How to become a Taoist priest starting from a brothel

"So that's how it is. I wonder what kind of exceptional talent and beauty that Lady Liu Jianniang must possess. It was truly a great regret that I wasn't in Huaicheng that day," Wen Shuyun said with a regretful expression.

Liu Ziheng nodded vigorously, as if afraid Wen Shuyun wouldn't believe him: "Brother Shuyun, you haven't seen her. That Lady Liu may not be considered particularly beautiful, but her voice, her emotions, her technique, her talent, and her demeanor are all top-notch."

Wen Shuyun couldn't help but chuckle at the longing on his face. However, when she thought of the woman she had met at Qingyin Hall yesterday while reading the story of "Red Rain," she realized that she might also deserve such praise. It was just a pity that she hadn't met her again after going there several times.

“Speaking of which, a particularly talented female poet has recently arrived. I heard she’s going to have a competition with Master Liu in a few days. Brother Shuyun, you should come along so you can witness Master Liu’s brilliance.” Liu Ziheng clapped his hands, recalling the news he had heard before coming, and made a time for Wen Shuyun. “Oh, and Brother Mozhu too, let’s go together.”

“Okay.” Wen Shuyun’s ears had been filled with his constant talk about Liu Dajia all morning, and now that he was curious about her, he naturally agreed.

"By the way, I sent my servants to steal some books today. If they succeed, I'll give you one too." Liu Ziheng was naturally pleased that he agreed, and couldn't help but bring up the books from this morning again.

This conversation didn't end until the teacher entered the classroom, finally giving Wen Shuyun's ears a rest.

Unfortunately, when school was over, Liu Ziheng walked over with a disappointed look on his face. I couldn't help but go up to him and ask, "What's wrong, Brother Ziheng?"

"I didn't manage to snag the book... I knew those guys were all talk and no action, looking down on Liu Dajia's works as crude, but when it came to grabbing the book, they ran faster than rabbits." He regretted believing their disdain and not having someone wait for him earlier.

"No..." Wen Shuyun was about to say that her family had some connections with the Zhang family who printed the books, and that she had obtained them in advance last night and could borrow them to copy, but she was interrupted by Liu Ziheng.

“I’ve got it! Isn’t the eldest son of the Zhang family studying at the academy? I’ll go find him and ask him to join the queue.” Without waiting for Wen Shuyun to say anything, Liu Ziheng headed towards Zhang Wen’an’s classroom.

Seeing this, Wen Shuyun had no choice but to suppress her words, and instead became even more curious about Liu Jianniang.

When Liu Ziheng arrived at Zhang Wen'an's classroom, he found that he had already been surrounded by students who couldn't buy books. He jumped around and squeezed his way in several times but couldn't get close to Zhang Wen'an. He could only listen to the chattering inside from the outside.

"Brother Wen'an, could you please save a copy of that book for me?"

“Brother Wen’an, we are close friends, you can’t leave out my copy.”

"Brother Wen'an, although we have no personal relationship, you will still be well paid for. This is the errand fee and the cost of the books."

As the sound of money being taken out rang out, the others followed suit, handing money to Zhang Wen'an's table, completely ignoring Zhang Wen'an who had been interrupted repeatedly when he tried to speak.

Some people, worried that the money wouldn't be handed over, even threw it over there, which frightened Zhang Wen'an so much that he covered his head and squatted under the table, not daring to come out. He kept muttering, "Cousin, you've ruined me. I should have believed you when you said at the academy that my family was printing the books."

In fact, this was a situation that Liu Yin had never imagined. She always felt that even though her books would have some influence on the world, she was still of humble status and her writings were not those of ordinary people.

However, she never expected that just a few days before the second volume was sold, the headmaster of Wenyuan Academy suddenly wrote a manuscript praising "The Biographies of a Hundred Flowers". With the headmaster's reputation, the manuscript became a hit all over the country as soon as it was published, and "The Biographies of a Hundred Flowers", which was praised by the headmaster, naturally became a popular book.

