vncnus Page 20
Page 20
"What's going on downstairs? Why is it so noisy?"
In the room on the top floor, the owner, who was in charge of managing the entire brothel, frowned in confusion. Her mature face, covered with wrinkles but still retaining its charm, resembled a shriveled and wrinkled fruit.
A long, gilded and silver-inlaid skirt swept past a screen adorned with luminous pearls. Ten nail-painted fingertips flipped through a ledger of silk tribute from the South China Sea. The menstrual blood-stained figures recording the prostitutes' daily earnings suddenly came to life, swaying and shifting on the ledger like red-banded snakes, revealing the girls' earnings for the day.
"Sir, let's go take a look."
Several thugs with swords immediately went out, while the other madams remained standing trembling in front of the wealthy man, waiting to be reprimanded.
“These three women were already infected with venereal disease, and many clients were no longer willing to hire them. They could only serve clients with sadistic tendencies, whom ordinary people would avoid at all costs.”
The wealthy man pointed to the names of several prostitutes who earned the least money. The red snakes drawn with their menstrual blood humbly crawled to the end of the ledger, while the snakes that were doing better and better climbed forward arrogantly, recombining at the top to form the corresponding prostitutes' names.
"However, these people's health has deteriorated due to the abuse they've suffered at the hands of the sadists. Now, even the least picky and poorest patrons are unwilling to settle for them. They'll just sell them to the rats in the gutter and make a quick buck. We're not the Futian Academy set up by Grand Tutor Cai; we don't keep idle people."
This wealthy man could decide the fate of others with just a few words. The moment he tapped the jade table with his finger, the names of the three people at the bottom of the list suddenly expanded like balloons and exploded. The names of the three prostitutes disappeared into the ledger amidst the shattering and splattering blood, as if they had never existed.
"Also, why is your slave-catching team getting less and less efficient? Why haven't you captured those young ladies I had my eye on the other day?"
“Master, it’s not our fault. Our Ghost Fanlou was ruined by that damned Shatuo Blue Dragon. Without those black gloves, no one would be willing to do so many dirty tricks, and no one would be willing to take the blame for illegal crimes. The brothers under my command are all respectable people.”
A burly man, with a pained expression, explained his difficulties, only to be rebuffed by the wealthy man's words.
"Then let's find a way to get rid of that fledgling dragon! I've given you the transforming lasso you wanted, and I've approved the funding for dragon capture and rebuilding Ghost Fanlou! I want to see that fledgling dragon's head within seven days! I want to see my Ghost Fanlou back in operation within half a month!"
If you fail, don't do this job anymore. I see you're quite muscular; you'd be better off becoming a male concubine, catering to those patrons with homosexual tendencies.
"I--"
The captain was so nervous that his pupils dilated, and he seemed to want to explain something, but the people who had just gone out to scout came running back in terror.
"It's terrible! Sir! That Shatuo Lanlong has returned with his henchmen! They've already reached the second floor!"
The wealthy man frowned, listening to the increasingly noisy commotion outside the door. His face was so gloomy it seemed like water could drip from it. Just moments ago, he was scolding the captain who was capturing slaves, but now he immediately changed to an eager and expectant attitude, raising a cup of freshly warmed fine wine and personally pouring it for him.
"Fine, no matter what, you're still one of my old subordinates. I'm entrusting my four guards to your command. Each of them has extraordinary abilities and unique skills. Their fighting spirit and patience are astonishing. The hidden demons are an unexpected surprise for this little dragon."
"I heard this fledgling dragon is female? If you succeed, she's yours, and I'll give you an extra three hundred taels of silver. Finish this drink and get to work; don't disappoint me again."
"Sir, I will not fail in my mission! Put down this wine first, and we will drink it after I bring back the little dragon!"
The captain was overjoyed. Instead of drinking, he led his men and four burly men who emerged from behind the screen, their bodies radiating demonic energy, and stormed out of the room with menacing expressions!
"Sir, I have never seen your four guards fight. Are they very strong?"
"It was a madam speaking in a trembling voice."
