I have the best bloodline

Auntie, you're being way too "reliable"! Let's not even talk about being parasites enjoying a life of luxury, but you didn't need to arrange for me to play music and sing in a brothel, did you?

"What's with that expression? Even in the human world, demons need to spend money, but the meager earnings from working are less than what I make from robbing cultivators. However, if Xia Yu gets caught robbing, he has to pay three times the fine, so I can only run a brothel to make a living."

Seeing Su Yan's disbelief, Chong Qiong comforted him, "Don't worry, this is a legitimate official brothel that cooperates with the imperial court. On weekdays, you can just sit with me and count money or do some cleaning."

"Of course, if you like, you can also give the girls some psychological counseling. Most of them are depressed when they are first sent here."

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 4: The business is going to go bankrupt!

As it turns out, Auntie Jiaochong really wasn't joking with the young fox.

She really did run a brothel within the territory of Xia Yu, and the girls in the brothel were a diverse bunch, from the common fair-skinned, beautiful girls with long, straight black hair to exotic blonde girls with big, wavy hair; my aunt's brothel had them all.

According to Aunt Chongqiong, the girls in her pen were all descendants of criminals who, after being interrogated by the Ministry of Justice, were sent to the Jiaofangsi, a branch of the Ministry of Rites, to perform hard labor.

However, the talented women who could enter the Jiaofangsi (Imperial Music Bureau) were required to perform at various banquets in the palace. The Ministry of Justice would not necessarily accept all of them. They needed to go through layers of selection to find those who were proficient in music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, and then select the ten most beautiful women of the same year.

As for those who were eliminated, they were all thrown into brothels outside that had cooperative relationships with the imperial court, so that the descendants of those criminals could earn money through performances to atone for the mistakes their families had made.

In short, all the girls in the brothel of the arrogant aunt were born into wealthy families. Either their elders had committed embezzlement, or they had committed serious crimes but were not punished as a result of the execution of their entire families, which led to all the female relatives of the girls being sent to the brothel.

The girls in the brothel all had to use their talents to earn rewards in order to repay the money embezzled by their family members and the losses caused.

Women who are the offspring of sinners and only know how to eat, drink, and have fun are not even qualified to enter brothels and will be directly sent to prostitutes.

She can't play any musical instruments or sing, and she's not stunningly beautiful, so what else can she do but go to a brothel?

Unless you can make up for the losses of Xia Yu, everything is off the table. If you keep arguing, you'll be dragged away and beheaded.

………………

"No wonder the people in Xia Yu's territory are wealthy. They're all obsessed with making money. I heard your royal family's schemes when they were robbing people in the brothels."

After living in his aunt's brothel for a few days, Su Yan gradually gained a more comprehensive understanding of Xia Yu. He was no longer limited to the prosperous and powerful era described by the examinees. Xia Yu's laws were simply a model of money-grubbing. Except for some treasonous crimes and some serious crimes of principle, they could basically be settled by paying compensation.

"Xiao Yan, go upstairs and calm Xiao Hong down. She's threatening to hang herself or cut her wrists right now!"

Chong Qiong, the owner of the brothel, sat by the railing of the cylindrical building. As if sensing something, she poked her head out and called out to Su Yan downstairs.

"Row!"

Su Yan, who was eating sunflower seeds on the first floor, glanced at the empty lobby of the building, sighed, turned around and went up the wooden stairs behind the stage to the second floor. After looking around, he found Xiao Hong's dormitory and pushed open the door to go in.

Su Yan pushed open the dormitory door and saw a girl wearing a bright red blouse with a gold-embroidered sash around her waist standing on a wooden chair at a tea table. A simple white hanging ribbon made from a bed sheet had already passed through the beam. The girl, named Xiao Hong Cai Nu, held the white ribbon in her hands with a resolute expression on her face.

"Waaaaah."

Seeing this, Su Yan didn't say anything more. He leaped into Xiao Hong's dormitory, transforming from human to white fox in mid-air. He landed on the tea table with a pitiful expression, blinking his round, dark eyes and making cute little whimpering sounds.

It's not uncommon for girls in brothels to be distraught. They were once daughters of wealthy families, but after their families suffered a great upheaval, they were reduced to performing on the streets for a living. This was something that some strong-willed and talented women could never accept.

But they still owed Xia Yu money, and their fate was not in their own hands until they paid off their debts and were redeemed.

Besides maintaining her business at the brothel, my aunt's most tedious task was to counsel the girls.

“Little fox, you don’t need to persuade me anymore. My family has basically been exiled to the borderlands. The bounty I’ve earned in the past six months isn’t even enough to redeem my father. By the time I’ve earned enough to redeem them, they’ll probably all have died from exhaustion.”

“Living alone is meaningless.” Little Red looked at the little fox with a sad expression, but her hand unconsciously loosened its grip on the white silk. She squatted on the wooden chair, hugged her knees, and couldn’t take her eyes off Su Yan’s original form.

