Wasn't he supposed to be beaten to death? Why did this powerful cousin love him so much?

Jiang Sese spent her first night in the brothel and slept soundly.

It wasn't that she was careless; it was that she knew no one would harm her tonight.

The madam spent money to buy her in, so she would always train her for a few days to temper her temperament before choosing a good day to put her on the public stage.

Sure enough, early the next morning, a maid brought in breakfast, put down the food box, and stood aside, looking at her curiously with a mixture of pity and confusion in her eyes.

This girl is so strange.

In the past, every new girl who came to the city would threaten suicide and cause a scene for days before things calmed down.

However, my mother has a bad temper, and the more she makes a fuss, the harder she hits me.

Looking at Jiang Sese's stunningly beautiful face, the young maid felt even more sorry for her.

With such a heavenly beauty, if she had been born into a good family, she could have married even princes and noblemen.

The maidservant couldn't help but lean closer and whisper, "Miss, you're so beautiful. If the courtesan were still here, she would probably be outshone by you. It's just a pity that the courtesan is very ill now. The boils on her neck are so festering that they're unrecognizable. Mama has consulted several doctors, but none of them can do anything about it. She's about to pass away."

Jiang Sese's heart skipped a beat, and she feigned curiosity, asking, "The courtesan queen? What does the courtesan queen look like?"

The maidservant immediately became interested and praised her repeatedly: "Your Highness used to be the most beautiful woman in the capital. You had a graceful figure, stunning eyes, and were proficient in all the arts, including music, chess, calligraphy, and painting. Countless high-ranking officials and nobles would spend a fortune just to see you once. You were incredibly famous! No one could have imagined that you would end up like this now."

Jiang Sese then said, "Hearing you say that, I really want to meet her."

The young maidservant immediately hesitated, somewhat reluctant to agree.

Seeing her expression, Jiang Sese instantly switched into the role of the courtesan, patting her chest and assuring her, "Don't worry, I won't cause you any trouble. If I manage to establish myself here in the future, I'll definitely remember the favor you did for me today and will never treat you unfairly!"

These words struck a chord with the young maid.

She thought about it again and realized that the madam had only told her not to run around, but had never said that she was not allowed to visit other people in the other courtyards.

After hesitating for a moment, the maid finally nodded.

The two quickly reached an agreement, and the maidservant went out first to distract the old woman guarding the corridor.

He then quickly walked back and led Jiang Sese along the path to the courtesan.

Tianxiang Tower occupies a vast area, with pavilions scattered throughout, corridors intersecting, and paths that are complex and intricate.

Jiang Sese was new to the area and completely unfamiliar with the terrain; it was simply wishful thinking for her to try to escape rashly.

Therefore, Jiang Sese really has no intention of running away now.

She either doesn't run away, or she only acts when there's a 100% chance of success.

If she acts rashly and fails, it will only arouse the madam's suspicion, and she will be placed under stricter control and defenses, leaving her with no chance to escape.

The safest approach right now is to lie low and observe.

They continued on their journey and soon arrived at the residence of the courtesan Fei Rao.

The room was dimly lit and filled with a strong, pungent smell of medicine.

Fei Rao, once the most famous courtesan in the capital, lay quietly on the bed, her face ashen and pale as paper, devoid of any color. On her once elegant and slender neck, festering sores gushed forth, staining her collar black and filthy—a shocking sight.

A young maid stood by the bed, holding a cold bowl of medicine. Her eyes were red and she was silently shedding tears. When she saw a stranger enter, she was about to ask him something.

The young maid who had led the way quickly stepped forward, waving her hand in greeting, and explained in a low voice, "She's a new young lady. She heard that Lady Fei Rao is seriously ill but kind-hearted, so she came to visit her."

Upon hearing this, the maid suppressed her doubts and silently stepped aside.

Jiang Sese walked slowly to the bedside, lowered her eyes to carefully examine Fei Rao's injuries, and instantly understood.

This is not some strange or rare disease; it is clearly a serious bacterial infection and suppuration caused by improper wound treatment.

In ancient times, this would have been an incurable disease, but coincidentally, the penicillin she had was exactly what she needed.

Before the two maids could react, Jiang Sese took out a small porcelain bottle from her bosom, poured out some powder, took some warm water from the table to dissolve it, and had Fei Rao hold it in her throat and swallow it slowly. She then carefully sprinkled the remaining powder on the festering boils on Fei Rao's neck and covered it with a clean, soft silk cloth.

Fei Rao's maid stared at her in disbelief. "What are you doing?!"

Jiang Sese didn't even look up. "Your daughter is on her last legs. It's better to try anything than just wait for her to die."

