Tang Dynasty Puppet Doctor

Chapter 26: King Huo's Daughter
The real Huo Xiaolian lived in Shaohuayuan in Wenroufang, and most of the people living in this place were official prostitutes under the jurisdiction of the Jiaofangsi, and it was also a gathering place for literati and poets.

Talented men and beautiful women, golden and powdered buildings, have become the most magnificent music here.

Wang Wuniang also changed into men's clothes and took her to Shaohuayuan. Shaohuayuan was bustling with people and singing, as if some competition was being held.

Coming to such a place, Murong Huan certainly would not have the high spirits and fun that the men had. She also knew that most of the women here were reduced to official prostitutes due to family ties and crimes. From the noble ladies of wealthy families to the lowly prostitutes who were there for people's pleasure, even if they did not sell their bodies, they were still despised by the world.

She would not belittle the status of these women.

"A sparse firefly flies over the mandarin duck loom, a wild goose flies beside the magpie bridge... The bright river is within sight but not within reach, I wish I could ride on a raft and ask for directions."

There was singing, and Wang Wuniang brought Murong Huan to a spacious hall. Inside, there were several scholars reciting poems, and on the stage, there was a radiant woman playing the piano, and beside her, there were several dancers dancing with their sleeves waving.

"Ms. Lingxiang dances very well, but Ms. Xiaolian's piano playing is even better!" a scholar praised.

"Can anything be better than Scholar Song's poem "Minghe"? Hahaha..."

The man's tone was still mocking, and Murong Huan couldn't help but ask, "What are they laughing at?"

Wang Wuniang looked embarrassed, and whispered an explanation to Murong Huan, "Although this Scholar Song is a fifth-rank scholar, his character is not good. He is a flatterer who serves the Wu family's relatives. In the early years, when the Saint was still the Empress Dowager, she recruited several talented scholars with extraordinary literary talent to serve as her Northern Gate Scholars. This Lord Song once wanted to recommend himself to the Empress Dowager, but was rejected. So, Scholar Song wrote this poem, 'Minghe Pian.' Although it is very literary, many scholars at the time ridiculed it as a confession of love to the Empress Dowager."

"And no matter how hard Scholar Song tried, he never gained the Sage's favor. Rumor has it that the Sage disliked his bad breath, so... Because of this rumor, Scholar Song had to brush his teeth multiple times a day and even hold a chicken tongue incense in his mouth when attending court. From then on, he became a laughing stock among the scholars!"

"I see!" As Wang Wuniang explained, Murong Huan gradually formed some impression of this person in his mind. "Is his name Song Zhiwen?"

"Yes, so you know this, Mr. Su?"

Murong Huan was stunned. She couldn't explain these memories that appeared in her mind, which were similar to herself but not like herself.

Since he couldn't explain it, he simply nodded and got back to the point: "Is the young lady playing the piano Huo Xiaolian?"

While asking, Murong Huan's gaze also fell on the strings of the zither in the woman's hand.

The crystal clear strings sparkled extremely brightly in the dim candlelight.

The woman sang in a melodious voice and smiled sweetly. Occasionally, when she looked up, her eyes were charming and her light was flowing, as if conveying some kind of melancholy emotion.

Wang Wuniang replied, "Yes, it's her!"

As soon as the two men finished speaking, they heard another voice say, "Do you think you can laugh at Scholar Song's poems? If you have the ability, how about you write a poem that is better than his 'Minghe Pian'?"

As the voice came, the person who walked in front of everyone was actually Zhou Xing.

As soon as the scholars saw Zhou Xing, they immediately wilted like eggplants hit by frost, and no one dared to laugh at or criticize him anymore.

Zhou Xing's eyes swept across everyone's faces, and soon they landed on Murong Huan. "Oh, what a coincidence! I actually see Su Silangjun here again! I never thought such an elegant gentleman like Su Silangjun would come to a place like this for fun."

"Have you set your sights on the most famous courtesan here? Or are you here to compete for the title of poet?"

Murong Huan said, "I'm not very good at writing poetry!"

