Chapter 432: Chapter 421: The Farmer’s Top Scorer
"Is the young master here to watch the play or..." The housekeeper is a middle-aged man in his thirties or forties. Hearing that a scholar had come to the Pear Garden, he was on high alert, even bringing two stout bodyguards with him.
No wonder he was so nervous; the trouble caused by the previous two scholars left such a deep impression on him that in his mind, scholars always had an air of pretentious righteousness that was hard to reason with.
What’s wrong with his Pear Garden? How is it any worse than the Yihong Brothel? Aren’t both just performing arts? Why is it acceptable for women to perform for money, but when men do it by singing in operas, it’s frowned upon?
That’s why, when Boss Liu met Ye Qiu his nose wasn’t a nose, his eyes weren’t eyes, but since he was running a business, he couldn’t just kick him out without any evidence of wrongdoing, hoping that Ye Qiu would have enough sense to behave himself.
Naturally, Ye Qiu had no idea about the past incidents in the Pear Garden. He thought they were looking down on him for being a poor scholar, especially since his clothes were rather shabby and he did not seem like someone who came to enjoy the opera.
"Are you the owner here?" Ye Qiu asked politely.
Seeing Ye Qiu’s humble attitude, Boss Liu was taken aback. Could it be that he wasn’t here to cause trouble? Or was he not a scholar?
"I am, what can I do for you, young master?" Boss Liu’s attitude softened.
"I have a script here; I’m not sure if Boss Liu might be interested," Ye Qiu got straight to the point.
A script? Boss Liu looked at Ye Qiu in surprise, then laughed embarrassedly: "This is a theater, young master; you must be looking for the wrong place!"
His outright refusal was not without reason; he instinctively felt that those scripts written by scholars usually revolved around stories of ladies from well-to-do families falling for down-and-out scholars and then being vigorously opposed by the lady’s family, leading to the couple eloping and standing up to authority — nothing innovative.
Do you really think today’s daughters of prominent families are so foolish? It’s not like the old days when a lady becoming infatuated with any man she meets. Today’s ladies are much more worldly, choosing to elope with a poor scholar over choosing sons from aristocratic families? Only if the lady has gone mad.
Moreover, eloping nowadays is considered akin to kidnapping, with such strict household registration management, where could they even flee to? Hence, without a second thought, Boss Liu rejected Ye Qiu’s script.
And after all, there are plenty of successful and popular plays in the Pear Garden. Why waste time on an outworn script?
Having come here, Ye Qiu was prepared for rejection and didn’t get discouraged. Instead, he looked firmly at Boss Liu: "I’ve written the script already, why not have a look before deciding, Boss Liu?"
"This..." Boss Liu, seeing Ye Qiu’s good demeanor and out of politeness, reluctantly took it. As soon as he got it in his hands, he inwardly criticized himself for being soft-hearted and casually flipped through it while asking, "Could the young master share why he has chosen to sell his script here at the Pear Garden?"
"No particular reason, just for silver," Boss Liu thought better of Ye Qiu, as the scholar spoke so openly about needing money. Boss Liu opened the script and before he even saw the plot, he praised the handwriting.
Their location was not far from the entrance but because two strong men stood nearby and it wasn’t the main thoroughfare, it offered Boss Liu a relatively quiet place to read.
Time ticked by second by second, and Ye Qiu seemed not anxious in the least, casually looking around the Pear Garden.
Even the two brawny men exchanged looks of surprise, their eyes flashing. Wasn’t their boss known for disliking scholars, decrying them as pedantic and stubborn? Why then was he so engrossed in reading a script written by a scholar this time?
"What about the rest? After Zhu Yingtai’s true identity is discovered by Ma Wencai, then what?" Boss Liu was internally anxious, looking eagerly to know the rest of the story.
"The rest of the story is naturally here." Ye Qiu took out another stack of papers from his bosom, smiling as he looked at Boss Liu, "Do you like it, Boss Liu?"
"Of course, I like it!" Boss Liu exclaimed as he looked at Ye Qiu, never having expected such an imaginative and well-written script to come from this young scholar.
The Pear Garden had plays about women disguised as men, but none had the heroine Zhu Yingtai boldly doing so to attend an academy in place of her brother, and not just that, but outshining the men in her scholarly pursuits. The script described the evolution of her relationship with Liang Shanbo from initial estrangement, annoyance to a secret burgeoning affection so vividly, one couldn’t help but want to rush into the script to awaken Liang Shanbo, the foolish gander.
And then there’s Ma Wencai. What would he do after discovering Zhu Yingtai’s identity? Could Zhu Yingtai and Liang Shanbo end up together?
Boss Liu swore that if this script were rehearsed well, it would surely win the passionate favor of ladies and mistresses, so he was incredibly eager to get this script.
"Since Boss Liu likes it, let’s talk about a collaboration then."
"This way, please. Dalì, arrange for some good tea and pastries to be served in the quiet room," Boss Liu invited Ye Qiu warmly.
After the tea and pastries were served, Boss Liu smiled amiably, "May I ask the young master’s honorable surname?"
"My humble surname is Ye. Boss Liu can just call me Ye."
"That wouldn’t be proper, but given that I am much older than the young master, I’ll call you Young Master Ye. Young Master Ye, what do you propose for your script? As long as it is within reason, I’m sure we can come to an agreement," Boss Liu was very earnest.
Ye Qiu took a sip of tea, with neither arrogance nor subservience, yet his next words seemed shrewd: "Boss Liu is too kind. As for the script, I’ve come for the silver."
"Look at me, being foolish." Boss Liu chuckled and, seeing Ye Qiu downplaying himself, he didn’t dare to take it lightly. As a theater owner, even though his status wasn’t as high as that of ordinary merchants, he made more money and knew more people. Seeing that Ye Qiu, despite his youth and unimpressive attire, had top-notch poise and manners, he felt that Ye Qiu was likely from a fallen aristocratic family or someone bound for great success in the future.
After mulling it over, he made a fair offer: "How does 200 taels sound, young master? Ordinarily, we don’t buy scripts; even those written for teahouses fetch only 30 to 40 taels each. Of course, your script is far better than those in teahouses, and 200 taels is a price no one has ever offered before. If you can write such fantastic scripts in the future, I will still pay a high price to acquire them."
Seeing Boss Liu’s earnest and sincere expression, Ye Qiu knew his offer was genuine. His script would probably not fetch 200 taels in a teahouse, so he nodded at Boss Liu: "It’s a deal."
Filled with joy upon hearing Ye Qiu’s agreement, Boss Liu quickly instructed a servant to fetch the silver as he couldn’t wait to witness the rest of the play unfold.
"This is the next part of the story; take a look, Boss Liu."
Boss Liu took it, then immersed himself in the plot again, his brows occasionally furrowing and relaxing, showing an intense eagerness.