ATLAS TRANSLATES

Ling Xi was extremely panicked. The silhouette looked like Madam Qin’s, but there were many people who looked similar in the world. Madam Qin was in Nanyang, and couldn’t possibly have come to Jianye.

After leaving Lady Lu’s courtyard, the cold wind helped Ling Xi calm down a bit. Even if it really was Madam Qin who came, it might not be a bad thing. Perhaps Lady Luo sent Madam Qin to visit the young lady? Or even if Madam Qin only came to deliver some news to the young lady… it might not necessarily be bad news. The young lady was currently busy day and night with the cosmetics shop, and had grown quite thin. There was no need to trouble her with such vague, unconfirmed matters.

Thinking this way, Ling Xi decided to keep quiet for now. She would wait until she could meet that person who looked like Madam Qin in private and clarify things before telling Luo Lingyu.

Recently, Luo Lingyu had indeed been focusing all her attention on the soon-to-open cosmetics shop. She had no prior experience with this and couldn’t ask other young ladies, because they would simply reply, “What are you talking about? Isn’t opening a cosmetics shop easy? Why do you need to manage it?” Noble ladies born into comfort never had to worry about money, so Luo Lingyu had to disguise herself and secretly visit other cosmetics shops to learn.

When she showed Zhou Yangling the thick stack of research materials she had compiled, Zhou Yangling was shocked: “So much? Did you look through all of this yourself?”

Luo Lingyu felt slightly proud: “Yes. Though this is my first time doing this, I will try my best to handle everything and not let Master Zhou worry about it. Master Zhou only needs to provide the money and wait for the dividends later.”

She picked up her notebooks and, by lamplight, enthusiastically explained to Master Zhou how she planned to run things. Luo Lingyu was naturally eloquent, and having put in great effort this time, after she finished explaining, Zhou Yangling’s eyes were full of admiration.

Zhou Yangling said gently: “Sister Luo is truly amazing. I’m completely at ease leaving the cosmetics shop to you. You don’t need to keep reporting to me. Since I’ve entrusted it to you, I naturally trust you completely.”

Master Zhou sat behind the desk, her clear gentle eyes gazing up at her, showing complete trust in however she wanted to run the cosmetics shop. Master Zhou was broad-minded and generous, placing such trust in Luo Lingyu… Luo Lingyu’s face flushed from her gaze, feeling somewhat ashamed. She had been afraid Zhou wouldn’t trust her abilities, which was why she had done so much preparation and exaggerated things, determined to convince Zhou. She hadn’t expected Zhou to not mind at all…

Luo Lingyu’s shoulders slumped as she sat down and honestly expressed her anxiety: “…I’ve never managed so many accounts before, and I don’t know how to read them. Master Zhou needs to build connections in Jianye, which requires a lot of money. I’m afraid I’ll mess up Master Zhou’s important affairs…”

Zhou Yangling smiled: “It’s fine. I’ve already written to my father about my situation here. Even if Sister Luo loses money in the first few months, I can handle it.”

It was all because Prince Chen kept looking for Zhou Yangling.

As time went on without finding Zhou young lady, Prince Chen grew increasingly anxious. The real Zhou Yangling and Zhou Zibo, who appeared daily before Prince Chen, knew best what Liu Shu was worried about.

Seeing that they couldn’t keep up the pretense much longer, Zhou Yangling had no choice but to write to her father Zhou Tan.

She didn’t tell her father about dressing as a man, only saying that she was already in Jianye and would use a different method to observe how Prince Chen and other noble families treated those of humble birth.

Then Zhou Tan wrote to Prince Chen, telling him to stop looking for his daughter.

Luo Lingyu sat next to Zhou Yangling, carefully revealing her lack of confidence, while Zhou Yangling gently reassured her… By the time Luo Lingyu left Zhou’s residence and got into the carriage returning to the Lu family, her determination had been renewed.

