Chapter 28: The Knife and the Chopping Block
Chapter 28: Chapter 28: The Knife and the Chopping Block
It was the Crown Prince’s Tutor, Zhou Yun.
Seeing Liang Wan, a playful look appeared in his Taohua eyes. "So the young lady is here as well."
He smiled at her before brushing past, turning to Wang Su with a grin. "I had some matters to attend to and arrived late. I hope the guest of honor will forgive me!"
Although his words were apologetic, they held no trace of guilt. His every action and word were casual and nonchalant.
"Young Master Zhou must instruct the Crown Prince daily, so he is naturally busier than others," Wang Su said, ordering a servant to add a new seat to the side.
The Zhou family was not as powerful as the Lu Family, but their ancestors were one of the eight founding pillars of the state. It was unclear if this was to avoid the taboo of overshadowing the emperor with their merits or if the Zhous were simply indifferent to power, but by Zhou Yun’s generation, they had no interest in partisan conflict and focused only on protecting the Crown Prince.
Zhou Yun did not refuse. He sat down gracefully with a faint smile. Noticing the beaming Liang Cheng nearby and then pointing to Liang Wan, who was about to step out the door, he asked with some confusion, "Lord Sikong, what is the meaning of this?"
Zhao Heng chuckled and explained, "Well, it’s Lord Sikong’s birthday banquet. After presenting his gift, Vice Minister Liang thought he’d have the young lady liven things up for everyone—"
’Liven things up?’
Zhou Yun instantly understood the dark glint in Zhao Heng’s eyes. He propped up his chin, his eyes crinkling, and the look he gave Zhao Heng became much more intriguing.
’What a fool!’
As soon as Liang Wan left the main hall, a maid led her away to change her clothes.
When she saw the dress, she was stunned. Liang Cheng had told her to prepare for Lady Qi’s Sleeve-Flicking, Waist Bending Dance, but this costume was clearly for a Plate and Drum Dance. ’Was this a last-minute challenge from Wang Su, or did Liang Cheng do this on purpose?’
Liang Wan clutched the dress, her thoughts in a turmoil.
"You’d best hurry, miss. The masters don’t have all day to wait!"
Seeing Liang Wan staring at the dress with a frown, clearly troubled, the maid spoke in a sarcastic, mocking tone.
But Liang Wan saw the schadenfreude in the maid’s eyes. Uninterested in stooping to her level, she simply composed herself and changed into the clothes, her hands and feet cold.
Once she was ready, Liang Wan finally spoke. "Where are the others?"
She wouldn’t have minded the Waist Bending Dance, but the Plate and Drum Dance, if she wasn’t mistaken, was a group performance.
The maid flicked a stray hair from her face, an amused look in her eyes. "They are waiting for you outside, of course."
Liang Wan had started to turn away, but a thought struck her and she snapped her head to the side. "You seem very happy to see me in a difficult position."
The sudden turn startled the maid, and the question left her speechless, unsure how to respond.
Liang Wan bared her teeth in a smile. "Do you know when a person is in the most danger?"
The maid was bewildered, her face pale as she dared not answer. The person before her was smiling so gently, yet that smile seemed to gleam with a cold light, making the hair on her arms stand on end.
Liang Wan lowered her gaze and pursed her lips lightly. "It’s when they fail to recognize their own place."
With that, she chuckled softly and pushed the door open, leaving.
The maid stood stunned in the room for a moment before pursing her lips in disdain. ’And here I thought she was going to do something impressive. So that’s all she’s got!’
When Liang Wan re-entered the main hall, she saw that, sure enough, numerous plates and drums had been placed in the center of the floor. It was undoubtedly a group dance, and she frowned. A group dance, unlike a solo, demanded perfect synchronicity and coordination. Otherwise, the drumbeats would be chaotic, creating a disastrous spectacle instead of a thing of beauty.
But she had never practiced with them, not even once. This was pure, malicious sabotage, designed to make her a public laughingstock.
Liang Wan’s gaze swept over the scene, and she instantly understood who had orchestrated this.
"Everyone says the young lady’s dancing is exquisite, unparalleled in the world. As for the Palm Dance, it goes without saying—if you claimed to be second best in all of Daqi, no one would dare claim to be first!"
