Chapter 23 The Bustle of the Brothel
The madam thought for a moment after hearing this and said, "Young lady, I think you seem to be a clever person. Why don't you sing a song for me first, so that I can judge the value of this song."
"Okay, I'll sing a song for my mother first." Yun Wansheng thought for a moment and then sang a song with a modern ancient style.
The sad and beautiful song was sung by Yun Wansheng with even more affection, attracting several brothel girls to come down the stairs to listen to her singing.
After the song was over, the madam clapped her hands in admiration and said, "Young lady, you sang really well. Not only the song but also the lyrics were beautiful. I wonder how much silver you would like to get for one piece of music?"
"I don't understand the market situation here, so let me first tell you the price I want. I need five taels for one song. What do you think?" Yun Wansheng didn't dare to ask for a high price, but she wouldn't say the price was too low either.
"The price is reasonable, but you don't have the music score, and our girls can't sing it!" The madam was in this line of work, and she knew the value of the song as soon as the woman opened her mouth.
"Don't worry about this. I will sing it a few more times to teach them. As long as one person can sing, it will be easy for the others." Yun Wansheng had already made plans.
"That's a good idea. Sorry to bother you running back and forth these few days."
"It's no trouble."
"What's your last name, young lady?"
"No need to mention your surname, Yun."
"So it's Miss Yun. Since you're here today, why don't you teach them the song 'White Fox' first? If the guests like it in the evening, we can still negotiate the price."
"I'll do whatever you ask, Mom. Please also arrange a separate room for us, so that we won't be disturbed by strangers and will learn faster."
"Understood! Please follow me."
In this way, Yun Wansheng stayed in the brothel that day, teaching several brothel girls how to sing. Just after noon, two of them had learned the essence of the song. Yun Wansheng took five taels of silver and went home.
As soon as I returned to the courtyard, Aunt Wang came to greet me: "Miss Yun, how is your grandfather?"
"It's not good, Aunt Wang. I won't be eating at home these few days. I need to spend more time with my grandfather. I can't let him be sick and alone over there." Yun Wansheng had already found a reason.
"That's what I should do. Your grandfather has worked hard all his life. As his granddaughter, you should take good care of him. I will cook some medicinal food for him tomorrow. You can bring it to him so that he can nourish his body." Aunt Wang said kindly.
"Thank you, Aunt Wang, but you don't have to make the medicinal food. Uncle Lu makes it for him every day!" Yun Wansheng said with an apologetic smile.
"That's good, go back to your room and rest!"
Yun Wansheng returned to her room with a slight smile on her lips. Today was just the beginning. She would teach two more songs tomorrow, so the money would come faster.
For three consecutive days, Yun Wansheng went out on time, came back in the afternoon, and never went out again.
She could earn more than 40 taels of silver by singing three songs a day, which was a considerable income. Most people could not earn as much as she did in a year.
Thanks to the fact that her songs were extremely popular once they were sung, the number of customers in the brothel doubled compared to usual. This made the madam very happy, and she even gave her an extra tael of silver today.
That night, the Fanhua brothel was crowded with guests, and the carriages at the door were crowded. It was rare to see such a scene in such a small brothel.
"My Lord, there's a traffic jam ahead. Why don't you get out of the car and walk for a while? General Zhang and the others have already gotten out."
Mu Xingci, who was sitting in the car, frowned slightly when he heard this, then stood up and got off the car.
The two generals who came with him were both in civilian clothes and waiting in front of his carriage. When they saw him get out, Zhang Yu said, "My Lord, it seems that the rumors here are true. There are indeed many guests."
"Zhang Yu, this just shows that the women in this prosperous brothel are all very talented and cannot be compared with ordinary women." Mu Xingci looked at the lively scene in front.
"My lord, fortunately I booked a private room in advance, otherwise we would have to stay in the hall and listen to the music." Yang Fan bent his body slightly and said with a smile.
"Yang Fan, you have done a great service. I will toast you a glass later."
"My Lord, you must not say that. You will embarrass your subordinates." Yang Fan said in panic.
"Am I that scary? Okay, let's go over there." Mu Xingci said happily and walked towards the brothel.
When the three of them entered the brothel, they saw that the hall was already crowded and there were women performing on the stage.
"My lord, I will take you upstairs. I have already booked the singer." Yang Fan said.
"Lead the way." Mu Xingci said as he glanced at the stage. He saw that the song sung by a brothel girl was indeed very novel and nice to listen to. The style of the song did not have any worldly flavor.
When they arrived at the private room, Yang Fan went to find the madam and asked her to send the singer she had booked to serve them in the private room.
Mu Xingci and Zhang Yu waited for a while, and then saw Yang Fan coming back, followed by a beautiful singer.
"My humble servant greets all the guests." The singing girl greeted them shyly while holding her pipa.
"No need to be so polite!" Mu Xingci said calmly.
"What's your name, young lady?" Zhang Yu chatted with the woman discerningly. This noble Marquis, of such high status, wouldn't he be talking to a singing girl in front of two outsiders, so he was the only one who could ask.
"My last name is Wu, you can call me Miss Wu. What song would you like to listen to?" Miss Wu looked at the youngest and most handsome man with spring in her eyes.
"I heard that your recent new songs are very popular. We haven't heard any of them yet. You can sing those new songs for us first so that we can broaden our horizons." Yang Fan poured wine for Mu Xingci and then instructed the singer.
"I obey your command. Then I will sing you a song of longing!"
"Okay, Miss Wu, please come in!" Zhang Yu said with a smile on his face.
Mu Xingci didn't say anything, just drank and waited quietly.
As the singer sang the song of longing, the three men couldn't help but stop drinking and listened to the girl's singing attentively.
They have listened to thousands of songs, but have never heard songs of this style. Both the lyrics and the melody are a mixture of pure emotions, not the worldly songs they have heard before.
The singer sang three songs in a row, and the three of them felt that they were still not satisfied.
"Ms. Wu, I wonder who this composer is. He was able to create such a masterpiece. I really admire him for that." Zhang Yu asked with admiration.
"Sir, this composer is an old man here. He wrote these songs on a whim a few days ago."
Miss Wu said this according to the madam's instructions. In fact, the girl did not want to attract attention and was afraid of getting into trouble, so she agreed with the madam to keep her story secret.
"So that's how it is. It seems that the old musician also had a sudden inspiration." Yang Fan said with a smile.
Mu Xingci just smiled and didn't ask any more questions. His subordinates had already asked the questions he needed to ask, so he didn't need to ask any more questions. He just admired the old musician in his heart.
The three of them returned home with great pleasure. It was already midnight when Mu Xingci returned to the general's mansion. The servants helped him change clothes and wash up, and then he went to bed.
The night passed seemingly as usual.
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