My transformation into a beautiful girl started with a hemorrhage.

The rich girls in brothels are taken by their masters as soon as they are born.

While this statement is true, brothels are indeed luxurious and extravagant places. Unlike ordinary people who use copper coins for transactions, brothels use silver, gold, and silver notes at the very least, making them a place for the wealthy.

But this isn't the kind of place Hui is looking for! Hui just wants to steal some silver, not rob someone.

Feeling a little empty after leaving the warm embrace of the woman she had just been in, Hui turned to leave this brothel.

Just then, a conversation from not far away reached Hui's ears:

Hey, did you hear?

"What did you hear?"

"Tonight, Yu Youwei, the most beautiful courtesan of the Drunken Red Mansion in Jiangnan, will be holding a poetry gathering on the Qinhuai River in the capital. The winner of the gathering will not only receive a thousand gold pieces, but will also be greeted by Yu Youwei herself!"

"What! Drunken Red Pavilion? Isn't that the most famous brothel in all of Jiangnan? I have to go and check it out. Who knows, I might even win the poetry competition and gain Miss Youwei's favor!"

"Stop dreaming! You'd never get a chance in your next life. Besides, the talented He, once known as the Little Poet Saint, is long gone. I bet Miss Youwei is already basking in his pleasure!"

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"A poetry gathering... worth a fortune!"

Hui felt her heart pounding wildly.

In this era, there is no paper money, and gold is still a hard currency. However, gold is something that only the rich can afford, and ordinary people simply cannot afford it because the exchange rate of gold to silver is 1:10. Ordinary people may not be able to earn even one or two ounces of gold in their entire lives.

So if it really is a thousand pieces of gold, then it would be ten thousand taels of silver.

"Ten thousand taels of silver! How am I supposed to spend ten thousand taels of silver?!"

Hui was intrigued and felt she could give it a try.

After all, who would want to rob the rich to help the poor if they could abide by the law?

Furthermore, Hui is confident about the poetry gathering.

Although this world has internal energy and martial artists, the number of martial artists is far too small, and in addition, the overall policy of the imperial court is to emphasize civil affairs and suppress military affairs.

Therefore, in society, literary talent is the mainstream, and poetry and prose are highly sought after.

Of course, the imperial court only dared to suppress martial arts, but not to ban them. Moreover, this "suppression" was not aimed at sects and martial arts families, but at ordinary people. On the one hand, the imperial court did not want the number of martial artists to expand further, but on the other hand, it tried its best to win over ordinary people who became martial artists.

Hui had previously discovered a problem: it seemed that the world did not have the famous ancient poets she remembered, so many famous poems did not exist in this world.

Hui had never imagined that poetry and songs could make money. In her opinion, poetry and songs were for men to use to woo young women, and she was a woman, so why should she use them to hook men?

So Hui only now realizes that she has been guarding a treasure mountain without even knowing it.

"It's time to shoulder the important responsibility of spreading the excellent traditional culture of the Chinese nation!"

After saying that, Hui resolutely walked towards the poetry gathering of that girl, Youwei.

Chapter 188 My Son Follows Me

After walking a short distance in the direction the man pointed, I arrived at the Qinhuai River, where a large crowd had already gathered.

His gaze swept across the crowd.

Above the rolling waves of the river, a colossal pavilion stood silently in the water. Though called a pavilion, it was actually a massive floating behemoth comprised of numerous brightly lit pleasure boats connected together. Just its presence at the riverbank completely blocked out any other boats. The boats, intertwined and connected, shone brightly in the dark night. Looking further in, the three-story luxurious pleasure boat at the very center was particularly striking. Its extravagance wasn't just due to its height and size, but also because of its dazzling lights. The other boats seemed to surround it, highlighting its grandeur, magnificence, and opulence.

In the dim light, Hui could almost see that the place was already bustling with people, clinking glasses and creating a lively and extraordinary scene.

"Could it be that it's already over?" Hui thought to herself unconsciously.

Thinking of this, Hui secretly used her cleverness to squeeze through the crowd and arrive at the front.

A wooden walkway covered with a red carpet connected the boats to the shore, and two burly men stood guard at the entrance of the walkway.

