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Bai Yu had to welcome her usual guest early in the morning. The Xu siblings had come here so often that everyone was used to seeing the three of them together almost all of the time.

“Why don’t you let me do it?”

“No.” Bai Yu shook her head, refusing her friend’s well wishes. Xu Luanle only shrugged in response before returning his focus to drawing his eyeliner.

Xu Peipei stopped her hands and temporarily abandoned her embroidered cloth to look at the handkerchief in Bai Yu’s hand. “You’ve become worse at this.”

“It’s probably because of the cut from the qin strings at that time. Picking things up or writing is so much harder now.” She lied with a straight face. She could not admit that she did not have sewing skills like the original Bai Yu.

“Good. I’ll have one fewer rival.”

“I’ve already stopped seeing you as a rival.”

Xu Peipei suddenly plopped down next to her. Eyes that were delicately drawn with an eyeliner were wide. “Have you given up on Qin Wang?”

.....

Bai Yu waggled her brow.

Xu Peipei frowned. “Liar! You’re fooling me so that I’ll let my guard down, and then you’ll go to Qin Wang behind my back! Right?!”

Bai Yu chuckled.

“Her target is much higher than your Qin Wang, little sis.” Xu Luanle spoke while still concentrating on drawing eyeliner.

“Brother, what do you mean? Xu Peipei hurriedly turned to press her brother for the answer. She was quite serious about this topic, yet the other two were talking so casually.

“It means that the man she fancies is much older than your Qin Wang, dear sister.”

“Cough!”

Bai Yu choked on her own spit. She glared at Xu Luanle and then smoothed her expression to remain calm again, ignoring the questioning gaze from Xu Peipei. Now that she thought about it, she was amused with herself. They were ten years apart. Also, he was even in the generation that was not far behind her father. Ah...She should not think about Ouyang Feilong in this way. She did not want to admit that she liked him now. That beautiful man was foul-mouthed, crude, and did not know how to cherish women at all. He did not fit her type at all!

How come she liked him...?

——————-

Invitations to the noble ladies had been sent to major families and those in the inner court. It was for the launch of new clothes from the anonymous master’s shop, though everyone knew that the Bai family’s first miss was the one who designed them all.

On top of the event, the invitation also mentioned Bai Yu’s eighteenth birthday.

Today was her birthday. She took advantage of the occasion to launch her business while also celebrating her birthday. Even if they were not interested in fashion, they had to be respectful of the Bai family by attending the event and giving her gifts.

‘Zhaocaijinbao’ was where the event was held. Bai Yu booked the number one inn in the capital for three full days for this occasion. Some customers complained, but seeing that it was a reservation made by the Bai family to arrange an opening event for the anonymous master’s shop and Miss Bai’s birthday party, no one dared to let out even a whine.

At the venue, Bai Yu only wore a dark blue dress that was simple but elegant. She did not want to draw attention away from the dresses they wanted to sell, which were now being worn by the courtesans she had bought to be her models.

Xu Peipei also came as a fashion enthusiast and as the birthday girl’s best friend. No one knew that her threads were among the delicate needleworks. At the same time, Xu Luanle was preparing to walk down the runway in the finale dress.

The party that night was arranged in the same style as other parties of this era, in other words, it included food and tea. However, what made it different from normal parties was the shows performed by the courtesans Bai Yu had bought to train in various arts. They, like the models, wore clothes designed by her.

Before the party started, maids sent by high-ranking consorts came to congratulate her on her birthday and because she was the representative for the anonymous master, who was absent as usual. Apart from the maids, there were the Furens and young ladies from other families who came to talk to her and give her presents. Almost every family in the capital came.

Bai Yu conversed with the guests with a smile on her face, despite the frustration at the fake friendliness coming from every direction. Because of the rumors about her, the number one beauty, that had spread throughout the capital, many women enjoyed her misfortune. Now that she was holding an opening event and her birthday party at the same time, a few came because they truly wanted to congratulate her, while the majority only wanted to see an amusing scene and laugh at her.

