Eternal Life: Talent Grows with Age-Chapter 54: The Lovely Lady

Zhao Fan and Liang Yun watched the three suddenly tense young men, their gaze hovering somewhere between amusement and mischief.

Even the youngest, Lu Chang’sheng, had already reached marrying age; in rich families, by fourteen, he’d probably have taken at least a concubine.

But Lu Chang’sheng? Word was, he hadn’t even held a woman’s hand.

Honestly—it was kind of outrageous.

That’s exactly why Zhao Hu brought up this topic at just this moment.

Not far off, Li Nangua, who was helping Yun and a couple of women clean tables and clear the floor, pricked up her ears.

Her archery skills had reached Great Success, and her sharp senses were a notch above ordinary folk; in an instant, she’d caught wind of the conversation.

Marriage?

Suddenly, it felt like a bolt of lightning flashed through her chest; every part of her was tense.

But the distance muddied the words, so she couldn’t quite make them out. She called out, "Ah, there’s another table over there nobody’s cleared yet. I’ll take care of it!"

The woman who was about to go clear that table had to step back, turning to another instead.

She thought, This girl really is diligent, sturdy hips too—she could be a good mother. And her face is nice, not sharp and sly like those seductresses, instead round and cute. The more I look, the more I like her.

Who knows which lucky bastard is going to end up with her.

People are selfish; when you see something you like—unless it’s your own, anyone else, no matter how good, is just a pig sleeping in the cabbage patch.

She glanced at the group of men at the table, not feeling so delighted.

Luckily, she knew how to behave and only wailed silently inside—no chance she’d let it show.

But Li Nangua had no idea what the woman was thinking. Instead, she kept her head down, working at the table, but her usually quick and decisive hands moved clumsily slow, her ears faintly twitching.

She heard Niu Dazhuang answer, "Me? I don’t know, gotta go ask my big brother and ma!"

Li Nangua nodded to herself, "Dazhuang’s got it right!"

Then Wang Heihou said, "Ahaha~ This sort of stuff—not urgent!"

Li Nangua mused, "Black Monkey is the kind who makes up his own mind!"

"What about you, Chang’sheng? Don’t just keep your head down! Not to nag, but you boys can’t delay getting wives too long—it’s bad if you wait!" said Zhao Hu, counseling them.

Li Nangua nodded again: Mr. Zhao speaks truth!

"Well—maybe after the checkpoints lighten up, I’ll go home and ask my big brother and parents about it," Lu Chang’sheng replied with a wry smile.

CLANG!

A bowl slipped from Li Nangua’s hand and shattered on the floor.

Everyone turned to look.

"Nangua! Nangua!" Zhao Hu called out.

This girl was usually so nimble—why did she suddenly seem all flustered?

Hope she wasn’t falling sick or something.

"Ah~ No, not good—sooner’s better, always better!" Li Nangua yelped. Two seconds later, seeing all the men staring at her with weird looks, she snapped back to reality, face so red it could drip water, and hurriedly ducked her head to clean up.

"See? Even Nangua agrees—you boys should marry early!" Zhao Hu barked, grinning as he turned back to the men.

"Eh~ I don’t think there’s any rush," Lu Chang’sheng replied.

CLANG!

She dropped another bowl!

Still Li Nangua!

Every pair of eyes swung her way in unison.

This time, Li Nangua was quicker, didn’t blurt out nonsense, just scrambled to clean up the mess.

"Nangua, what do you think?" But Zhao Hu wouldn’t let her off the hook.

"I think a bit of...urgency is...good!" Li Nangua mumbled, mouth working as if she wasn’t sure, cheeks burning. But she couldn’t help herself, so she spoke up in a low voice.

After two slip-ups, she didn’t dare linger—she packed up fast and hurried away.

Her pace was as if something was chasing her.

Crossing from one end of the room to the other, memories of the conversation gnawed at her—shame, disappointment mingled inside.