"These are practitioners at the Ming Jin level." Hui observed that the two burly men were strong and powerful, with broad backs and thick waists, and their breathing was forceful and powerful—typical characteristics of practitioners at the Ming Jin level.

'But why are all these people gathered here instead of going up?'

Hui casually approached someone nearby and voiced her question: "Excuse me, sir... what are you all doing here? Why don't you go upstairs?"

Upon hearing this, the man looked at Hui and saw that he was a pale-faced scholar. He then said disdainfully, "Do you see the riddle on that sign? Miss Yu Youwei's poetry gathering is not open to just any Tom, Dick, or Harry. To enter, you must answer this riddle."

Upon hearing this, Hui noticed that there was indeed a sign next to one of the burly men that read, "Follow me." He also realized that the people surrounding him were pondering the answer.

Looking at these four characters, Hui fell into deep thought. She felt that she remembered some poems, lyrics and songs, but she had never touched this kind of riddle before.

'No way! I'm going to die before I even get started!'

Hui Ming racked his brains, but couldn't come up with any clues. Just as he was worrying, he saw a young man wearing a black, narrow-sleeved robe with gold embroidery, a vermilion and white jade belt around his waist, and a delicate jade pendant hanging from it. He was dignified and exuded nobility. He walked straight in without answering the question, and the two burly men didn't say anything.

So Hui asked the person again, "Why did that person walk past without answering the riddle?"

"That's the son of Minister Li, of course he doesn't need to answer the riddle!" the man replied in a matter-of-fact tone.

After the young master of the Li family went in, another person soon came in. Although he was dressed neatly, he was only neatly dressed. At first glance, he exuded an air of simplicity and poverty.

Hui then asked, "Isn't the person behind him some son of a high-ranking official? Why was he also allowed to go in directly?"

"That's Liu Jieyuan, who came in first place in this year's provincial examination. He's a hot candidate for the top three in this year's metropolitan examination, so of course he can go straight in." After saying that, the man looked at Hui and teased, "Hey, you're really something. How come you don't know such common sense? Could it be that you're some rich family's kept boy who secretly ran away to play?"

Hui didn't take the man's rudeness to heart; after all, he was just an ant.

Hui now roughly understands the requirements for getting into Yu Youwei's poetry gathering: either talent, power, money, or...

So, without further ado, he headed straight for the passage.

It's a riddle, who knows what the answer is! Besides, if you can get in through privilege, why bother using your brain!

Does Hui have special privileges?

Really!

"Stop! If you want to participate in the poetry gathering, please answer this riddle." A burly man stretched out his strong, thick arm to block Hui's way.

Seeing the burly man blocking her way, Hui didn't say much. She immediately began to circulate her internal energy. With a wave of her hand, a Heaven-Splitting Blade Qi shot out, forming an invisible arc that sliced ​​through the air and split a wooden mooring post five or six meters away in two with a "crack!"

The blade's energy left a straight cut in the ground!

A master of immigration!

Everyone felt a chill run down their spines!

The lively scene just moments ago fell into a deathly silence!

The internal strength of martial artists, no matter how many times you see it, is always so mind-blowing and awe-inspiring. Of course, whether it's awe or fear, no one can say for sure...

"My lord! I was blind and offended you. Please be lenient and don't hold it against me!" The two tall, burly men immediately bowed and begged for mercy in a low voice. They even said similar things, so this must have been the first time they had encountered such a situation.

"It's alright, ignorance is no excuse." Hui waved her hand, mimicking the heroic figures she remembered from TV dramas, and said, feeling quite pleased with herself afterward: 'I've wanted to try this move for ages!'

The two men breathed a sigh of relief: "Thank you, sir!"

"May I go in?"

"Yes, yes, sir, please come in."

Amidst the awe-inspiring gazes of the crowd, Hui walked into the passage with her little head held high.

A man happened to see this scene from the most luxurious top-floor pavilion in the center of the floating barge, dozens of meters away.

He was tall and slender but not rugged. His clothes were made of fine ice-blue silk, with elegant bamboo leaf patterns embroidered on the snow-white trim, which complemented the mutton-fat jade hairpin in his hair. His cold and handsome face implied innate nobility, highlighting his extraordinary status.

