Volume 6: Dream Record Chapter 409 Request for Night Banquet Picture
The next morning, after Sun Sanniang found out where Ouyang Xu lived, Yuan Xudong and Zhao Paner went to his house together.
In Ouyang's house, Ouyang Xu was holding the white jade hairpin that he had intended to give to Zhao Pan'er as a token of love when he passed the Xiaoding ceremony. At this moment, a servant came in and saw the white jade hairpin in Ouyang Xu's hand. He couldn't help but flatter him:
"Sir, this white jade hairpin is really beautiful. Are you going to give it to Madam Gao during her engagement ceremony?"
"no!"
Ouyang Xu put away the jade hairpin, raised his head and looked at the servant, and asked calmly:
"What is it?"
The servant respectfully reported:
"Sir, there is a lady named Zhao outside who wants to see you!"
Hearing the servant's report that Zhao Pan'er had come to his house on her own, Ouyang Xu was shocked. He stood up suddenly, hurried to the courtyard, and opened the door himself. Sure enough, he saw the increasingly radiant Zhao Pan'er standing in front of his own courtyard. Ouyang Xu never expected that Zhao Pan'er could find his residence in such a short time. He suspected that Xiao Fan had used the power of the Xiao family to help Zhao Pan'er. He couldn't help but ask:
"Pan'er, how did you find me here?"
"I asked Sanniang to give ten cents to the flower girl at the gate of Gao's house, and she told Sanniang that you were here!"
Zhao Pan'er said calmly. Hearing this, Ouyang Xu couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. It was good that Zhao Pan'er wasn't from the Xiao family. He looked at Zhao Pan'er, who was becoming more and more radiant, and said in a complicated voice:
"Pan'er, you've become much more beautiful after not seeing you for just one day!"
"Yeah?"
Looking at Ouyang Xu, Zhao Pan'er smiled faintly:
"Mr. Ouyang, in the final analysis, Pan'er is still blessed by you. Thanks to your decision not to marry, Pan'er was able to find her ideal husband, the son of Prime Minister Xiao's family. His status should be no less than your wife from the Gao family, right?"
After saying that, Zhao Pan'er looked at Ouyang Xu, who was a little dumbfounded, and said with a smile:
"You're not going to let me come in and sit down?"
"Oh, come in!"
Looking at Zhao Pan'er, who was lightly made up and had a charming smile, Ouyang Xu was dazed for a moment. If the previous Zhao Pan'er was just an alluring lady, then the current Zhao Pan'er could be said to be so alluring that she could steal a man's soul without him noticing. This was probably the difference between youth and maturity. Ouyang Xu turned around and walked in front, leading Zhao Pan'er into the main hall.
At the same time, Yuan Xudong took advantage of the servant and Ouyang Xu's inattention and instantly climbed over the wall of Ouyang's house into the yard. He was worried about letting Ouyang Xu and Zhao Pan'er be alone together. Zhao Pan'er was so attractive and charming. If Ouyang Xu got beastly, Yuan Xudong would be at a great loss. Even if he skinned Ouyang Xu alive afterwards, he would not feel satisfied!
Yuan Xudong hid under the window of the main room, always paying attention to the movements in the main room. He saw Ouyang Xu looking at Zhao Pan'er and said affectionately:
"Pan'er, I know this is wronged by you, but please rest assured that I will treat you well in the future. And the lady from the Gao family also said when she came yesterday that she will live in harmony with you and the wife and concubine will get along well with you. Is this okay?"
“Hmph~~”
Zhao Pan'er snorted disdainfully and said:
"Then I wish you many beautiful concubines and a romantic backyard, but I will not accompany you!"
Having said this, Zhao Paner looked at Ouyang Xu and said directly:
"Mr. Ouyang, I came to you today for two reasons!"
Hearing this, Ouyang Xu was slightly stunned and said:
"Which two things?"
Zhao Pan'er took out a deed from her sleeve and handed it to Ouyang Xu, saying:
"First, you swore in front of my parents' spirits as their son-in-law that you would protect me for the rest of my life. Now I ask you to write a letter of withdrawal of engagement. I have already written it for you. You just need to follow my instructions. When I return to Qiantang, you can burn it for my parents. It will be an explanation.
Second, I will return the Heart-shaped Pendant you gave me. However, please also return my Night Banquet painting, which you said you would take to Tokyo to have framed by a famous artist.
After these two things are done, I will go back to my own way with you, and we will never meet again until the underworld. It is better to die in vain than to have anything to do with each other. How about this?"
