The puppet shop is about to open, so we can't put all our hopes on Su San Niang's apprentice, Su Xiao Mei, can we?
Since we're already in Suzhou, finding an embroiderer is a piece of cake, isn't it?
"It's not that easy," Gu An'an said with a smile and shook her head. "We're new here and don't know this place well. How can we find reliable people? Let's go up and take a look first."
If you meet them, that's fate; if you don't, that's another story.
Xiao You smiled憨厚ly, "Boss, you're so thoughtful."
This flattery was so unsophisticated that Gu An'an was about to say something, but seeing Xiao You's face, she couldn't bring herself to ask.
Forget it, why make things difficult for her?
Besides, Jiang Yong'an didn't tell her those things so that the whole world would know.
We'll talk about it later.
The merchant ships traveling on the canal soon stopped and went ashore.
Gu An'an felt a little unreal as she stepped off the boat and onto the dock.
Spending too much time on the water can make you feel like the world is shaking.
Now that the ground is calm, I feel somewhat uneasy.
After holding onto the railing for a while, Gu An'an led Xiao You towards Suzhou Prefecture.
Suzhou Prefecture was one of the busiest places on the Grand Canal.
Countless boats travel to and from Suzhou Prefecture every day. The city has many waterways, and small boats drift among the lotus leaves. Boat girls softly hum "Lotus Picking Song," creating a unique and charming scene.
As Gu An'an was looking around, she suddenly smelled a strong scent of cosmetics. She subconsciously looked over and realized that the two of them had come to this red-light district.
Looking around, there were more men on the street, but women would occasionally peek out from the attics on both sides of the street, looking languid and alluring.
Xiao You blushed and asked, "Master, shall we go in and take a look?"
There were indeed camp prostitutes in the three border cities, but that was a long time ago.
She had only heard from the old woman who cooked that she was supposedly a prostitute in her early years, who was later released by her senior brother and sent to cook for the master and his apprentices, serving them their daily needs.
Xiao You doesn't like to poke at people's wounds, but she's always curious.
Gu An'an was taken aback by his words, "..." You do have quite the spirit of exploration.
"No, let's go get something to eat."
The two walked straight over, but when Gu An'an caught a glimpse of the words "Jiaofang" (a type of music and dance academy) out of the corner of her eye, she frowned.
The plaque was covered in cobwebs, clearly indicating that the place had been neglected for a long time.
It seemed somewhat out of place in this bustling and prosperous red-light district.
Bai Qiaoyin came from the brothel, but I wonder if that brothel is the same place as this dilapidated place.
The waiter in the restaurant gave the answer: "There's only one brothel in Suzhou Prefecture, but something happened a couple of years ago, and no one has been in charge of it since."
Xiao You, being very curious, asked, "What is it?"
"It's said to be haunted. They say that several people who died in the brothel came back to life. How could such a miraculous thing happen in this world? But the head madam of the brothel was very confident at the time. Later, she went mad. The government sent two more head madams over, but these head madams all acted as if they had seen a ghost. Later, everyone said that the brothel was haunted, so no one went there anymore. Even the brothel street over there was affected for quite a while."
Xiao You blinked. "What ghost could there be? Someone must be up to something."
The waiter glanced at him warily. "Don't say that. I heard that the dead Bai family's little sister has come for revenge. Quite a few people have seen her at night."
Bai family's youngest sister.
Gu An'an thought of Bai Linglong.
Compared to Bai Qiaoyin's scheming, Bai Linglong seems to be even more ruthless.
However, whether this person is ruthless or not has nothing to do with her.
They were never meant to have any interaction.
"Brother Er, do you know any embroiderers who are skilled in Suzhou embroidery? My aunt is about to celebrate her birthday, and she has always loved Suzhou embroidery. I'd like to find an embroiderer to do some work to please her."
Xiao You was stunned for a moment before she realized that her boss was lying.
She didn't actually have an aunt celebrating a big birthday. It was just an excuse.
"I do know a few of them, but as you know, Suzhou embroidery is famous throughout the world. Even the princes and nobles of Xiyong love our embroidery. It's not easy to get these masters to do embroidery work."
Gu An'an understood the implied meaning. "Actually, my aunt is old and her eyesight is not good. She has been blind for a long time. It doesn't necessarily have to be a famous embroidery master. As long as it is Suzhou embroidery, it will be fine."
"Then I can recommend someone to you, Mei Niang, who lives on Lingtai Street. Her embroidery skills are also very good. It seems that she was apprenticed to the most famous embroiderer in Suzhou Prefecture. However, she had bad luck with her husband and now she occasionally takes on embroidery work to earn money to support her family."
The waiter, afraid that he might say something that might harm someone, said, "If you go to see Mei Niang, be careful. Her husband is not someone to mess with."
In other words, Mei Niang was blind and fell for a down-on-his-luck scholar.
She married into the family with her family fortune, but the scholar turned out to be a heartless scoundrel. After marrying Mei Niang, Mei Niang had no children, so he said that Mei Niang was a barren hen and brought people home from the brothel district.
Years ago, Mei Niang had a falling out with her master who had raised her since childhood in order to marry this Han scholar. Now, in this situation, she doesn't dare to go to her master and can only swallow her anger and resentment.
The neighbors couldn't bear to see Mei Niang like this and wanted to find her some work, but that Han scholar was unreasonable, and with that woman from the brothel street stirring things up, the neighbors didn't dare to say anything more to Mei Niang.
The waiter at the restaurant had known Mei Niang since childhood. Seeing her like this, he felt sorry for her and introduced Mei Niang to Gu An'an.
Upon learning the whole story, Xiao You couldn't sit still any longer. "What a useless scholar! It's one thing to be incompetent, but he even takes his anger out on women."
She's determined to beat that scholar to a pulp later to vent her anger!
Gu An'an looked at the furious man and said, "Be careful, someone might report you and send you to jail."
Xiao You was intimidated by these words. "Master, you are the kindest person. Why don't we take Mei Niang away and help her escape her suffering?"
With such a life-saving grace, Mei Niang will surely be eternally grateful.
Xiao You thought it over and over and felt it was the perfect solution. "Firstly, it can save Mei Niang from her predicament, and secondly, we can find an embroiderer, a free embroiderer. It's like killing two birds with one stone."
Gu An'an: "...Why are you so self-righteous about being so stingy?"
Free embroiderers.
Gu An'an felt that she wasn't that heartless.
Xiao You remained unfazed upon hearing this, saying, "Then I'll play the bad cop, and you, sir, will play the good cop. That way, Mei Niang will be eternally grateful to you, and she won't object to you saying the sun rises in the west."
She made a huge sacrifice.
Hearing this complaint, Gu An'an pondered for a moment, "So, according to you, I have to give you some compensation?"
For some reason, Xiao You felt that when her employer said those words, it was as if he was forcing a smile.
No wonder her senior brother is completely under her thumb.
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