"Of course, those four are my father's old subordinates. The leader has a demonic war dog under the command of the war god Chi You inside his body. He has a bronze head and iron bones, eight arms and eight legs, and wields eight giant axes with great force. He goes berserk when he sees blood! His fighting power is probably second only to the vanguard of Daming Prefecture."
The wealthy man said with considerable pride.
"The second person also signed a contract with a golden-bodied Arhat under the command of the Buddha. He was broad-skinned and healthy, and his skin and flesh would not decay for a thousand years. Although they were the same thing, we must maintain respect for monks and not speak of demons in such an unpleasant way."
"Within the third body is a beast-shaped demon from the Jie Sect under the command of the Shangqing Lingbao Jiuxiao Tianzun. Its mastery of spiritual energy techniques is unparalleled and impossible to defend against."
"The last demon is the Dark Prince worshipped by the Tibetan Tantric sect. He is extremely vicious and cruel, enjoys torture and pleasure, and is as fast as lightning. He can completely peel off a living person's skin in six seconds, or chop a person into minced meat in sixty seconds."
The wealthy woman praised her four subordinates, and when she got to the point of being proud, she picked up her wine cup and looked to see if it needed to be reheated to reward her men.
But just then, a loud clashing of swords and shouts erupted outside the door, as if the sky were collapsing and the earth were crumbling, causing everyone to be startled! Just as the wealthy man was about to investigate, he heard the sound of footsteps and heard someone enter the central hall. Wu Song, carrying the heads of the four demons and one of them, threw them all onto the table. He then snatched the wine cup from the wealthy man's hand and drank the still-warm nectar in one gulp.
Testimonials
Thank you all for your company! To write this book, I worked tirelessly, studying a lot of materials and maps, and read the classical Chinese versions of Jin Ping Mei, or rather, Water Margin, several times. I racked my brains to integrate Song Dynasty history with various fantasy elements.
It's going to be available for purchase tomorrow! Please give it a first subscription to support me—it's really important to the author! I'll be updating with 10,000 words tomorrow!
Complete Li Cunxiao's storyline and enter the "Small Gathering of Heroes" chapter in Daming Prefecture. More stunningly beautiful Heavenly and Earthly Fiends gather together for the birthday tribute and swear an oath of brotherhood!
In Hebei, Lu Junyi, the Jade Kirin, who is the senior sister of Yue Fei, Liu Hong, Wu Song and others, and whose martial arts skills are unparalleled, gets caught up in an unexpected big trouble.
In Kaifeng, Lin Chong and Lu Zhishen, both disciples of Zhou Tong, were surprised to find that they had gained a junior brother. Their original fates were turned upside down by this junior brother.
In the depths of the county government office in Yuncheng, a naked desire, solidified by the night, huddled together—the moonlight bathed her exquisitely beautiful, icy skin, her violet skin as soft as satin under the starry sky. Her delicate, tender body was petite and adorable, but the beating of her heart beneath her slender chest carried the sensual rhythm of a mature woman.
As a half-elf, she was constantly troubled by the selfishness and malice ingrained in the Drow and the Confucian culture that had been passed down for thousands of years among the Han people.
She was philanthropic, mean-spirited and selfish, loyal to the emperor and devoted to her country, obsessed with officialdom, and capable of going to great lengths for her brothers, yet also willing to sacrifice everything for her official robes... A variety of extreme and contradictory emotions morbidly filled her mind.
When this young creature, who calls herself Black Third Sister and Timely Rain, brushes her earlobe with its hot, venomous breath like a snake's tongue, people are shocked to realize that the pink vortex in her pupils is more dangerous than the sharp sword in her hand.
In the north, when the Song Dynasty envoy Li Ye arrived at the fallen Heishui Prefecture after a long journey, he saw the Jurchen people, who were composed of a large number of frost giants, silver dragons, white dragons, giant bears, and beast-like humans such as snakes, rats, hedgehogs, foxes, and weasels. He cried out in fear, "The people are like tigers, the horses are like dragons, they climb mountains like apes, and they swim like rapids. Their power is like Mount Tai, and China is like a pile of eggs!"