During such an unstable time with Da Chu, everyone was expecting war. The commoners were in distress; the nobles should not be inattentive. Bai Yu, on the other hand, chose to hold a party, ignoring the state of the nation. She was practically begging for troubles.

However, Bai Yu cared about nothing. On the contrary, she was glad that she held the party during this time. One reason was that she would eventually have to organize her birthday party in a way that befitted her status anyway, so if she combined it with the opening event, she could cut out unnecessary lavishness. Furthermore, she already knew the outcome of the war. There would be some losses, but Da Yang would triumph in the end.

The other reason was that she wanted to make a name for herself as someone more than just ‘a young lady who was good at guqin’.

She was confident in her skills as a designer. She was confident in the abilities of the Xu siblings. Also, she was confident that she had done the best she could.

Before the party started, Bai Yu had to greet two significant guests she had never expected to show up: Ouyang Wenrou, the man with a gentle smile and a warm gaze, and Ouyang Mingxian, the evil dragon whose eyes were colder than ever. Aw, she could never escape the orbit of these good-looking men.

“Blessings to Qin Wang. Blessings to Wei Wang.”

Ouyang Mingxian waved his hand before giving her a cloth bundle as a gift. “Benwang came in grandmother’s place.”

Bai Yu smiled politely and then curtsied again after receiving the bundle. “Many thanks to her majesty and Wangye.”

It was nearly time for the party to start. Bai Yu excused herself to prepare, leaving the greeting duty to Xu Peipei, who immediately rushed toward them as soon as she saw Ouyang Mingxian. Ouyang Mingxian’s glance wavered for a brief moment. Ouyang Wenrou, who was beside him, was surprised as well, though it did not show through the usual smile on his face.

Bai Yu stepped away, amidst the many eyes that were staring at her and Ouyang Mingxian with great interest. They, too, were astonished to see that she did not try to stick by his side like every time before. She was only slightly smiling as she turned her back and walked away from him.

Soon after everyone had taken their seats, the performance started. Bai Yu opened the party by thanking her guests for coming to the launch of her business and her birthday party. All of the Bai family members were present today, including her father, her mother, the second Furen, the third Furen, and her half-sisters. The only one absent was Bai He. Bai Han said that he could not come because he was busy preparing for the war. Only a few people knew the real reason.

Bai Yu took a deep breath to raise her spirits. This would make Big Brother proud of her!

There was not much time for her to practice. Bai Yu’s top priority was the design of the dresses. She tried to make it suitable for the dance of this era. Today’s performance looked especially ethereal and delicate because of the lighter fabric that would flow with its movements. If she had more time, she wanted to try the dance she had learned in her former life too.

There were other performances at the party too. Namely, a play about a noble lady who fell in love with a man from a rival family, and thus their love was frowned upon. The plot was not entirely new, because the main attraction was the clothes and accessories that the heroine wore every day. The hero’s garment was not plain either. Bai Yu wanted her guests to see that, while her clothes might seem unusual, they were not so unusual that they could not be worn on a daily basis. Before trying to sell something, it was critical to persuade customers to broaden their perspective.

The ‘stage’ was a performance area surrounded by seats for the audience. The layout was the same as other banquets of this period as she wanted her guests to have a familiar atmosphere. Still, she modified the seats to be tiered, with the front seats lower than the back and arranged to resemble a staircase. Bai Yu had saved her trump card to be used for her final performance and she wanted everyone to be able to see it clearly.

Bai Yu watched the penultimate performance with a face full of smiles. Many times, she had to drink alcohol when someone raised a glass to her in appreciation of the performance or the dress she designed, as well as the dancers she had taught.

The final performance was about to begin. A middle-aged man walked to the center of the stage and spoke loudly enough to be heard throughout the venue. Bai Yu’s heart was racing with nervousness. She glanced at Xu Peipei and met her eyes. They appeared to be experiencing the same emotions.

“Many thanks to the honored guests who have come to this party today...” Everyone was silent. They were all listening to him. “...The last performance will be the grand reveal of the new dresses from the anonymous master’s shop. The auction will begin after this final show.”