Chapter 1 Chapter 1 This servant is willing to put in any effort.
Chapter 1
Winter of the twenty-first year of Yongshun reign of Emperor Dacheng.
The Jiangnan region experienced rare ice and snow, with freezing temperatures and few people on the roads. The few pedestrians that did pass by were bundled up tightly and hurried along, afraid of being delayed even a little.
Inside Hangzhou, however, there was a brightly lit and bustling place that seemed completely out of place with the outside world.
In particular, the Wanhua Tower is a gathering place for the city's wealthy and powerful to enjoy the grand song and dance performance held once a month.
Snowflakes drifted outside the window. The lead dancer, dressed in a red gauze dress as thin as a cicada's wing, swayed gracefully with her lithe waist. Exquisite multicolored gemstones dangled from her waist, shimmering and sparkling with her movements, eliciting cheers from the audience below.
The dancer's face was covered by a veil, revealing only her beautiful eyes. Even the regulars of Wan Hua Lou couldn't tell her identity for a moment, and they all guessed whether this dancer was the famous beauty of Jiangnan, the top courtesan of Wan Hua Lou—Sheng Qingge.
After the dance ended and the dancers left the stage, the innkeeper stepped onto the stage, banged a gong, and announced: "Ladies and gentlemen! Today is the tenth of the month. According to our tradition, the guest who bids the highest price tonight will be served by Miss Qingge!"
As soon as he finished speaking, a huge roar erupted from the audience. Some cheered, some clapped and whistled wildly, and some even threw a box of silver ingots that they had prepared beforehand onto the stage.
The shopkeeper dodged to the side, and with a "clang," silver ingots scattered all over the ground, causing an even sharper explosion from the crowd.
"Master Zhang! You've had Qingge entertain you so many times! It's time to let others enjoy it too!"
"Hey, what do you know! Master Zhang is still as sharp as ever. If you want to win the beauty's heart, you'll have to show off your skills!"
"Haha, I feel sorry for Qingge, who is so beautiful, and has been ruined by a pile of cow dung!"
"Pooh!"
In a cubicle on the third floor, a man leaned against the door, his posture extremely upright. He lifted a corner of the beaded curtain with a folding fan in his hand, exuding elegance and nobility. His beautiful but slightly aloof eyes silently observed everything.
When everyone downstairs was frantically bidding with their money, he finally lowered the curtain, tapped the sandalwood box on the table with his fan, and said, "Go."
"yes."
In an instant, Jiang Yuchu and the box on the table disappeared, leaving only the swaying beaded curtain.
The tea on the stove was boiling hot, and some tea water spilled out, making a sizzling sound. He Hansheng picked up the teapot and took another clean teacup.
His finger bones were clearly defined and very beautiful.
The scalding hot tea poured into the cup, the steam carrying a few slender tea leaves. He Hansheng spoke coldly, "Since you're already here, won't you have a cup of tea before you leave?"
People outside were shouting prices, while the cubicle remained silent, as if they were two different worlds.
A moment later, the beaded curtain moved slightly, and the semi-transparent purple gauze on the door slowly fell down. The candlelight went out, and the woman's graceful figure was slowly revealed from behind the gauze curtain inside the room.
She was dressed in a thin gauze dress and barefoot. Before she even got close, she said with a coquettish voice, "Young master, you have such refined tastes. On one hand, you send people to bid for Qingge's gentle embrace, and on the other hand, you ask me to come out and have tea with you."
The woman's voice was gentle and charming, deliberately carrying a touch of the sweetness and allure unique to women from Jiangnan.
She had just left the stage downstairs, and even though she was trying to suppress it, you could still tell that her breathing wasn't completely steady.
The dancer slowly approached He Hansheng, her fingertips touching the man's broad shoulders. The jewels and tassels hanging on her body swayed with her movements, seemingly unintentionally brushing against He Hansheng's clothes.
