Peerless Heiress - Chapter 11
The brothels in the capital have always been divided into two major factions: one is the large, privately-run Zhongfangyuan, and the other is Chuyanlou. The behind-the-scenes owner of Chuyanlou is actually a high-ranking official in the imperial court. Therefore, although Zhongfangyuan is powerful, it has always been suppressed and unable to rise to prominence. Until recently, it finally reached its peak and began to decline. After Ziru won the title of the most beautiful courtesan in the capital, the brothel faced difficulties both inside and outside the city and was on the verge of closing down.
However, as if by divine intervention, Zhongfang Garden suddenly burst forth with vibrant vitality, not only repeatedly dealing with Chu Yanlou's provocations but also turning the tables and damaging Chu Yanlou's business.
But these are just common matters; why bring this up, young master?
Lin Ye suddenly opened his eyes wide and stammered, "Young...Young Master...you mean...that dead...dead woman...?"
Lin Ye saw the look in Mo Yu's eyes and swallowed the rest of his words.
Mo Yu smiled leisurely, his gaze fixed on the clear sky: "Don't you think it's quite possible?"
Chapter 27 Nightmare (Part 1)
As dawn broke, Huaicheng, shrouded in a light mist, gradually revealed its true face to the world, like a well-rested lion lazily stretching its mane.
As the first rays of the morning sun fell upon Qingchu Street, the most famous street in Huaicheng, the three-story mahogany building in Zhongfangyuan finally opened its door with a creak.
It was a very soft sound, hardly jarring even in the quiet of the morning.
At the same time as the sound, the street suddenly became crowded with pedestrians, looking languid, yawning, and slipping on their shoes. Many of them still had their hair hastily tied up, as if they had appeared out of nowhere from the ground.
The eyes of passersby flickered with light, some faint, some intense; they pricked up their ears, and a few even stood on tiptoe to look over, unable to contain their impatience.
In brothels, it was common for customers to leave in the early morning, but no customer's departure would arouse such interest among the crowd. Nor would any customer be willing to crawl out of the girls' alluring rooms in the early hours of the morning; unless there was something to do, they would wait until dawn.
Those who left Zhongfangyuan so early, or rather, those who were forced to leave Zhongfangyuan early in the morning these past few days, were another group of people.
There was another sound at the doorway, this time louder, a dull thud like metal striking wood. The door swung open completely, and heavy, listless footsteps echoed from within, a chaotic cacophony. It seemed a large group of people were about to emerge, yet eerily quiet prevailed, not a single word uttered.
"They're here, they're here."
Smiles appeared on the faces of the people waiting to see what was going on, carrying a hint of anticipation and speculation.
I wonder what will happen today?
Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, a group of men, bound by ropes and supporting each other, their clothes tattered and faces disheveled, emerged one by one from the doorway. These men, who usually swaggered and acted arrogantly on the streets, never taking anyone seriously except for Master Jin. Of course, they had the means to back up their arrogance. Each of them was broad-shouldered and burly, with rough hands and feet; they were all hardened martial artists who had suffered hardships. One of these strong men could easily take on three or four ordinary people.
Therefore, they found it particularly unbelievable and hard to accept that the delicate and frail Ziru had repeatedly thwarted them.
The burly men who walked out of the Zhongfangyuan gate ignored the crowd of onlookers. Their faces were either pale or sallow, their eyes were dull, and they seemed to have no strength left to stand or walk. Their legs trembled, and they walked slowly and laboriously step by step.
A thin pimp stepped out from behind the burly men. He held his head high, pacing with small steps, directing another pimp to untie the ropes. Then he coughed lightly, waved his hand, and tried his best to appear dignified. "Miss Ziru said she'll let you go today. However, this is the last time. You must remember this well. If there is a next time, Miss Ziru will not be lenient."
After saying this, the little turtle servant turned around and slammed the door shut.
A flicker of humiliation and resentment crossed the burly men's faces, followed by a look of dismay, and then a long sigh. Finally, they fell silent and walked away quietly amidst the mocking and amused gazes of the onlookers.
Finally, they saw the scene they had longed for. Everyone was all smiles, satisfied, yet still a little reluctant to leave. Only when the burly men were far away and disappeared into the not-yet-completely-dissipated morning mist did they look at each other for a moment before lazily dispersing.
Chapter 28 Nightmare (Part Two)
As dawn broke, another day began in Huaicheng.
Ever since Miss Ziru threw Master Jin's giant stone lion outside the door, Master Jin's thugs have been causing trouble day after day.
Zhongfangyuan is a business, and it can't withstand a bunch of thugs causing trouble every day. In fact, the thugs don't even need to do anything else; just coming to cause trouble a few times a day would probably deter the customers from coming back. Who wants to provoke these plagues if there's nothing wrong with them? Once you get involved, it's not easy to get rid of them.
Many people are gloating and waiting to see the show.
—It's really a good show, but it's completely the opposite of what everyone thought.
On the first day, the troublemakers were greeted with bows and scrapes, served tea and snacks. Before they could retaliate, they all collapsed to the ground with thuds. When they woke up, they were strung together with long ropes and hung under the eaves. They were only released and thrown outside the next day.
Enraged, the thugs gathered more men, armed with weapons, and stormed into the gate, determined to reduce Zhongfang Garden to rubble. However, just as they entered the gate, a loud crash was heard, and the ground suddenly ripped open, revealing a large hole filled with sharp pebbles. A series of screams followed as everyone was struck.
Again, she was powerless to resist and watched helplessly as she was strung together with a long rope and hung under the eaves. The next day, she was released and thrown outside.
On the third day, the thugs deliberately avoided the main gate and climbed over the courtyard wall. The front hall of Zhongfang Garden was bustling with activity, but the backyard seemed quiet and hadn't been discovered. "Good," the thugs thought bitterly, "we'll set a huge fire in the backyard. I'm sure we can destroy Zhongfang Garden."
With a shout, the thugs all jumped down.
Suddenly, the peaceful backyard erupted in a series of whooshing sounds as countless long arrows coated with anesthetic shot out. None of the thugs who had jumped down escaped unscathed. Those still on the wall gasped in shock, then turned and leaped out of the yard in a flash, fleeing in a flash.
﹏﹏
The thugs, who left with their heads down, muttered to themselves that the past few days had been nothing short of a nightmare for these rather arrogant men.
At first, they simply couldn't believe what they had seen with their own eyes. The large stone lion had been carried away openly and honestly right under their noses by several long sticks, yet they still felt something was amiss. Moreover, the one who had done all this was a delicate woman. Not to mention the brothers who weren't there, even they themselves, who had witnessed it, refused to believe it.
Protection money is a small matter; they're thugs, so why would they be short of money? But how could the authority and dignity of these hot-blooded thugs be so easily thwarted?
Therefore, with Master Jin's tacit approval, they repeatedly tested and provoked him, hoping to regain their prestige, make Zi Ru submit to them, and seize Zi Ru to be Master Jin's wife.
These are not related to anything else, but stem directly from a man's desire to conquer.
Just the result ﹏﹏
How many times has this happened today? Seven times? Eight times? Or even ten times? Almost every brother has been repeatedly defeated by that seemingly weak woman. Each time they try again, defiantly, they always end up worse off than before. No matter how carefree they are, no matter how unwilling they are to admit defeat to a woman, now they are all afraid and have given up.
However, I still felt a little uneasy.
After all, that person was a woman.
If only I were a boy.
The burly men sighed and eventually dispersed.