Reincarnation Girl Becomes Immortal

"This poem must be memorized."

She looked around and saw a desk and writing implements on the side of the hall. Instead of calling to the maid, she left the dining table and went to the desk to pick up her brush, dip it in ink, set out the paper and inkstone, and immediately sat down and began to write seriously.

Hongji, standing to the side, was somewhat surprised: "This is the first time I've seen Chuxiao so anxious. Is Senior Sister's poetry really that good?"

"Copying is certainly good," Xi Heng thought to himself.

However, her expression remained unchanged.

After swallowing another slice of sea cucumber, Xi Heng suddenly leaned close to Hong Ji and whispered another question: "That girl is actually the current imperial princess, isn't that right?"

"Eh?" Yan Hongji's response was quite hesitant, clearly indicating that she didn't want to give a direct answer: "This..."

However, based on this attitude, Xi Heng was already certain: "There's no need to say anything more."

After she finished speaking, she began to savor the delicacies on the table.

Chu Xiao bears some resemblance to her in appearance.

Furthermore, the other party's arrogant attitude made Xi Heng unconsciously recall the mad emperor he had encountered at the end of his previous life when he was talking to him.

After several conversations, Xi Heng had already guessed that the other party was one of the imperial princesses of the current dynasty.

He was the kind of guy who lived in the palace year-round, leading an extremely luxurious life.

Xi Heng was quite puzzled. This person should also be one of the children of the current tyrant. How come he wasn't turned into a spirit stone by the emperor?

Could it be that the mad emperor still harbored some familial affection? Why didn't he show any towards her back then?

Is it because of the difference between children who have been missing for more than ten years and children who have been raised from childhood?

"Tsk." Xi Heng said with displeasure, putting down his chopsticks. "I'm going back first."

"Won't you stay a little longer?" Yan Hongji was taken aback.

"Come upstairs if you need anything." Xi Heng yawned and slowly left the hall.

……

Half an hour later, Xi Heng was still in front of the dressing table doing her makeup when she heard a few light footsteps outside the door, followed by a knocking sound.

"Senior sister, may I disturb you for a moment?" someone said from outside the door.

"What is it?" Xi Heng continued to straighten his collar.

For some reason, her clothes always seemed a little loose around her chest...

"I was just talking with Steward Lou, and I heard that Senior Sister is looking for a job and is somewhat interested in becoming one of my household's retainers?" Hongji said gently as she entered.

He's back to his well-educated, gentle, and refined self...

Xi Heng looked at the other person for a while and nodded slightly.

"I'm truly delighted that Senior Sister has this intention," Yan Hongji said with a sincere smile. "How about we reach this agreement today?"

"Don't we need to conduct a test or interview first?"

"You flatter me, how could a junior sister test her senior sister?" Hongji continued, "I will have Steward Lou bring a contract later. Now, please come with me, senior sister."

"Where to?" Xi Heng tilted his head.

"Let's go out for some fun together." Yan Hongji moved closer to Xi Heng from behind, looking at the beautiful girl in the bronze mirror, and said softly:

"Senior sister looks so beautiful today, she shouldn't just stay cooped up in her room all the time, right?"

"I'm showing this to myself."

"And please, senior sister, protect me while I'm out there." The other person sighed softly again.

“Our Yan family has been declining for the past two years. We can only keep shrinking our businesses to barely maintain this small piece of land. Even so, we are often coveted by outsiders. The family behind those scoundrels that my senior sister chased away this afternoon is one of them.”

"Today I'm going out to accompany a distinguished guest on a fun trip, but I might be targeted by my family's rivals and have my fun spoiled... In that case, I'll have to ask my senior sister to help me."

……

……

Because many words were removed during the editing and refinement process, and the total word count of the published chapters cannot be reduced, the ellipses at the end represent word count corrections. Please forgive the inconvenience.

Chapter Thirty-Four: The Yan Pavilion and the Song Tower

"Senior sister, please get in the car."

Yan Hongji affectionately took Xi Heng's right hand and slowly led her to the purple-gold carriage downstairs, her voice soft and pleasant, with a hint of joy in it.

With such a beautiful junior sister calling him in a gentle tone, Xi Heng couldn't help but feel a little touched by her charm.

She nodded subconsciously and boarded the vehicle as instructed.

Reaching out, he pushed aside the purple curtain and saw that someone was already sitting inside.

