Chapter 9: The Green Building

  At that time, I had not yet realized that Zhou Muerlang, this sometimes arrogant and unreasonable, sometimes deeply emotional and sincere guy, I didn't know his past, but he had gone through a lot in his future.

  After we cleared the air, our relationship changed rapidly. Please don't overthink it, it's not what you imagine. Although I never believed in platonic relationships between men and women, a simple working partnership can still exist objectively. Yes, we became business partners.

  This day, Zhou Muer said he would take me out of the mansion and before entering the palace, let me have a good time.

  Although I personally think that it should be Zhou Muyan who goes out to clear her mind, I'm just a humble servant and there's no need for me to be nervous about entering the palace. However, since the handsome guy is being so enthusiastic, I don't have the heart to decline, so let's do as you please.

  I heard from Murong that this is the country of Miao, the emperor's surname is Zhen, and the capital city is Luolicheng. Probably because my history is too bad, I really can't think of which dynasty this is, nor can I think of those earth-shaking historical events.

  However, from the perspective of the country and Luoli City, this is probably built on the banks of the Luo River or by the descendants of Zhen Miao. Luoli City was built along the water, standing high, you can see a pool of emerald green water outside the city, rolling away, magnificent to the extreme.

  Cao Zhi didn't write "The Goddess of the Luo River", did he? "Light as a startled swan, gentle as a roaming dragon. Glorious as an autumn chrysanthemum, luxuriant as a spring pine. Like a light cloud veiling the moon, like a flowing breeze stirring the snow. From afar, it shines like the morning sun rising over the clouds at dawn; upon closer inspection, it is radiant like a lotus flower emerging from the ripples." The text must be describing this moat. Thinking that I had the good fortune to arrive at a place mentioned by the ancients, my emotions were exceptionally stirred.

  Luoyang City is indeed the capital, with houses like a chessboard and streets like vegetable fields. The streets are bustling with cars and horses, people's voices are deafening, and merchants come and go in large numbers. On the side of the street, there are also performances of acrobatics and martial arts, which are very impressive. The various small toys sold here are not inferior to modern handicrafts at all. Haha, why does it feel like a one-day tour of a movie city?

  After getting tired from strolling around, I followed Young Master Zhou to get a free meal at the highest-end restaurant in Beijing, but somehow its name sounds like that of a Jiangnan garden.

  The shopkeeper couldn't help but recognize our Big Brother Zhou, with a smile all over his face, he led us to the private room on the second floor. Young Master Zhou ordered dishes with ease.

  Hei Pi Bao, Xue Shan Mei, Ma La Du Si, Cui Yu Dou Gao, Xiou Qiu Gan Bei, Long Jing Zhu Sun, Fo Shou Jin Juan, Hua Gu Ya Zhang, Sui Shang He Ye Juan, Xing Ren Dou Fu.

  Before long, all the dishes were on the table, a big table, each dish was beautifully presented, even the garnishes were carefully arranged, it's a pity that I couldn't take a photo to post on Weibo.

  I was stunned by the big table in front of me, but Zhou Mulang was eating with ease. I sighed and said, "It's so beautiful, I don't want to eat it."

  He put food into my bowl while muttering, "Hurry up and eat, the dishes are for eating, not for looking at. If you don't eat them, it's a waste. Xiaoya, hurry up and finish, we still have activities afterwards."

  "What activity?" I was drawn in by his itinerary.

  He saw me with a curious face, smiled and whispered in my ear, "This activity is... confidential", then patted the table and burst out laughing.

  How did I end up meeting such a boring person, and to make matters worse, we're even sitting at the same table for dinner. This face paired with this kind of character is truly a perfect representation of what it means to be a waste.

  Throughout the meal, I didn't say a word, but he was enthusiastically telling stories about his and He Yuanshan's past adventures, such as playing pranks on their master together, fighting with the young master of the Wang family, stealing from Zhou's hidden stash, and their first time visiting a brothel, where they were scared off by the girls.

  Alas, I don't remember which neuroscientist said that men's and women's brains are different. Men like to brag, just like women like gossip; it's all instinctual.

  After dinner, the dishes were removed and tea was served. The tea was Wu Zi Xian Mao, which had a very good flavor, refreshing and fragrant.

  The door creaked open, and a teacher named Fu, holding a zither, entered with a slender and weak girl. It turned out they were here to sing. The teacher's fingers lightly plucked the strings, very carefully, as if the zither was his lover that he cherished.

  The girl, only sixteen or seventeen years old, had a clean and simple melon-seed face, not tainted by worldly impurities. Her voice was clear and pure, and when she sang with emotion, her delicate eyebrows furrowed slightly, as if she were experiencing personal pain, yet at the same time, she seemed as calm as an outsider.

  "There is a beauty, having seen her, I will never forget."

  One day without seeing you is like a madman's thoughts.

  The male phoenix flies high, seeking the female phoenix in all four seas.

  Alas, the beauty is not by the eastern wall.

  I will use the zither as a substitute for words and express my innermost feelings through music.

  When shall I see you again, and comfort my wandering heart?

  May our words match our virtues, and may we walk hand in hand together.

  "Do not fly away, lest I perish."

  Such a talented and pitifully beautiful woman, I'm almost drunk from her singing.

  "Great!" I clapped my hands hard, and after a while, they felt hot. When I came to my senses and took a look, the palms of my hands were red.

  The woman smiled and nodded, bowed slightly, thanked the audience, walked in front of the table with a full cup, toasted us two, drank it all at once. I didn't dare to be careless either, raised my head and finished a cup, handed the empty cup to the beauty. She smiled and thanked me, then left with the piano teacher.

