As the sky darkened, the city of Jiangning became lively. Pleasure boats and ships, as well as brothels, were all lit up. Naturally, the nightlife here was not limited to visiting brothels. Looking at the night view of Qinhuai River, tasting pastries and snacks, sitting in teahouses, listening to stories and songs, but relatively speaking, visiting brothels was indeed one of the most fashionable activities.
The tense situation inside and outside the city, as well as the flood that happened once every few years, could not affect this prosperous and extravagant scene. Rich people were still rich people. Moreover, in affluent places like Jiangning, Yangzhou, and Tokyo, the control of the government was still considered strong. After a few days, even if the city gates were closed, most of the brothels and brothels would still operate as usual. Moreover, because the city gates were closed, the prices and fees would be higher. However, the frequency of the rich who had no other place to go would also increase. During this period of time, it would be the prime time for such entertainment places.
When Li Pin, Su Wengui, Su Wenxing, and the others arrived in front of the Jade Swallow House, the rest of the people who had made an appointment had also arrived. These people were mostly friends of the Su family. Among them, there were two scholars who did not have much fame. They wanted to meet Ning Yi and Li Pin. This time, it was not only Su Wenxing, Su Wengui, and Su Wentian from the second branch, but also Su Wenluo and Su Wenji from the third branch. Su Wending, who was usually closer to Su Tan'er, also came. In short, it was Su Zhongkan who greeted everyone he saw. Today, he was the one who paid for the younger generation of the Su family to come and play.
Just as Su Tan'er said, Su Zhongkan was not an honest person. He was definitely interested in the position of the family head. However, it had to be said separately. Even so, there was no need for him to play any boring tricks on Ning Yi. This banquet was just for fun. On one hand, it was to bid farewell to Li Pin in the name of the Su family. On the other hand, it was to let the children of the family have more contact with Ning Yi and Li Pin. After all, the children of the family were not very successful. Su Zhongkan knew very well that if it was to humiliate Ning Yi, it would only be a slap in the face. Moreover, there was Li Pin, who would definitely stand on Ning Yi's side.
The Jade Swallow House was not as famous as those brothels that often had the top courtesans. For example, the Golden Wind House and the Congealing Rain House where Qi Lan stayed could be considered as the first tier of brothels in Jiangning. The Jade Swallow House could be considered as the best among the second tier. It could barely be ranked in the top ten of Jiangning. The service and entertainment were also quite good. However, it might not be as elegant as the Golden Wind House or the Rain House. It was purely a brand effect.
For example, if the Jiangning Prefectural Magistrate or the Emperor's son-in-law, Kang Xian, held a banquet and said that they would go to the Jade Swallow House, it would be a loss of face. However, many wealthy merchants liked to come here to support the occasion. Of course, scholars came too. Many people were not so particular, but not many came. After all, this was not their first choice.
On the way here today, no one talked about poetry or essays. For example, Su Wenxing, Su Wending, and the others liked to be scholars. However, at this moment, they knew their place. With Ning Yi and Li Pin around, the slightly famous scholars in Jiangning City did not dare to make a fool of themselves in front of them. Previously, there was the matter of Chen Jiwen meeting Ning Yi and not daring to write a poem. Why should they talk about something that would invite a snub? These people belonged to the first, second, and third branches. There might be some friction between them, but at this moment, they had the same goal. They only talked about business and did not talk about poetry.
Using one's strength to attack the other's weakness. At this moment, it was similar to the art of war. Su Wenxing, Su Wengui, Su Wenji, and a few others were trying to manage a shop at home. Along the way, Su Wenji got along well with Ning Yi. This fellow was known as the Su family's Little Meng Chang. He was not capable, but he was good at using people. His attitude was also relatively low and he spoke humbly. Ning Yi felt that this was quite interesting. It was not bad to have a strong interpersonal relationship. However, a person who could really manage people must also have the ability to balance and restrict talents. This aspect was probably a weakness.
These abilities needed to be cultivated over a long period of time. It was related to one's own aptitude and later education. To use a talent with 100% ability, one must have at least 60% ability. It was not that it could not be cultivated, but there was no need for Ning Yi to say anything about this. Along the way, he listened to Su Wenji talk about his experiences in this area and some interesting business stories. Ning Yi naturally smiled and nodded to show that he had learned. Su Wenji was even happier in his heart. It was rare for him to show off in front of people like Ning Yi. Of course, he spoke more in depth.
Occasionally, Su Wenxing and Su Wengui would also interrupt, "Liheng, you don't understand business. Don't listen to his nonsense. He is just bluffing you. Wenji doesn't know what the problem is with the business in Lake Tai."
"Who said I don't know!"
"You just listen to your shopkeeper's nonsense. You believe whatever they say..."
"At least I know what is reasonable!"
Both sides inevitably quarreled. In the carriage, Ning Yi and Li Pin watched with interest. After a while, the other side came to Ning Yi and said, "Why don't you go back and ask Second Sister tonight and see what she says... hmph."
Although Su Tan'er was a woman and everyone was fighting openly and secretly for the family property, no one would deny Su Tan'er's business talent. As for Ning Yi, he might be a great talent, but he naturally knew nothing about business. Whether it was Su Zhongkan or Su Yunfang, they had probably told these children the reason why they let Ning Yi marry into their family. Xi Junyu, on the other hand, was not chosen because he was too talented in business. There was no doubt about this.
Therefore, they showed off their experiences in the business world along the way. While these people were trying hard to show off the brilliance of the business world to Ning Yi and Li Pin and show off their own excellence, everyone got out of the car and met up with a few invited friends at the entrance. Su Wenxing entered the Yan Cui House first. After a while, he met an acquaintance in front of him.
