If Young Master Gao truly meant to apologize, then it shouldn’t be these attendants –
it should be you, Young Master Gao.
The moment the girl said this, everyone in the hall was once again stunned.
“Lady Cheng, what do you mean by that? Are you saying… I should break my own hand?”
And when Young Master Gao replied with those words, the people in the hall were outright horrified.
Madam Mo pressed a hand to her chest.
Good heavens, she thought, tonight I’ve practically suffered a lifetime’s worth of fright.
With these shocks coming one after another, rising and falling without end – if there are a few more, she doubts she’ll be alive long enough to enjoy the money she just received.
With Young Master Gao’s words, the attendants on both sides tensed up, each tightening their grip on their weapons.
Killing this girl here on the spot… actually wasn’t impossible, was it?
She was just a woman. Even if she had rendered service to the state, she ultimately had no real backing. Even if the Emperor were to fly into a rage and throw him into the dungeons, with his father there, the Empress Dowager there, the Imperial Consort there, and now Prince Ping as well, he wouldn’t die.
As long as he didn’t die, getting out was only a matter of time.
Besides, this was Desheng Pavilion, competing for the courtesan. Dying in such a situation would be shameful for her too – whether in the court or among the common people, it would be easier to suppress the rumors.
Thinking of it that way, this really was a good opportunity.
Her father already wanted to get rid of her anyway; doing it a little earlier made no difference.
Young Master Gao’s breathing grew rapid, and the hand hanging at his side seemed to be sweating lightly.
“Young Master Gao, you misheard,” Cheng Jiao-niang said. “What I mean is, there’s no need to apologize. My brother getting beaten is my brother’s own problem. If he dared to play, he must be able to afford losing. If he dared to compete, he must be able to accept defeat.”
Young Master Gao felt all the air go out of him, his body nearly collapsing from the sudden weakness.
This wretched girl!
Why wasn’t she arrogant anymore?
Bring out that momentum from earlier – when she staked everything she had to fight for the courtesan!
Why back down now? Come on, come chop off my hand! Come fight me to the death!
Damn it!
Young Master Gao cursed viciously in his heart.
If she wouldn’t make a scene, he could still make a scene himself…
Make a scene or not?
If he kicked up trouble at this moment, he would be leaving behind an obvious handle for others to attack him with.
Would it be worth it – or not?
In that moment of hesitation, the atmosphere in the hall eased, and Young Master Gao knew the opportunity had already slipped away.
After this incident, he no longer had the mood to maintain even a façade of politeness.
“You jest,” he said, giving a hurried cupped-hands salute. “Then I won’t disturb you and your gentleman’s enjoyment. I shall take my leave.”
Cheng Jiao-niang returned the courtesy properly, her expression unchanged, as if nothing at all had happened.
Zhou Liu-lang’s expression flickered for a moment, but in the end he said nothing as he watched Young Master Gao go.
There was no point saying anything now.
In truth, the moment this girl opened her mouth and declared she wanted to compete for the courtesan, they should have known she meant to tear her face with the Gao family.
Young Master Gao snorted coldly to himself, lifted his foot, and pushed the door open – only for his steps to falter.
A wave of noisy chatter hit him, and countless gazes converged from all directions.
Desheng Pavilion had sealed off the second floor, but they couldn’t drive away all the guests. At night, Desheng Pavilion was even more crowded and lively. And with such a commotion just now, it was impossible to keep things hidden.
“Young Master, let’s take the back door,” a servant whispered.
Damn it – how humiliating. Since when did he have to sneak out the back like some shameful rat just because he’d drunk and played with women?
The smile had long vanished from Young Master Gao’s face, replaced by a chilling gloom.
No doubt by tomorrow, this joke would be all over the capital.
“It’s just fighting over a courtesan. It’s not as if it’s something shameful,” he sneered. “If I could walk in openly, then I can walk out openly!”
With that, he lifted his foot and stepped forward.
Seeing this, the rest had no choice but to follow.
As their group passed through, there weren’t many people in the hall who dared to openly gawk at them, but the covert glances – those looks coming from all directions – still made Young Master Gao feel as if needles were pricking his back.
He had never feared being looked at or pointed at; he had never cared. But today, the stares and whispers felt like nothing he had ever experienced.
Because this time, he was being seen as a loser – mocked and ridiculed – rather than feared or envied as before.
Jiangzhou fool!
At the doorway, Young Master Gao stopped in his tracks and glanced back at the tall corridor bridge leading to the second floor. Then he turned and strode away quickly.
With his departure, Desheng Pavilion erupted into a roar.
“Did you see clearly?”
“It really was the Gao family’s Fourteenth Young Master!”
“Then who did the courtesan end up going to?”
“Nonsense – Young Master Gao slunk away with his tail between his legs. Of course that lady won.”
“A lady won the courtesan?”
“Not exactly – a lady won the courtesan on behalf of her brother…”
“That’s frightening enough. What kind of lady is she?”
With a sharp bang, the door shut, cutting off Madam Mo’s enthusiastic smile.
“…Lady Cheng, do you need anything else? Our Desheng Pavilion also has excellent wine and dishes… Would you like to listen to some music and watch the dancers first? Ah-Heng will need a while before she can come…”
Madam Mo, still pressed against the door, finished rambling through her words.
Inside, the only response she received was the young man’s blunt: “Get lost.”
This rude shout did not make Madam Mo displeased; instead, her smile remained bright with delight.
Fifty thousand guan!
One courtesan – fifty thousand guan a month!
Madam Mo pinched the sleeve where the money was hidden, and just thinking about it made her grin so widely she couldn’t close her mouth.