As Liangshan gradually completed its grand assembly, a constellation of brilliant Jurchen leaders also rose up in the Changbai Mountains and the Heilongjiang River region, setting the Liao and Song dynasties ablaze.
Even the weakest among them, the invincible Jin Wuzhu, would, in the aftermath of the Wanyan Rebellion, launch thirteen dark expeditions, tearing the Central Plains apart...
More exciting stories and dramatic plot twists await you!
Finally, I'm begging you to subscribe! Raising this book will kill my child QAQ~ Thank you for your support! Double updates every day at noon, extra updates for monthly votes, and I might even launch a massive update spree at any time~
Chapter Thirty-Eight: Debating People's Hearts, the Flames of War Burn Down Fanlou (First Update)
At this moment, the wealthy man was completely dumbfounded. What had happened? The four men his father had left him had been killed in an instant by this man?!
Her harsh face turned deathly pale with fear. She tremblingly raised her head, gazing up at Wu Song's towering 2.4-meter frame as if looking up at a god.
At this moment, Wu Song, covered in blood and with disheveled hair, looked like a demon king descended from heaven, truly a god among men!
"Hmm, good wine. Where did you buy it? It tastes great."
Wu Song praised the contents of his cup, then simply picked up the wine pot and drank to his heart's content. At that moment, Liu Hong and Li Cunxiao, who had transformed into a fledgling dragon and was the size of a fierce tiger, stormed into the room.
"You wicked woman! You keep causing me trouble! You robbed me! Hand over all your money!!!"
Li Cunxiao seemed to have been genuinely frightened, and now he was extremely fierce, wishing he could bite the rich man's head off.
"My lords, I admit defeat. I have about eight hundred taels of silver and copper coins on hand to keep the brothel running. I'll give them all to you. If that's not enough, please wait a moment, and I'll have a servant go to the mansion to get more!"
The wealthy woman was quite sensible. Seeing her servant being easily defeated by Wu Song, she didn't hesitate to open the box containing money and tried to lure the villains to stay and buy them time.
Liu Hongzheng picked out the broken silver coins from the copper coins and poured them into the deerskin bag. Amid the crisp sound of the coins clattering together, a sneer suddenly broke out: "I thought the owner of this brothel was a man, but I didn't expect her to be a woman. Why would a woman persecute other women like this?"
The old gentryman's withered fingers suddenly clenched the jade prayer beads, his aged eyes flashing with cold light. His composed demeanor was shattered by Liu Hong's words.
"You ignorant brat, stop your arrogant talk! How dare you treat me so disrespectfully?!"
She abruptly stood up, her brocade robe sweeping across the bloodstains on the floor, and raised her withered chest, speaking with immense pride.
“I am the legitimate daughter of the Cui family of Daming Prefecture, and I studied under a great Confucian scholar from Hebei! This garment is made of the most expensive Shu brocade in Chengdu, and this fine wine is the most mellow brew in Kaifeng. A family’s annual expenses cannot even buy a cup of this wine! The prostitutes you speak of are worlds apart from me.”
"These prostitutes are no different from dogs or chickens; they're just a bunch of livestock that happen to look like humans. What's the difference between capturing a woman and capturing a deer?"
"clang--"
A copper coin suddenly slipped through Liu Hong's fingers. Although he had long known the cruelty of the wealthy in feudal times, experiencing it firsthand and hearing such a scathing remark still sent chills down his spine.
"Excellent, excellent, what a world of difference!"
Upon hearing such remarks, Wu Song's face turned red with anger. He drew his steel knife with a backhand, and the cold light flashed across the old woman's neck, where a string of scarlet blood beads instantly appeared.
"But little do you know that when I, a mere peasant, kill you with a single stroke, will your remains, mixed with those of the hawks and hounds, still be as different as you claim, like mud from clouds?"
The old man's throat bobbed, but he raised his gilded sleeve to press on his wound. Under the threat of death, he suddenly broke into a chrysanthemum-patterned smile and gently shook his withered fingers.
