How to become a Taoist priest starting from a brothel

The next day, Liu Yin stayed in her room all day, intending to get used to the musical instrument that the original owner was good at. After hesitating for a long time, she decided to use the pipa, which she was also good at, that night.

By the time she had adjusted, the matchmaker had already come to urge her. Jiao Jie'er was combing her hair with a comb, giving her a simple double-loop bun, adorned with a few gold-plated pearl flowers. She wore a moon-colored embroidered green plum blossom dress, with a wide-sleeved blouse over it. Her clothes were more conservative than those of the courtesans. She carefully examined herself in the mirror. Her face was beautiful, but a glaring scar added a touch of fierceness. As she looked at herself, her thoughts drifted to those courtesans. She gestured to herself and chuckled softly, "I still prefer this look."

He sat on the high platform, picked up the pipa, and his ten fingers flew across the strings, producing a series of sounds that attracted the attention of the crowd who were still sitting and drinking below the stage.

"Who's that on stage? Such superb skill!" A scholar in a dark robe and his friend next to him inquired.

"Such a beautiful figure and skillful technique, it's a pity her face is covered, is she a new favorite?" The wealthy young men not far away also gathered together to discuss.

"Huh? It's her?" A student on the second floor recognized Liu Yin and looked surprised.

"You know him?" Upon hearing this, the friend next to him quickly came closer.

"Last year's courtesan, Lady Qingyin..." The student recounted with longing the performance that won Qingyin the title, then sighed with regret, "It's just a pity..."

"Hmm? How so?" The friend next to him was even more curious.

"You're new here and don't know the details, so let me tell you. It happened just a few days ago..."

Liu Yin on stage had already guessed that her performance would attract discussion, but she had already immersed herself in the performance, as if she had returned to the stage countless times in her past life. She set up the atmosphere with "Seasonal Song", a song most often heard in the red-light district, and then suddenly changed her approach.

Just as everyone was being transported to a world of dazzling lights and revelry by the tender and poignant melody, the style of the music suddenly changed, the rhythm slowed down abruptly, and a series of soft, fragmented sounds began to emerge.

Like a gentle drizzle, it immerses you in a rainy season in Jiangnan: narrow alleys, damp bluestone slabs, the fragrance of wildflowers peeking out from the cracks in the walls, and raindrops pattering on the eaves, much like the echoing sound of golden bells swaying in the corridor.

People's originally excited mood was soothed, and their mood became more and more relaxed, as if they were sitting in the attic listening to the patter of rain on the banana leaves, holding a book, a pot of warm wine, and a censer of incense.

"I recall years past, the small building was first painted with the cold night rain... Fireworks could not be cut short, the slow tolling of bells and drums sounded like the Qiang official's call... This time I go back, I drink alone while ill, and the bitter longing for you torments me..."

As the music flowed gently, a clear and melodious female voice joined in, softly singing. The lyrics and music were delicate, revealing a touch of melancholy and sentimentality in a young woman. Liu Yin played "Pipa Language" by the renowned composer Lin Hai, a piece she had composed in her previous life, along with "Ambush from Ten Sides." The lyrics were one of the later versions written by netizens, but it was also her favorite.

"This time I go back, I drink alone while sick, and the pain of longing keeps me tormented... What beautiful words..." The student, who was listening to his best friend gossip, was attracted by the murderous music. However, he was naturally calm and found the music too violent and displeased.

However, due to his status and the fact that this was not a private residence, he could not openly stop her. He just frowned and looked at the masked Liu Yin with some displeasure. Only after Liu Yin changed the song did he relax and close his eyes to savor the music.

When Liu Yin's voice rang out, he suddenly opened his eyes and looked down at the beautiful woman who was still softly singing. He was momentarily lost in thought as he listened to the words she was saying.

It wasn't until Liu Yin finished her last line of poetry that he suddenly realized what she meant and began to praise her endlessly.

"As for the new lyrics, I wonder who wrote them. Could it be a courtesan with a lingering grievance?" A friend next to me couldn't help but praise.

“What difference does it make whether you’re male or female? With such poetic talent, you’re already worth getting to know,” the student replied, and immediately got up to go downstairs.

This startled his close friend, who quickly stood up to stop him: "What is Ziheng going to do?"

