Chapter 9: The Azure Dragon on the Left and the White Tiger on the Right (Part 1)

  In the past, I was unworthy of praise, but now I have endless thoughts. With a favorable spring breeze, my horse's hooves are swift, and in one day, I can see all the flowers of Chang'an.

  At dawn, Xiao Si hugged Wan'er's slender waist and rode Ye Fashan's immortal crane all the way south to the outskirts of Chang'an City.

  Two men descended from a remote small hill in front of a large eagle and walked along the official road, just catching up with the city gate opening.

  At this time, the country of Sui had been established for over thirty years. The city of Chang'an, as the capital, had become increasingly prosperous after several dynasties' development, with hundreds of thousands of households and merchants coming and going like a shuttle, wide streets and dense shops, living up to its reputation as the number one city in the world.

  Either because it was still early, or because there were few people on the streets, occasionally a carriage would rush by, mostly carrying high-ranking officials to their morning court.

  Wan'er looked around and saw that the gate towers in front of her were one more magnificent than the other, with plaques overlapping each other. The palace in the distance stood towering under the reflection of the fiery dawn clouds. She then asked softly: "Where is the Qing Lou? Where should we go to find someone?"

  Xiao Si had never been to the capital city before, and at this moment, he was also looking around in a daze, unable to distinguish east, west, south, or north. He spread his hands and said, "You ask me, I ask who? Can't just go around asking people on the street, can we?"

  Wan'er said with some surprise: "You've never been to a brothel?"

  "What's wrong with that? Besides, who else can take a beautiful woman like you on a stroll through the brothels like I do?"

  Wan'er murmured "oh" and shook her head, saying "nothing." A faint sly smile flashed at the corner of her lips.

  Two people walked and talked, turning a corner onto a large street. Xiang Si saw a building in front of them with a pink wall, black tiles, flying eaves, and sharp corners that were very delicate. A red sign above the door read "Wenxiang Building" in three characters. Her eyes lit up as she called out to Yu'er: "Look, there's a restaurant open over there, it looks pretty good! Let's fill our bellies first before looking for someone else, we won't be tired!"

  Wan'er didn't have an appetite for dinner, but she couldn't resist Xiao Si's persistence and had to follow him inside.

  Perhaps it was still early, the wine shop was empty and not a single customer could be seen, only a small shopkeeper sweeping with a lack of enthusiasm. He glanced at Xiao Si and Wan'er, his face slightly surprised: "What are you two little kids doing coming in here? Get out quickly!"

  "Wan'er angrily said: 'Do you think I, this young lady, can't afford the money? I refuse to leave!'"

  The shopkeeper's assistant was taken aback, threw down the broom and picked up his waist, sneering: "I've been working here for more than three years, and I've never seen a girl as shameless as you. There are so many fun places in Beijing, but you come here to find your mother's pleasure..."

  Xiao Si had been in the city for over a decade, but he had never seen such an arrogant shopkeeper. When he heard him insulting Wan'er, his anger rose from his heart to his gallbladder. Before the shopkeeper could finish speaking, Xiao Si grabbed a chair and smashed it at him, cursing: "You're looking for trouble, your whole family is looking for trouble!"

  The shopkeeper dodged and weaved but was still knocked to the ground by the red wooden chair, shouting "Ahh, it hurts so much!"

  Xiao Si's suppressed anger finally found an outlet, and with both hands grasping the chair legs, he recklessly pounded the shopkeeper, shouting: "Even if your grandma were here, it wouldn't be of any use! Today I'm going to beat you until you call me 'grandpa'!"

  Suddenly, the sound of footsteps came from behind, and five or six burly men with broad waists and round bellies rushed out, each carrying a knife. They shouted angrily: "You stinky little brat, blind your dog's eyes! How dare you cause trouble in Wenxiang Building!" They swarmed up, apparently intending to gang up on Xiao Si.

  Wan Er let out a clear shout and with a wave of her hand, she sent the burly man who was charging at the front flying out.

  The remaining few burly men simultaneously drew their knives and attacked Yuanner, instantly becoming a chaotic melee.

