Chapter 47-2: Seen Before
Upon seeing Luo Yue raise her eyebrows, ready to scold
again, Luo Sheng frowned, "If scolding people could solve the problem, do
you think it's your turn to scold?"
One sentence made Luo Yue choke, leaving her at a loss for
words.
Luo Sheng turned her attention to the girl in purple and
said, "Since Simei is acting irrationally, Dajie, could you please explain
it to me?"
Luo Yue's eyes widened in annoyance. How could Luo Sheng,
who couldn't resist flirting with a man whenever she saw a handsome one, have
the cheek to call her irrational?
Luo Ying and Luo Qing exchanged glances, sensing that their
Sanmei seemed different than before.
"Dajie?" Luo Sheng asked.
Luo Ying returned to her senses and smiled at Luo Sheng.
"Sanmei, do you still remember Si [1]Gongzi?"
Luo Sheng nodded calmly, "Yes." She indeed
remembered. The so-called Si Gongzi was the male companion that Miss Luo had
taken back from the streets.
Hatred filled Luo Ying's eyes, and her tone turned cold as
she continued, "He was the one who stabbed Father!"
Luo Sheng fell silent. She knew that a girl who liked to
keep a male companion could cause trouble, but she never imagined it would lead
to something so serious! Though everyone else could blame Miss Luo, she
couldn't. This body belonged to Miss Luo; based on this alone, she was indebted
to Miss Luo forever.
After a brief silence, Luo Sheng turned around, "I'll
go see Father first."
Luo Yue bit her lips, watching Luo Sheng's retreating
figure, and commented to Luo Ying and Luo Qing, "Dajie, Erjie, you see,
she also knows she has no right to say anything—"
"All right, Simei, don't say too much. Sanmei has
already gone in to see Father. Let's follow her inside," Luo Ying said,
patting Luo Yue's arm and leading her toward the room.
As they walked, a line of concubines standing in the
corridor made way for them, allowing Luo Sheng to push the door open and enter
the room.
As Luo Ying and the others entered, the group of concubines
naturally turned their attention toward Sheng Sanlang.
Sheng Sanlang had never encountered a situation where a
well-bred young lady returned from a trip only to be scolded by another young
lady. He was still in a daze, forgetting that he was supposed to go in with Luo
Sheng to see Commander Luo.
Under the scrutinizing gazes of the concubines, the young
man felt the pressure mount, and he instinctively displayed a shy smile.
The young man's smile abruptly broke the silence among the
concubines. "Heavens, is this the male companion brought back by
Miss?" one of them exclaimed in surprise.
"Impossible! Wasn't Miss sent to her maternal family's
house by Master? I heard that the Sheng Family of Jinsha is a family of
scholars. How could they allow Miss to keep a male companion?" questioned
another concubine.
A concubine dressed in lilac flicked her handkerchief and
spoke in a hushed and secretive tone, "Why is it impossible? Even our
Master couldn't prevent Miss from keeping a male companion, so how could the
Sheng Family?"
All the concubines pondered the statement and nodded in
agreement, saying, "What you said makes sense!"
Sheng Sanlang had good hearing, and even if his hearing were
average, it would be impossible not to overhear a group of women gossiping. The
male companion being brought back? Did they mean him?
Glancing at Xiuyue, who seemed almost invisible, Sheng
Sanlang confirmed that he had understood correctly. They must be talking about
him; they couldn't possibly mean Xiugu! Makes sense? Makes sense, my ass!
Unable to stay silent any longer, especially when his honor
was at stake, Sheng Sanlang coughed heavily to interrupt the women's
discussion. "I am Luo Sheng's Biaoge. Everyone, please step aside. I'm
going in to see Gufu[2]"
All the concubines silently moved out of the way, and when they
saw Sheng Sanlang enter the room, they quickly exchanged glances. One concubine
spoke in a hushed voice, "I never expected Miss could bring her Biaoge
home without any status[3]..."
Hearing every word, Sheng Sanlang stumbled and almost fell.
He had accompanied Biaomei to the Capital just for a bite of delicious food,
and he never thought that it would involve his reputation—at least he couldn't
be without any status!
Inside the room, in stark contrast to the commotion outside,
an oppressive silence enveloped the space. Luo Sheng's gaze remained fixed on
the middle-aged man lying on the bed, and she felt a cold chill in her heart.
She had seen this person before.
[1]
Si was his family name, not si as in four
[2]GÅ«fu
(姑父):
Paternal aunt’s husband; How Sheng Sanlang addressed Luo Commander
[3] When a man brings a woman to his mansion, he typically grants her a status (either as a concubine or just a maid he can sleep with). If she's not granted any status, she'll have a low and awkward position in the mansion. The concubines are comparing Sheng Sanlang to such woman.
TN: I often use Chinese terms for how the characters call each other. I was wondering, do you think it's too much? Should I change some of them to English to make it easier to understand? I'd love to hear your thoughts on this!
I think it would be great to change to English, especially since a lot of the terms have direct translations to English terms. Makes readability a lot easier. Thank you for your hard work!
ReplyDeleteI'll certainly consider changing some terms to English if they have suitable translations. Thanks for the suggestion!
ReplyDelete