No meeting is a good meeting
Yin Shang chuckled and bowed, saying, "I wouldn't dare. But even if the Northern Qiang invade Jianzhang, our leader still has a say in front of the Khan. Protecting a few businessmen in Jianzhang shouldn't be a problem."
The Emperor knew that Yin Shang was telling the truth, and his eyes were bloodshot, but he could no longer utter any harsh words.
She glared sharply at Yuan Si Niang and said, "From this day forward, all singers and dancers belonging to my Yin Yue clan will be removed from Luo Yu Fang. I want to see what Luo Yu Fang can do to open for business without the beautiful singers and dancers of our Yin Yue clan, and how long it can last!"
Yuan Si Niang looked exhausted, but couldn't help but smile bitterly, "Thank you for your trouble, Princess. But I'm afraid it won't just be Luoyufang. In a day or two, the news of the Northern Qiang army marching south will spread throughout Jianzhang. At that time, not only Luoyufang, but every household here will have to close down."
Princess Wansui was taken aback. Without saying another word, she turned and went out. When she reached the door, she suddenly let out a long howl.
Immediately, commotion broke out throughout the garden. Though the sounds were faint, they did not escape A Qiu's ears. In a short while, a dozen or so figures landed in the courtyard, all of them nimble and agile, clearly top-notch trained fighters.
The Emperor said no more and simply strode away.
The twenty or so women behind her hesitated for a moment, then bowed deeply to the direction of Yuan Si Niang inside the house, and then got up and chased after the direction in which Princess Wansui had disappeared.
Ah Qiu thought to himself, "With these people leaving, Luoyufang will probably be half empty."
Luoyufang originally relied on its beautiful foreign dancers for its reputation, but after His Majesty dismissed these people, he didn't hesitate to dismantle Luoyufang altogether. It seems the reputation of the capital's premier foreign dance hall will never be revived.
But just as Yuan Si Niang foresaw, once the news that the Northern Qiang army was moving south spread, not only Luo Yu Fang, but all the merchants in Jianzhang would probably lose their will to do business.
With His Majesty gone, only Yin Shang and Yuan Si Niang remained in the hall.
Looking at the ruins and the deserted state of the garden, Yuan Si Niang said wearily, "I knew that His Majesty's visit today would not be a good one, so I specially sent someone to invite Master Yin to be a witness, so that no one would know the truth afterward. I did not expect that Master Yin would stand up for the old and young people in this building."
Only then did A Qiu realize that the people from Xingfeng Hall had been spying on her, at Yuan Si Niang's prior instruction. She didn't expect Xingfeng Hall to stand up for her; rather, she believed that the grievances should be settled with the perpetrators, and even if something happened to her, she wouldn't be able to pin the blame on others.
Furthermore, as the second-in-command behind Luoyu Workshop, Xingfeng Hall should have the right to know if such a major event occurred at Luoyu Workshop.
Yin Shang gazed in the direction the people had left and said, "Madam, you are too kind. If there is nothing else, I shall take my leave." He made as if to leave.
Yuan Si Niang took a step forward, blocking his path, and said, "I am only alive today because your esteemed hall has spared me. I just don't know what price Luo Yu Fang will have to pay to make Xing Feng Tang take responsibility for me?"
Yin Shang seemed unprepared for this turn of events. After hesitating, he said, "The Hall Master hasn't given any instructions, and I have no authority to make a decision on his behalf. May I go back and consult with him?"
When A Qiu heard that her senior brother Mo Yimingyue was mentioned, she perked up her ears even more.
All because no one expected that among the dozens of brothels of all sizes in Jianzhang, the life or death of a mere proprietress could actually alarm her senior brother, the head of the entire brothel, both by land and water.
A pale smile appeared on Yuan Si Niang's lips as she slowly pulled a scroll of documents from her bosom. She said, "All I have in my life is Luoyu Fang. Although the Hu women there have been taken away by His Majesty, there are still nearly a hundred Han women, maids, and servants. I would like to trouble you, Master Yin, to be my witness. I will immediately write a document to transfer the land deeds of Luoyu Fang and the indentures of all these people to Xingfeng Hall. What do you say?"
Yin Shang was completely taken aback and immediately became flustered. He quickly declined, saying, "Madam! Although Xingfeng Hall has a formidable reputation in the martial arts world and business circles, and is known for having no debts that cannot be collected and no person that cannot be dealt with, we never engage in taking advantage of someone's misfortune or bullying women and children."
He then said gently, "Madam has been running Luoyufang for many years. This is just a temporary difficulty. Things will get better once it passes. Madam should not boost the morale of others and diminish your own prestige."
Yuan Si Niang remained silent for a moment, then said, "Master Yin, do you know that this was not my idea on a whim? Over the years, I have been the one maintaining Luoyu Fang on the surface, but I know that your esteemed hall has been taking care of me on various fronts behind the scenes. Among the Gongye family, only Young Master Fusu has shown me special care, but due to his status, he cannot do more. In fact, I have always wanted to pay a visit to your hall master to thank him for his help over the years, but alas, I am of lowly status and have not been able to meet the world-renowned 'Long Night Flying Eagle'."
Although Yuan Si Niang was over forty, she was well-maintained and remained an elegant and beautiful woman. A Qiu had only seen her strong, calm and capable side, but had never seen her so gentle and attentive. He couldn't help but feel a sudden jolt in his heart, and instantly imagined a classic martial arts drama of a hero protecting a beauty and a beauty developing tender feelings for her.
Based on her understanding of her second senior brother, Mo Yimingyue had been a powerful figure on both land and water for many years. As Yin Shang had said, there was no debt he couldn't collect, no person he couldn't deal with. Ruthless and decisive was his style; he certainly didn't have the benevolent heart of a bodhisattva. If he had been willing to protect Luoyufang for so many years, there must be other reasons.
