I am a prince in Zhutian Films

Chapter 373 A Story

It's quiet at night.

Zhao Pan'er was just about to fall asleep when she suddenly heard a knock at the window.

She looked puzzled and approached the window cautiously.

"Who?"

"Don't be afraid, it's me."

Hearing the familiar voice, Zhao Paner felt relieved and quickly opened the window, and then saw Zhao Wei standing outside the window.

"Your Highness, why are you here so late?"

Zhao Wei smiled: "Because I miss you so much that I can't sleep at night."

These words made Zhao Pan'er blush slightly, and she couldn't help feeling happy. But when she thought of what she had said to Sun Sanniang before, she suppressed the throbbing in her heart.

"Your Highness, please stop joking. How could a noble like you lose sleep at night because of a country woman like me?"

Zhao Wei immediately retorted: "Don't say that. In my eyes, you are the best. I wish I could bring you back to the palace so that I can see you every day."

Zhao Pan'er sighed silently: "Your Highness, I...you can't find anyone, why do you always tease me?"

"I'm not teasing you." Zhao Wei shook his head and said softly, "I know what you are worried about, but I'm not Ouyang Xu, and I'm not in a hurry. I will wait for you to get over that hurdle. I'll wait for you."

Zhao Pan'er didn't expect Zhao Wei to suddenly say this, and her eyes suddenly turned red.

She thought about what happened between her and Ouyang Xu. She had given so much, but in the end, she was cruelly abandoned.

It would have been bad enough to have been abandoned, but she was also humiliated by her past status as a lowly woman.

But Zhao Wei was of noble status and knew her past, but he never looked down on her. Instead, he helped her a lot.

Zhao Wei has always been very good to her, and she knows that if Zhao Wei was not so outstanding and his status was not so noble, she would have been moved to throw herself into his arms long ago.

However, the difference in their status always made her dare not have any unrealistic thoughts. She had to suppress her emotions and dared not show them in front of Zhao Wei.

"Your Highness, why are you so nice to me? I am just an ordinary woman who has turned from a lowly family to a good woman. With your status, you should marry a noble lady, not a woman of lowly status like me. And I have sworn that I will never be a concubine in this life, so I am not worthy of you."

"Why am I so nice to you? Of course it's because I like you." Zhao Wei smiled and said seriously, "Since you don't want to be my concubine, then I'll marry you in a sedan chair with eight bearers and a phoenix crown and a red bridal robe as long as you are willing."

"No, no, I... I'm not worthy of you."

This was the second time Zhao Pan'er heard Zhao Wei say that he was willing to marry her. She was shocked and became flustered.

Zhao Wei grabbed her hand and said softly, "Whether you are worthy of me or not is not up to you to decide, but for me."

Zhao Pan'er still shook her head: "No, I will be a burden to you. If you marry me, you will be criticized by the court and the public. I can't harm you."

Zhao Wei smiled indifferently: "I, Zhao Wei, have never been afraid of being criticized. I make my own decisions about my marriage. I don't need to marry someone just to consolidate my power. I will only marry the woman I like, and the woman I want to marry the most is you, Zhao Pan'er."

Zhao Pan'er was moved but also very nervous.

I clearly agreed not to be influenced by Zhao Wei's words, but my heart was still beating uncontrollably.

"Your Highness, we have only known each other for a month or two. I don't deserve you to treat me like this."

"Have you ever heard of this saying, that some people you will never care about even if you see them for your whole life, but some people, you will live in your heart at the first sight. Whether they are worth it or not is for me to judge." Zhao Wei looked serious and suddenly asked, "You have been rejecting me. Besides being worried that I am someone like Ouyang Xu, is it because of your identity?"

Zhao Pan'er did not deny it and sighed: "I am not worthy of you."

"It seems that I was right." Zhao Wei smiled and said slowly: "Let me tell you a story. Once upon a time, there was a young lady in a small town. She was naturally beautiful and good at singing and dancing. Because her family was poor, she started to make a living by playing drums and music at an early age, and she would perform in various places from time to time."

Zhao Pan'er noticed that Zhao Wei suddenly stopped talking and had no intention of continuing. She was curious and asked, "What happened next?"

"I drank a little tonight and I'm a little thirsty."

Zhao Pan'er was stunned, turned around to get some tea and poured a cup for Zhao Wei.

Zhao Wei took a sip of water to moisten his throat before continuing, "Later, by chance, she met a prince who came to the town to hunt. The prince fell in love with her at first sight and not only took her into his palace, but also arranged for her to be born into an impeccable family.

Later, the prince's wife died, and because she was deeply loved by the prince, she was made his wife.

By the way, this story has something to do with you.”

Zhao Pan'er was surprised: "Is it related to me?"