  Xiao Si was afraid that Wan Er would be taken advantage of, so he quickly grabbed a red wooden chair and swung it round with the wind whistling as he smashed it onto the head of a burly man.

  A woman in red clothes floated down from the second floor, her lotus feet flying through the air to kick a red wooden chair with a loud "thud".

  A surge of unbridled power burst forth from the red wooden chair, pressing down on both arms, causing his vision to blur and his chest to feel suffocated. Just as he was about to be shocked into immobility, the twenty-eight constellations within him suddenly hummed and trembled, his true energy churning and transforming into illusory shadows of a green dragon and white tiger that poured into both arms. It seemed as though a dragon's roar and a tiger's howl echoed through his mind, two palm forces bursting forth to counterpress the red wooden chair.

  "Bang!" The hard red wooden chair burst into a pile of powder at the sound.

  Xiao Si's eyes widened in shock, and he stumbled backward three steps before falling to the ground with a thud. Just then, he heard Wan'er let out a soft cry as she was struck by the red-clothed woman's finger, hitting her Dazhui acupoint on her back, causing her to collapse to the ground.

  The little shop assistant, with a broken head and blood flowing, crawled up from the ground, crying and shouting: "Boss Hong, these two little rabbits came to our Fragrant Pavilion early in the morning to make trouble, we can't let them off lightly!"

  Wan Er was both shocked and angry, saying: "Obviously it's your store bullying customers, using foul language to hurt people!"

  The woman in red looked at Yuanyuan and asked the shopkeeper, "What's going on?"

  The shopkeeper covered his head and recounted the events one by one, still fuming with anger. He pointed a finger and said, "Red Boss, let's catch that little scoundrel and take him to see the official, let him eat a few more years of prison food... Hmm? Where is he?" It turned out that he suddenly discovered that Xiao Si was nowhere to be seen, and when he turned his head to look again, he found that the little scoundrel was quietly slipping away towards the door.

  The woman in red flashed out and grabbed Xiao Si's shoulder, saying: "Little brother, where are you going?"

  Xiao Si was just two steps away from stepping out the door, but at this moment he awkwardly stopped in his tracks and revealed what he thought was his most sincere and honest smile: "My mom called me back home for breakfast, so I won't bother sister anymore."

  The woman in red smiled and said, "Didn't you say that even if Grandma came, it would be useless?" She gave a signal with her eyes, ordering the two burly men to close the door, and then grabbed Xiao Si's shoulder, pulling him back into the hall.

  Wan'er showed a bit of courage and shouted: "Let go of Fourth Uncle! If you have any skills, come at me!"

  "Shut up, you silly girl! What are you yelling about? We're two ants on the same string, what's with this female hero nonsense?"

  Wan'er raised her head and said, "Fourth Uncle, don't be afraid. If they dare to touch a single hair on our heads, Grandfather will surely smash this broken wine shop!"

  "Demolish the wine house?" The woman in red was taken aback for a moment, and a hint of a smile appeared at the corner of her lips: "Interesting, really interesting."

  Wan Er said with a scowl: "What's so funny? Which wine house doesn't allow people to eat and still keeps a bunch of thugs? I think you're just a black-hearted shop."

  The woman in red smiled silently and lightly clapped her palms twice with a "slap slap" sound.

  But then from upstairs came the sound of orioles singing and swallows dancing, a group of coquettish women with thick makeup and bright lipstick walked down laughing and joking, surrounding the two men and circling them once. One of them even stretched out her hand to pinch Wen'er's cheek lightly, giggling and saying: "Whose little sister is so cute? Are you here for dinner because your tummy is hungry? How pitiful!"

  Wan Er's face turned bright red with shame and anger as she shouted: "If you're capable, let me go! I'll fight it out with you again!"

  Xiao Si, however, understood and gazed at the group of elegant women, swallowing his saliva as he said, "So, sister, this building smells like a woman's fragrance?"

  The woman in red smiled and asked back: "What do you think?"