With fifty thousand guan in hand, what did a couple of insults matter?
Even if that young lady beat her up, she would gladly thank her for it.
“But madam, this will offend Young Master Gao,” the attendant nearby couldn’t help reminding.
“Wrong,” Madam Mo chuckled, fiddling with her sleeve as she spoke. “It’s not us who offended him, but…”
She quietly pointed toward the back.
“At this point, it’s no longer about our Desheng Pavilion, nor is it about Ah-Heng. This is a matter between the Cheng family and the Gao family. For us, whoever pays is the boss. What can we do? What else can we do when someone can simply overpower others with money? Running a business leaves us scared and helpless – we’re just pitiful, really.”
As she said this, she put on a pitiful expression, then exchanged a look with the attendant. Both burst into laughter, quickly covering their mouths as they laughed. They glanced back, then ducked their heads, hid their smiles, and hurried away.
“Have you lost your mind? Do you even know what you’re doing?”
Zhou Lang’s face flushed crimson as he shouted inside the private room.
He stared at his own hand – it had remained clenched until the moment Young Master Gao disappeared through the doorway. His grip had been so tight that his hand now felt stiff.
Cheng Si-lang had already been escorted home, and just as Cheng Jiao-niang stood up to leave, Zhou Liu-lang grabbed her arm.
“Competing for the courtesan,” Cheng Jiao-niang replied calmly.
Competing for the courtesan?
Is that what this was?
Fifty thousand guan to secure the courtesan for a month! Wasn’t this all the money she could possibly mobilize?
And even offering Tai Ping Residence and Immortal’s Abode as collateral – was this still just competing for a courtesan?
Not to mention demanding that Young Master Gao injure his own hand and apologize!
Was this a competition for the courtesan – or a fight for survival?
“I never asked him to injure his hand and apologize,” Cheng Jiao-niang corrected. “That was his own suggestion.”
This girl truly focused on entirely different things than normal people!
Zhou Liu-lang glared at her, fuming.
“Do you have any idea he was ready to kill you back there?” he hissed through gritted teeth.
Cheng Jiao-niang smiled faintly.
“All this over competing for a courtesan? If he’s already thinking about murder, then he’s simply a sore loser,” she remarked.
“How can you say that so casually!” Zhou Liu-lang snapped, his eyes wide with disbelief.
“Why shouldn’t I say it?” Cheng Jiao-niang replied. “It’s nothing to be ashamed of.”
“And you think this is something to be proud of?” he retorted, still glaring.
“Rising to win a beauty’s smile – such is the romance of youth, passionate and noble. Surely that shines brighter than cold-hearted avoidance?” Cheng Jiao-niang said.
“Only if he’s actually capable of rising to the occasion!” Zhou Liu-lang retorted with a cold laugh.
The mere thought of that Cheng-what’s-his-name made his blood boil.
All those useless members of the Cheng family!
“He is capable,” Cheng Jiao-niang replied.
“Capable?” Zhou Liu-lang sneered. “In what way? If he were truly capable, he wouldn’t have been beaten half to death like a stray dog!”
“Because he has me,” Cheng Jiao-niang answered.
Zhou Liu-lang stared in disbelief, then grew even angrier.
“He’s your brother, not your son! And even a son shouldn’t be spoiled like this -competing for a courtesan, and you’re doing it on his behalf…” He glared, furious.
“This is hardly spoiling him,” Cheng Jiao-niang replied, looking at him as she lifted her teacup. “If my brother is happy, then I am happy. What else do we live for, if not to seek joy in this life?”
Zhou Liu-lang let out a scornful “Pah!”
“Besides,” Cheng Jiao-niang added, “the reason things turned out this way is probably because of me.”
Because of her?
Zhou Liu-lang was taken aback, then a realization dawned on him.
Now that he thought about it carefully, the whole situation was just too coincidental…
Those cunning scoundrels from Desheng Pavilion!
Fury surged through Zhou Liu-lang. He turned abruptly, strode to the door, and yanked it open violently.
…
Disordered garments lay scattered across the floor. Lady Zhu sat before the bronze mirror clad only in plain white underrobes.
The finest ink brush in the capital traced the arch of her brows. Against the delicate powder coating her face, the slender lines emerged vivid as jade.
She applied her makeup with intense focus. For every courtesan, cosmetics were a fundamental skill – and as the reigning star courtesan, her artistry was unparalleled.
No matter the circumstance, she must always present herself impeccably.
Never again could she afford to embarrass herself as she had earlier. Never…
She opened a rouge case, dabbing pale pink onto her cheeks. A subtle, sweet fragrance drifted upward.
The lady in the mirror smiled – and in that instant, her whole being seemed to glow.
From behind her came the sound of weeping.
“Sister, it’s all my fault.”
Chun Ling lay prostrate on the floor, sobbing uncontrollably.
Lady Zhu’s expression remained unchanged. She dipped a finger into the crimson lip pigment, applying it gently to her lips. She pressed them lightly together, then allowed a soft smile to bloom – radiant as a flower, her red lips glistening like dewdrops.
“Why cry?” she said. “Both the Gao family and Lady Cheng are vying for me – even offering fifty thousand guan for a single month. Such a thing has never happened before. With this, your sister’s reputation as the star courtesan will truly resound across the land. This is a cause for celebration.”
Chun Ling crawled forward on her knees, still weeping.
“It is my fault for placing you in such a position, for making you offend two powerful families for no reason,” she cried, kowtowing again and again with a thudding rhythm. “I never should have invited Young Master Cheng. I deserve to die.”
Bruises and swelling soon appeared on her forehead, traces of blood seeping through.
