Huangming

Chapter 80 Brothel Attendants and the Difficulties of the Grand Canal Transport

Goulan Hutong in Dongcheng District.

Jiaofang Division.

The main hall is Tianxiang Pavilion.

The courtyard of Tianxiang Pavilion is paved with blue bricks. In the corner of the wall, a few clumps of green bamboo cover a stone table. On the table are uncollected wolf-hair brushes and ink-stained Xuan paper. Next to it, a half-finished game of chess remains on a Torreya wood chessboard.

A banana-leaf-shaped guqin hangs under the eaves, its tassels swaying gently in the wind.

The courtesan Liu Ruyan, who had been playing the zither behind the curtain, had long since retreated to her room. Only the unfinished "Spring Dawn over the Caohe River" painting on the embroidery frame by the window remained, its silk threads gleaming faintly.

Yang Lian, clutching a wine cup, leaned back on the rattan pillow, seemingly unconcerned about the crab roe stains on his clothes: "Why is that batch of grain from Suzhou last month still sitting in Huai'an?"

He was preoccupied with his own thoughts, and even when he went to the brothel for entertainment, he was not at all at ease.

Canal transport.

Now, all he sees when he closes his eyes is the Grand Canal, and he dreams of patrolling the Grand Canal in Tongzhou.

Zuo Guangdou sneered and ripped open the collar of his brocade robe, slamming a black chess piece onto the board: "Those parasites in the River Conservancy Office, the money for repairing the dikes probably all went into the brothels!"

He was also preoccupied with worries, his mind filled with disaster relief and river management.

Even if one's heart is ashen, now that one has arrived at the Jiaofangsi (a government-run entertainment institution), one should enjoy oneself first.

Normally, this place would hesitate to do so for the sake of clearing its name.

How can a wife who has shared hardship and poverty find happiness when her husband eats only plain porridge and water every day?

Now that I'm going to manage the river, I don't even know if I'll come back alive. I should enjoy myself while I can.

Life is short, so enjoy it to the fullest!
The "Jiaofangsi Banquet," prepared by the renowned chefs of the Jiaofangsi, featured dishes such as "Eight Delicacies of Deer Cry" and "Double Crispy Crane Dance," which were rare to see or eat in ordinary places. Later, when they arrived in the Yellow River flood plain, they were lucky to have cornbread to eat.

Such days are probably not coming again for a long time.

Qian Qianyi, slightly drunk, dipped his brush in wine and wrote "Do not listen to the sound of rain pattering through the forest" on the whitewashed wall. Suddenly, he turned to the maid who was refilling his wine cup and asked, "Young lady, do you know what melody should accompany Su Shi's line?"

The maid was only sixteen or seventeen years old, with red lips and white teeth, and her skin was so tender it seemed to drip with moisture. However, she was quite well-endowed, and with the slightest movement, people couldn't take their eyes off her.

Yang Lian felt disgusted by Qian Qianyi's drunken state.

We are burdened with heavy responsibilities, and our lives are in grave danger, yet you seem to be having a great time drinking. Are you deliberately trying to make me laugh?
Yang Lian's face turned ashen. He immediately stood up and said somewhat displeasedly, "I accept it. I have no heart for this place, nor the fortune to do so. Farewell!"

"Don't bother me!"

Qian Qianyi immediately grabbed Yang Lian's hand and said, "Don't waste the first-class ticket I obtained. Do you think it's easy to get into the main hall of the Jiaofangsi?"

"Tickets" were official permits issued by the Ming Dynasty for summoning courtesans, and were managed by the Ministry of Rites' Jiaofangsi (Imperial Music Bureau).

Those with a ticket could legally summon courtesans from the Jiaofangsi (Imperial Music Bureau) to accompany them at banquets; those without a ticket were considered to be engaging in "private intimacy" and would be punished with eighty strokes of the cane according to the Ming Dynasty Code.

Among them, the first-class ticket was limited to officials of the third rank or above, who could summon the first-class courtesans in the main hall and enjoy a full banquet (food, wine, songs, dances, and poetry exchanges).

Qian Qianyi obtained his first-class ticket by asking Zhou Jiamo for it.

Seeing that Yang Lian still looked arrogant, Qian Qianyi forcibly pulled him to a seat and then pushed the plump maid into his arms.

This action naturally provoked Yang Lian's fury.

Qian Qianyi, how dare you insult me?!
of course.

Before he flew into a rage, his hands had already had his fill of pleasure on certain key areas.

"Am I, Yang Lian, that kind of person?"

Yang Lian remained calm and composed, and retorted with righteous indignation.

Qian Qianyi chuckled and said, "Miss Liu is from a prominent family in Jiangnan. She has finally made it all the way north, and you're just spoiling the fun?"

As he spoke, he called out to the inner room, "Lady Liu, if you don't come out soon, Chief Censor Yang is about to leave."

Soon, a seductive voice filled the room.

"I apologize for any shortcomings in my hospitality, sir."

With a soft rustling of the beaded curtain, Liu Ruyan gracefully emerged from the side room.

She wore a pale white cross-collar jacket that hugged her slender, light red waist, and a plain silk shawl that flowed like clouds. A jade ring from Hetian was tied around her waist, and a faint fragrance wafted from her sleeves as she moved. Although she didn't reveal much flesh, she seemed to possess an innate allure, and every frown and smile was enough to tempt men to commit crimes.

