Infinite Professions from a Pearl Collector

Just then, a sharp female voice came from behind. "Hey! The flowers are in full bloom. Who gave you permission to pick them?"

Chen Ye turned to see a young woman approaching on a small path through the flower bushes.

The woman was dressed in Western-style clothing. While her features weren’t breathtakingly beautiful, she exuded a sweet and captivating youthful energy.

Chen Ye took only a single glance before quickly looking away. After all, wealthy families like this had strict rules, and for an outside man like him to stare at one of their women was a serious breach of etiquette.

He lowered his head and said, "The head steward gave the order. There’s a private performance up front, and they need a few fresh flowers for props."

At the same time, the woman got a clear look at Chen Ye’s face. A flicker of surprise crossed her eyes, and her tone immediately softened.

"A private performance? You’re with the Opera Troupe?"

"Yes, an apprentice with the troupe," Chen Ye replied, preparing to leave.

If someone from the Lu Family saw them, he wouldn’t be able to explain his way out of it.

But the woman didn’t want to let him go. She asked with great interest, "What’s your name?"

Chen Ye was in no mood to answer. Judging by her attire, she was clearly either rich or noble—perhaps she was even the daughter of Mr. Lu himself.

Although opera scripts were full of scenes where a wealthy young lady would risk everything to elope with a poor scholar, plays were plays, and reality was reality.

Chen Ye knew that if Mr. Lu found out an opera apprentice dared to chat up his daughter, getting thrown out would be the best-case scenario. More likely, he’d get a sound beating.

So he suddenly yelled toward the space behind her, "Head Steward, you’re here!"

The woman turned to look, and Chen Ye seized the opportunity to turn and run.

By the time she turned back, Chen Ye was long gone.

She was taken aback for a moment, then a smile touched her lips. ’Interesting.’

"Yingtao."

"Miss!" The little maid behind her hurried over.

"When does the private performance start tonight?"

"I think around seven or eight."

"Mm, I’ll go have a look then."

Chen Ye had guessed correctly. The woman was indeed Mr. Lu’s daughter, Lu Jinghong.

Though she was the daughter of a wealthy family, she had studied at a mission school since childhood and received a Western education, making her quite forward-thinking.

When she first heard her family was hosting a private performance, she’d been utterly uninterested. She found the screeching and wailing of opera to be noisy and dull, so she hadn’t planned on going.

But now, she had suddenly changed her mind.

「As night fell and the lamps were lit.」

The Lu Family Opera House was brightly lit and bustling with activity.

Since it was a private performance for the household, the repertoire naturally consisted of auspicious and lively plays about prosperity and good fortune, all meant to bring good luck.

On stage, the senior apprentices gave it their all. Their singing, reciting, acting, and acrobatics were meticulous and precise, showcasing their solid training and drawing continuous cheers from the audience.

Chen Ye stood in the wings, helping pass props while admiring the performance on stage.

What he didn’t know was that in a private box on the second floor with a perfect view, a pair of bright eyes had been fixed on him from the very beginning.

Lu Jinghong rested her chin on her hand, studying the young man in the corner with great interest.

He was clearly wearing the most ordinary coarse-cloth shirt, yet he stood out like a crane among chickens, impossible to miss.

He stood there quietly, his gaze fixed on the stage, as if all the surrounding clamor had nothing to do with him.

His calm, detached demeanor created a strange sense of dissonance with the bustling, gaudy event.

"Interesting."

Lu Jinghong picked up the black tea in front of her and took a small sip, but her gaze never wavered from Chen Ye.

An act ended. The performers took their bows on stage to thunderous applause.

Just then, a matronly steward from the Lu Family hurried up to the second floor, came to Lu Jinghong’s side, and whispered a few words to her.

After listening, Lu Jinghong’s brow furrowed slightly, and she seemed displeased.

"I’m not going."

This steward was Nanny Li, the nanny who had raised Lu Jinghong, which lent her voice a confidence others lacked.

She sighed and began to coax her earnestly. "Miss, this was arranged by the master himself. The Wang Family and our family have been friends for generations. If you don’t go down, how can the master show his face?"

"That’s his face, not mine," Lu Jinghong said coldly.

Seeing her like this, Nanny Li knew she had to take a stronger approach. Her tone turned mournful.

"Miss, I raised you from a baby. How could I not understand what’s on your mind? But you can’t just act on your whims. The master is only doing this for your own good. Just think of it as taking pity on your old nanny and go down to make an appearance. You can’t make things difficult for me, can you?"

