People in the Qin Dynasty, entertained during the Warring States period

After washing up, Cao Ze greeted Jing Ni, who was holding the baby.

Zi Nu is treating everyone today, and he doesn't want to miss out on the delicious food.

Before they even left Qingping Residence, they saw Li Wu sitting in a tree, playing the flute.

The flute music was as melodious and graceful as ever, clear and pleasant to hear.

But before Cao Ze could appreciate it for a while, a melodious zither tune rang out from not far away.

Li Wu's pretty face turned solemn. She took a light breath, and the flute music changed from melodious to urgent, like waves rippling on a calm sea.

When Li Wu changed the key, the originally ethereal zither music also began to become rapid, as if to suppress Li Wu's flute music.

Nongyu sat gracefully in the courtyard of Zilan Residence, her slender fingers quickly brushing across the strings of the zither.

Zi Nu stood gracefully behind Nong Yu, her arms crossed over her chest, a slight smile playing on her lips.

Nongyu remains as gentle on the outside as she is on the inside; she appears indifferent to everything, but is actually very competitive and ambitious.

She did not stop Nongyu from competing in musical rhythm with Liwu opposite her.

This young woman who dances seems to be quite skilled.

Her intuition told her that Li Wu might be a little better than her.

Keep in mind that she is already at the peak of the second tier; the only ones stronger than her are first-tier masters.

Therefore, she speculated that Li Wu had likely broken through to the first-class innate realm not long ago.

Inside Qingping Residence, Cao Ze stood next to Jing Ni and asked in surprise, "Do those two... have a grudge?"

Even if he wasn't a music connoisseur, the fact that Nongyu and Liwu were fighting each other across the street was clearly abnormal.

Jingni straightened Xiaoyan'er's clothes, a hint of helplessness on her beautiful face.

"No. They've only met a few times."

Cao Ze seemed to be deep in thought.

Liwu has a habit of playing the flute as an alarm clock when she gets up in the morning, and Xue Nu also has a habit of morning dance.

Thinking of the zither music I heard yesterday morning, I realize that Nongyu also has the habit of practicing the zither in the morning.

Is this a point of contention?

Cao Ze recalled Ya Fei's evaluation of Nongyu: a girl who seemed gentle but had a strong sense of self-respect.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have played the zither alone outside the house to prove himself after Kuang Xiu directly rejected him.

Thinking of this, Cao Ze sighed deeply.

It seems that getting Xue Nu to play the flute, Nong Yu to play the zither, and Li Wu to play the flute together is a long and arduous task.

After a cup of tea, the music of the zither and flute gradually faded away.

Li Wu jumped down from the tree and said with some pride, "This girl is a bit worse than me."

Cao Ze pointed out the key point directly: "That's because you're stronger than her."

To be precise, Li Wu's flute playing skills are slightly inferior to Nong Yu's zither playing skills.

Li Wu showed no embarrassment at being exposed, and said matter-of-factly, "This is also my skill."

She learned a lot from Cao Ze, one of which was that even if you're in the wrong, you can still be angry.

Cao Ze smiled and, feigning politeness, cupped his hands and said, "Miss Li Wu is amazing. I have something to attend to, so I'll take my leave first."

Li Wu gently raised her hand, her fingers delicately forming a delicate shape, and said with a smile, "Then let's go."

After Cao Ze stepped out of the courtyard, Li Wu casually asked, "What's he up to today?"

Jingni looked at Li Wu with surprise and said, "Don't you know? That Zi Nu is going to host a dinner for him at Fei Xue Pavilion today."

Li Wu's cherry-like lips twitched slightly, "That Nongyu..."

Jingni paused for a moment, then said, "I'll go too."

Li Wu slammed the bamboo onto the stone table, feeling extremely annoyed.

Is this what Cao Ze meant when he said, "Successful in business, unsuccessful in love"?

"Lady Jingni, I'm so angry!"

"Oh~"

Li Wu: "..."

She seemed even angrier...

I'm done loving you, Lady Jingni!

As soon as Cao Ze stepped out, he ran into Nongyu, who was coming out with Zi Nu.

"Miss Nongyu is a skilled musician."

Cao Ze gave a practiced compliment.

He likes girls who can play music the most; each has its own merits.

