Lian Erye in the Red Mansion

Xiaoxiang Pavilion was always deserted and quiet, and even the maids at the gate looked listless.

Suddenly, a woman in black robes and beautiful attire floated lightly and slowly along the stone path flanked by green bamboo.

Her beauty was as lovely as a fairy, and her figure was graceful. The maidservant who saw her felt both jealous and ashamed, yet also relieved and regretful. Not knowing whether she was just passing by, the maidservant did not greet her, but quietly straightened her posture to avoid losing face as a servant of the Duke's mansion.

The woman circled around for a moment before finally stopping. She stepped forward, clasped her hands together in a gesture of respect, and softly asked, "Is your young lady here?"

The maidservant hurriedly returned the half-hearted Buddhist greeting and quickly replied, "Second Mistress is hosting a celebration banquet for Second Master. Our young lady and Miss Zhen have both gone to drink and don't know when they'll be back. If you're looking for our young lady, come back later."

Within the Grand View Garden, everyone knew and discussed Miaoyu. This was not only because she possessed the beauty of a stunning woman despite being a Buddhist nun, but also because, although young, she was a person of enlightenment admired by the nobles of the mansion.

Therefore, although people found her strange and eccentric, no one dared to offend her.

Upon hearing that Daiyu was not there, Miaoyu said no more. After bowing, she turned and followed the winding path she had come from, leaving the territory of Xiaoxiang Pavilion.

He randomly chose a path that wasn't leading back to Longcui Nunnery, and wandered aimlessly, not knowing how far he had gone, when suddenly he heard faint sounds of a zither.

The zither music was melancholic and poignant, calming Miaoyu's mind. Looking up, she realized that Pear Fragrance Courtyard was not far ahead.

Without much hesitation, she went straight into it.

Pear Fragrance Courtyard was always noisy, but when she, standing out from the crowd, appeared in the courtyard, all the young actors who were diligently practicing their skills still turned their attention to her.

Miaoyu disliked noise, and even more so, she disliked the young actors. The young actors seemed to know this as well, so they only glanced at her curiously before ignoring her and continuing with their own tasks.

Following the sound of the zither, Miaoyu went alone to the side courtyard. Sure enough, in a pavilion in a corner of the side courtyard, she found the owner of the zither music—a famous courtesan he had brought back from Jiangnan, whose beauty even made the imperial concubine take notice.

Miaoyu called herself a refined person, so she did not appear casually to disturb her master playing the pine breeze. Instead, she stood behind a pot of crabapple blossoms and listened quietly.

The zither music was clear and without any noise, and the melody was also very unique. Miaoyu searched her memory but could not find a matching piece.

Miaoyu was arrogant, believing that she had studied all the famous pieces that existed in the world and that there was no reason for her not to recognize them. The fact that she could play non-extinct pieces to such an extent without stopping further demonstrated her mastery of the zither, proving that her reputation was not merely the praise of the world.

After the first piece ended, the owner of the pavilion did not play another, but instead sat quietly before the guqin. The cold wind that passed through the pavilion stirred a few strands of her long hair, but could not dispel her lonely and desolate figure.

Miaoyu frowned slightly, casually shrugged, and stepped out from behind Haitang.

What is the name of this piece?

A brief silence followed, then, "The Song of the Moon Palace" was composed.

"Who wrote it and when?"

"This piece was composed by chance when I was on Zhongwu Mountain in the suburbs of Suzhou, gazing at the pale moon at night."

"Are you also from Suzhou?"

"No, I went to Suzhou to learn a craft."

This time, Miaoyu fell silent. Having already entered the pavilion, she took a serious look at the famous courtesan from Jiangnan before her for the first time.

Then, she had to admit that the woman before her, who possessed an identity that would be repulsive to the world, including herself, truly had a beauty that surpassed all other women of her time.

This was the first time she had ever directly felt that there was actually a woman her age who could surpass her in appearance. Most importantly, this woman looked remarkably similar to her! She often looked at herself in the mirror with self-pity, and upon closer inspection of the woman before her, she could easily discover that the resemblance was not merely in facial features, but also in a coincidence that both women were stunning beauties, possessing the same demeanor and temperament.

Miaoyu was somewhat dazed. She wasn't wondering why the other person looked so much like her, but rather whether, if she herself were to boldly change into the other person's beautiful and well-fitting boudoir clothes, and adorn herself with hairpins, her beauty would surpass the other person's, or at least be on par with her.

While Miaoyu was staring blankly at Gu Qingyi, Gu Qingyi naturally looked Miaoyu over from head to toe as well.

But she didn't say anything, and her expression didn't change much. She just gestured to Miaoyu to sit down next to her and then started fiddling with the tea set next to her.

Miaoyu glanced at her complete tea set and suddenly said, "They...they've been very good to you, haven't they? Judging from the style of your tea set, it should be Suzhou-made, but I've lived in Suzhou for many years and have never seen it before. It must be specially made and can't be bought on the market."

Gu Qingyi lowered her eyes slightly, offered the teacup she had just brewed to Miaoyu, and then replied, "These things are not a reward from the manor. They gave them to me when I was in exile in Jiangnan. They said they were made by a family of teaware with a hundred-year history, and that there is only one set in the world."

I don't know if what they said is true or false, but I've gotten used to it over the years, so I brought it with me when I came to Beijing.

