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<figure class="tmblr-full" data-orig-height="323" data-orig-width="500"></figure>We meet the Third Miss Murong in this chapter and she is one devious woman. Taking advantage of Jing Wan to win money at mahjong… hehehe. Guess who finally is about to make his appearance?!
Encountering Love: Chapter 10
Jing Wan thanked him profusely but Commander said: “Even though Miss Yin is a woman, you have travelled thousands of miles to help him. As Jian Zhang’s friend, how could I not also offer my meager aid?” Jing Wan saw that even though he was unrefined, he had an upright character who was willing to give aid in times of trouble, and she was secretly thankful for him.
That Tao Duan held an important position in the Cheng army, and his family’s new built flower garden was very large and made out of red bricks; it was extremely eye-catching, even from far away. Jing Wan saw that the street outside of the Tao Estate was full of parked cars and tethered horses. The place was bustling and the atmosphere was unlike any other place. Commander Xu brought Madam Xu as his dinner partner, and the couple led Jing Wan into the Tao Estate. The male guests were all standing outside greeting each other, but Madam Xu and Jing Wan entered the courtyard. There was actually a stunning reception area in the back, with magnificently dressed people milling about. The area was decorated with Chinese peonies, a flower of the same value as peonies, and the blooms were as big as a silver platter, beautiful bright colored flowers under a canopy of green leaves.
The reception area was full of women, all of them were wealthy and noble young madams and young misses. The colors of their dresses were so bright that they even competed with the flowers. In front of the reception area was a small stage where the opera singers were singing, while some of the madams and misses sitting in front of the stage were watching the opera, others were chatting amongst themselves, and with the sound of the musical instruments from the stage, the whole area was an hubbub of noise. Seeing how lively the place was, Jing Wan thought everything was so extravagant that she was unable to put into words, even though she had experienced wealth and honor herself. Madam Xu saw that she was watching the play, she smiled at her and asked: “Miss Yin, do you like to watch operas? Today, the famous performer Ji Yu Mei will perform the finale of ‘Spring Night’ and ‘Luck and Grace’, Boss Ji’s operas are unlike any other in the world, and there won’t be any ordinary things in this celebration. Jing Wan replied absentmindedly while Madam Xu led her across the reception area and entered into another garden. The garden was full of Chinese parasol trees and there was a small stone path that led through the canopy of trees. She led Jing Wan on that small path and the sounds of music and chatter became indistinguishable when she began to hear ‘huala..huala’ sounds.
Before Madam Xu entered the room, she called out: “Where is the elderly person whose birthday we are celebrating? Someone is here to wish you well!” The people who were playing mahjong in the room all turned around to look at her. The person sitting on the right, who was dressed in magnificent brocade and whose hair was coiled in a bun, this beautiful traditionally dressed woman, was actually the third Miss Murong. She called Madam Xu “Elder Cousin’s Wife” and said, smiling: “Who is this young sister that elder cousin’s wife has brought? She certainly looks elegant.” With this, Jing Wan dignifiedly called her: “Third Miss.” She introduced herself: “My surname is Yin. Third Miss should just call me Jing Wan.” She handed her a small box and said: “For Third Miss’ birthday, I hastily prepared a small gift, as a token of my respect.” When that Third Miss Murong saw that her manner was amiable, while her words were refined, she immediately liked the girl and responded: “Miss Yin is too polite.” She called a servant to take the gift away and told Madam Xu and Jing Wan to join the game. Jing Wan refused briefly before sitting down to play Ba Quan with them. She sat on Miss Murong’s left, and she came prepared to watch her mood, and at every hand, she would play whatever Miss Murong needed. After this game of Ba Quan, they played again and by this time Miss Muong had already won two thousand dollars. Madam Xu was helping Miss Murong play and smiling ear to ear, she said: “Third Miss is very lucky today. Before we eat, you should make your winnings a full three thousand. I worried that we won’t be able to finish this round of Ba Quan before dinner begins.” That Third Miss Murong replied: “Today is a good day. Sixth brother said that he would be coming today, we’ll wait until he comes before starting dinner.”
When Jing Wan heard this, she asked with a smile: “Liu Shao is coming? Actually, I’ve met Liu Shao once before, I wonder if Liu Shao still remembers.” Seemingly like she had no other intentions, she casually took out the gold pocket watch to look at the time. Third Miss Murong’s eyesight was keen, and she had already recognized that watch as the one that Murong Chen ordered for him for his twentieth birthday, but she did not know why this girl had it. After thinking about it further, she guessed that her young and uninhibited sixth brother had given it away as a memento. This Miss Yin’s appearance was so exceptional, no wonder why he was even willing to give this watch to her. So the reason this Miss Yin had already lost this much money to her was because she had an ulterior motive. She was already used to this kind of thing, and even though she laughed to herself, she did not expose her. She just smiled and said: “I had just been telling Eldest Sister that our Liu Shao is practically a movie star.” When Jing Wan heard her say this so nonchalantly, she did not reply but instead gave a beaming smile.
That Third Miss Murong had won a lot of money off of her, and she had originally planned to take advantage of this opportunity, but Murong Feng had always disliked this bad habit of hers and this would not have been the first time he admonished her for using other people. She contemplated while she played, until the call for the banquet to begin arrived and she got up to leave.
During the entire dinner party, her mind was uneasy, and even though they served shark fin, she did not have any appetite. The hall was originally set up to serve the guests as they arrived, and after they had finished dinner, they were led to the reception hall where they were served tea. The opera had ended but a few women had started to discuss a book, and were in a heated argument, when a clever-looking girl approached her, and said to her quietly: “Miss Yin, Third Miss Murong invites you to go to the back for tea.” Her heart skipped a beat, and she rose to follow the girl. This time, they passed through many different gardens and entered a small red door. Inside, there was a small, secluded area decorated with a few blossoming pear trees, and at this time, green leaves had already covered all the branches.
That girl pushed open the door, and whispered: “Miss, please wait here for a while.” Jing Wan saw this room, and even though it was decorated in an old style, it was very elegant. All the furniture was made out of red sandalwood and each was intricately carved. She sat down on the chair for a while and she heard the girl leave. The whole room was quiet but she could hear indistinct noise from far away, which just made the room seem even more silent. Suddenly she heard the sound of approaching footsteps, her heart started beating wildly and she unwittingly stood up. Before, she had a lot of courage but she began to grow frightened as she heard the steps get closer and closer, she suddenly hid herself behind a curtain the color of lake water.