"Pan'er, actually I..."
Ouyang Xu hesitated to speak, Zhao Pan'er looked at him quietly, and finally, Ouyang Xu couldn't help but sighed and said sadly:
"Pan'er, I actually love you, but that lady from the Gao family..."
"Stop!"
Ouyang Xu originally wanted to express his feelings to Zhao Pan'er, saying that everything he did was actually to protect her safety, but Zhao Pan'er didn't want to listen to him at all and interrupted him directly:
"Mr. Ouyang, I told you that I came to you today just for those two things. You should save your vows of love for the young lady of the Gao family. I just want to ask you one question. Can you promise me those two things?"
Seeing that Zhao Pan'er had made up her mind, Ouyang Xu had no choice but to agree with her:
"I promise you!"
"really!"
Seeing Ouyang Xu agreed, Zhao Pan'er smiled slightly. Knowing that Yuan Xudong was anxious to get the night banquet painting, she directly asked Ouyang Xu for it:
"Where's the painting?"
"I'll find it for you now!"
After saying this, Ouyang Xu took a last look at the much-changed Zhao Pan'er, then stood up and searched through the boxes and cabinets in the house. After searching for a long time, he still couldn't find Zhao Pan'er's Night Banquet painting. Fearing that Zhao Pan'er would misunderstand that he wanted to embezzle her Night Banquet painting, Ouyang Xu hurriedly explained:
"I have been staying at Brother Du's house. I just moved here not long ago. Uncle De usually puts things there. I really don't know where he put the Night Banquet. I'm afraid I won't be able to find it for a while. If I find it tomorrow, I'll send it to the inn for you, okay?"
"Okay, see you tomorrow!"
Seeing that Ouyang Xu didn't seem to be lying, Zhao Pan'er softened her heart and said:
"Ouyang, please don't let me down again this time!"
After saying that, Zhao Pan'er stood up and walked out of the house. Seeing Zhao Pan'er turning around to leave, Ouyang Xu also stood up immediately, picked up the white jade hairpin from his desk and said:
"Pan'er, wait a moment, I have a white jade hairpin that I want to give to you..."
"Mr. Ouyang, since we are strangers, please call me Madam Zhao. Otherwise, I am afraid Fanlang will misunderstand me!"
After saying that, Zhao Pan'er turned around and left resolutely, leaving Ouyang Xu, who was at a loss, alone in the room. Looking at Zhao Pan'er's resolute back, Ouyang Xu's face was gloomy. He tightly grasped the white jade hairpin in his hand, and with a "click", it broke!
…
One day passed in a flash. Ouyang Xu did not return the Night Banquet Painting to Zhao Pan'er at Sanyuan Inn as he had promised. As time went by, Zhao Pan'er's last bit of trust in Ouyang Xu gradually disappeared. Her request was not excessive. A letter of withdrawal of engagement and the Night Banquet Painting that should have been returned to her were just two small things. Ouyang Xu had clearly agreed to both, but he broke his promise and there was no news until now. At this time, seeing that it was getting dark, Sun Sanniang could not help but say to Zhao Pan'er:
"Why hasn't Ouyang Xu come yet? Is he going to go back on his word again?"
"I deliberately said some harsh words yesterday to stimulate his self-esteem. Based on my understanding of him, he should be able to do what he said, right?"
Zhao Pan'er was also a little uncertain. Seeing her like this, Sun Sanniang couldn't help but say:
"But people can change. He hasn't come yet. Will the current Ouyang Xu still be the same Ouyang Xu as before?"
Zhao Pan'er was already anxiously waiting, and now after hearing what Sun Sanniang said, she could not help but nodded slightly in agreement:
"You're right, there's probably something wrong with him. Let's go and take a look!"
"Do you want to tell Master Xiao?"
"No, he told me that he was going back to the Xiao family's old house to worship his ancestors, and he won't be in Tokyo these days!"
"Okay, then we'll go by ourselves!"
Sun Sanniang rolled up her sleeves and said fiercely:
"I just don't believe it. If Ouyang Xu dares not to return your Spring Banquet Painting to Pan'er, I will throw him into the Bian River to feed the fish!"
"It's a Night Banquet, painted by Wang Ai, not a Spring Banquet!"
"Yes, it's the Night Banquet Picture!"
