"…what do you mean by that?! Are you trying to give me a hard time?"
"I mean," the owner was sweating buckets, "They both came one after another and said they were the governor's son…and dressed all proper, sounding authoritative."
Lai Yiteng hand was clenching into a fist under his sleeve. "What about a seal proving their identity?"
The own coughed awkwardly.
"They were both so…overbearing. Looked like they were going to beat me to death if I spoke a word out of line. So, I didn't dare to ask the second one that arrived even though it was suspicious. I figured…there was no guarantee the second one was the fake? If just one is lying to take advantage of the rumor that the governor's son is out tonight, maybe it's because they're some other young master that wants to play around without anyone else knowing. As long as they can pay the bill, I don't care who they are."
"…I see."
Lai Yiteng felt like this was an elaborate con.
Yet here he was, descending the stairs.
The clamor of the first floor suddenly went silent. Both the boorish and lecherous man were staring at Lai Yiteng's flowing veil, the thin body form beneath brown and white robes, and the cotton wrapped erhu held across his shoulders.
The lecherous one had a shine in his eyes and raised his cup. He whispered to the woman squished next to him, and she nodded nervously.
The boorish man outright shouted, "Good! I've been waiting for this—Lady, pour me drinks after this!"
The owner stood in the center of the room nervously, seats and tables circling about a raised stage in the center. He introduced Lai Yiteng then left the stage open.
Lai Yiteng took a seat on the small raised platform with his erhu on his lap, a vein of anger popping on his forehead beneath the veil, and two men leering at him. He lifted the bow and began to play.
He played a song of war, a song of peace, and a song of romance. The majority were entranced, the women had eyes of both envy and admiration, the two loud men had temporarily shut up.
Finally Lai Yiteng asked, "Is there any song request?" to be safe, he kept his tone higher pitched.
The lascivious man said, "Any song is good when played with your moonlit fingers. Lovely miss, how about a song where I can peek at your expression? Or, how about-"
Interjecting into this was the boorish man who shouted,
"A SAD SONG! SADDER THE BETTER."
Because he was so loud, Lai Yiteng pretended not to hear the request of the first man. Thus, he nodded, and this time, opened his mouth to sing.
Lai Yiteng's timbre was not near as beautiful as his bow playing, but it was somehow low and raw, invoking a sense of sorrow in the heart. A few women felt the heart pang of a lost lover.
The final erhu note was draw long and slow, wavering.
A moment of silence ensued as Lai Yiteng wrapped his instrument in the cotton cloth.
The man who requested a 'sad' song had his chin in his palm, seeming to be lost in thought, while the lecherous man was the first to lift up his cup of wine in a toast. He forgot about the other women beside him as he stood and paced towards the stage.
"Good song! If my lady was of the righteous sword, I wouldn't be surprised." A jade ornament was in his hand, eyes sly as a fox. "Please accept this trifling gift."
Lai Yiteng stuffed it into his pocket, but the man didn't retract his hand. He suppressed that anger and took it as he stepped down from the stage.
"My given name is Heng, surname Chu."
Lai Yiteng also introduced himself. Chu Heng wouldn't stop clustering near his shoulder, and eventually even draped an arm around Lai Yiteng's back.
"Miss Lai, since your talent is so great, would you consider playing for me in private? Of course, the reward will not be small."
That hand slowly inched down Lai Yiteng's back and he broke out in goosebumps. Sickening, just awful. He wanted to punch this man in the face if only it wouldn't create a ruckus. Instead Lai Yiteng just pried off that filthy hand immediately.
"Sorry Young Master Chu, I have prior arrangements tonight. I must be going."
"What other 'arrangements' could you have so late at night? Hey," losing some kindness, Chu Heng grabbed Lai Yiteng's wrist firmly, "Since you're unfamiliar with this city, then you might not know it, but the governor's name is Chu Jihan, so..."
"My Lord, please! P-Please..." The Pleasure of Jade owner stumbled over. "Please let her off, she isn't affiliated with that sort of work!"
Chu Heng slapped him in the face.
"Shut up! What kind of work? All I asked was if she could play me more songs."
Lai Yiteng had a nasty scowl on his face and shoved Chu Heng away.
"Impossible."
Chu Heng had an annoyed expression. "You dare to-"
This time Lai Yiteng couldn't stop himself. He punched him in the face.
It took a few moments for anyone to react. Then a few women gave wavering gasps. Alas, that Chu Heng's eye on the left side was extra thin now from swollen skin, looking like a smashed weasel face. Lai Yiteng did not hold back his strength in the least!
"How dare you, foolish woman!" he shrieked. "Guards!"
Two men ran over while drawing blades, but this just fueled Lai Yiteng's murderous intent. Very unladylike of him, he swung out a leg to kick the first in the gut. He dress flew up into the air. He swiveled and his elbow crashed into the other guard's chin.
Watching the two guards stand back up, Chu Heng cowering some distance away into a lady's breasts, Lai Yiteng grinned—a bit psychotically—and said,
"Huh! The governor's son is such a little sissy. Did your mom cry when she gave birth to a dumb bastard like you?"
A woman almost gasped and fainted at the vulgar language coming from what appeared to the be serene beauty Lai Yiteng. That mouth was not a woman's. It definitely could not be a proper lady's! ...but was it? Or not?
Lai Yiteng gave no shits. He ducked to avoid the first sword slash, then pulled his knife from his thigh and cut across the shoulder of the first guard. All the women screamed at the sight of blood. The owner also held his slapped cheek and stammered,
"Miss Lai, ah, ah, ah, please stop! NOT MY SHOP! It's all my fault, all right?!"
Well, at least it could be said that the owner was a good man. He didn't blame Lai Yiteng, but…absolutely no one was listening to him, either.
It was quite the brawl, and although the two guards of Chu Heng were quite buff and strong, Lai Yiteng was twice as agile. It became clear that he knew the martial arts. Several tables gained sword cuts, but he was without a scratch.
The owner ended up praying to the heavens behind a couch and all the women half scampered off in a fright.
"AHAHAHA…she showed you!"
The boorish man continued his roaring laugh and gripped his stomach as he mocked Chu Heng and his guards.
"HAHA, best show I seen all week!"
The owner finally pointed at him in anger. "You can't be the governor's son! So pay me tonight's dues right this instant!"
Lai Yiteng and the guards were still fighting a muck, but the boorish man just shrugged and replied to the owner, "How do you know?"
"Because you're too noisy, and....and obviously not raised in a good family!"
"Um…" the boorish man gave a lopsided grin, leapt up, and ran towards the front door.
"HEY! Get back here!"
Just as nothing could seem to get anymore chaotic with the fighting and running without paying and screaming women, a group of men dressed in dark clothes with masks burst through Pleasure of Jade's front door.
They held up crossbows and knives and began to rush into the room. Anyone could tell it was nasty business.
"Assassins!" someone cried.
Lai Yiteng went 'OH SHIT' in his head and catapulted himself onto the stairway.