After leaving the previous discussion, the banquet was filled with idle chatter.
There was no longer any initial tension, and everyone was more relaxed.
The atmosphere relaxed a little, and the juniors at the small table started chattering again.
Zheng Liangqiu invited Bai Song to drink with the intention of repairing the relationship between the two families.
This was done at the behest of Zheng Tai'a. In previous years, his Zheng family should have hosted such occasions, but now it has been replaced by the Chen family. He just sat aside and said nothing, but how could he not be anxious?
That man named Bai Song is really a demon king. Not only did he disturb the Zheng family, but now he is appreciated by the King of Shu. He seems to have a bright future. How can the Zheng family have any reason to settle accounts with him again?
Zheng Liangqiu got a signal from his father today and even more earnestly praised Bai Song.
First, the little sister at the table said that the girl was particularly curious when talking about men.
In addition, Bai Song was good-looking, and when he came to the table, he was toasted by the girls one after another before he sat down.
Bai Song drank wine from ladies from various families. Fortunately, what happened today, otherwise how would he have the chance to be surrounded by such beauties?
Bai Song was drinking here, and the young men at the table over there were even more jealous.
They gathered together to drink wine and scold each other, which was completely different from the girl's table.
There were not many guests at the remaining table, because Chen Xirong was sitting alone drinking, drinking one cup after another without knowing what was going on, and it looked like he was suffering from depression.
The sisters who were good friends in the past tried to comfort her and asked for details, but they were pushed back by Chen Xirong's unprovoked temper. Many sisters were unhappy and simply ignored her. Instead, they came to Zheng Liangqiu to complain softly.
The girls at the table looked at Chen Xirong and found it strange that she had become red-faced and drunk in a short while. Some people whispered in a low voice: "Where did this sister Chen get her depression? Why are she so depressed today? Then She drank all the wine bottles on the table."
"I was pointing at Young Master Bai like that, maybe I was filled with hatred, right? I wonder what kind of grudge there is between Sister Chen and Young Master Bai?"
Someone answered in a low voice: "Don't say it, we all know that Sister Chen's business experience has made the Chen family an unknown amount of money, but she fell down on Mr. Bai. I heard that Sister Chen followed the hoarding tree Skins and the like cost close to ten thousand taels of silver, but ended up wasting it all. However, Mr. Bai took advantage of this trend and made ten thousand taels to buy Mingchun Garden. If it were you, wouldn't you be angry? "
Everyone was stunned.
Then another person became suspicious: "What you said is right, but Sister Chen has always been generous. Even if she loses money, the Chen family will not be unable to bear it, and she will never be so depressed. I saw it, and I have to look into it carefully at this time. Only then can we explain clearly.”
"What other calculations are there?"
The man smiled: "We are all daughters, and we all know it in our hearts. Looking at Sister Chen like this, is there any other reason other than love?"
"Love affair? Could it be that Sister Chen also has a son she likes? This is really a strange news!"
"Silly girl, don't you understand? Let's not look at Sister Chen. Some people are different?"
Several gossipy girls were surprised when they heard this, and most of them turned to look at Bai Song.
Seeing this, I feel like I have discovered a new world. Everyone is full of joy and happiness. They gather together and say in one voice: "The deepest love brings the deepest responsibility!"
Now everything is clear.
The reason why Sister Chen is so depressed is not only because she lost money, but also because she lost money in front of the person she likes. She also blames the person she likes for not being able to understand the woman's thoughts. How could Sister Chen be the person who said such soft things? I was just waiting for Mr. Bai to give me a good look, but when he came to the wine table, he didn't even meet her, and he just made out with other girls here, leaving her alone.
Suddenly a message came from outside: "Miss Chen, it's time for your performance. Tourists from both sides of the Taiwan Strait are waiting. Don't make the tourists impatient."
Chen Xirong woke up from his drunken dream, dropped his wine glass, staggered out of the banquet hall, and reached the deck between the ships.
The juniors in the banquet hall were also interested. They all knew that Sister Chen invited the famous girl Qing'er from Yichun Academy, and they were counting on her for tonight's performance. They all left the table and walked to the deck nearest the stage.
Zheng Liangqiu also said sideways: "Mr. Bai, why don't we go and have a look too."
It was Chen Xirong who invited Qing'er?
This made Bai Song a little surprised. Who was the figure he saw behind the screen last time?
Could it be the young master of the Chen family?
Bai Song thought about it and followed Chen Xirong to the deck. He saw many tourists on both sides of the Weihe River, each holding lanterns and shouting excitedly. The whole world was covered by the cry of "Qing'er". The stars in the sky and the reflection of thousands of lanterns decorated the river surface into the most beautiful scenery. Brilliant stage.
But on that stage, after the previous performer left the stage, no one was seen on the stage for a long time.
Chen Xirong sobered up for a while and hurriedly called the maid to ask why she didn't see Miss Qing'er.
The maid replied anxiously: "Miss, Miss Qing'er didn't come here at all tonight."
"What?" Chen Xirong's expression changed, "Impossible! Qing'er told me very well that we should be well prepared tonight and send someone to look for him immediately. He must be somewhere."
Chen Xirong was a little flustered, but the juniors on the deck were no longer busy.
When the young masters from each family saw Bai Song alone surrounded by the girl, someone finally came forward and started to stir up trouble.
