The carraige made its way through the crowded streets, the driver yelling for the people to make way. It was a sunny day and the breeze moved with strong force, making trees bend and hats fly.
The three daughters of Yan mansion, with their cousin Meiwan, sat and looked out the window as they traveled down the road. Yan Shi spoke about nearly every building and carriage as they passed, giving her cousin a detailed tour of their city.
"If you travel straight down this street, you'll eventually arrive at the palace gates. And down that road is the capital's largest public house!" She exclaimed.
At her last statement though, her second sister smacked her knee and scolded her. "Shi'er! How could you so boldly speak of... of the public house?"
The youngest sister rolled her eyes, clicked her tongue, and put her finger to the middle of her chest. "I can do what I want! After all, I'm the youngest AND father's favorite!" She smiled proudly.
Before Yan Wei could respond, Yan Tu put a hand on both her younger sisters' shoulders. "Shi'er, we don't speak about such places. Wei'er..." She considered a moment. "Don't argue with the uneducated."
Yan Shi's eyes widened at the playful insult and opened her mouth, a quick retort on her tongue, but Meiwan decided to add her own voice.
"What is a public house?"
Each girl turned at the question, mouths slightly agape. Yan Shi blinked and looked to each sister before returning her eyes to her cousin. It was clear to Meiwan, that whatever a public house was, she should probably know. Yan Wei cleared her throat and looked to the floor of the carraige.
"A public house, is... its a, um." She looked to Yan Tu.
"A place for men to enjoy themselves, drink wine, watch ladies dance and play music. That kind of thing." Yan Tu brushed the subject off with a basic explanation. "Have you never heard of one? Do you not have them in your city?" She asked.
Meiwan shook her head, she'd never heard of one. "I wasn't often permitted to leave our mansion. So I spent my time keeping Zhanyi company."
Her answer seemed to explain her situation to her cousins and they all nodded their heads.
After a short while, the carriage came to a stop, and the driver put a stool outside the door for the girls to step down off of. He pulled back the curtain and offered his arm for each girl to descend. When all the girls had exited, and the carriage had rolled away, they stood before a restaurant.
Above the entrance was sign that read Gutong Restaurant.
"Shall we?" Yan Tu led the way in.
A waiter greated them and led them to the second floor where a table sat next to the balcony, overlooking the stage below. After the girls sat and ordered a few simple dishes along with tea, Yan Shi leaned close to the waiter.
"Eh," She whispered. "Anything interesting playing today?" Her smile held mischief.
The waiter bowed his head and grinned. "Only the most popular play in the capital city! All the nobles and high class citizens have come to see it already." He leaned back and puffed his chest proudly. "We have the finest actors and storytellers!"
"Pft, we'll see." Yan Shi jested.
After the waiter left, Meiwan leaned in and spoke quietly. "They have plays here too?"
Her cousins once again exchanged glances. Yan Wei's brows lowered, her lips somewhat pooched.
"Wan'er, you've never been to a play?"
Meiwan looked over the edge of the balcony, and smiled lightly. "I've never been to a restaurant before." Her eyes roamed the room below, bringing a shine to her smile. There were so many interesting things to see and hear. She knew that her cousins were beginning to realize how sheltered she'd been, but it didn't matter. All the things she hadn't been able to do before, she would do now.
Moments later, another waiter banged a small gong and ran around the tables on the main level. The room quietened and waited for the man to retreat behind the stage, letting the actors know the audience was ready to recieve them.
"It's starting!" Yan Shi clapped her hands together excitedly before grabbing a handful of seeds to snack on.
Below, out walked two actors onto the stage, each dressed in heavy makeup, their faces white. Meiwan watched, entranced in their performance. The lines they spoke with conviction, the songs they sang were full of emotion, and the ending was tragic. The husband holding his dead wife in his arms, crying out to the heavens for mercy. But what answered, was the sound of silence.
As the actors left the stage, the audience erupted in applause. Meiwan felt herself joining in the flood of noise, a smile on her face. She had now fully experienced the wonder of acting, and she was deeply impressed.
"How was your first play?" Yan Shi scooted her seat closer to her cousin.
