There is a space for passenger planes in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 31 Brothel Banquet
  Dongding Mansion in Fugu City.

"Bang!" Another teacup was shattered into pieces by Ding Dadianshi's angry throw. Recently, as bad news continues, the death rate of Ding's teacups has been very high, and the housekeeper has already bought two batches.

"So Guan Feng didn't steal any tax money?" Ding Yingqi asked in disbelief.

"To be precise, the disaster has arrived, but the box contains stones, not tax money." Liu Sanjin, the housekeeper of Liu Mansion, said.

"This guy surnamed Lin is so cunning that he even deceived everyone." Ding Yingqi said bitterly.

"Master Ding, Xiangfeng is very angry now. He said that our intelligence was inaccurate and caused his trip to be in vain. There was also a copycat brother who was arrested and asked us to compensate."

"What, someone else has been arrested. How could Guofeng be so careless? It will be troublesome if we are exposed." Ding Yingqi said worriedly.

"Master Ding, don't worry about this. The person who was arrested is a minor character. He probably doesn't know who provided the information. What about the compensation?"

"What should I do? Do you want me to pay for it? Just give them some hard work money from your Liu family."

"Our Liu family has no money. Last time, 4000 taels of tax silver were recovered, and another two to three thousand taels were used to find connections. There are still thousands of taels missing in the warehouse for no reason." Butler Liu complained.

"That's your business. If you really don't have any money, just sell some land. Your Liu family still has more than 8000 acres of land." Ding Yingqi said without any burden. It was none of his business if the Liu family had no money.

"This, this, hey!" Liu Sanjin deeply felt that when working with people like Ding Yingqi, the only benefits came from helping each other.

Compared with Ding Dadianshi's incompetence and rage at home, Lin Feng was leisurely inspecting the brothels of the Ming Dynasty on Jiazhou Street. This was all for official business!
  Qingyan Pavilion is located on Qinjin Street in Jiazhou, close to the Yellow River. It is not far from the center of the city. It only takes about 20 minutes to walk. It is a good place with beautiful scenery and tranquility in the bustle.

Due to its convenient distance and elegant and clean environment, this place has become one of the favorite places for officials at all levels to entertain and drink.

But the prices here are not cheap. Arranging a table of wine and food and inviting two girls to accompany you will cost you at least ten taels of silver. Even now, it is considered high consumption. In the Ming Dynasty, it would cost a state government clerk, that is, three or four months' salary of a civil servant in later generations.

As the host of the treat, and since he had never been here before, Lin Feng brought Su Shunnian over early to familiarize himself with the situation.

When I arrived at the door of Qingyan Pavilion, I saw the embroidered door was half open, the bead curtain was drooping, and there was a mysterious color inside.

Entering the main room, the madam immediately came out to greet him. After performing the ceremony, he asked, "Young Master looks surprised. Is this your first time back?"

"I also came here after being introduced to you. I am going to entertain two important guests from the government here tonight. Have you arranged a private room and prepared some special food and wine??

"I wonder what level of guests you are? Don't get me wrong, sir. I don't want to inquire about any of your secrets. It's just because state government officials often come to my Qingyan Pavilion. Generally, different levels have different standards. Please ask clearly to avoid preparing food and drinks. Something went wrong." The madam seems to know her business very well.

"In Jiazhou, one person is inferior to everyone." Lin Feng thought about it for a while but was afraid that he would not be prepared enough, so he said it anyway.

"That's Xu Tongzhi, right? He likes to come to Qingyan Pavilion the most. I will definitely make arrangements for you." Damn, this Xu Tongzhi seems to be a frequent visitor to Qingyan Pavilion. He has become famous after visiting Qingyan Pavilion.

"You said this, I didn't. Just follow your usual arrangements. The standards can be higher." Lin Feng couldn't admit that he was the one who exposed the leader's visit to a brothel.

However, by the end of the Ming Dynasty, it was an open matter for officials to visit brothels. Everyone still regarded it as an elegant thing, but they couldn't talk about it openly on the stage. Otherwise, Xu Datong would not propose to arrange it here for Lin Feng's first banquet.

"Of course that's good, but the cost may be a little more expensive." The madam said.

"How much is more expensive?" Although Lin Feng was very wealthy recently, he couldn't be taken advantage of, so he naturally had to ask clearly.

"A table of exquisite wine and food for three or four people, accompanied by three girls with outstanding looks and talents, about 15 taels."