Seeing that he did not resist, the dancer sat down beside him, lifted his chin with her hand, and looked at him with seductive eyes: "Isn't it enough for me to keep you company?"
Downstairs, the shopkeeper frantically banged on his gong and shouted at the top of his lungs, "Two hundred and seventy taels! Young Master Liu has bid two hundred and seventy taels! Is there any higher bid?"
Once the price reaches two hundred taels, very few people are able to participate in the bidding.
Everyone sighed and put down their cards, lamenting that they had missed another chance to catch a glimpse of the most beautiful woman in Jiangnan.
Liu Songnian, arms crossed, raised an eyebrow at the angry Zhang Yuanwai, whose beard was askew, and said provocatively, "Uncle Zhang, calling you any higher will only result in mutual destruction! Is a woman worth it?"
Upon hearing this, Master Zhang gritted his teeth and raised his hand: "Four hundred taels!"
The room fell silent instantly, and even the shopkeeper on the stage stared wide-eyed.
The private room was dimly lit, and even though they were face to face, He Hansheng could hardly see the girl's face clearly. However, the faint fragrance from her fingertips kept wafting into his nostrils.
He Hansheng held his breath, but took the opportunity to grasp her hand, stopping her from making any further moves, and chuckled: "That depends on whether you are willing to put in the effort for me."
The sound of gongs outside instantly resounded throughout the sky.
"Four hundred taels! Is there anything higher than four hundred taels?!"
The dancer smiled and nestled into He Hansheng's lap, casually lifting the tassel from her waist and tracing it across the man's broad chest. "I'm willing to go to any lengths for you, but I wonder... how much are you planning to offer, young master?"
He Hansheng reached out and lightly put his arm around her waist, but the warmth of his palm was barely perceptible and did not actually touch her.
He chuckled softly, "One hundred taels, is that enough?"
At the same time, a male voice outside shouted, "One hundred taels..."
"Only one hundred taels?"
Through the tassels, the dancer reached out and pressed against He Hansheng's chest, as if she were both resisting and welcoming him.
“Hmm,” He Hansheng leaned down and whispered in her ear, “Gold.”
"……gold!"
As soon as he finished speaking, a commotion erupted outside, and all the candles inside were extinguished instantly.
He Hansheng's arms were suddenly empty, and the lingering fragrance faded away. He took a sip of tea and slowly exhaled.
When Jiang Yuchu returned and saw that the room was dark, she immediately understood what was going on.
As he lit the lamp, he whispered, "Young master, they are from Shuyu Manor."
He Hansheng stood up and hummed in agreement. "I already know."
"Although Shuyu Manor is a famous family in the martial arts world, it's really just a bunch of bandits. They live outside the law and have always disregarded the law. If we get involved in this matter, I'm afraid..." Jiang Yuchu asked with some concern, "Have you seen their faces clearly?"
He Hansheng glanced at him. "The people of Shuyu Manor are masters of disguise. How could they possibly show their true faces in a place like this?"
"That young master Liu who was just bidding against Master Zhang..."
"Don't worry about it."
He Hansheng straightened his clothes, his expression indifferent: "They're probably after people. Have someone keep an eye on them, make sure they don't get lost."
...
After the bidding ended, Liu Songnian, having successfully completed his mission, returned to his room.
A man sat in the room. His back was thinner than that of an ordinary man, but he was more upright and heroic than an ordinary man. He was obviously no ordinary person.
Liu Songnian quickly closed the door, and after confirming that everything was in order, he smiled and said to the back of the person in the room, "Master Shen, I've done a good job of what you asked me to do. It took a whole incense stick's time!"
Shen Fengyu, with her back to the door, heard this and suddenly raised her hand, throwing a wooden plaque to Liu Songnian.
Liu Songnian quickly caught it with both hands, "What is this?"
"Take this sign to the rouge shop at the end of the alley next to your house, and someone will help you solve your problem."
Shen Fengyu stared at the chessboard in front of her without looking up, pondering the game that seemed to be still going on.
