Martial Arts Crossover: My Wife is the Top Scholar

Chapter 108 Lu Xiaofeng: I Became the Richest Man by Selling Pots

Which was the largest brothel in the capital?
There is no definitive answer to this question.

There are five most powerful brothels.

Yihong Courtyard has branches all over the myriad realms.

The Hundred Flowers Pavilion cultivated ninety-nine top courtesans.

A beautiful woman beckons, a woman adds fragrance to the air, a woman who understands and cares for others.

Willow branches, listening to songs, dancing unparalleled.

The last one, though less established than the other four, has a rising trend. Even the crown prince of Goguryeo was not qualified to be the top courtesan and could only listen to music.

This brothel is called... Fanlou!
The top courtesan's name is... Li Shishi!

Li Zhaoting had long admired Li Shishi's name.

Emperor Huizong of Song had three palaces and six courtyards, and had seen all kinds of beauties, but he was still obsessed with Li Shishi. In order to meet with Li Shishi in secret, he did not hesitate to dig a tunnel and sneak out of the palace.

This is hardly a courtesan.
This person is showered with love and affection!
Zhao Zhen clearly did not share Zhao Ji's tastes, but the person behind Li Shishi was by no means ordinary.

One theory is that the Demonic Sect has two factions and six paths, and Li Shishi is a disciple of the Yin Gui faction, in charge of intelligence in the capital.

One theory is that Li Shishi was a disciple of the Heavenly Mandate Sect, and that she practiced bewitching arts there.

One theory is that they were secret agents from other races.

All sorts of nonsensical claims are circulating.

No one knows Li Shishi's background, only that she is beautiful and talented, and is definitely the most beautiful courtesan. Countless people spend a fortune just to catch a glimpse of her.

It is said that Jin Jiuling spent seventy to eighty thousand taels of silver to meet Li Shishi, only to hear one piece of music. He then declared that he had no regrets in this life and that his life had been exceptionally worthwhile.

Li Zhaoting doesn't need to go through all that trouble.

Because Li Zhaoting was a young and handsome gentleman who was not only generous but also talented, Li Shishi often held him in high regard.

Li Zhaoting and Feng Suzhen went to Fanlou together.

As soon as they arrived at the gate, the madam greeted them with a beaming smile: "Yesterday the lanterns danced, today the magpies chirp, indeed a good omen! Men, come quickly, treat these two young masters well. If you neglect these distinguished guests, I'll skin you alive! Young Master Li, Young Master Feng, would you like to go upstairs to listen to music, or would you like to see Master Li?"

Li Zhaoting said, "Let's get a private room!"

As he spoke, he took out two ingots of gold.

Fanlou has a very high cost of living.

How high is it?

Song Jiang took out thirty taels of silver. Li Shishi thought that Song Jiang wanted to reward the maid, so she casually told the maid to accept the small red envelope. The maid thanked her softly.

Song Jiang thought to himself, "The money I've given is enough to make three heroes of the Jianghu loyal to me and fight to the death for me. But once we get to Fanlou, I'm only fit to give it to the maids."

The madam beamed with joy upon seeing the gold.

A handsome and talented scholar is certainly desirable.

However, what brothels love most is always money!
Two clever young waiters led Li Zhaoting and Feng Suzhen to the warm pavilion on the second floor. From there, they could see the structure, which resembled an auction, and admire the entire Fanlou Hall, as well as enjoy the courtesan's singing and dancing.

Li Zhaoting instructed, "Yes, sir. Find four male prostitutes to come in and serve us. No one should disturb us from outside."

"Young Master Li, please don't make things difficult for me."

"Believe it or not, after the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, the courtesans at Fanlou will give you a kickback to secure a spot."

"what?"

"Alright!"

Many of the guests were pretentious types, and many wanted to curry favor with Li Shishi with their calligraphy and paintings. Each private room was equipped with brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones, all of which were of the highest quality.

Li Zhaoting glanced at the dancers downstairs, selected the largest canvas, picked up his brush, and began to paint. His brush moved swiftly, and he finished the painting just as the dancers stopped.

"Crash!"

Cheers and applause erupted from below, and some wealthy young noblemen threw gold and silver onto the stage.

Wuling was young and struggling with his head, and there was an unknown number of red ribbons.

The silver grate on the head is broken, and the blood-colored Luo skirt is turned over and the wine is dirty.

Just as the dancer was about to express her gratitude, a huge painting suddenly floated down from mid-air: "Your dance is superb, but my skills are lacking; I can only capture five-tenths of its essence!"