"Money is not an issue, you just have to make arrangements. In the next year, I will pay a deposit of 20 taels in advance, and the more will be refunded and the less will be reimbursed." Lin Feng did not hesitate and ordered Su Shunnian to pay. It's my first time here, so naturally I don't have any credibility at all, so it's best to just get money. "Oh, sir, you are so generous. I would like to offer you a cup of tea first." As soon as he saw the silver, the madam immediately became more enthusiastic.

This was Lin Feng's first visit to an ancient brothel. In order not to reveal his secret later, he even had a special chat with the madam.

Only then did Lin Feng realize that ancient brothels were very different from some indescribable places in later generations. Officials mostly came to brothels to drink wine and listen to music. Only when the two parties met each other did they take the next step.

Moreover, in order to cater to civil servants, brothels in the Ming Dynasty advocated literature and art more. Many famous prostitutes were talented and had a high status among the scholars, such as the Eight Beauties of Qinhuai in the late Ming Dynasty. Ordinary civil servants would not do anything so disgraceful as an overlord forcing his bow, otherwise he would die in the Shilin Society if exposed.

In the evening, when the sky had just darkened, Jiazhou's fellow magistrate Xu Shi, dressed in a scholar's green shirt, arrived with a slightly younger scribe.

Lin Feng was about to step forward to greet him when the madam moved faster to greet him and said enthusiastically: "Oh, Mr. Xu, you haven't been here for a while. What kind of wind brought you here today?"

"Ahem, today is just a gathering of friends. You can make whatever arrangements you like." Xu Datong was a little embarrassed. After all, there were several subordinates here. How could he act like a frequent visitor to a brothel.

"Don't worry, Mr. Xu. Brother Lin has made arrangements. Please come to the private room." The madam replied.

Only then did Xu Tongzhi take a look at Lin Feng and felt that this guy was on the right track and had actually made all the arrangements.

"Two adults, please come inside." Lin Feng finally took his turn to speak and quickly invited them.

A group of three people came to the private room and sat down. Su Shunnian was naturally not qualified, so he drank tea downstairs and waited.

A mahogany table has been set up in the private room, with six round stools surrounding it. There are eight boxes of delicate fruits and vegetables on the table, including goose gizzards, sweet-scented osmanthus and whitebait bream, chicken breast wings, fresh walnuts, etc., which are like the cold dishes of later generations. There is also a jug of wine and a small wine cup.

Lin Feng asked Xu Shihua to sit at the front seat, and then he was accompanied by another scribe on the left and right.

"Mr. Xu, do you want the singing girl to come in now?" The madam asked as they seemed to want to talk.

"Wait a moment, let's talk about something first." Xu Tongzhi replied.

"Okay, I'll make arrangements later." After saying this, the Madam withdrew.

"Yuanshan, this is Mr. Li Runan, the general magistrate of Jiazhou. He is also from your Fugu, so I would like to introduce you to him." Xu Tongzhi introduced him after sitting down.

"I've met Mr. Li." Lin Feng stood up and saluted.

"Sit down, sit down. There is no need to be polite in this private situation. Yuan Shan is an official in my hometown, so I have to ask you to take more care of your family members." Li Runan said politely.

"That's natural, just follow Mr. Li's orders when it comes to matters at home." Lin Feng replied.

"You two should stop being polite to each other. Since I asked you to come here to get together, you are our own people. It is most normal to help each other.

Yuanshan, your performance in collecting taxes this time is obvious to all, and Zhang Zhizhou also recognized it. He originally wanted to give you a reward, but Feng Tongzhi opposed it, saying that you abused punishment to force taxes. Zhizhou didn't have much to say, just forget about this award. "Xu Tongzhi knew the tactics of his subordinates very well. He first distanced himself, and then revealed some official insider information to him.

"Thank you, Mr. Xu, for taking care of me, otherwise I would definitely have to be punished." Lin Feng said respectfully.

"Yes, Mr. Xu still said a lot of good things for you. Zhang Zhizhou now also understands the situation of Liu Shangjin's case and promised not to pursue the matter. However, it was not convenient to refute Feng Tongzhi's face too much, so he canceled the award for you. "Li Runan added, he is the general judge and naturally knows the situation of the case.

"Thank you two adults, I'll do it first as a token of respect!" Lin Feng picked up the wine glass and drank a large glass.

(End of this chapter)