Chapter 263: The Young Lady is 15

Seeing the dishes on the table, Young Master Zhu began to understand. The chili pepper was just as Gu Fei had said—as long as you liked it, you could add it to almost any dish to enhance its flavor.

After a few bites, Second Young Master Zhu found himself looking at Gu Fei in a new light. He gave her a casual nod. "Little girl, your skills aren’t bad."

Gu Fei’s mouth twitched. ’This Second Young Master Zhu is only a few years older than me, but he’s acting like one of my elders.’

After they had eaten for a bit, Second Young Master Zhu waved to Uncle Wang, who was sitting nearby. "Let’s hear a song."

Aunt Ye wasn’t feeling well today and had stayed home. In her place was her fifteen-year-old daughter, Yingying.

Yingying was slender, dressed in a cross-collared blue robe with a white floral pattern, a blue sash tied at her waist. Her face was fair, with delicate eyebrows and slender eyes.

Uncle Wang began to play the pipa, and the moment Yingying started to sing, her voice sent a thrill through the listeners.

Her voice was ethereal and pure. When she reached the high notes, it was as if there was always another peak to climb. Just when you thought she couldn’t possibly go any higher, she would effortlessly twist the melody and ascend again, her voice meandering through nine bends and eighteen turns.

When the song ended, even Gu Fei couldn’t help but applaud. She was always swamped during mealtimes and had never realized Yingying’s voice was so beautiful.

Second Young Master Zhu was also very pleased and beckoned her over. "Not bad at all. Come here, I’ll give you some silver as a reward."

Yingying walked over and curtsied to Second Young Master Zhu. He tossed a piece of silver in his hand, staring at her for a moment before a sudden grin spread across his face. "In this moment, I feel a sudden burst of poetic inspiration. I shall compose a verse."

He put down his chopsticks, took out his folding fan, and flicked it open with a SWISH. Shaking his head pretentiously, he began to recite, "The maiden is fifteen this year—"

"Her two little buns have yet to rise—"

Gu Fei’s eyes went wide. She whipped her head around, spitting out a mouthful of rice.

Young Master Zhou slammed his chopsticks down and pounded the table, roaring with laughter. "HAHAHA, a fine poem, a fine poem indeed—"

Sister Dan covered her mouth, her shoulders shaking violently with suppressed laughter.

Young Master Zhu’s mouth twitched. His younger cousin had attended school for a few days and learned nothing except how to spout crude doggerel.

Yingying’s face flushed crimson, but she couldn’t leave without getting the silver.

This wasn’t her first time performing. Her parents had always told her that to make a living as a singer, you had to have a thick skin.

A few taunts from the customers were no big deal, as long as they kept their hands to themselves.

So, though humiliated and angry, Yingying just stood there silently with her head bowed.

After reciting his two lines, Second Young Master Zhu tossed the silver. Yingying snatched it from the air, turned, and fled.

Once she finished laughing, Gu Fei took a closer look at Second Young Master Zhu. Seeing no actual lewdness in his eyes, she understood. ’He’s just like those mischievous class clowns from my past life—the type of guy who loves to get a rise out of people with crude jokes but doesn’t mean any real harm.’

After a moment, the laughter subsided, and Gu Fei turned to Young Master Zhou. "Brother Zhou, do you happen to know the process for transferring a household registration? My family wants to move all of our registrations over here."

Young Master Zhou glanced at her. "Transferring your registration? Yes, you should get that done. Taxes will be collected after the autumn harvest. It’ll be troublesome if you don’t."

Young Master Zhu had already heard from Young Master Zhou about how the Young Master Heir had backed Gu Fei the other day. Intent on building a good relationship with her, he quickly interjected, "That’s not hard at all. I know someone at the government office. Give me your family’s registration documents, and I can have it all sorted out within a day."

Gu Fei gave an embarrassed smile. "Young Master Zhu, the thing is, there are quite a lot of us who need to transfer. My eldest uncle, my aunt, my younger uncles... it’s several different households that all need to be moved."

"I’m afraid it won’t be that simple."