This is none other than Chu Xiao, the noble person Yan Hongji mentioned who would accompany her on her outings—somewhat resembling Xi Heng in appearance.

"Xi Heng... are you coming too?" Chu Xiao asked the name somewhat awkwardly from inside the carriage.

“Yes, we’ll provide some escort along the way,” Xi Heng said.

"There's no need to worry about my... safety." The other party shook his head and said, "Just keep an eye on Hongji."

"Do you have some hidden guards around you?" Xi Heng pushed open the carriage curtain and looked around, but he couldn't detect any other powerful figures.

"This is none of your business. In short, no one in the entire capital city dares to lay a hand on me."

"Even the emperor wouldn't dare?"

"..." Chu Xiao's tone lowered: "Don't speak lightly of the Emperor."

"Oh," Xi Heng replied casually.

Yan Hongji also boarded the carriage and sat next to Xi Hengtong.

She shook the silver bell hanging above the carriage to urge it to move forward.

The wooden wheels rolled, and a gentle breeze blew in through the window, causing the purple curtains to sway slightly.

Xi Heng sat on the comfortable cushions, watching the scenery outside flow by. He subconsciously recalled that he had also come to the capital in a similar purple-gold carriage.

Two young girls beside him chatted and laughed, talking about the various forms of entertainment in the capital. They first talked about theaters and theaters, then about dance halls and dance halls catering to the sons of noble families or literati and merchants. They talked about the various performances, such as zaju (a type of Chinese opera), zhugongdiao (a type of Chinese opera), puppet shows, shadow plays, acrobatics, storytelling, and so on. They chatted amicably for quite a while.

Yan Hongji's charm lies not only in her exquisite appearance, but also in her excellent communication and eloquence.

Listening to the other person's voice always makes people feel relaxed, and they unconsciously chat for a long time.

Xi Heng listened attentively and learned about part of the entertainment industry in the capital from their conversation.

These ancient forms of entertainment were numerous. The dances in dance halls and theaters alone could be divided into seven major categories and more than twenty subcategories. Moreover, as long as you wanted to watch, you could go to the designated place at any time to request a dance, and most of them did not require prior reservation, which was very convenient.

However, the price was a bit prohibitive for her.

There are thousands of brothels and entertainment venues in the capital, and a visit to even the slightly better one will cost at least fifty taels of silver.

The entrance fee alone is two taels of silver, and the next table of food and drink costs more than thirty taels. Hiring dancers in the shop costs several dozen taels more. With singing and dancing, drinking and tea, many people can spend hundreds of taels of silver in an afternoon.

These words left Xi Heng stunned for a moment. Her previous spending habits couldn't support such a story about spending hundreds of taels of silver in half a day.

Xi Heng silently turned her head, parted the purple curtain in the carriage and looked out the window. The bustling and prosperous Qin Xie Lane outside had become a huge den of iniquity in her eyes.

People are constantly moving around, and a lot of money is circulating between their footsteps.

She only needed twenty taels of silver to practice martial arts at the Red Thread Sword Academy for three months. A family of four in the capital could live on twenty taels of silver for a year in peacetime. But in this bustling Qin Xie Alley, you could walk into any house and spend half a day there and lose a hundred taels of silver...

"The gap is really big..." Xi Heng muttered to himself.

Yan Hongji and Chu Xiao were still chatting quietly nearby.

As they chatted, Chu Xiao suddenly said something that Xi Heng couldn't quite understand:

"Speaking of which, I've heard that many young ladies from several prominent families in the capital have formed a group called the Love Flower Society? In the brothels and entertainment venues along Qin Xie Lane, if you mention this name, you can find some rather unique entertainment?"

The young woman, with her long hair half-tied up with a jade hairpin, a beautiful face, and an air of nobility, asked curiously.

Yan Hongji, who had just been introducing song and dance drama, suddenly stopped talking, her gaze falling on Chu Xiao's face, and blinked.

"...How did Chu Xiao find out?"

"I've only heard some rumors in the palace; is it true?"

Yan Hongji opened her mouth, but for a moment she didn't know what to say.

"And what exactly is this so-called special entertainment?" Chu Xiao asked again.

As Xi Heng listened, he quietly recalled what he had overheard yesterday when he first arrived at Qin Xie Lane, in front of a Yan Pavilion with green tiles and red eaves, being solicited by a heavily made-up woman in yellow.

'Many young ladies in the city secretly admired this... so the brothel arranged for some special services.'