Xiao Hong, a talented woman, was the daughter of a local official in Xia Yu. However, due to his corruption, the imperial army's supply convoy was delayed. The Ministry of Justice sentenced Xiao Hong's entire family as follows: the men were exiled to the border to mine, the women stayed in Xia Yu to perform hard labor, and the women were exiled to the Jiaofangsi (a government-run entertainment district).

Xiao Hong was not selected for the Jiaofangsi (a government-run entertainment institution) and was eventually assigned to her aunt's brothel.

"Waaaaah"

Su Yan let out two more soft moans.

Su Yan wasn't good at calming people down, but for a nine-tailed fox, temporarily bewitching people wasn't too difficult.

After the white fox whimpered twice, Little Red, who had originally intended to commit suicide, could no longer suppress the restlessness in her heart.

He went from squatting to sitting upright, then pushed the cute white fox on the table over, burying his head in the fox's soft, warm, and plump belly, rubbing against it vigorously, with a suspicious blush occasionally appearing on his cheeks.

"That little fox is too cunning!" Little Red's eyes welled up with tears, and she gradually became dissatisfied with just the rubbing against her cheeks, and started to suck on the nine-tailed fox.

"Hey, hey, hey, this is a paid service. Kissing and hugging is the limit I can give you for free."

Seeing that Xiao Hong opened her mouth as if she was about to bite her fox body, Su Yan quickly raised her hind foot and stepped on Xiao Hong's cheek to calm her down.

Chong Qiong had repeatedly warned Su Yan that no matter how beautiful the girls in the brothel were, he must not have anything to do with them. If Su Yan really needed to solve his problems, his aunt could give him money to go to the Wan Hua Ge next door and find the most beautiful courtesan to spend the night with.

There are some things that can't be started. If the little fox, with his racial talent, starts something by comforting the girls' loneliness, and then his own brothel can't even open, the girls will probably all crowd into the little fox's room and completely ruin him.

"Xiao Yan! Make arrangements with Xiao Jin too, the girl is preparing to drown herself!"

Just as Su Yan was resisting the temptation of Xiao Hong, who was caught up in a state of infatuation and trying to eat fox meat, his aunt on the fourth floor called out to him, saving the day and also asking him to go to the next dormitory to appease the blonde, wavy-haired girl.

………………

During his stay in the brothel, Su Yan's main task was to use his racial talent to put out fires.

The Xia people's love for white foxes was common knowledge ingrained in their blood, especially young girls and ladies who loved the cute and charming little white foxes.

Although Su Yan's nine-tailed fox charm was not enough to bewitch people's hearts and souls due to her young age, it was still enough to deal with some cultivators of the same level, and it could bewitch ordinary people completely.

"Auntie, this really won't do. The girls are so poor they're contemplating suicide. You need to come up with some money-making projects!"

After putting out the fire, Su Yan rushed to the fourth floor and earnestly persuaded his aunt not to slack off. He said that most of the talented women in the brothel who had thoughts of suicide were probably because they had no hope of redeeming themselves with the money they earned in the brothel. Rather than working in the brothel for the rest of their lives and being laughed at for the rest of their lives, why not just be happy on their own?

Die early and be reincarnated sooner, hoping for another life!

What can I do?

Chong Qiong also said with a helpless expression: "First of all, our brothels are legitimate businesses certified by the imperial court. People can choose to go to brothels or karaoke bars for meat when they drink. Their prices are cheaper than ours. If you have money, you can also go to the Wan Hua Ge to kiss those cultivator courtesans."

“We vegetarians can’t possibly beat the meat-eaters. If we’re really going to expand the business, I’m afraid your mother might not be happy about it.”

"What does the brothel business have to do with my mother?" Su Yan said, then suddenly realized something, her eyes widened, and she quickly covered her chest: "Auntie, I'm too young!"

"Fifteen or sixteen years old is indeed a bit young for the demon race, but it's just right for the human race."

Auntie looked at Su Yan with a smile and said, "If my little darling ever wants to go on stage, remember to let me know in advance. I'll throw you a big debut party. With my connections, although I can't invite any royal relatives, I can still get some people from the Ministry of Rites."

As her aunt spoke, she lightly tapped Su Yan's forehead with her fair fingertips, causing Su Yan to instinctively reach out and cover his head.

The aunt's tone was slightly ambiguous, clearly teasing Su Yan.

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(End of this chapter)

Chapter 5 Please do something worthwhile!

Three more days have passed since Su Yan arrived at her aunt's house.

"Indeed, we really can't beat the disheveled girls from the brothel next door and the Wan Hua Ge."

Having personally inspected Wan Hua Ge, Su Yan returned to the brothel and found her aunt, confirming that her aunt had not lied.

The female cultivators at Wanhua Pavilion are genuinely enthusiastic, and due to a certain secret technique, they can gain a high level of favorability upon first meeting, just like the Nine-Tailed Fox. However, Wanhua Pavilion is quite expensive, as they accept spirit stones!

Starting from the moment you step into the Ten Thousand Flowers Pavilion, the fee is one coin of spirit stones for every half hour, and an additional fee for tea and meals is charged when you leave.

