Flower Stealing Master

Chapter 62: The first question

Song Qingshu looked at him in confusion, ”Why?”

”Arenʼt there many enemies thinking about assassinating me? The brothel is a public place, so they will surely try something and when they do, they would never think that the target is a powerful martial artist Brother Song instead. And that would be the end of them.” Wei Xiaobao calmly said. But he had a different thought in his heart, ‘It will be inconvenient to move while wearing this official uniform. When I go to that brothel and give that courtesan some tough love with some spring wine, isnʼt it going to be ruined?’

”Lord Wei is really brilliant, I admire him.” Zhang Kangnian and Zhao Qixian would never let go of any chance of flattering.

”Benefactor Weiʼs words are not unreasonable.” Jiumozhi looked at Song Qingshu and nodded, ”We only have Master Song and Wei Xiaobao who are similar in age.”

‘Isnʼt Duan Yu also here? It would be better if he was killed by an assassin.’ Song Qingshu cursed in his heart. And as if he could guess what he was thinking, Duan Yu subconsciously shrank back.

However, reason told him that he was the best candidate, and Duan Yu was the prince of Dali, so no matter what, if something really happened, Kangxi would have cursed Wei Xiaobao to death. ‘Fortunately, my martial arts skills are above average, even if I encounter an assassin, it should be more than enough for self-protection.’

Song Qingshu put away his thoughts, nodded and replied, ”Okay!”

If you ask where is the best place for drunkards today, ten out of ten men will answer you with excitement, Yangzhou!

If you ask where is the most filthy place today, ten out of ten women will answer you with contempt, Yangzhou!

Thousands of rich people came to Yangzhou for the pleasures of tangled flesh. To them, there was nothing more joyful in life than this.

Every evening, various pleasure houses in Yangzhou City became lively, and the most lively among them all was the Spring Beauty Pavilion.

”Huh, isn’t it because of that young girl who came recently. Everyone was enchanted by her as soon as she came here. I donʼt think she has such a great charm.” An old codger watched as a group of young masters in fresh clothes went straight to the Spring Beauty Pavilion. And he spit on the ground, and bitterly spoke.

Naturally, this group of fresh-clothed energetic young masters were Wei Xiaobao and Song Qingshu and his entourage. Just when they stepped into the doors of Spring Beauty Pavilion, the ownerʼs eyes lit up and he quickly greeted them with enthusiasm.

Wei Xiaobao threw an ingot of silver towards him and pointed to Song Qingshu and said, ”It is a reward from our Lord Wei and go find us the best seat in the house.”

The owner glanced at Song Qingshu, and nodded quickly, ”Okay, please come with me, Young Master.” After speaking, he led everyone to an elegant and quiet place and requested them to sit down. Then he ordered the little servant to arrange melons, fruits, wine and dishes, and spoke with a flattering smile, “Young Masters drink a glass of water and wine first, and Miss Youyou will come out in a moment. Whether you can get her favor depends on the Young Masters ability.”

”You can go take your leave first.” Wei Xiaobao impatiently waved his hand and drove him off. After a while, he quietly said to Song Qingshu, ”Brother Song, Iʼll go and relieve myself first.”

”The courtesan is coming out soon.” Song Qingshu said in amazement. He didnʼt expect him to go there at this time.

”Itʼs okay, Iʼll see her when I come back, you donʼt need to send someone to follow me, so as not to reveal our identity.” After Wei Xiaobao finished speaking, he quickly ran to the corridor, clutching his stomach.

Running out of everyoneʼs sight, Wei Xiaobao straightened up and slyly smiled, ”I have to first go to the warehouse and get some Spring wine out.”

Not long after Wei Xiaobao left, the hall exploded with peopleʼs excited voices and exclamations.

”Miss Youyou is here.”

”I donʼt know which man will be so lucky to be her guest today.”

”Miss Youyou is so alluring with a frown or a smile.”

Song Qingshu looked up, and saw a few maidservants coming down from upstairs with a beauty in a palace dress. Taking small elegant steps, her charm and gestures made Song Qingshuʼs heart sway.

As if noticing Song Qingshuʼs gaze, the beauty glanced back at him, her features were picturesque, especially those beautiful eyes, which seemed to have crystals flowing on the surface, it gave her a charming and alluring aura.