Li Zhaoting used some tricks to make the painting fall to the ground very slowly, so that everyone could appreciate it.

Li Zhaoting's skills weren't particularly high, but he possessed unparalleled Photoshop prowess, capturing the dancer's appearance and figure with exquisite realism. He meticulously retouched any imperfections in her body, leaving even the dancer astonished. "Am I really that beautiful? This painting is too perfect!" she exclaimed.

The guests all admired the silk paintings of dancing girls. Hanging such a painting would increase its value at least fivefold. By the time the colors faded with age, there would be some surplus wealth. They dared not ask for more; it would be enough to go to a nunnery.

"Hongxiao thanks you for your generous gift, young master."

"The painting was created from the dancer's natural and skillful movements."

Li Zhaoting offered a few polite compliments.

"Young master, what is the name of this painting?"

"A swan's flight is like a snowflake, her crimson sleeves beckoning the clouds."

"This humble servant thanks you, young master, for bestowing upon me a name."

The dancer, clutching the scroll, left happily.

Li Zhaoting gave the young waiter a wink.

Before they could even drink a cup of tea, seven or eight male prostitutes rushed into the private room: "Where is Young Master Li? Is this Young Master Li? Young Master Li is truly handsome."

Seeing Li Zhaoting's familiar manner, Feng Suzhen was very suspicious of what Li Zhaoting had said before. Could this have been taught by Lu Xiaofeng? Lu Xiaofeng can't paint!

Seeing Feng Suzhen's increasingly serious expression, Li Zhaoting shifted the blame: "Ladies, this is the renowned young master Feng Shaomin of the capital. My family has a shrewish wife, while young master Feng has a gentle and virtuous wife."

Feng Suzhen:o(▼伶▼メ;)o
Can you please shut your mouth?
What do you mean by "shrewish roar"?
Believe it or not, I'll shove my foot in your mouth!

Although she was somewhat angry, she could only try her best to maintain her composure as the courtesans surrounded her.

"Shall we play a game? I'll give you a few questions, and whoever answers them correctly can take a gold ingot and I'll draw a picture for them."

What if you can't answer?

Those who can't answer will be punished with three cups of wine!

Li Zhaoting took off the money pouch from his waist.

It was filled to the brim with large gold ingots.

The courtesan stared, her eyes wide with amazement.

Li Zhaoting's paintings could be used to increase one's social standing, especially for courtesans, whose fees for combing hair could increase several times over.

These large gold ingots represent real, tangible benefits.

Here's an explanation: "清剉人" refers to prostitutes who haven't yet registered to solicit customers. Those with good looks and qualities can be auctioned off. Since a woman's hair is styled into a traditional Chinese bun after marriage, this is called "梳头钱" (hair combing money).

Compared to the most famous courtesans in the capital, courtesans of the Qing Dynasty needed fame even more to inflate their prices.

Everyone stared expectantly at Li Zhaoting.

Li Zhaoting casually asked a few questions. Some of them were just random, amusing remarks.

Some are riddles.

Some of them are vulgar, street-style jokes.

Occasionally, one would ask which chef at Fanlou was the best, and after finding out, would ask the chef to prepare a few of their signature dishes.

The courtesan was teased so much that she trembled with joy, and laughter filled the private room. As dawn approached, the courtesan took Li Zhaoting's painting and went back home, laughing and joking.

They hung the painting at the front door.

Everyone can appreciate their beauty.

Li Zhaoting and Feng Suzhen left Fanlou.

Just as he got home, before he even had a chance to shower, Feng Suzhen roared, leaving Li Zhaoting feeling weak and powerless.

"My lord is truly quite the ladies' man!"

Feng Suzhen took out a ruler with a cold smile.

I took it from Mei Zhu.

Li Zhaoting flashed a smile reminiscent of Tom the cat, like a golden retriever who had made a mistake: "Madam, this was all just an act, you saw it with your own eyes."

Feng Suzhen retorted, "My lord said he had never been to a brothel when he was in Jinling, so how come he is so familiar with the intricacies of brothels? He must be a regular at brothels!"

"Lu Xiaofeng taught me all of that!"

Can Lu Xiaofeng paint?

"I draw to distract myself."

"What else did Lu Xiaofeng teach you?"

"Does my wife really want to hear this?"

"Say it!"

"Lu Xiaofeng told me that in autumn, unripe green tangerines can eliminate the smell of rouge and powder. If your family finds it strange, just say it's for treating coughs!"

Li Zhaoting did not hesitate to shift the blame.