…
At the same time, at the Ouyang residence, Uncle De finally returned to Tokyo from Qiantang and Ouyang Xu's hometown. After hearing Ouyang Xu talk about the two small things he promised Zhao Pan'er, he couldn't help but said anxiously:
"Sir, you absolutely cannot do that. You absolutely cannot write that letter of withdrawal of engagement. Think about it, Zhao is full of tricks, and she comes from a prostitute family, and she is full of lies. What if she gets the letter of withdrawal of engagement, and immediately turns against you, and sues you to the government for withdrawing the engagement and marrying someone else? What if she gets it?"
"Okay, Pan'er is not that kind of person!"
Ouyang Xu looked quite impatient, but he was worried in his heart. At this time, Uncle De continued:
"Sir, the truth hurts. Zhao Pan'er refused to give me the Tongxin pendant and asked for five hundred taels of gold. Now she's asking you for a document to cancel the engagement. It's clear that she's harboring evil intentions. Since she's canceling the engagement, there must have been an engagement. Don't you understand this? Zhao has done you a favor. Although I didn't like her much before, I wouldn't slander a woman for no reason. But she's really not a good person. Don't you know that in order to keep me stable, she pretended to be heartbroken and came to Tokyo at once, a few days earlier than me!"
After listening to Uncle De, Ouyang Xu stood up suddenly, flicked his sleeves, turned his back to Uncle De and said firmly:
"Uncle De, please stop talking. I don't believe anything you say. Pan'er is definitely not the kind of person you say she is!"
Uncle De had watched Ouyang Xu grow up, and he knew what kind of person he was better than anyone else. Knowing that he had listened to him, Uncle De gave him one last word of advice:
"Sir, you shouldn't have the intention to harm others, but you must be on guard against others. The letter of withdrawal of engagement is your handle. Do you really want to be controlled by Zhao for the rest of your life?"
"Okay, Uncle De, stop talking!"
Ouyang Xu's face was filled with sorrow. He paused for a moment and then said:
"Oh, Uncle De, I have one more thing to ask you. Did you put Pan'er's painting of the night banquet in the birthday gift for Mr. Ke?"
" The old slave is guilty, the old slave is guilty!"
When Ouyang Xu asked about the Night Banquet, Uncle De immediately knelt on the ground, slapped himself twice, and explained:
"Sir, Mr. Ke is your teacher. It was his birthday, and the birthday gift you gave him was too meager. So I took the liberty of adding that picture of the night banquet to the gift. I am guilty, I am guilty!"
"I am guilty, I am guilty, that's all you can say!"
Hearing Uncle De repeating this catchphrase again, Ouyang Xu couldn't help but yelled angrily:
"Uncle De, are you telling me that as long as you say this, I have to forgive you? How many times have you acted on your own? At the beginning, I asked you to go to Qiantang to tell Pan'er that after I passed the high school entrance examination, my uncles and aunts would arrange for me to marry someone else, but you insisted on showing off the marriage granted by the virtuous concubine in the palace, which made her angry and she came to Tokyo. Later, I asked you to give a birthday gift to the teacher, but you insisted on adding the night banquet picture on your own. Tell me, what should I do now? Uncle De, you are not a loyal servant of the Ouyang family, you are clearly the ancestor of the Ouyang family!"
"The old slave is guilty, the old slave is guilty!"
Seeing Ouyang Xu's rage, Uncle De immediately knelt on the ground and slapped himself hard, looking terrified. Just when Ouyang Xu was about to say something, the family servant came in. He glanced at Uncle De who was kneeling on the ground and slapping himself, then looked at Ouyang Xu who was still looking sullen and respectfully reported:
"Sir, Miss Zhao who came yesterday is outside the door asking to see you!"
"Pan'er?"
Hearing that Zhao Pan'er had come to visit him again, Ouyang Xu's face changed slightly. It seemed that he could not do any of the two things he promised Zhao Pan'er yesterday. At this moment, before Ouyang Xu could figure out what to do, Uncle De, who was kneeling on the ground, immediately looked at the servant at home and ordered:
"Xiao Si, go and send that Zhao away quickly. Tell her that the master is not at home and don't let her stand at the door. The master has made an appointment with the lady from the Gao family to go to Qinghui Garden to appreciate the peach blossoms tonight. We must not let that Zhao interfere!"
After listening to Uncle De's instructions, the servant looked at Ouyang Xu. Ouyang Xu couldn't help but glance at Uncle De. He didn't have any good ideas in his mind, so he waved at the servant and said:
"You go down first and do as Uncle De said!"
"yes!"
