The prince is more stable

Chapter 31 Bianjing Brothels
He thought he had made a small fortune by robbing the playboy today, but after counting the money, Zhao Xiaoqian was disappointed.

A dozen strings of cash is certainly a large sum for ordinary people, but for Zhao Xiaoqian, who was determined to spend money in brothels, this amount of money was only enough to buy a pot of wine and watch the girls sing a few lines from a distance.

This consumption method is definitely not in line with Zhao Xiaoqian's original intention.

Zhao Xiaoqian's original intention was "Mr. Zhao will pay for all the consumption today," rather than "Can you give me a 20% discount on this pot of wine? Please..."

If you can't afford high-end places, then go somewhere cheaper.

As for Zhao Shuangzheng's feelings, don't worry too much.

There is no need for men to be pretentious. In his previous life, treating his roommate to a bowl of spicy hot pot could earn him the sincere call of "godfather". If Zhao Shuangzheng's conscience had not been eaten by a dog, the dozen or so coins he spent on treating him would be enough for him to call him godfather for the rest of his life.

"Go to the brothels!" Zhao Xiaoqian was a little excited when he left the palace.

Strictly speaking, today was not only about consumption, but also the first time for him to carefully tour the city of Bianjing.

Zhao Shuangzheng didn't know what made him so excited, but he wouldn't spoil his fun.

The two of them got on the carriage and headed straight for the most prosperous place in Bianjing.

The brothels and prostitutes in Bianjing were two different places with different consumption methods and naturally different amounts of money spent.

A brothel is equivalent to a high-end business KTV. Unlike a thousand years later, the brothel girls in the Song Dynasty could accompany guests to drink and sing, but they were not necessarily willing to spend the night with the guests.

Moreover, they have clear target customers, that is, talented men or powerful young men with prominent family backgrounds. Of course, they usually dare not refuse powerful men in high positions.

The brothels and theaters were for mass consumption and of a lower quality. There were also singing girls to accompany the guests, but the guests were more likely to enjoy the shows. The shows were not just singing and playing by the singing girls, but also acrobatics, storytelling, magic tricks, sumo wrestling and other performances by men. There were a lot of shows.

Most of the brothels in Bianjing City were concentrated in Zhouqiao and Panloudong Street. Zhao Xiaoqian and Zhao Shuangzheng stopped outside Zhouqiao, both wearing gorgeous clothes and brocade belts, walking leisurely.

Zhouqiao was crowded with people, and the shops along the street were a bit messy and looked quite dilapidated, but the surrounding business was very busy and intensive, with people constantly coming in and out of every shop.

There were also groups of foreign merchant caravans with horses and camels passing by, leaving hot animal dung on the road, and the smell was really unpleasant.

Where people gather, that is where ordinary people go to have fun.

Various brothels can be seen everywhere. The so-called brothels are actually very simple. They are just a large shed with wind blowing from all sides on the street, with a dozen tables and chairs inside.

There were guys outside the brothel shouting to attract customers, loudly announcing what performances would be going on today to attract customers to come in.

There were also middle-aged prostitutes with sad faces and no longer the beauty of their years, who cautiously begged passers-by to ask them to accompany them for a while.

There are also some ragged idlers and hooligans squatting on the roadside in groups of three or five. These people do not have a proper job to make a living, or rather, their means of making a living is to act as an intermediary and run errands.

Bianjing is a prosperous city, a picture of all living beings. Even the most outstanding painter can paint people and bones, but he cannot paint the joys, sorrows and sufferings of all living beings.

Zhao Xiaoqian and Zhao Shuangzheng randomly found a brothel and went in. The solicitor was overjoyed to see that the two were well-dressed. He quickly invited them in and found a table with the best view for them to sit down.

The brothel had already opened at this time. On the stage in front, two middle-aged men were performing acrobatics. A thick, long hemp rope was put around one man's neck, and the other was pulling one end of the rope hard.

The man's neck was strangled tightly, he clenched his teeth, and his face turned purple. Zhao Xiaoqian was worried that he would die on the stage, but the guests around him burst into applause.

The two ordered a pot of rice wine, a few plates of snacks and side dishes. The waiter brought a clay jar and covered the jar with a layer of gauze. The wine in the clay jar was filtered through the gauze and poured into the jar.

This method is very particular, it is called "sifting wine". The winemaking technology in the Song Dynasty was not very mature, and low-grade wine contained many impurities, which had to be filtered with gauze before it could be consumed.

Zhao Xiaoqian had no preference for alcohol. He did not refuse it, but he was not addicted to it either. He only drank it occasionally.

I took a sip from the cup. The rice wine tasted very ordinary with a hint of alcohol. The alcohol content was about ten degrees, which was equivalent to the alcohol content of red wine in my previous life.