"I loved it!" Meiwan looked towards her. "Is it always a different story?"
Yan Shi frowned, "No, sadly they'll play the same one for at least a week. And if its really popular, like this one, they might run it for a month."
Meiwan nodded. It was understandable.
"Well, I wasn't aware the Yans were dining here today." A drunk man tumbled in the direction of the girls' table, another man holding him up. Both wore fine clothes and expensive crowns over their top-knots, both were handsome.
Yan Tu came to her feet, followed by her sisters. With an expressionless face, she greeted the new comers.
"Young master Jun, good afternoon." She turned to the man by his side and bowed slightly. "Young master Shang, how are you?"
"I wasn't aware the Yan family sprouted a new daughter." Shang raised his brows and looked at Meiwan.
Yan Tu and Yan Wei moved to stand before their younger cousin, both smiling politely. Meiwan noticed the curious glances of both young men as they examined her, she felt disgusted. She had never met rogues before, and now she wished she never would've.
"Young master Shang, this is my cousin Meiwan. She lives in Yan mansion now." Yan Tu explained.
"Oh, a cousin." The two men looked at each other.
"Well then, should your cousin ever need assistance, I hope you'll send for me. I'd be more than happy to lend a hand." The drunk barely got all the words out.
"With the Yan family taking care of her, I doubt we'll need you." Yan Wei spoke in low tones, but remained polite.
After the exchange, Yan Tu assisted Meiwan to her feet and began to guide her towards the staircase, but another voice brought them to a halt.
"Ah, the Yan sisters!" This time it was a young lady, dressed in the most outlandish and bejeweled dress Meiwan had ever seen.
"Miss Zhang." Each sister bowed in greeting.
The young lady returned the gesture, while fanning herself with a silk fan. Her smile was pretentious and her eyes revealed that she thought herself to be the most important person in the room.
"Yan Tu, who is this?" Miss Zhang turned her sharp eyes on Meiwan.
"None of your business." Yan Shi moved to face off with the lady.
Horrified, Yan Wei pulled her back by her long sleeve. "Shi'er!" She quietly scolded.
But miss Zhang just laughed the rude behavior off. "It's alright, I'm never offended by mindless people." Her smile held.
The sharp words made Yan Tu's eyes flash, and she glared at the other girl. "I'm sorry to be unable to converse with you further, I need to bring my sisters and cousin home now." She continued guiding Meiwan towards the staircase, her sisters following.
As they descended the stairs, Meiwan could hear miss Zhang move on to the two young men, speaking to them with flattery while playing bashful. It seemed there were new plays every day, at least here in the capital.
Moments later, the girls were back in the carriage heading back to the Yan mansion. Meiwan glanced out the window at the restaurant as it faded into the distance, before turning back to face her cousins.
"Who were those three today?" She asked.
Yan Shi scoffed and rolled her eyes, pointing in the direction they had just come from. "Those were three of the richest descendants of powerful court officials. Their fathers are all higher ranked than our father, and they often try and bully us because of it." She made a deep, throaty sound, somewhat like a growl.
"The young lady was miss Zhang, her father is the head of Revenue and a third ranked official. Their family is among the top five richest families here in the capital." Yan Wei further explained. "The two scoundrels are Jun Fu and Shang Qinglou. Jun's grandfather is the left chancelor, and one of the most famous playboys, he also like to throw his weight around."
Meiwan nodded as she took in the information. It seemed these were people she would need to avoid, as she remembered the two men's lustful glances towards her, and the venom that shot from miss Zhang's gaze.
"But they aren't the worst of the bunch. Shang Qinglou is a man to stay away from at all costs!" Yan Wei grabbed Meiwan's hand. "Shang's father is the greatest general in our dynasty! There are few who dare to challenge him, and he's a menace. If you offend him, he might to something drastic... and he'd get away with it!"
The younger girl swallowed and ran the edge of her sleeve through her fingers. Were the youth of the capital this vicious?
During the ride home, Meiwan let her imagination run wild as she considered any possible encounter with Shang Qinglou. Her mind slowly built the image of a blood-thirsty killer, and it was all she could think about later that night as she lay in bed. A blood-thirsty killer.