How to become a Taoist priest starting from a brothel

"Is this my niece?" She came up to greet her and, without even exchanging pleasantries, pulled Liu Yin aside to examine her closely.

"This is your Aunt An," Madam Liu introduced her daughter without any hesitation.

"Aunt An." Liu Yin quickly stepped forward and bowed.

Madam An took Liu Yin's hand and looked her over carefully. She then led her into the house, praising her as they walked: "You hid yourself very well. You said you were weak and wouldn't let us visit you. But now you don't look weak at all. You're as fresh as a scallion, making us look like old cabbages."

"However, Bo Liu's appearance is hardly worthy of your praise. She was indeed not presentable before. If she had been lucky, she would have obtained a famous doctor's prescription last year, and now she has just managed to grow up. That's why I brought her here for you to see. Putting aside everything else, she does have some talent. She is now working as an instructor in Yan Yan's school."

"Why did you go to her place? A proper young lady like you shouldn't follow our example and go into that filthy place." Madam An paused in her steps upon hearing this, her brows furrowed as she looked at Madam Liu with disapproval.

"I didn't mean to, it's just that I owe someone a favor, and I also said I'd only do it for a year or two." Madam Liu continued walking, explaining with a gentle smile.

Madam An was a close friend of hers and knew her to be stubborn and opinionated. Seeing her like this, she knew that she had made up her mind, so she could only sigh, shake her head, and leave the matter aside.

After the three of them entered the house and sat down to enjoy tea and snacks, Madam An continued the previous topic and asked, "You just said that your niece is talented. I wonder if she is talented in music, chess, calligraphy, or painting? Do you need my help to find a famous teacher?"

"You know me best. This child is alright in other aspects, but she plays a very good tune and has some talent for composing and writing lyrics. However, she is still lacking in some areas. I know your ability to write lyrics and compose music, so I let her come and learn from you."

"That's great! But you know my personality. Let her sing a song she wrote herself so I can hear it. If it's not good, your face won't matter." Madam An's eyes lit up with joy, but she still maintained her composure and refused to agree directly.

Madam Liu knew Liu Yin as well as she knew herself, and had already given Liu Yin instructions beforehand. At this moment, she nodded to Liu Yin and had the maid bring out the pipa for her.

With flowing robes and fluttering hands, the sound of the pipa rose, as if a phoenix's cry were dripping with jade. The melody of "Lian Yu," composed by Liu Yin and Madam Liu, told the story of the joys and sorrows of a pair of lovers.

Coupled with Liu Yin's clear and delicate singing voice, and the catchy lyrics "Willow branches stretch far, red sleeves shine bright, seeing you off on your journey, waiting for you for a lifetime..."

The song was short, lasting only a quarter of an hour from beginning to end.

Liu Yin put away her pipa and looked at Madam Liu, who was gently wiping away tears from the corners of her eyes with a handkerchief: "What a beautiful tune! It seems that today I will not only gain a celestial niece, but also such a talented disciple. Good disciple, come quickly and let your master give you a good kiss."

"Quickly kowtow to your master." Madam Liu couldn't suppress her smile and hurriedly called Liu Yin forward.

"Disciple kowtows to Master." As soon as Liu Yin walked up, Madam An's maid brought a soft cushion and placed it in front of her. She stepped forward, knelt gracefully, and offered tea before being helped up by Madam An.

"Since you have acknowledged me as your teacher, I will teach you with all my heart. Since you are already working as an instructor for Yanyan, come to my place every five days. I will then talk to her to adjust your teaching schedule."

"Yes, Master, I will do whatever you say." Liu Yin thought to herself that Qingyin Hall was supposed to have one day off every three days, while classes here were on the fifth day. After the adjustment, she estimated that she could get an extra day off, so she was naturally overjoyed.

Having completed the apprenticeship ceremony, Madam Liu had achieved her goal for coming here. With one thing on her mind, she felt much more relaxed and began chatting with Madam An and Liu Yin about other things, which also allowed Liu Yin to gain a better understanding of this era.

In the afternoon, seeing that it was still early, Madam An pulled Madam Liu along to give Liu Yin a lesson. The first lesson was about making changes to "Red Wish".

First came the lyrics, then the music. After nearly two or three hours of meticulous work, we finally managed to get a rough draft done just as the sunset was about to break.

"That's about it, you can give it a try." Madam An looked relieved, letting Liu Yin play the whole piece herself.

Liu Yin picked up the pipa and tried it out. It was indeed much better than her original lyrics and music. The original simple lyrics and music, after being adjusted by the two of them, had more gorgeous and beautiful words and complex virtuoso techniques, which were more in line with the aesthetics of this era.

"As expected of my mother and master, after you corrected your mistakes, your emotional expression is indeed more moving."

“It’s not as good as you say.” Madam An waved her handkerchief, smiling like a flower. “Alright, you can practice it. I think your tune will be worth singing in the future.”

"Then I'll take your kind words, Master," Liu Yin replied modestly, holding her pipa.

Madam Liu looked up and saw that it was getting late: "It's getting late, and our daughter-in-law has to go to teach tomorrow, so we won't disturb her any longer."

"What are you saying? You two have been here all day, aren't you planning to have dinner before you leave?" Madam An rolled her eyes at her, her soft tone carrying a hint of dissatisfaction.

"Why are you being so polite with me? It's getting late, and we really can't stay any longer," Madam Liu explained, pulling her aside repeatedly.

Madam An then relented: "Very well, this area is not peaceful to begin with, you and your daughter should indeed be careful on your way back."

Aunt Qian had arranged for a car to be waiting at the door long ago. Madam An saw the mother and daughter off at the door before reluctantly leaving.

That evening, Liu Yin couldn't sleep because she was thinking about the day's events, so she sat down at her desk and started reading her short story, "Candy," which she had written the day before. She had used the story of the girl who was tortured to death by Prince Cui as a model, and she had found out about it afterward.

The girl's real name was Liu Daya. When she was five years old, her parents sold her to Qingyintang. From that day until now, she had only lived a relatively peaceful two or three years. But in this place where people were not treated as human beings, she lost her life at a young age.

Liu Yin herself learned a lot about the backgrounds of these people from the daily conversations of Madam Liu and Xu Yueling, and combined this with Liu Daya's story before she wrote this novel. However, she has been hesitant about whether to publish it.

This era is not the open and advanced society of her previous life. In this era, let alone a woman like her, even an ordinary scholar cannot afford to publish a book, let alone someone with such a status.

After thinking for a moment, she put the manuscript back into the wooden box on the table. She thought that perhaps in a couple of days, she could show the story to Madam Liu or her master and see if they had any good ideas. As natives, they would probably be much better than she was when she first arrived.