Chapter Eighty-One: The Circle

  Lu Xuan thought for a moment and said, "Let's talk about this later."

  Lu Xuan thought of going to Chengdu again. From the tone of that noble, it seemed that he didn't want her to go with him, but rather for them to go to Chengdu on their own.

  But for now, the matter of my younger brother's master is still uncertain, this matter can be thought about again in two days.

  Just one day later, Lu Xuan received another invitation from Pingfu.

  This was within Lu Xuan's expectations, after all, she had met that noble again.

  This place is small, and anything can easily fall into someone's eyes, and then it will spread everywhere.

  After some thought, Lu Xuan declined the invitation from the Ping Manor. She wanted to let the people of the Ping Manor know that she, Lu Xuan, was not someone they could summon at will. For a family like the Ping Manor, Lu Xuan had long known that being too close would make them look down on her and not take her seriously, while being too distant would make them prone to making small moves. A suitable distance combined with a certain warning was very necessary.

  What Lu Xuan didn't expect was that just as the people from Ping Fu had left, another horse carriage stopped in the alley, and it was Ati who came to find her.

  Ati walked into Luyue's courtyard and looked around, after a circle, she pouted and said: "Luyue, your home is really small."

  Lu Xuan smiled and didn't answer.

  Ati circled around her again and muttered: "Those people all say you're good-looking, but obviously it's just like that."

  Lu Xun ignored him.

  Ati propped up her chin and stared at Lu Yue for a while, then said: "Ah Yue, why do you think Wang Lang doesn't like me?"

  Why doesn't Wang Shang like her? Lu Yue raised her head, and with a smile at the lovely Ati above, she said: "This matter is hard to explain. As the saying goes, 'the past is like a white-haired old man, still new', things between people are the hardest to explain."

  Lu Xuan paused for a moment before asking: "Does your family insist that you marry him?"

  Ati shook her head. "It's not that." Her eyes reddened and her voice was a little hoarse, "I like him, I've liked him since I was a kid."

  At this point, Atie said: "Aying, you really have a small heart."

  Lü Yu looked at herself in surprise, and Ati made a disdainful face towards her, saying: "That day you told me that if I shouted like that, people would gossip. I've been shouting like this in Chengdu too, and until now no one has gossiped."

  Lu Xuan listened and was taken aback for a moment. After thinking for a while, she asked: "Ati, is your family very influential in Chengdu?"

  "That's natural."

  Lu Yu'en nodded and said: "I understand."

  These days, she has been reading the Records of the Grand Historian and has come to understand a truth. In this world, it is always the strong who make the rules and define what is good and evil. As long as Ati's family is powerful enough, no matter what her daughter does outside, others will not dare to gossip about her. No one wants to offend someone they can't afford to mess with.

  It is precisely because of this that the families and places most bound by rules are usually those who are neither high nor low, while those at the very top can play with the rules. The common people at the bottom do not understand the rules and it is easy for them to trample on the rules.

  Ati was a restless person, she turned around the small yard twice, then supported her chin and measured Lu Yue several times, stretched out her hand, grasped her wrist and said: "A Xue, let's go play."

  "Where are you going?"

  Ati blinked her big eyes, thought for a moment and said happily: "Let's go to Wang Fu."

  Lü Yu was about to refuse, but she rolled her big eyes and said seriously: "Ah Yu, actually you dress up well, you look extremely good, not like a country girl at all. I'm telling you, Wang Shang's family is very big, his sisters are also very fun, it won't hurt for you to know a few more people. And your brother, isn't he studying? He should also get out more often. Otherwise, it'll be like last time, when Wang Lang didn't say a word, and your brother was so scared that he didn't dare move."

  These words moved Lu Xuan.

  Her younger brother, although he has become more confident recently, the poverty of his childhood and the humiliation and contempt he suffered for so many years still make him a bit timid in his words and deeds. She thinks that if he wants to stand out from the crowd, he needs to cultivate his demeanor and behavior even more.

  In the past, Yin Chen was a role model for Lu Yun's studies. Now that Yin Chen is gone, this aspect of learning still can't be abandoned.

  Lu Xuan's eyes sparkled, and Atie shook her arm, saying: "Okay, okay, let's go together. The Wang sisters are the most interesting. By the way, I haven't told you yet? Tomorrow there is a banquet at the Wang's house! Today, many noble people have come to their home." She paused for a moment and added, "I also rushed back from Chengdu for tomorrow's banquet."

  Lu Xuan nodded and smiled: "Okay."

  Ati saw her agree and jumped up excitedly, shouting: "Then you go prepare right away."

  Lü Yuán's preparations were simple, she wore a newly made pale purple spring dress, combed her raven-black hair into a maiden bun, and the entire getup was elegant in its simplicity, then she got onto ā Tí's carriage.

  The Wang's mansion, although newly moved in, had taken over the courtyards of two large households in Hanyang and renovated them. As a result, it occupied a vast area, with flowers, trees, and artificial hills arranged with great care.

