That Fair-Faced 'Sage' {Completed}

2. Trouble Arrives

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In the Tea Haven Restaurant, Xuè Shèngrén ignored all the stares and mutters around her.

Though several of them sat quite a distance from her, her skill level allowed her to easily hear everything that was being said in the restaurant, but she tuned them out, and poured herself another cup of wine.

She wasn't drunk... At least, not yet.

She needed about four to five gourds to get drunk, but only had three.

Still, she would have sat there quietly, content to mentally wish for more wine, but the howling wind had calmed a bit, so the restaurant had gotten quieter.

Which unfortunately made her pay a bit more attention to the music...

She rose a hand and spoke quite loudly. "You there! The fellow playing the guzheng." She hiccuped a little. "So the wind was the only source of pleasant sounds? Why play the instrument, like it wronged you in your past life?"

It took a few seconds for her words to sink in, and the musician's fingers halted on the strings. He was a bald man with a sharp short beard and an even sharper mustache, and he shot to his feet at once, ready for war.

"How dare you?!" He yelled "I noticed when you came in here! You didn't even drop a small bronze coin for my performance! You're a beggar looking down on free food!"

"Ei?!" She shot to her own feet, staggering slightly in a drunken imitation. If one wanted to cause trouble, acting drunk was the easiest way.

She pointed to the musician from behind the black veil. "It's you that's a beggar! Your whole family are beggars! I merely spoke the truth! Your music might make a person cut off their own ears, so why not accept the teaching and improve?! Why call me a beggar?!"

Most of the other customers had gasped at the words coming from such a tiny fellow, while a few laughed, but this further enraged the musician, who had turned red.

"You're obviously a beggar!" The musician made a series of spitting motions. "Cui cui cui!! Drinking and making trouble! If you are any better at playing the guzheng, come and play it!"

"Hmph!" She scoffed. "You think I won't dare to?! Why don't you bring it here?!" She could play the guzheng flawlessly, even in sleep, and she wondered whether to give the people here some entertainment...

But she never found out whether the musician would humour her or not, as her irises suddenly darted toward the restaurant's wooden door. "Hmm?"

Through the frosty air outside, she could sense danger approaching...

'Fun's over.' She thought, then pretended to collapse to her chair.

The muttering started at once.

"Eiss, such a useless drunk! Cui!" The musician, who had built up a lot of pent up steam, practically spat towards him.

"Wilted after causing trouble."

"He's dressed like a cultivator, so I thought we might get to see a decent fight!"

"Such a disappointing turn of events."

But the 'drunkard' was no longer paying any attention to them. She lifted her head so slightly, then held one hand in a seal, under her table.