Knife splashing

Chapter 679: Meeting Old Friends One After Another

Dusk was falling and the drum tower in the inner city had just struck the hour of Xu.

The prince of the British palace was wrapped in a brocade cloak, and the jade pendant on his waist swayed back and forth under the lantern.

The two palace guards behind him were obviously not fools.

Since persuasion is not possible, we must ensure safety.

Whenever they walked through a dim street, they would put their hands on the hilt of their knives and scan the surrounding alleys like hawks.

The layout of the capital city of China is generally very particular.

"Zhou Li Kaogong Ji" records: "The craftsmen built the country, which was nine li square, with three gates on the sides. There were nine longitudes and nine latitudes in the country, and nine tracks on the longitudes. The ancestral temple was on the left and the community temple was on the right. It faced the market behind, and there was one man in the market.

The general idea is to build a capital city of nine square miles with three gates on each side.

There are nine roads running vertically and horizontally in the city, and each road is wide enough for nine cars to run side by side.

To the left of the palace is the ancestral temple, to the right is the altar of grain and grass, in front is the imperial court, and behind is the market, each covering an area of ​​one hundred steps square.

The area of ​​capitals in later generations continued to expand, but they all followed similar rules.

But after the establishment of the Daxuan Dynasty, the tradition of "court in front and market behind" was broken. Brothels in the Qianmen area were adjacent to shops and teahouses, and the court lifted the curfew policy, so it gradually became a "gold-consuming den".

Crossing the street and approaching the front door, the hustle and bustle and lights hit me in the face.

But I saw that all the shops in other places were closed, with lanterns hanging at the doors at most. But here, there was a whole row of lanterns standing tall, with bright candlelight, loud music, and the laughter of men and women.

The streets were also crowded with people, including gangsters walking arm in arm with each other, merchants with servants, and even many people in casual clothes and official boots, who raised their hands to invite each other. They were obviously court officials.

"Hurry, hurry up!"

The prince of the British palace was already looking impatient.

The two guards had no choice but to quicken their pace.

The three of them were extremely eye-catching, and as soon as they walked out of the dark alley, a bunch of people greeted them.

"Meet the Prince of Hai."

"Your Majesty, you haven't been here for a while..."

"Yes, Qinxiang still keeps talking about you."

This young man was obviously a familiar customer here. Many people gathered around him, their eyes shining.

That's the look you give to a fat sheep.

"Get out of the way!"

The two guards immediately became annoyed and stretched out their hands to push away the people who were surrounding them.

"Everyone, I'm sorry, I have to go to Piaoxianglou today!"

"Prince Hai" seemed to enjoy this feeling very much. He laughed and led his men deeper into the streets.

The people around him were not angry, but instead gave respectful reminders.

"Prince Hai, please hurry up, Prince Wang and the others are here."

"Yes, it's been two years since the 'Shulang' was so lively..."

When the "Prince Hai" in front heard it, he immediately lifted up his robe and trotted away.

After he left, the few people immediately stopped smiling and their faces were filled with mockery.

"Wasn't this idiot just put under house arrest? Why is he let out again?"

"Of course he ran away. Didn't you see he didn't even get in the carriage?"

"Hey, hey, watch your words. This is our big money sponsor. Let's set up a trap tomorrow..."

They huddled in a corner and discussed in low voices, not noticing that Li Yan had passed by with his straw hat on.

Naturally, the words of these people were heard.

Li Yan was already feeling somewhat disappointed.

Judging from the situation, this prince is a person who is not valued and is not welcomed.

It would be difficult to rely on it to sneak into the British palace.

But now that things have come to this, we can only wait and see.

While he was thinking, the three people in front of him stopped.

Li Yan also looked up and saw that the so-called "Piaoxiang Tower" was a three-courtyard layout. On the side facing the street was a two-story building. A plaque with the words "Qingyin Yaji" hung on the gate tower, and there was no sense of romance at all.

The front hall gatehouse is wide open, but a wooden screen is set up to block the view from the street.

