APSIL -Chapter 26 A Masterful Performance

What a wonderfully cool autumn… and I’m hungry enough to swallow an ox…

Those were the ten words Lu Sanlang finally managed to squeeze out after standing by the window of the bamboo cottage for what seemed like an eternity.

His dejected posture, with his head hanging low, matched those words perfectly.

At this time of year, if he had been at the Lu Residence in the capital, it would have been only slightly chilly at most. But here, in the bamboo grove that had seemed pleasantly cool and elegant during the day, the cold last night had been enough to freeze a man to the bone.

Dinner had consisted of nothing but several plates of fresh green vegetables. For the first time in his life, he had been forced to stuff down two huge bowls of rice. At first, he had wondered why the quilt was so thick it could crush a person and why the mattress was so soft one practically sank into it.

But in the middle of the night, he had awakened—hungry and freezing.

As for the attendants sleeping on the floor outside the bamboo cottage…

Last night, he could even hear their teeth chattering nonstop.

Lu Sanlang regretted everything so much he wanted to bang his head against a wall.

If he hadn’t been afraid of offending Zhu Ying, he would have brought along two maidservants to attend to him. At the very least, one of them could have warmed his bed. Unlike these attendants, who were completely useless besides staring helplessly.

Last night, he had lain beneath the quilt with his teeth chattering from the cold while his stomach growled from the lack of meat and oil.

He absolutely refused to be the only one suffering this misery!

Those fellows back in the capital who were gleefully waiting for Zhu Ying to chase him away before rushing over to court the beauty themselves…

He was determined to make every one of them experience what it truly meant to live the elegant life of a bamboo hermit!

And while he was at it, they’d also get a taste of those impossible mathematical problems!

Thus, the moment he spotted Qi Liang approaching through the window, he hurried out with a bright smile.

“Brother Qi, is the old gentleman free at the moment? I sent someone back to the capital yesterday, and there are a few matters I’d like to discuss with him.”

“Young Master Lu is up quite early. You’re certainly full of energy.”

Qi Liang returned the greeting with an equally cheerful smile.

“Sir said life in the mountains isn’t exactly comfortable. Yesterday’s meals were nothing but plain tea and simple food, so he thought you might not be used to it.”

Praised for being energetic, Lu Sanlang could only laugh awkwardly.

After all, Zhu Ying was here, and he didn’t want to abandon his grand scheme of tricking everyone into coming here. Yesterday he had even behaved himself, forbidding his attendants from sneaking out to buy something tasty.

Now his mouth tasted bland, his body trembled from the cold, and he was starving.

He had barely managed to force out a smile when he heard words that filled him with delight.

“Perfect timing. Sir has invited you over. He made fresh fish fillet congee this morning, along with several kinds of roasted game…”

At that moment, Lu Sanlang’s only thought was that he could finally enjoy a proper meal.

Overjoyed, he agreed without hesitation.

It never occurred to him that a reclusive old scholar living deep in the mountains would prepare dishes better suited for lunch or dinner—and ones rich with so much meat and oil at that.

Following Qi Liang to the main hall, Hall of the Gentle Breeze, Lu Sanlang saw the thick cotton curtain rolled high.

The very next moment, he spotted the smiling figure standing beside the seat of honor.

His head instantly began to ache.

Who else could it be but Miss Zhu herself?

She wore a crimson jacket embroidered with magnificent peonies trimmed in gold, paired with a bright red skirt adorned with golden butterflies. Decked in dazzling jewelry, she looked breathtakingly beautiful.

“Oh, Lu Sanlang, you’ve come!”

It was the first time Zhu Ying had greeted him so warmly, without even a trace of mockery.

Far from feeling happy, Lu Sanlang’s scalp tingled uneasily.

Truth be told, Zhu Ying was undoubtedly the greatest beauty in the capital—perhaps even one of the greatest beauties in the entire empire.

But her fiery temperament…

That was something he simply couldn’t handle.

Besides, if he actually married her, where would that leave his own mother?

Otherwise, considering that he was the spoiled youngest son, hopeless at studying, and regarded as someone who would simply coast through life on inherited privilege, marrying such a noble young lady favored within the imperial palace wouldn’t have been a bad prospect at all.

He had chased after her merely to put on a show.

Once everyone else had been lured here, he intended to quietly withdraw and focus on managing his own businesses.

But now Zhu Ying had personally come to see him and was smiling at him.

What did this mean?

His heart pounding, Lu Sanlang carefully cupped his hands.