This seems to be somewhat similar to the topic that Chu Xiao and Yan Hongji are discussing at this moment.

"It's better for Chu Xiao not to know." After hesitating, Yan Hongji waved her hand to avoid the topic.

"So Hongji knows this?" Chu Xiao noticed this. "Could it be that you are also a member of the Love Flower Society? After all, you are a young lady from a prominent family in the capital."

“That’s not the case.” Yan Hongji rubbed her forehead. “I only know about it because those people want some of my businesses to also operate that kind of service.”

"What kind of service? You agreed?"

“How could we possibly agree to that? Our Yan family has never offered any services like those in brothels or pleasure houses.” Hongji shook her head.

"Which category?" Chu Xiao pressed on.

"It's not a good thing either, there's no need to know..." Yan Hongji's tone had become somewhat powerless and helpless.

Xi Heng watched from the side, his eyelashes fluttering.

She was also curious, but she already had a vague idea of ​​what the so-called "serving service" was, so she just blushed and continued to look out the window without saying anything.

Gradually, the carriage slowed down, and the sound of the wheels slowly stopped.

Upon arriving at the destination, the three girls got out of the car.

As the sun sets, its rays cast a pale golden glow on the green tiles of the buildings.

The tall building is surrounded by lush green locust trees, and a huge, strange rock stands in front of it, with slender bamboo taking root around it.

This singing house is even more spacious than the Yan family's Hua Man Lou, but its carvings are not as rich and gorgeous as those of Hua Man Lou. However, it has a more generous feel than Hua Man Lou.

Yan Hongji approached first and led the way, saying, "This is the Liuluo Tower that I mentioned in the carriage earlier. Most of the Hu girls that Chu Xiao was interested in also dance here. Among them, the Hu Xuan Dance is quite famous in the inner city. Literati who like to drink and compose poems often come here to write poems in praise. There is a poetry pavilion in the tower that you can see."

"Actually, I'm more interested in the special services that the Love Flower Society mentioned." Chu Xiao seemed to have this on her mind.

Upon hearing this, Yan Hongji pursed her lips and tried her best to suppress the sigh that was about to escape her chest.

"Let's not talk about the Love Flower Society anymore, it's really not a good thing." She quickly waved her hand to remind her, and then walked directly into the pavilion without waiting for Chu Xiao's response.

The receptionist at the building entrance recognized her: "Miss Yan, have you come today to discuss business with my master, or...?"

"I brought a few friends to enjoy the music and dance." Hongji interrupted briefly, then took out four silver beads from her purse and placed them on the table next to the host.

"Please follow me, Miss." The waiter led her into the building and then asked, "Would you prefer a side room upstairs or the main hall?"

"A seat closer to the stage is fine."

"I understand." The other party led the person inside.

The pavilion is quite spacious, with each seat spaced several meters apart. The tabletops are covered with cloth, which is painted with many vibrant colors and patterns representing the Western Regions, such as images and camels.

The maids in the building mostly wore brightly colored, narrow-sleeved short blouses and close-fitting long skirts, with bare waists and shoulders. The long skirts had several slits on the thighs, making it easy to see the skin under the clothes as they moved. They also had gold thread decorations hanging from their waists or wrists, making them look very charming.

This was Xi Heng's first time in such a place, and he felt a little uneasy after sitting down.

Although she can now kill without blinking an eye, she still feels somewhat shy in this kind of situation.

On her way to the capital, she saw people who, even in the summer, would cover their bodies quite thoroughly. However, these waitresses in ethnic costumes had no such concerns and freely displayed their beauty.

That's quite novel...

Xi Heng took a sip of the black tea that Hu Ji had served, trying to conceal his emotions.

On the other hand, Chu Xiao, who was also visiting for the first time, had a different attitude. She stared unabashedly at the scantily clad Hu women who exuded exotic charm.

Hu Ji didn't shy away from this, and instead smiled and returned a charming and gentle look, softly calling her "Miss." After pouring her tea, she went back to bring out other dishes.

"How about it? The palace doesn't have this kind of scenery, does it?" Yan Hongji said from the side.

“No wonder people always think about leaving the palace first when they talk about having fun.” Chu Xiao shook her head slightly: “The outside world is indeed more colorful than the inside.”

"It's not just about abundance; its inner charm is also quite unique," Yan Hongji said with a smile. "I've invited one of the most beautiful courtesans from the brothel to come and entertain our distinguished guest."

"It's not so easy to invite a courtesan, is it?"