Zhao Wei nodded and smiled, and continued, "The princess should have been very happy when she rose to prominence overnight, but things didn't go perfectly, so some old people in the palace who didn't like her started to investigate her background.

At this time, someone saw a painting by a famous artist. It was a painting of the spring banquet held by the governor who guarded the town back then. At the banquet, the governor asked several of his favorite female musicians to perform. Among them, there was one whose eyebrows and eyes clearly looked like the princess when she was young.

This famous artist's paintings are world-famous, which confirms that when the princess entered the palace, she was probably a woman of low status. In the eyes of many people, such a woman is naturally not suitable to be a mistress, so Gu Qianfan and I went to the south of the Yangtze River."

Zhao Pan'er was not stupid either. She said in shock, "The painting you are talking about is the Night Banquet?!"

"good."

Zhao Pan'er recalled the person in the painting, but still found it unbelievable: "There are many people who look alike in the world. How can we be sure that it is the emperor...that princess based on just a portrait?"

Zhao Wei replied, "Because that famous artist had a habit of making riddles. He painted the names of each guest in the painting in the form of clothing folds and embedded them into the painting."

Zhao Pan'er suddenly realized and couldn't help muttering, "No wonder, when I was copying before, I felt that the folds of the clothes were a little strange."

Zhao Wei smiled and said, "Now that you've heard this story, what do you think?"

"Don't worry, Your Highness. I won't tell anyone."

Zhao Wei was stunned, and said with some depression: "I want to tell you that I don't care about your status, and you don't have to feel inferior because of your status. I want to marry you, and I believe that you can be a good wife to me, and can help me manage the palace, so that I don't have to worry about the things at home."

Seeing that Zhao Wei had already started talking about the management of the palace, Zhao Pan'er felt embarrassed, but at the same time, she couldn't help but imagine what the situation would be like.

Princess of the Prince of Han’s Mansion, am I really okay?
That night, Zhao Wei and Zhao Pan'er chatted for a long time. Zhao Pan'er stood by the window and accompanied Zhao Wei, which seemed like a romantic conversation under the moonlight.

Zhao Pan'er was naturally happy. She even had the urge to agree to Zhao Wei's request impatiently, but she restrained herself in the end.

Zhao Pan'er didn't sleep well for several consecutive nights, because as soon as she lay in bed, she would unconsciously think of Zhao Wei and the words Zhao Wei said to her. Being liked by others is a happy thing, especially being liked by a prince like Zhao Wei, a young general, is even sweeter. When he is busy, he always thinks of her, which makes Zhao Pan'er feel very touched and happy.

Although she was still hesitating and weighing the options in her heart, it was undeniable that she had been in a good mood since Zhao Wei once again expressed his desire to marry her.

That afternoon, guests came in one after another, and Zhao Pan'er pulled the wind chimes in the corridor.

Song Yinzhang in the elegant room heard the sound of wind chimes and immediately began to pluck the strings. A graceful pipa sound instantly flowed out.

At this time, a middle-aged couple and several guards walked into the teahouse. They were stunned when they heard the sound of the pipa.

Then, the dignified middle-aged man looked back at the gate, smiled and said with a look of sudden realization: "So that's why it's called half-covered face, it turns out to be the language of Pipa."

The beautiful woman next to him smiled and said, "This pipa is played quite well."

The sound of the pipa seemed to have magic, and the tea drinkers in the teahouse could not help but immerse themselves in it, so much so that no one noticed them except Zhao Pan'er and a tea drinker dressed as a scholar.

"Why are the emperor and the queen here?"

The tea drinker thought so in his heart, and without disturbing anyone, he quietly left through the side door with his face half covered.

Zhao Pan'er stepped forward and said with a smile, "Everyone, please go upstairs."

Following Zhao Pan'er to the private room upstairs, Zhao Heng began to tap his thighs to the rhythm of the pipa music as soon as he sat down, while Liu Wan took a look at the decoration in the private room. There were peach branch flower arrangements and incense burners in the room, and a scroll with a peach blossom poem hung on the wall, making the whole private room look full of Zen.

She nodded, then looked at Zhao Paner with a hint of displeasure in her tone.

"Are you the shopkeeper's wife?"

"Yes, what would you like to drink?"

As Zhao Pan'er spoke, she took out a tea brand with a picture of a lady buried in peach blossoms as the background and handed it to Liu Wan. On it were written words such as "Peach Blossom Drink", "Peach Leaf Tea", and "Jade Phoenix Holding Peach".

Liu Wan glanced at Zhao Heng but didn't order anything. Instead, she looked at Zhao Pan'er again.

Zhao Pan'er had been running the teahouse for many years, so she could naturally see that those people were of high status. However, she did not show any fear or anxiety. She just stood aside with a smile, waiting, allowing Liu Wan to look at her.

