Chapter Thirty-Six

  Fragrant Pavilion

  Qinhuai's eight beauties were good at singing and dancing, and could write poetry and compose essays. However, Xu Hongji and these nobles were illiterate and couldn't sing or dance, so they had to drink wine as a penalty. After several rounds of drinking games, Xu Hongji and Liu Kongzhao, who had the worst alcohol tolerance, were already drunk, while Zhao Zhilong, Chang Yanling, and Li Zushou also got somewhat tipsy, and all returned to their respective residences with the support of their servants.

  Only Wang Pu relied on his crookedness to get by until now and still hasn't drunk a single cup of wine.

  Liu Ruzuo and other famous southern opera singers were stirred up by Wang Pu's eccentric talent, and because Wang Pu was Chen Yuanyuan's husband, they naturally couldn't let him off easily. Taking advantage of Wang Pu going to the restroom, Li Damao removed two large round tables and replaced them with two eight-immortal tables, which were arranged together as a long table, set with fruit plates and fragrant tea. The eight famous southern opera singers then divided into two teams and sat cross-legged.

  Wang Pu returned home after finishing his errand and was taken aback by this scene.

  Liu Ruyi, Li Shiniang, Bian Yujing, and Li Xiangjun sat on the left, while Chen Yuanyuan, Gu Mei, Kou Baimen, and Dong Xiaowan sat on the right. The sixteen beautiful eyes of these eight famous Southern Opera beauties fell on Wang Pu at the same time, just like sixteen spotlights suddenly shining on his face, making him feel a bit dizzy.

  "This...". Wang Pu took one look at the situation and knew that Qin Huai's eight beauties were up to no good, his heart felt a bit apprehensive, he scratched his head and said, "It's getting late, why don't we just stop here?"

  "It's no good."

  Apart from Chen Yuanyuan's smiling silence, the other seven noblewomen unanimously refused.

  "What...?" Wang Pu asked with a start, "What are you trying to do?"

  Liu Ruyi asked in a delicate voice: "General, you dare to lead the lone army deep into Liaodong, surely you're not afraid of us eight little women?"

  "Are you afraid?" Wang Pu bluntly denied, "If anyone should be afraid, it's you who should fear General Ben, there's no reason for General Ben to fear you."

  It has always been that beauties are afraid of rascals, but it is rare to hear that rascals are afraid of beauties.

  Li Shiniang chuckled and said with a smile: "Since General is not afraid, then please take a seat."

  "Sit down then, General, you must be tired from standing."

  Wang Pu sat down at the head of the table with a natural momentum.

  Liu Ruyi's bright eyes flashed with a hint of cunning as she said, "We and Yuan Yuan are like sisters, and since Yuan Yuan lost her parents at a young age, we're equivalent to being her family. Although Yuan Yuan has already married the general, we sisters didn't know about it beforehand. Today, the general still needs to pass our test before their marriage can be considered perfect."

  "What's the big deal about this?!" Wang Pusu let out a sigh and said loudly, "Alright, go ahead and test them."

  Liu Ruyi blinked her beautiful eyes, Chen Yuanyuan shyly lowered her head, and the other six girls showed a knowing smile on their faces. Today's scene, this momentum, they actually had a premeditated plan.

  Yú Rú said, "Whether Yuán Yuán's sister can be happy in the future depends on whether the general can make her smile. As long as the general can make all eight of us sisters laugh, it will pass this test for a young woman."

  "Haha, that's it?" Wang Pu heard and laughed with great joy, saying, "You all listen well, in the past there were three sworn sisters who told each other everything. One day, the three sisters gathered together to whisper, the eldest sister said 'Yesterday I did that thing with him, it hurt so much, and I bled too. He wasn't gentle at all, it took several tries before he could get through my...'"

  The eight beauties of Qinhuai are all women of easy virtue, how can they not understand what Wang Pu's words mean?

  Liu Ruyi and Li Shiniang looked shocked, Bian Yujing, Kou Baimen, and Gu Mei had already started giggling, Li Xiangjun and Dong Xiaowan blushed bright red, Chen Yuanyuan couldn't help but think of her own first night, Wang Pu was also so ungentle, inserting himself into her with such force that it hurt and bled, Fang's heart felt ashamed, she really wanted to find a crack in the ground to hide in.

