Chapter 9: A Dilemma

  Yuanjia Inn

  Under the dim candlelight, Su Jin changed into a cyan long dress, with a jade-colored silk ribbon tied around her waist, revealing her slender waist that could be grasped in one hand. Her long hair, seemingly just washed, was draped behind her head, and two red cords made of countless threads were draped over her temples and fell onto her chest, following the curve of her body and landing on the soft couch, adding an exotic charm to Su Jin.

  "I was indeed wrong just now." Su Jin leaned against the soft couch, a few green onions poking out from her sleeve to steadily hold a green plum: "Fortunately, Qinghe sister, you didn't already send someone to pick up Lianxiang, it seems we're just in time."

  "It's better this way." Qinghe said with a slightly worried expression: "It's just that it's almost curfew now, and I'm afraid if the news reaches my sister, she won't be able to make it in time. If those night patrol soldiers catch her, it won't be a big deal, just a bit of silver will be lost, after all, she's a girl, can't be put in jail. But if she's caught by the Wang Fu...

  "There's no need to worry about that." Su Jin waved her hand with an extremely relaxed expression, as if she had everything under control: "Even if Xiao Man went to report the news in the first instance, she has no car or horse, and at least half an hour would be needed."

  "What I'm afraid of is that something unexpected will happen." Qinghe shook her head and said, "I don't know why, but sister always has a feeling of being frightened and nervous, as if Lianxiang is about to encounter trouble."

  "It's probably just your imagination, sister." Su Jin's mouth curved into a brief smile before she adopted a lazy expression: "Besides, everyone has their own destiny. If Lotus Fragrance is truly fated to have this calamity, I'm afraid it's not something you or I can stop. If Lotus Fragrance is blessed with good fortune, even if something happens, there will naturally be someone of noble character to help her turn bad luck into good."

  Upon hearing Su Jin's words, Qing He suddenly couldn't help but feel a lump in her throat and a wave of sourness in her heart. However, she still managed to maintain a calm demeanor and said: "It seems that it can only be this way."

  "Lianxiang, you mustn't get into any trouble, otherwise I'm afraid sister will be worried for the rest of her life."

  "This girl is quite clever, even if I'm used to the brothels in the capital, it's rare to meet a demon like you." Old Hu smiled and looked at the woman beside him, who handed him a green plum with her slender hand. He opened his big mouth and quickly sucked in both the plum and the fingers holding it.

  "Grandfather, you're so bad!" Lianxiang glanced at the Lu man behind her, with an indescribable sly smile. Only she herself knew that although she seemed to be smiling humbly with her head down, there was a flash of disgust in her eyes - if it weren't for the fact that she had something on her mind, how could she be so humble and compromising now? It's worth noting that since Lianxiang became famous, there were very few people in this vast Nanjing prefecture who could make her resort to using her charm to please them, even just a handful.

  On the other side, Hu Lao San had not yet discovered Lotus Fragrance's abnormality and thought that her face was tender and she was too shy to meet people. So he stretched out a big hand wanting to put it around Lotus Fragrance's waist, but unexpectedly Lotus Fragrance seemed to have been aware of this for some time and lightly dodged away with a flash of her body.

  Although Old Hu had some interest in Lotus Fragrance, his interest was only an interest after all, and it couldn't compare to true affection. Seeing Lotus Fragrance behave like this now, he couldn't help but turn red with anger, and the wine cup he had just picked up was slammed onto the low table with a loud crash, splashing half the table with wine stains.

  It seems that Old Hu is really annoyed, and Lianxiang can't help but feel a tremble in her heart, and she's actually a little afraid that Old Hu will leave.

  Ever since Qinghe went to find Sujin, she had been worried and fearful that someone from the Wang family would come looking for her, saying that her sister had already been taken away. Therefore, Lianxiang's heart was filled with thoughts of her good sister Qinghe, who had gone out to find a single opportunity for the sake of her sisters' future.

  Just then, even if Qinghe said something simple before leaving, Lianxiang still had some misgivings. Therefore, when the old procuress said that a guest had brought 100 taels of silver to order flowers, Lianxiang refused without hesitation, not even asking about his identity, which was completely different from her usual habits. However, when she inadvertently saw the waist card on the guest's waistband, she immediately changed her mind and asked the old procuress to bring the guest over.

  Although Qinghe had also reminded her that from now on, she should guard her body for her future husband, but Lianxiang had her own ideas at this moment - if everything went smoothly and she could keep her body safe, it would be the best; if Qinghe really encountered an accident, no matter what, even if it meant risking her own life, she would rescue Qinghe.