"Oh, so they're here to see the famous courtesan!" Zhou Xing pointed at the woman playing the zither and asked, "Do you want this Miss Xiao Lian?"

Following Zhou Xing's finger, the woman playing the piano stiffened and the sound of the piano stopped abruptly.

Murong Huan smiled and said nothing.

Zhou Xing walked up to her and said, "If you can come with me to my house, I will redeem this little girl Lian and give her to you. What do you think?"

"Why is Minister Zhou so interested in me?"

"Then why are you so interested in Zhou Jiulang's case?" Zhou Xing asked. "You even volunteered to help the Dali Temple investigate. Have you uncovered any clues?"

After saying this, he glanced at Wang Wuniang who was standing beside him.
"Why is Wang Wuniang here? Are you two having a secret meeting here?"

"My son Jiulang was not murdered by you guys?"

Zhou Xing's continuous questioning made Wang Wuniang look slightly surprised, and Murong Huan felt a chill in his heart: Is he testing what she has found out?
What happened when Lu Ling and a group of detectives went to the Su family early this morning was known to no one except the Su family.

And why is Zhou Xing so interested in her?
She could think of no other reason except that someone had informed him.

At this time, Ah Shu angrily added: "Your son has done so many evil things, and there are so many people who want to kill him. What does it have to do with my husband? If you have the guts, why don't you ask those young ladies who were killed by Zhou Jiulang and thrown into the bottom of the well?"

As soon as she finished speaking, a loud buzzing sound was heard all around!
"What does it mean? The young ladies who were killed by Zhou Jiulang and thrown into the well?" Many scholars asked questions.

At this time, someone continued, "I heard that Zhou Jiulang died in the abandoned Huo Wang residence. Lu Shaoqing sealed off the place early this morning, and it seems that several more corpses have been dug up at the scene!"

"These corpses are the girls who disappeared in the past!"

"So, Zhou Jiulang was killed by a female ghost in the middle of the night because he killed those girls?"

Hearing these discussions, Zhou Xing's face suddenly changed. At this moment, a man's voice came from outside the door and said, "Minister Zhou, you don't think everyone you see is the murderer of your son Zhou Jiulang, do you?"

Zhou Xing's heart trembled, and he turned his head suddenly, and saw that it was Xiao Muchen who walked in with a group of guards. They just stood in front of Murong Huan, blocking Zhou Xing's sight.

"Minister Zhou may not be aware that the case of your son, Zhou Jiulang, is now spreading throughout Luoyang. There's also the case of the body found at the bottom of the well in Prince Huo's residence! This case has already been reported to the Sage, causing him to fly into a rage. Minister Zhou, why not return and confess your guilt to the Sage and explain the whole matter?"

Zhou Xing looked horrified. He knew what Zhou Jiulang had done, of course, but he had long ago told his adopted son to do things cleanly and leave no evidence. And yet... he was found by the Dali Temple?

In panic, he turned away.

Xiao Muchen then turned his gaze to Murong Huan: "What are you doing here?"

The tone was quite displeased.

Murong Huan said: "Come and find evidence!"

After saying this, he walked up to the woman playing the zither and asked, "Are you Prince Huo's daughter? Li Xiaolian?"

Huo Xiaolian is just a stage name in a story. The daughter of King Huo Li Yuangui should have the surname Li.

"That's not right. You're so young, you're just the granddaughter of King Huo at most!"

The pretty girl covered her mouth and giggled, then stood up and walked in front of Murong Huan and Xiao Muchen.

"Today's two distinguished guests are exceptionally handsome. Do you wish to have Xiao Lian accompany you and spend the night with you?"

As Huo Xiaolian spoke, her soft hands first reached out to Xiao Muchen, but just when they were about to touch his cheek, they suddenly turned and went to Murong Huan's face.

"Mr. Xiao is too awe-inspiring and unattainable. I still prefer people like you who are approachable." As she spoke, her slender fingers followed the lines of her cheek and went down to Murong Huan's chest, where she was grabbed by Murong Huan's wrist.

