had come all the way from Beizhen. Those who had coveted Yao Gu's beauty before, those who had dreamed of stealing love from Niu Li, and those who had doubted the identity of this poor couple were all because of Murong Yan's extremely ugly face. As well as Bai Feng's weak and incompetent posture, he gave up all kinds of unrealistic fantasies.
Therefore, Murong Yan had just performed in public a few times, and within two or three days, she went from being the one everyone was willing to follow and flirting with famous celebrities, to being the target of public criticism.
Every time he performed on stage after that, the overwhelming voices of doubt would always drown out the praise that he should have received. It seems that the news that Yaogu's appearance was destroyed has spread throughout Yumantang. Gradually, no one wanted to invite Bai Feng and Murong Yan to perform on stage.
Sometimes being sought after by others is not necessarily a good thing. At least for this poor couple, being ignored by others would be more in line with their hearts: Such superficial pursuit is often more like hanging on their heads. on the knife.
In the following days, they rarely had the opportunity to perform on stage, so they became even more impoverished. In addition to still having a tile to cover his head and enough food and clothing to provide him with three meals a day, he can't even afford toiletries on weekdays.
Despite this, they would still go out together during the day and come back very late at night. The first thing they did after returning to Yumantang was to find a boy and ask, "Is there any news about Mr. Su?"
Then they would go straight back to their room, and the next day they would go out together again, basically every day, and so on. Occasionally, dignitaries would invite them to their homes to play music and dance. After they earned some money, they would think about washing away the smog and dust all over their bodies.
In fact, as long as you buy some new low-quality rouge and gouache, buy a steaming plate of bath water covered with flower petals, and add in the food and lodging expenses that must be paid on time every day, there will not be much money left in the end.
The servants who were concerned about the couple secretly discussed behind their backs: "They are so down and yet they still want to stay here. They don't forget to look for news about Mr. Su every day. Could it be that they have something urgent to ask for?"
Soon, these boys conveyed this suspicious behavior to the ears of Mrs. Xiang who was still recuperating in Yumantang.
Mrs. Xiang's body is thinner than a few months ago. Now she can't even wear more solemn clothes. She can only wear a tulle on weekdays. When the weather gets cold, she wears a thicker layer outside. Cloth fur. Her hair was disheveled and she had to be helped to sit, lie down and stand up.
When she stands in front of the window sill, you will be afraid that she will suddenly be blown away by a gust of wind; when you watch her eating, you will be afraid that she will suddenly be swallowed; when you talk next to her, you will be afraid that if you accidentally raise your voice, she will be swallowed. Fainted with fright.
Mrs. Xiang was very ill. Her body was no heavier than a few stacks of rice paper, her strength was no more than that of a newborn child, and her courage was no more than that of a tiny insect.
Although there is no shortage of servants and servants to take care of her, and she can eat a lot of valuable food and medicine every day, she has almost everything, but has nothing.
One day, Mrs. Xiang felt that it was necessary to interview the mysterious couple and ask her husband what important matter they had. At the same time, she seemed to have guessed the reason why the other party was unwilling to go to her directly to ask, so she deliberately sent her confidant Zichai to visit him late at night.
It was night, Zichai was holding tea and snacks, pretending to be delivering tea and water, and deceived the guards and supervisors under the eunuch Mei Lin, walked to the house where the poor couple lived, knocked on the door and asked : "Miss Yao, Mr. Niu, Zichai is here to bring you snacks!"
At this time, Bai Feng happened to be taking off Murong Yan's disguise. It was a simple leather mask with burn marks on the surface. Due to time constraints, the two of them were not able to make it very well - probably Just take a piece of pigskin-like stuff at random, brand it with burnt marks, thread it with needles and thread, and then tie it to a person's face.
Due to the sudden attack of visitors outside the door, the young swordsman was not well prepared, so he quietly asked Murong Yan to take the Longming Sword that he had just taken back, hid on the bed, lowered the curtain in a defensive posture, and then stepped forward He answered the door and said, "Who is this purple hairpin girl? I've never met her before."
What Zichai saw was a handsome young man, but his clothes were a little dull, but Bai Feng's eyes were not like those of the boys she usually met. These eyes were shining and very attractive, even if he didn't look at him directly. Have looked at myself.
"My lady, Mrs. Xiang, gave this to you. I heard that Mr. Niu and Miss Yao have been in trouble recently. Is it true?"
"It turns out it's Mrs. Xiang's kindness. I'm really grateful!" Bai Feng bowed her hands and said in respect: "I had the honor to listen to Mrs. Xiang's song "The Tears of the King of Xiang" with my own ears. It was really amazing! I just recently heard about Xiang. Madam is in ill health, I wonder how she is doing these days?"
"Mrs. Xiang's health is not good because she is thinking about all the skilled actors and Mr. Su who has been away for several days." Zi Chai said: "In recent days, you two have been looking for news about Mr. Su every day. Could it be that you have something important in mind to tell me?"
"No, we just want to meet Mr. Su as soon as possible so that we can have peace of mind when we make a living in the future!"
"Whether it is yes or no, our lady wants to meet you. Please, Mr. Niu and Miss Yao, please don't leave the room early tomorrow morning and just wait for Zichai to arrive."
After that, the slave girl retreated.
There are guards patrolling every entrance and door of Yumantang. They work day and night to collect all suspicious information. The person closest to Su Qing will definitely be under special guard. For this reason, Bai Feng and Murong Yan absolutely did not dare to visit Mrs. Xiang rashly.
But now that Mrs. Xiang has a legitimate invitation, they don't need to worry too much.
The next day, Zichai arrived as promised. Bai Feng and Murong Yan, who had already prepared themselves, were about to move to Mrs. Xiang's residence. Unexpectedly, Mrs. Xiang's figure appeared from between the two guards in front of the door. .
Mrs. Xiang is very ugly now, with a sallow complexion and a gloomy face. Even if she occasionally smiles when she is happy, it is a very forced smile.
When the host couple saw such a frail Mrs. Xiang, they naturally came forward to greet her and said, "Excuse me for your visit, Mrs. Xiang. Why don't you let me come and visit?"
Mrs. Xiang said: "I heard that a Xianbei couple who knows music recently came to Yumantang. They want to ask for some advice on music. They just complain that they are ill and have not found the opportunity for a long time..."
After finishing speaking, Zi Chai closed the door and retreated. But after a while, a different rhythm began to sound intermittently inside the room, making people feel as if they were really exchanging artistic experiences.