She vowed to manage the business well and not cause trouble for Master Zhou. Master Zhou’s health wasn’t good to begin with – if she fell ill from worrying about the cosmetics shop, Luo Lingyu would truly be letting her down.

Thus, at the beginning of the sixth month, the cosmetics shop jointly opened by Luo Lingyu and Zhou Yangling successfully launched near the West Market. This shop was positioned to target wealthy commoners, so it wouldn’t pursue the path of good quality at low prices.

On opening day, Luo Lingyu invited noble young men and ladies to support her, and they all agreed.

Everyone naturally didn’t know that Luo Lingyu opened the cosmetics shop out of poverty, assuming the Luo family’s daughter was just finding something to play with like them.

As for Zhou Yangling’s side, she invited several of Prince Chen’s retainers. Liu Shu himself was busy with government affairs and couldn’t attend to support Zhou Zibo, so he sent his people to help instead.

The news of Luo Lingyu opening a cosmetics shop, due to her fame as the “Flower Goddess,” became a minor sensation in Jianye, with many people coming to see it because of her reputation.

Since the Flower Festival, this was the first time Luo Lingyu tasted the benefits of the “Flower Goddess” fame, and she secretly rejoiced that claiming the Flower Goddess title had indeed been the right move.

The young men came in droves to support Luo Lingyu, leaving few people still at the government office. While Lu Third Young Master was organizing documents alone, when other young men invited him to go see Lady Luo, Lu Third darkened his face and said coldly: “Too busy with official duties, won’t go.”

The other young men seemed to understand: “Lady Luo lives at the Lu residence, so Lu Third must see her often and doesn’t find it special anymore. But a beauty is still a beauty, we still want to go see. Thank you, Lu Third, for covering for us.”

Lu Yun: “…”

Sitting behind his desk in the half-empty room, Lu Yun lowered his eyelashes, his eyes dark and clear, gradually growing irritated as his body broke out in hot sweat. With a cold snort, he opened his books, trying hard to forget a certain person – he absolutely would not go watch someone flirting around!

Although Luo Lingyu and Zhou Yangling jointly opened this cosmetics shop, they wouldn’t stand at the door like shopkeepers to welcome customers. The crowd of young men and ladies stood by the road, with Luo Lingyu and Zhou Yangling among them. When the shop doors opened and the manager and servants came out to greet customers, with firecrackers going off at the entrance, the young men and ladies were all eager to enter – they wanted to see what interesting things Luo Lingyu’s new shop would sell.

However, Luo Lingyu stopped Wang’s daughter behind her, smiling: “Sister, don’t rush.”

As soon as she spoke, everyone heard light yet solemn Buddhist music, followed by some commotion from behind. When the Buddhist music started, the noble young men and ladies seemed to realize something. They all made way, retreating to both sides of the alley, leaving an empty space in the middle. Into this space came dancing women from the alley entrance, each holding musical instruments. They were all graceful and elegant, with flowing long dresses and ribbons, some playing flutes, some playing pipa backwards, some spinning and dancing to the drum beats.

The melody was pleasant, each note praising Buddha. The women’s appearances were striking, and as they played or danced with closed eyes, their long dresses and ribbons flowing, they seemed completely absorbed in their performance in public, their movements full of Buddhist nature. With eyes closed, they appeared like heavenly maidens stepping down from murals through misty clouds—

“It’s the Musical Heavenly Maidens!”

Being well-educated nobles, they immediately recognized that these dancers were portraying the Musical Heavenly Maidens from Buddhism. Among the myriad Buddhist deities, there were Great Brahma, Maheshvara, and also Musical Deities. In this era, Buddhism flourished in the southern lands – not only did common people worship Buddha, but noble families also often enshrined Buddha. These Musical Heavenly Maidens were familiar to them. When Luo Lingyu invited dancers to portray “Musical Heavenly Maidens” for her shop’s opening, the crowd burst into cheers, watching with great interest.

