How to become a Taoist priest starting from a brothel

“Mom, think about it carefully. Ever since Liu Jianniang started writing lyrics and music for the hall, just that one song, ‘Pipa Language,’ has made us earn so much more every day. Not to mention what happened with Luanqin and Yinling. For the next month, we were making a fortune every day. Even if we lose a year of her contract, it won’t matter. Two years isn’t enough for us to earn.” Xu Yueling said as she sat down next to her mother.

"That's true, but that's a whole year's worth of money." Mrs. Xu was really unwilling to give up the money that Liu Yin had brought her.

“That’s true, but Mother, there are only a few well-known priestesses in the red-light district these days. How would you know their abilities if they’re nameless? This delay will not only affect the sisters in the brothel, but it might also affect our own business.”

"What impact will it have on our business? I'm not bragging, but with my skills, this business will only thrive." Hearing her daughter say this, Mrs. Xu raised an eyebrow, seemingly displeased.

Seeing her rather unconvinced look, Xu Yueling had no choice but to analyze it for her in more detail: "Does Mother know how much Liu Jianniang is worth in the market these days?"

"Of course I know." Mrs. Xu looked at her daughter with some confusion, not understanding why she brought this up.

"Does Mother not understand? We rely on a contract. If the Warm Moon Pavilion, Spring Willow Tower, and Flower Shadow Pavilion offer a large sum of money to redeem her and ask her to become a teacher, can we stop them?"

"This..." Madam Xu was also a little stunned when she heard this. She thought that she would definitely agree if she were in Liu's shoes. Moreover, she found that Liu was not as short of money as she seemed when she visited the Liu residence. She wondered how much money Liu had taken from the master who redeemed her back then. If Liu Yin proposed to redeem herself, Liu would probably be eager to help pay the money.

Thinking of this, she frowned slightly and hesitated: "Then what do you suggest we do?"

Seeing that her mother was wavering, Xu Yueling poured her a glass of water and then said with a smile, "Mother, don't be confused. Just agree to her, but we also have a request."

"Go ahead," Xu's mother said, looking at her daughter, wanting to hear her idea.

“Let’s have Liu Yin provide one set of lyrics and music every month. In two years and twenty-four months, that’s twenty-four sets of lyrics and music. That’s enough to support Qingyin Hall for many years. By then, we won’t have to worry about her leaving.”

"This...is not a bad idea, but what if she releases new lyrics and music elsewhere two years later? Wouldn't that still affect us?" Mrs. Xu was still somewhat hesitant.

“That’s easy. We can just sign a new contract stipulating that she can’t write new lyrics or music for a certain period of time after she leaves.”

"Is this feasible? I've seen that girl for who she is now; she's not willing to suffer any loss. Last time, I only managed to extort a little money from her, and she's already controlling me like this." Madam Xu was still somewhat hesitant.

“Mother, how could you forget? There’s also that contract.” Xu Yueling looked meaningfully at the box where her mother kept the contract.

Mrs. Xu turned over and realized what was going on in a moment. She tapped her daughter's forehead with a helpless expression and said with a smile, "You've learned a lot from me, and you're much better than your sister. I used to think you were frivolous, but you've become much more mature after going through a lot. It's good that you're like this now."

Xu Yueling listened to her mother's praise without saying a word, just sitting there obediently smiling. However, when she heard her mother say that she was better than her sister, a trace of hatred flashed in her eyes, but it disappeared quickly, leaving only a humble smile. She breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that from today onwards, that foolish sister would no longer be her opponent, and barring any unforeseen circumstances, she would be the next boss of Qingyintang.

After the mother and daughter had discussed it, Xu's mother naturally stood up to look for the contract from back then and planned to talk to Liu Yin in the next couple of days. However, she sat back down the moment she stood up.

Seeing this, Xu Yueling looked at her mother with some doubt. Then she saw her mother pour her a glass of water and said hesitantly, "Do you think Qingyin's abilities can really bring about such a big change? She didn't seem to have this talent at all back then."

"Mother! Be careful what you say!" Upon hearing the name Xu's mother mentioned, Xu Yueling quickly stood up, ran to the door, opened it, looked around, and then turned back to her mother. "Mother, you're so careless. Have you forgotten what I just said?"

Only then did Mrs. Xu realize that she had made another slip of the tongue. She quickly tapped her mouth lightly before whispering, "I misspoke."

“It wasn’t an accident. Mother should be careful. You offended Aunt An and Aunt Liu with your careless words back then. Why couldn’t you hold back again?” Xu Yueling didn’t know the truth of what happened back then, but she had experienced her mother offending many people because of her loose tongue since she was a child. She had always wondered how someone with such a loose tongue could run Qingyintang. She just assumed that her mother was good at managing things. But after seeing the conversation between Cui Heng and her mother earlier, she realized what had happened.

Seeing that her daughter seemed unwilling to let it go, Xu's mother had no choice but to bring up the topic again to save face.

Hearing Xu's mother's words, Xu Yueling couldn't help but laugh and said, "Mother is confused. When she was learning her craft, she tried to hide her talents many times and was punished many times. Later, I had to take her to the brothel and Baifangyuan to take a look before she calmed down and obediently listened to me. Besides, she is good at playing the zither, chess, calligraphy and painting. What does it matter if she can write lyrics and music? She is not the kind of person who shows off her talents."

“That’s true, but I always feel that this is not something she could do. I think there must be someone else writing it for her.” Mrs. Xu explained her suspicions to her daughter in detail.

Xu Yueling didn't interrupt her narration, only saying after she finished: "Why doesn't Mother think about what kind of ghostwriter she can find? A talented man? A talented woman? Which of those people treats the women of brothels as human beings? Especially those talented men who want to molest us and look down on us, why would they ghostwrite for a minor teacher in a brothel? As for talented women, where in this world are there talented women if you're not from a noble family? The only place that can read is brothels, but why would the women of brothels give away their reputation and wealth to someone else?"

"That's true, but things can change unexpectedly. There are always literate but poor people in the world who would be at her beck and call. What if there is a woman who doesn't want to be involved in brothels?"

"Yes, what Mom said is all possible, but I don't believe she can do it. The first piece was written right under our noses. Even if the later pieces weren't composed by her, just this one piece, 'Pipa Language,' is enough for her to establish herself in the red-light district and prove that she has the talent. Why should she pursue anything else?"

"But if I got that ghostwriting job, why would I let this girl blackmail me? I'd have my own ways to deal with her." Mrs. Xu was filled with resentment.

"But what if not? Mother, why don't you think about how much men in this world look down on us? And scholars are even more inclined to refuse charity. If we can write one or two poems for her, are we going to write for her for three years? It's not impossible for a woman to do it, but even if she doesn't want to get involved with brothels, there are other ways. Why write for someone else? Mother, you should think carefully. If there is a way, that's best. If not, this time we'll have completely broken ties with Liu Yin. At that time, given her personality, it will be even harder for us to turn back."

Mrs. Xu also frowned and hesitated. Of course she knew that Xu Yueling was right, but the resentment of having her pride humiliated by the little girl she had casually crushed back then still made her reluctant to back down first: "Alright, you go ahead and do your work. I'll think about it some more."

"Mom..." Xu Yueling was about to continue speaking when her mother impatiently interrupted her again. Seeing this, she had no choice but to leave, letting her mother figure it out herself.