Hearing the woman's soft, almost self-deprecating voice, Miaoyu suddenly realized that this woman, like herself, was also someone caught in a bind. She abruptly asked, "You...you are also the descendant of a disgraced official?"

Although Miaoyu had lived in a nunnery since childhood, it was only in name. In reality, she lived a more luxurious life than most daughters of noble families. Even the nunnery where she lived was merely a special boudoir built for her by her father.

Therefore, she was actually just like other young ladies from noble families, inexperienced in the ways of the world. She thought that even if this woman in front of her had fallen into prostitution, it was probably not of her own volition, and perhaps, like herself, she was a descendant of a fallen official.

Gu Qingyi looked up at her, seemingly seeing through her thoughts. However, she simply shook her head, offering no further explanation.

Miaoyu realized her mistake, and the two looked at each other in silence.

Miaoyu sipped her tea, her mind preoccupied, while Gu Qingyi leisurely brewed a fresh cup. After brewing a new cup, Gu Qingyi spoke: "In the past, on quiet nights, I often came to this place and heard melodious zither music coming from the southwest mountain. I guessed in my heart that it must be you who played it."

"It is a pleasure to meet you today. I wonder if I, Qingyi, would have the honor of seeking your guidance in person?"

Gu Qingyi's words startled Miaoyu. Although she had known of Gu Qingyi's existence for some time and had heard people say how similar this woman was to her, like sisters, she was wary of the other woman's identity and knew but did not act on it.

Judging from Gu Qingyi's tone at this moment, it seemed as if he knew her quite well.

Feeling somewhat ashamed, Miaoyu did not want to be outdone in front of her again, so she said, "I just heard your celestial voice, sister, and I dare not presume to ask for your guidance. However, I do study musical scores in my spare time and enjoy playing the zither, but my skill is far inferior to yours."

If you don't mind, sister, I would be happy to play a piece for you. Please feel free to offer your guidance.

If anyone familiar with Miaoyu were here, they would be quite surprised. Miaoyu was a proud and aloof person; they had never seen her speak to anyone so politely, let alone address someone as "elder sister" so readily!

Enough of this digression. Miaoyu stood up and quickly switched places with Gu Qingyi.

The moment Miaoyu's gaze fell upon the guqin before her, she recognized its extraordinary nature. She lightly touched it to test it, and couldn't help but ask, "Sister, what is this guqin?"

Gu Qingyi smiled and said, "Since I acquired this zither, you are only the second person to touch its strings."

Miaoyu suddenly felt the strings on her zither become heavy. She took a deep breath and played her favorite and most skillful piece softly.

Accompanied by the delicate sounds of the zither, two stunningly beautiful women, similar in temperament and both with tragic pasts, became friends through music. Even the cold wind outside the pavilion seemed powerless, completely shut out from this elegant room.

There are always those who can't stand seeing others doing elegant things, and a maidservant barged in, interrupting the music.

"Miss, someone just came to say that the Marquis's wife has invited the four young ladies to come to the manor to perform for the ladies and young misses."

The music stopped abruptly, and Miaoyu frowned deeply, her face full of displeasure. Gu Qingyi, however, remained calm and did not turn around; her melodious voice had already carried beyond the pavilion.

"I understand. Tell them I'll be out in a bit."

Miaoyu said, "Didn't they say that Marquis Zhenyuan invited you to his residence to be tutors for the young actors? Why are they making you perform?"

"We're just idling around anyway, and the lady invites us to perform, always rewarding us. Why not?"

Miaoyu didn't notice the difference between Gu Qingyi addressing Fengjie as "Madam" and not as "Madam of the Marquis" or "Madam of the Marquis of Zhenyuan" like she did.

She was just a little angry. "With a character like my sister's, would she really care about their small monetary rewards?"

Gu Qingyi didn't argue with her misunderstanding, but smiled and said, "I originally planned to have a long talk about the art of the zither with you today, but it seems we'll have to make an appointment for next time."

Seeing Gu Qingyi begin tidying up the place, Miaoyu could only silently step aside, without offering any help. After standing there for a while, she suddenly asked, "Did she...bully you?"

"Who?"

"The Lady of Zhenyuan Marquis!"

Seeing Miaoyu's concerned expression, Gu Qingyi felt a slight grit of teeth, but then smiled to herself: So, she wasn't as naive as she seemed.

Gu Qingyi didn't think much of it, assuming that Miaoyu was concerned about her situation, so she said, "Why would Madam bully me? She didn't bully me, and she didn't bully anyone else either. Although Madam invited us to the manor to perform, it was only in her spare time that she invited us over to keep her company and relieve her boredom."

Even when she was performing, she was very kind to us and never intended to humiliate us. We are all very grateful to her.

Miaoyu said, "Don't be fooled by her. People in their own household say she's a formidable figure. In particular, most people who offend her don't have a good ending."

"She is the lady of the house, we dare not offend her, nor is it worth offending her, so naturally we have nothing to fear."

"I'm afraid you've already offended her."

As Miaoyu spoke, her face inexplicably flushed, and she stopped speaking halfway through her sentence.

Gu Qingyi seemed not to understand her meaning. She stared at Miaoyu for a moment and then suddenly said, "I've heard that you are eighteen this year, sister. I am a year younger than you. If you don't mind, from now on, I will call you sister, and you can call me Qingyi."

After saying this, without waiting for Miaoyu's response, he bowed and left the pavilion with Canyue in his arms.