Within minutes, they arrived at the border of the Wu Kingdom. The Black Cloud Shuttle descended gracefully toward the Tian Han province.
A region of verdant forests and rolling hills in the northern reaches of Wu territory.
As the shuttle approached the governor's residence, a sprawling estate nestled among ancient pines, Luo He turned to his wives with a knowing smile.
"Listen carefully," he said, his dark eyes gleaming with something between amusement and calculation. "We will be visiting an old acquaintance of mine."
"Wei Chen, the Governor of Tian Han.
I have known him for approximately three or four years now." Jin Mulan tilted her head slightly, sensing what was coming.
"When we land and greet him, I need you both to act exceptionally seductive and affectionate toward me," Luo He continued calmly. "Make it convincing."
"Make it overwhelming." Ning Jia's eyes widened slightly. "You want us to flirt with you in front of your friend?" she asked, her tone carrying both curiosity and mild disapproval.
"Precisely," Luo He said. "You see, when Chen married his wife three years ago, he made a considerable effort to display her to me."
"He wanted me to witness what a beautiful woman he had secured through his arranged marriage." He paused, and for just a moment, a memory flickered across his expression.
A scene from years past.
(THREE YEARS EARLIER)
Wei Chen had been ecstatic that day. Luo He remembered it clearly, though he had shown no outward reaction at the time.
They had met at a gathering. Formal assembly of cultivators and officials from various provinces. Wei Chen, then thirty two years old, had approached him with barely contained excitement.
"Brother He! My friend, you must meet my wife!" Wei Chen had said, his usually calm demeanor cracking with genuine joy. "Come, she has just arrived from her family estate."
She had been twenty-seven at the time. Her arranged marriage to Wei Chen had clearly pleased her family greatly. Wei Chen had talked about his wife with obvious pride.
"My family arranged this marriage five years ago," Wei Chen said with evident satisfaction, "and fortune has smiled upon me."
He proceeded to describe his wife's accomplishments with meticulous detail. Her knowledge of poetry, her skill with embroidery, her gentle temperament, her family's ancient lineage.
It was simply what some men did. They showed off what they were proud of acquiring, as though their wives were possessions to be admired rather than people to be respected.
Luo He listened politely for a moment, then asked, "You've praised her public accomplishments extensively. Does she display equal enthusiasm in private?"
Wei Chen blinked. For a moment, confusion flickered across his face, as though he was genuinely considering the question about her private interests.
Then understanding dawned upon him. His face flushed crimson, spreading from his neck upward like wildfire. "I...that is..."
Wei Chen sputtered, caught between indignation and acute embarrassment.
"You're implying..." Wei Chen's voice rose slightly, defensive.
"Such topics are entirely inappropriate!"
Luo He said his lips curved into the faintest smile. "I merely asked about her private enthusiasm."
"If your mind interpreted that differently." He shrugged, the picture of polite confusion. "That says more about you than me."
Wei Chen's face deepened to an angry purple. He sputtered through the rest of his explanation.
Stumbling over words, acutely aware that he'd walked directly into a trap disguised as a reasonable question.
By the time he finished, he was thoroughly flustered and thoroughly outmaneuvered. Luo He simply nodded.
Already losing interest, leaving Wei Chen to sit in the wreckage of his own embarrassment.
Never quite sure if he'd been deliberately targeted or if Luo He was simply that oblivious to normal social boundaries.
Wei Chen, however, had seemed disturbed by Luo He's response. Perhaps he had expected politeness and genuine admiration.
Or perhaps he had simply needed to share his happiness with someone. But Luo He had marvellously spoiled it.
How ever when they parted that day, Wei Chen had said with obvious interest. "When you marry, my friend, you must bring your wife to meet me. Then we can compare our fortunes."
Luo He had simply nodded, making no promises.
(PRESENT TIME)
"I see," Jin Mulan said slowly, understanding dawning in her eyes. "He showed off his wife to you, and now you intend to do the same. A friendly competition of sorts." She said smiling.
"A playful rivalry," Luo He confirmed. "Though I must confess, I had no intention of deliberately seeking him out for such purposes."