After a while, hearing no sound from behind, Shen Fengyu finally turned around and saw Liu Songnian still standing there dumbfounded.
Shen Fengyu frowned: "Is there anything else?"
"Um... shouldn't we also have a little bit..." Liu Songnian gestured with his fingers hesitantly, his face full of anticipation.
Shen Fengyu instantly understood and couldn't help but secretly roll her eyes.
"Greed! Your stepmother and half-brother's lives are far more valuable than these gold and silver. Get rid of them, and the entire Liu family's fortune will be yours," Shen Fengyu said, tossing a few white stones in his hand, pondering where to place the next one. "Besides, the favors of my Bifeng Hall are not so easy to buy. What more could you possibly want?"
“I knew that Master Shen would say that.”
Liu Songnian secretly grumbled to himself that although Bifengtang was a branch of Shuyu Manor, it had made a name for itself in the martial arts world in the past two years. However, compared with the rumored wealthy and powerful Shuyu Manor, it was notoriously stingy and he had never heard of any financial transactions with it.
He sighed and put the token away. "Thank you."
After Liu Songnian left, Shen Fengyu silently took out a small booklet from her pocket. It was filled with detailed records of Bifengtang's income and expenditure, as well as the debts of gratitude owed to various people.
As she calculated, Shen Fengyu gradually revealed a pained expression.
After a while, the real miser Shen Suining returned, carrying the clothes she wore when she sneaked into the Wan Hua Lou, and a folding fan that she had somehow managed to steal.
After closing the door, Shen Suining removed her veil, took off her gauze dress and jingling ornaments, and changed into her own clothes. After she was dressed, Shen Fengyu remained sitting in the same spot like a statue, motionless.
Shen Suining found it amusing and threw the clothes over.
"Still thinking about how to beat me?"
Shen Fengyu cried out in pain after being hit.
Shen Suining sat down opposite Shen Fengyu, whose head was covered by her clothes. When she saw the booklet in Shen Fengyu's hand, her expression changed instantly, and she snatched it away, asking, "You gave him money???"
"Ha! If you don't give me money, how am I supposed to give money to others?" Shen Fengyu sneered, rubbing his head as he tore off his clothes, asking with a look of disgust, "Is the young master planning to assassinate me? And what kind of tattered clothes are these? With Wan Hua Lou doing so well, can't you even give the girls here a decent outfit?"
Upon learning that Liu Songnian hadn't been given any money, Shen Suining felt relieved and immediately tossed the ledger aside.
Hearing Shen Fengyu's complaints, she looked at the thin gauze dress she had worn, which was so thin it was practically invisible, and her eyes were filled with helplessness.
"They gave it to me, saying that the girls here dress like this all year round," Shen Suining casually placed the folding fan beside the chessboard, her eyes sharpening. "I heard that on the tenth of each month, Sheng Qingge is dressed even less when she's presented to guests, especially that old lecher Zhang Shihai, who spends a fortune almost every month to buy Qingge for one night! You tell me, at his age, how can he have the nerve to let his granddaughter's generation be with him..."
"Alright, alright, don't get so indignant," Shen Fengyu put away the account book and, seeing Shen Suining getting worked up, quickly interrupted her, frowning as she asked, "Where did you get the fan in this freezing weather? Weren't you on business? Where is Sheng Qingge?"
Shen Fengyu took the folding fan and opened it. The fan surface was black with gold-stamped bamboo leaves, the fan ribs were inlaid with gold and jade, and a piece of mutton-fat jade pendant was hanging from it. It was obviously a luxurious item.
Shen Suining then remembered the important matter and said with a serious expression, "Sheng Qingge's room is under protection. Not even a fly can get in. I was afraid of exposing my identity, so I didn't force my way in."
Upon hearing this, Shen Fengyu also became serious, "Where did they come from? They're even faster than us!"