However, she felt a little strange in her heart, secretly wondering how she had offended the beautiful woman in front of her, because she could clearly feel that Liu Wan disliked her.

It was just one song, but Zhao Heng still felt unsatisfied: "Not bad, not bad. I wonder which famous musician plucked the strings and played the music?"

Zhao Pan'er smiled lightly and replied elegantly and proudly, "It's Song Yinzhang, the best pipa player in Jiangnan, Madam Song."

"Well, this song deserves a reward. Let her sing another one."

Zhao Pan'er smiled apologetically when she heard this, "Sir, you may not know that when the Queen Mother of King Qian hired Madam Song as a music official, she set a rule because she valued her piano skills. Madam Song can only play three times a day. If you still want to listen, you might as well sit down and have some of our Jiangnan tea and snacks. Madam Song will play another show later."

"presumptuous."

The guard behind Zhao Heng shouted angrily, which scared Zhao Paner: "Dear guest, please calm down. We..."

Before he finished speaking, Zhao Heng smiled and waved his hand: "My subordinates are ignorant, please don't mind, Madam Shopkeeper. Since you have rules, let's try the refreshments in your shop first."

Hearing this, Liu Wan handed the tea card that Zhao Pan'er had given to Zhao Heng.

After only one glance, Zhao Heng couldn't help but exclaimed: "A pot of peach blossom drink costs one hundred coins?! Did you write it wrong? One hundred coins can buy more than a bushel of rice!"

Zhao Pan'er smiled nonchalantly, "Sir, can this scene, this feeling, this joy be measured in money? But I bet that once you try the taste of this peach blossom drink, you won't think so."

"Whether you think so or not, you have to drink it to know. I want this peach blossom drink."

"Then please wait a moment, sir." Zhao Pan'er smiled and hurried downstairs.

After a while, she and Sun Sanniang went upstairs, one holding tea and the other carrying an exquisite food box.

Zhao Heng couldn't help sniffing when he saw that the white porcelain pink water was extremely elegant with a few peach petals floating on it.

"Does it really smell like peach blossoms?"

Then, he picked up the teacup and took a sip. His eyes lit up immediately. He turned to Liu Wan and said with a smile, "It tastes good. You should try it too."

Liu Wan also picked up the teacup and took a sip, nodding: "It's really good, this peach blossom drink is worth the price. If it were in Youranju, it would probably sell for two hundred coins."

Zhao Pan'er smiled, took the exquisite food box from Sun Sanniang's hand and opened it. There were four desserts neatly placed inside, one in the shape of peach blossom, one in the shape of peach leaf, and the other two in the shape of peach and flat peach respectively. Below them were small signs with "Tao Yao", "Laughing Spring Breeze", "Spring Water Born" and "Wan Geng Hong".

"Having drinks but no fruit is like having a zither but no wine. It is a pity in life. You two may try our peach blossom tea fruit."

Zhao Heng picked up two fruits and handed one to Liu Wan. He ate one himself, then nodded and said with a smile, "It tastes good, and is not worse than the imperial chef in the palace."

Zhao Pan'er smiled and said, "Mrs. Sun in our store is a descendant of the governor of Ningguo in Southern Tang. These teas and fruits were taught by Empress Xiao Zhou herself."

Zhao Heng was stunned for a moment, then smiled and said, "I guess this tea fruit is not cheap."

"Three hundred coins a box."

Zhao Heng was stunned again: "Just four cakes, and they cost three hundred coins?"

"Sir, the ingredients used to make this fruit are expensive, but the craftsmanship is priceless. You just said that it is as good as the one made by the imperial chefs in the palace. Can you eat the fruit made by the imperial chefs in the palace for three hundred coins?"

Zhao Heng was happy: "I can eat it without spending any money."

Zhao Pan'er choked, then smiled and said, "It can be seen that you two are of noble status, and you must be outstanding people. But you two can eat food made by the imperial chef, but others don't have this opportunity. Moreover, if you buy fruits from our store, you can also hear Madam Song's pipa music. But Madam Song likes quietness, so at most ten scholars can enter to listen to the music each time. It's a pity that you came a little late today, so you can only come earlier tomorrow."

Zhao Heng was happy: "What if I buy more?"

As the saying goes, scarcity makes things valuable. Zhao Pan'er made up her mind from the beginning to strictly limit the number of people who came to listen to the music every day. So, in addition to letting Song Yinzhang play three pieces every day, she only received ten guests to listen to the music.

During the days of reopening, no exceptions were made for anyone.

Zhao Pan'er said softly, "The so-called opportunity is not about the order, but the timing, not about how much you buy."

After hearing what Zhao Paner said, Liu Wan looked at her with a higher opinion and a slight smile appeared on her face.

"Your marketing strategy is pretty good."

(End of this chapter)