The Nanling area was originally the first place where the Tang Dynasty exiled people, so Jianglin City had the largest red-light district in the entire Nanling.
It is estimated that there are nearly 100,000 criminal women here, who were punished and exiled by the government. Most of the gold and silver they earn from entertaining guests will be taken away by the government.
Because when the government punishes criminals, they usually impose fines. If your family can pay enough fines, they naturally don’t need to come here, but if they can’t afford it, then there is no way. They will be punished to come here and can only leave after earning enough fines.
But there are basically not many women who can leave after entering such a place. Those who understand will understand.
Oh, and also, not all the women in the red-light district need to entertain customers. There are also different types of women here, such as singers, dancers, talents, showgirls, barmaids, etc. Those who really engage in the flesh trade are usually of average looks and older.
One thing is certain, even if you are not engaged in sex trade, there is no guarantee that you can keep your chastity.
Chastity itself is a joke here.
As they walked, Ye Liuyun and Lin Aoxue finally walked out of the circle of women and came to a place where there were no women soliciting customers.
Moreover, most of the people who come here are well-dressed, and the worst are businessmen and scholars from poor families.
"Oh, I finally got out of that uncomfortable place." Ye Liuyun smelled her body. She was covered with the smell of rouge and powder. These smells were really uncomfortable for someone like her who didn't wear much makeup.
"What? Isn't this the place you men like to come? Can't stand it?" Lin Aoxue couldn't help but teasing Ye Liuyun when she saw his embarrassed face.
Ye Liuyun had to refute this statement.
"Me? Please, I am indeed very curious about this place, but that doesn't mean I will do anything to save you. Besides, having you by my side is enough. I won't be able to enjoy more." Ye Liuyun said.
She was speaking the truth. Now that she is a woman, it is enough to have one companion by her side. There is no use having more.
"How do you feel when looking at those women?" Lin Aoxue turned around, glanced at those women who were like machines, and asked.
When Ye Liuyun heard this, he immediately put away his smile.
"I don't know, but I can see that they are just doing a job they have to do. This is a prison, a prison specifically for women." Ye Liuyun said seriously.
Lin Aoxue smiled slightly.
"What you said is quite pertinent. In my previous life on Earth, I read some history books which said that our country was like this in ancient times. Now I see that it is exactly the same as what is said in the history books. I suddenly thought, could this Tang Kingdom be the Tang Dynasty in our ancient times?" Lin Aoxue guessed.
Her speculation was immediately denied by Ye Liuyun.
"That's definitely impossible. You're thinking too much. This world is, at most, a parallel world similar to the Tang Dynasty. Well, let's not talk about this. This matter is not our business. Look here, this place feels very different from other places." Ye Liuyun shifted the subject from the heavy topic to the huge and exquisite building complex in front of him.
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Lin Aoxue also looked at the sign of this exquisite attic.
"Qunfang Hall, a brothel with such a name, I don't know if it is a mockery or something else. There is an official seal of the government on the plaque, this should be a brothel directly managed by the government." Lin Aoxue said.
Ye Liuyun also observed carefully. No wonder the people who came to this place were of extraordinary status.
"Can you feel the aura of so many cultivators?" Ye Liuyun asked.
"Well, there are indeed quite a lot of them, and there are many familiar auras. It seems that they all came here." Lin Aoxue said.
After saying that, Lin Aoxue strode over.
But when I reached the door, I was stopped.
"Gentlemen, the entrance fee is one or two taels of silver." A tall and strong guard said.
When Ye Liuyun heard the entrance fee of one or two taels of silver, he wanted to say that this place was too expensive to enter and it was definitely not a place that ordinary people could afford.
However, Lin Aoxue threw two taels of silver into the box next to her without any hesitation.
"Let's go. This place should be different from other places." Lin Aoxue gestured.
Just like that, the two of them walked into this huge Palace of Flowers. Once they entered, they saw that it was brightly lit and magnificent. It didn't look like a brothel at all.
It is very big and has four floors. The first floor is a casino, but this casino is not a regular casino. The dealers here are all young and beautiful women, and there are also many women who play with women. These women who are dressed up beautifully must be the official prostitutes here.
Almost every man was holding a beautiful girl in his arms. These girls did not resist and did whatever the customers wanted them to do. These were all barmaids. Generally, those who became barmaids were those with average looks and no outstanding talents, so they could only be barmaids.
The Qunfang Palace is different from other brothels. The women here do not sell their bodies, but at the same time, they have no possibility of leaving this place unless pardoned by the government.
"Can we play like this?" Ye Liuyun and Lin Aoxue were stunned after walking in.
"The smell of alcohol on this floor is too strong. I don't like it. Let's go to the second floor." Lin Aoxue said immediately.
The first level has too much of the smell of money, sex and alcohol, which Ye Liuyun doesn’t like either.
So the two of them went to the second floor, but they were stopped again because they had to pay to go up to the second floor.