  With a decision made in her mind, Lian Xiang didn't care about Hu Lao San's ugly face. She only smiled lightly and elegantly on the surface, but slightly shook her finger, putting on an alluring appearance: "Sir, don't be like this. Although I'm a courtesan from the brothel, I'm not someone who can be dismissed with just some silver coins. If you want me to serve you in bed, it's not that simple, there are still some tests to pass."

  "You little demon, what do you want now!" Hu Lao San was a seasoned pleasure-seeker and naturally understood that the top courtesans in these establishments usually had their own rules. Therefore, seeing Lian Xiang seemed to have something to say, he naturally stopped. However, those copper bell-like eyes were constantly scanning the woman's bulging chest, slender waist, and delicate white hands.

  "My rules are simple, there are two options available, I wonder which one this gentleman will choose?"

  "What's so troublesome, you just ask the question." Hu Lao San didn't pay attention to Lian Xiang, seeming somewhat impatient.

  Lotus fragrance saw Old Hu's son was rough and impulsive, her heart couldn't help but feel a thrill of joy. With a clever smile, she turned around to fetch a set of chess pieces and placed them on the low table, setting up the board and dividing the black and white pieces. Only then did she speak in a soft Wu dialect: "Since you're so impatient, I'll choose a simple game for you. We'll play five games, and if you win three, I'll follow you to the ends of the earth."

  Old Hu saw Lian Xiang bring over a chess piece and couldn't help but be stunned, his big eyes staring at Lian Xiang several times before saying with a hint of annoyance: "You little demon, you actually came up with this strange move, don't tell me you think I'm just an old fool who can't play chess?! Hmph, wait till later and you'll have your chance to cry."

  Hu Lao San's words were laced with double meaning, but Lotus Fragrance pretended not to understand and simply made the first move by placing a black stone on the board: "Then I'll wait for you to make your move, Master."

  Old Hu laughed and was actually stirred up by Lian Xiang's chatty little demon.

  Although Lian Xiang's chess skills were still good, after losing five games in a row, she saw Hu Lao San sweep the chessboard and pieces to the ground with an anxious face. Despite feeling flustered inside, Lian Xiang maintained a calm demeanor and said: "I have another sister at the inn who is quite skilled, why don't you go fetch her? With your chess skills, I'm sure she won't be a match for you either."

  After that, Lian Xiang suddenly added a sentence as if she was innocent: "My sister is even more understanding of you smelly men than I am."

  "Really?" Old Hu's eyes suddenly lit up, and the corners of his mouth couldn't help but seep out a thread of saliva: "Are you telling the truth?"

  "You dare to deceive me?" Lotus Fragrance made a wronged expression, but her heart was tense: "My sister is called Qinghe, and she is as close to me as a biological sister. In the Nanjing government, people call us the 'Twin Lotus Sisters'. You are also a man of great deeds, don't you have any confidence in yourself? Don't you even trust my sister and me?"

  "What a joke!" Hu Lao San suddenly stood up, his large palm slapping heavily on the soft couch, making it shake three times: "I, a big man, wouldn't be afraid of you two little women, even if there were two or three more men, I wouldn't be intimidated by you!"

  "Master is indeed a true hero, I like you the most among all those scholars and officials. You are a hundred times better than them." Lian Xiang stood up with a surprised look on her face, holding onto Hu Lao San's hand that was patting the soft couch, and asked with concern: "Master, shall we go to an inn to find my sister now? It's getting late and I'm afraid it will be curfew soon."

  "Slow down, what place are you talking about?" Hu Lao San was taken aback for a moment, then he shook off Lian Xiang's hand that was holding his own, and his tiger-like eyes stared wide like bronze bells.

  "It's just the inn next door, why are you so startled?" Lianxiang suddenly felt a bit of unease in her heart and her eyes dimmed slightly.

  "This...". Old Hu hesitated for a moment, feeling that this matter was somewhat difficult to gauge with his brain, and for a while he didn't know what to do.

  Actually, Hu Lao San wasn't afraid of anything else, just worried that if his own young master was still there, even staying at the inn, and he brought this demon in front of him, even if he didn't get a good scolding, he would probably still get some lessons.

  However, the despondency in Lian Xiang's eyes made Hu Lao San feel quite uncomfortable. As a self-proclaimed heroic figure like him, what he couldn't bear to see most was his beloved woman looking so disheartened, and it wasn't even a matter of life and death, just a scolding from her father.