The window frames of the rooms on the second floor are all covered with red gauze, which allows light to pass through but not shadows, and provides good privacy.

Li Yan was also a veteran and he could tell the foundation of "Piaoxianglou" at once.

It is clearly imitating the top-notch "Qingyin Small Class", but it opens its doors to do prostitution in the downtown area. It is not as good as the best, but better than the worst, and is most likely to attract those fat sheep who like to pretend to be cultured but are impatient for sex.

"Prince Hai, the 'Hanmei Pavilion' has been prepared for you."

Seeing the prince and his two companions, the leading servant at the door hurriedly bowed and came forward to greet them.

His face was full of submissiveness, but when he raised his hand, half of a tiger tattoo was revealed on his sleeve.

When Li Yan saw this, his eyes narrowed slightly.

He is from "Huweitang"!
Both Zhao Wanfang and Luo Mingzi introduced the situation in the capital to him.

Apart from the Xuanmen people, there are three major gangs in the city.

Dongcheng is the "Iron Anchor Society", whose sphere of influence is along the canal docks from Dongbianmen to Chongwenmen.

They run a shipping company and control the "Five Elements" of East City, namely the "vehicles, ships, shops and gangs". Their gang members have iron anchor patterns tattooed on their left arms and are good at using tools such as cables, iron hooks and shoulder poles as weapons. Their moves are ruthless but their lower body is steady.

His open businesses include "Shunfeng Shipping Company" and "Tonghe Warehouse", and he secretly runs "Shuiguitang".

This gang was born out of the Cao Gang and later connected with the Dongcheng Bingmasi.

In the south city is the "Huweitang", whose sphere of influence is from Yongdingmen to Tianqiao.

It was originally founded by an eliminated official from the Duwei Division, and was dedicated to protecting the goods of wealthy merchants in South City. Later, it absorbed refugees from the southwest to form a gang.

All gang members have tiger tattoos on their arms and copper tiger head badges hanging around their waists.

Initially he only ran an escort agency, but now he wants to get involved in all kinds of businesses.

Xicheng is the "Tongtuo League".

It is not called a gang, but more like a chamber of commerce, which was jointly supported by merchants from Shanxi and Shaanxi and mainly aims to protect the business of the chamber of commerce.

Although these three gangs occasionally have unpleasantness, they mostly keep to themselves.

After all, the gang leader is just a handyman, and what to do is all decided by the forces behind the scenes.

Li Yan waited in the dark alley for a while. Seeing that more and more people came to "Piaoxianglou", he walked towards the door.

"Sir, please stay."

As soon as he reached the door, he was stopped by the servant who had just arrived.

"Sir, you look unfamiliar. Is this your first time in our store?"

The young man had a smile on his face, but he made a gesture with his back to the enemy, and his companions immediately gathered around him and pressed on his waist.

Li Yan frowned slightly and looked around.

The servants greeted everyone else respectfully, except him.

It's strange to say, this place is expensive, and other people are either dressed in gorgeous clothes or bring servants with them, but he is the only one who has a Dust-breaking Knife on his waist and a flintlock holster hanging on the side of his waist covered by his cloak, which naturally arouses vigilance.

"what happened?"

Li Yan glanced at him calmly and said, "I am from Ezhou, and I am not allowed to enter this place."

"Feel sorry."

The waiter still had a smile on his face, "Our shop only accepts regular customers."

Li Yan was not panicked at all, and said with a smile: "It is unreasonable to chase away customers when running a shop. Order some flower tea."

Go ahead and say it, and he took out a silver note worth five hundred taels from his pocket.

The so-called "ordering flower tea" is brothel slang.

In some high-end hotels, first-time guests need to pay a high price for tea.

To use the words of the previous life, it means verifying capital and screening customers.

Of course, no tea party would cost five hundred taels, it's just to prove one's strength.

"this…"

The leading servant was embarrassed after hearing this. He was not a full-time pimp in the brothel, but was sent to look after the place.