However, Yuan Si Niang's age seemed quite mismatched with that of her second senior brother. After all, she could be considered half a mother to Gongye Fusu. It wasn't surprising that she would remember Mo Yimingyue; after all, a woman alone venturing out into the world, dealing with powerful figures from both the north and south, begging for food from the jaws of death—the hardships she endured were unimaginable. Having a heroic figure like Mo Yimingyue secretly supporting her would be a tremendous help. A Qiu believed that if she were in Mo Yimingyue's shoes, she would also be grateful and even develop feelings for him.
It's not surprising that Yuan Si Niang has feelings for Mo Yi Ming Yue; what's surprising is that Mo Yi Ming Yue, who is usually uncompassionate about women, is actually taking special care of Yuan Si Niang. Moreover, he kept this a secret from her, even from his junior sister.
She still remembered that when he asked her to meet him at Luoyufang last time, he only mentioned that the owner behind Luoyufang seemed to be a Xianbei, so his Xingfeng Hall kept a close watch on this place, which made Aqiu not suspect his relationship with Luoyufang at all.
Yin Shang said awkwardly, "My master... is indeed quite busy, not because of your lowly position."
His dry explanation was no explanation at all.
A-Qiu roughly understood.
This probably also represents Mo Yimingyue's attitude.
I'm willing to help out, but I don't want any further contact with Yuan Si Niang. Therefore, I won't offer any explanation.
Ah Qiu never expected that he would be able to catch such a big gourd as his second senior brother while staking out this place tonight. Even though it was a time when the war between the North and the South was about to break out and he was full of worries, he couldn't help but laugh.
Yuan Si Niang gave a bleak smile and said, "I invited Master Yin here today because I was prepared to entrust my affairs after my death to him. If I die at the hands of Princess Wansui, it is something I owe them. But these things were originally meant for Master Yin."
She continued, "I know this little bit is nothing to Master Mo Yi, but everything I have is thanks to the Hall Master, and this is the only thing I can give back to him."
She looked tired, and her voice was plaintive and pitiful, so much so that even A Qiu felt a deep sense of unease and disrespect.
Ah Qiu finally understood how Yuan Si Niang had stood out from the crowd in the brothel in her early years; it certainly wasn't because of her indomitable and unyielding pride.
But regardless of how much of her words were a test or genuine feelings, one thing is certain to be true.
That was the meeting tonight, the outcome of which was uncertain. Yuan Si Niang was indeed prepared to die, because no one dared to gamble their life on Xing Feng Tang Master's kindness. Even if A Qiu was Mo Yi Ming Yue's junior sister, she wouldn't dare to be so presumptuous.
Yuan Si Niang did indeed intend to entrust her belongings to Mo Yi Ming Yue after her death.
No matter how insignificant this amount of wealth might seem to Mo Yimingyue.
Yin Shang remained silent for a moment, then finally took the document and said, "Although the situation in Jianzhang is critical right now, I still don't think that it would be better for you to take care of the people from Luoyufang than for us. After all, we are not good at taking care of women and managing brothels."
He then earnestly advised, "Even in the worst-case scenario, if Jianzhang is captured by the Northern Qiang, it would be far better for you, as the owner of Luoyufang, to negotiate with the military while we provide covert support. This is still better than us, who only know how to fight and kill, trying to reason with them."
Yuan Si Niang smiled bitterly, "Do we have to do it again?" She looked exhausted and said softly, "I don't have that much strength left."
A Qiu was wondering what she meant by "one more time" when she heard her say, "The same thing happened in Luoyang. I couldn't protect my sisters."
Her tone was casual, but it sounded like thunder to A Qiu.
Yin Shang was so shocked that he could no longer speak.
Yuan Si Niang still remembers that the wind that blew across her cheeks was colder and more painful than any winter. Rumors spread throughout the streets and alleys, and people were filled with anxiety.
The number of Northern Qiang soldiers besieging the city continued to increase, while no reinforcements arrived from other places. Food supplies in the city gradually dwindled, and corpses of people starving to death were seen on the streets every day.
She had the same foresight as she does today, having redeemed herself from the largest brothel in Luoyang, Huayuefang, half a year earlier, and married into the Gongye family as a concubine.
Back then, few of the women in the neighborhood didn't blame her for selling herself off at a low price.
According to the unwritten rules, someone as outstanding as her, one of the top courtesans in Luoyang, and at the prime of her life, would ideally become the second wife of a high-ranking official if she wanted to leave the profession. This way, she could become a lady of the house and, if she was lucky, even bear his children. The next best option was to become the second wife of a wealthy merchant, where she could also become the mistress of the household. However, if she wanted to find a suitable and handsome husband, she would have to humble herself and become a concubine. Fortunately, she found a beautiful and loving partner, someone she could share her affections with, so she wouldn't have to serve an older man.
In other words, one must pursue power, wealth, or youth; one must possess at least one of these three to avoid losing out.
Although the Gongye family she married into was extremely wealthy, they were merchants, so their social status was not as high as that of officials. Moreover, she was just one of many wives and concubines, and the man she married was the father of Fusu, the head of the Gongye family at the time, who was also an elderly man in his eighties. In short, nothing about her was satisfactory.
They didn't know that she had essentially redeemed herself. The head of the Gongye family hadn't paid a single penny; the money was her savings accumulated over the years, which she had secretly handed over to the Gongye family before the head of the Gongye family agreed to take her in.
At that time, many of the sisters in the building had complaints, one of the reasons being that she, as the eldest sister, had not married well, and the other sisters in Huayuefang could not be sold for a good price.
Imagine if the eldest sister were the Duchess of a State, or the second wife of the Grand Tutor; naturally, the sisters below her would also be of higher status.
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