"You are mistaken, heroes. The three of you are incredibly skilled. My hounds are routed before you. Even my most loyal and powerful dog was killed by you in a matter of moments. A hundred ordinary people, or even ten elite Song soldiers, might not be able to defeat any one of you."
"With your superhuman skills, the three of you are no ordinary people. We are the real deal! The prostitutes in the building and the common people on the street are nothing more than livestock, like chickens and dogs, who have only managed to put on human skin to work and produce for us. How can we be compared to dragons and phoenixes like you three?"
The blade suddenly pressed in half an inch deeper, and Wu Song, enraged, laughed instead.
"Good, good, good, what a clever way to divide and conquer! You enslave and exploit the people on ordinary days, but once one of them gains extraordinary abilities, they are no longer seen as chickens and dogs, but as human beings like you? You use all sorts of incentives to make them sever all ties with the past and draw all lines, so that the remaining people have no way to resist your enslavement."
This world is a mess because there are too many scumbags like you; it's because of you that ordinary people like us can't survive!
The old man's eyes widened, and he was about to argue when Wu Song, too lazy to listen to her explanation, swiftly and decisively chopped off her head, leaving her filthy blood splattered across half the room.
“Brother, this person’s soul is so extremely rotten and filthy that it should be good bait for some demons. You can give it a try.”
"If I'm not satisfied with the abilities of the summoned demon, can I get a refund or exchange?"
Liu Hong packed his belongings without looking back.
"If you don't like it, you can simply kick the demon back without signing the contract. However, once the contract is signed, it cannot be reversed. The two demons will fight each other for the soul and cannot coexist in your body at the same time. Therefore, you must be very careful when signing the contract."
Wu Song patiently explained.
"I see."
Liu Hong wanted to summon a demon, but embarrassingly discovered that he was out of spiritual energy. He had used up all his spiritual energy while healing his and Li Cunxiao's wounds.
"Never mind, we'll get it sooner or later, no need to rush."
Liu Hong was quite easygoing. The group of them stripped the old master of all his gold and silver jewelry, roughly divided a box of gold, silver and copper coins into three bags, and the three of them carried them away.
Liu Hong looked out the window at the dazzling night view of Daming Prefecture. As the lanterns were lit and lanterns hung high, they cast a brilliant interplay of red and gold light across the city. The bustling streets, teeming with traffic, resembled long, golden dragons winding beneath the moonlight. Rivers reflecting the starlight and lanterns appeared like giant silver pythons writhing in the darkness. And the people living amidst these lights, within this vast and prosperous city, seemed as insignificant as ants.
"Stop looking! The bandits and convicts from Daming Prefecture could come at any moment! Let's go!"
The fledgling dragon flapped its wings and plunged into the center of the stage in the lobby on the first floor.
Liu Hong withdrew his gaze and immediately went downstairs. By this time, the dancing prostitutes and the patrons who had been watching had all fled in the bloody slaughter, leaving only copper coins scattered all over the stage. Li Cunxiao stared at the money on the ground, her eyes wide open, unable to move, her two little paws frantically scooping up the copper coins stained with rouge and silver.
"What are you going to do with these copper coins? All the money on the entire stage combined probably isn't even worth as much as a single piece of jewelry we snatched from that rich man! Let's go! The thieves and convicts will be here soon!"
Seeing that she was wasting too much time, Wu Song and Liu Hong, one on each side, forcibly dragged the greedy little devil back to the cellar.
Liu Hong smashed a large number of wine jars and burned down the brothel, completely erasing his traces. Finally, he returned to Gui Fanlou through a secret door. Everything went smoothly, except that Xiao Long was crying loudly, feeling a little distressed as he looked at the copper coins scattered on the ground that no one had picked up.
"Yay! I'm rich!"
However, this heartache was fleeting. Li Cunxiao immediately forgot his worries after seeing the pockets full of treasure. He happily jumped around, clutching the money in his little paws. The group roughly estimated that the looted gold and silver treasures amounted to about 1,500 taels, but they needed to ask Zhu Gui to sell the old man's jewelry.