“I didn’t know Miss Zhu was here. That’s why I rashly came to see the old gentleman…”

“What’s so rash about it?” Zhu Ying raised an eyebrow with amusement. “Just because I’m here, does that mean you’re forbidden from coming?”

She leisurely looked him up and down.

“I heard from Sir that you solved two problems yesterday and even offered tuition to study mathematics under him. Very good, very good. I never imagined you possessed such talent…”

Just as Lu Sanlang was desperately searching for a way to deflect this compliment—which frightened him more than criticism—Zhu Ying suddenly slammed her hand against the armrest.

“But what I really didn’t expect was that you actually encouraged Sir to use difficult problems to swindle money out of people—especially those fellows you used to fool around with!”

The instant Zhu Ying struck the armrest, every hair on Lu Sanlang’s back stood on end.

When he fully heard her accusation, his mind raced frantically for an explanation.

Before he could speak, however, the old gentleman seated in the place of honor, still wearing his bamboo hat and veil, chuckled softly.

An aged voice spoke calmly.

“Yingying, don’t frighten him anymore.”

Although Zhu Ying knew that Zhang Shou was only calling her Yingying to make their performance more convincing, she couldn’t help feeling delighted.

The brilliance in her eyes and smile became even more captivating.

Seeing Lu Sanlang steal a nervous glance at her before hurriedly lowering his head again, she smiled sweetly.

“Lu Sanlang, if Sir hadn’t reminded me after meeting you yesterday, I’d never have realized that your infatuation with me was nothing but an act to fool everyone else.”

As she spoke, she saw Lu Sanlang’s face instantly lose all color.

She couldn’t resist glancing at Zhang Shou again.

She silently marveled that his bold guess had actually been correct.

If she hadn’t hit the mark with a single sentence, why would Lu Sanlang look as though both his parents had just died?

After struggling to calm himself, Lu Sanlang looked toward the old gentleman seated as steadily as Mount Tai.

He immediately abandoned any thought of denying or concealing the truth.

With a bitter smile, he bowed deeply toward Zhu Ying.

“Miss Zhu, your beauty surpasses all others. Everyone admires you. One more admirer makes no difference, and one less makes no difference either. Please spare me this once.”

“At home, my father doesn’t care about me, my brothers look down on me, and only my mother pities me a little. I had no choice but to pretend I was pursuing you.”

The more he spoke, the more pitiful he sounded.

“I’ve eaten a bit too much ever since I was little, and that’s why I’ve grown into this mountain of fat. I don’t want to be this fat! But whenever I eat less, I get hungry. When I’m hungry, my heart races, I break into cold sweats, and my legs go weak.”

“As for the Four Books and Five Classics, I get dizzy the moment I start reading them.”

“If my father didn’t think there was at least a tiny chance of arranging a marriage alliance with the Duke of Zhao’s family through me, he’d probably have beaten me to death already.”

At this point, he turned directly toward Zhang Shou.

His plump face was filled with complete sincerity.

“Sir truly has eyes that see everything. You saw through my little trick immediately.”

“But every word I said yesterday was completely sincere.”

“Just from the problems you’ve created, it’s obvious your learning runs deep and your knowledge is vast.”

“In that case, why not accept more disciples so your learning can be passed down to more people?”

“To speak frankly, the scholar-officials currently serving at court—including my own father—have no place for truly great scholars and sages.”

“If you want your name to reach His Majesty’s ears, even with Miss Zhu’s respect and her speaking on your behalf before the Emperor, it still wouldn’t be enough. Surely you don’t want people accusing you of gaining favor through improper means?”

“But if you accepted a group of noble young masters as students and built your reputation through them, Sir would soon become famous throughout the realm and finally realize your ambitions.”

“As for money, I know you regard wealth as nothing more than worldly possessions. My earlier suggestion about charging them daily fees was only meant to teach those fellows a lesson…”

Zhang Shou interrupted impatiently.

“How do you know I want to become famous throughout the world and rise to the highest offices of state?”

Lu Sanlang froze.

His face immediately filled with disappointment.

Only then did Zhang Shou continue leisurely, “If more people like you come in the future, Qi Liang alone won’t be able to handle them all. You’ll help receive the guests.”

“As for the bamboo cottages—except for the Hall of the Gentle Breeze—you may decide for yourself how everyone should be accommodated.”

You handle the people, and I’ll collect the money. That works out perfectly.

Lu Sanlang was instantly overjoyed.

Meanwhile, Zhu Ying blinked thoughtfully.

The idea Lu Sanlang had just proposed…

Perhaps…

It really might be a workable way for Sir to make his name known.