  Lu Yuanyang and her sister had just gotten off the carriage when they heard a young girl excitedly calling out: "Atie!"

  Ati turned around and saw the beautiful girl. She happily ran over to her, hugged her tightly and burst out laughing.

  The two women obviously hadn't seen each other for a long time, and as soon as they were together, they talked non-stop. Because her good friend had arrived, Ati lost interest in Lu Yue, briefly introducing her with one sentence before happily chatting with the girl again.

  Watching the two people walking in front of her, the chattering girl didn't make Lu Yue feel uncomfortable at all.

  She rarely feels uncomfortable now.

  Walking with a smile in the garden, petals falling all the way, bees flying and butterflies dancing, it's really breathtakingly beautiful.

  As she walked, Lu Yun heard an astonishing and disbelieving cry, "Lu Yun, no, Lu Yue?"

  Lu Xuan turned back.

  But it was by the small lake fifty steps away, where six or seven young men in long gowns with large sleeves and luxurious clothes were walking towards her. The one walking in front was looking at her with a complex expression, and it was none other than Wang Shang. And standing beside Wang Shang, staring at her with wide eyes in surprise, wasn't it that young man Mo Yuan who had always been walking together with Wang Shang?

  From their attire and demeanor, the young men present here were all from wealthy families. Upon hearing Mo Yuan's call, they all turned to look at Lu Xing simultaneously.

  Lu Xuan lowered her eyes slightly after meeting Mo Yuan's astonished gaze, and she curtsied to him, saying: "I've met the young master of the Mo family." Then she turned to Wang Shang and paid her respects, saying: "I've met the young master of the Wang family."

  Mo Yuan did not answer, but instead exclaimed in surprise: "You, you're really a woman?"

  He strode towards Lu Xuan, circled around her once, and exclaimed in amazement: "It's really unbelievable."

  At this point, a round-faced young man asked strangely: "What's going on? Who is this girl?"

  He asked Wang Shang, but Wang Shang kept pursing his lips and didn't respond. Instead, Mo Yuan immediately chimed in, "She's quite cunning, isn't she? The first two times, she disguised herself as a man, I said it before, where can you find such a beautiful young man like a jade tree in this Han Yang City? It turned out to be a girl disguising herself." He paused for a moment, then smiled slyly and said, "Ah Yue still looks better in men's clothing, Ah Shang, don't you think?"

  Wang Shang stared at Lu Xuan with an expressionless face, his eyes deep and complex, but he didn't answer Mo Yuan's question.

  Instead, a tall and handsome young man walked out. He circled around Lu Yue once before slowly saying: "A jade among flowers?" After spitting out these four words, the young man disdainfully said: "But can a country girl from a small place like Hanyang be considered a jade among flowers?" He exaggeratedly shouted: "Ah Shang, Ah Yuan, is there something wrong with your eyes?"

  The young man's tone was quite blunt, and as soon as his voice fell, several young men and girls burst out laughing.

  In this sneer, there is a contemptuous disdain for Lu Yue as a country bumpkin.

  Also, "scholarly elegance" is such a descriptive term. Without a certain demeanor, without a certain air of confidence, without a certain level of talent and family background, who can possess an outstanding temperament?

  Lu Xuan raised her head.

  She quietly looked at the boy who spoke out of turn, and slowly, a faint smile floated onto her cold face.

  At this time, everyone was still laughing, and in the midst of the laughter, Lu Xuan smiled slightly and nodded, saying calmly: "The wind and moon are my bones, white jade is my skin, only then can I be called a beautiful woman, based on this point, I am not."

  Having said that, she no longer paid attention to these people and turned around to leave.

  In Lu Xun's indifference, there has always been a kind of inexplicable ease, this ease and indifference mixed together is precisely the attitude of looking down on others.

  Now, with just one turn of her body, her elegant figure and carefree demeanor made the young men around her seem childish by comparison. For a moment, everyone found it hard to keep from laughing.

  In the brief silence, a young man spoke in a low voice: "You don't know, this little girl is quite something. She's the one who lives in Yi Garden and everyone looks at her with different eyes. It's said that the noble treated her with great courtesy, even giving her two sets of clothes made from fine silk. And she, in return, gave him 300 taels of gold saying they were even, but the noble didn't mind and accepted it."

  As soon as this was said, it became quiet all around.

  At this time, the young man turned his head to look at Wang Shang and smiled: "Ah Shang, I heard that Yin Cheng is quite fond of her, and even made a fuss about proposing to her, right?"

  As soon as this was said, the crowd, which had just quieted down, suddenly burst into a commotion.

  Every stratum forms its own circle. The circles to which these young men and women belong have some influence in Chengdu, even in Luoyang. These young people have seen the world since childhood, and their horizons are very broad.

  In their eyes, Lu Xuan was just a country girl who looked good, but she was also on the level of being played with, and it wasn't even worth mentioning. But this country girl, who they didn't even bother to mention, actually had a connection with that nobleman and Yin Chen, which made them surprised.