Zhu Gui was also shocked when he heard that the group had killed the wealthy man and robbed the brothel.
After doing all this, Liu Hong found that his reputation began to fluctuate. The last time he killed Zhang Yuanwai, it rose from 0 to 2. This time, after the massacre at the brothel, it rose from 2 to 5. It seems that Zhu Gui gave him a great publicity boost.
After the gold and silver jewelry were converted into cash, the three of them divided the treasure equally according to their previous agreement, with each receiving five hundred taels of silver. Li Cunxiao stared longingly at the money in Wu Song and Liu Hong's hands. Although he was greedy, he was also very trustworthy. His mouth was full of drool before he finally turned his head away with difficulty.
"Little girl, now that we've made this one, we're going home."
Liu Hong hugged the little girl again and gently stroked her head.
"Do you intend to remain in the Ghost Fanlou, decorating your dragon's lair with copper coins and silver?"
"Ah~"
Upon hearing that Liu Hong and Wu Song were leaving, Li Cunxiao's face immediately showed a reluctant expression, and her little hands involuntarily tightened around Liu Hong's clothes. She pouted her little mouth with a wronged look, and her eyes were covered with a layer of cute mist.
"I heard you're criminals too. Let's stay here together! Sister, take the first seat; brother, take the second; and I'll take the third. The three of us together can wreak havoc! Even if all the Ghost Fanlou in Daming Prefecture were combined, they wouldn't be a match for us!"
“The idea is good, but my sister and I still have family to support in Qilin Village, and we also have a master to learn skills from.”
Liu Hong patiently persuaded the little guy.
"Since you don't have any companions at Ghost Fanlou, why don't you come with us to Qilin Village?"
"Well, it's not impossible, but I really don't want to go! Unless you beg me!!!"
Li Cunxiao pouted, clearly looking like she really wanted to go, but she just couldn't bring herself to say anything nice.
"Alright, alright, I beg our little rascal to come back to Qilin Village with his older brother and sister."
Liu Hong didn't argue with the child and smiled as he granted her wish. Seeing that she had a way out, Li Cunxiao's eyes lit up with joy. She nodded contentedly and joined the two of them without hesitation. This child, who had never had parents, vaguely felt what family meant from the two of them.
Chapter 39: Samsung Will Turn the Tide (Second Update!)
The group rowed between Qilin Village and Daming Prefecture and back, which took only five hours. Including the waiting, killing, and selling of goods in between, it only took twelve hours in total. They finished their business in one day and returned home.
Seeing their younger siblings return safe and sound, Wu Dalang and Pan Jinlian breathed a sigh of relief and quickly hugged their sister tightly. The husband also breathed a long sigh of relief and looked at the little dragon that had transformed into a loli-like form with great curiosity.
"Come on, call your brother and sister-in-law."
Liu Hong pushed Li Cunxiao in front of them. The little guy was initially a bit shy and embarrassed, hiding behind Liu Hong and Wu Song, peeking out half of his head, and timidly greeting them. His cute face and soft voice melted Pan Jinlian's heart.
When Liu Hong stood side by side with Pan Jinlian and Li Cunxiao, the moonlight merged the three figures into a hideous giant shadow, which was projected onto the courtyard wall. The three ominous stars, Seven Killings, Greedy Wolf, and Broken Army, strangely merged, like dark talismans cast between the bluestone slabs.
At the same time, the water clock in the Kaifeng Astronomical Bureau suddenly burst open. The officials who were observing the stars looked up at the sky in horror from the rooftop, trying to lift the veil of the future by combining Confucian prophecy with star charts.
He looked up and saw the imperial star swaying in the Purple Palace Enclosure, with Mars hanging high. He looked up and saw three stars in the Purple Palace Diagram displaying the most ominous signs of impending cataclysm. He looked up and saw the Big Dipper, composed of the thirty-six Heavenly Generals and seventy-two Earthly Fiends, piercing through the Purple Palace like a sharp sword. Six of the Heavenly Generals and Earthly Fiends were already bright beyond measure!
"Crack!"