Chapter Ten: A Beauty to Rival the Country

  The beautiful woman is approaching, it's better to be prepared early, or she will find you soon.

  Jing Hengbo put all the fine and soft things in the drawer of the dressing table, so that they could be easily taken out later. When cleaning up the dressing table accessories, she deliberately wiped the edges of the brass mirror stand with oil.

  The mirror is a secret door, and behind it there is a small room.

  This is a special design of Feng Lai Xiu, every girl's room has one, specifically used to deal with the situation where the husband's wife comes to the door, as soon as the mother-in-law arrives, they quickly push the guest into the hidden door for hiding, relying on this trick, Feng Lai Xiu increased business by 30%.

  It's often unused, the mechanism is a bit rusty, it needs to be lubricated, she doesn't want any accidents when it counts.

  At night, a luxurious carriage brought in honored guest Mr. Yao, who was welcomed with open arms by the madam into Jing Hengbo's pavilion.

  The silver-red silk window was dyed with a soft yellow candlelight, reflecting the woman's undulating figure and the man's stout belly. The sound of Jing Xuan's laughter echoed in the midst of the bustling night scene at Fenglai Pavilion, still clear and crisp, filling the entire building with her youthful beauty and boisterous spirit. In every room, the men couldn't help but pause, perk up their ears, and listen enviously.

  The laughter stopped soon, the lamp was blown out with a loud noise, and the men in the corner of the wall shook their heads, envying and resenting, muttering: "Old Yao is so lucky..." They continued to flirt with their own women.

  The old procuress slammed the door shut with a flourish, beaming with joy as she went downstairs and extinguished every lamp in the corridor. This was Jing Hengbo's rule: when he received guests, there could be no light around him.

  The top attic fell silent, with no one in sight.

  Inside the house with the horizontal wave pattern, there seems to be some movement.

  After a while, in the dark corridor, a person suddenly appeared.

  If someone were here now, they would be startled, because this person had no origin and suddenly appeared out of thin air, as if born from the floorboards.

  That man was holding another person, and judging from the hanging skirt, it was a woman.

  A figure looked around and muttered: "Wrong turn again..."

  The faint light reflected from downstairs illuminated her cat-like eyes that shone with a fluorescent glow, it was Jing Hengbo.

  She put down the woman in her arms and pushed her into her own house, "Go quickly, Old Yao is waiting."

  "Did you take all the money out of his pocket?" the woman asked as she entered.

  "Don't worry, I guarantee he won't even be able to afford a pair of underwear when he goes out." Jing Hengbo snapped his fingers and disappeared in an instant.

  The next moment she was lying comfortably in a bedroom, starting to make up for lost sleep.

  For more than half a month, her "receiving guests" career has been going on like this. She would give the guest a large dose of soul-stirring soup, cheat them out of their money and then extinguish the lights, pretending to go behind the curtain to remove her makeup, instantly moving to another girl's room who had no business, bringing the person over to replace herself. Afterward, all the gold, silver, and gifts she cheated from people would belong to that girl, while she would hide in someone else's house and sleep. Everyone was delighted.

  For the girls in the building, there was more business and unexpected income. Jing Hengbo naturally felt grateful. After witnessing Jing Hengbo's swift movements, they thought that Jing Hengbo possessed great magical powers, or was a high-ranking official, or perhaps a disciple of an overseas deity sent to observe the people's customs. They became even more afraid to offend him. Over time, the girls had secretly come to regard Jing Hengbo as their own leader in the world of love and desire.

  Jing Heng woke up from her nap, sucked on a piece of fried rice sugar, and recalled the good-looking young man she saw in the main hall this afternoon. Thinking that he must have entered Hong Xiang's room, she tiptoed to the door of Hong Xiang's room.

  She crouched down beside the dressing table and examined it carefully.

  Alas... Not enough time... Not enough strength... The figure is not good... Wasted a good face, silver wax gun head!

  She sullenly bit into a piece of fried rice crackers, making a crisp cracking sound. The man on the bed was completely unaware, and Hong Xiang angrily lifted her head and threw over a sock.

  The man was startled, lifted his head and asked: "Who?" He vaguely saw a black shadow in front of the bed, but when he blinked again, it disappeared. He rubbed his eyes, still no one was there, on the ground was a sock, and a piece of half-eaten fried sugar rice cake.

  "There's a ghost!" The man jumped up and let out a mournful cry that echoed throughout the building.