  I like this beauty, I wonder which man wouldn't? Thinking of this, I suddenly had some ideas. Looking at Zhou Muerlang with a sly smile, I asked, Brother Zhou, do you have any familiar old madams?

  He was apparently embarrassed by my question, his old face turned red, and he seriously explained, "No, no, why did you ask this?"

  Haha, it turns out that even someone as shameless as him can be embarrassed at times. I wouldn't let go of this chance to tease him.

  "There's nothing, just curiosity. I've long heard that Brother Zhou is quite the ladies' man and spends money like water. He must be a regular at those places. In my lifetime, I've never seen what a brothel looks like. Mu Lang brother, since it's getting late anyway, why don't you take me to have a look? Don't you want to see that little flower of yours?"

  He listened to me making such a request, and didn't know what to do, so he made excuses, "Where would a girl like you go to that kind of place? Xiaoya, it seems those few books you read weren't wasted, you've learned some bad things."

  I couldn't just give up on what I wanted to do so easily, so I grabbed his sleeve, shook his hand and said with an innocent face.

  "Oh dear, I'm going to enter the palace soon and who knows when I'll have another chance to see you. Just take me with you, just to take a look at the girls, have some drinks, what's there to be afraid of? Murong brother, please agree to it. Besides, if you hadn't shown me those books, I wouldn't be curious about this in the first place. It's all your fault, so you should take responsibility for it. Otherwise, I won't guarantee that I'll still recognize you as my friend, Zhou Da Gongzi, tomorrow."

  He didn't even pass me, and was coerced by threats and temptation, so I had to give in. He made me change into men's clothing, and when the lanterns were first lit, we went to the legendary Red Lantern Street. I really don't know what those ancient people were thinking - did they think that just because I changed into men's clothes, they wouldn't be able to tell I was a woman? Please, although Umanya is very slender, her secondary sex characteristics are still quite obvious, okay?

  It's almost the same as in ancient costume dramas, where street performers and vendors appear from time to time, and there are also men of all kinds asking about prices. I really want to ask Zhou Muerlang if this can also be bargained for.

  As they walked to a certain place, the street suddenly became crowded. The sedan chair stopped in front of a gate, and from time to time, the sound of an old procuress's laughter and calls could be heard: "Hey, Lord Wang, Lord Li, come quickly, the girls are waiting for you!"

  The boss saw Zhou Muer and also did so, unscrupulously grasping his arm, leaning his body against him, and laughing: "Master Zhou, you've finally arrived. Our Huahua has been missing you so much that she's almost fallen ill."

  I took a closer look at Zhou Muer's expression, his face was somewhat troubled, his face was stiff, his sword eyebrows were furrowed, and he had an unfamiliar appearance with the old prostitute. Hehehe, I couldn't hold back my laughter, he coughed and gave me a white eye, and entered the courtyard amidst the old prostitute's advertising slogans.

  As it's my first time visiting a brothel, how can I bear to hide in a private room listening to music and drinking wine? Of course, I'd rather sit in the most bustling hall with scattered seats to appreciate the spring scenery here.

  The madam called over Hua Hua and Yue Yue to keep us company, Hua Hua clung to Zhou Mu Lang drinking and playing, Yue Yue saw that I was distracted looking around and not paying attention to her, so she also went to cling to Zhou Mu Lang, embracing him on both sides, a blessing for all to see, Zhou Mu Lang, you're really getting a good deal tonight.

  However, he himself seemed to be unappreciative, not just being unable to let go, but with a deeply resentful look on his face, his eyebrows furrowed into a ball, drinking cup after cup of wine, ignoring the two girls beside him.

  Before I could fully appreciate the free spring scenery, he was already drunk and pulled out silver notes from his body to pay the bill. The bill almost scared me to death, but all we did was sit for a while, drink a few pots of wine, and chat with two girls, yet it cost 200 taels of silver. Are their girls made of gold? Do they disappear after one glance or what? It's truly a brutal industry.

  As soon as Zhou Muerlang came out of the Drunken Wind Building, he sobered up and refused to go back. He pulled me to return to the Zhou Mansion. Along the way, I wanted to speak several times but swallowed my words instead. Unexpectedly, he still noticed and said without looking at me, "What do you want to say?"

  "I, I think, want to borrow some money from you." I muttered quietly.

  "How much money do you want to borrow? The people in the palace need money for bribery." He still didn't look at me as he spoke, seemingly still angry about going to the brothel.

  "Hmm, this... I don't know how much is needed, you tell me how much silver it takes to buy the next brothel?" I asked.

  "What? A brothel?" He finally looked at me, his face full of anger.

  "Yes", I barely whispered, my heart was dying of fear, but my mouth said something I had never heard before, "Yes, I want to open a brothel, one that's different from the others, can't say it's a brothel, but a Qinglou."

  "What's different about this brothel? Are you out of your mind?" He seemed to strongly disagree with my idea, his eyes flashing with anger as he harshly scolded me.

  "What the hell are you yelling about? Don't lend it then, whether I'm crazy or stupid has nothing to do with you, Zhou Gongzi. Hmph." I turned around in a huff and walked in another direction, ignoring him calling me from behind.

  This split personality guy, is he having another episode of madness? Just because he's rich, he thinks he can lecture me? No way, I won't lend him money. With my great ways of making money, I'll definitely find investors. When I make a fortune and turn all the silver into copper coins, I'll smash them to death, this annoying Zhou Mulang.

  "Zhou Murang, you son of a bitch, remember this for me!" I shouted into the empty and quiet black night.