Wang Wu Niang blushed and hurried forward, saying, "Xiao Lian, stop joking! She's the benefactor I told you about. If you have something to say to her, then let's have a good chat!"

Wang Wuniang's words made Murong Huan startled: It turned out that this young lady Xiao Lian wanted to see her?
Upon hearing this, Huo Xiaolian also put away her playful and flirtatious expression. Her eyes turned darkly, and then she raised her lips and smiled. After walking a few steps slowly, she turned to them and said:

"Okay, then please come to my room and chat!"

……

As a popular figure in Shaohuayuan, Li Xiaolian's room does not seem so luxurious. There are walnut tables and chairs, and some famous calligraphy works and an unfinished calligraphy on the desk.

Murong Huan picked up the calligraphy and saw the following words: "It is easy to find priceless treasures, but hard to find a true lover." "Tears fall silently on my pillow, my heart breaks among the flowers..." Finally, the poem takes a turn, adding the line "The wind whistles, and the Yi River is cold."

The overall handwriting is elegant and vigorous. If it had not ended up in such a place, it would have belonged to a talented woman of the time.

"Is Huo Xiaolian's story really your story? Then who is the scholar in the story?"

"Actually, the scholar in the story isn't that important. He's just a clown! Do you want to hear my real story?"

Li Xiaolian smiled sadly and continued, "Three years ago, my family suffered a disaster and all the women in the family were imprisoned by the Jiaofang Bureau. My mother and I lived a poor life together. I was good at playing the zither, so I became a prostitute. One day, an elegant man fell in love with my music. He often came to listen to my music until one day he redeemed me. But what I didn't expect was that the man sold me to Zhou Jiulang. In order to please his father, Zhou Jiulang gave me to Zhou Xing.

After that, I suffered humiliation at the hands of them, father and son, and only by submitting to injustice could I survive to this day!"

Having said that, Li Xiaolian actually took off her clothes, revealing a part of her fair back.

Ah Shu couldn't help but let out a low cry of fear!

Murong Huan was also stunned with horror, because what she saw was that Li Xiaolian's back was covered with intricate and ugly scars, which formed a huge contrast with her delicate appearance.

Xiao Muchen also fell silent and didn't speak for a long time.

"Did Zhou Xing and his son do all this? Why did they treat you like this?"

"It's just because I'm the granddaughter of King Huo!" Li Xiaolian said with a wry smile. "Zhou Xing and his son have always used all means to humiliate the daughters of powerful and prestigious families, just to satisfy their perverted desire for revenge!"

At this point, Li Xiaolian knelt down before Murong Huan and Xiao Muchen again and pleaded, "I know that as a criminal, I will never be forgiven by the saints. So even if this happened to me, I dare not expect anyone to seek justice for me. But I have one request. I beg you two to bring Zhou Xing to justice. Even if I die, I will repay you in my next life!"

After she said this, she bowed her head to the ground and kowtowed, then called an old woman over and handed a scroll of paper to Murong Huan.

When Murong Huan opened it, he saw that it was full of shameful things that Zhou Xing and his son had done by taking advantage of their positions, such as oppressing innocent people, embezzling and accepting bribes, and even forcing women into prostitution.

Especially at the end of the scroll, there was a map of Zhou Xing's mansion, which marked where the storehouse, bedroom and study were, as well as what dirty things he had hidden.

This was exactly what she lacked now, and it was a pleasant surprise for her that she had gotten it without any effort.

"Why did you choose to give this to me?" she asked curiously.

Such important evidence cannot be casually shown to others unless it is someone you trust the most!
Li Xiaolian smiled and said, "Because Wu Niang mentioned you to me, and you were able to save her, it shows that you have a kind heart. I believe you! Moreover, someone also wrote to me, asking me to seek your help!"

"Who?"

Li Xiaolian took out a paper crane and handed it to Murong Huan again.

When Murong Huan opened it, he saw a line of words written on it: Su Jia Silang can help you with revenge, but you have to give him the map of Zhou Xing’s mansion!

This word!

Murong Huan felt as if he had been hit on the head: This was clearly his own handwriting!

(End of this chapter)