Amidst the garish colours of the flower streets and willow alleys was the House of Tranquil Waters. Renowned throughout the lands for its fine teas and the skill of the musicians that played in its luxurious chambers, it stood out from the rest of the pleasure quarters like an oasis. Elegant and refreshing, it was where the fashionable elite chose to gather and Zhang Xiu, newly back in the capital, had soon been made well-acquainted with the place due to the numerous gatherings his old acquaintances had chosen to host here to welcome his return.
(1) To spoil the concubine and ruin the wife: a saying that is exactly what it sounds like, often used with societal disapproval as it went against the traditional hierarchy of a proper family unit and emphasised that the head of the family was not doing his job.
(2) Depending on the dynasty, there were many different ways of symbolising the ranks of the imperial family through differences of colours and patterns on their clothing. This novel follows a common pattern, in which both the emperor and the crown prince could have the five-clawed dragon on their attire but where the emperor had nine dragons the crown prince was only allowed four. Princes of the First Rank could only have four-clawed dragons, showing that they were beneath the crown prince in the hierarchy…
(3) To sit in a command tent and devise a battle plan: the full idiom comes from a saying that this assures a victory a thousand li (unit of measurement) away. The meaning emphasises the importance of strategising to win wars.
A/N: Thank you very much for reading and the gifts, comments, golden tickets and power stones! <3 Sorry for the delay, I had a crazy week of OT to make up for my leave </3. Next two or three chapters are heavily main couple focused so please stay tuned if you're here for that! <3