"Of course I'll go find her and ask who wrote the lyrics." Ziheng glanced at his best friend with a puzzled look.

"No, for a word to reach such a place and remain unknown to outsiders, one can only imagine that the person in question must be of extremely low status. What would someone of your status do to provoke such a person?" the man said helplessly.

“With such talent, how can you be bound by status? Mozhu, you are not the kind of person who values ​​status so much.” Ziheng frowned slightly and looked at his close friend with a strange expression.

“It’s not that I’m bound by social status. If this were a poor family or a village, I wouldn’t stop Ziheng. But this is a filthy place, a red-light district. Even if that person has some talent, so what? He’ll know his status will be lowly. There are plenty of talented people in the world. You can find them anywhere you like, but not here. If my uncle finds out that I brought you here to make friends, and even found someone of low status to be my best friend, he’ll probably break my legs. You and I are best friends, how can you bear to see me suffer like this?” Seeing that her friend seemed to be wavering, Mozhu quickly put on a pitiful look to appeal to his emotions.

"Didn't you say that Qingyin Hall is no different from other brothels and is a first-class place?" Although Ziheng still thought that status was not important, he also knew that with his father's old-fashioned nature, what his close friend said was very likely to be true. But thinking of his close friend's words when he came, he asked with suspicion.

“They are first-class, that’s true, but they are still first-class in the red-light district. Even the first-class are still just courtesans. Even the government-run brothels are not much more noble. Ziheng, don’t treat them like ordinary women.” Mo Zhu sighed deeply, looking helplessly at his naive best friend. Thinking of the consequences of not being able to stop him, he had no choice but to explain it to him in detail.

"Alright..." Seeing this, Ziheng could only look pitifully at Liu Yin downstairs, who was packing up to leave the stage after finishing her performance, with a look of reluctance on his face.

Liu Yin naturally had no idea about the lawsuit upstairs. As the music ended, she slowly came back to her senses. The cheers around her made her realize that she was in a foreign land. It was not the magnificent concert hall of her previous life. All around her were eyes full of desire and pity, not the praise and expectations she had enjoyed. There were no family members waiting downstairs with proud faces. She sighed softly and closed her eyes to stop the tears that were about to spill out.

Holding her pipa, she bowed slightly and then stepped off the stage. The audience was enjoying the performance, and with Qingyin's established reputation, they were unwilling to let her go. Cheers for another round of applause rose and fell. Xu's mother was also standing at the edge of the stage, looking at Liu Yin with a gratified expression.

"Qingyin, look how kind everyone is to you, why don't you go up and sing a few more songs?" She brushed her hair back, took Liuyin's hand, and pushed her onto the stage.

"This... Mother, it's not that I don't want to sing, it's just that I've just recovered from a serious injury and my throat really can't take it." Because she was feeling depressed thinking about her past life, Liu Yin didn't feel like responding and just made up an excuse to brush it off.

"No new songs are fine, old songs are fine too. Qingyin, have you thought this through? What did you say yesterday?" How could Madam Xu let her off the hook?

"Of course I know, but I just can't bear to hear my voice, Mother." Seeing that there was no other way, Liu Yin had to open her mouth and sing a few notes so that Xu's mother could hear the hoarseness in her voice.

"This..." Upon hearing this, Madam Xu frowned slightly. She hadn't expected Qingyin's throat to become so dry after only four or five days of rest. Not wanting to push her too far, she could only smile and tell Liu Yin to go back upstairs while she turned around and went on stage to comfort the guests.

Most of the guests in the audience came from prominent families. Although a few people made a fuss, most of them smiled and agreed, maintaining their status and expressing their anticipation for Liu Yin's performance the next day. Of course, no one knew whether it was true or not, but it seemed that Qing Yin's popularity remained unchanged.

Liu Yin paid no attention to any of this. Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, she picked up her skirt and went back to her room. Along the way, she couldn't help but hear the congratulations from some regular guests and the envious or jealous glances from her sisters in the harem.

As soon as she entered the room, Jiao Jie'er came up to greet her and took the pipa. Then she came over to help Liu Yin remove her makeup and loosen her hair, her face showing the usual attentiveness: "Madam, you sang even better today than at the banquet."

"Is that so..." Liu Yin didn't have the energy to deal with her change, so she smiled at her and said, "I'm tired too. You go ahead and do your work. I'll rest for a while."