The servant retreated respectfully, and he hurried to the yard, picked up a bamboo broom, and then opened the gate.
…
As the sun was setting, Zhao Pan'er and Sun Sanniang rushed to Ouyang Xu's house. After they had reported the matter, a servant from the Ouyang family came out with a bamboo broom. He swept the floor in front of Zhao Pan'er and Sun Sanniang, raising dust and saying:
"My husband is not at home, please go back!"
"Not at home?"
Looking at the servant of the Ouyang family, Zhao Pan'er said:
"If your husband is not at home, who do you report to?"
"I……"
Seeing that the boy was speechless for a moment, Zhao Pan'er smiled and said:
"I have an appointment with your husband. It doesn't matter if he is not at home. Otherwise, we can go in and wait for him to come back!"
As they spoke, Zhao Pan'er and Sun Sanniang tried to break into Ouyang Xu's courtyard. The servant of the Ouyang family immediately blocked the gate and stopped them:
"No, Uncle De said no one is allowed in!"
"Uncle De?"
Hearing the servant mention Uncle De, Zhao Pan'er couldn't help but ask in surprise:
"He's back in Tokyo?"
Seeing that the boy lowered his head and said nothing, he obviously agreed with what Zhao Pan'er said. Sun Sanniang couldn't help but said to Zhao Pan'er:
"Pan'er, I'll tell you, he just wants to renege on his debt!"
"Yeah, I know!"
Zhao Pan'er knew that Ouyang Xu and Uncle De were hiding in the house, so she deliberately shouted at the servant who was blocking the door:
"Tell Ouyang Xu to come out and see me, or I'll make him regret it!"
"I don't understand what you are saying?"
Seeing Zhao Pan'er yelling loudly at the door of Ouyang's house, the servant of Ouyang's family immediately took a broom and swept the floor to raise dust, while driving her and Sun Sanniang away, saying:
"Get out of the way, don't block our door, go away!"
“Hey hey~~”
Seeing that the servant of the Ouyang family dared to use a broom to drive her and Zhao Pan'er away, Sun Sanniang could not help but step forward. She snatched the broom from the servant's hand and shouted:
"Where else do you want to chase people away?"
Sun Sanniang used the broom to scare the servant, then looked at Zhao Pan'er and said:
"Pan'er, I have experience in debt collection, just watch me!"
After that, Sun Sanniang held the broom in one hand, put her other hand on her waist, and shouted loudly towards the Ouyang family's mansion:
"Pan'er, the two of us, one blocking the front door and the other blocking the back door, just keep fighting him like this. When we get tired and thirsty, we can ask the vendor to bring us food and a chair, and then we can lie here and wait for him. At night, we can ask Yinzhang and Yinping to take over. I don't believe that anyone can be a coward for their entire life and never go out!"
Seeing Sun Sanniang's savage roar, the servant of the Ouyang family immediately retreated back to the yard with the door closed. Inside the house, listening to Sun Sanniang's fierce scolding, Ouyang Xu felt like sitting on pins and needles. He felt ashamed, but also worried that this incident would alarm the Gao family and eventually affect his marriage with Gao Hui. He looked at Uncle De and asked in a panic:
"Uncle De, what should we do now? Otherwise, I will go to the teacher to get the Night Banquet Painting back and give it back to Pan'er?"
"Sir, this is absolutely not allowed!"
Hearing that Ouyang Xu wanted to ask Mr. Ke to return the painting of the night banquet, Uncle De was shocked and said anxiously:
"At this moment, Mr. Ke has been dismissed by the government and sent out. If you go to him to ask for the Night Banquet, won't you become a petty person who is ignored by everyone? Mr. Ke has many students and is a leader of the Qingliu faction. If you offend him, you will offend the entire Qingliu faction. How can you gain a foothold in the officialdom of the Song Dynasty in the future?"
Mr. Ke cannot be offended, nor can the Gao family. Zhao Pan'er has leverage over him, and behind her is the son of Mr. Xiao's family who is backing her up. Ouyang Xu can't help but feel upset and angry:
"This doesn't work, and that doesn't work either. What do you think I should do?"
"Sir, send Zhao away first. Don't forget that you have made an appointment with the young lady from the Gao family to go to Qinghui Garden to appreciate the peach blossoms!"
After saying that, Uncle De whispered something to Ouyang Xu. Ouyang Xu clenched his fists tightly, veins popping out on his hands. After hesitating for a moment, he stood up, walked into the yard with a calm expression, opened the door, and met Zhao Pan'er and Sun Sanniang face to face.