Qian Qianyi had seen countless women, but upon seeing this woman's appearance, he was still stunned for a moment. Yang Lian, on the other hand, glanced at her and then turned her head away.

Qian Qianyi was preoccupied with matters of the heart, and was naturally attracted to beautiful women. However, Yang Lian only had the canal transport in his mind. Even if a courtesan came out naked, he wouldn't give her a second glance.

"Not only is Lady Liu renowned for her talent, but she is also so beautiful that even Xi Shi and Diao Chan could not compare."

Liu Ruyan covered her mouth and laughed, saying, "Qian Lang flatters me. I am but an ordinary woman, how could I compare to Xi Shi or Diao Chan?"

"In my eyes, even Xi Shi and Diao Chan are not as good as Liu Dajia."

Seeing the two adulterers flirting in front of him, Yang Lian wanted to leave the place even more.

"I'm tied up with official business, so I'll take my leave now."

nausea!

I turn off the lights when I do this kind of thing, but you guys do it?

They started indulging in lewd behavior right in front of me!

"Wenru is too impatient. The reason she summoned Lady Liu here today is because she knows many people from all walks of life, especially those from the Green Gang, the Canal Gang, and the Canal Transport Bureau along the Tongzhou Canal. Lady Liu knows many people and knows many secrets. Wenru, don't you want to find out some of them?"

Upon hearing this, Yang Lian finally stopped in his tracks.

"I never expected that Lady Liu would have such connections."

Liu Ruyan gave a bitter smile, her face filled with sorrow, and said, "I was originally a woman from the Grand Canal Gang, but I was sold by a slave trader to Jiangnan to become a prostitute."

Yang Lian had no interest in learning more about the suffering of courtesans.

After all, in this era, which woman would willingly enter the world of prostitution?
A gambling father, a disabled mother, a younger brother in school, and a broken woman.

Their suffering could probably be told in a single day.

Therefore, Yang Lian interrupted Liu Ruyan directly and asked, "His Majesty has sent me to inspect the Tongzhou canal transport. Where do you think we should begin?"

Liu Ruyan didn't mind Yang Lian's lack of romantic understanding.

Since she works in the service industry, she naturally has to serve her customers well, especially those with a good reputation. Once she can create a good reputation with them, her value will also rise accordingly.

Therefore, Liu Ruyan pondered for a moment and said slowly, "I am but a duckweed floating on the canal, how would I know anything about canal administration? It was only last month, when I was playing the zither for the commander of Tongzhou Garrison, that I overheard a few drunken words."

She stepped forward and poured Yang Lian a cup of wine, saying softly, "Does Lord Yang know that during the spring flood season, the twenty-four sluice gates of the Tonghui River require five rounds of 'ice and charcoal offerings' before they'll even lift the gates? The wages these boatmen receive are sifted through three rounds of checks—by the Ministry of Works' River Management Office, the Grand Canal Transport Commissioner's Office, and the Tongzhou granary—and what they end up with is barely enough to buy stale rice mixed with sand."

Yang Lian frowned slightly and asked again, "I've heard a little about these things. There's a question I'd like to ask: what's the most difficult thing to investigate in the canal transport?"

Seeing that Yang Lian was already seated, Liu Ruyan smiled and said:
"The most difficult to patrol are probably the 'sinking' ones. I personally witnessed an entire ship of grain 'sink' at Zhangjiawan, and that very night, twenty mule carts emerged from the reeds. Those soldiers escorting the cargo, who ate hard flatbread on the grain ships during the day, changed into brocade robes and indulged in wine and women outside the customs house at night."

Yang Lian downed the wine in one gulp, remained silent for a moment, and then asked, "If I were to inspect all of these places, what would the outcome be?"

Liu Ruyan's delicate body trembled slightly as she said, "Does the Censor know how many people are supported by the section of the canal from Tongzhou to Hangzhou?"

Yang Lian shook her head.

Liu Ruyan said softly, "From Tongzhou to Hangzhou, there are twelve major gangs and nine major canal ports, including 50,000 canal laborers, nearly 10,000 canal soldiers, 6,000 canal port officials and craftsmen, and nearly a million people including taverns, inns, porters, dockworkers, warehouse guards, their families and dependents. The livelihoods of a million canal workers depend on this. Does Chief Censor Yang have the audacity to do this?"

The Canal Gang and the Green Gang of that era were no joke.

These gangs are tightly organized, with a brutal system of rules, family laws, and brotherhood to maintain their cohesion.

They have a large number of people and enormous energy.

If you overturn their rice bowl, do you think they'll change the course of history?

If trouble gets out, his head as the Imperial Inspector of the Grand Canal will be chopped off.
After talking with Liu Ruyan for a while, Yang Lian's heart grew even heavier.

The difficulty of inspecting grain transport is greater than ascending to heaven!

Why does it feel like this inspection of the canal might very well cost him his life?
Hai Gangfeng, this is a tough job!
ps:
I'm still short two hundred monthly passes to reach a thousand.

Brothers with monthly passes, please vote!

otherwise
The author has spent half his life wandering, and now he needs to find a godfather!
m9(｀д)!!!!
(End of this chapter)