If Li Yan didn't understand, it would be fine, but the one who could say "order flower tea" was either a man of the underworld or a frequent visitor to the brothel. Once he chased the person away and said something nonsense after leaving, "Huweitang" would have broken the rules of the underworld.

Seeing that more dignitaries and wealthy people were arriving, the servant finally gritted his teeth and said, "Forget it, since we are old friends, let's show our skills! This kiln is the best of the Tiger Hall. Today, several wealthy people have come here. If you want to show off, just go ahead. But if you dare to show off, you will be at odds with our Tiger Hall!"

Li Yan grinned, "No problem, the online tricks are clear!"

"A distinguished guest!"

The servant clasped his fists and shouted loudly inside.

It is both a welcome and a warning. Please pay more attention to the tough guys when they come.

Li Yan frowned slightly and strode into the gate.

He originally wanted to go in and find an opportunity to get close to Prince Hai, but seeing the situation, he decided to keep a low profile.

Turning the screen, the view in front of me suddenly opened up.

The atrium has a high carved beam, and the scenery below is a winding stream, which is very elegant.

Behind the flowing water is a stage where an old man and a young girl are singing tanci.

There are private rooms on the first and second floors, and the sounds of men and women drinking and having fun can be heard from inside.

"Guest sir."

The middle-aged madam came over, and when she saw Li Yan's appearance, she immediately smiled with her handkerchief covering her face, "Sir, this is your first time here, right? Are there any girls you know?"

"No, can you introduce one to me?"

Li Yan chatted and laughed, looking around, handling the situation with ease.

"Of course, please follow me first."

As the madam spoke, she was about to lead him to the left wing on the first floor.

Li Yan frowned when he saw this, "The front hall is too noisy, I like it to be quiet."

But he remembered that Piaoxiang Tower was a large house with three courtyards and Prince Hai had gone to the rear.

"Oh, that's unfortunate."

The madam looked embarrassed and said, "The backyard is full of guests. Today is Miss Hu's day to comb her hair."

"What a coincidence!"

Li Yan clapped his hands and smiled, "I have also heard that Miss Hu is extremely beautiful, and I want to meet her."

But the madam still refused to agree, and changed the subject with a smile: "Young Master, please forgive me, the backyard is really full of guests, and they are all nobles. We can't ask them to vacate their rooms, I can't afford it..."

As he was speaking, a voice suddenly rang out from behind, "Hahaha, Aunt Liu, you are really blind!"

Li Yan turned his head and immediately thought that something was wrong.

The visitor turned out to be an acquaintance.

It was when he was in Chengdu that he met Dong Cunshan, a master of Bagua School.

At that time, he rescued everyone from Censor Wang's mansion, and Dong Cunshan went to Chongqing for help. Although he missed the battle of Wang's mansion, the soldiers he brought with him were like timely rain and helped to resist the Chengdu rebels.

The two sides met only a few times, but they were still friends for life.

Without waiting for the other party to speak, Li Yan hurried forward and bowed, saying, "Li Cheng from Ezhou, nice to meet Master Dong."

Dong Cunshan was also a shrewd man. He smiled and said without changing his expression: "Brother Li, we haven't seen each other for a long time."

After that, he looked at the madam, his face turned gloomy, "What's going on?"

The madam hastily apologized with a smile, "Master Dong, there is no room in the backyard, this young man wants..."

"What a big deal!"

Dong Cunshan sneered, "Brother Li, just follow me and get some good wine and food."

"Of course, Uncle Dong knows our chef's skills."

The madam continued with a smile, as if what had just happened had never happened.

After Li Yan and the other two left, the madam breathed a sigh of relief and whispered to the person beside her: "That person is not of the right identity, be careful."

The servant outside the door just now was also full of fear, "Why don't we check it out..."

"Check it!"