  Jing Xiangbo had long since lost interest and changed places to sneak a peek...

  When the sky was about to brighten, she finished her chores in the room, sent the substitute prostitute back, picked up the soft and weak Yao Lao Ye and sent him out. She changed the sheets and continued to sleep soundly with a satisfied heart.

  She was content, but Hong Xiang was very annoyed. Last night, the guest had a fright and asked the doctor to trouble him for half the night. The guest's wife rushed over after hearing the news and even gave her a slap in the face.

  Hong Xiang had a wound on her face and couldn't receive guests for a while, so she put on a veil and went out to see the doctor.

  After watching the doctor leave, she saw that the weather was fine and had a mind to go for a stroll. Women in brothels sleep during the day and work at night, rarely having the opportunity to go out and have fun.

  In the daytime, the market was bustling with activity. The cosmetics stalls and clothing stores in Yushui Alley's busy district were always crowded with women. Hong Xiang walked past them, watching as the beautiful clothes and cosmetics seemed to flow like a river, and the crowds surged forward like water. Suddenly, she felt a little strange.

  Everyone, no matter what they are doing or where they are heading, turns their heads in the same direction.

  The atmosphere of the market seemed a bit off, and Hong Xiang thought for a moment before realizing that the noise had slowly died down, replaced by a low hum of whispers, like a raging tide that suddenly became gentle on the soft and clear sandy beach.

  The girls' gasps were obvious, and there was also a faint scream.

  Hong Xiang turned her head, and although there were many people around, she caught sight of a figure in the corner of her eye.

  That was a figure, tall and slender, with white clothes of fine texture, without any dark patterns or decorations, but shining with a strange pale silver light in the sunlight, under the hood a strand of black hair fell down, and its luster was even more brilliant.

  Just a back figure, can't move one's eyes away.

  He walked slowly through the market, with crowds of people coming towards him from all sides. People couldn't help but stare at him, yet they didn't dare to get close to him. They couldn't bear not to take another look, and someone would constantly exclaim in surprise, as they bumped into others or trees while walking backwards, causing a tree's pale pink peach blossoms to fall, fluttering down like rain from the sky.

  Those pale pink cherry blossoms, delicate and beautiful beyond compare, fell on his shoulders. He didn't brush them off or slow down his pace. The flowers followed him as he walked forward, slowly rising up behind him, their petals dancing in the air like they were being pulled by invisible silk threads. They fluttered behind him like a peach blossom cloak, complementing the dark, flowing white robes that shone with a pure and beautiful light.

  The market fell silent, even the whispers of amazement disappeared, people's mouths agape, eyes wide with wonder, reflecting this momentary spectacle, this fleeting splendor.

  A beauty worth a nation's gaze, heaven sends petals flying, stirring half the city.

  Hong Xiang was also shocked to the point of forgetting to breathe, thinking that Feng Lai Qiu's door was not lacking in elegant and refined young men, but no matter who it was, it would be difficult to have such a charming presence, just one glance at his back figure could overturn the world.

  She gazed blankly at the figure disappearing into the distance, gradually becoming invisible. At this moment, the market seemed to wake up from a dream, people found themselves and went about their business, Hong Xiang let out a long sigh like in a dream, and couldn't help but mutter: "Such elegance, if Da Bo saw it, he would have immediately pounced on her, or snuck over in the middle of the night and taken her away..."

  Before she had finished speaking, she suddenly felt a flash of white light in front of her eyes, like lightning illuminating the air, bringing with it a refreshing breeze. Then, she suddenly found herself unable to move at all.

  It's as if in a dream, where the surging crowds become static, and around me are snowy white sleeves like light clouds, with a faint scent of fragrance wafting like a gentle mist.

  In her dream, a voice beside her ear said calmly and clearly: "Where is she?"

  ……

  Hong Xiang's whole body trembled as she walked towards Feng Lai Xi, her face pale.

  What just happened was still swirling in her mind like a dream.

  It was just a casual mutter to herself, yet it somehow managed to summon the white-clothed person who had already left the market, suddenly appearing in front of her.

  At a distance of over ten feet away, she muttered unintentionally. Could this person hear her? Was he human or ghost?

  A figure in white appeared beside her like a ghost, and in the next instant she was already being led by him through the market, where amazingly no one noticed.

  Later things got even stranger. The man in white took her to a secluded place, asked her only three questions, entrusted her with one thing, and then let her return.

