The Return of the Pampered Wife

Chapter 15

Chapter 15: Man Yue

In the midst of the bustling heat of Yu Gong*, an exclusive place was opened in Pin Shu street, across from the Light Pavilions. The anonymous master had named it 'Man Yue', Meaning 'Full Moon'. The entrance itself was fancy and unique. The doors were veiled by a sheer cloth made with spider thread but were still shining through vividly. Among the citizens of Yu Gong, the gongzi** and guniang*** showed interest in this new addition.

(* = Yu Gong is the capital of Southern Xu

** = Young masters of rich families

*** = Young misses of rich families)

Among them were Da Xiaojie of An Fu An Xin Wu, Er Xiaojie of An Fu An Song Fei, Da Xiaojie of Song Fu Song Han Qing, San Xiaojie of Song Fu Song Lan Ah, Da Xiaojie of Dongfang Fu Dongfang Ru Huo, Er Xiaojie of Dongfang Fu Dongfang Wou You, Da Xiaojie of Bai Fu Bai Dai Yu, San Shaoye of An Fu An Tu Bai, Si Shaoye of An Fu An Xu Gong, Er Shaoye of Song Fu Song Bing Wen, Da Shaoye of Bai Fu Bai Long Wei, Er Shaoye of Tang Fu Tang Ying Jie, Da Shoaye of Chen Fu Chen Jing Yu and Er Shaoye of Chen Fu Chen Ming Yu. Namely, the gongzi and guniang from the best fu's of Yu Gong. The group of 7 xiaojie and 7 shaoye were the most influential, rich and well known in the capital. The group of 14 were all similar in age, and has prestige in the fu. On the sunny day of the opening of 'Man Yue', 11 of the 14 gongzi and guniang were in a private room on the third floor.

"Wou You ah, where is Ru Huo?" An Song Fei looked at Wou You with a questioning look, while embroidering a blue sparrow.

"Got called into the hougong* by the Empress. Jie Jie will be back by evening by the hour of the sheep**, lets be patient."

( * = It's the royal harem of the royal palace.

** = The ancient chinese way of counting time. The hour of the sheep is from 1 pm to 3 pm.)

The young ladies paused to listen then nodded before going back to their embroidery.

The gongzi were laughing boisterously while Tang Ying Jie and Chen Ming Yu were exchanging moves. An Tu Bai was drinking in a carefree manner with eyes curved into crescent moons.

Tang Ying Jie's moves were frisky and contained comical jumps and flairs. On the other hand, Chen Ming Yu's moves were stoic, serious and each move was dangerous and forceful. The Tang family was a merchant family; they controlled most of the economy in Yu Gong other than the Light Pavilions. The amount of money they possessed was unknown but potentially more than the nation's treasury. Chen family had a long lineage of Generals; their ancestor was known to be the Honorable Great General Chen; the highest rank of command within the military. He had fought on the  front lines with the Great Emperor and conquered lands with strategies unknown and deadly. The warfare strategies remained in the Chen Family, only available to the Family Head, protected for generations to in turn, defend Southern Xu.

At the end, Tang Ying Jie relented and tossed a jade pendant out to Chen Ming Yu, still proudly saying, "Fine! Take it ah! No need to be so serious!" This brought a quiet laugh from Bai Dai Yu, eventually leading to all the xiaojie covering their faces to mask the laughter. Seeing Tang Ying Jie's sorry figure, the shaoye also laughed, causing Tang Ying Jie's face to become red from embarrassment. As he sprinted out of the room, he stopped and turned back.

"Aiyo, now that Huo'er mei mei is here, none of you can bully me!" His posture returned to the previous arrogance and frivolous posture as he fanned himself.

"Huo'er mei mei ah? Song An Fei looked behind Tang Ying Jie to see Ru Huo and stood up quickly to greet her.

"Huo'er mei mei ah, all of us have been waiting! You'er tells us that you went to the palace today, how was it?" Song An Fei immediately ushered her to a chair while Song Lan Ah poured her a cup of long jing tea. As Ru Huo raised her hand to take the cup, her eyes immediately shifted to emit a cold light.