The poetry gathering was in full swing even as the moon reached its zenith. By dinnertime, Li Yuqi had somehow sourced a group of elaborately dressed women from a nearby brothel, making the event even more lively.
Su Yi, however, was in no mood to join the merriment.
By dinnertime across the street, the stage theater was in the process of being dismantled after finishing its performances of the day. Ye Fan without speaking to anyone after the performances were over; his expression suggested he was quite satisfied.
Su Yi considered calling out to him but thought better of it. He intended to investigate Ye Fan's motives, and didn't want to risk tipping Ye Fan off. Furthermore, Ye Fan's identity could be problematic, and exposing their relationship might lead to trouble.
Mind preoccupied, Su Yi spent the poetry gathering in a distracted daze. He scarcely noticed the deliberate advances made by several women, leaving Li Yuqi somewhat anxious, fearing that Su Yi had somehow been offended during the gathering.
The next day, Su Yi went to Jinxia Street again. He was dressed casually in cloth shoes and a linen robe. His hair was loosely tied into a bun without any adornments, making him indistinguishable from any ordinary commoner.
Sure enough, the theater stage had been set up again.
At a teahouse that sat diagonally across from the theater, Su Yi found a seat at a table and ordered a pot of tea.
When the waiter came with the tea, Su Yi took a small silver ingot from his pocket and placed it on the table.
"How long has that theater stage across the street been set up for? I don’t recall seeing it before."
The waiter understood quickly, glanced around, and slid the silver ingot into his pocket with a sweep of his hand. Smiling broadly, he replied, "Sir, that troupe arrived in the capital just half a month ago. I heard they came from the southern Shu region."
"From southern Shu?" Su Yi raised an eyebrow. "Do they perform Shu-style Opera?"
The waiter shook his head. "Not exactly. A few days ago, I had some free time and went to watch a performance. I couldn’t tell if it was good or not, but it seemed authentic enough. Later, I heard that the troupe performs something called Southern Opera."
"Southern Opera?" A trace of confusion appeared in Su Yi's eyes. Educated as he was, that was not an area he was well versed in.
"Yes." The waiter nodded. "The performance I attended last time was reportedly called 'The Pipa Performance.'"
As Su Yi pondered this, a familiar figure emerged from the corner of the street.
He was dressed the same as yesterday, his face pale and clean-shaven, with eyes as calm as still water.
Is he here to watch the opera again? Su Yi silently wondered, his gaze following Ye Fan. Sure enough, Ye Fan sat down on one of the benches in front of the stage, leisurely crossing one leg over the other and tapping his palm with a fan in rhythm.
Ye Fan spent the entire afternoon listening to the opera on the bench, and Su Yi spent the same time sipping tea from his teapot.
When the performance ended, Ye Fan left without the slightest hesitation.
Su Yi remained at the teahouse for a while before standing up, settling his bill, and heading toward the theater stage.
The theater troupe was busy dismantling the stage. As Su Yi approached, he realized that the laborers responsible for the task were wearing heavy makeup and it turned out they were the same performers from earlier.
Seeing Su Yi standing nearby, a man tidying up the benches walked over and said, "The performance has ended for today. If you’d like to watch, please come again tomorrow."
Su Yi nodded and quickly asked, "Do you perform every afternoon? At what time?"
The man smiled warmly and replied, "We start in the morning, performing two plays before lunch, and continue in the afternoon after eating."
After a moment of thought, Su Yi asked, "Where are you all from?"
The man rubbed his hands and replied, "We’re all from Shu. The war caused by the rebellion in Shu has made it impossible to make a living there, so we came here to scrape by."
Su Yi paused for a moment, suddenly recalling hearing news of a small group of displaced people staging a rebellion in Shu. However, they were just a ragtag band, and the local authorities had already sent troops to suppress them.
Regaining his composure, Su Yi thought for a moment and asked, "Are you all part of the same opera troupe?"
The man smiled again. "We’re one big family. We have three generations performing together in the Southern Opera. In this troupe, everyone is family."
Su Yi nodded appreciatively and left.
On the third afternoon, Su Yi returned to the teahouse.
Today, he wore his usual official robes again. After pondering the matter all night, he came to a realization that, given Ye Fan’s abilities, there was no point in trying to covertly tail him. Ye Fan had probably noticed him on the very first day. He might as well drop the flimsy pretenses and monitor Ye Fan openly.
Su Yi had timed his arrival in the teahouse, so he had just finished a pot of tea when Ye Fan came into view.
Ye Fan emerged from the same corner of the street, wearing the same outfit, and leisurely sat down on one of the benches.
Su Yi observed for a while longer but couldn’t discern anything significant. He paid for his tea, crossed the street, and sat down next to Ye Fan.
Ye Fan squinted slightly, humming along to the opera melody with a look of contentment.
Seeing that Ye Fan remained silent, Su Yi didn’t speak either. He simply sat beside him and listened to the opera.
The performers on stage sang in melodic tones that were still clear enough to understand. After listening for a while, Su Yi came to understand the story. It was about a devoted couple. The husband, a scholar, passed the imperial examination shortly after their wedding. He entered court alone to receive an official.
However, due to his aging parents, he wished to resign and return home to care for them with his wife, only to be obstructed by other officials. After achieving the highest rank in the exams, he was pressured into taking the prime minister's daughter as his second wife, making it impossible for him to return home.
Filled with melancholy, the man lived a miserable life in the capital. By entering the court, he had left both his parents and his first wife behind. Unfortunately, a natural disaster struck his hometown, and both his parents passed away shortly thereafter. His wife buried her in-laws, took up her pipa, and traveled toward the capital, performing to earn a living while she searched for her husband.
Unknowingly, Su Yi was transfixed in the performance and was still deeply engrossed in the story by the time the play ended.
"How was it?" a voice asked next to Su Yi, snapping him out of his trance.
Su Yi turned around to see Ye Fan smiling warmly at him.
"W-what do you mean?" Su Yi shook himself back to his senses.
Ye Fan shifted his gaze back to the stage and smiled. "'The Pipa Performance.' What did you think of the play?"
"Hmm..." Su Yi pondered for a moment. "It was quite good. The story was engaging, and it had a happy ending, didn’t it? The scholar reunited with his wife."
"Which character did you like the most in the play?" Ye Fan asked, a subtle smile creeping onto his face.
"Or rather..." Ye Fan thought for a moment and rephrased his question. "Which character did you dislike the most?"
"The one I disliked the most?" Su Yi tilted his head in thought. "Hmm... While the prime minister was the main instigator, he eventually had a change of heart, so he’s not entirely terrible. If I had to pick, I’d say it would be the swindler who tricked the scholar in the first place..."
Ye Fan grinned. "Ha, what a coincidence,"
"Oh?" Su Yi raised an eyebrow. "You dislike him too?"
Ye Fan stood up, smiling as he looked at Su Yi. "Just the opposite. He’s my favorite."