Two middle-aged singing girls approached cautiously and carefully begged Zhao Xiaoqian if they could accompany him.

Zhao Xiaoqian was not interested in the beauty of the two singing girls, but he could not bear to see the poverty in the world. After smiling and politely refusing them, he took out two pieces of silver from his pocket as a reward for them.

The two singing girls had tears in their eyes and said goodbye with many thanks.

Zhao Shuangzheng, who was sitting next to him, looked at him in surprise, then smiled and continued to look at the stage.

The show was performed very hard, but Zhao Xiaoqian did not comment.

This was actually just a low-end, small-scale Spring Festival Gala. Zhao Xiaoqian hadn't watched CCTV's Spring Festival Gala in years, so he wasn't interested in it. But Zhao Xiaoqian really enjoyed the atmosphere at the moment, which was full of the atmosphere of everyday life.

The trivialities of the city and the noise and bustle brought by the hustle and bustle made him feel that he was living a solid life.

"Brother Zi'an looks like you're in a tight spot financially?" Zhao Shuangzheng suddenly asked.

Zhao Xiaoqian was shocked. Wealth is like walking in brocade clothes at night, but I have become poor and everyone can see it at a glance. Is this the cruel reality of life?
Zhao Xiaoqian was not in a position to talk about the fact that his prodigal father had emptied the family wealth, as family disgrace should not be made public.

"I'm really not well off, otherwise I would have invited you to the brothel today. But although I'm poor, I'm very happy." Zhao Xiaoqian said stubbornly.

Zhao Shuangzheng thought for a moment and said, "Is this what they call 'poor but happy'?"

"If you can't speak human language, you can donate it to people in need." Zhao Xiaoqian said with a straight face.

Zhao Shuangzheng laughed heartily and said, "Brother Zi'an, don't be upset. I'm quite wealthy. Well, today is an exception. I'm inauspicious today and was robbed for no reason... How about I treat Brother Zi'an to a drink at the brothel tomorrow?"

"Please me, I'll agree."

Zhao Shuangzheng: “…………”

"I'm just kidding. I beg you, please, please take me to the brothel for a drink tomorrow. Please."

Zhao Shuangzheng laughed loudly, as if... he hadn't been this happy for a long time.

This new friend seemed to be really different from the other playboys in Bianjing City.

When people are poor, they have low aspirations. When they are poor, talking about money makes them feel particularly heavy-hearted.

Speaking of money, a plan to make money suddenly popped up in Zhao Xiaoqian's mind.

"Brother Bingshen, I need your help with something."

"Brother Zi'an, please give me your orders."

Zhao Xiaoqian lowered his voice and said, "Those bastards who participated in the last Cuju match, please call them all out of the city. I have wine, stories, and a strong desire to talk to them.

Zhao Shuangzheng's eyes lit up: "Brother Zi'an, are you finally going to snatch them away?"

Zhao Xiaoqian gave him a strange look and said, "Why are you so excited when I snatch them?"

Zhao Shuangzheng was so excited that he was trembling all over. "I've always wanted to do something like this, but I didn't dare. If you want me to do it, I'd be your vanguard!"

Zhao Xiaoqian was speechless.

Why are you so excited about such a common bad thing?

Is this guy a pure and innocent naive person?

Zhao Xiaoqian did intend to rob the money of the playboys in Bian Jing. Strictly speaking, it was not called robbery, but "compensation."

He couldn't get over the Cuju match incident and fell into a coma, almost dying. If he didn't say anything after waking up, he would not be able to act arrogantly in Bianjing City in the future, and would continue to be ridiculed by others.

Making money from the playboys is not the goal, but just a means. Zhao Xiaoqian's goal is to establish his authority in the playboy circle in Bian Jing. He wants the playboys in Bian Jing to have an impulse to kneel down when they see him in the future. That would be success.

This is generally the case with the shows in brothels, nothing too exciting.

After drinking a pot of rice wine, Zhao Xiaoqian felt a little bored.

Just as I was about to leave with Zhao Shuangzheng, I suddenly heard a chuckle coming from the next table.

Zhao Xiaoqian couldn't help but turn his head to look, but saw two young men sitting at the next table, also dressed in gorgeous clothes and brocade belts.

Zhao Xiaoqian just glanced at it, and his eyes became a little strange.

I'm a bit speechless. A woman wears men's clothes and puts her hair in a men's bun. Does she really think she has successfully disguised herself as a man?
Were you ancient people so innocent?
Chest, wrap yourself in more layers, sister!

Otherwise, others will think you are a sissy fitness coach who only trains chest muscles.

(End of this chapter)