"Mr. Bai, I have admired your name for a long time. On this festive occasion, how can we, the literati, not write poems? This city is full of sparks, and the wonders are rare to see. I kindly ask you to recite a poem for us to enjoy."
"Mr. Bai is a businessman, but he doesn't have your literary skills."
The girl knew that the young master had bad intentions and wanted to see Mr. Bai make a fool of himself, so she naturally came up to argue.
The young master had been prepared for a long time and said: "You don't know something. Mr. Bai comes from a poor family and is a scholar who will not be able to obtain fame in the future. How can he not understand poetry and prose? It is rare for young people like us to get together tonight. I hope Young Master Bai will not hesitate to teach me, if Young Master is still unwilling, could it be that he looks down on us?"
"That's right! Mr. Bai, if you can be appreciated by our fathers, you must be outstanding. Don't let us down."
Chen Xirong was a little worried. She didn't want Bai Song to be in a bad mood, so she asked in a low voice: "Mr. Bai, you..."
Bai Song didn't care at all about these children playing house, and was still thinking about Qing'er.
Tonight Qing'er agreed to perform at the Chen family, but now she has not shown up, plus she sent a message to Bai Song before.
Bai Songxin said something was going to happen.
As soon as my thoughts reached this point, a fire suddenly appeared on the Flower Street a hundred meters away, as if something was burning. The sky over there lit up, and the surrounding tourists became chaotic. Many people fell into the water in the chaos. inside.
It's just starting to gain momentum over there, and many people aren't paying attention.
Bai Song frowned and wanted to change places to see more clearly.
Unexpectedly, when Bai Song was about to leave, he was pulled back by several young masters: "Hey, I haven't finished the poem yet, so don't leave! Mr. Bai, don't ruin everyone's interest."
Bai Song didn't want to pay attention to them and said casually:
“At midnight last year, the lights in the flower market were as bright as day.
When the moon reaches the top of the willow tree, people meet at dusk.
At midnight this year, the moon and lights are still the same.
I don't see the person from last year, and my spring shirt sleeves are wet with tears. "
After everyone listened, they were all stunned in place, not wanting to say a few simple words but giving people a faint sentimental feeling.
Compared with the pile of gorgeous words, such a simple but sincere poem is particularly shocking.
Especially after the country's great victory, the people are immersed in joy.
I didn't want to hear the sadness of not seeing the person last year from Mr. Bai's mouth, which formed a sharp contrast with the lively world.
It was composed casually in a short time, which is admirable.
Especially when it fell into the ears of girls from various families, they discovered that Mr. Bai was a crazy person.
People are still not finished in the poem, but the poet has already left everyone behind and walked to the bow of the boat.
Dongxiang couldn't say anything before, so she followed the young master to the edge and saw the fire on the other side.
"That direction..." Bai Song murmured.
"Could it be Yichunyuan?" Dongxiang said.
Bai Song was still doubtful, but when he heard Dongxiang's words again, he was convinced, and his expression immediately became serious.
"Yichun Courtyard is on fire!"
Hearing this, two people on the bow shouted in unison: "Qing'er!"
It was Chen Xirong who was standing at the bow of the boat who said the same thing as Bai Song.
Chen Xirong staggered, and the people who squeezed the bow of the boat were about to go to the other side from the aisle. However, an officer and soldier came quickly and blocked Chen Xirong at the bow of the boat, unable to move away.
The officers and soldiers were anxious and called the prince from a distance.
He was blocked by Chen Xirong on the way, but he didn't dare to push him.
Li Zhan came looking for the voice and responded loudly: "What's the matter?"
The officers and soldiers were in a hurry and did not care about avoiding taboos. They shouted: "Master Chiang asked the villain to send a message. There is a fire in Yichun courtyard. The girl from Yichun courtyard has sneaked out of the city with several carts of money."
"What?!" Li Zhan was shocked. The news was unexpected. As soon as it passed through his mind, he knew that he had fallen into the trap of the Holy Lotus Sect.
"That witch is really cunning! Where did they get the money?"
"It seems that the silver coins were allocated from the Chen family's treasury, and the other party put the silver coins into a dung truck and mixed it out of the city."
"Chen family treasury!"
Li Zhan frowned and turned around to grab the head of the Chen family who had just come out of the interrogation.
"What did you do? Why did the White Lotus Church get silver from your Chen family?"
Chen Fan looked confused: "Your Majesty, why did you say this?!"
"Oops! The demon from the Holy Lotus Sect got some silver and transferred it out of the city, but it has already been gone! That silver belongs to your Chen family!"
"This is impossible. All the money of my Chen family will be handed over to..."
Chen Fan realized something and quickly shouted: "Xirong!"
After listening to the conversation just now, Chen Xirong collapsed on the ground and his soul was gone.
When Bai Song saw it, he knew something was wrong. He must have been tricked by the Chen family!
The figure I saw that day must be someone from the Chen family.
And the reality that I was unwilling to admit has now been forced to admit.
Qing'er is really inseparable from the Holy Lotus Sect!
"Xirong! Xirong... you should say something! What's going on?"
Chen Fan ran up to his daughter, grabbed her stunned shoulders and shook her.
And Chen Xirong was like a dead person, his eyes were lifeless and motionless.
When Chen Fan saw it, he shouted "It's over!"
He turned around and asked again: "How much silver did the Holy Lotus Sect demon take away?"
Li Zhan was so angry that he stamped his feet and gestured: "A full five thousand!"