"Second floor, admission fee, two taels of silver," the guard gestured.
"This? Does it cost money to go up every floor?" Ye Liuyun was stunned.
The guard was not angry, after all, there were many guests coming here for the first time.
"Two gentlemen, it's obvious that this is your first time visiting our Qunfang Palace. The girls on the first floor here are the least pretty and have no talents. Their main function is to accompany guests in gambling. Ten taels of silver will be charged for a girl to accompany you," the guard explained.
Ye Liuyun became curious, so he asked again.
"Can you tell me about the situation on the upper floors?" Ye Liuyun asked curiously.
"Haha, this is the second floor, the singing and dancing hall. It's full of girls who are good at singing and dancing, so the prices are naturally higher. The third floor is the elegant hall. The girls here are all talented women who are good at writing, playing chess, painting, reciting poems and composing couplets. As for the fourth floor, I can't say more about it." The guard explained.
After listening to this, Ye Liuyun and Lin Aoxue immediately looked at each other. What they wanted to say was that a brothel had very clear divisions.
Lin Aoxue paid another four taels of silver and went up to the second floor with Ye Liuyun. When they got to the second floor, the strong smell of alcohol and noise were no longer there.
There are several venues here, all built in the form of a stage. There are many dancers on the stage performing various dances, and there are also some elegantly dressed women playing and singing various musical instruments.
The atmosphere here is obviously much better than downstairs, and even though it's so noisy downstairs, once you come to the second floor, it's as if there is sound insulation that isolates you from the sounds downstairs.
"Hey, this place is quite interesting." Ye Liuyun said with interest.
"Let's go and take a look." Lin Aoxue also said.
In this way, the two of them walked towards the nearest singing stage. As soon as they came, they heard beautiful singing. Of course, the songs they were singing must be different from the songs on Earth, and they were not pop songs.
The guests sitting here were all listening to the music quietly, and not many people were making any noise.
"Well, good, good, give us a tip of 10 taels of silver." After some guests were satisfied with the songs, they immediately ordered their entourage to give them tips.
The singers and dancers on this floor are all performing for a living, and they make money from tips from the guests. However, there are many guards standing secretly here. These guards hold a stick of incense in their hands and seem to be staring at every guest who enters the venue.
Every time the incense in hand is almost burned out, it means the time is up, and the guards will walk up to the corresponding guests and tell them that the time is up.
What does this mean? It means that you can't stay here forever. If you want to continue listening, you have to pay even if you don't give tips. There is a time limit.
"Two gentlemen, if you want to listen, please come in. Here, you need to pay five taels of silver to listen to the music for half an incense stick of time." Just as Ye Liuyun and Lin Aoxue were standing at a distance and watching, a guard came over and explained the rules to them.
Ye Liuyun's face twitched for a moment. Isn't this just like going to an Internet cafe on Earth to surf the Internet, where you have to recharge when the time comes?
"Oh, sorry, it's our first time and we don't quite understand the rules here." Ye Liuyun said.
"Well, I understand. But please choose a venue and take your seats as soon as possible, sirs. We are just following orders. Please don't make things difficult for us." The guard also said.
This is to tell them that they should either leave or choose a venue to watch the show, and not stand at the entrance and watch for free.
"Oh, okay, okay." Ye Liuyun quickly motioned Lin Aoxue to go in. After they went in, guards followed them all the way until Lin Aoxue saw a sword-dancing venue and then stopped.
"There's something interesting here, Liuyun, let's go and take a look." Lin Aoxue said.
Everything here is interesting to Ye Liuyun, but since his wife is with him, he can only take it easy.
One of the stages they had their eyes on was where two heroic women were sparring with each other in swordplay. However, their sparring was not a serious swordplay, but rather had a strong dance feel to it. But it was clear that they both had some skills.
Chapter 241 Youthful Vigor (5000 words)
Lin Aoxue and Ye Liuyun found a place to sit down, and at the same time handed ten taels of silver to the Qunfang Palace guard behind them to buy a stick of incense.
When the incense is half burned, they will come to remind the two people whether to renew it, and if not, they will have to leave.
This service is quite thoughtful.
Ye Liuyun sat next to Lin Aoxue, watching the woman dancing with a sword on the stage attentively. There was not only sword dancing on the stage, but also many musicians playing music beside the stage.
In this place of entertainment, women must master a talent so that they can live a good life and have a certain degree of autonomy. If they know nothing, no matter how beautiful they are, they are just worthless vases.
The status of such women will only get lower and lower. The women in the Qunfang Palace cannot be redeemed, no matter how much money is offered, because the women here are all criminals.
Very different from those ordinary women who sell their bodies.
The two women on the stage have graceful postures and soft bodies. Dance and swordsmanship are perfectly blended together. Then they compete with each other in coordination with the musicians' tunes. It is a competition of dance as well as swordsmanship.