  "Ah yo!" Xiaosan slapped his thigh and exclaimed, "This is truly a case of 'a flood destroying the Dragon King Temple', where one family member doesn't recognize another! To be honest, my family also runs several brothels in Jiankang. My old man wants me to take over the business, so he sent me to the capital to observe and learn from others. I was worried that I wouldn't know anyone in this vast city of Chang'an, but unexpectedly, I ended up entering your Wenxiang Tower - what a coincidence!"

  Wan Er was left staring blankly, once again witnessing Xiao Si's "shameless and invincible" technique.

  The woman in red smiled and listened, asking: "So, you and your sister are fellow travelers now?"

  Xiao Si nodded vigorously and said, "Not only are we in the same line of work, but sister is also my senior. If you don't mind, I'd like to ask sister to be my teacher and learn from her how to manage wealth."

  The woman in red said: "But my people were injured by you, this matter must have an explanation."

  Xiao Si smiled and said: "Having entered one family, I won't speak of two families. From now on, you are my senior fellow disciple. Senior brother, please forgive your junior's offense!"

  That turtle boss was a bit stunned, having been in the business for three years. He had just finished a night shift last night and was about to wash up and sleep when he unexpectedly ran into a guy who claimed to be his second brother.

  The woman in red was delighted with Xiao Si's cleverness and slyness, so she intentionally sank her face and said: "Want to follow me into the profession? It's not difficult at all. You just need to kneel here for three days and three nights to show your sincerity."

  Xiao Si angrily said in a low voice: "You little wretch, do you think I'm your husband? You make me kneel and scrub the floor for no reason?"

  He beamed with joy, saying: "If I could face such a heavenly beauty like my sister every day, it wouldn't matter if it took three days or even three years on my knees, I'd still consider myself lucky. Unfortunately, before my old man left, he instructed me to find his nephew and then partner up to open a brothel in Chang'an City."

  The lady in red smiled and said, "I wonder which of your uncle's nephews you are referring to?"

  Xiao Si said with a smile, "Speaking of my cousin's reputation in Chang'an City, it is indeed like thunder and everyone knows that the one called Little Li Tanhua is San Yuan Li Jing!"

  The woman in red's expression changed slightly, and a hint of coldness suddenly appeared in her voice: "Who are you, who sent you?"

  Xiao Si observed her words and expressions, and secretly thought: "Could it be that this sister was once infatuated with Tang Xiao San, and now harbors a deep-seated resentment, refusing to let go of the past?"

  Wan'er said on the side, "I am the granddaughter of Geng Nanwing, the head of the Jiangzhou branch of the Tongbao Bureau. Someone in the bureau was poisoned by the Purple Cloud Spider of the Tangmen in Shu, so I came to ask for Li's help."

  The woman in red said with a hint of surprise: "These two people actually know Li Jing's true identity!"

  She nodded and said: "This little girl has indeed spoken the truth."

  Xiao Si's face turned red with rage, "I'm so angry that my mouth is dry. This little girl doesn't believe me at all, but as soon as Wan'er opens her mouth, she believes everything. It seems the old man was right, the highest state of bragging is to first deceive oneself."

  Wan'er asked: "Hong... sister, don't you know Brother Li?"

  The woman in red remained silent, and Xīao Sì saw her tangled appearance and guessed that there was something going on. He thought to himself: "It turns out that this little girl has really been fooled around by Táng Xiǎo Sān, and I accidentally found the right person."

  "He turned his eyes and said: 'Hong Jie, if you are not convenient, we can find another place.'"

  The woman in red shook her head and said, "No need, follow me." She snapped her fingers to release the seal on Wanyi's meridians and walked inside.

  Xiao Si thought to himself: "These young women who open the Qinglou are all ruthless and cunning, will they also set up some secret passages and mechanisms for murder and silence in this building?" He looked up to see that Wan'er had already followed the red-clothed woman into the back hall.

  Xiao Si gritted her teeth, resolutely embracing the determination that whether it was good fortune or bad luck, she couldn't avoid it. She took three steps in two strides to catch up with Yu'er, following behind the woman in red as they walked out of the back hall and into a quiet little garden.

  A woman in red arrived at a small building, went straight up to the second floor, and gently pushed open a slightly ajar door: "He Yushang, there are two little friends from afar who want to see you."