Time Travel: The Noble Family-Chapter 1221 - 512: War Breaks Out (Part 1)

The woman in a water-red dress beside her asked, "I heard that to watch her dance, it costs a fortune." Hiring an opera troupe costs only a few hundred taels of silver, yet inviting a girl from the brothel to dance costs a fortune; it’s truly not worth it.

Yueyao smiled faintly and said, "I told her that if her dance satisfies me, I will paint a picture." If not satisfied, then there will be no painting.

Mingzhu observed that the audience, though gossiping, was much better than she expected: "Yueyao, are you satisfied or not?"

Yueyao nodded slightly: "I think her dance is beautiful, worthy of my brush." Of course, Yueyao only promised to paint for her but did not promise to give her the painting.

The woman in the water-red dress nodded: "Yes, today’s dance is indeed beautiful. Compared to today’s dance, the performances by the home-kept dancers appear dreadful. Unfortunately, Miss Xiang Ru is hard to book; otherwise, I would definitely support her.

Yueyao nodded with a smile, though she felt a bit strange inside.

Mingzhu explained beside her: "Yueyao, this is Madam Yun, Patrol Yun’s wife. Madam Yun loves song and dance." This Madam Yun is quite famous in Suzhou because she especially enjoys watching dance performances. However, on ordinary days, Madam Yun only listens to performances by her home-kept singers and does not engage in any outlandish behaviors.

With Madam Yun’s comments, Yueyao’s behavior was not considered rebellious.

Mingzhu invited everyone to dine. The floor of the room was laid with exquisitely crafted red carpets woven with beautiful patterns, flanked by eighteen carved chairs on each side. Usually, such an arrangement would seem spacious, but today it was bustling.

After a short conversation in the room, everyone went to have lunch.

Mingzhu saw off the guests and said to Yueyao, "I must say, your status as a painter does offer considerable convenience." Mingzhu could see that while many in the audience seemed surprised, none looked at Yueyao with strange eyes. This situation indicated that Yueyao’s behavior was within their acceptable range.

Yueyao laughed and said, "I only invited the oiran from the brothel to dance; it’s not like I went to the brothel to watch the oiran dance, so what’s there to gossip about?"

Xiang Wei playfully remarked, "You once wanted to take a night tour of Qinhuai River. With this as a prelude, watching brothel girls dance isn’t unusual."

Yueyao said, "I am very tired and need to go back to rest." After the nap, she still had to paint; there were three paintings waiting for her to complete, a daunting task. Of course, compared to the portraits for Xiang Ru and Mingzhu, Elder Liu’s painting was the most mentally taxing.

Mingzhu helplessly shook her head: "You’ve painted for a whole day and never complained of being tired; today, you did nothing, and yet you’re exhausted?"

Xiang Wei understood well: "It’s mental fatigue." Doing what you love naturally doesn’t tire you out.

As soon as Yueyao lay down, she slept soundly.

Mingzhu, hearing Yueyao asleep, felt quite envious: "I used to sleep a lot too, always feeling like I couldn’t get enough rest. Now, I’m struggling to fall asleep, alas, truly getting old."

Xiang Wei was always blunt: "You aren’t aged; you’re mentally worn out. If you don’t adjust yourself, in a few years, standing next to Yueyao, people will think you are her mother, not her sister."

Mingzhu disliked Xiang Wei’s sharp tongue the most: "You don’t have to speak if no one wants you to stop being a mute!" Such an annoying woman.

The two were bickering when Niu Yanghui’s Attendant came over to deliver some news. Mingzhu’s face turned pale, and she hurriedly went into the room to wake the soundly sleeping Yueyao: "Yueyao, wake up, something terrible happened."

Yueyao suddenly lost all sleepiness, opened her eyes wide, and asked, "What happened?"

Holding Yueyao’s hand, Mingzhu said, "The Northwest is at war with the Barbarian Tribes." With this battle, An Zhichen, as a general, is facing an increased risk level.