Outside the courtyard, seeing that Ouyang Xu finally came out, Sun Sanniang couldn't help but ridicule him:
"Oh, I thought someone was going to be a coward for the rest of his life!"
Hearing this, Ouyang Xu looked at Sun Sanniang expressionlessly, with a flash of anger in his eyes. Sun Sanniang pinched her waist and stared at him without showing any weakness. After a moment, Ouyang Xu took the initiative to look away. He looked at Zhao Pan'er and said apologetically:
"Pan'er, I'm not trying to avoid you, I just don't have the face to see you. Uncle De mistakenly gave your Night Banquet painting to the Gao family as a gift. How about this? Just treat it as if you sold the Night Banquet painting to me, and I'll give you 100 taels of gold. How about this?"
Looking at Ouyang Xu, Zhao Paner decisively refused:
"No, that Night Banquet painting is very important to me. I won't sell it no matter how much money you offer. Since Uncle De mistakenly gave it to the Gao family as a gift, please return it to me!"
"Whatever!"
Seeing that the time agreed with Gao Hui was almost up, Ouyang Xu was anxious, so he followed Zhao Paner's instructions and said perfunctorily:
"Pan'er, can you give me another three days? I'll go find the Gao family's wife right now and ask her to help me think of a solution, okay?"
"Well, I'll give you three more days!"
Looking at Ouyang Xu with flickering eyes, Zhao Pan'er used up the last bit of trust she had in him and said calmly:
"Ouyang, this is the last time I call you this. I don't hate you for breaking off the engagement, at least not now. Please don't let me down again, this is the last time!"
"Okay, sure!"
Ouyang Xu forced a smile. Zhao Pan'er looked at him one last time, then turned around and left with Sun Sanniang. Looking at Zhao Pan'er's gradually receding back, Ouyang Xu's face was gloomy. At this time, Uncle De came out of the yard and reminded:
"Sir, it's time for you to go to Gao's house!"
"good!"
…
On the other side, Zhao Pan'er and Sun Sanniang left Ouyang Xu's house and returned to Sanyuan Inn. As they walked on the steps back to their room, Sun Sanniang couldn't help but look at Zhao Pan'er and said:
"Pan'er, I think Ouyang Xu is lying to you. He just wants to delay time!"
"I know!"
"Then why are you..."
"If he wants to cheat, then let him. This will give me a good chance to see his true face. At most it will waste three days, so it's not a loss at all!"
Zhao Paner smiled and said:
"During these three days, we will take a good rest and gather our strength before returning to the Night Banquet..."
Zhao Pan'er walked to the door of the private room while talking to Sun Sanniang. When she was about to push the door open, the door opened from the inside. Yuan Xudong opened the door and said with a smile:
"Pan'er, Sanniang, you are back?"
"Fan Lang?"
"Mr. Xiao?"
Seeing that it was Yuan Xudong who opened the door, Zhao Pan'er and Sun Sanniang were a little surprised. After entering the room, Zhao Pan'er looked at Yuan Xudong in surprise and said:
"Didn't you say you were going back to worship your ancestors? Why are you still staying in Tokyo?"
"We'll go back tomorrow!"
"Where are Yinzhang and Yinping?"
"He slept in the next room!"
As he spoke, Yuan Xudong took out a token from the Xiao Mansion from his arms and handed it to Zhao Paner, saying:
"This is the token of the Xiao Mansion. Take it. If you encounter any difficulties while I'm not in Tokyo, you can go to the Xiao Mansion to ask for help!"
"Well, thank you!"
Zhao Pan'er did not try to be stubborn, but obediently accepted the Xiao Mansion token given to her by Yuan Xudong. Holding this cold and hard token in her hand, Zhao Pan'er's heart was warm, and she also had a strong sense of security. The Xiao family was a prominent family, and it was easy for them to protect several women. With this Xiao family token, she could rest assured. With her intelligence and tricks, she could always adapt to the situation and deal with some troubles, provided that it did not involve the government. Because no matter how small the official was, he was a big shot to Zhao Pan'er.
It's okay to be reasonable, but if you meet an unreasonable official, right and wrong will be decided by a word from the other party. No matter how smart you are, or how eloquent you are, power is above everything, and the law is only in the mouth of officials. It is for this reason that this token can give her enough confidence, because it represents the Xiao family, and represents the envoys and ministers who are second only to the emperor and above everyone else!
