piratefiction Chapter 82 Who Performs?
Chapter 82 Who Performs?
The shopkeeper looked at her blankly, then at Amber, then at Chu Sheng, and finally asked cautiously, "This knight... doesn't like the king-size bed?"
"A double room is fine," Arthur said to Amber, his voice low and serious. "But Your Majesty, please stay with me."
Amber blinked innocently, feigning innocence, "Why?"
"Because..." Arthur blushed.
Because I'm afraid that Chu Sheng will be forced into a relationship by you in the middle of the night, and when he wakes up the next day, he will be nothing but skin and bones!
Seeing her stammering, Chu Sheng kindly explained for her, "Because the Imperial Knights have regulations that require members to stay in the same accommodations during business trips, adhering to the principles of fairness, impartiality, and transparency. Men and women cannot stay together."
Arthur nodded immediately: "That's right!"
Silverleaf asked curiously, "The Imperial Knights have such a rule?"
"It was just revised," Chu Sheng said seriously. "It was legislated on the spot by Arthur."
Arthur glared at him.
Ella raised her hand: "Can Ella share a room with Chu Sheng?"
Arthur: "No."
Ella's tail drooped: "Why?"
Arthur glanced at Silver Leaf: "You and Silver Leaf share a room, Chu Sheng will have his own room."
The final allocation was decided by Arthur: Amber and Arthur shared a double room, Silver Leaf and Ella shared a double room, and Chu Sheng had a single king-size bed room.
Chu Sheng pointed to himself with delight: "I get to sleep in a double room all by myself? Yay!"
Amber stood behind him, a hint of resentment in her voice: "Won't it be cold sleeping alone?"
Arthur took a half step forward and gestured towards Amber to the stairs, his movements polite yet firm.
"Your Majesty, please go upstairs."
Amber looked at her, her tone still gentle: "Miss Arthur is truly reliable."
"It's my duty," Arthur said sternly.
The two women went upstairs one after the other, and Yinye, carrying a bag taller than herself, followed Ella upstairs.
Ella suddenly remembered something and turned to look at the counter: "Boss, do you have late-night snacks?"
The owner chuckled and said, "We have grilled sausages, stewed beans, and rye bread."
Ella's eyes lit up: "I want them all!"
Upon reaching the second floor, the wooden stairs of the inn creaked underfoot, and oil lamps hung on both sides of the corridor.
Chu Sheng's room was at the far end of the corridor, with a window facing the backyard, where he could see the stables and four celestial horses grazing with their heads down.
Silverleaf and Ella's room is in the middle.
Arthur and Amber's room was on the outermost side. Before inserting the key into the lock, Arthur glanced back at Chu Sheng and said, "Get some rest, and don't wander off."
Chu Sheng immediately pushed open the door and entered the room: "Good night, everyone. May you all dream of the King of Grilled Fish."
The moment the door closed, Ella's surprised voice came from outside.
"Will it really happen?"
Silver Leaf: "No! Go to sleep!"
The room was very clean, with a large bed against the wall and a small wooden table at the head of the bed.
Chu Sheng tossed his luggage onto a chair, sat down on the edge of the bed, and let out a long sigh of relief.
Although they hadn't encountered any monsters during their journey these past few days, they were still quite exhausted. They'd camped out in the open, enduring the elements, and the little guy had to put up with Amber's playful teasing. Now that he could finally sleep in a proper bed, he was actually quite moved.
He got up and opened the window a crack. In the stable in the backyard, the lead horse was impatiently pawing the ground with its hooves, as if complaining that the hay wasn't good enough.
The faint sounds of travelers drinking and chatting could be heard from the lobby downstairs.
Chu Sheng took a breath of the fresh night air, washed up, blew out the oil lamp, and lay down on the bed.
The bed is so soft, ten thousand times better than the hay at campsites, and a hundred thousand times better than the seats in a horse-drawn carriage!
He barely noticed before he entered a deep sleep.
……
In his dazed state, Chu Sheng suddenly felt a warm and strange tingling sensation.
He seemed to dream of a flute being played by someone, the melody elegant and melodious, very beautiful.
He walked forward in his sleep, and ahead was a vast expanse of white. Only a woman in ancient costume stood in the distance, playing a jade flute.
Chu Sheng looked closely and saw that the woman was tall and slender; it was Amber.
So he relaxed and immersed himself in the melodious performance.
The flute music was like the ancient melody "Three Variations on Plum Blossom," melodious yet carrying a touch of tender charm.
The flute was gently lifted by a pair of delicate, jade-like hands. The fingering on the flute was nimble and graceful, as if a fairy-like woman was playing the flute under the moon.
Her movements were unhurried and graceful, with an innate sense of control. She gently held the jade flute in her mouth, breathing softly and slowly, the rhythm soothing, yet the flute music surged forth like waves.
Her hands were long and delicate, her fingertips like orchids, gently circling the jade flute. Her palms caressed it, then her fingers slid up and down like plucking a string.
The pressure of each fingertip was just right, and her technique was extremely elegant and classical. Her fingertips would occasionally tremble slightly, like the soft hum of a zither string; sometimes she would gently pinch the flute hole with her thumb and forefinger and rotate it softly, as if adjusting the pitch of the flute; at other times she would bring three fingers together and slowly stroke them to her lips, perfectly matching her playing with her mouth, neither too fast nor too slow.
The flute music grew increasingly melodious and captivating. Amber's jade-like fingers and cherry lips moved in perfect harmony, becoming ever more agile yet always composed.
Chu Sheng could no longer contain himself and was about to cheer loudly when he was firmly pressed down by something and unable to move.
Finally, with her once again playing a precise and elegant piece, he couldn't help but close his eyes and quietly listen to the lingering notes of the flute flowing from her warm lips and nimble fingers.
She gently accepted the applause that belonged to Chu Sheng, gracefully brushing away the lingering notes of the flute: "Was this piece pleasant to listen to?"
Chu Sheng opened his eyes.
No way.
Amber's gentle voice came from beside her: "Don't be afraid, it's me."
"Your Majesty, where is Arthur?"
"A celestial horse in the stable kicked down the railing, and she went to check on it."
Chu Sheng: "..."
Brother Tianma, I will repay your kindness today.
The movement under the covers was very light, indicating that the activity had already ended in sleep.
Chu Sheng felt somewhat regretful.
But the flute music was indeed melodious and beautiful.
In the stable outside the window, the Pegasus snorted.
In the next room, Ella suddenly mumbled in her sleep, "King of Grilled Fish... don't run away..."
Yinye mumbled a curse: "You stinking dog... don't steal it..."
Chu Sheng buried his face in the pillow, trying his best not to make a sound.
When Amber stopped, Chu Sheng was like a duck just pulled out of a hot pot, his bones melting.
He let out a long breath and cleared his mind.
Amber covered him with the blanket, her arms still wrapped around him: "Are you feeling any better?"
Chu Sheng's voice trembled: "I almost ascended to immortality."
Amber chuckled softly and hugged Chu Sheng a little tighter.
"Stay with me a little longer," she said.
Chu Sheng raised his hand and gently grasped the back of her hand that was wrapped around his waist.
"His Majesty."
"Um?"
"If you don't go back soon, Arthur is really going to tear the post station down."
Just as Amber was about to speak, there was a knock on the door.
Boom boom boom!
The two of them froze simultaneously.
Arthur's voice rang out coldly.
"Chu Sheng!"
"Open the door!"
"Your Majesty, are you inside?"