……

Thousands of miles away, Lu Xiaofeng, disheveled and huddled in the mud digging for earthworms, suddenly felt a chilling aura and a heavy weight on his shoulders, as if someone had thrown a black pot on his back.

It's getting cold; you should put on an extra layer.

Lu Xiaofeng tightened her clothes.

In this dark and murky world, only the tattered robe he wore offered a sliver of warmth.

……

"Was it really Lu Xiaofeng who taught him?"

“My wife, before we married, I was a pure yang boy whose primordial yang had not yet been depleted. Even if Lu Zu were alive, he would appreciate my talent and take me as his personal disciple.”

"No, I still don't feel comfortable."

“I will write a poem for my wife. She can regard this poem as a heavenly decree and the emperor’s seal.”

"Hmm... Your Excellency is required to compose a poem in seven steps."

Feng Suzhen smiled mischievously.

He was putting on an act to investigate the case, and he even brought his wife along, so he clearly had no guilty conscience. His outburst earlier was just mocking Li Zhaoting.

Hearing the laughter, Li Zhaoting sighed inwardly, "I really don't like copying poems, but now I have no choice but to."

Mr. Su Dongpo, I will strive to achieve merit and promote my father and father-in-law so that they can be the chief examiners when you take the imperial examination.

"My lady, please listen carefully:"
How can a commoner with divine features be pitied?
Talking about emptiness and existence keeps me awake all night;
Suddenly, the roar of a lioness from the east of the river was heard;
The jade flute fell into my hand, and I felt bewildered... Ah!

Li Zhaoting was kicked to the ground by Feng Suzhen.

"Wife, what are you doing?"

"Of course, it's to give my lord a back massage!"

Feng Suzhen's standard level is 98. When she gets angry, she uses the Thousand-Pound Drop, which brings her to about 198. When she is burning with rage, she uses her divine power to reach about 298.

A series of shrill screams echoed from the Li residence.

The following morning, an interesting story spread throughout the capital.

The renowned physiognomist Li Zhaoting, accompanied by his brother-in-law Feng Shaomin, went to Fanlou and spent lavishly to create stunning paintings for more than a dozen courtesans.

The value of any courtesan who acquired the painting skyrocketed.

He was severely punished by his wife after returning home.

He wrote two poems, and only then was he forgiven.

What the capital city has no shortage of is gossip.

Within half a day, rumors had spread that Li Zhaoting's writing was so powerful that it shocked Li Shishi. Fortunately, the poems did not get out, otherwise the situation would have been very tragic.

When the Eighth Prince went to the palace to report on his mission, Zhuge Zhengwo and Grand Tutor Hua congratulated him repeatedly, saying that he had recommended many talented people to the court, and this time was the most interesting.

Grand Tutor Pang, as always, undermined the emperor, stating that the investigators were abusing their power for personal gain, spending the night in brothels, and that Feng Shaomin and Li Zhaoting were unfit for their positions. He requested that the emperor rescind his order.

Zhao Zhen: What are you saying? Can you speak in a way I can understand? What's wrong with you? Are Li Zhaoting's paintings really that exquisite?
As the saying goes, "Anyone who points out my faults to my face will be remembered by me for life!"

Emperor Renzong still remembers the evaluations of Li Zhaoting and Feng Suzhen of his paintings. Feng Suzhen had already demonstrated her extraordinary talent, while Li Zhaoting had only shown his martial arts skills. Now, he was showing his painting skills, which relieved Emperor Renzong's worries.

It's extremely embarrassing to be criticized by third-rate people.

Being criticized by a master of calligraphy and painting is an honor.

……

Fanlou.

Looking at Li Zhaoting's painting, Li Shishi said with great disdain, "It's nothing but a cheap trick to attract attention!"

The maid asked, "Miss, Young Master Li's paintings are so natural and beautiful, even more so than the artists themselves. How can this be considered cheap trickery? His value has increased several times over!"

Li Shishi explained, "Li Zhaoting's paintings are superficial, lacking spirit and artistic conception. They look very beautiful at first glance, but you forget them as soon as you see them."

The maid scoffed, "Then just forget about it! Do you expect regular customers of brothels to be lovestruck fools?"

Li Shishi asked, "Did Li Zhaoting really come to have fun last night? What questions did he ask?"

"There are seven monkeys in the tree and one monkey on the ground. How many monkeys are there in total?"

"Eight!"

"Wrong! The answer is two monkeys."

The maid smiled.

Li Shishi frowned.

(End of this chapter)