The madam scolded, "You must have been kicked in the head by a donkey. Didn't you see that Dong Cunshan of Bagua Sect treated you with courtesy? If there is anything, just push it to Bagua Sect. Turn a blind eye and just deal with tonight first."

"Those young masters are fighting with each other, who knows what bad things they might do..."

…………

On the other side, Li Yan had followed Dong Cunshan to the backyard and followed Gui Gong into the east wing pavilion.

The warm fragrance of the elegant room fills the air, and a rosewood screen separates the room from the noise outside.

Next to the zither table sat a girl with a snake-like bun. Her fingertips touched the zither, and the overtones sounded like broken jade falling on a plate.

"You go first. No music tonight."

Dong Cunshan waved his hand, drove the woman away, and then looked at Li Yan.

But he was in no hurry to speak. Instead, he waited until the turtle man brought a table full of wine and food before he stood up, closed the door, and said solemnly, "Brother, what happened?"

"The capital city is full of evil spirits, it's not easy to show up."

Li Yan smiled slightly, "It turns out that Brother Dong also has this hobby."

"Hahaha…"

Dong Cunshan stroked his beard and laughed, "You are so famous in the brothel, why are you laughing at me?"

As he spoke, he sighed, "I injured my meridians in Chengdu. Although I have recovered, my martial arts career is over. I have no chance to move forward. I might as well make up for all the suffering I have endured over the years."

He knew that Li Yan didn't want to talk about it, so he didn't ask any more questions.

Obviously, the battle in Chengdu not only hurt him physically, but also hurt his spirit.

If it were in the past, we would definitely have to figure out which "evil wind" in the capital city Li Yan was talking about.

"Don't mention sad things, brother. I'll toast you a glass."

Li Yan picked up his glass, clinked glasses with Dong Cunshan, and said with a smile: "Brother Dong, this Piaoxianglou is really lively tonight. What kind of girl is combing her hair? It's so mysterious."

"The woman's surname is Hu, and she is from Guandong."

Dong Cunshan replied: "I haven't seen one either, but I heard that the few people who have seen one were all bewitched and infatuated with them, and then the story became more and more bizarre. Damn, how beautiful can it be? To put it bluntly, it's just a trick used by brothels. There are several of them every year before the selection of the most beautiful woman."

"The reason why it's so lively tonight is because a few young masters in the capital are fighting, and everyone is here to watch the fun."

"The auspicious time has arrived. Miss Hu is getting married!"

As he was speaking, a turtle's cry suddenly came from outside the door.

Dong Cunshan immediately stood up and opened the window.

Li Yan also walked to the window and looked out.

The backyard was cleverly designed. In the due north, a two-story embroidered building was built with flying eaves and several gold-painted gauze lanterns hanging on it, making the building look like it was dipped in rouge. The railings were carved with peony branches and the paint was bright, showing that someone had been taking good care of it.

It is surrounded by the southeast and west wing rooms. When you open the doors and windows, you can just see the embroidery building.

But at the railing of the building, two maids lifted the curtain and a red figure slowly walked out.

The girl was wearing a crimson gauze dress embroidered with gold. Her neckline was slightly open, revealing her snow-white skin. The belt around her waist was adorned with silver bells that rang softly in the night breeze.

Just seeing this figure made many people swallow their saliva.

As her slender fingers lifted the veil that half covered her face, a face that was extremely bright and beautiful suddenly appeared.

Her eyebrows are like distant mountains with dark shadows, her eyes are like autumn water with gleaming light, her lips are like a touch of vermilion, and she is charming even without smiling.

What’s special is that there is a shallow scar on his left eyebrow, which not only does not detract from the color, but also adds a bit of heroic spirit.

The fusion of various unique temperaments has a unique charm.

The young men in several side rooms were all staring with wide eyes.

And Li Yan was also staring at the embroidery building.

He was not looking at the girl, but the woman who was serving him with her head bowed behind her.

It was also an acquaintance whom I hadn’t seen for many years.

In Lijiabao, the widow Wang who worships the spirit of exorcism...

(End of this chapter)