  After thinking for a long time, Old Hu had also made up his mind. Without saying a word, he suddenly stood up and wrapped his large and powerful left hand tightly around Lian Xiang's slender waist: "I'll take you to find your sister now. If you sisters serve me well and I'm in a good mood, who knows, maybe I'll even bring you back to the capital to live a life of luxury!"

  "That's enough, thank you, sir." Lianxiang was delighted in her heart, but didn't notice that she had already been hugged by Hu Lao San. When she realized it, she found herself unable to struggle free and could only quietly turn her body sideways, trying her best not to let Hu Lao San take advantage of her.

  After bidding farewell to the maid who had seen her out, and giving instructions to the gatekeeper, Turtle Slave, Lotus Fragrance, now dressed and made up, took Old Man Hu's arm and walked out.

  Looking at the night sky gradually covered by dark clouds, leaning on her own soft waist with strong big hands outside, Lian Xiang gazed into the distance and prayed in her heart: "Sister, you must wait for your younger sister, wait for this younger sister to bring the nobles of the capital to help you!"

  In the night wind, a plaque engraved with "Cheng Wang Fu" had somehow slipped out of Hu Lao San's waistband more than halfway, gently swaying with the gusts of night wind.

  Prince's Mansion

  Wang Dong lay on a soft couch, wearing only a thin spring shirt. Next to him, Xiao Man was also undressed, but she didn't care about her small body trembling slightly in the night wind. She carefully shaved off the small seeds from the yellowish melon in her hand and talked about something that had happened at an inn over an hour ago.

  "Su Jin said with her own mouth that someone reported the news?" Wang Dong almost immediately changed color, as if he wanted to swallow people.

  "Yes, Miss said so, but I tried every way to probe into the origin of this person without success. I also felt that this matter might be extremely important for Young Master, so I hurried over." Xiaoman replied timidly, and the half-peeled melon in her hand slipped out of her grasp and fell onto the soft couch.

  The refreshing melon juice flowed slowly out of the watermelon, gradually drowning the faint sweat marks on the soft couch - earlier, Xiao Man was pressed down by Wang Dong at this place, struggling to get free, if not for Xiao Man mentioning that someone might report and ruin everything, I'm afraid Xiao Man's body would have been in danger.

  Xiao Man's eyes were brimming with tears, but she didn't dare move a muscle. She could only kneel beside Wang Dong's feet and wait quietly for the young master's verdict.

  She never thought that the originally gentle and elegant Prince Wang would be like a beast, even more rude than those guests who came to the brothel, without any appearance of a rich and noble young master.

  "You've done this extremely well."

  The king was lavishing praise on the woman beside him, but neither his face nor his heart showed any joy, instead revealing a look of anxiety.

  "Hei zi, hei zi!" -> "Black child, black child!"

  "Master?" Hei Zi knelt down on one knee with a humble expression, his head still lowered in a practiced gesture.

  Although there was a strange woman's cry for help in the house earlier, Hei Zi also saw Xiao Man's arrival, but Hei Zi seemed to be completely uninterested, as if all of this were just normal.

  "Go, take my token and go back to the mansion to see how things are going with the Wen Yuan Institute. Whether it's good or bad, report back immediately."

  It's just that Wang Dong's behavior at this moment is slightly more suitable, but as a result, Xiao Man suddenly feels a bad feeling in her heart. Su Jin's words suddenly emerged from the bottom of Xiao Man's heart. However, the unwillingness in her heart made Xiao Man forcibly suppress all these feelings: "Is the young master worried that things will change?"

  "Hmph, it's just more trouble, I suppose that madman can't stir up a big wave either." Wang Dong let out a light hum, and in his irritation, he smashed the plate of melon seeds to the wall far away, shattering into pieces all over the floor.

  After a while, Wang Dong, who was impatiently waiting, suddenly knocked Xiaoman to the ground again and was about to use force when he heard Hei Zi's voice outside. Xiaoman took advantage of the opportunity to struggle free from under Wang Dong and got up.

  "Master, it's still a big deal." Xiaoman's face slightly curved into a smile, but she didn't dare to look at Wang Dong's angry face again. Earlier, after being stripped by Wang Dong and still maintaining her virginity, having only been taken advantage of verbally, she had diverted Master's attention with Su Jin's matter.

  At this moment, she again used the excuse of having something to do to disturb Wang Dong's interest, and even if she knew that it would definitely make Wang Dong very angry. However, Xiaoman had a very clear plan in her heart, no matter what, before things were done, this body was absolutely not to be given away, otherwise, even if she won, she would still fall into an irretrievable situation.

  To know that Su Jin entered the door at that time, she must have been a virgin. Xiao Man, however, couldn't bear to lower her head to Su Jin no matter what.