Spirit stones!

Those are cultivation supplies for cultivators, and strictly speaking, they don't belong to the category of currency. In the cultivation world, currencies made of gold, silver, and copper are the mainstream. Items traded using spirit stones as currency are basically top-tier luxury goods.

Spirit stones are different from regular currency because the size of the ore varies during mining, so there is no standard shape for spirit stones. Therefore, spirit stones are converted in units of weight. In the Xia Dynasty, one qian was equal to five grams.

The fee is one qian for half an hour, and one qian of spirit stones is enough for a Qi Refining stage cultivator to practice breathing exercises for two hours.

"I don't think you lost out!"

Aunt Chongqiong chuckled as she looked at Su Yan, saying, "Judging from your appearance, you must have had a hard time browsing the brothels of cultivators, right?"

When ordinary people visit brothels, it's usually the girls who tell the brothel girls not to do that. But seeing Su Yan's disheveled clothes stuffed with silver notes and his white clothes stained with the rouge and powder of female cultivators, Chong Qiong almost thought Su Yan had gone to work part-time at the Wan Hua Ge next door.

"You're saying all this?"

Su Yan raised his hand with a helpless expression, shrugged, and silver and copper coins fell from his sleeve: "I really did spend money on the girls at Wan Hua Ge, but when I came out, I ran into some older sisters and aunties. Their smiling faces were so lewd and sinister that I was too scared to resist."

All the customers who patronize the Myriad Flower Pavilion are cultivators. With Su Yan's Qi Refining stage cultivation, he cannot even see through the cultivation levels of those female cultivators. However, because they are stronger than Su Yan, they can tell at a glance that Su Yan is not a human but a demon child.

If Su Yan hadn't been clever enough to mention his aunt's name, he probably wouldn't be back covered in silver notes now, but would be heading straight to the yamen to post a missing person notice.

Yu Yanning really wasn't lying to Su Yan; the adorable demon children in Xia Yu territory really could be kidnapped.

"But I didn't come away empty-handed!" Su Yan said confidently, "Their Wan Hua Ge's business model is actually not much different from our brothels, except that they use the names of cultivators and fairies. They're just as celibate!"

Compared to the hourly consumption at Wanhua Pavilion, spending an entire night in the brothel run by my aunt would only cost three to five taels of silver.

Even a regular innkeeper in the Xia Yu territory could earn one and a half taels of silver a month. It was indeed unlikely that ordinary people would spend money in brothels, but brothels were originally places for the entertainment and leisure of the wealthy.

The main city of Xia Yu covers an area no smaller than that of a prefecture-level city in the previous life. Naturally, there are more brothels than just my aunt's. There are also some privately run brothels that use the name of brothels to engage in prostitution.

This led to the poor performance of my aunt's brothel business, and some of the girls even contemplated suicide because they couldn't earn any money.

The girls in my aunt's family were all criminals, and since they couldn't earn the reward money to offset their punishments, they basically had no hope of turning their lives around.

"So what? We don't eat meat, but at least we're nominally affiliated with the Ministry of Rites," Auntie said with interest.

"So? So we have to make a lot of money, and the house is in chaos every day, who can stand that! I don't even have time to cultivate now!" Su Yan angrily rebuked her aunt for her inaction.

"Auntie, please do something worthwhile! You've almost bankrupted the brothel!"

Who wouldn't dream of a young man wielding a sword and roaming the martial world, seeking righteous vengeance? Su Yan also wants to cultivate and become stronger quickly, to protect the bells passed down in his family, and one day, when he conquers the Nine-Tailed Fox Clan of the Su Clan, he will tie the bells of the clan elders with hemp ropes and hang them on the gate of the clan's territory, thus warning any stubborn old clan elders who want to possess the bells of the mixed-race children!

Instead of spending his days in brothels as a psychologist for talented women who have suffered great changes!

"Such heavy resentment."

My aunt, whose age was unknown, with a face that resembled a young girl, put on a charming, playful expression and said, "Isn't Auntie doing serious business right now? Have you forgotten how we talked about our ideals every night under the moon?"

Su Yan was immediately enraged: "It's precisely because you, Aunt, don't do anything of importance that I have to stay up all night to cultivate, sleeping less than five hours a day. What kind of demon child stays up all night to cultivate like this!"

Chong Qiong accepted Su Qing's request and did not slack off while taking care of Su Yan. She really did guide Su Yan's cultivation and teach him some lessons every night.

Although Chong Qiong was neither a nine-tailed fox nor a dragon, and therefore couldn't teach Su Yan about his innate supernatural abilities, such as water control or charm, she knew a thing or two about the cultivation methods of nine-tailed foxes because she had lived and eaten with Su Qing for hundreds of years.

As for making a living, there's really no other way. The demon race is the kind of people who are quite stubborn. They don't usually make promises easily, but once they do, they have to keep them.

Although the ownership of the brothel belonged to my aunt, it was subject to the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Rites. Naturally, its operation could not be as chaotic as those private black brothels. Brothels should be entertainment venues for elegant literati and poets.