A Pawn's Passage

Qi Xuansu and Zhang Yuelu finally arrived in Shangqing Prefecture on December 1st.

Fortunately, the journey from Huzhou to Wuzhou went smoothly without any accidents. If they encountered any more accidents, it would mean that traveling was extremely dangerous. If that were the case, most ordinary people would not dare to step foot out of the house.

Some county seats were also the prefecture capital and the state capital. However, this was not the case in Shangqing Prefecture. Although Shangqing County and Shangqing Prefecture shared the same name, the county seat of Shangqing County was not the prefecture capital of Shangqing Prefecture. The two were independent of each other. The county seat was located at the foot of Yunjin Mountain, while the prefecture capital was still some distance away from Yunjin Mountain.

After Zhang Yuelu and Qi Xuansu arrived at the prefecture capital of Shangqing Prefecture, they were still quite far from Zhang Yuelu’s home. Zhang Yuelu planned to stay there for a few days because she wanted to reminisce about her childhood. According to Zhang Yuelu, her parents often took her there on New Year’s Day when she was young. However, Qi Xuansu knew that this was just an excuse for her to delay their arrival.

Qi Xuansu was quite envious of Zhang Yuelu’s childhood. When he was young, he could only watch the outside world from the high walls of the Wanxiang Daoist Palace.

Although the Wanxiang Daoist Palace covered a large area that was comparable to the Purple Mansion in Jade Capital and the Imperial Palace in the Imperial Capital, there were many restricted areas in the Wanxiang Daoist Palace that the orphans could not set foot in.

For example, the Upper Palace in which Zhang Yuelu studied was one of the restricted areas for orphans. They also could not enter the instructors’ residence or the large Star Field Lake that the instructors go to. Occasionally, there would be some elderly big shots who drank tea, played chess, or went boating on the lake, while the orphans watched from a distance. The orphans’ range of activities was quite limited.

After graduating from the Wanxiang Daoist Palace, they were no longer allowed to enter, unless they were taking up a teaching position in the Lower Palace or they were going to the Upper Palace for further study. That was why Qi Xuansu sometimes missed the Wanxiang Daoist Palace.

Since it was almost New Year’s Eve, the streets were lively with people doing their festive shopping, doing business, and returning to their hometowns. As they walked down the street, Qi Xuansu asked, “Should we find an inn to settle down first?”

Zhang Yuelu suggested, “Why don’t we go to a villa?”

“What?” Qi Xuansu could not help but think that he had misheard.

Zhang Yuelu repeated herself. “What do you think of going to a villa?”

Qi Xuansu finally confirmed that he had not misheard, but he was startled that this question came out of Zhang Yuelu’s mouth.

How could an unmarried young girl lead an unmarried young man to an upscale brothel? Not to mention, they were on their way to visit her parents for the New Year.

In this era, mingling with courtesans was relatively common, especially among Confucian disciples, who fancied themselves as romantic individuals. They openly engaged in such activities, even composing poems and lyrics about them, which were passed down through the ages. There was no shortage of tales about scholars and courtesans.

Buddhist disciples had to remain celibate. They must abstain from intimate relations and were prohibited from marrying or having children. They were the opposite extremes of Confucian disciples.

Daoist disciples were special, as they were divided into three camps.

Quanzhen Sect disciples, especially those who abandoned their real names and adopted Daoist names, were similar to Buddhist disciples. They abstained from sexual relations, ate vegetarian food, and never married. Most of the old Daoist disciples who were hundreds of years old but still remained celibate were from the Quanzhen Sect. Thus, they did not support such activities.

Zhengyi Sect disciples were allowed to marry and build a family, but mingling with courtesans was not encouraged. Thus, most disciples did this discreetly.

Taiping Sect disciples advocated learning about sexual relations, so it was common for them to frequent brothels.

Zhang Yuelu and Qi Xuansu were both Zhengyi Sect disciples. It was normal for them to get married when they were of age, but visiting brothels was frowned upon. Although it would not lead to a demerit or a demotion, it was not something one should gloat about, as it would hurt one’s reputation.

Much like in the secular world, when scions from military families fought, it was seen as normal and even expected. But if scions from scholarly families fought, it was regarded as tasteless and disgraceful.

If one stood on moral high ground to judge others, people would also hold them to the same principles. Therefore, they were restrained by their beliefs. That was why Quanzhen Sect disciples had the best reputation, and Taiping Sect disciples had the worst reputation.

Qi Xuansu brushed off the dust on his clothes and complained. “I don’t want to be accused of being a playboy when I’m a virgin. It’ll be unfair to me.”