  But if you keep your body intact, even if you lose, it will be easier to see people in the future, and who knows, there may still be a chance to turn things around.

  "Slap!" Wang Dong had indeed slapped Xiaoman's face without warning.

  For Xiao Man, Wang Dong was indeed furious at this moment. Don't look at Xiao Man's obedient appearance now, but Wang Dong had tried to break Xiao Man's body several times, and Xiao Man was not making excuses or being disturbed by someone, he was already annoyed.

  As the son of Wang Ren, the governor of Nanjing Prefecture, he was the young master of this prefecture. This woman wasn't even giving him what he wanted, and yet she had the nerve to be so depressed.

  At this moment, Wang Dong didn't even bother to wear a spring shirt, and directly flipped over onto the soft couch. On one hand, he called for Hei Zi to come in, and on the other hand, he kicked down Xiao Man, that disobedient little servant girl, to the ground. Then, he ordered Xiao Man, who was struggling to get up, to go fetch some hot water to clean himself with.

  "Slave, go now." Xiao Man didn't dare to get dressed at this time, and could only endure the shame in her heart, brushing past Hei Zi who was entering the room.

  Although the black man did not lift his head, Xiaoman felt as if his gaze had already wandered over her naked body, making her whole body tremble.

  Just as he walked out of the house, Xiao Man suddenly felt a chill on his body, and his heart was filled with sorrow. Then his stomach cramped again, and a thread of fresh blood slowly flowed from the corner of his mouth, only to find that Wang Dong had just kicked him in the abdomen.

  In the room, Wang Dong listened to Hei Zi's report, and became more and more angry as he listened. In the end, he kicked the soft couch behind him with one foot. According to later accounts, this soft couch was just a slightly thicker cotton quilt, only covered with a layer of high-quality silk, which made it look distinctive, but it was not heavy at all.

  So, with this kick from Wang Dong, the soft couch was kicked flying up, it's clear that Wang Dong is now furious.

  "Did my dad really say that?"

  "The old master has indeed instructed me to inform the young master that although the madman is now in prison, there are people from the Ministry of Supervision and several examiners who are taking care of him, so it's really not possible to make a move, please ask the young master to be more calm and not to ruin everything."

  "Damn it!" Wang Dong, still fuming, suddenly turned around and kicked Hei Zi to the ground again: "Is his business a big deal, while mine is just a small matter? Besides, those account books have all been burned clean, where did this nonsense about delaying important matters come from?"

  After walking a few more laps inside the house, Wang Dong finally calmed down and saw that Hei Zi was still kneeling on the ground with his head lowered. He instructed: "You go and call Chun Er from the outer courtyard, tell him that Young Master has an important task for him."

  Watching Hei Zi gradually disappear into the distance, Wang Dong's eyes flashed with a few cold glints: "Supervision? Proctor? Even if someone is protecting them, I, Wang Dong, don't believe it. In this Nanjing Prefecture, there is no one that I, Wang Dong, cannot touch! Not only Tan Zong, but also those few whores who dared to defy me and deserve to be killed, just wait until I settle this matter, you will beg for life and death!"

  Just then, Xiaoman came in with a basin of hot water, struggling to take steps. Hearing the hatred in Wang's words, Xiaoman subconsciously tensed up, and the whole basin of hot water fell down, drenching the door thoroughly.

  Watching the movement of the house door, Wang Dong subconsciously kicked one foot and scolded loudly: "Bastard! How dare you!"

  Just as his foot kicked into the air, Wang Dong finally saw that Xiao Man was trembling and fell to the ground, only then did he reluctantly withdraw his foot and put on a gentle smile: "Ah, Xiao Man, why are you personally serving me? Why didn't you call the servant girls outside? Someone, quickly help Xiao Man back to her room to rest."

  Before long, several beautiful maidservants walked in from outside. These maidservants were all dressed thinly, with only a few pieces of silk covering their vital parts, and the rest of their bodies were covered with just a layer of gauze.

  With the support of two maidservants, Xiaoman struggled to her feet. She glanced at Wang Dong, who was once again embracing a beautiful maid, and forced herself to smile, saying: "Xiaoman thanks you for your kindness, young master."

  Although there was a maid holding a large red lantern to guide the way, Xiao Man felt that this road was actually a silent and dark piece. She looked up at the direction of the inn and finally shed two tears: "Miss, I already regret it. But can I still go back..."

  Behind Xiao Man's back, Wang Dong's eyes revealed a hint of crazy killing intent.

  Sorry, something came up today and the update is a bit late.

  ||