"Oh..." Upon hearing this, Jiao Jie'er quickened her pace and hurriedly helped Liu Yin remove her hair.

Liu Yin washed her face and was about to lie down on the bed to rest when she heard a knock on the door. Yue Hong hurriedly went to open the door, but it was Xu Yueling who came in.

After she came in, she looked around before turning to Liu Yin, who was staring at her, and said with a smile, "You really stood out today. You're definitely better than us. Even with your face ruined, you can still make a comeback."

"Lady Yue Ling, did you come to me just to say these things?" Liu Yin lowered her eyebrows and smiled, pretending to be unintentional.

“That’s right, I just happened to be free, so I came over to learn from you. If I ever fall on hard times, I can learn a trick or two from you to get back on my feet.” Xu Yueling brushed her temples with her hand, a gesture exactly like her mother’s. Liu Yin already knew from her memories that this was a subconscious little action of Xu’s mother when she felt guilty or was scheming.

"I'm really tired today. If Lady Yueling truly wants to learn from me, please come again tomorrow." Liu Yin was in a bad mood and had no interest in engaging in witty banter.

"Oh, okay, whatever, then I won't bother you anymore." Xu Yueling seemed to remember something and readily agreed, turning to leave. "Oh, right, I forgot to mention, I heard from Master Xu that Old Master Xue specially asked Mama to comb your hair, but you refused. I heard he was quite unhappy. After all, we're all courtesans, so we can't be presumptuous, can we? After all, no one is the next Hongyu."

Liu Yin sensed something amiss in her words and pondered for a moment before asking the maidservant who was tidying up beside her, "What's wrong with Hongyu?"

"Yesterday, before Hongyu even went to Yanxia Courtyard, two young masters rushed in and stopped her, claiming they wanted to redeem her from her servitude." When Jiaojie saw Liu Yin suddenly mention Hongyu, she simply put down what she was doing, moved an embroidered stool, and sat down in front of Liu Yin to say this.

"Oh?" Liu Yin didn't think of the boy who bumped into her for the first time, but rather the handsome young master who had lost his jade pendant. For a moment, she was lost in thought.

"I heard that young master's surname is Xue, and he's a famous... well... ah, a renowned scholar from Wenyuan Academy in our Qinhuai Prefecture." Jiao'er didn't notice Liu Yin's lack of focus. She sat there thinking for a long time before finally remembering the name of the academy.

"I heard that Young Master Xue has only come to our place twice and has taken a liking to Hongyu. Since then, although he hasn't come every day, he's been coming every few days. Before long, Hongyu became Young Master Xue's customer. It's common for a courtesan to have more than one customer. Madam and Master Zhang didn't think much of it at first, but last month, the two of them suddenly came to Madam and said they wanted to redeem Hongyu from her servitude." Yuehong paused and continued, "Madam knows the rules of the brothel. Whether the courtesans redeem themselves or are redeemed by a customer, they have to pay the brothel a sum of money, not to mention their future clothes, jewelry, houses, and houses. All of this has to be squeezed out of the customers. Madam asked Young Master Xue to pay a sum of money to arrange a marriage for Hongyu. But although Young Master Xue comes from a wealthy family, he is the youngest son and doesn't have much money to spare. So Madam asked Hongyu to go and extort money from Master Zhang."

"Yes, I know that. And then?" Liu Yin nodded.

There is such a rule in brothels, especially in first-class brothels. Generally speaking, a prostitute can cover all her daily expenses from the time she goes on the business until she redeems herself. If she goes to a few more places, she can save up a lot more. However, if she wants to redeem herself, she basically has to return the money to the brothel. Therefore, many prostitutes will squeeze a little more money from their clients before redeeming themselves, so that they can cover their future expenses. However, most prostitutes redeem themselves into the inner courtyard of their clients, so they only squeeze a little money as a token of their appreciation.

The most famous and ruthless among them was the previous head courtesan of Qingyin Hall. Although she only had three or four regular customers, one of them was from an extraordinary family and was very generous to her. It is said that she gave him five hundred taels of silver as a settlement fee after she redeemed herself. Even so, she still put on a show with her mother and extorted more than a thousand taels from him, as well as a house. Even the money for redemption and the money for the government to release the women in the brothel were paid by that customer. It can be said that she was ruthless and exploitative.