Chapter 25
In ancient times, not just anyone could be a courtesan. A little beauty was definitely not enough.
Who would go to a high-class brothel?
It was an entertainment place for scholars and the children of either the rich or the noble. Regardless of whether they were silkpants or wealthy businessmen, they all had one characteristic in this brothel, and that was to be arty and cultured. Even if they were not cultured, they had to be cultured.
There was no need to talk about literati. Every time they opened their mouths, they would talk about poetry. Therefore, the courtesan of a brothel not only had to be outstanding in appearance, but also had to be proficient in music, chess, calligraphy, poetry, song, and dance.
Pang Yu could tell that the young man's foundation was extraordinary just by watching him play a commercial song on stage. Of course, Pang Yu could only feel that her foundation was extraordinary. As for whether she was good or not, he didn't feel much.
He really didn't know how to taste things.
After the song ended, the other rich playboys kept cheering.
"The Young Master of the Four Seas Bank will reward you with 3,000 strings ~"
Just as Pang Yu was listening, one of Qian Kaicai's servants walked out of the private room and shouted loudly. He was stunned. Reward?
After that, many other rich playboys started to call for rewards. This was 500 strings, that was 2,000 strings. Pang Yu was confused by this.
"Gao Baoshen, why did you reward him? Let's watch a show and spend so much money?”
Pang Yu asked curiously as he pulled Gao Baoshen over. Why did he look like he was watching a live broadcast in the future?
"Lord Marquis, how could you forget this? In this Courtesan Belle Competition, the top ten people who receive gifts from each Courtesan Belle can become the Courtesan Belle's guests after the competition. They can talk about poetry and songs with them, and they can even dance for you."
Pang Yu's eyes popped out when he heard that.
"Motherf * cker, isn't it just a flock of chickens? Why are all of you still acting like this? F * ck, after the Courtesan Belle Competition, bring 300 imperial guards and surround these brothels. Take the Courtesan Belle back and take a good look at her. Is she a golden branch or a rotten fish or a rotten shrimp? She even talks about poetry and songs. F * ck ~ Does she understand?”
Pang Yu felt that he was acting too much. The more he acted, the more he wanted to snatch it back with force.
"Alright, now that Lord Marquis has the gold medallion in his hands, we'll snatch it from him.”
Gao Baoshen chuckled.
Pang Yu rolled his eyes at him and didn't say anything. The previous year's Courtesan Belle of the Splendid Pavilion won first place, so the first performance of this year's song was performed by the Splendid Pavilion.
Next were the other three brothels in Kaifeng.
There were four most prosperous brothels in the capital, namely the Jade Immortal Brothel, the Shaohua Pavilion, the Ink Pavilion, and the Fragrant Yard.
These four brothels were not only the most expensive among the brothels in the capital, but the quality was also the best. The girls inside were also carefully selected.
The top courtesan of Shaohua Pavilion was Miss Xiang Rong, and the top courtesan of Yuxian Tower was Miss Yu Xuan.
The top courtesan of Wen Mo Xuan was Miss Xi Lian, and the top courtesan of Fragrance Yard was Miss Meng Yun.
The courtesans of the four brothels each played a song before leaving. This afternoon, they only had this one scene. They were just showing their faces to warm up the scene. They would only have their singing and dancing at night. Behind them were the courtesans from other brothels.
Pang Yu couldn't tell how the other courtesans played, but their appearances were not bad either. In the future, they would be goddess-level.
The sky slowly darkened, but Pang Yu seemed a little bored because he really couldn't understand these things. He was good at discussing the art of the human body, so he didn't need to talk about music, chess, calligraphy, and painting.
However, what made Pang Yu indignant was that the Imperial Court was too good at making money. The money these profligate sons gave to courtesans was split in half by the Imperial Court. Not only that, the remaining money could not reach the courtesans. The Imperial Court even had to collect taxes, causing Pang Yu to call them bastards in his heart.
However, just as he was about to fall asleep, a person in a crimson official robe appeared in his eyes.
"Zhan Zhao ~ Hiss, so you're also interested in Courtesan Belle. As expected of someone from my generation ~"
Zhan Zhao went straight to Pang Yu's private room. Just as he pushed open the door and walked in, Pang Yu stood up and laughed.
"Lord Marquis, please follow me to Kaifeng Prefecture. I have something urgent to discuss with you ~"
Zhan Zhao cupped his fists and said. He didn't look like he was joking.
"Something urgent? What urgent matter?"
Pang Yu was stunned. During the Courtesan Belle Competition, what was so important? A case? That's impossible. Bao Zheng is not bad at solving cases and is not afraid of power. Why would he look for me?
"This matter is of great importance and cannot be said. Lord Marquis will know when he arrives at Kaifeng Prefecture.”
Zhan Zhao said.
Pang Yu nodded and said,"Alright, I'll make a trip."
When they arrived at Kaifeng Mansion, the sky had already turned completely dark. Bao Zheng was pacing back and forth in his own residence, his brows furrowed into a ball.
"Blackie Bao, what's wrong? Don't tell me you want me to step in when you snatch that family's daughter and they come looking for you?”
Pang Yu looked at Bao Zheng and teased.
"Marquis An Le, there's something important. At the end of the day, Ouyang Xianggong disappeared after hosting the opening ceremony of the Courtesan Belle Competition.”
Bao Zheng said immediately when he saw Pang Yu.
"Damn, I didn't say anything important. It's only been six hours since the middle of the day. Ouyang Xiu, that old man, was also a romantic scholar back then. He might be hugging a lady in that corner now ~"
Pang Yu laughed nonchalantly after hearing this.
"No, he was supposed to go to the Imperial College to teach this afternoon. He also said in advance that he would definitely arrive this afternoon. However, he never appeared. At first, I thought he had something else to do and didn't have time to inform him. However, when an official of the Imperial College went to the Bian River to look for Ouyang Xianggong, he found this not far from the river."
Bao Zheng took out a purple goldfish bag from his sleeve.
The purple goldfish bag was not something that ordinary people could carry. Officials of the third rank and above in the imperial court and nobles wore goldfish bags.
Above the fifth grade is the silverfish bag.
The purple-gold fish pouch was given to the leaders of the literary world in the Song Dynasty. There were no more than five people in the entire Song Dynasty who could wear the purple-gold fish pouch personally given by the emperor. This was not the main point. The main point was that the fish bag was equivalent to an identity card in ancient times.
The fish bag contained the official's name, position, rank, salary, and treatment. Therefore, in ancient times, a fish bag was equivalent to an identity card.
Pang Yu opened the Purple-gold Fish Bag and took out the item inside. This was indeed Ouyang Xiu's item. The words 'Ouyang Xiu' were written on it.
The Purple Gold Fish Pouch was a gift from the Emperor, so Ouyang Xiu couldn't possibly lose it just like that. There was only one outcome, and that was that Ouyang Xiu was most likely kidnapped.
"Ouyang Xiu is the leader of the literary world in the current dynasty. His status is extraordinary. Although his official position is not high, he has a high prestige in the scholarly community. The person who kidnapped him must have other motives, not money. Ouyang Xiu was also the leader of the literary world, so he was very important.
Once they discover that they have been kidnapped, the imperial court will definitely seal off the entire city ~"
Pang Yu took off a jade pendant and handed it to Zhan Zhao.""Immediately take my jade pendant to the Grand Preceptor's Residence and have my father mobilize the Imperial City's soldiers to seal the capital. Bao Hei Zi, let's go to Bian River ~"
"Since the purple goldfish bag was found near the Bian River, Ouyang Xiu was definitely kidnapped near the Bian River. Let's go and see if there are any other clues.”
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