Chapter Thirty-Two: Orchid

  The boat slowly left the riverbank, and the girl slowly left Fan Xian.

  Seeing the delicate and boneless beauty sitting next to him, Fan Xian let out a sigh of relief. After all, he was an old bachelor for thirty years or so, and suddenly encountering such stimulation was really unbearable. Seeing his expression, Cui'er was somewhat curious. In this era, who among these wealthy and powerful young masters wouldn't have started fooling around with the maids in the mansion at the age of thirteen or fourteen? People like him were truly rare.

  She didn't know that Fan Xian grew up in Danzhou, and the maids were those few. The Dong'er he fantasized about as a child had long been married off, and later when he was preparing to have fun with SiSi, he was suddenly summoned to Kyoto.

  Cui Li looked at Fan Xian's handsome face, and for a moment, she was stunned, her face turned red, and she silently picked up some dishes and put them on the plate in front of him.

  This was Fan Xian's first time in a brothel in two lifetimes, so he was somewhat nervous and naturally had no experience. Seeing that the other party was silent, he thought that the courtesans of Qing Guo's brothel were just like this, so he also remained silent, with his left hand unintentionally still resting on Si Rong's waist.

  The atmosphere between them suddenly became ambiguous.

  In another cabin, however, it was very lively. Tōji Kyō was drinking with several of his trusted subordinates, and the madam was accompanying them, asking if they wanted some girls to join in. The subordinates seemed somewhat tempted, but Tōji Kyō coldly shook his head. Having followed the young master for so many days without even having a chance to show off his skills, he wasn't about to let himself get drunk and miss the opportunity now that it was finally time to take action.

  Seeing him insist, the old procuress naturally didn't force it either. After all, the money had already been given, so she smiled and poured wine to chat with them. This old procuress also surnamed Si, but this surname was obviously fake. Her name was Ling, and she was only in her thirties, with a lingering charm. She spoke and acted quickly, and after a few cups of wine, she asked softly by the ear of Tongzi Jing: "Sir, you look dignified, I wonder which family you work for?"

  "This is quite obvious, Tong Zi Jing smiled: "It was clearly stated when the reservation was made, our young master is the eldest son of the Fan Mansion.""

  Cui Ling smiled and said: "The Kyoto Fan family is one of the five major families, and there are at least a dozen or so mansions under it. The most luxurious ones have at least three or four houses."

  Fujiko smiled and didn't answer.

  Cui Ling's heart skipped a beat as he cautiously asked: "With such a generous move, I suppose... it's from the Fan family?"

  He nodded, acknowledging that he had indeed come to the building on purpose. Si Ling's face changed color in surprise, and she exclaimed, "So you're the young master of the Si Nan Bo family!" She was still a bit puzzled inside - if he was really the young master of the Si Nan Bo family, then the handsome young man sitting in the back cabin with her own daughter must be the private son of the Fan family that people occasionally mentioned. How could such an illegitimate child control so much of the Fan family's silver?

  She wouldn't say these doubts out loud, but just smiled to herself, thinking that when she first started working as a courtesan, the senior sisters had told her that Shi Nanbo Fan Jian was a regular customer in Kyoto's pleasure quarters, and even after marriage, he would often linger by the river, which had caused the imperial censor to repeatedly submit memorials against him, but since he had a close relationship with the emperor from childhood, nothing could be done about it.

  It's hard to believe that twenty years have passed, and the son of Si Nanbo has started throwing money into the flower circle again. At first glance at Master Fan, he knew that the other party was new to this path, so Si Ling secretly praised him greatly. On his first outing to seek pleasure, he found himself with the most popular girl in their own family, which is truly a case of "family learning".

  Just as they were talking, several red lanterns suddenly appeared on the riverbank, and it seemed that someone was shouting something in this direction. The old procuress got up, somewhat hesitant, but Tongzi Jing had sharp eyes and immediately recognized them as guards from the Qingwang Fu, and hastily ordered the flower boat to go ashore to pick people up.

  After King Jing's son boarded the ship, he naturally entered the rear cabin. Upon seeing him, Si Ling was startled and thought to herself, "How did they manage to invite this gentleman as well? It seems that Mr. Fan in the rear cabin has a lot of face."

  The prince's guards and Tōko Kyō were familiar with each other, so they went out drinking together.

  In the rear cabin, Jing Wang Shizi looked at Fan Xian with a timid expression and couldn't help but mock him, saying: "Miss Li won't eat you, why are you hiding so far away?"

  Fan Xian thought to himself: "If you don't come soon, I'll have to start eating people." He asked: "Why did the young master arrive so late?"

  Li Hongcheng, the Crown Prince of Jingwang, was taken aback and thought to himself, "How can I tell you that Father scolded me because of you?" He chuckled and said with a smile, "You're from Danzhou, so you don't know the customs of the capital. It's usual for us to come out and enjoy the night view after finishing dinner at home."

  The phrase "appreciating the night view" was apt, but this rule didn't necessarily apply. Fan Xian knew it in his heart and didn't expose the other party, smiling as he clinked glasses with him. It's strange to say that he had only met the Prince of Jing three times, including this time, but both people felt that each other's temperaments were somewhat compatible. The Prince of Jing did not have the overbearing feeling of a royal relative, and Fan Xian was not like an ordinary noble son who was vulgar beyond words. In front of the Prince of Jing, he was also carefree and natural, which happened to match Li Hongcheng's temperament.

  After a few cups of wine, the two men became more familiar with each other. The young master seemed very interested in Fan Xian's life in Danzhou, so Fan Xian picked out some not-so-strange things to say, such as mirages and the like.

  There was only one maid in the room, who was somewhat restless and didn't know which master to attend to. Although it was clear that Mr. Fan had paid for the boat, the status of Prince Jing's son was so noble that if Mr. Fan wanted her to serve the prince instead, what could she do?

  Li Hongcheng smiled and glanced at the young woman, although he often frequented brothels, this reasonable girl was also seen before, but unfortunately, there were no opportunities to get involved with her. Seeing the difficult expression on her face, although knowing that the other party was deliberately pretending to be wronged, his heart still softened, and he signaled her to sit next to Fan Xian.

  The old procuress naturally wouldn't let the young master idle, and had already gone to another flower boat to invite a girl over. This girl was surnamed Yuan and named Meng, also a renowned courtesan on the Flowing Crystal River, and sat with Cui Rili on either side of the small table, quite matching the status of the young master and the eldest son of the Fan family.

  As the wine grew stronger and the night wore on, Jing Wang's son and Fan Xian drew closer in their feelings, both very satisfied with this meeting. As they gazed up at the moon which had shifted direction in the sky, the two exchanged a glance, smiled faintly, and each returned to their own quarters accompanied by beauty.

  ……

  ……

  The red candle gradually rose, and the rational and gentle girl's eyes were like silk. She leaned lightly against Fan Xian's chest, her fingers gently scratching his palm, her breathing as fragrant as orchids.

  Fan Xian quietly took out a homemade wax pill from his sleeve and crushed it lightly. Si Lili fell asleep with a faint smile, the cabin filled with the fragrance of anesthetic like orchids.

  It's really not from Li Shishi, haha