Professional Ethics of a Concubine

Su Ting knew that the third prince had gone to the royal manor, and had been there for three days without coming out.

He also sent people to inquire every day, and when he learned that the Third Prince was having so much fun in there that he didn't want to leave, he just let him be.

After all, the Central Plains is vast and rich in resources, and the customs and habits are different from those in the Western Regions. I finally have a chance to go out on business, so I might as well have fun.

Go and have fun.

But who can tell him why he spent all his money after playing for a few days!!!

The third prince had quite a bit of private silver. As far as he knew, it must be at least tens of thousands of taels.

So, did the third prince go to the casino?

The people of Da Zhao were so sinister that they actually opened a casino in the royal manor and specifically cheated the rich and powerful from their money.

Su Ting said goodbye to Zhou Shutian, with a gloomy face, and followed the delegation to the royal manor.

Su Ting has not been here yet, but he has also taken a close look at it.

There are actually more than one such royal manor. Some are specifically for entertainment, such as the Paradise in front of us.

There is also one specifically for banquets, called the State Banquet Garden, and one specifically for training, called the Yucai Garden.

These royal manors only started to appear two months ago. It is said that the royal family set up these manors specifically to highlight the emperor's grace.

One is to provide all-round services that only the royal family can enjoy to the nobles and officials; the other is to provide considerate growth services to the mistresses of wealthy families and noble ladies from aristocratic families.

These are all gifts and care from the emperor.

When Su Ting learned that all of this required payment, he had already seen through the essence behind it.

Haha, so what is the emperor’s grace? In fact, it is just the royal family finding ways to make these noble families pay money.

However, once it is packaged in this way, people are willing to spend the money.

Su Ting said that he would also learn this trick carefully, report it to the empress when he returns, and their Gulan country would also learn from it.

Thinking of this, Su Ting was not so angry anymore for the purpose of learning. The expression on his face relaxed and his steps became steadier.

He looked at the plaque of Paradise and was about to step through the door when the eunuch guarding the door smiled and said,

"Master Su, please come in."

"Oh? How do you recognize me? This is my first time here, and I'm not an official of Da Zhao."

Su Ting stopped and looked at the young eunuch and asked.

"Your Excellency Su, I went to the guild hall where you live to run errands and took note of all the members of the diplomatic corps."

The young eunuch smiled enthusiastically, and his voice was flattering.

"You are an envoy, a distinguished guest, and you have come from afar. We must serve you attentively and not make the stupid mistake of not recognizing you when we meet."

Su Ting looked at the young eunuch deeply, nodded slightly to indicate that he understood, and stepped in with his entourage.

After entering the manor, Su Ting didn't need to say anything as the palace maid led the way and brought him to the third prince.

Everything was so comfortable and natural, and during the time, the palace maid even asked if she wanted to introduce the manor to him.

Su Ting also wanted to know more, so he asked the palace maid to introduce him.

After listening to this, Su Ting could not help but fall silent again and asked, "Did you learn this set of introduction words specifically?"

"Your Excellency is wise." The maid replied with a smile, "This set of introductions is said to have come from Concubine Ye. It is something I must master so that I can answer questions for you at any time."

Su Ting asked again, "From what you said, there is no casino here? Then why did the Third Prince spend so much?"

"Your Excellency, I am not responsible for receiving the Third Prince, and I am not aware of his expenses.

"The maid said calmly and politely,

"When Lord Su meets the Third Prince later, he can ask us to make a list for him to check."

"I heard that you were palace maids released from the imperial palace?" Su Ting was very satisfied with her answer and asked again.

"Yes, sir." The maid said gratefully with a smile on her face and shining eyes.

“The emperor is kind, not only did he let us leave the palace and marry, he also provided us with protection and allowed us to work on the estate, so that we can not only support our families but also maintain our dignity.

It’s better for us palace maids because we can get married and have many options.

After being released from the palace, most of the eunuchs were not accepted by their families and could not integrate into the outside world, so they regarded this manor as their home and a place to retire. "

"For eunuchs, what's the difference between working here and working in the palace?"

Su Ting frowned and spoke.

"Sir Su, it's completely different. Although we are all doing servant work, we are no longer slaves, but good citizens. We signed an employment contract, not a contract to sell ourselves, and the money has also increased."

The maid smiled and explained,

“When we are not working, we can leave the estate at any time and go back home to reunite with our families or go out to do business.

What we have to follow are work rules and regulations, no longer strict palace regulations or terrible punishments.

However, if you want to stay here, you have to receive various trainings and pass assessments. If you don’t perform well, you will be fired.”

"That's indeed different. It sounds like I can live uprightly like a human being, relying on my own efforts."

After listening to this, Su Ting was inspired.

From this we can see that the Emperor of Great Zhao is a benevolent monarch who cares about the people.

"Your Excellency is wise!" the palace maid praised with a smile.

Su Ting also took a deep look at the palace maid and tasted a slightly different flavor.

Everything in this manor makes you feel comfortable and novel. Compared with ordinary slaves, the servants are more capable and not so servile, but they can make you feel a sense of superiority and satisfaction of being praised.

However, after only a short while in the manor, Su Ting felt that something was unusual here.

