Liu Yuan had never seen King Yu being beaten with his own eyes. The reason why he was sure that King Yu was “disgracefully dressed” was…

“I heard that it when the little prince bumped into King Yu he was walking without looking at the road while fastening his belt! The little prince was not forgiving, and he asked him, “Where did you go to have fun so early in the morning?” Then the two of them started to fight! ” Liu Yuan said and couldn’t help but laugh.

Wen Mingtang also laughed twice. Before she could say a few more words, she heard a voice coming from the corridor.

“Liu Yuan!”

Not far away, Lin Fei was standing in the corridor with Bai Zhu. There was no emotion or anger on his face. He just said lightly: “You and Bai Zhu will go to the hotel today to check out those Goguryeo envoys.”

Liu Yuan said “Oh”, winked at Wen Mingtang, and turned around to go to the corridor.

After Lin Fei, Liu Yuan, and Bai Zhu left, Wen Mingtang walked aside, threw the prepared tea leaves, star anise, fennel, and other spices into the casserole, added the prepared sauce, and turned to Ah Bing beside her and said: “Ah Bing, come and look at this casserole. I’ll go out and buy some ingredients. I’ll make some summer snacks in a few days.”

Scooping up the bīngfěn in the bowl, Ah Bing immediately patted his chest after hearing this and said happily. “”Master Wen, go quickly! This pot of tea eggs is on me.”

Wen Mingtang responded with a “Hmm” and added, “When I return, I’ll bring some snacks to have with the Tangyuan!” After saying this, she cleaned her hands and then hurriedly left Dali Temple.

…

…

The afternoon in Zhengyangfang was the most pleasant time of the day.

Although it was not as crowded with government offices and rich and powerful households as Zhuquefang, it was very popular among the wealthy households in Chang’an City because it was well-connected and the streets were well-maintained.

The commotion this morning, where the rich young men got into a street fight, had not only failed to die down but was actually the talk of Zhengyangfang’s four main neighborhoods, with interest at its peak.

The women and idle men who were working and chatting on the street were describing the scene in the morning “life-like” manner.

“The one who got beaten badly, that delicate-looking one, who knows which household he had been sneaking around early in the morning. He was in such a hurry, tying his belt while walking, not even looking where he was going!” An idler exclaimed dramatically, “He ran right into that young master with his servant! It seemed like they had a grudge before, and as soon as they met, the young master started hitting him!”

“The delicate one is quite the playboy but can’t fight at all! He was so weak that even his steps were unsteady, and before long, his pale face was swollen like a pig’s head!” The idler, who had evidently witnessed the whole scene, said loudly, “That pretty boy couldn’t fight, but he sure was good at talking tough, shouting that he’d make that young master pay. Soon enough, the young master’s father showed up with some men, crossed his arms at the pretty boy, and said something like ‘I’ll take my son home for discipline.’ Then he quickly made a run for it with his son!”

“By the time the people from the little white-faced man’s house arrived, he had already disappeared, hahaha!” 

Watching the idler laugh heartily at the spectacle, a woman mending clothes nearby had no interest in the fight. She spat disdainfully and glanced at the luxuriously built alleyway not far off, remarking, “It’s probably another one messing around with that widow Wu Shi!”

The woman who was mending clothes almost gritted her teeth when she mentioned the three words “Widow Wu Shi”, with a somewhat unkind expression on her face.

The people around burst into laughter at the comment. The idler, who had been enjoying the spectacle earlier, didn’t hesitate to tease the woman, “Are you complaining about Widow Wu Shi because of that restless person in your house?”

“The alley was originally a good place, but it has become a mess since she came!” The woman who was mending clothes said “Pah” and admitted it frankly, “Can’t I complain a little?”

The woman who was mending clothes and sewing soles beside her heard her words and comforted her a little, and then told her the truth: “The one in your family seems to be like this all the time! Even if there was no Widow Wu, there would still be Widow Zhang and Widow Li. If he had money in his hands, I’m afraid he would have gone out to have fun long ago!”

The girl who was eating snacks leisurely on the side glanced here and continued to eat snacks with her head down.

It was a passerby who was looking for a place to eat snacks. The women and idle men who were chatting looked at her and continued to chat.

“It’s not just Widow Wu Shi who does this!” The man who spoke earlier pointed his mouth toward the end of the alley and said, “If you have the ability to complain about Widow Wu, you might as well complain about the one who started it!”

After all, people always pick on the weak! Although the widow Wu had money, she was just an ordinary merchant woman. That one was different. Her status was extraordinary.

Wen Mingtang looked in the direction the man pointed. He could vaguely see the eaves of several three-story buildings in the depths of the alley. Even in the well-renovated Zhengyangfang area, they looked particularly generous and impressive.

When the one who “started it” was mentioned, the woman who was mending clothes and complaining stopped her movements, paused, and said angrily, “How dare I complain about the nobleman?”

She said she didn’t dare, but her words inevitably carried a bit of yin and yang.

Everyone shook their heads and was about to continue chatting when they saw a man walking out of the alley: he was wearing a blue shirt and long robe, his hair was tied up, his eyebrows were handsome, and his appearance was elegant.

The blue robe seemed low-key, but the tailoring technique was fine and it was obvious that it was made by a famous tailor. It could be seen that this person was also a powerful person.

Although he was a noble, he was not one who was proud of his status and looked down on others. When he saw the people chatting on the street, he smiled, nodded gently to them, and then continued to walk forward.

After the man left, the people on the street, who had been quiet for a long time, started talking again. 

The first person to speak was the woman who was mending clothes.

“Fu Gongzi is a descendant of a famous family, handsome, kind, and upright. If he were my husband… Hey! I can laugh out loud with my eyes closed!” The woman said angrily, “I don’t know what the gōngzhǔ is dissatisfied with. She’s gone too far, putting a green hat on such a fine young man for no reason!”

As soon as these words came out, the idle man laughed out loud. He pointed at the woman and said with a smile: “You also know that she is a gōngzhǔ. How can it be easy to be the gōngzhǔ’s husband? And that Fu Gongzi’s family has fallen from grace. If the gōngzhǔ wants to make her husband wear a few green hats, what else can he do?”

What to do? Just bear with it! Everyone shook their heads and sighed to express sympathy.

Of course, Fu Gongzi might prefer not to have such sympathy.

Wen Mingtang frowned slightly and looked at the not-so-deep alley: So, which house did Prince Yu run out from early in the morning? Was it Widow Wu or the gōngzhǔ? Or was it someone else?

(End of this chapter)

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