”I canʼt believe that a woman of such quality is in such a dirty place.” Song Qingshu quickly lowered his head, his heart kept beating wildly. She was really a young woman, and she is able to use the charm of a woman to the extreme with ease. As if she was naturally born with it.

Before he knew it, the beauty had already walked into the lobby and sat slowly down behind a curtain of gauze. Seeing the opportunity, the old announcer hurriedly began to yell, ”Masters, young Miss Youyou has already sat down. And the rules are the same as always, whoever can answer her three questions, will be invited by Miss Youyou into her fragrant boudoir.” (Goblin: Boudoir is a womanʼs bedroom or small private room.)

”For so many days, no one could even answer the first question. Isnʼt your Spring Beauty Pavilion dishonest and cheating?” A chubby wealthy businessman called out, and a group of people around him nodded secretly.

”If you canʼt answer it, it doesnʼt mean that other people canʼt answer it. If you can answer the question of Miss Youyou so easily, wouldnʼt it be a joke?” Another speaker heard his words and replied. It was from a young man who was sitting nearby. He was a gifted scholar, and a large number of people who are here for the first time also agreed with his words.

”Hey, if you guys think you are so great, then why don’t you go try it?” The fat businessman sneered, his expression very disdainful.

”I also hope that Miss Youyou will write a question.” Shi Shiran, the person who spoke just now, saluted towards the curtain.

Miss Youyou leaned slightly and gave a nod, but she did not speak. At that moment, a maid beside her stood up and opened her mouth and said, ”Listen well, the first question of our miss is neither the test of music, chess, calligraphy, nor the knowledge of Scriptures and History. She only wants to test your skills in arithmetic. The Miss wants to use a knife to divide her beloved brocade handkerchief into several pieces. As we all know, one cut can divide the handkerchief into two pieces, two cuts can divide it into four pieces at most, and with three cuts it can be divided into eight pieces. May I ask, how many pieces will Miss Youyou’s handkerchief be divided into at most, after one hundred cuts?”

As soon as this question came out, everyone in the scene began to bury their heads in thinking. Duo Longʼs eyes lit up, and he took out a square scarf and a knife to separate it. After cutting it for seven or eight times, some parts of the square scarf was so finely cut that it couldnʼt be cut anymore, and he threw away the knife with anger, ”Fu*k, this is so hard. What a clever problem.”

Duan Yu was a person who had studied mainly poetry and classics. If he examined the meaning of these subtle words with the help of Buddhist scriptures, he would be able to give the answer. But it was a pity that he didnʼt know anything about the skills required for this test.

Unlike Duan Yu, Wang Yuyan read a wide range of books. It was not limited to martial arts classics or Confucian classics. She had also studied a lot of books on mathematics, such as ”Nine Chapters of Arithmetic” and ”Zhoubi Suanjing”. Hearing this question, her mind began to calculate at extreme speed, and she soon figured out the answer, and she couldnʼt help but show a smile on her lips.

Duan Yu was always staring at Wang Yuyan, and when he saw her smile, he was surprised and said, ”Miss Wang has already figured it out?” Her knowledge of martial arts was superb, and she was obviously a literary talent, but Duan Yu lost in all of these fields compared to his sweetheart. He truly had nothing to be proud of, and suddenly felt very depressed.

Hearing Duan Yuʼs words, Duo Long, Zhang Kangnian, Zhao Qixian and others surrounded her at once, and said with a flattering smile, ”Miss Wang, can you tell us the answer.”

Wang Yuyan blushed and firmly shook her head. She was very angry after she was arrested by them, how could she be willing to help them to harm other girls.

Song Qingshu was very calm, he was sitting on the main seat, and leisurely sipping his tea. Shui Sheng saw his appearance, and the corner of her eyes curled up, and asked curiously, ”You also figured out the answer?”

”In the future, remember to call the master first. Itʼs no rules.” Song Qingshu glared at her, but didnʼt answer her directly.

Shui Sheng felt suffocated and hated Song Qingshu. She turned her head and looked at the girl behind the gauze curtain, a sly smile bloomed at the corner of her lips, and she suddenly shouted, ”My master has already figured it out!”

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