"May I ask, sir, if your inn is accepting guests tonight?"
"No, we’re full. Get lost."
This was the third group to leave the Summer Insect Pavilion.
They hadn’t even entered when they regretfully turned away.
Yet, before being impatiently shooed away by the surly shopkeeper Zhao, they couldn’t help but turn back for a glance at the guests sitting at a table in the corner of the empty tavern.
They departed dejectedly.
Inside the hall, Fan Yushu peeked at the group that had just left.
Including them, there had been three groups asking for entry within the span of a half-stick of incense. This shabby, remote little tavern was like a naked beauty inviting customers at the door, drawing wave after wave of strange visitors to this unvisited alley.
The first group that interrupted Zhao the shopkeeper and Zhao Rong’s conversation earlier featured an unremarkable green-robed youth followed obediently by an old servant with white hair.
But they were impatiently dismissed by the wave of Zhao Shopkeeper’s hand, closing the door on them.
The second wave consisted of a young girl with a few white scales on her face, followed by a massive dark-skinned man two Zhang tall.
They too were rejected by an irascible Zhao shopkeeper flicking a toothpick.
The latest group to depart was a band of men in strange attire.
The leader was dressed like a dandy, holding a folding fan, handsome and dashing, yet the group of male servants behind him were even more delicate and beautiful than the dandy himself.
Fan Yushu maintained his composure, yet internally he was taken aback.
If he wasn’t mistaken, this dashing young leader was from a highly reputable family in the East City—ah, considering his preferences, it almost certainly matched a somewhat familiar name...
As for the girl with white scales in the previous group, Fan Yushu didn’t recognize her, but he had some inkling that she might be related to the demon clans from Waterkind affiliated with the Wangque Continent, who originate from the massive Li River stretching from north to south...
As for the first group that came... Fan Yushu didn’t recognize them either, but they were most likely no ordinary folks.
Thinking this, he couldn’t help glancing around the inn and the surly shopkeeper who was muttering while fetching wine behind the nearby counter.
Fan Yushu checked the empty hall. How could it be full? Were they invisible? Good Lord, such a ghostly situated tavern, and this bizarre shopkeeper still acts all uppity, turning guests away. Is it just for the meal hosted by Fairy Zhao tonight?
However, recalling a certain elusive special location he had once heard about, he fell into silence...
At this moment, the atmosphere at the table wasn’t as awkward and tense as before and had eased somewhat.
After the dishes were set, Lingfei mentioned that only a soup left simmering was needed, and then tonight’s dinner would be complete.
Thus, everyone found their seats.
The arrival of three groups in such a short period outside the door had caught Zhao Rong and his company by surprise, and the shopkeeper Zhao’s rejection of guests piqued curiosity, yet they didn’t pay it too much mind, knowing just how eccentric this shopkeeper Zhao was, spouting vulgarities and acting unpredictably.
Lingfei, scarf still tied around her waist, now sat beside Zhao Rong, whispering to him, "Brother Rong’er, about today..."
She paused, gazing at his profile, leaving her words unfinished.
Zhao Rong looked up at her, shook his head, and patted her clasped hands on her knee, "It’s nothing. I just remembered some matters and got a bit... emotional."
He paused, chuckling self-deprecatingly, "Ah, I suppose I made it a bit awkward for Teacher Zhu and others."
Lingfei pursed her lips, looked over and exchanged glances with Zhao Qian’er.
Suddenly, she stood up and earnestly said to the fox-eyed girl,
"Miss Su was too polite earlier. It wasn’t as grand as she mentioned. My husband and I aren’t that remarkable... it’s just those idle folks who love to gossip. Please don’t take it seriously."
After her words, Lingfei smiled at Su Xiaoxiao and turned to the others, "The soup should be ready soon, I’ll go help Aunt Bing in the kitchen," and then she left.
Zhao Qian’er didn’t follow her but instead playfully observed the seated guests, lingering a bit longer on Su Xiaoxiao and Zhu Yourong, squinting her eyes. The next second, she leaned towards Zhao Rong’s ear, softly breathing:
"Brother Rong’er, I’ll fetch you a cup of wine~"
Having said that, the mischievous girl tilted her head in a smile to the others and moved toward the counter where the surly shopkeeper was.
Zhao Rong watched Qian’er’s retreating figure.
"Ziyu, the place our sister-in-law chose... something’s off," observed Fan Yushu in a low voice to his brother as the two women walked away.
At another table, Zhu Yourong was chatting casually to the emotionally unstable Su Xiaoxiao, with Yu Huaijin and Li Xueyou joining in, and oddly enough, the usually quiet Jia Tengying also ventured over, surprisingly vocal.
Right then, the heavy sound of a copper bell echoed inside the Summer Insect Pavilion.
Zhao Rong and Fan Yushu turned to look as the green-robed old man appeared again at the doorway, striking the aged copper bell inside with his wooden stick, just as he had when Zhao Rong and others first arrived.
The bell’s chime resonated through the hall.
"The second watch of the night," Zhao Rong muttered softly.
"Ah, what?" Fan Yushu, his conversation interrupted by the monotonous ring of the bell, turned his head to ask.
"I said..." Zhao Rong shifted his gaze toward the open door of the Summer Insect Pavilion, the unlit space beyond only showing the old man’s retreating figure, the night hazy, "Hm, you can hear it too."