无翼乌工口里番无色无摭挡

The teahouse was bustling as ever.

The storyteller was eloquent and expressive.

The guests were gathered around small round tables, listening to stories, drinking tea, and eating melon seeds and dried fruits, thoroughly enjoying themselves.

However, today’s storyteller was not a man, but a young girl with a clear and crisp voice.

The voice was pleasant and lively.

It drew rounds of applause from the customers.

Li Hongyuan casually glanced around, originally intending to leave right away.

He didn’t like this kind of place, finding it too noisy.

But somehow, he felt that the faintly heard female storyteller’s voice was familiar.

When did teahouses start letting women tell stories?

Su Cheng noticed Li Hongyuan stopping his horse and thinking, and immediately signaled an attendant nearby.

The attendant jumped off his horse, ran into the teahouse, and quickly came back, whispering to Su Cheng, “Boss, the storyteller in there… it seems to be our princess.”

Su Cheng was taken aback, rode forward, and whispered to Li Hongyuan, “Shall we go in and take a seat?”

“Since when have you seen me visit such a place?”

“The atmosphere in there is quite lively. They say that the storyteller is a woman, and the story she’s telling is fascinating. One pot of tea costs one tael of silver, yet no one is willing to leave.”

“Nonsense.”

“Though the story may be fabricated, it does indeed have a captivating charm.” Su Cheng laughed, “It seems that Thirteenth Young Master Wenren is inside too. Weren’t you looking for him? This is perfect. Let me find a quiet table for you.”

Li Hongyuan’s heart stirred slightly.

He faintly guessed at something.

But he found it hard to believe.

In the end, he couldn’t suppress his curiosity, jumped off his horse, and walked into the teahouse.

Just as he entered, a round of applause came.

After bypassing the screen, he saw at a glance the girl in a white skirt seated on the stage. Her long hair reached her hips, and her right hand held a folding fan. She was radiant and spoke fluently.

It was really her!

Jiang Ning!

The person sitting on the stage telling the story was indeed her.

No wonder the voice sounded familiar.

There were so many teahouses in Chang’an City, and all the storytellers were men. What sort of propriety was there for her, a girl, to be onstage in public like this?

Li Hongyuan gave a cold glance, wanting to turn around and leave, yet his legs seemed to disobey him, and he ended up sitting down at a table.

This area was separated by a screen, away from the ordinary commoners.

There were two other tables.

At one table sat Fifth Daughter and Sixth Miss of the Jiang Family, while at the other table sat Wenren Zong.

Jiang Yuan and Jiang Yan were eating melon seeds, listening to the story with rapt attention, clearly engrossed by the content of the story.

Wenren Zong, dressed in black official clothes, sat upright with both hands on his legs. Though he was also listening to the story, there was no expression on his face. Just like his personality – strict, upright, adhering to etiquette, and regarding the laws of Great Sheng as the highest authority.

At this moment, he slightly turned his head, occasionally glancing at Jiang Ning on stage, but without blatantly staring.

It was rude and not in line with his character.

However, Li Hongyuan was a bit annoyed when he saw it.

Jiang Ning on stage was narrating animatedly,”… First Brother went out to sell cakes, leaving Jin Lian alone in the room. She found the room stuffy and got up to open the window. But unexpectedly, the pole slipped out of her hand and fell down, hitting someone passing by right in the head!”

At this point, she paused briefly, smilingly asking the audience below, “Can you guess who got hit?”

The crowd below shouted, “Could it be her husband, First Brother?”

“No.” Jiang Ning shook her head.

“Who is it then? Miss, don’t keep us hanging, tell us quickly!”

The audience, their curiosity piqued, cried out clamorously..