Two maids: ...

But faced with such a beautiful face, neither of the two maids wanted to offend her.

As long as she doesn't cause trouble, once the courtesan is dead, she will be the most popular girl in Tianxiang Pavilion.

After Jiang Sese finished feeding the courtesan her medicine, she obediently followed the maid back home.

When the madam heard about this, she was about to get angry and call the maid over to be punished, but when she heard that the courtesan's high fever had subsided, she immediately rushed to see her. Sure enough, she saw that the boil on her neck was no longer oozing pus, and the swelling and pain that had been blocking her throat had also subsided by more than half. She was even able to open her eyes and drink half a bowl of rice soup!

The madam couldn't sit still any longer.

The madam arrived with her men, and as soon as they entered, she stared at Jiang Sese, looking her up and down: "Where's the medicine? Hand it over!"

Jiang Sese was sitting by the window, slowly combing her hair with a comb. Upon hearing this, she didn't even lift her eyelids, but simply pushed the small porcelain bottle on the dressing table away, saying casually, "Here, this is it."

The madam grabbed the porcelain bottle, uncorked it, and brought it to her nose to smell. There was a faint musty smell. Although it didn't smell like any precious medicine, the maid said that Fei Rao had indeed used this medicine and her fever had subsided.

The madam shoved the cork back in, stuffed the porcelain bottle into her sleeve, and just as a smile appeared on her face, she heard Jiang Sese slowly add, "There's only this much left. What will we do when it's all gone?"

The madam's smile froze on her face.

The madam stared at Jiang Sese's stunningly beautiful face and said sternly, "Stop pretending and playing tricks on me! Write down the prescription right now! Just name any rare or precious medicinal herbs you need. As long as the prescription is accurate, I guarantee you'll live a life of luxury and won't suffer any hardship."

Jiang Sese gently placed the wooden comb in her hand on the table, spread her hands, and looked helpless: "How would I know any prescription? This medicine was given to me by someone else. This is the only bottle I have, and now it's all in my mother's sleeve."

The madam's face twitched violently a few times. "Trying to fool me? If it were really only this little bit, would she have so readily given it up?"

The madam stepped closer, her tone grim: "I've seen all kinds of stubborn people. If you don't talk, I have plenty of ways to force you to."

Jiang Sese calmly raised her eyes and looked at her with a grin: "Mom, if I were to kill myself here, you would have lost everything. Buying me must have cost you a lot of money."

Admittedly, the madam had many ways to force her to reveal the prescription.

But Jiang Sese was certain that the madam wouldn't part with her two hundred taels of silver.

After such a torturous treatment, the person is ruined. Do you really think that all the customers at Tianxianglou are indiscriminate?

Only the wealthy can afford to patronize Tianxianglou.

The madam's lips twitched again.

She spent a fortune to buy this girl; her face alone was worth a hundred taels of silver. If she were to die like this, she would never get her money back.

The madam took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing her raging anger, and asked in a low voice, "So what exactly do you want?"

Jiang Sese sighed, shifting her gaze to the window, a hint of melancholy creeping into her voice: "I don't want to do anything. Anyway, I have nowhere to go once I leave this place—my hometown suffered a disaster, my parents died on the way to escape famine, and the relatives I was supposed to seek refuge with have disappeared. Now that I'm here, my only thought is to save enough money to buy my freedom as soon as possible. If my mother trusts me, let me make some medicine for her first. Once the medicine is ready, it won't be too late to earn money for her."

Jiang Sese's eyes were slightly red when she said this, looking exactly like a desperate and resigned girl.

The madam looked her over with suspicion for a while, then glanced down at the porcelain vase in her sleeve, her mind racing with calculations.

This medicine is indeed effective. If we could produce more and sell it to doctors and pharmacies outside, it would bring in another source of income.

As for entertaining customers, this girl is so beautiful... it would be more appealing to people to put her on the table a few days later.

Anyway, as long as the person doesn't run away, she won't lose out no matter what.

As for running away from Tianxiang Tower?

Humph.

Are the pimps at Tianxianglou, layer upon layer, just sitting around doing nothing?

After much deliberation, the madam relented: "Alright, you can focus on making medicine for now, and you can postpone entertaining customers. But let me make this clear: if you can't make any effective medicine, you'll be required to perform for customers immediately."

The madam then instructed her personal maid to keep a close eye on Jiang Sese before swaying her hips and leading her away.

As soon as the door closed, Jiang Sese's face fell, and she looked sullen.

Pharmaceutical manufacturing? What kind of medicine are you talking about?

I was lying to her.