Chapter 309 The Murderer (Second Update)
Xianleju, as the fastest-rising brothel in the capital, overshadowed the former Ruanyuge. In addition to the fact that all the girls in it were indeed beautiful and talented, its unique business model also whetted the appetite of the capital's powerful and wealthy.
Gu Jiao arrived at the door.
The guard at the gate was a woman. She glanced at Gu Jiao's token, said nothing, and let her through.
It was Gu Jiao's first time visiting a brothel, and she found it quite novel.
There was none of the decadent extravagance, clinking glasses, and singing and dancing that one might imagine. Instead, the sounds of traditional Chinese string and wind instruments, though pleasant to the ear, were not decadent but rather like heavenly music.
As she walked through the spacious lobby, girls would occasionally pass by her.
Gu Jiao glanced at it casually; she was truly a fairy.
She seemed to have entered a fairyland, only lacking a touch of ethereal beauty.
Suddenly, a crabapple blossom fell on Gu Jiao's shoulder.
Gu Jiao didn't reach out to take it, letting the flower fall to the ground.
A faint sigh came from the second-floor railing: "Young master, do you not want my flowers? Do you despise me?"
These words shattered the fairytale-like illusion Gu Jiao had of the place, finally revealing a hint of a brothel.
Gu Jiao raised her head. She was wearing a half-face mask, which covered her nose and upper face, but it did not cover her rosy lips and delicate chin, nor did it cover her clear and cold eyes.
"Wow!" The girl upstairs exclaimed in surprise, involuntarily straightening her posture.
Gu Jiao is tall for a woman, and coupled with her naturally dashing temperament, she can easily play the role of a handsome young man.
The girl's exclamation attracted several of her companions, who stood on the second-floor railing and began to scrutinize Gu Jiao.
"Young master, look at me."
Someone waved a handkerchief at Gu Jiao.
Gu Jiao may not have eaten pork, but she's seen pigs walk. She has the leisure to chat with a strange man. She's not considered a very important person in Xianleju.
They were not her targets.
After trying to seduce Gu Jiao for a while without getting a response, the men couldn't help but feel a little resentful.
"What a disappointment!"
"That's right? She doesn't even think much of our Sister Lianxiang. I wonder who she's after?"
Lianxiang was the girl who threw the crabapple blossoms at Gu Jiao.
"Could it be that she's here to see Sister Qianxue?"
"Oh, Sister Qianxue can see him?"
"Who wants to see me?"
A lazy and gentle voice slowly rose from the end of the corridor.
The girls who were chatting about Gu Jiao turned around and bowed respectfully: "Sister Qianxue!"
The woman called "elder sister" looked to be only seventeen or eighteen years old, even younger than some of them, but Xianleju never ranked people by age.
"What are you looking at?" the woman asked.
She wore a plain white inner garment with a light yellow gauze outer garment, the colors bright and fresh, making her stand out.
She wore a veil the same color as her dress, making her appear hazy and indistinct, her outline vaguely visible but not quite clear.
Even as a woman myself, I couldn't help but be attracted to her.
The woman seemed used to this and no longer expected them to answer her. Instead, she turned and looked downstairs.
"Oh."
She gasped softly, raising an eyebrow and glancing sideways, "A very clean-looking young man has arrived. Bring him up; I want him."
After she finished speaking, she turned around and went up to the third floor.
The maid behind her responded with a "Yes," stepped downstairs, and bowed to Gu Jiao, saying, "Young master, my young lady invites you in."
Gu Jiao gave her a look, indicating she wouldn't go.
"You..." the maid choked, "Do you know who my young lady is?"
Gu Jiao gave her another wink: Oh, who is it?
The maidservant, hands on her hips, exclaimed, "My young lady is the most beautiful courtesan at Xianleju! Others would love to see her but can't! My young lady is doing you a favor by seeing you!"
This is absolutely true. The top courtesan at Xianleju sells her art, not her body. She only entertains one person every three days, for one hour each time, and the price is a thousand gold pieces.
Even so, there were still countless men in the capital who wanted to become her lovers.
The courtesan must be a big fish.
Gu Jiao pondered for a moment, then nodded to the maid, indicating that she accepted her mistress's invitation.
The maid had a bit of a headache. Was it just her imagination? Why did it feel like the young master's expression just now was like he was weighing and quantifying things?