  Hong Xiang slowly opened his sweaty palm, and a ruby in the center of his palm sparkled brightly.

  It's no exaggeration to say she's worth a thousand pieces of gold; this mysterious beauty was won over with just a few words.

  She didn't dare to lift her head, nor did she dare to look at the veil hanging under his chin, only seeing the tightly buttoned collar, with a silver pearl on it as big as a longan, shining brightly and beautifully.

  That was the only decoration on his body, but even a woman like Hong Xiang couldn't help but feel that this little decoration was just right. If there was less, it wouldn't match his noble temperament, and if there was more, it would be a kind of desecration.

  That pearl is probably worth even more than this gemstone.

  When the other party asked questions, there were guards standing guard at both ends of the alley. She took a sneak peek at those people and felt a chill run down her spine with an aura of murder.

  Hong Xiang thought of the other's words and shivered, hugging her arms tightly.

  Good riddance, you're on your own now...

  ……

  It's the time when Chinese lanterns are first hung up.

  The guest Jing Xiangbo received tonight was the young master of the Wang Shoubei family in Beicheng.

  After drinking three rounds with the weak and thin Wang Gongzi, Jing Hengbo successfully got him drunk, took all the gold and silver from his body, put half of it in the box in his private room, and left the other half on the table.

  She immediately blew out the candle flame, and with a flicker of her body, she appeared in front of the Red Fragrance Gate.

  Hong Xiang said to her at dusk that she had met a knowledgeable and intentional young man, who wanted to change her ways and was saving money to redeem herself, asking for more opportunities. Jing Hengbo has always been casual and agreed on the spot.

  Hong Xiang's room had no lights on, but there was someone lying on the bed. The air in the room was filled with a fragrance that floated gently, but it wasn't the thick, rich scent of the reunion incense she usually used; instead, it was unusually refreshing and elegant.

  Jing Xiang sniffed and thought it smelled good, but didn't think much of it. Gege laughed and pounced onto the bed, hugging Hongxiang with both hands, "Xiang Jiejie, Xiang Niangniang, Xiang Meimei, sister ruined your fun yesterday, today I'll take you to slaughter a fat sheep..."

  Her wolf claws suddenly stopped.

  The person on the bed turned over.

  In the darkness, I couldn't see her face, only a pair of eyes shining like stars. Jing Xuanbo was certain that Hong Xi had never had such bright and clear eyes, and most people in this world would not have them either.

  She wanted to step back, but found her whole body suddenly stiffened, only able to maintain the obscene posture of stretching out her hands, bending her waist and knees, fixed in front of the bed.

  It looks like she is about to kneel down and beg for mercy from the person on the bed.

  She was posed in such a lewd pose, the person on the bed seemed to be a bit disgusted, slowly stretching out one finger, and lightly pointing at her heart.

  Jing Hengbo only felt a suffocating sensation in his chest, and involuntarily took a slow step back, retreating three feet before stopping with a bow.

  The man sat up, flapped his sleeves, and suddenly the window on the back wall opened, letting in a gust of cool breeze.

  The person on the bed raised their fingers slightly, and the red clay incense burner on the table, where a faintly burning incense block was emitting a soft, elegant fragrance that wafted through the air.

  Jing Hengbo watched his movements and suddenly understood that he was annoyed by her strong scent, so he pushed her away and opened the window to ventilate the fragrance.

  This person's every move from appearance to now is telling a mood.

  No! Give up!

  Awesome!

  The scenery was vast and waves came in a hurry, but before I could get angry, the person on the bed sat up.

  Only when she sat down did she discover that the bed was a sheet of snow white, and the red scented peach pink mandarin duck quilt had been rolled up and thrown on the ground. This guy didn't sleep in Hong Xiang's bedding at all, he borrowed someone else's bed for one use, and even brought his own cushion.

  Affected!

  He sat cross-legged on the bed, his posture upright and stern, a white corner of his robe hanging down like a flowing moon. Jing Xuan's heart suddenly skipped a beat as she felt as if she had seen an emperor sitting high on his throne, waiting to coldly interrogate her.

  The aura of this man...

  She suddenly held her breath too.

  He didn't look at her, his face slightly raised, his hands resting on his knees. The moonlight shone obliquely, illuminating only his chin, a cold jade-like radiance. His voice was also like cold jade, cool and clear, each word like ice shards breaking apart.

  Path

  "Let you escape three times. Your Majesty."

  Digression

  I finally took out the high-quality goods...