“Judging from that man’s accent, he seems to be from the north, and he is so generous with his money, I’m afraid…” Shen Suining pondered for a moment and truthfully told him his concerns: “He must be either rich or noble.”
Shen Fengyu said "Oh," and then asked thoughtfully, "Is she good-looking?"
"It shouldn't be bad, I didn't see it very clearly..." After blurting it out, Shen Suining realized, "Hey, do you think I'm the kind of person who can't separate public and private matters?!"
Shen Fengyu chuckled, "I'm just afraid you'll be blinded by lust."
Shen Suining rolled her eyes at her fiercely, "This is a matter of life and death, stop making small talk about it."
Last month, someone secretly visited Shuyu Manor, offering a large sum of money to take the life of Sheng Qingge, the top courtesan of Wanhualou.
According to the rules, Shuyu Manor should not inquire about other matters after receiving payment for their services. However, the manor's informant inadvertently discovered that the person came from Huadu in the capital and brought a reward of three full chests of gold.
It is highly suspicious that someone from the capital would travel thousands of miles to offer a large sum of money for the life of a courtesan in Hangzhou, a city thousands of miles away.
The old manor owner was always cautious in his dealings, and since Shuyu Manor had never had any dealings with the imperial court for many years, he returned the payment overnight and refused the business.
However, the old manor lord couldn't rest easy after much deliberation and decided to secretly investigate and find out the truth. After all, those three boxes of gold had been carried into Shuyu Manor with great fanfare. In case anything happened in the future, he could at least prove his innocence.
Shen Suining thought to herself, if it were just about killing a courtesan for no reason, there would be no need to make such a big fuss.
"Young Master."
"Um."
Shen Fengyu looked at Shen Suining's expression, which changed from rolling her eyes to becoming serious, and hesitated before saying, "Could you please stop disguising yourself as Sister Miao? It's such a waste that you keep insulting her gentle, beautiful, and tender face like this."
Shen Suining: "..."
Shen Suining: "Okay, I'll make it yours next time."
Shen Fengyu was silent for a moment. In that instant, countless thoughts flashed through her mind about the despicable things Shen Suining had done outside: flirting with women, deceiving men, bullying children, and having affairs everywhere...
"Then it's enough to just torment Sister Miao. After all, she doesn't come down the mountain and doesn't care about her reputation." Shen Fengyu refused without any mercy.
Shen Suining glared at her.
Seeing that Shen Suining's expression had softened slightly, Shen Fengyu reassured her, "Alright, don't worry so much. Let's figure out a way to see Miss Sheng first..."
Before Shen Fengyu could finish speaking, a commotion suddenly broke out outside.
The two exchanged a glance and each gripped the weapons hidden in the shadows.
Inside the Wan Hua Lou, the door to the room that originally belonged to Sheng Qingge was wide open, and two rows of people stood neatly outside. All the windows on all four sides were tightly closed, and not a breath of wind could get in.
The room was empty. On the dressing table, there was only a dying thrush and a tattered, blood-stained letter.
He Hansheng picked up the letter; there were no words on it.
The manager and madam of Wan Hua Lou stood at the back in a panic, not daring to breathe.
After checking the room, Jiang Yuchu returned to He Hansheng's side and said in a low voice, "Young Master, there's nothing unusual around. I'm afraid the person has already been taken away."
He Hansheng shook his head and put the letter back on the dressing table. "The person is still here."
Jiang Yuchu immediately understood and ordered the manager to send people to completely seal off Wanhualou, allowing entry but not exit.
“We won’t find anyone just by sealing off the building,” He Hansheng said calmly, carefully wrapping the nearly dead thrush in a handkerchief. “The people from Shuyu Manor shouldn’t have left yet either. You should inform the authorities and let them find a pretext to search.”
A note from the author:
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[Mini Theater]
In the near future
He Hansheng: You used to say you'd put any effort into me, but now that we're married, you've changed! Women really are all liars; they don't cherish what they have!
Shen Suining: Get lost! [shrugs]
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