No matter what, if their own daughter wants to see him, the master must take her to meet him, no matter how strange it may seem.
Gu Jiao followed the maid up to the third floor.
She was completely oblivious to the jealous looks the guests below were giving her.
Getting into Xianleju is difficult. In Xianleju, it's not the customers who choose the girls, but the girls who choose the customers. If you're lucky, you can be chosen to go up to the second floor, but if you're unlucky, you can only have a lonely night in the lobby.
Very few people have ever been to the third floor.
Gu Jiao had no idea how lucky she was, but she could vaguely sense that the third floor was exceptionally quiet.
"Miss, the young master has arrived," a maid announced from outside a door.
"Come in."
The woman said.
The maid pushed open the door, smiled at Gu Jiao, and said, "Young master, please."
Gu Jiao stepped into the house.
The maid closed the door from the outside.
The room's furnishings looked rather simple, but perhaps because Gu Jiao didn't recognize antiques, every vase in the room was an antique from a previous dynasty.
The woman sat in front of the dressing table, applying face cream to her hands while looking at Gu Jiao in the bronze mirror.
She also has a pair of expressive eyes.
She was wearing a veil, but Gu Jiao could still sense that she was smiling.
She said, "Young master, please have a seat."
Gu Jiao sat down in the chair.
After applying the face cream, the woman gracefully stood up and walked towards Gu Jiao.
She sat down on the chair next to Gu Jiao, with only a small, tall square table between them.
The woman poured Gu Jiao a cup of tea, handed it to him, and said with a smile, "Is this your first time visiting Xianleju, young master?"
Gu Jiao nodded, but did not drink the tea that was offered to her.
The woman sighed, "Young master, are you afraid I'll poison it, or do you think my tea is unclean?"
Before Gu Jiao could answer, the woman took the cup of tea and drank it all in one gulp. Then, as if the matter was over, she smiled and asked, "What brings you to Xianle Residence, young master?"
That's a strange question.
What do men do when they come to a brothel? Do they just chat under the covers?
The woman rested her elbow on the table, gently supporting her chin with her index finger, and said with a half-smile, "Young master is too clean; you don't look like the kind of person who would seek out women."
Gu Jiao frowned slightly.
Is her acting really that bad? She was clearly playing a playboy/playboy today!
Is she only good enough to fool a fool like Gu Chengfeng?
The woman's gaze fell on Gu Jiao's throat.
They even started to doubt her gender? Luckily, she was prepared and had put on an Adam's apple.
The woman noticed the Adam's apple, then looked away and continued to gaze into Gu Jiao's eyes.
Gu Jiao's eyes didn't waver; after all, if her acting skills weren't good enough, she could make up for it with her thick skin.
The woman looked for a while but couldn't see anything amiss, so she asked again, "Young master, are you perhaps looking for someone? Is it a relative of one of our sisters?"
Gu Jiao thought for a moment, then took out a small notebook and a charcoal pencil, and wrote down in a flash: To be honest, I'm here to pick up girls!
The woman's lips twitched.
What to soak?
Gu Jiao grunted, then quickly crossed out the last two words and wrote in a powerful and domineering tone: "Seeking pleasure and indulging in debauchery!"
The woman chuckled.
But the next second, she couldn't laugh anymore.
Because Gu Jiao wrote on the paper: Call out the prettiest girl here!
The woman's smile froze on her face: "Does the young master mean I'm not beautiful enough?"
Gu Jiao wrote: If that's how you put it, there's nothing I can do about it.
The woman was so angry with Gu Jiao that she forgot to ask Gu Jiao why she wasn't speaking, and only wrote on the paper.
To think that she, the top courtesan of Xianleju and the most beautiful woman in the capital, would ever have a day when her appearance is disliked.
She retorted angrily, "When did the young master go blind?!"
Gu Jiao quickly wrote: I'm not blind, I just don't think you're particularly good-looking.
She's not as handsome as my husband.
This sentence really heightened the hatred level, and the woman was so angry that she slapped Gu Jiao.
Gu Jiao dodged in a flash.
The palm strike landed on the chair behind Gu Jiao, shattering the mahogany chair into pieces with a loud crack!
He really does have martial arts skills.
