How can someone travel through time and space and become a beggar?

Half a month later, Xia Chu was practicing the pipa. Suddenly, there was an extra note on the table. She looked up and saw that it was her second brother. She smiled brightly, "Second brother, you're back! So early today? I'll go make dinner!"

Zhang Zhou pointed to the invitation on the table and said, "Take a look at this first."

"What is this?" Xia Chu opened it and took a look. "The sun is rising, and all things are aglow. On this beautiful occasion, we have specially prepared a small banquet and sincerely invite you to attend. This elegant gathering will appreciate poetry and songs, as well as the practice of playing chess, calligraphy and painting, to cultivate sentiments and strengthen friendships. Please meet on a good day. I will describe it in detail below. This is, an invitation? For me?"

She lowered her head and looked at it again, and couldn't believe it. This was the first time she had received it.

"It's for you." His sister was so excited that Zhang Zhou laughed too. "I haven't thought of a name for you yet, and they don't know your name, so they didn't write it down."

Xia Chu thought of several aliases, but was not satisfied with any of them. "That's too hard to think of. Will you go with me, brother?"

"Of course we are going together. How can I feel at ease if I leave you alone?" Zhang Zhou nodded.

"That's good. I'm not sure I'd dare go alone." Xia Chu happily turned around, but then she started to wonder, "Why did they invite me? They say they're appreciating poetry, music, chess, calligraphy, and painting. Could it be that they're asking me to play the pipa?"

"You might be invited to play, but you're not the only woman. There are many talented women in Lin'an, and I've invited a few of them."

"Should I bring my lute?"

"Take it with you, my second brother will help you."

"Okay, I'll go cook."

Xia Chu skipped to the kitchen to cook, imagining the party scene in her mind. She had never attended a gathering of intellectuals like this before. Would there be a lot of people there? What would those talented women look like? What would she wear?

The ancestors must have played the pipa better than she did. Wouldn't her little skill be embarrassing? It wouldn't matter if she was embarrassed, but what if she embarrassed her second brother?

Thinking of this, she sighed and even felt like giving up, but she soon calmed herself down.

The invitations have already been sent. If I don't go, people will be upset, right? They invited me, so they must recognize me. I'll practice piano well these days. I don't expect to be a huge hit, but I have to live up to others' expectations.

Not all of our ancestors were great. She was also born standing on the shoulders of giants.

What's there to be afraid of? The worst that can happen is that I won't invite her next time! As for my second brother, I'll just let it go.

She started rummaging through her clothes that evening. The party was in five days, so she had to prepare them in advance.

"Xiaochu, can mom come in?" Dong Xiaohuan knocked on the door outside.

"Mom, come in." Xia Chu turned around. Dong Xiaohuan would come to their room every day before going to bed.

Dong Xiaohuan saw the scattered clothes on the bed. Xia Chu's bed was always clean and tidy in the past, and she never threw anything around. "Why are all the clothes turned out here? Didn't you find what you were looking for?"

"I'm just thinking about what to wear when the time comes." Xia Chu scratched his head.

"That poetry gathering?" The two children had mentioned it at dinner, and Wang Qiuyu had even made a scene, wanting to go. Dong Xiaohuan thought that the gathering would be filled with scholars, and her daughter would be staying home all day. If she could meet one or two people she liked, wouldn't her marriage be settled? She immediately said, "Mother will give you some money, so you can make a new one."

"No, I have so many clothes."

Dong Xiaohuan directly stuffed a tael of silver into her hand and said, "You must buy it. Every little girl should dress beautifully. I'll go see Qiu Yu again. You should go to bed early."

Xia Chu looked at the silver in her hand. Why did she feel like her parents seemed to be stuffing silver into her pockets lately?

New clothes were still bought, but it was Dong Xiaohuan who bought them. She specifically asked for the latest styles, gave her daughter's measurements, and had them made the day before the party.

The color was rouge snow, and the material was silk, which looked expensive. Dong Xiaohuan just told her to try it on quickly and get it altered if it didn't fit.

After putting on the dress, Dong Xiaohuan's eyes lit up and she looked around at Xia Chu. Her daughter was born with fair skin, and the pink color made her skin look even more delicate and smooth, with a rosy glow. "I knew this color would suit you. My daughter is truly a natural beauty."

Xia Chu was shy of the praise, the color was indeed beautiful like smoke, and it made people happy at first sight.

When she woke up in the morning, Dong Xiaohuan combed Xia Chu's hair herself. She wore her hair in a bun and a pink dress, looking like a fairy.

Zhang Zhou was also amazed. "She is so pretty that peaches and plums give way to each other. She is so pretty that flowers can bloom." He lowered his head and smiled. "I dare not take my sister out. I'm afraid she might be kidnapped." Although it sounded like a joke, he was genuinely worried.

"Who said it wasn't?" Dong Xiaohuan touched her long hair after she had cut it. She really became more beautiful as she grew older.

Although it was still early, the host's meeting place was at a summer resort on a mountain in the suburbs. They had to rent a car to get there; Dong Xiaomao's donkey cart wasn't enough. Xia Chu was so beautifully dressed; she couldn't ride in an uncovered place.

When they arrived, only two or three people were present. The owner of the Summer Resort, whose surname was He, was a member of the Lin'an Poetry Society. He often hosted banquets, inviting talented men and women from the city to compete in poetry and prose.

I am also very talented and have quite a bit of wealth, so every reward I receive is a precious item.

When He Suoyin heard the servant announce the arrival of a guest, he brushed his sleeves and walked out. Then, as if frozen in place, he stared blankly at the girl in a pink dress who was approaching.

Her eyebrows are as green as willows, and her face is as red as peaches. Her eyebrows are like moon and her eyes are like stars, her pupils are like water, and her cheeks are filled with rosy clouds.

Zhang Zhou took two steps forward to block his sister and bowed, "Mr. He, I'm sorry to bother you."

"Ah, no, welcome. Mr. Zhang's arrival brings honor to our humble home." He Suoyin came to his senses and didn't even know what he had said. He coughed twice to cover up and turned his gaze away. "Who is this person behind Brother Zhang?"

"This is my sister, Wang Xiachu." Zhang Zhou introduced her to Xiachu, "This is He Suoyin, Mr. He, from the Lin'an Poetry Society."

"Mr. He." Xia Chu knelt down and bowed, then quietly moved behind his second brother.

"Please come in." He Suoyin felt a little disappointed when he saw no one. But staring at the woman was too rude, so he bowed slightly and led the way. "Several guests have already arrived and are enjoying the flowers in the garden. I'll take you there."

"Thank you."

Passing through the hanging flower gate, it felt like entering a sea of flowers. The garden was enormous, a dazzling array of blossoms. An octagonal pavilion stood above a stream meandering through the courtyard.

The pavilion was covered in bamboo curtains, now half-drawn. Several scholars could be seen drinking and chatting inside. But there wasn't a single woman in sight. Xia Chu suddenly felt reluctant to go in, feeling rather reserved.

"Brothers, this is Brother Zhang and his sister." He Suoyin introduced them loudly, arranged for the two to sit down, and asked the servants to bring them fresh tea and snacks.