This man was Xia Yuxuan, one of only two princes in the Xia Dynasty.

He's been feeling down lately, so he came out to clear his head.

The room he was in was Yu Youwei's boudoir. To the most beautiful courtesan of the Drunken Red Pavilion, whom countless people had only heard of but never seen, she was nothing more than a prostitute who could be summoned and dismissed at will, even though Yu Youwei was indeed a prostitute.

Today's poetry gathering on the pleasure boat was also organized for her behind the scenes, as payment for the prostitution he had done for her these past few days.

At this moment, he stared in Hui's direction for a long time, then asked one of the guards beside him, "Wei Yi, are you confident?"

After a long pause, the man called Wei Yi said, "Fight to the death, five-tenths chance of success."

"I understand." Xia Yuxuan had only asked casually, but after hearing Wei Yi's answer, he could only sigh, "Such a young second-rate expert, I wonder which family or sect's prodigy he is."

"Your Highness can wait for him to arrive and then make his acquaintance."

"Well, we'll see when the time comes!" Xia Yuxuan was very agitated, especially when she thought about how the man would get her and the power behind her in a few days.

"Hand over Yu Youwei!"

“But the poetry gathering is about to begin.” Wei Yi wanted to persuade him again, but seeing Xia Yuxuan’s face darken, he immediately changed his mind and said, “Your subordinate will go right away.”

After saying that, he turned and left.

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Appearance in Chapter 189

Outside the boat, everyone watched with envy, but dared not show the slightest dissatisfaction, as Hui entered.

The man who had just teased Hui was now drenched in cold sweat, trembling with fear. He had long since lost interest in the beauty and only hoped that she wouldn't stoop to his level.

Seeing that Hui walked in without paying attention to him, he, having survived the ordeal, collapsed to the ground, completely exhausted.

After passing through the passageway and officially entering the floating pavilion, a beautifully dressed woman with half-exposed breasts immediately came forward to greet you.

Only then was Hui able to see the entire interior of the pleasure boats. The pleasure boats that made up the boats were all covered by gauze curtains, so the inside was not visible from the outside.

The linked boats were arranged in a staggered, overlapping pattern, so stable that there was almost no swaying when walking on them. The floors of all the boats were covered with thick red carpets, which were soft and comfortable to walk on. This wouldn't be anything special in modern times, but in ancient times, where everything was done by hand, it seemed luxurious. Of course, it couldn't compare to the outrageous extravagance of the Moon Fairy Palace, which covered the floors with fox fur.

Lanterns, though small, hung in succession from the ceiling of the corridor. The candles inside were exceptionally bright. The corridor's sides were adorned with carved beams and painted rafters, depicting scenes of flowing clouds and bats, the Three Friends of Winter, landscapes and figures, birds and flowers, a variety of motifs, antique designs, and auspicious symbols of blessings and longevity—all meticulously crafted by master artisans, embellished with vibrant colors, gold, and precious stones. If one didn't know better, one would easily mistake this for a secluded and ingeniously designed land-based garden.

Even with the memory of Dong'er being an Imperial Noble Consort, Hui couldn't help but marvel at how rich Yu Youwei really was!

'Is this Yu Youwei really just a prostitute? She's incredibly rich! Or are all famous prostitutes this wealthy?'

For a fleeting moment, Huidu had the absurd thought of 'why not go into business myself?'

Extinguishing herself from that dangerous thought, Hui had another question in her mind: If she's so rich, why does she still need to be a prostitute?

Hui didn't believe that Yu Youwei had fallen in love with the profession of prostitute.

This era was ultimately one where female chastity was paramount; although people might desire to sleep with prostitutes, they all looked down on them. After thinking for a while and finding no clue, Hui gave up.

In fact, this reflects Hui's lack of understanding of the ancient system of social stratification.

"Once you're registered as a lowly person, you're no longer in control of your own life"—this is no exaggeration. Even if Yu Youwei was wealthy, according to the law, she couldn't redeem herself; she could only be redeemed by someone else to become their concubine.