Chapter 309.1: The Person Behind The Assassination
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S T E L L A R C L O U D
[Azurixa] [Celeste S.] [Christine G.-L.]
O R A N G E S T A R
[Debra W] [Fazzienaz] [J Jean] [K.Rom] [Manon]
[Smurfinbatik] [Tori D.] [Ziana K.-P.]
Y E L L O W S T A R
[Chlaudette P.] [Jia Y.] [Maria P.] [Mel Melz] [Passerby]
G O L D S T A R
[Cindy] [Nanashi D. Y.] [Nicole] [Reece P.]
R A I N B O W S T A R
[Allie] [Amanda] [Book W.] [Britnae M] [Christigale M.] [Haruka N.] [Kiiayame]
[kuroneko_chan] [Leticia P.] [Lily J.] [Liznel M.] [Michelle K.] [onepiece]
[Philomena N.] [Quae] [Sweetlove]
Also, many thanks to everyone who bought me coffee (*≧∀≦*)
The Heavenly Music House, as the most rapidly rising brothel in the capital, had surpassed the once famous Soft Jade Pavilion. Aside from the fact that the girls inside really had fairy-like beauty and were truly talented, its unique business model had also captured the appetite of the capital's dignitaries.
Gu Jiao arrived at the door.
The doorkeeper was a woman. After looking at the token Gu Jiao held out before her, she let her in without saying anything.
Gu Jiao, who was visiting a brothel for the first time, felt excited and refreshed.
It wasn’t what she expected at all. There wasn’t the scene of drunken revelers drinking and gambling together or pushing their wine cups to one another, nor was there the singing of a warbler and the dancing of a swallow. Instead, the sound of the stringed and woodwind instrument here wasn’t chaotic, but like a melody from heaven.
Walking through the spacious hall, Gu Jiao occasionally saw girls passing by him.
Gu Jiao took a glance at them and thought that they indeed looked like celestial fairies.
It was as if she had entered a celestial world, they were just lacking a little bit of celestial aura.
Suddenly, a begonia flower fell onto Gu Jiao's shoulder.
Gu Jiao did not reach out to pick it up and just let it fall to the ground.
A faint sigh came from the railing on the second floor, "Young master doesn’t seem to want my flower, do you dislike me?"
This remark shattered Gu Jiao's fantasy of the celestial world, finally giving her a little taste of the brothel.
Gu Jiao looked up and saw a woman with a half-face mask covering her nose and upper face while completely leaving her rosy lips and delicate jaw, as well as her cold and clear eyes exposed.
"Oh!" The woman on the second floor exclaimed, unconsciously straightening her posture.
Gu Jiao’s figure was considered tall among women and she had a natural valiant personality, making it effortless for her to play the role of a handsome young master.
The woman's exclamation attracted several of her companions who also stood at the railing of the second floor, and they all looked at Gu Jiao.
"Young master, take a look at me."
Someone waved a handkerchief towards Gu Jiao.
Gu Jiao might not have eaten pork but she had seen a pig run. These women, who had the leisure to strike up a conversation with a stranger man, mostly held less significant positions within the Heavenly Music House.
They were not her target.
Several people tried to seduce Gu Jiao for a long time but didn't see her respond in any way, which inevitably elicited some complaints.
"What a bummer!"
"Right? He doesn't even think much of our big sis Lianxiang, I don't know who he is here for?"
Lianxiang was the girl who threw a begonia flower at Gu Jiao.
"Could she be looking for elder sister Qianxue?"
"Ha, would elder sister Qianxue even see her?"
"Who wants to see me?"
A lazy and gentle voice slowly echoed from the end of the hallway.
The group of young ladies, engaged in a chat about Gu Jiao, turned around in unison and differentially saluted the figure that approached, "Sister Qianxue!"
The young lady they called Sister Qianxue looked no older than seventeen or eighteen years old, and appeared younger than some of them, but their position within the Heavenly Music House was not determined by age alone.
"What are you looking at?" She asked in a commanding tone.
Clad in a pristine white dress and draped in a striking yellow outer robe, Sister Qianxue exuded a luminous charm that shone brightly, dazzling everyone’s eyes.