Zhao Heng grinned. "But today is Lord Sikong’s birthday! The young lady must perform something a little different to show her sincerity!"
As soon as he finished speaking, a line of dancing girls stepped through the door.
Liang Wan nodded. ’They’re treating me just like a common dancing girl for their amusement. Did he come up with this method of humiliation to please Wang Su, or to satisfy his own twisted desires?’
The distress and anger in her eyes were unconcealed. Even if the crowd hadn’t understood at first, it was now clear to everyone that this was a deliberate attempt to humiliate her.
Zhao Heng wore a triumphant smile. Though he addressed Wang Su, his eyes were fixed on Liang Wan. "What do you think, My Lord?"
Wang Su gave a slight, arrogant nod.
’His reaction was expected.’ Wang Su was petty and held grudges. She had made him lose face in front of all the dignitaries of Jinye City; how could he not seize this chance to vent his anger?
With Zhao Heng so considerately serving up this opportunity, how could Wang Su not take full advantage of it to degrade her?
Once Wang Su had spoken, no one else could dare to intervene, even if they wanted to.
The other dancers had already taken their positions. Left with no choice, Liang Wan tapped her toes lightly and leaped onto one of the drums, landing on its surface like a swan in flight.
Zhou Yun, who had been absent-minded, found his eyes widening in surprise. This person was completely different from the subservient, fawning woman he had seen the other day.
The strike of a chime not only jolted Zhou Yun from his thoughts but also signaled the dancers to begin.
Atop the great drum, she dipped and rose, swayed back and forth. Her graceful, slender waist was like a willow branch in spring—soft, yet resilient. Her hem fluttered like a swift, her sleeves like swirling snow. She was as light as a butterfly, as swift as a startled swan.
Suddenly, the chime’s tone shifted. The harmonious drumbeat changed, and her effortless grace was replaced by a strained effort to keep up. It was obvious this was not a rhythm she was familiar with.
The rest of the crowd also noticed the change. Their previous focus was broken, and they began to whisper amongst themselves, a stir running through the hall.
Zhou Yun’s gaze shifted, flicking briefly over to Zhao Heng. When he saw the smug, triumphant smile on Zhao Heng’s lips, he understood everything. Looking back at the woman struggling to cope on the drum, he couldn’t help but frown with worry.
For every step that followed, Liang Wan had to blindly guess the rhythm. To avoid making a sound out of sync with the others, she used a few spins to observe their patterns.
Her gaze drifted unintentionally and caught the moment Liang Cheng signaled to Zhao Heng. At last, she understood.
Liang Wan moved nimbly across the drum tops. After a sudden, stormy flurry of movement, she forced the other dancers to stumble and fall. Looking down upon them from her higher position, she swept her gaze around, then lowered her eyes. ’Rather than trying to imitate and catch up, I might as well muddy the waters.’
Seeing that she had not only avoided embarrassment but had outshone the others and dominated the stage, Zhou Yun couldn’t help but curve his lips into a smile. He felt as if he had just figured something out.
When he saw the shocked expressions on the faces of Zhao Heng and his cronies, who had clearly not expected this move, Zhou Yun found it even harder to suppress his laughter.
But as he was smiling, he saw Liang Wan fall like a swallow with a broken wing, plummeting straight to the ground. Zhou Yun shot upright in his seat, and someone in the crowd cried out in a low voice.
The drum that should have been there had been moved by someone.
A piercing pain shot up from her ankle. Liang Wan lay sprawled on the ground, unable to move, fighting back the tears brought on by the agony.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk. So she’s nothing special after all."
"I bet all that praise was just hype from the Liang Mansion..."
The people around craned their necks to get a look at her on the floor.
"What a pity—" Zhao Heng stood up, shaking his head with an expression of immense regret. "The young lady has truly failed to appreciate My Lord’s kind intentions!"
Liang Cheng hurried forward. "It is all this humble official’s fault for being lax in her instruction. I’m afraid she has injured her foot. Might we be so bold as to borrow your household doctor, My Lord?"
The smile in his eyes held a deep, hidden meaning.