Think about it again, the third prince spent tens of thousands of taels in just a few days and still owed a lot of silver.

This is what a brothel is.

-

Su Ting thought that when he saw the third prince, he should be a little embarrassed, or have a look of regret, or be a little ashamed.

After all, so much money was spent.

However, when he arrived at where the third prince was, he saw that he was flushed and full of energy, and was having a lively conversation with a young man in brocade clothes. He looked like he had been sold but was still happily counting money for others.

Su Ting, ...

Su Ting suppressed his anger, thinking that this was not his rebellious son, but the third prince, and he became much calmer.

"Master Su, you are here." The Third Prince greeted him with a smile when he saw him.

"Come, come, let me introduce you. This is Prince Duan. He is very knowledgeable and a very nice person."

Su Ting greeted Prince Duan respectfully and politely, and Prince Duan returned the greeting.

After the pleasantries were over, Su Ting forced a smile and pretended not to know when to ask the Third Prince,

"Your Highness, why did you call me here?"

"Didn't the person who reported the news tell me that I have run out of money? I would like to ask Lord Su to pay for it first and I will give it to you later." The third prince said confidently.

"May I ask, Your Highness, what have you bought these days, how much silver have you spent, and how much is still missing?" Su Ting asked with a fake smile.

"That's too much. It's so fun here, and there are so many good things. I have ordered a lot of goods, and I can't explain it all in a few words. Your Majesty, how much silver do I still need?" The third prince turned his head and asked Prince Duan.

"The Third Prince and I hit it off right away. We are already close friends. I can give you discounts on everything. You only need to pay another 8,800 taels of silver. This number is auspicious and sounds good."

Prince Duan smiled and patted the Third Prince's shoulder enthusiastically, as if they were close brothers.

"Okay, okay, Prince Duan is very generous." The third prince happily agreed, turned around and said to Su Ting,

"Master Su, did you hear that? Eight thousand eight hundred taels, you need to pay for me first."

Su Ting, ...

Haha, he doesn’t want to hear, he wants to be selectively deaf.

Third Prince, I used to think you were smart, but now, I think your brain is full of water!

When you slap your head, it makes a loud bang.

"Your Highness, you are joking. I don't carry so many banknotes with me. Our envoys have a fixed amount of silver.

If it was a few hundred taels, it would be fine, but it’s nearly ten thousand taels... Once His Highness has to pay the money, the envoys will be left with nothing.

If His Majesty knows about this, he will probably be angry."

Su Ting was too lazy to care about the Third Prince's face. He had no money, so he didn't want to spend the money even if he had it. He just wanted to be the scapegoat.

If he really thought so, the Third Prince would just have to do hard labor in the manor!

Of course, he couldn't tell the truth, so he could only ask Prince Duan,

"May I ask Your Majesty if I may look at the list and understand how the Third Prince spent his money?"

"Of course." Prince Duan immediately gave orders and asked someone to get the list.

When the Third Prince heard about this commotion, he immediately lost face and looked at Su Ting with a sullen face.

Su Ting didn't even look at him.

The third prince became even angrier, his face feeling a little embarrassed.

Prince Duan saw this and said with a smile,

"Lord Su must have some misunderstandings, thinking that the Third Prince was overeating and drinking, but he didn't know that the Third Prince didn't spend any of his money on himself."

Su Ting immediately looked at the third prince. The third prince snorted and turned his head away and stopped looking at Su Ting.

"...Prince, what did you mean by what you said just now?" Su Ting had no choice but to look at Prince Duan and asked.

"Here is the list. Lord Su will know the answer after seeing it for himself." Prince Duan took the list from the tray in the eunuch's hand and handed it to Su Ting.

Su Ting took the list, unfolded it, glanced at it, and found that there were not many items. Then he checked it carefully from the beginning.

Wenbi wrote a poem and the third prince lost the prize, five hundred taels of silver.

Su Ting, ...

Your Highness, are you comparing your poetry with the students from Central Plains?

You are asking for trouble, giving away money!

The third prince lost two hundred taels when the text was compared.

Playing drinking games, the third prince lost two hundred taels.

Playing the grass-fighting game, the third prince lost one hundred taels.

Su Ting, ...

Okay, one thousand taels are gone just like that!

Looking further down, the Third Prince participated in many martial arts competitions, and finally he didn't seem so useless anymore.

In the horse riding competition, the third prince came first and won a prize, a horse whip.

In the archery competition, the third prince came in third and won the prize, a crossbow.

In the Cuju game, the third prince lost and forfeited the prize of one hundred taels.

……

I played a lot in three days, with some wins and some losses, but I basically didn't spend any money.

Further down the list is the Third Prince’s expenses on food and drink; each meal costs at least fifty taels of silver.

This is another few hundred taels gone.

The expenses for the evening activities such as singing, dancing, and beauties totaled five hundred taels for three nights.

Su Ting looked at this piece and thought it was quite cheap.

Next comes the shopping list, which is where the big money is spent.

Su Ting, ...

Isn’t it a paradise, a place for eating, drinking and having fun? Why is it selling goods here?

The first category on the shopping list was rouge, powder, and jewelry, totaling two thousand taels of silver.