Zhou Yangling whispered to Luo Lingyu: “Sister Luo is truly clever. Choosing the flying heaven Buddhist dance – everyone loves the Musical Deities.”

Luo Lingyu feigned modesty: “…Actually, Lian Qiniang owed me a favor from last time. She didn’t even dance then, yet I praised her as the top dancer of Chengyu House. When I asked her this time, she immediately agreed to help me dance. I guess I’m not so unlucky – this time when she agreed to dance for me, nothing went wrong.”

Sure enough, some young men recognized her: “Isn’t that Lian Qiniang? The most famous dancer at the entertainment house recently.”

The dancers portraying the Musical Heavenly Maidens for the cosmetics shop’s opening were indeed from Chengyu House. And the most graceful one in the middle was Lian Qiniang. In terms of dancing ability, Lian Qiniang was far superior to Luo Lingyu. When young men went to the entertainment house to request her performances, though initially disappointed that she didn’t show the same spirit as that night’s lady, they later all agreed Lian Qiniang’s dancing was quite good. It was with Luo Lingyu’s help that Lian Qiniang was able to stand out among Chengyu House’s dancers.

Lian Qiniang was grateful for Luo Lingyu’s recognition of her talent. When Luo Lingyu asked Ling Yu if she would perform, Lian Qiniang agreed immediately without discussing payment.

While the dancers performed as Musical Heavenly Maidens, Luo Lingyu quietly chatted with Zhou Yangling among the crowd. Luo Lingyu’s gaze swept through the crowd, seeing many familiar faces.

She saw Qi Third Young Master looking at her with delighted eyes and waving to her, and unexpectedly also saw Lu Second Young Master Lu Xian, along with Prince Hengyang Liu Mu beside him, watching her with cold eyes.

Liu Mu had a youthful appearance and expressionlessly watched her across the street, making Lu Second’s face grow increasingly dark.

Lu Second seemed to want to drag Liu Mu away, but the Prince of Hengyang stood firm with his hands behind his back. Luo Lingyu was surprised for a moment, then nodded friendly to this young prince.

Liu Mu nodded back in acknowledgment.

Meanwhile, Lu Second was about to faint from anger. Amidst the music and dance, Lu Xian kept saying: “There’s nothing special about the Musical Heavenly Maidens’ dance. If you truly enjoy watching dance, Young Master, I can recommend top performers. This ‘Chengyu House’s’ level is just average…”

Lu Second: “Weren’t you supposed to go to the palace? Hurry along now.”

But Liu Mu completely ignored him.

While persuading Liu Mu, Lu Xian’s gaze swept through the crowd, finding both what he expected and what disappointed him – sure enough, Third Brother Lu Yun was nowhere to be seen. Lu Yun always missed crucial moments… It must be because he repeatedly missed opportunities that the Prince of Hengyang and Cousin Luo grew closer, right?

Luo Lingyu also didn’t see a certain person’s figure in the crowd, and her eyes immediately darkened as she bit her lip. She didn’t believe that with such a grand event, he wouldn’t know about it.

The street and alley were full of young men and ladies, along with the Musical Heavenly Maidens’ dance for support, but he wasn’t there to see her excellence… She felt cold all over, as if all her efforts had been in vain. The breath she had been holding had no one to appreciate… Zhou Yangling turned to look at her: “What’s wrong?”

Luo Lingyu immediately pushed that person from her mind, her autumn waves of eyes flowing, looking charmingly at Master Zhou, exchanging glances with him. Her face showed bashfulness, full of tender feelings: “Master Zhou…”

Her voice was as pleasant as an oriole’s song, touching one’s heartstrings.

Zhou Yangling: “…”

She coughed once, pretending not to see the lady’s flirtatious glance: “How are things with Lu Third? Are you still arguing?”

Luo Lingyu: “…”

Why did Master Zhou always bring up Lu Third Master at crucial moments when she was trying to be romantic?! It had happened several times… Whenever she tried to be intimate with Master Zhou, Zhou would bring up Lu Third Master to spoil her mood. Was it that Master Zhou didn’t like her, or that Master Zhou liked Lu Yun too much?

