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After Jinghong and Moonlight moved into Yang Residence, there were even more attendants at the Prime Minister's Residence. The living quarters within the estate were meticulously arranged: the main hall was named Celebration Hall, where Old Madam resided. In front of Celebration Hall was Yunxi Hall, home to Madam Zuo and Yingyang Princess. To the west of Celebration Hall was Phoenix Flute Palace, where Right Lady and Princess Lanyang lived. In front of Yunxi Hall were Fragrant Pavilion and Qinghe Tower, where the Chancellor resided, often hosting banquets for guests. Additionally, there were Grand Historian Hall and Hall of Righteousness, both places for the Chancellor to receive guests and handle official matters. South of Phoenix Flute Palace was Xunxing Courtyard, where Gentlewoman Qin Caifeng lived. To the east of Yunxi Hall was another courtyard called Spring Pavilion, home to Madam Ru and Jia Chunyun. On both sides of Qinghe Tower were rows of small buildings with green windows and pearl curtains, creating a picturesque scene that formed a corridor connecting to Qinghe Tower. East of Fragrant Pavilion was Flower Viewing Pavilion, while west of it was Moon Viewing Pavilion, with Moonlight and Jinghong each occupying one floor. The estate had as many as eight hundred musicians, each possessing exceptional beauty and talent. They were divided into two sections: the left section had four hundred people managed by Gui Chan Yue, while the right section had four hundred people overseen by Di Jinghong. They taught them to play instruments and practice singing and dancing, holding competitions on the last day of each month at Qinghe Tower to showcase their skills. The Chancellor accompanied Old Madam and brought the two princesses to judge the performances, distinguishing between excellence and mediocrity while rewarding or punishing the instructors accordingly. The winning side received three cups of wine each and wore a colorful flower in their hair as a mark of honor; the losing side had to drink a cup of cold water each and received a dot of ink on their forehead as a reminder. Thus, the musicians' skills improved day by day. Consequently, the performances at Wei Wangfu and Yue Wang Palace were renowned as the best in the world, even surpassing those from the Professional Academy of Performing Arts.
One day, while the two princesses and the ladies of the residence were chatting with Old Madam, the Chancellor entered from the study with a letter in hand and handed it to Princess Lanyang, saying, "This is a personal letter from King of Yue." The princess opened it to find that it read: "As spring is now upon us with its warm weather, I wonder how your health is, esteemed Chancellor? These days have been tumultuous for our nation; both public and private matters have kept us busy. At Leisurely Garden, there are no visitors or horse riders; by Kunming Pool, there are no scenes of boating entertainment. What should be a place filled with song and dance has instead become overgrown with weeds. The people in Chang'an often reminisce about the prosperity during Kaiyuan Tiangbao's time, unable to hold back their tears; this hardly resembles a peaceful scene! Now relying on His Majesty's Fortune, your contributions have brought peace across the seas, allowing people to live in harmony—this era of tranquility rivals that of Kaiyuan and Heavenly Treasure! Moreover, with spring in full bloom—the weather is clear and pleasant—it's truly a time when grass grows green and flowers bloom brightly; it would be a shame not to enjoy such beauty! Therefore, I would like to invite you to Leisurely Garden for some leisure activities—be it hunting or enjoying music—to showcase this era of peace together. Please let me know your thoughts on this invitation so I can prepare accordingly. I await your favorable reply!"
After reading King of Yue's letter, Princess Lanyang asked the Chancellor, "Do you know what King of Yue intends by this?" The Chancellor replied, "What deeper meaning could there be? He simply wishes to take advantage of springtime to invite me for an outing at Leisurely Garden; it's just some frivolous affair typical among idle young nobles—not worth taking seriously." Princess Lanyang said, "You only see one side but not both! King of Yue is fond of music and dance; he has no fewer than eight hundred beauties in his palace. Recently I've heard he has acquired a new favorite concubine—Yuyan from Wuchang City. It’s said that upon entering Yue Palace, all other beauties dimmed in comparison; they felt like plain women next to her beauty and talent—truly unparalleled! Surely King of Yue has heard about our many beauties here as well; perhaps he wants to compete with us like Wang Kai and Shi Chong did!" Upon hearing this, the Chancellor laughed heartily: "I completely overlooked that aspect; you think ahead well." Madam Zheng interjected from the side: "This is merely a trivial matter akin to games; we need not fear him." She then called for Gui Chan Yue and Di Jinghong, instructing them: "Having trained soldiers for a thousand days only to use them once—the key to victory lies entirely with you two! You must work hard!" Gui Chan Yue looked troubled and quietly said: "I'm afraid we may not be their match. The performances at Yue Wang Fu are renowned throughout the land; Yuyan from Wuchang City is famous across nine provinces! With such exquisite music and such stunning beauties at King of Yue's side—what powerful opponents we face! We are merely unsophisticated village women without any rules or standards; I'm afraid we might lose our nerve before even competing!"