She’d followed Lu Chang’sheng for years and she knew his temperament. Saying things like that, he’d obviously have no such intentions any time soon.

Her bright eyes now turned a little dim.

Just then, Zhao Hu’s booming voice rang out behind her.

"Nangua, there’s a show tonight at Huiying Building. Uncle got tickets for you kids—don’t forget!"

"Ah~ Okay... alright!" Li Nangua jolted upright, voice trembling as she replied.

Lu Chang’sheng smiled, not refusing Zhao Hu’s kindness.

"A little relaxation sounds good."

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The festive spirit in Black Mountain Prefecture hadn’t been dampened by the bad harvest. If anything, it felt even richer—the streets were strung high with red lanterns, and even the curfew was lifted for a while.

The night market glowed, throngs of people coming and going.

On Ruilong River, lanterns floated on the nighttime waters; boats drifted along the current, with the elegant sons and daughters of wealthy families sailing about in the distance.

Lu Chang’sheng had lived in Black Mountain Prefecture for some time, but tonight was his first real glimpse of the town’s dazzling vitality.

Same for Wang Heihou and Niu Dazhuang.

"City life sure is different. When we go back, let’s bring our families here!" Wang Heihou sighed wistfully.

Lu Chang’sheng agreed with a nod.

They all wanted their loved ones to see this bright world—to witness for themselves the city their children had worked so hard for.

Arriving at Huiying Building, they showed their tickets and entered.

A towering stage rose in the center, with a group of female courtesans already performing opera.

Crisp voices, picturesque women, fierce martial performers... the crowd was truly mesmerized. But Lu Chang’sheng wasn’t in the mood—after a while, he felt a wave of drowsiness hit him, and soon enough, he was sleeping against his seat.

Next to him, Li Nangua stared unblinkingly at the mesmerizing performers, soaking up every role—when the show hit its peak, tears rolled down her cheeks unchecked.

On stage they sang: ’In times of war, a young woman meets a boy amid the chaos; he protects her, hundreds of miles through danger, scraping by, suffering together. They finally reach a prosperous land, but know no one—leaning on each other for warmth, working side by side, from beggars to laborers. He struggles outside, she weaves at home; come night, she tends his wounds, listens to his dreams of joining the army! Determined, she saves every copper for years, and at sixteen, buys him armor. Overjoyed, he sets off to fight; years later, famous and successful, he returns to find her—but she’s vanished. On the day he left, she’d sold herself as a concubine to a wealthy man to buy that very armor; in her bridal chamber, she ended her life!’

This was the classic opera "Charming Lady." Sneaking a side glance, she wondered: Is Chang’sheng as moved as I am, all in pieces?

But when she turned to look, she was stunned—and her mouth puffed up in frustration.

Sound asleep!

Not a romantic bone in his body.

She felt thoroughly smothered inside. She tried to watch the play again, but couldn’t focus at all, turning away to peer at Lu Chang’sheng’s peaceful face, and thinking: He is better-looking than any actor up there.

Spotting his hands laid out in the open, she thought: It’s nighttime, what if his hands get cold? So, she put hers on top of his!

Sure enough, freezing! He needed some warming up—so she gripped tighter.

But at that moment, a commotion broke out a little ways down.

Lu Chang’sheng opened his eyes to see the Huiying Building manager at their side, a look of regret on his face.

"So you’re Lu Tongsheng? Sorry about this—really, we’re at a bit of a loss!"

"What’s going on?"

The manager shook his head, a pained smile on his lips. "There’s nobles coming for tonight’s show, and we haven’t got enough seats, so we have to ask some people to leave!"

Lu Chang’sheng’s face went cold; glancing around, he saw other scholars and rich businessmen leaving as well. With little choice, he nodded and led his friends out.

Crossing the threshold, he looked back—just in time to see Xun Zimo and a throng of nobles sweeping in from the other entrance, taking their seats as if nothing had happened.

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