Luo Lingyu suddenly froze, her eyes showing shock: Could it be that Master Zhou had male preferences and liked Lu Yun?!

The more she thought about it, the more likely it seemed. Luo Lingyu’s face reddened with annoyance, and she immediately gritted her teeth: “Lu Xuechen, you…”

Before she could finish calling him a “scoundrel,” she heard a cold, clear voice behind her: “Hmm? Talking bad about me again?”

Luo Lingyu: “…?!”

Turning around, she was startled to see Lu Yun suddenly appearing behind her like a ghost. She was so scared she took a deep breath and almost stumbled backward. She didn’t know how he suddenly appeared, and though she was quite annoyed, somehow seeing his face also gave her a sense of satisfaction. However, what exactly was their relationship?

Lu Yun looked down at her, then at the Musical Heavenly Maidens in the alley. His expression was indifferent as he whispered very softly in her ear: “Is that dancer in the middle the one who should have danced that day?”

Luo Lingyu originally didn’t want to respond to him. But when he brought this up, she couldn’t help but be alert: “How do you know it’s her?”

Lu Yun said coldly: “She keeps giving you flirtatious glances.”

Luo Lingyu: “…Are you jealous?”

Lu Yun snorted, pretending not to hear: “Her figure is excellent, you can tell at a glance she’s a dancer, completely different from you.”

Just talking about others was fine, but he had to criticize her again! In his eyes, was there nothing good about her? Luo Lingyu gritted her teeth. She really didn’t want to talk to Lu Yun, didn’t want to pay attention to this person, but what Lu Yun said just made her unwilling to accept it.

It seemed if she didn’t challenge him, she would choke on her own blood. Luo Lingyu’s face reddened: “We’re both wearing dance clothes, how can you say her figure is better than mine? Have you seen it personally?”

Lu Yun looked down at her.

His eyes were full of tender waves, seeming both amused and not.

He bent down and whispered a few words in her ear, successfully making Luo Lingyu’s body stiffen, wishing she could cover her ears—”With your chest so… so full, how could you dance? Naturally not as good as a professional dancer.”

When the two were talking, Zhou Yangling had already consciously stepped away.

Luo Lingyu lowered her head, her cheeks turning crimson from his words, angrily pushing him away, wanting him to stay far from her.

Most people were enjoying the Musical Heavenly Maidens’ dance and hadn’t noticed this side, but the few who did notice had different expressions in their eyes.

For example, Qi Third Master’s gaze was dim, Lu Second Master was full of satisfaction, and Prince Hengyang Liu Mu had a somewhat displeased look as he observed…

Just then, Lian Qiniang spun out from among the dancers, dancing to Luo Lingyu’s side. Her delicate hand adorned with silver chains reached out, her flirtatious eyes glancing sideways. Lu Yun raised his eyes, his robes lifted by the wind as he stepped aside, looking interested. It was rare for a lady to invite someone else rather than him in his presence.

The drum beats intensified, the music grew louder, and Lian Qiniang danced close, circling around Lu Yun and Luo Lingyu. Her hands were like lotus flowers, her waist like a soft willow, passionately and fervently inviting the lady to dance with her—

“Lady Luo, please show us your skill.”

Luo Lingyu lowered her eyes, then smiled charmingly. Surrounded by drum beats, under Lu Yun’s gaze, the lady as beautiful as gleaming jewels reached out her hand to Lian Qiniang—what did he mean she wasn’t as good as Lian Qiniang? She would show that blind man where she fell short!

At the same time, a window opened in the pavilion above their heads. A tea master from the establishment rubbed his eyes while grabbing a wooden pole to prop open the window, and caught sight of the beautiful lady below being invited to dance by the dancing girl.

The tea master was completely stunned by the mesmerizing sight, forgetting about the window prop…