“We’re just going to have a look to gain experience. It’s not like we need to stay over,” Zhang Yuelu pleaded. This had been her long-standing wish, and the old Daoist couple who took care of her in Jade Capital were well aware of it.

Qi Xuansu did not know about her dreams, but he disagreed. “Haven’t we already seen what a villa looked like when we were in Baidi City? Everything there was radiating extravagance.”

“We were there for an investigation then, and it was already dark. Also, there was a dead body and dozens of Spirit Guards. What sort of experience was that? This time, we can go with a disguise so that no one will notice.”

Qi Xuansu thought that this was a bad idea. “It’ll be fine if we don’t get discovered, but if we do, we’ll be in big trouble.”

Zhang Yuelu asked, “Have you really never been to an upscale brothel before?”

Qi Xuansu was about to speak when he suddenly remembered that he had actually been to one before—a villa in Jiangzhou, where he killed Shen Yuzu.

He pursed his lips and found another reason to cover up. “Villas are bottomless pits. I don’t have that much money to squander.”

“Right.” At the mention of money, Zhang Yuelu sighed. “There’s never enough money.”

Qi Xuansu asked tentatively, “So, we won’t go then?”

Zhang Yuelu was a little hesitant. Going to the villa was not necessary, but more so a curiosity she had since she was young. However, she had already spent half of her savings on this trip home, so she did not have much money left.

At this moment, a group of passing scholars were talking loudly.

“Have you guys heard that Miss Li is here in Shangqing Prefecture?”

“Which Miss Li?”

“Who else could it be? Miss Li from The Young Man’s Voyage, of course.”

“That famous Miss Li from the Imperial Capital?”

“The one and only!”

“Why would Miss Li suddenly come to Shangqing Prefecture?”

“Apparently, Shangqing Prefecture is her hometown, so she came back for the New Year to visit some relatives and friends.”

“Nice! Not many of us can have a chance to meet her.”

“Miss Li is just here to visit her relatives this time, so she won’t be able to entertain guests. Even if she does, she will probably only meet some local big shots.”

“This Miss Li is known as the number one courtesan in the Imperial Capital. It’ll be a pity if we miss her this time.”

“I wonder how our local courtesans compare with Miss Li.”

“I’m afraid they can’t hold a candle to her. There are two capitals in the world—the Imperial Capital and the Jade Capital. Courtesans are strictly prohibited from setting foot in the Jade Capital, so naturally, the Imperial Capital has the best there is, followed by the Jinling Prefecture. Shangqing Prefecture’s courtesans aren’t remotely close!”

“But I heard that there will be a poetry gathering at the villa, and Miss Li will make an appearance. Even though we can’t meet with her privately, at least we’ll still get to see her.”

Their conversation gradually shifted to poetry, singing, dancing, and refined literature that scholars typically liked to discuss. The scholars also talked about cheering on the girls who competed for beauty.

Qi Xuansu and Zhang Yuelu stood on the roadside, eavesdropping on the scholars’ conversation. After a while, they exchanged a glance.

Zhang Yuelu sighed. “Miss Li.”

Qi Xuansu asked, “Do you know her?”

“No, but I’ve heard that she’s a popular courtesan from the Imperial Capital who is supposedly the best courtesan in the world.” Zhang Yuelu replied.

Qi Xuansu was shocked by the claim as the best courtesan in the world. “Wow, she must be famous.”

Zhang Yuelu nodded. “Yes, she’s famous now. But I won’t be surprised that she’ll be replaced by a new person. This ranking thing was created by a group of womanizing Confucian disciples. But that’s not why I’ve heard of Miss Li. She’s actually connected with the Li family of the Taiping Sect.”

Qi Xuansu was even more surprised by this. “How could the daughter of the Li family be a courtesan?”

“She’s not the daughter of the Li family, not even an adopted daughter. She’s just a cash cow for them. After all, the Li family has been influential for hundreds of years, even producing big shots like the Holy Xuan.”

Zhang Yuelu continued, “The Li family likes to get their adopted sons and daughters to manage some untoward businesses. Sycamore Villa, the largest upscale brothel in Imperial City, is managed by an adopted daughter of the Li family.

“Miss Li isn’t her real name. She’s actually the daughter of a court official who was convicted of a crime. Her family property was confiscated, so she became homeless. A villa manager who was an adopted daughter of the Li family saw what a beauty Miss Li was and adopted her, changing the latter’s name to Li Qingnu. The villa manager hired famous teachers to teach Li Qingnu music, chess, calligraphy, painting, singing, and dancing.

“Li Qingnu is also really talented. With the Li family’s support, she quickly became popular in the Imperial Capital, surpassing all other courtesans. That was how she got her title as the number one courtesan in the world.”