Xi Zirui notices Su Xueyi sitting up straighter when he addresses the dancing girls, but not as if he's trying to put a stop to it.
Odd.
The chief-eunuch calls the girls forward so they can receive their rewards and pay their respects to the Emperor. All of the them stand beneath the raised dais where Xi Zirui's throne sits in single file, their heads lowered.
Xi Zirui instructs another eunuch to bring enough jade jewelry so that he can gift each girl a piece.
He comes back with a large platter of priceless jade directly from the palace's treasury. Xi Zirui reaches into it and takes out a piece at random, offering it to the girl at the head of the line.
She removes her veil before accepting the jade bangle, her eyes wide and incredulous. "This lowly one isn't deserving of such consideration from his Highness," she says.
Xi Zirui smiles at her and assures her that her talent deserves rewarding.