Of course, because their performances are meant to please men, they dress in a way that exposes every part of the body that can be exposed, but in reality it doesn't look that ridiculous.
To be honest, for the two people who were reborn from Earth, they didn't feel that the women's clothing was too revealing. You know, the miniskirts and any other clothes on Earth would probably be less than what these women wore in this era.
This is a problem of cognition. The two women on the stage only show their slender waists, and their clothes are semi-transparent, so that's all.
At least Ye Liuyun's focus is usually not on them. She is not a lustful person, at least not a promiscuous person. It is impossible for her to be unable to take her eyes off beautiful women.
She is focusing on the overall presentation of the dance.
"Swordsmanship can be played like this, very interesting. Aoxue, let's find some time to try it out?" Ye Liuyun said in a voice transmission.
Lin Aoxue immediately retorted.
"Not interested. My sword is for killing people, not for dancing."
"Eh? Really uninteresting? No, I thought you were quite interesting when you were on Earth. Why do you become more and more boring after coming to this world? Hey! Do you think that now that I have become a woman, you have lost the desire to play?" Ye Liuyun asked shamelessly.
Lin Aoxue is not a timid woman. When she heard Ye Liuyun's provocative words, she immediately said something harsh.
"Nonsense, if you are still a man, I can keep you unable to get out of bed for three days and three nights. Do you believe it? Don't pretend in front of me." Lin Aoxue retorted.
This sentence made Ye Liuyun touch his nose in embarrassment. Thinking back to her interactions with Lin Aoxue in her previous life, she seemed to have always been at a disadvantage. After coming to this world, she was unable to occupy a dominant position. Her life was really too difficult.
It can only be said that it is a matter of personality. When it comes to matters between men and women, Lin Aoxue is more proactive, and it has become a habit over time.
However, just when the two were watching seriously, unexpected trouble occurred.
Less than half an incense stick of time passed, and suddenly a group of people came to the second floor. A young man in brocade clothes came over arrogantly, followed by many followers.
The faces of the guards on the road changed one by one.
"Hey? Mr. Wu, you're here." The guards from the Qunfang Palace on the road hurried forward and asked.
"Well, where is Piaoxu? I came to discuss swordplay with her." The young man said in a deep voice.
Many of the guests around stood up after seeing the young man and came forward to greet him. It was obvious at a glance that the young man was from an important background and did not look like an ordinary noble.
Moreover, many people know him, which means that he has a very high status among the young masters of Jiang Lincheng.
"Ah? Miss Piaoxu and Miss Qingyang are performing sword dance for the guests on the stage." The guard of Qunfang Palace said hurriedly.
When Master Wu heard this, he immediately walked towards the stage where Ye Liuyun and the others were watching. The arrival of this guy was like a stone that caused a thousand ripples, turning the originally quiet second floor into a mess.
The key is that the guards didn't dare to stop it.
Why? Because this Master Wu is the son of Wu Yingwen, the Lord of Jiangzhou Prefecture, and his name is Wu Yingxiong.
The ruler of a state in the Tang Dynasty was a third-rank official, and a third-rank official was the highest official in the local area.
His status in Jiangzhou Prefecture is equivalent to that of the emperor, which is not comparable to that of ordinary nobles. Nobles do not necessarily have power, but the person who holds real power in the Tang Dynasty must have a higher status than those powerless nobles.
The actual controller of this group of Fangdians is the local provincial government, so these guards dare not say much. In the secular world, power is everything.
"Oh, I see." Wu Yingxiong laughed and strode over.
Ye Liuyun and Lin Aoxue naturally noticed the loud noise coming from behind them.
"Eh? Is some important person coming? Why is there such a grand ceremony?" Ye Liuyun muttered.
Most of the people who can come to such places are young, unmarried men with extraordinary family backgrounds. Married people will not come to such places casually.
"I feel like there's trouble coming." Lin Aoxue said.
Sure enough, after Wu Yingxiong arrived, he ignored all the guests present and jumped directly onto the stage, interrupting the performance of the two dancers and musicians.
As soon as the musicians saw the person coming, they all panicked.
As for the woman in the light green gauze skirt on the stage, her brows were visibly furrowed when she saw Wu Yingxiong.
"Mr. Wu, could you please not disturb my work and that of Sister Qingyang?" said the woman in the light green gauze dress unhappily.
Obviously, this woman was the Piaoxu girl that Wu Yingxiong was looking for.
The young men below, who did not know Wu Yingxiong's identity, became unhappy immediately when someone suddenly interrupted their performance.
"Hey! Who are you? Why did you suddenly interrupt the performance of the two girls? Where are the people from Qunfang Hall? This is how you maintain order. Why didn't you stop this person?" The guests stood up and questioned.
The two dancers on the stage saw this and quickly apologized to the guests.
"Dear guests, please be patient and calm. I will send him away immediately." The woman named Piaoxu spoke immediately and urged Wu Yingxiong to leave.