Just like his special skills.

Li Wu is skilled at playing the flute, and when she starts lip-syncing, everyone who tries it knows.

Girls who can play the piano are probably better at handicrafts.

Nongyu was a little embarrassed, "I'm not as good as Sister Liwu."

But her pretty face showed no sign of being discouraged by her slight defeat just now.

Sister Zi Nu said that Li Wu used her internal energy to suppress her.

Unfortunately, her strength is only average, and she has not yet fully opened up her eight extraordinary meridians, so she cannot compete fairly with Li Wu.

Unless her musical skills reach a higher level, achieving a state of stringless mastery, and she can play melodies that resonate with the heart.

But this is too difficult. She is still figuring it out and hopes that Master Kuang Xiu can give her some advice.

She didn't have much hope of becoming an apprentice.

Zi Nu smiled and said, "What a coincidence! How about we go to Fei Xue Pavilion together?"

"Right on my mind."

When Cao Ze arrived at Feixue Pavilion, he first glanced at the noble ladies and young women surrounding the bookshelves. The group of beautiful women always made him unable to resist taking a look.

No wonder some people love having a harem.

Imagine being surrounded by all the girls from Qin Shi, wouldn't that be incredibly awesome?

Li Ji walked over gracefully, following the Handan dance steps taught by Ya Fei, like a butterfly fluttering in the air.

Her voice was melodious and clear as she said, "Mr. Cao Ze, Miss Zi Nu, Miss Nong Yu, this way please."

Li Ji led the way.

She was slender, and her every step was like a willow swaying in the breeze, making her seem pitiful and endearing.

Cao Ze casually asked, "Where are Xue Nu and Princess Ya Fei?"

Li Ji blinked slightly and said with a hint of a smile, "They are resting."

Xue Nu and Ya Fei didn't sleep a wink last night; they had only just fallen asleep while proofreading the previous version of Dream of the Red Chamber.

In Yafei's words, these are things that can be passed down through generations.

This gave her an opportunity, so she took the initiative to guide Cao Ze and his group.

I plan to privately inquire with Cao Ze myself, or at least confirm whether this is a scam or not.

Cao Ze and Zi Nu Nong Yu entered the 'Sui Feng Jian'.

After Li Ji had arranged for the maids to serve the delicacies, tea, and wine, she left the room.

She lit incense in a side room and waited quietly.

Watching the wisps of incense smoke rise continuously, she prayed that Zi Nu and Nong Yu would hurry up so that she could have some time alone with Cao Ze.

If this is indeed just a well-intentioned scam, she needs to return to Puyang as soon as possible.

She couldn't bear to watch her grandfather die on the battlefield.

The sandalwood fragrance indoors is soothing and pleasant.

Zi Nu first expressed her gratitude to Cao Ze for his righteous help.

Cao Ze took the initiative and said, "I'm supposed to play along with your performance, I won't turn a blind eye."

After a cup of tea, Zi Nu smiled gently.

"Mr. Cao Ze, to be honest, there's another reason I invited you this time."

Cao Ze took a sip of sake and said calmly, "Please speak freely, Miss Zi Nu."

Just as he expected, Zi Nu set her sights on him.

They probably want to lure him to the Spider Cave in Zilan Pavilion.

Should I say yes, yes, or yes...?

Seeing Cao Ze's expression, Zi Nu could easily tell that he was on guard.

She smiled sweetly and said, "Sir, there's no need to be nervous. I just want to ask you if Kuang Xiu is still in Handan?"

She knew that Kuang Xiu was in Handan; otherwise, she wouldn't have brought Nongyu with her.

The reason for asking the question knowing the answer was simply to lower Cao Ze's guard.

"Indeed, he is still living in seclusion in Handan. He was quite famous there not long ago."

Cao Ze couldn't help but laugh when he thought of how Jing Ke had gotten Kuang Xiu drunk before the New Year, and how Kuang Xiu had been tricked by Jing Ke into running around Handan naked in the middle of the night.

Nongyu asked curiously, "Why are you laughing, sir?"

"I laughed..."

Cao Ze paused, then coughed lightly and said, "Don't spread this around."

Zi Nu and Nong Yu exchanged a glance and nodded, their curiosity piqued by Cao Ze.