When the main group entered the Yan Cui House, they saw Su Wenxing and Xue Jin of the Xue family arguing and ridiculing each other. Beside Xue Jin was his elder brother, Xue Yan of the younger generation of the Xue family. It was said that he was the candidate for the future head of the Xue family. In addition, there were some friends and guests. Seeing more than ten people of the Su family came in, they also gathered. The mother and servant of the Yan Cui House saw that the situation was not good, so they hurriedly came to say good words and smooth things over.
It was easy to get angry because of jealousy in brothels. But at this time, it was just a quarrel. Everyone had their own status, so they didn't really quarrel. Both sides looked interesting. But when Xue Jin saw Ning Yi, his face was a little bad. After the "Daoist recited two poems", he basically didn't dare to write poems. He always felt that he was being ridiculed. At this time, both sides were a little noisy. Xue Yan and Su Wengui smiled and greeted each other. Mother mediated in the middle. Xue Jin and Su Wenxing ridiculed each other for a while. While they were still thinking about what to say to Ning Yi, Li Pin, who was beside Ning Yi, greeted someone on the opposite side.
"Brother Qingdi, you are here too."
"Brother Dexin, nice to meet you."
The person on the other side was also a scholar named Liu Qingdi. His reputation was similar to that of Li Pin, Cao Guan, and the others. After greeting him, Xue Jin also raised his head and introduced, "This is my brother's good friend, Liu Yan, Liu Qingdi." It was a long time to meet him. Xue Jin stared at Ning Yi. Ning Yi turned his head to look at the layout of the brothel.
Just now, there was only Xue Jin and Su Wenxing. They were quarreling and angry. Now that there were more people, it seemed to be more harmonious. After greeting each other, they secretly ridiculed each other with honeyed words. Xue Yan smiled and said, "The main hall is the most comfortable place to sit in the Jade Swallow House. Let's watch the performance in the main hall today. What do you think?"
On the other side, Su Wengui smiled and said, "Everyone in Jiangning knows that Brother Xue has a good eye. Since Brother Xue is here tonight, we will naturally sit in the main hall … Let's go to the second floor."
Generally speaking, the structure of the first and second floor of a brothel was similar. Basically, it was built around the stage in front like a theater. Naturally, there were private rooms here. One could also visit prostitutes and drink wine. However, the performance on the stage was more common. Moreover, in public, one could not do anything too excessive to the women accompanying them. No one came here to watch a show or anything like that. If one really wanted to visit a prostitute and develop further, he would have to change rooms. Ning Yi followed them all the way upstairs. He turned his head and asked Li Pin, "How are these guys going to fight for a woman's affections?"
Li Pin smiled and said, "The performances in the Jade Swallow House's outer hall are also quite demanding. For example, popular women like Lv Xia are sometimes not invited in advance. They perform in the outer hall. If they like someone, they will come down from the stage and offer a toast before entering the inner hall to accompany them. Ah, drinking a cup of wine in public, this matter is quite prestigious. Businessmen, gifted scholars, everyone likes this kind of plot to win the beauty. "
Ning Yi nodded and said, "In that case, if you like someone, you will probably have to spend money."
"Of course." Li Pin smiled and said, "Of course, it's not that simple. For example, if you are an old flame, it's fine. Or if you write a good poem for her, Liheng, she will naturally come over and toast you. In short, it's nothing more than this. If you want to be in the limelight, you will have to put in some effort. "
"Oh, Brother Li, are you going to write a poem to win a beauty?"
"This is a bit difficult. Liu Qingdi's poetry talent is not inferior to mine. Moreover, look at the expressions of Xue Yan and others. They are obviously regulars here, so they will definitely win. Of course, I'm afraid that this group of brothers of yours also knows about this. The reason why they are so confident is because both of us are here. If it's just me writing a poem later, even if I lose, Lv Xia will at least come up to greet me. However, if you, Liheng, also write a poem, with the title of the number one scholar, ghost talent, coupled with the silver bullets of your brothers, the outcome of this matter is really unknown. "
"Oh, in short, it is very prestigious..."
"Haha, it is for prestige..."
When they walked to the private room on the second floor where they could watch the performance, they chatted and laughed. In fact, Li Pin was quite interested in this kind of thing. Even if Ning Yi did not write a poem, he would probably write one to accept Liu Qingdi's challenge. Ning Yi looked back and saw that in the lobby below, the scholar named Liu Qingdi also seemed to be looking this way, smiling and waving his hand, looking very friendly. However, Ning Yi's gaze swept over, because suddenly, the scene of a room window on the side of the stage attracted him.
The room window looked inconspicuous, because it was on the side of the stage, and probably not used for banquets. The reason why Ning Yi noticed it was because his mother, who had just stopped the fight, was going in there at this time. Then... Ning Yi saw a face coming out from there. It was Nie Yunzhu.
The woman didn't know how long she had been watching in the room. At this time, when Ning Yi looked over, she suddenly smiled and waved her hand gently. When Ning Yi also smiled and waved, another figure came out from the window. It was also a woman. She looked curiously at Nie Yunzhu's expression, and then searched for familiar figures in the hall. When she saw Ning Yi, she blinked her eyes and wrinkled her whole face. This was Yuan Jin'er.
Did these two guys come here to sell century eggs...
As he was thinking, he didn't know what Yuan Jin'er had said, but Nie Yunzhu smiled and glared at her unhappily, saying something to defend herself. Then, the two were seen playing for a while, and Yuan Jin'er pushed Nie Yunzhu away from the window. A second later, she leaned back and made a face at Ning Yi with her tongue sticking out, as if she had occupied her Sister Yunzhu, and then closed the window with a bang.
Ning Yi laughed amusedly...
*****
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