Chapter 37: A Foodie’s Poetry Feast
In the boudoir behind the small stage, the girl with a sweet smile breathed a sigh of relief.
The maid just came back and reported that Su Xian has arrived.
She picked up the bronze mirror that was upside down on the dressing table, took a few final looks at it, nodded with satisfaction, and then instructed: "Now that everyone is here, let's get ready to start the poetry banquet."
"yes!"
…
In the large box in front, Su Xian and Lin Chuan had already taken their seats.
The people invited by Miss Xiaoxian Zi were all prominent or wealthy figures in Leshou County.
First came the students from the county school, dressed in Confucian robes, about a dozen of them, gathered around a table, talking in low voices.
Leshou County was a medium-sized county, and the county school could enroll 25 students. Those who could study in those days were either from aristocratic families or from wealthy families, so these students had enough spare money to attend this poetry banquet.
In addition there are officials, gentry, celebrities, merchants, etc. in the city.
Su Xian and Lin Chuan arrived late, so they could only sit at the same table with merchants of lower status, far away from their classmates in the county school.
However, Su Xian and Lin Chuan do not have a good relationship with their classmates in the county school, so it is better for them not to sit together, otherwise various conflicts are inevitable.
The two of them had no doubts about what had just happened outside the door, but were surprised that the maid of Little Fairy Zi was actually a martial artist...
As soon as the two of them sat down, the sound of stringed instruments was heard in the box.
The curtains covering the small stage slowly opened to both sides.
Everyone in the box stared at the slowly opening curtain. Su Xian drank tea, cracked melon seeds on the plate on the table, and also stared at the stage.
This operation is a bit suspenseful, even Su Xian is curious about what is behind the curtain.
Finally, the curtain was pulled open a little, revealing the stage layout and a section of a lotus-colored skirt embroidered with cloud patterns. A small, slender foot wearing an embroidered shoe had a straight arch and the toe of the shoe lightly tapped the ground.
The first performance should be a dance, and there was immediate applause from the people in the box.
Just this part of the skirt and the raised feet can give people endless imagination.
As the curtain slowly opened, the dancers' hands, waists and other parts of the stage were exposed.
The little hands were white and tender, the waist was soft, and it was in a dancing posture. Although the head had not been exposed yet, it was enough to cause waves of ghosts howling.
Su Xian watched with great interest, eating melon seeds and drinking tea non-stop, his eyes fixed on the direction of the stage.
Finally, the curtain was completely drawn back, revealing the dancer's face on the stage...
Su Xian was stunned for a moment.
Then he lowered his head silently and said sorry for disturbing you.
He focused his attention on the melon seeds, seasonal fruits, and pastries on the plate, but the food was more attractive.
Except for Su Xian, all the other guests thought it was wonderful. They banged the table and shouted, the sounds were ear-piercing. Only Su Xian lowered his head and paid attention to the tea and pastries. He was a complete outlier.
Lin Chuan applauded for a while, and suddenly noticed Su Xian's strange behavior, so he quickly pulled him aside and said, "Brother Su, look, this girl dances so beautifully."
"A misshapen thing!" Su Xian commented without even raising his head.
Lin Chuan and the merchants at the same table looked at Su Xian in surprise, and then ignored him.
After a while, the music stopped, the snacks on the table were removed, and delicious dishes were served one after another, exuding an appetizing aroma.
Su Xian's appetite was whetted, and he ignored the people at the same table who were attracted by the stage. He ate heartily by himself, picking up his chopsticks frequently.
"She is the prostitute of the 'Yaoyue Tower' next door, Miss Su'er!" Lin Chuan knew all about this and introduced her to Su Xian excitedly.
However, Lin Chuan saw Su Xian concentrating on a braised fish and eating it with gusto.
Lin Chuan was stunned for a moment, then he grabbed Su Xian's shoulders and shook him, saying, "Brother Su, look, look quickly, that is Miss Su'er, a courtesan, who is very good at water sleeve dancing and is the top performer at the 'Yaoyue Tower' next door."