"We are traveling to the Wu kingdom on other business, and his province lies directly along our route. Stopping here grants us a proper feast and proper hospitality."
"Rather than dining in some restaurant in a marketplaces or at a roadside inn." E said. "So you are using the occasion," Ning Jia said, a slight smile playing at her lips.
"How practical. But why do you need us to act seductive? Can you not simply introduce us naturally?" Ning Jia asked.
"That would lack the theatrical element," Luo He said with dry amusement. "Chen made quite a production of displaying his wife's virtues to me."
"I thought it only fair to reciprocate the gesture. Besides, I am curious to see how he reacts when confronted with two wives instead of one." He said.
Jin Mulan exchanged a glance with Ning Jia, and something seemed to pass between them. A shared understanding perhaps, or a silent agreement.
"Men have such peculiar needs," Ning Jia said with mock exasperation. "Big sister, is your husband always this strange?"
"Often," Jin Mulan replied with a gentle smile. "But I have learned that his seemingly arbitrary requests usually serve multiple purposes simultaneously.
This is likely both entertainment and observation for him." She said. "Honey I am right here," Luo He said.
"Now, when we land, I need you both to be... attentive. Affectionate. Make it seem as though you can barely keep your hands to yourselves."
"Make it convincing enough that outsiders believe it is genuine." Jin Mulan leaned back slightly, a mischievous glint appearing in her deep red eyes.
"You even complain about us sometimes, husband. 'My wives are too much,' you say. 'Must you always be that affectionate?' you ask."
"And now you want us to flaunt ourselves? Don't you have anything else better to do than use us as decorative display pieces?"
"What about women?" Ning Jia added with her own pointed question. "Do we not display dresses and shoes when we acquire them? Do we not show off our acquisitions?"
"That is different," Luo He said calmly.
"How?" Jin Mulan challenged, though her tone carried no real anger, only playful skepticism.
"Because," Luo He said, his voice taking on that quality of absolute certainty that characterized his most serious statements.
"I do not truly own you as I own shoes or dresses. You are not possessions in the way that simple objects are. However, you are significantly more valuable to me than most other things in my life."
And men display what they are truly proud of. Therefore, the fact that I would show you off should make you happy. It indicates that I value you greatly."
Jin Mulan considered this for a moment, then a soft laugh escaped her. "That is perhaps the strangest compliment I have ever received," she said.
"But very well. Little sister, shall we torture the poor governor?" She asked. "With pleasure," Ning Jia agreed.
Her eyes taking on that calculating gleam that suggested she had already begun planning exactly how she would execute this theatrical performance.
"Don't sugar-coat your performance," Luo He warned, though with clear amusement in his voice. "What do you say, little sister?"
Jin Mulan asked Ning Jia, leaning over to gently kiss her on the cheek in a gesture of affection and agreement. Ning Jia softly nodded in return.
Her expression shifting into something more seductive and theatrical. "Come then," Luo He said, positioning his arms around both of them as the shuttle descended.
"Let us crush a poor man's dream of being the most fortunate in matters of marriage." He said proudly.
"Do you truly think we are that attractive?" Jin Mulan asked, her voice taking on that particular tone. Soft and seductive.
With an underlying quality that suggested, "we may be overpowered in terms of appearance, but we still require your attention and appreciation. Surely that matters." Kind of way.
Luo He's lips curved into a genuine smile. He understood immediately that they were already beginning their performance.
And it would be flawless. They had spent enough time with him to understand his tastes, his preferences, his vulnerabilities.
The three people landed smoothly in the courtyard of Wei Chen's residence. Servants rushed forward to assist them.
Their eyes widening at the sight of the magnificent shuttle and its clearly distinguished passengers. Wei Chen himself emerged from the main hall.
His expression initially composed and welcoming. He was a man of thirty-five years, with the bearing of someone accustomed to authority and high responsibility.
His features were pleasant rather than striking, his demeanor calm and measured.
The kind of person who seemed comfortable in his own position and unlikely to be easily impressed by external displays.