When she arrived at the poetry gathering, Chang Lili secretly rejoiced that she had come along!
The poetry gathering took place at Wenxiang Pavilion, the largest women's quarters in Duanzhou. Even before nightfall, the place was already bustling with activity. Red lanterns were hung up, and women dressed in light clothing waved their red sleeves. The air was filled with the scent of perfume and the sweet voices of young women.
"Have you been here before?" Chang Lili covered her mouth with her fan, looking at Meng Yuxiu with a sinister gaze.
Meng Yuxiu didn't look at her, but shook his head.
Chang Lili was suspicious and was about to ask again when she walked over, dressed in her finest attire, fanning herself with a fan. She was warmly welcomed, with greetings such as, "Young master, please come in and have a seat." "Young master, would you like some wine?" "Young master, don't be shy, I'll show you the way."
Chang Lili had previously worked in brothels and dealt with cold, hard weapons for several months. Surrounded by these girls again, she felt an inexplicable unease.
Meng Yuxiu stopped the girl who was clinging to her.
The girls realized that although Meng Yuxiu was a great general and almost everyone had heard of him, very few people actually knew him.
The girls soliciting customers looked at Meng Yuxiu with a somewhat intimidating fierce expression, but they also thought that the young master's guard was indeed very handsome. Fearing that he might take the young master inside, they gave him a few meaningful glances and were about to help the taciturn guard.
In her haste, Chang Lili grabbed one of them with each hand and blocked Meng Yuxiu's path, saying, "Beautiful lady, lead the way. I want the best room, the best wine you have, and the names of the girls so I can choose carefully."
Chang Lili's practiced manner fooled them; the girls all assumed he was a regular at brothels and became even more enthusiastic.
Chang Lili secretly gave Meng Yuxiu a wink: You are not allowed to touch a single one!
Meng Yuxiu smiled almost imperceptibly and followed a group of beautiful women up to a room on the second floor, where a girl sat down to pour her wine and massage her legs.
Meng Yuxiu sat down next to her, cross-legged, back straight, with the Mengli sword lying horizontally on his lap. He exuded a heroic and valiant air. Compared to the fair-skinned young master Chang Lili, Meng Yuxiu was much more attractive to women. The four girls in the room were all secretly watching him, and some of them were itching to move closer to Meng Yuxiu.
"Hey, don't touch him. He has a bad temper and doesn't like women. If he starts hitting someone, he won't listen to me." Chang Lili slammed her hand on the table, stopping Meng Yuxiu's hand from touching her.
Chang Lili was a little uncomfortable being served like this, but she had to act like a big shot. She leaned back on the soft couch and said, "Call your most expensive girl over."
She kept one girl with delicate makeup, whose nickname was "Spring Peach," and gave each of the others a silver ingot. When the three girls left, they said to Chang Lili, "Young master, our most beautiful courtesan here is Sister White Tea, but you may not see her today. She's with the prefect at the prefect's poetry gathering tonight."
There were brothels in the capital, and of course, nobles and princes frequented them, but they were not places fit for high society. Almost no one held a poetry gathering in a brothel like the governor of Duanzhou.
In that case, the pens of the literati in the capital would break that person's spine.
This isn't the capital city, where there are many prostitutes and dancers. Here, it feels quite different. You can hear the soft sounds of silk and bamboo instruments everywhere. Chang Lili asked Chun Tao, who was staying by her side, "We are from out of town and don't know anything about white tea. Before the poetry gathering starts, can you tell us about the poetry gathering and white tea?"
Chun Tao knelt down and poured her some wine, speaking softly, "Sister Bai Cha is the most beautiful courtesan here. Her face is like a camellia, and many guests come here just to see her. The prefect has been fond of Sister Bai Cha for a long time, and this poetry gathering is for her. Sister Bai Cha said that if she wins the poetry gathering today, she will go home with the prefect. The prefect is determined to win; even his sedan chair is parked at our back gate. He has invited many scholars and literati; it will be quite lively soon."
Chang Lili found it interesting and exchanged a glance with Meng Yuxiu. Meng Yuxiu twirled the porcelain cup in his hand and said, "White tea? I think I've heard of it. It's been in Duanzhou for several years and is still the top courtesan. I really want to see what kind of celestial beauty it is."
Chang Lili secretly kicked him and looked at him with a cold gaze.
Chun Tao smiled slightly and said, "You'll see in a moment, Sister Bai Cha is different from others."
Chang Lili withdrew her warning gaze from Meng Yuxiu and continued, "And what about the prefect? He spends a fortune for a beauty; he must be a womanizer."
"Prefect?" Chun Tao said indifferently, "More like vulgar."
Chang Lili raised an eyebrow slightly and asked, "What?"
"Young master, you don't know this, but our prefect here is a womanizer. He has at least seventeen or eighteen concubines in his household. Go out and ask around on this street, and you'll find that every girl knows him. He's our number one patron."
Hearing the mocking tone, Chang Lili understood perfectly.
Thinking that the emperor was indeed far away and the country was high up, for a prefect to act so arrogantly, he must not be a good person.
"Moreover, he has been eyeing our Sister Baicha for a long time. Three years ago, when Sister Baicha first entered the academy, he wanted to take her into his household. He even displayed his official power, which terrified the madams. He said that if Sister Baicha did not enter his household, he would have this street sealed off, leaving no way for any of the women on the street to survive."
Chun Tao started talking, her voice filled with righteous indignation. Chang Lili also said angrily, "It's outrageous! Such tyranny! Acting recklessly, just like a bully! I used to... I used to go to a place where rich men's sons bullied the girls in the brothel, but at least the government would come out to uphold justice. But here, a prefect has become a bully!"
Chun Tao could see the anger in her eyes was genuine, and many of the young men here were gentlemen who cherished women. Chang Lili looked elegant and refined, so Chun Tao began to tell her everything.
“As you know, women like us only have a chance to survive here. If we were to step out of this street, people would look at us differently. Moreover, there are many women here whose families were destroyed by war, whose husbands died on the battlefield, and who had nowhere else to turn but to take this path amidst the chaos of war. Who doesn’t want to live with dignity? It’s just that everyone has their own way of living.”
Chang Lili gently patted Chun Tao's shoulder, looking at her with an "I understand" expression, and said, "It's not easy to live a life without stealing or robbing."
Chun Tao gave a bitter smile and said, "Young Master is truly a wise man."
"What about the white tea? Why didn't the governor succeed in his plan?"
"We have to thank one person for this," Chun Tao said with a slight smile. "It's General Meng Yuxiu."
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