Gu Jiao put away her pen and notebook and began to work with her in the room.
The woman's martial arts skills were far beyond Gu Jiao's expectations. Fortunately, she had received guidance from the old Marquis, and some of her moves happened to be able to counter the opponent's moves.
Gu Jiao pinned the woman's hands behind her back and pressed them onto the bed.
But the woman was far more cunning than she appeared. With a twist of her body, she slid out from under Gu Jiao like an eel.
Taking advantage of Gu Jiao's unpreparedness, he pounced on her and threw her onto the bed.
She grabbed Gu Jiao's hands with both hands and pressed Gu Jiao's legs down with her own: "Heh, you say I'm not pretty enough? I'll take off your mask and see what kind of person you are, daring to say I'm not pretty!"
She used her right hand to pin Gu Jiao's wrists above her head, and raised her left hand to remove Gu Jiao's mask.
But Gu Jiao broke free from her restraints, kicked her to the inside of the bed, and took the initiative, pinning down her hands and legs.
Gu Jiao sat on her lap, untied her hair ribbon, and tied her hands to the bedpost.
The woman struggled, her clothes slipped down, revealing a large expanse of snow-white skin.
“You…” The woman was filled with shame and indignation.
Gu Jiao took out her notebook again and quickly wrote down: "Who was the person who attempted to assassinate the emperor last night?"
The woman was taken aback.
Gu Jiao wasn't actually sure if she knew, but since she was the most beautiful courtesan here, with such a high status and martial arts skills, the chances of her knowing were very high.
She might have been involved too.
The woman chuckled and said, "I am a woman of the night, how would I know about the current emperor's affairs? Young master, have you come to the wrong person? If you want to investigate a case, shouldn't you go to the yamen (government office)?"
Gu Jiao wrote: Shouldn't a normal person's first reaction be to ask if the emperor has been assassinated?
That's exactly how Gu Chengfeng reacted.
The woman choked on the spot.
Gu Jiao, exuding domineering confidence, wrote: If you don't talk, I'll tear off your clothes and do it to you right here and now!
The woman's expression changed, but she quickly smiled leisurely: "Alright, come on then. If you don't mind my jade-like arms and body that have been the pillow of a thousand men, then bring it on. It was I who took a liking to you, young master, and it would be my honor to serve you. However—"
As she spoke, she glanced under Gu Jiao's clothes and said with a smile, "Young master doesn't seem to be very interested in me."
Gu Jiao: Uh... I didn't manage to get rid of the fake melon!
The woman looked at Gu Jiao meaningfully: "Young master, your skin is so fair, your features so delicate, and your figure so slender, yet you remain unmoved in the face of a stunning beauty like me... Young master, you wouldn't happen to be a prince—"
Before she could finish speaking, Gu Jiao ripped open her outer garment with a tearing sound, pulled it out, threw it under the bed, and glared at her fiercely!
Just then, the door was suddenly kicked open, and a drunken man barged in.
In the blink of an eye, Gu Jiao grabbed the long robe from the ground and covered the woman completely.
"Oh dear, what's going on? How dare you let someone barge into Miss Qianxue's room? Miss Qianxue is entertaining guests! Can you afford to compensate her for ruining her mood?!"
It was the fierce voice of the woman's personal maid.
"I'm sorry, Miss Qianxue!"
A female guard entered the room without looking to the side and dragged the drunk man out.
Afterwards, Gu Jiao got off the bed, stopped questioning the woman, and turned to walk towards the door.
The woman was stunned the moment Gu Jiao wrapped her in her clothes. Seeing Gu Jiao let her go and leave, her eyes flickered slightly: "You...you don't want to know who the murderer is?"
That's not the way.
Gu Jiao turned and left Xianle Residence.
In her past life, she would have used any means necessary to extract a confession, since that's what her godfather had taught her since she was a child.
But in this life, something seems different.
Gu Jiao looked at her hands.
Suddenly, a small box landed in her palm.
Gu Jiao looked up at the third floor of Xianleju, but only saw a window that had been closed in a huff.
Gu Jiao opened the small box, inside which was a pendant tassel and a note.
The Imperial Palace, southwest corner.
The murderer was a member of the royal palace, living in the southwest corner, and this tassel was the murderer's personal possession!
(End of this chapter)
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