Allure of a Country Maiden
Chapter 1127 - 1124_1

Chapter 1127: Chapter 1124_1

The five of them made their way briskly. When they arrived at the moat, only a dozen new scholars had just arrived recently. Because they took a leisurely stroll here, stopping and going, they were not much faster than Jinghao, who had been delayed for a while. At the moment, these scholars were lining up to board the largest sightseeing boat docked here.

A watchful person noticed Jinghao and his group approaching and quickly announced, "The top scorer and the two sons of the Liu family are here."

Zhu Hao, hearing this, turned back and sure enough, there they were! The top scoring scholar had made his arrangements so swiftly? Just as he was processing this, he saw two young men, both about a head shorter than him, trailing Jinghao. The two had delicate skin and looked quite naive.

So, the top scorer was serious about going to Chunhua Building to find someone!

However, he had no clue who these two young masters were, or which family they belong to, he had never seen them before.

"Young Master Shen, have you found the ones you were looking for? Who might these two be?"

"They are my distant cousins, not from the Imperial Capital. They carry the same surname as me, Shen." Jinghao wished to avoid any further questioning and so delivered a brief answer before falling silent.

Gu Qiling, upon hearing Jinghao stating that she shared the same surname as him, couldn’t help but blush, recalling the tradition of a woman assuming her husband’s surname after marriage.

Upon hearing that these two were distant relatives of Jinghao, Zhu Hao casually greeted them. He was aware that Marquis Shengping had a humble background as a farmer, so it was likely that his distant relatives were also from similarly humble origins, perhaps just visiting the Marquis Mansion for support.

Once everyone boarded the sightseeing boat, the nanny recognized them as the newly appointed scholars. She had seen the procession honoring the top scorer during the day.

The style and grace of the top scorer had certainly made her youthful heart flutter.

She quickly mustered her most splendid smile and greeted them, "Honored gentlemen, you all possess extraordinary demeanor, you must be this year’s newly appointed scholars. No wonder I’ve been hearing the calls of magpies all day long, such auspicious omens signal the arrival of honored guests. Indeed, we are honored to witness the arrival of so many of you noble gentlemen on our humble boat. Please come in!"

Zhu Hao, upon hearing this, erupted into laughter: "Our nanny here surely knows how to sweet talk."

"Young Master Zhu jests, how could we measure up to your eloquent words? After all, you’re the future pillars of our nation!"

"To consider ourselves as ’pillars of the nation’ is a bit far-fetched, considering that our official appointments have yet to be finalized!"

"Isn’t that almost a certainty though?"

Clearly a frequent visitor to the sightseeing boat, Zhu Hao, while laughing and chatting with the nanny, led the group inside.

Upon their seating, the nanny requested the most skilled in guqin and in tea-making among the girls to serve them.

"Nanny, will there be performances tonight?"

"Certainly, if the Young Master Zhu wishes to watch, I will arrange it right away," the nanny replied and headed down to set things up.

After the nanny left to make arrangements, a woman came out and pulled the nanny aside to ask, "Are the newly appointed scholars here tonight?"

"Indeed, it’s them! You’re quite insightful. If you don’t want to miss the chance, why not let your daughter, who is talented in composing poetry and song, accompany these gentlemen in writing poems? These are the future pillars of our nation, if one of them took a liking to your daughter, her life would be complete. Let me tell you something, this year’s new top scorer is also here, the appearance of such a young top scorer is a rare occurrence in a century!"

"Is the new top scorer the second son of Marquis Shengping?"

"Indeed, it’s him! Who else could possibly sport such young top scorers in their family? Although he appears to be just a young lad, easy to deceive, I will create opportunities for everyone! He rarely comes to the sightseeing boat, you know." After finishing these words, the nanny went off to organize the performance.

Hearing this, the woman spared no time in seeking out her daughter to discuss the situation.

The nanny gathered all the girls who were skilled at dancing and repeated the situation to them, hoping that one of the gentlemen would take a liking to one of them, thus earning her a hefty ransom!

Every year, new girls were brought onto the sightseeing boat. The nanny didn’t worry about running out of girls, what she was more concerned about was the older ladies who hadn’t found anyone willing to ransom them, causing her to spend silver to support them.

Soon, the sound of silk and bamboo instruments came floating in the wind, and the girls dressed in dancing outfits took the stage.

Seeing the girls perform on stage sparked interest in many people, though there were a few who felt embarrassed to look too long.

This kind of dance performance was actually very ordinary, but for some scholars from aristocratic families who were not used to such entertainment due to their strict family rules, they felt somewhat uncomfortable. Seeing the other young masters behaving nonchalantly, they forced themselves to continue watching, faces flushed red.

Of course, to say that they did not want to watch at all would be a lie!

Jinghao looked at the dancers on stage with a blank expression, wondering whether the scant outfits of the women on stage were suitable to be worn at all. It was simply a disgrace!

Especially the lead dancer, even though her face was veiled, he felt her eyes kept drifting in his direction. After a single glance, Jinghao turned his attention back to the window.

The Analects say: Do not watch, if it is not in accordance with propriety.

Gu Qiling sneaked a peek at Jinghao, and seeing that he had turned away from the stage and wasn’t watching the performance, she felt a sense of joy. Her master was indeed different from others.

Xi’er watched the girls on stage. They were wearing crop tops and skirts, dancing gracefully....

Xi’er watched with great interest, she couldn’t help but pull Gu Qiling into commenting, "Qiqi, who do you think has a better figure among the girls on stage?"

Having heard this, Gu Qiqi looked over, "I think the one in the first row, the second one from the left. That girl has a well-balanced figure and a pretty face."

"I think the lead dancer is the prettiest. Did you not see, when she bent over,..."

Without any reservations, Xi’er openly commented on the body features of the women.

All the young scholars present blushed hearing the two girls’ conversations! Because of Jinghao’s presence, they couldn’t turn around to look at Xi’er and the others, but they were extremely disdainful.

Who were those people that Shen Zhuangyuan brought? How could they shamelessly appraise a woman’s body features in public just like that!

People who frequented Chunhua Building at such a young age must indeed be immature!

"Really? Hmm, indeed not bad, but I wonder what she looks like under that veil. Her eyes are quite..... " Gu Qiqi, without batting an eye, watched the dancing while adding her input.

The two of them engaged in animated discussion, expressing their opinions freely and enthusiastically.

Hearing the conversation between the two girls, Jinghao’s face didn’t flush; rather it darkened!

What on earth were these girls talking about! There are so many men present!

He should have anticipated that bringing them here, they would inevitably stir up something shocking!

He couldn’t bear the embarrassment any longer and hastily rose from his seat.