Su Xian looked up at the stage and saw a girl of about sixteen or seventeen jumping around on the stage.
"She's a plain-looking woman, but her clothes are nice." Su Xian commented, and then continued to focus on the braised fish on the plate.
It’s not that Su Xian is pretending to be profound, he really looks down on it .
The dancing girls on Bilibili have raised his appreciation level, and ordinary, vulgar girls are not in his eyes.
Furthermore, this body is rather thin and has a strong desire for meat. Although he had a free meal with Lin Chuan the day before yesterday, how could it be enough?
He wants to eat lots of meat!
What Su Xian, Lin Chuan and others didn't know was that a maid dressed as a maid had been hiding behind a screen and secretly paying attention to Su Xian's words and actions.
She quickly left the box and went to the boudoir behind the stage, telling the sweet-smiling girl her observations one by one.
The girl nodded imperceptibly and waved her hand, saying, "Keep watching."
When the maid returned to the box and continued to watch behind the screen, Miss Su'er's dance performance had ended and now a singer was singing.
Su Xian continued to eat.
After a while, the box cheered loudly. When Su Xian was surprised, Lin Chuan leaned over and explained: "Brother Su, look, Miss Xiao Lian is on stage. Miss Xiao Lian is the face of our Yingzhou. Brother Su, look."
At this time, Su Xian was chewing a sheep's hoof. He looked up and commented, "It's not bad looking." After a pause, he added, "It's too flashy!"
Then he continued to concentrate on dealing with the sheep's hoof. For a man who had been hungry and thirsty for a long time, the pleasure of eating meat was better than that of a woman, unless there was a stunning beauty.
Su Xian's evaluation was based on Liu Huixiang and the girl he met by chance in Zuixian Tower.
Miss Xiao Lian is actually quite good, but she pales in comparison to Liu Huixiang and that girl.
The merchants at the same table all looked at him sideways and then shook their heads. They all thought that Su Xian was the kind of person who "pretended to be profound". They had seen too many people like him and were too lazy to pay attention to him.
At this time, a plate of large pork elbows was served on the table. The skin was golden and shiny, with distinct fat and lean parts. A large bone stick stuck out, like a "handle".
Su Xian threw away the half-eaten sheep's hoof, took the big elbow in his hand and started to bite it.
Most of the guests at the same table were paying attention to the stage and didn't move their chopsticks much, which was a good thing for Su Xian. It felt so pleasant and wonderful to eat to his heart's content!
After gnawing on the pork elbow for a while, there was suddenly an eruption in the box with a louder noise than when Miss Xiao Lian appeared before, with people banging the table and pounding their legs, and howling like ghosts and wolves.
Su Xian felt like he was going deaf.
Lin Chuan leaned over at the right time and spoke incoherently with excitement: "Brother Su...Brother Su, re...head..."
Su Xianzheng took a bite of the lean meat on the big elbow and asked incoherently, "What's the important part?"
However, Lin Chuan had already forgotten about Su Xian. He was staring at the stage while wiping his saliva, looking completely dazed.
Su Xian shook his head and concentrated on dealing with the big elbow.
On the stage, the girl with the sweet smile has started dancing. She dances with graceful steps and her smile is so sweet that it seems to melt people's hearts.
The box became quiet instead.
Everyone stared at the beautiful figure on the stage.
Except Su Xian.
The girl was looking down from her perch on the stage and immediately spotted Su Xian, who was gnawing on his elbow. He looked so out of place and seemed to have no interest in the beauty on the stage at all.
She kept smiling on the surface, but her heart slowly sank.
Just now, the maid who was following Su Xian reported that Su Xian only cared about eating and had no interest in the beautiful woman's dance.
The girl was very happy to hear this. How could those vulgar women compare to her?
But now, when she came on stage in person, Su Xian still buried his head in his food and didn't even look up...
This made the girl very unhappy.
Could it be that in Su Xian's eyes, she was also classified as a mediocre woman?
This made her very angry!
