Chapter 15 The Smiling Buddha
Mu Xi nearly spat out the mouthful of wine she had just drunk: "What is this? What is this?"
Although, proportionally, there are fewer good-looking men than good-looking women, what do these three men amount to?
One was as thin as a rake, one flirted wildly, and one had a pale face and a beard.
The shopkeeper quickly called over three more people.
Then three more boys came in... I guess you could call them teenagers.
But this time, the three of them weren't much better off than the previous three.
He has neither good looks nor a good figure.
Even after downing a pot of wine, Mu Xi couldn't suppress his anger: "Call over all the handsome male prostitutes here. If there aren't any good ones, I'll have to find another place."
"Yes, yes..." The shopkeeper had no choice but to go out and call someone again.
Before long, a few more arrived. This time, they might have looked a bit better, but they all looked like they had been mining coal for several nights, and their complexions were no better than ghosts.
They didn't look very old, but each of them had a face that bore the marks of a lifetime of hardship.
"Get lost! You think you can fool me?" Mu Xi smashed the empty wine jug over his shoulder.
Crash! The wine jug shattered into pieces.
The shopkeeper was so frightened his legs went weak, and he quickly sent the man away, looking like he was about to cry: "Young Master, I really did call over everyone I could think of, including those from my own shop and the two neighboring businesses..."
Mu Xi refused to believe it: "Impossible. Can't you even find young, clean, and attractive male prostitutes? Those guys look like they've been through a lot. Are you trying to fool us? You claim to sell your art but not your bodies, so how come... none of them have ever sold their bodies? Or are you complaining that the money isn't enough?"
The shopkeeper was truly in a dilemma. He glanced back at Mu Xun, who had been standing guard by the door, and said, "Your Highness is a dragon among men, and the man beside you is also handsome and extraordinary. Your Highness naturally has high standards. It would be difficult for me to find someone else who would meet your standards."
"What do you mean? No? Really no?" Mu Xi had lost her patience.
The shopkeeper looked constipated with frustration: "Your Highness, please forgive me. Generally, those who are presentable are opera singers or those trained by special people in brothels. We have a few here who are also kept by your distinguished guests..."
"It's money again, isn't it?" Mu Xi wasn't about to be taken advantage of, and she stood up abruptly.
Suddenly, the world spun around.
"Be careful..." Mu Xun almost flew over to help him.
Mu Xi almost fainted and fell, but Mu Xun caught her.
Just then, a middle-aged woman's voice came from outside: "Ah, hahaha... Your Highness, don't worry, don't worry..."
As the voice spoke, a short, plump woman appeared, wearing a lake-blue dress and a plain silk flower in her hair.
Mu Xun slowly helped Mu Xi sit down again, and then spoke coldly to the person outside the door: "What are you guarding outside? Who is this person, and how dare they barge in without permission?"
Before the person outside could answer, the shopkeeper hurriedly explained, "This...this is our boss. The young master is of such noble status to come to our humble shop. I am but a humble servant, and I was afraid that I might not have been able to provide adequate hospitality. That is why I informed the boss, and the boss has come to greet you personally."
The short, plump woman was also holding a gilded lotus bowl, which was filled with a handful of crushed ice piled up like a small mountain.
“You…” Mu Xun looked them over cautiously for a moment, then softened his tone, “Then you’d better serve me well.”
Mu Xi was drowsy and lethargic. Upon seeing the ice, she told the person next to her, "Quick, bring the ice over here."
"Ah, hahaha... What an honor... I never expected that Prince Jin Fang would patronize my humble shop... hahaha..." The short, plump woman's laughter broke the atmosphere in the room.
The woman was not tall, and although she was plump, she was agile and not bulky. She had an average appearance but fair skin, curved eyebrows and eyes, a wide nose and large ears, and a naturally smiling face.
If you shave your head, you can't tell if it's a man or a woman at first glance; it's truly a smiling Buddha.
Mu Xi found it amusing, but was even more surprised.
A female brothel owner?
It must have been quite rare in ancient times, right?
The Smiling Buddha presented the bowl of ice to Mu Xi with both hands, laughing heartily: "Ah, hahaha... My surname is Qi, and I am known as 'Second Lady Qi.' If Your Highness doesn't mind, please call me 'Second Lady Qi.' It's such an honor that the esteemed Prince Jin Fang would grace my humble abode with his presence... Hahaha... Since Your Highness looks down on those young women and prefers refined guests... Hahaha... I do have three or four virgins on my hands, but..."
"However, you want to take advantage of the situation and raise the price?" Mu Xi rubbed his temples, feeling somewhat tipsy.
Qi Erniang laughed heartily and loudly: "Hahaha... not at all... those three or four are certainly clean, but they haven't been trained yet. I'm afraid that if they are sent here to serve the young master rashly, they might not do anything right and thus fail to satisfy him."
"Call it over to take a look." Mu Xi was in a daze at the moment and was no longer interested in whether it was a man or a woman, or whether it was good-looking or not.
"Hahaha, since the young master doesn't mind, then I'll clean them up and send them over. And if the young master is still not satisfied, then I'll cover the drinks for tonight as an apology to the young master, hahaha..." Qi Erniang was as straightforward as any man.
Mu Xi knew all too well the tricks of businessmen, so she didn't reply. Instead, she picked up another jug of green wine, which was probably already her umpteenth, and started drinking.
Qi Erniang wisely withdrew to go find someone.
Mu Xun stopped the wine pot, his voice returning to its previous gentle tone: "Don't drink anymore, you're already drunk."
Mu Xi felt that she was only slightly tipsy and that the effects of the alcohol were just beginning. If she stopped, she would feel uncomfortable all over.
Although she kept saying she wanted handsome men, she knew in her heart that even if a handsome man came, there was nothing she could actually do.
So how can we relieve our worries?
The only solution is to drink alcohol.
Either don't drink at all, or drink to your heart's content.
"Never mind that. Either sit down and drink with me, or go cool off somewhere else." Mu Xi changed to a new bowl, scooped in half a bowl of ice, and then poured in some green wine.
In this ancient era, she was probably the first person to drink like that.
Taking sips from the left and sips from the right, enjoying the cool and refreshing taste, I don't know how much I drank.
When they were tipsy for the second time, Qi Erniang finally brought in three boys dressed in red cotton clothes.
Mu Xi was half-lying on the table, unable to hold her liquor, and stared intently through her drowsy, drunken eyes.
Wow, this time he's really naive.
The three boys were of unknown age, perhaps even ten years old. Their small, thin bodies were huddled in oversized cloth clothes, like dolls dressed in adult clothes.
They were very clean, each with a fair complexion and a touch of baby fat on their little faces.
Who could stomach eating children like that, regardless of gender?
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