"The swindler?" Su Yi was visibly stunned upon hearing Ye Fan's choice. He quickly asked, "Why him?"
Ye Fan pursed his lips, smiling without answering, his expression inscrutable.
Su Yi thought for a moment and asked, "Then who don’t you like?"
Ye Fan turned his head to the side. The opera troupe had already begun tidying up, signaling the end of today’s performance. He said, "I don't like any of the characters in the play, not even the swindler."
Su Yi was baffled. "The scholar and his first wife were deeply in love with each other. Why don’t you like them?"
Ye Fan shook his head. "The scholar was indeed affectionate toward his first wife, but he spent his days sighing at home and made little effort for his wife or parents."
"What about the first wife, Zhao Wuniang?" Su Yi asked in confusion. "She waited faithfully for her husband and showed great filial piety. Does she also not meet your standards?"
Ye Fan shook his head again. "She’s just a simple village woman, only capable of waiting without taking the initiative."
Su Yi laughed out of exasperation. "I didn’t realize your standards were so high."
Ye Fan seemed quite pleased with this response. He smiled as he looked at the opera troupe members tidying up the benches.
Su Yi followed Ye Fan’s gaze, and suddenly froze.
Not far from the two of them, an actress dressed in flowing silk and adorned robes was moving benches. Her stage makeup was still intact, with finely drawn brows and phoenix-like eyes. Just standing there, she exuded a serene elegance like of a white lotus blooming from the water.
Ye Fan smiled, his eyes curving like crescent moons. "My taste isn’t bad, right?"
Su Yi finally understood.
In the blink of an eye, Su Yi saw Ye Fan had already approached the "white lotus." He heard Ye Fan say, "Miss Mei, will there be another performance tomorrow?"
Miss Mei looked up at Ye Fan, nervously tucking a few stray strands of hair behind her ears. She gave a polite bow and replied, "To answer your question, young master, today’s performance has ended. There will be another early tomorrow."
Ye Fan twirled his fan in his hand. "Miss Mei’s pipa playing is so enchanting that I wish you could stay."
The comment was rather bold. A blush rose on Miss Mei’s cheeks as she hastily gave another bow, clearly intending to leave.
Ye Fan had watched for days before he finally struck up a conversation. How could he let her leave so easily? He reached out and grabbed the hem of Miss Mei’s sleeve. "Don’t go, Miss Mei!"
Miss Mei panicked, pulling hard a few times but unable to free herself. Fearing someone might see, she lowered her voice and said, "Let me go!"
Ye Fan spoke rapidly, like a string of firecrackers erupting, "Miss Mei, there are so many parts of 'The Pipa Performance' I still don’t fully understand. Why don't we talk about it?"
"No way!" Miss Mei’s face turned scarlet. Her voice inadvertently grew louder. "Scoundrel, let me go!"
The commotion inevitably drew attention. The members of the opera troupe began to notice what was happening and quickly gathered around.
A man who seemed to be the leader stepped forward. He first looked at Ye Fan, then at Ye Fan’s hand tightly gripping the actress' sleeve, and sternly asked Miss Mei, "Xiao Qi, what’s going on here?"
Miss Mei’s face turned bright red at the question. She glared at Ye Fan and said angrily, "Father, this scoundrel... he won’t let me go!"
When Miss Mei called out "Father," Ye Fan’s expression grew slightly awkward, but he still didn’t let go.
The man turned to look at Ye Fan, covering his stern expression with a polite smile. With a conciliatory tone, he said, "Esteemed young master, you see... we’re just a troupe of opera performers. I humbly ask for your magnanimity..."
Su Yi observed everything from the sidelines. He took a few steps back when the opera troupe started closing in, putting distance between himself and Ye Fan. He would not involve himself in Ye Fan’s troubles.
A wise man avoids danger, after all. Su Yi also caught the implicit threat in the man’s words. The man's claim that they were just a troupe of opera performers was a polite facade. Several of those performers circling in carried real weapons. Performers these days often knew a thing or two about martial arts.
Ye Fan understood the man’s meaning perfectly. If he didn’t back off, they wouldn’t hesitate to take matters into their own hands.
Feeling somewhat awkward, Ye Fan let go of Miss Mei as he had no intention of escalating things with the entire family.
The moment Miss Mei broke free, she hid behind the leader, glaring at Ye Fan with a mix of shame and anger.
The man chuckled warmly and said, "Thank you, young master, thank you... If you wish to watch another performance, please come early tomorrow."
Ye Fan rubbed his hands awkwardly. "Uh... Miss Mei, you’ve misunderstood. I just wanted to discuss something with you..."
"No need, no need," the man replied with a polite smile. "One look at you, young master, and it’s clear you’re a refined gentleman. You must already have deep knowledge of our shallow craft."
Ye Fan didn’t know how to respond. It was clear the man didn’t want to offend him, so he just went along with everything Ye Fan said.
The awkward silence lingered for quite a while.
The troupe leader broke in, "Well... you see, we’ve got a lot of work to do here. Young master, take care."
Ye Fan rubbed his nose and gave an awkward chuckle before nodding.
The man led the group back, but Ye Fan clearly noticed Miss Mei sneaking a sharp look at him before turning away.
To the love-struck Ye Fan, her look was brimming with charm and allure. He couldn’t help but shout loudly, "Miss Mei, I know quite a bit about music too. I’ll come back tomorrow to discuss it with you!"
Miss Mei’s face instantly turned pale, and she quickened her pace to leave.
Su Yi watched as Ye Fan headed toward the street corner while looking somewhat dejected. After a pause, Su Yi decided to follow him.
Ye Fan glanced at him, then shook his head after a moment. "Damn it, what a bad way to start..."
Seeing Ye Fan in such a state, Su Yi inexplicably felt a sense of satisfaction. Shaking his head, he remarked, "You’re too impatient."
Ye Fan turned to look at Su Yi. "How so?"
After some thought, Su Yi replied, "Look at that woman. It’s obvious that she has been brought up well. Did you mistake her for a brothel girl? Do you think a few teasing remarks would win her favor? You need to take your time and approach her gradually."
Ye Fan nodded instinctively, then gave Su Yi a sidelong glance. "You act like you know it all. Isn’t your mother nagging you to get married?"
Su Yi was left speechless.
Ye Fan continued, "If I remember correctly, didn’t I hear the other day that Lord Sun plans to marry his daughter to you?"
Su Yi’s face turned as dark as the bottom of a pot.
"Did your mother agree?" Ye Fan asked with a mischievous grin. "I won't get involved in your business, but that girl from the Sun family... she may be a little short and plump, but she looks like she’d bring good fortune to her husband. Tsk tsk, with her wide hips, your mother must think she's perfect for bearing your children!"
"Shut up!" Su Yi snapped, bristling like a cat with its fur standing on end. He grabbed Ye Fan and scolded, "Why don't you marry her then?! Stay out of my family’s affairs!"
Ye Fan laughed so hard he nearly ran out of breath. "Just kidding, don’t get so worked up."
Su Yi snorted coldly. "Keep your Storm Listening Pavilion spies away from my house. Stop snooping all the time!"