The Chancellor pondered for a moment before saying: "I first met Chan Niang in Luoyang; she once mentioned that among courtesans there are three unparalleled beauties—and Yuyan is one of them. It seems she is indeed that world-renowned Yuyan! However, since two out of those three beauties are already in my residence—why should I fear just one Fan Zeng beside King of Yue?" Princess Lanyang laughed upon hearing this: "Your words miss the point; King of Yue has many concubines whose beauty is like clouds—how can it be just Yuyan?" Moonlight frowned at this remark: "If that's so, then those heavily made-up women in Yue Wang Palace must all be extraordinary flowers from Mount Bagong! How can our Poplar Willow-like figures compete? Please find someone more capable than us! I am naturally timid; now hearing this makes me feel choked up—I doubt I could sing even one song!" Di Jinghong raised her brows angrily: "Chan Mei Mei! What nonsense are you talking? You and I have roamed these lands for decades—what kind of performers haven't we seen? What kind of beauties haven't we encountered? My knees have never bent for anyone! Just one Yuyan—what's there to fear? If it were Lady Li from Han Palace or some goddess from Wushan—we might feel inferior—but who else could make us feel timid?"
Moonlight replied: "Consort Hong speaks too lightly! In our past gatherings in Guandong—from grand feasts hosted by governors to small gatherings among heroes—we've faced no formidable opponents; thus we found singing and dancing easy. But now we face Prince of Yue—raised in deep palaces surrounded by beautiful women with high standards—a harsh critic! It's like facing military strategists Sun Wu or Wu Qi or ancient strongmen Meng Ben or Xia Yu—it’s not something ordinary soldiers or inexperienced children can contend against! Moreover, that Yuyan girl is like Zhang Liang under King of Yue's command—how could we underestimate her? I see Consort Hong as merely talking strategy without experience; this competition seems destined for failure!" Then Moonlight turned to the Chancellor: "Consort Hong has always held herself in high regard; let me point out her shortcomings! When she first followed you she stole Yan Wang's Qianli horse claiming she was a Hebei youth—deceiving you on Handan Road! Just imagine if Consort Hong truly possessed beauty like flowers—how could you mistake her for a man? Furthermore, during her time as your favored concubine she always disguised herself as me under cover of darkness—that’s using others’ advantages for her own gain! Now she boasts before me—isn’t that laughable?"
Consort Hong laughed upon hearing this: "Truly human hearts are hard to fathom! Back when I hadn’t followed you yet she praised me as if I were a celestial maiden from the moon palace—but now she belittles me so easily! This is merely because you treat me better than Chan Niang—and she feels jealous thus speaks these sour words!" Moonlight along with other concubines burst into laughter.
Madam Zheng remarked: "Hong Niang isn't truly weak—it’s just that Sir's eyesight isn't good enough! Her reputation shouldn't diminish because of this. However, Chan Niang does have some point: when women dress as men they lack femininity; when men dress as women they lack masculinity—it’s due to their own inadequacies that they resort to deception."
The Chancellor laughed heartily: "Madam’s words flatter me indeed! Your keen eyes may not be so bright—you can hear melodies but can't discern gender—it’s your ears that are good but your sight that fails! Although you can point out someone lacks masculinity—all those who’ve seen my portrait at Qilin Pavilion praise my robust appearance!" Everyone erupted into laughter again.
Moonlight said: "We’re about to face formidable opponents—can we afford mere idle talk? We can't rely solely on ourselves; how about bringing Qin Shuren and Jia Ruren along? King of Yue isn’t an outsider—what’s there to worry about?" The Qin replied: "If Di Mei Mei and I arrive at an examination for female scholars—we will certainly give our all—but what use would we be in such a musical setting? Isn’t that like sending weak scholars into battle? I'm sure Gui Niang will succeed brilliantly." Chun Yun added: "Though I lack talent in singing or dancing—I wouldn’t mind being embarrassed alone—it would only be my personal shame after all! Don’t I want to witness such grandeur? If I go along others will surely point fingers saying: 'That’s Duke Wei’s favored concubine!' or 'She’s Madam Zheng’s maid!' Wouldn’t that bring disgrace upon Sir—and cause worry for both wives?" Chun Yun firmly stated she couldn't go.
The princess said: "Is it because Chun Niang goes that Sir will be ridiculed—and I'll worry too?" Chun Yun replied: "Imagine—a colorful silk canopy draped over an elaborate tent—the crowd murmuring: 'Yang Chancellor's favored concubine Jia Ruren has arrived!' People jostling each other trying to catch a glimpse—only for me to step up looking disheveled without care! They’d surely gasp in shock causing rumors—which would make Sir a laughingstock! As for Prince of Yue—having never seen someone so coarse—I’d surely disgust him causing you embarrassment too!"
The princess laughed upon hearing this: "Chun Niang—you’re too modest! You previously claimed you transformed from human into ghost—and now call yourself an ugly woman without charm! I don’t believe your words." She then asked the Chancellor when they should reply. The Chancellor answered: "It’s set for tomorrow." Upon hearing this news Hong Niang and Moonlight gasped in shock: "The orders haven’t been issued yet—isn’t this too rushed? What should we do?" They immediately summoned the lead courtesans instructing them: "Tomorrow Sir will meet King of Yue at Leisurely Garden—all courtesans must bring instruments ready themselves beautifully—we’ll depart early with Sir!"
Upon receiving orders all eight hundred courtesans sprang into action—they painted their brows and lips adorning themselves splendidly while holding instruments practicing songs and dances preparing for tomorrow's banquet.
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