"No news? Is there really no news, or are you all just unable to find any news?!" Lord Shen spoke in a deep voice.
The servant’s face turned pale from fright, and he quickly responded, "There is truly no news. Prince Pingyang is currently in a small town, seemingly residing in the countryside, and rarely leaves his house. On the other hand, Li Xinhe, his wife, often appears in public, but only to carry out small businesses or visit neighbors. They live a very ordinary life, seemingly without any connection to the Imperial Court."
Lord Shen took a deep breath and relaxed slightly, "That’s good. Let’s wait for a while longer. Once the Emperor forgets about this former powerful minister, we’ll have someone eliminate him in secret."
Marquis Mu has to die. As long as he is alive for even one day, he poses a threat to him!
"Yes!" was the response. 𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖
Lord Shen suddenly said, "Why is the capital city so noisy today? When I was coming back from the palace, I heard many people in the horse carriage discussing some person leaving the capital. It seems even the eldest son of the Minister of War has gone to see them off?"
The servant hurriedly said, "Sir, I believe you’re referring to Miss Ah Lian from Wanhua Tower."
Lord Shen narrowed his eyes, "Ah Lian? I kind of remember her. Isn’t she the number one courtesan in the capital city?"
"Indeed, she is currently at the height of her fame, but she has chosen to leave the capital city for Lanshan City at this time."
Upon hearing the words "Lanshan City," Lord Shen’s face changed, "Is that not Yu State, where Marquis Mu’s fief is?"
The servant respectfully replied, "Indeed, Lanshan City belongs to Yu State."
"What is she going there for?" Lord Shen asked, looking somewhat confused.
"I do not know her personal matters, but it’s merely a prostitute’s movements, sir. There’s no need to be overly concerned."
Lord Shen nodded, "You may leave."
He felt amused inside. Because of Marquis Mu, even the movements of a small prostitute started to make him paranoid.
What Lord Shen failed to realize, though, was this time he was not being overly worried. Who could have known that all the future uncertainties would have started to change from the moment this little prostitute left the capital city.
----
Flower House.
"I want to talk about a matter today. Our Flower House business is not doing well recently. According to the account book, our business barely makes ends meet," Xin He closed the account book in her hand, her voice flat, without any emotional fluctuation.
It seemed she had no complaints about the current situation.
Those present exchanged glances with each other, unable to figure out her intentions, so no one dared to say anything.
"I plan on temporarily closing down for a period. Our Flower House needs serious reform. If we continue like this, there’s only a dead end. I don’t want to see everyone end up with no way out, so we need to start anew."
Madam Chen looked puzzled, "How do we start anew?"
Xin He lightly raised her lips, "We’ll temporarily stop the business. We’ll tell the public that we’ve suspended operations and will reopen a month later!"
"By the time we open a month later, I’m afraid we won’t have any guests left," Madam Chen quickly said.
"A month later, we’ll have a courtesan competition! We won’t be short of guests!" Xinhe stated with a smile.
"Courtesan competition? In Lian’an Town, only Yihong Courtyard is popular for such events, I’m afraid if we..."
Xin He merely laughed, "Don’t be so self-deprecating. I have already met and understood everyone’s abilities during these past days. I believe that the girls of our Flower House are excellent. During this one-month closure, we’ll thoroughly prepare ourselves. After a month, we won’t be worse off than other courtesans!"
Listening to this, Madam Chen looked confused, somewhat unable to believe, "This is a major risk. Once we close, we will lose our regular customers."
"Don’t worry, as long as we manage our Flower House well, even after a month, our regular customers will come back. Moreover..." Xin He paused for a moment, her smile growing deeper, "When the courtesan competition comes, I assure you, our Flower House will be packed with guests!"
"Why? Why?" Everyone was curious. Despite their doubts, seeing their boss so confident made them look forward with anticipation.
Xin He blinked, "Let’s keep it a secret for now."
Ah Lian had already sent a letter, she had indeed chosen to come to her. The name of Ah Lian, the number one courtesan in the capital city, was not merely loud in the capital city. As she had been a courtesan for ten years, everyone in Da Qian associated the term ’number one courtesan’ with her.
Her sudden arrival in Lian’an Town, and her presence in the courtesan competition, once announced, who would be afraid that nobody would come to watch?
But getting people to watch and getting them to stay were two different things. That depended on these courtesans’ abilities.
"Alright, everyone go and rest for now. I’ll arrange things for each of you later, and you will do as I instructed, understood?" Xin He waved at Leng Qing, "Come with me."
Everyone was puzzled, including Leng Qing, but she still followed Xin He upstairs.
Xinhe placed a songbook in front of her, "Try this song."
Leng Qing was stunned, and when she looked at the paper, her eyes widened, "This..."
"What’s wrong?" Xin He asked with a smile.
"How can this song be so strange? And these lyrics, aren’t they a bit too aggressive?" Leng Qing was amazed.
Xin He patted her shoulder and sat down, smiling, "Don’t worry about that now, just try it. Trust me, this song suits you. If you can sing it well, your popularity will soar. From the moment I saw you, I knew you could do it."
Leng Qing hesitated, "But if I sing these lyrics, won’t people curse me? After all, it’s a bit too arrogant, isn’t it?"
Xin He shook her head with a smile, "You are simple-minded. The people who will come to the courtesan competition are all men. These men like beauties, but not necessarily docile ones. Especially, there are some men who are a bit masochistic. The colder you treat them, the more interested they’ll become. Therefore, you need to show your attitude. As long as you are willing, what the top courtesans of Yihong Courtyard have, you should have too, understand? I’m giving you this opportunity, if you can’t seize it this time, don’t regret it."
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