Those who previously criticized her for using vulgar language have now changed their tune and praised her for her ancient writing style, which is reminiscent of antiquity. Heaven knows which ancient era they are referring to, since Liu Yin had read the previous book that was praised for its ancient style, and it was incredibly obscure and difficult to understand.

However, she was naturally very happy that the books were selling well, and even the challenges she faced could not dampen her joy, even after seven or eight days of sales.

"Bang, bang, bang." Several knocks sounded at the door. Aunt Qian went to open the door and saw a woman standing outside.

Before Aunt Qian could speak, the woman handed over the invitation: "My family name is Zhang, and I am from the Zhang family of Xicheng. My wife deeply admires the talent and learning of Master Liu and has specially invited us to a gathering at her home."

Before Aunt Qian could reply, she handed over a box of gifts, leaving Aunt Qian bewildered. She took the box blankly and before she could say anything, several women jumped out from the side and shoved their things into her hands. Upon closer listening, they turned out to be invitations.

After Aunt Qian carried the things into the mansion, Liu Yin and Madam Liu came over to watch the spectacle. The two of them had already heard most of what was going on in the mansion, but they hadn't paid any attention to it. They never expected to see such a spectacular scene.

“The Zhang family, the Xue family, the Shen family, the Liu family, the Wang family… There are many large and small businesses in Huaicheng, but not many are truly respectable. Yet, more than ten families have sent invitations. What do you think?” Madam Liu exclaimed in surprise as she flipped through the invitations.

Liu Yin naturally understood what she meant, and couldn't help but smile and reply, "Forget it, let's cancel them all. I have no interest in chatting with those rich businesswomen."

"If you really don't go, this refusal will ruin your reputation. Aren't you afraid people will say you're arrogant?" Although Madam Liu said this, she didn't really want Liu Yin to go and join in the fun.

"It's alright. I just need to prepare for the competition these next few days, and I also need to write a book later. I really don't have time." Liu Yin looked through the boxes that were presented to her. Most of them contained exquisite jewelry, so she lost interest.

“Alright, but you should still pick a few places to visit.” Madam Liu nodded, but still suggested another solution: “You can choose not to protect your reputation, but you can’t let others ruin it.”

"I don't know much about it, Mother, could you tell me which place to go to?" Liu Yin happened to see a small box containing not jewelry, but an interesting travelogue, so she took it out and started reading.

"Let's skip the others. Why don't you visit the Zhang and Shen families? They're the leading families. If you go to the others, you'll only get a general idea of ​​what's going on. Besides, both of them have invited you to the flower viewing banquet." Madam Liu thought for a moment and took out the invitations from the Zhang and Shen families.

Liu Yin glanced at the Shen family name on the box containing the books and, having developed some interest in the family, nodded in agreement.

"Shuyun, pack your things. We're going back to the capital. Something happened to Father." Wen Shuyi, who was usually calm even in the face of a collapsing mountain, looked at Wen Shuyun, who had just entered the house, with a panicked expression.

"What!" Wen Shuyun was stunned. Seeing his brother's ugly expression, he also changed his expression instantly. He hurriedly ran into his room. Seeing the servants helping to pack the trunks, he instructed the servant to take the books from the desk before he went out to see his brother in a panic.

At this moment, Wen Shuyi's expression had softened. He said to the frightened Wen Shuyun, "Shuyun, be prepared. We may not be able to come back from this trip."

Wen Shuyun didn't know what was going on, but judging from his brother's expression, he knew it was a serious matter. He could only nod in agreement and didn't dare to ask what had happened, since he would find out once he got to the capital.

The servants were quick and efficient, and soon the two brothers, along with their servants and belongings, headed off into the distance. Once they were outside the city gates of Huaicheng, Wen Shuyun couldn't help but look back. He had missed Liu Jianniang's performance again, and he wondered if the two were destined to be apart, and whether he would ever see the woman who had caused him so much trouble again after this parting...