She wore a veil of the same hue as her robe, giving out a mysterious atmosphere and softly outlining her features yet retaining an ethereal quality.
Even women couldn’t help being attracted to her.
She seemed to be accustomed to this kind of response and no longer expected them to give her answer. She simply turned her gaze downwards, peering over the railing.
"Oh."
With a small exclamation, she arched her eyebrows as her gaze traversed the other party from head to toe. She uttered, "Aiya, here's a fine young man. Have someone escort him up. I'll take care of this gentleman myself."
With that, she spun on her heel and ascended to the third floor.
The servant girl, following closely behind, replied with a crisp ‘Yes’ before taking her leave and approaching Gu Jiao with a curtsey. "Young master, my miss invites you in."
Gu Jiao shot her a look, declining the invitation.
The servant girl’s face fell. "You...do you not know who my miss is?"
Gu Jiao fixed another meaningful look at her: Oh? And who might she be?
The servant girl puffed up her chest, her hands planted on her hips. "My miss is none other than the most famous courtesan of the Heavenly Music House! Everyone wants an audience with her, but only the lucky few are granted one. And yet, she has taken notice of you and desires to meet you!"
This statement wasn’t an exaggeration. The famous courtesans in Heavenly Music House were not common prostitutes who sold their bodies, but rather high-end entertainment, granting their time and attention to only one lucky individual every three days, for a mere hour at a time, at a very considerable cost.
Yet despite this, the capital was still teeming with unsavory men clamoring for a chance to be behind the curtains with them.
She must indeed be a very big fish.
After a moment's contemplation, Gu Jiao inclined her head in agreement and informed the servant girl that she would accept her miss's invitation.
The servant girl felt a headache. Was it simply her imagination, or did the young master's gaze just now seem laden with an unspoken evaluation?
Regardless, if her miss desired to have an audience with him, she had no choice but to escort him upstairs, no matter how strange he might seem.
Gu Jiao obediently followed the servant girl to the third floor.
She was completely unaware of the envious gazes of the guests below which trailed after her figure.
It was very difficult to gain access to the renowned Heavenly Music House. Here, it wasn’t the guests who would select their companions for the night, but rather the talented young women who reside within who would make the choice. A lucky few may be escorted to the second floor, but for the less fortunate, a lonely tour of the lobby was the extent of their visit.
Only a handful of people had been to the third floor.
Gu Jiao certainly didn’t know how lucky she was, but she could vaguely feel the stillness surrounding the third floor.
"Miss, here comes the young master." The servant girl announced Gu Jiao's arrival.
"Let him in."
The woman said from within the room.
The servant girl pushed the door open and beckoned Gu Jiao in with a smile. “Go ahead, young master.”
Gu Jiao stepped into the room.
The servant girl softly closed the door from the outside.
The furnishings within the room looked simple, but perhaps this was simply due to Gu Jiao's lack of knowledge on antiques. Each vase displayed in the room was, in fact, a prized possession hailing from the previous dynasty.
The young lady sat in front of the dresser, wiping her hands with the cold cream and looking at Gu Jiao through the bronze mirror.
The woman had a pair of expressive eyes.
Even though her face was obscured by a veil, Gu Jiao could sense a smile playing upon her lips.
She invited, "Please, have a seat, young master."
Gu Jiao settled into a chair.
After applying the cold cream, the young lady gracefully rose from her seat and made her way towards Gu Jiao.
She took a seat in the chair beside her, with only a low square table separating them.
She poured a steaming cup of tea for Gu Jiao and offered it to her with a delicate hand. "Is this your first visit to the Heavenly Music House?"
Gu Jiao nodded in affirmation, yet declined to drink the offered tea.
The woman exhaled a sigh, "Is the young master afraid that I may have poisoned it, or that the tea may not be of pure quality?"
Without waiting for Gu Jiao's answer, the woman directly took the cup of tea and took a hearty sip from the cup. Then, seemingly brushing this matter aside, her expression turned serious as she asked, "What brings the young master to the Heavenly Music House?"
Raz P.'s Thoughts
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