  Wang Pu pretended not to see anything and continued to say, "Just as big sister finished speaking, second sister followed up saying 'Big sister you don't know, doing this thing has to be quick, the quicker the better it won't hurt. I also went to find him yesterday, he only used one move and poked through mine, not very painful.'"

  Li Xiangjun and Dong Xiaowan, who had not yet experienced the matters of men, were already too ashamed to lift their heads, while Bian Yujing's face also became somewhat awkward. Liu Ruzi and Li Shiniang were already somewhat displeased, thinking to themselves: What is wrong with this Wang Pu? Speaking such vulgar words without any restraint in front of so many sisters, is he trying to be funny?

  Wang Pu still pretended not to see anything and continued, "At this time, Sanmei spoke up, 'Wow, I was originally planning to go find him in the afternoon, but hearing you guys talk about it so terrifyingly, I don't dare to go now.' Da Jie and Er Jie then advised Sanmei, 'Sanmei, you don't have to be afraid, and don't be nervous, it's just one time, and once it's over, it won't hurt.'"

  Liu Ruyi stood up and was about to leave, when Li Daigner, who was waiting on the side, couldn't help but glance at Wang Pu with a sly smile and said: "Oh my, General, you really dare to say anything!"

  "What did I say?" Wang Pu innocently spread his hands and said, "Aren't you two sisters just talking about ear piercing? Ear piercing can't be done without bleeding or pain, right? But you guys, what do you think I'm talking about? Oh, I see, you think I'm talking about that thing between men and women, huh? Look at you all, your minds are all thinking about something, geez."

  Several girls originally wanted to tease Wang Pu, but as a result, they were scolded by Wang Pu instead.

  "Ah?" Mrs. Li was first stunned, then burst out laughing, "General, you're really bad."

  On the other side, Li Xiangjun and Dong Xiaowan also burst into giggles. Even Liu Ruyu couldn't help but laugh, and with a mixture of annoyance and amusement, she said to Wang Pu: "Alright, General, you've passed this test, but don't think it'll be so easy with my sisters. You'd better be careful."

  "No problem." Wang Pu replied confidently, "You sisters come on over, I'll take care of it."

  Li Shiniang slowly got up and said word by word: "This pass is not difficult for a young girl, General, if you have the heart, then sing a little song for Yuan Yuan's sister."

  In the quiet room, all the sisters' beautiful eyes were fixed on Wang Pu.

  Li Shiniang's request seems ordinary, but it is actually not simple at all.

  In the Ming Dynasty, prostitutes had a very low social status. Although the famous courtesans on Qinhuai River were stunningly beautiful and captivating, they were still prostitutes at heart and had no social standing to speak of. Due to their low social status, even their occupations of selling smiles and songs became contemptible trades.

  Li Shiniang asked Wang Pu to sing a small tune in public like a prostitute, which can be said to be an excessive thing by the concept of that time. If it were someone else, they might have left with a flick of their sleeve. It was precisely because of this reason that Li Shiniang proposed this "excessive" request, just to see how much sacrifice Wang Pu could make for Chen Yuanyuan.

  Contrary to everyone's expectations, Wang Pu replied without hesitation: "Alright, no problem."

  Li Shiniang thought of all sorts of possibilities, but she didn't expect Wang Kui to agree without hesitation. The other sisters and Li Danni were also stunned, only Chen Yuanyuan's face showed a mixture of delight and annoyance. She was delighted that Wang Kui was willing to do anything for her, but annoyed that Shiniang shouldn't have made things difficult for him.

  Wang Pu's face revealed a hint of a triumphant smile, this matter really couldn't stump him!

  When Wang Pu was a hoodlum, he often went in and out of the song hall. This guy was born with a good voice, although he had never participated in any Star Avenue or released any records. His singing was really smooth, especially when singing Shaanxi folk songs, almost as good as Shaanxi Song King Abao.

  ……

  P.S: A few words:

  The theme of this book has two aspects, war and tenderness. Many readers have already acknowledged the level at which I write about war, but they are extremely unacknowledging of my writing about tenderness. However, what I want to say is that regardless of whether you acknowledge it or not, I must write about this tenderness. The worse the level, the more I need to write. If everyone really feels unbearable, then skip it for now. After I finish writing the emotional scenes in Nanjing and Beijing, I will start writing war scenes again, and by that time, it won't be too late to read them.

  If you really can't stand it, just give up directly then.