This speech, which appealed to both emotion and reason, was Lu Jinghong’s greatest weakness.

She ran a hand through her hair in frustration, finally rising to her feet reluctantly. "Alright, alright, I’ll go! Sheesh, this is so annoying."

She followed Nanny Li to the main hall on the first floor, where she saw her father, Mr. Lu, beaming as he chatted and laughed with a portly middle-aged man. Standing beside that man was a young man in his early twenties.

The young man had his hair slicked back, wore a well-tailored Western-style suit, and was looking around, bored to tears. But when he saw Lu Jinghong descending the staircase, his eyes instantly lit up.

"Jinghong, come quickly. Greet your Uncle Wang," Mr. Lu said, beckoning with a smile.

Lu Jinghong walked over distractedly, offered a perfunctory "Hello, Uncle Wang," then sat down in an empty seat beside them and said no more.

"Haha, Jinghong gets more and more beautiful every time I see her. I remember she was just a little girl the last time we met," Wang Rui praised with a laugh. Beside him, Wang Dongchen’s eyes were glued to Lu Jinghong. Noticing that she kept staring at the stage, he assumed she was watching the opera and leaned in closer.

"Jinghong, I didn’t realize you enjoyed opera too."

"Mm," Lu Jinghong replied faintly, not even bothering to lift her gaze.

Wang Dongchen was rebuffed, and he struggled to hide his embarrassment. However, thinking he had found an opening, he pressed on.

"This Qingchun Troupe might have some fame in the Sea Guardian Guard, but they’re a small troupe at the end of the day. I’m on good terms with the Class Leader of the Mingfeng Troupe. I even know their star performer, the Cyan Robe who sings in *Peach Blossom Fan*. So if you like it, Jinghong, I can host us for some opera and tea another day?"

He had expected these words to win the beauty’s favor, but instead, Lu Jinghong finally turned her head. Her cool gaze landed on his face, and she uttered just two words.

"Not going."

Wang Dongchen flushed beet-red and sheepishly shut his mouth.

Mr. Lu also flushed with embarrassment and quickly tried to laugh it off. "My daughter is just young and thoughtless, Young Master Wang. Please don’t mind her. Come, come, have a drink! A drink!"

After finally making it through to the end of the performance and seeing the Wang family father and son off, Mr. Lu sighed helplessly.

"Jinghong, what on earth was wrong with you today? Even if you don’t like him, you can’t just humiliate him like that in front of outsiders!"

"Dad, you knew I dislike these kinds of situations. Why did you arrange it?" Lu Jinghong shot back, not yielding an inch.

"What did I arrange? Wasn’t I doing it for your own good?" Mr. Lu was fuming. "And what’s so bad about Young Master Wang? His family background, his character—he’s a perfect match for you in every way!"

"Even if he’s a match, I’m not interested. Don’t bother with this kind of thing in the future."

With that, Lu Jinghong turned and walked away, leaving Mr. Lu standing there, completely exasperated.

’I’ve spoiled her rotten!’

After the private performance ended, the Lu Mansion steward arranged for the Qingchun Troupe to stay in several side rooms behind the opera house.

The rooms weren’t large, but they were neat and tidy.

Soon after, servants from the Lu Family brought a lavish spread of food and wine. The table was laden with fish and meat. The troupe members, exhausted and starving after a long day, dispensed with all pleasantries and immediately crowded around the table to feast heartily.

Chen Ye ate his fill as well. The Lu Family’s chefs were truly skilled.

After eating and drinking to their hearts’ content, everyone returned to their rooms to rest.

Chen Ye lay on his bed but didn’t fall asleep right away. His mind was still replaying the plays from that day’s performance.

Just then, he suddenly felt a faint, barely perceptible, sinister cold aura slowly drifting from the direction of the opera house.

The aura was very faint, like a wisp of cold wind on a winter night, but the sinister chill and resentment mixed within it made the hairs on Chen Ye’s arms stand on end.

His eyes snapped open, and he sat bolt upright.

But when he focused his senses to investigate, the cold aura vanished without a trace, as if it had never been there at all.

’Was I imagining things?’

Chen Ye frowned.

Places like opera houses were known to attract wandering ghosts and lonely spirits who came to watch the shows and soak up some of the lively human energy.

’It was probably just a wandering soul passing by.’

Chen Ye didn’t pay it too much mind, but he made a mental note to keep an eye out and investigate more carefully the next day.

Just then, there was a knock on the door, followed by a woman’s soft voice. "Little Junior Brother, are you asleep? Senior Sister brought you something to eat."