Hongshi left the Prince's mansion, walking alone on the street, penniless. Watching the bustling crowds, he felt even more lonely and isolated. Unconsciously, he arrived at a pawnshop, stopped, and looked down to see how much he had left that he could exchange for silver…
Oh, right! Clothes!
Hongshi was wearing an expensive garment, made of pure silk and embroidered with gold thread; it had taken a month to complete by hand alone. Hongshi immediately took off his coat, revealing his undergarments, and excitedly ran into the pawnshop.
"Sir, we can only give you twenty taels for your old clothes at most..." The pawnshop clerk kept stroking Hongshi's clothes, his eyes revealing greed, but he said indifferently.
Hongshi was shocked and hurriedly explained, "Look more closely, the gold thread on my clothes is worth more than this..."
Knowing that Hongshi was in a hurry for money and was eager to overcharge him, the waiter pretended to be unhurried and said, "Sir, don't blame me for being blunt, your clothes are indeed gorgeous, but they are, after all, old clothes. That's the going rate these days... We can only give you twenty taels at most, and if you go to another place, you'll probably get fifteen taels at most..."
Hongshi had never pawned anything before, so when the shop assistant said that, he had no choice but to nod and reluctantly accept the twenty taels of silver.
After Hongshi left, the waiter immediately ordered the door to be closed, grabbed the clothes, and went to the back room, fearing that Hongshi might change his mind and come back to redeem them.
At this moment, Hongshi had no idea about his clothes and went to Zuihualou with the silver in his hand.
The madam greeted him hopefully, but after looking Hongshi up and down, she noticed that he was only wearing underwear, which aroused her suspicion.
"Sir, have you brought the silver?" The madam waved her feather fan, reached out to stop Hongshi who was about to go upstairs, and asked disdainfully.
Hongshi pulled out the twenty taels of silver he had just earned from his sleeve, threw it all into the madam's hand, and excitedly tried to rush upstairs: "Here, it's all for you... Where's Ningxiang? I need to see her..."
The madam couldn't believe her eyes. She looked at the silver in her hand and Hongshi in front of her several times before bursting into laughter. "Hahaha... I'm not seeing things, am I? Sir, are you kidding me?" With that, she disdainfully tossed the silver back to Hongshi.
Hongshi panicked and patted his chest, assuring him, "I just don't have enough money on me right now, but don't worry, I'll have some in a while... Let me see Ningxiang first..."
The madam laughed loudly, looking at Hongshi with disdain: "Sir, this is Zuihualou. I've never heard of a brothel that lets you pay on credit... Don't you all agree?" As soon as the madam shouted, the people around started to jeer.
Hongshi was helpless but unwilling: "Then I'll wait for Ningxiang here. I won't go up. You call her down here..."
Hongshi knew that this was a place that only cared about money and not people, and since he had no money, he had no choice but to compromise.
Although the madam wouldn't let Hongshi go upstairs, judging from his previous extravagance, they were no ordinary family and she couldn't afford to offend them. So she said, "Miss Ningxiang is currently entertaining guests... I'm afraid it's inconvenient for her to come down and see you, sir..."
Upon hearing this, Hongshi flew into a rage: "What? Didn't she say she would only serve me?"
"Oh dear, my lord, look how much money I spend every day! Just the girls' expenses and the gentlemen's drinks. If Ningxiang doesn't earn money, will she starve to death?" The madam exaggeratedly complained, refusing to let Ningxiang come down to see Hongshi.
Hongshi had no choice but to sit and wait patiently, looking at the twenty taels of silver in his hand.
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