Time Travel: The Best Doctor in Ancient Times

Chapter 390: Chapter 261 Hengtang Flower and Willow Alley Chapter 390: Chapter 261 Hengtang Flower and Willow Alley Seeing that Gu Changsheng was truly heading to the brothel, Dong Lei was utterly anxious.

Dong Lei grabbed Xiao Si Xi and anxiously instructed him, “Si Xi, you must take good care of your lady master, don’t let her do anything too outrageous!”

Si Xi looked up with bright eyes, momentarily unsure of how to respond.

However, it was Gu Changsheng who, rolling his eyes, interrupted the fussing Dong Lei, “Are you preparing for a ‘grand farewell’? We are just going to see Little Meat Bun, we’ll take a stroll and come right back!”

Although Gu Changsheng assured repeatedly with conviction, Dong Lei was still not at ease, stared anxiously at him and followed him to the back door, clinging to his sleeve without letting go, hesitantly calling out again, “My lady… can we not go? Let His Highness Prince Bao and Si Xi go see the Young Master, after all, you are…”

After all, you are a woman!

Yet Gu Changsheng didn’t allow Dong Lei to finish her sentence, interrupting her, “Dong Lei, look, I’ve been so busy preparing for so long, now you’re asking me to head back home, isn’t that inappropriate?”

While speaking, Gu Changsheng comforted her by patting her shoulder, “Rest assured, we are not going to visit a little servant house but the Cool Breeze Bright Moon Tower. Those handsome gentlemen aren’t there to tempt me. Why would I, as a woman, flirt with other women? I’m merely going to broaden my horizons with Zhou Zongbao!”

Dong Lei was somewhat skeptical of her lady’s words, but Gu Changsheng wouldn’t give her the chance to argue further; she immediately dragged Zhou Zongbao and Si Xi towards Hengtang Lake.

True enough, although Liuzhou City did not have the Qinhuai River, there was a Hengtang Lake. The entire street on the west side of the lake was occupied by tall brothels, and above the lake surface hung numerous brightly lit red lanterns.

Gu Changsheng stood by Hengtang Lake with spirited eyes, looking afar at that neon-lit area, couldn’t help but exclaim, “Damn! This is truly a red-light district! Look at this scale, this momentum!”

Compared to the modern hidden ones, this is an unabashed red-light district.

You wouldn’t believe how vivid those red lanterns hanging at their doorways are!

Even before entering, Gu Changsheng could faintly smell the fragrance of the powders in the air, and from afar came the soft sound of strings and bamboo instruments.

“Dancing under the willow building hearts and moons, songs finish beneath peach blossom fans. Come on, let me witness what a scene of intoxicated delight the brothel truly is!” exclaimed Gu Changsheng who, waving his long sleeves and clapping his folding fan closed, led the way toward that street of red lights.

The closer they got, the more stark the contrast became. The whole city was enveloped in the silence of the night, except here, where there was singing and dancing and the sound of happiness everywhere.

It was Gu Changsheng’s first time experiencing the ancient nightlife, and he couldn’t help but marvel. Okay, this has much more substance than the modern nightclubs and clubs!

“Hey! Zhou Zongbao, why do you look so deeply aggrieved? You’re going to ruin the fun like this! Cheer up and smile for your master!” Gu Changsheng, vibrant and energetic, turned to the dispirited Zhou Zongbao behind him, opened his folding fan with a smile, and raised an eyebrow.

“Hehe!” Zhou Zongbao lifted his face and stiffly chuckled twice.

God knows how miserable he felt inside!

“That looks uglier than crying!” Gu Changsheng mercilessly critiqued his smile, pursing his lips and shaking his head, “Do whatever you want, but if you spoil my fun, don’t blame me for making you suffer when we get home!”

Gu Changsheng always remembered that she had to maintain a manly demeanor, naturally adjusting her self-references accordingly.

The feeling of being the master was not bad at all, especially since she had a real “Master” footing the bill. No fear at all!

Gu Changsheng was finally able to experience riding a crane to Yangzhou with a waist full of Hundred Thousand Grants.

The bittersweet feeling was indeed not something one could easily describe to others!

Zhou Zongbao, looking annoyed, glared at Gu Changsheng and grumbled, “They say a man should behave like a man, but Young Master, I feel like you’re even more manly than most men!”

With leisure and ease, Gu Changsheng shook her folding fan and spoke in a flirtatious and romantic tone, “It’s rare to get a chance to roam freely, of course, I must make the most of it. Look at this suave and dashing appearance of mine. In a while, I definitely need to experience the thrill of riding a horse along a curving bridge amidst a room full of beckoning Red Sleeves — how splendid!”

Hearing this, Xiao Si Xi who had been closely following Gu Changsheng immediately looked up and interjected, “My lady, we didn’t bring any horses!”

“Smack!”

Gu Changsheng’s folding fan unhesitatingly struck Xiao Si Xi on the head.

“One after another, you killjoys! Ambience! Do you understand ambience? Humph!” With those words, Gu Changsheng decided not to dilly-dally further with these two, lest they spoil her delightful mood even further.

Watching Gu Changsheng stride towards Hengtang Flower and Willow Alley, Zhou Zongbao and Si Xi exchanged a glance, simultaneously shook their heads helplessly and hurriedly followed.

“Oh, what a handsome gentleman! Sir, are you here to meet acquaintances? If not, would you like to come and have a drink at my place?” A scantily clad brothel woman, flaunting her bust, waved her red handkerchief seductively and snuggled up to Gu Changsheng’s side.

Gu Changsheng blinked his eyes but didn’t dodge, allowing the brothel woman to lean on his shoulder.

“The beauty indeed stirs the heart with her looks. Alas, I am here for the name of Cool Breeze Bright Moon Tower and fear I cannot accompany the beauty today!” Gu Changsheng endured the attack of her heavy makeup scent, slightly curved his lips into a teasing smile, and raised her chin with his folding fan, his comportment indescribably frivolous.

“Oh, if the husband is heading to Bright Moon Tower, then I shouldn’t delay your time. It seems to me like it’s your first visit to Hengtang Flower and Willow Alley,” the brothel woman said, smiling shyly after hearing the compliment.

Upon hearing this, Gu Changsheng nodded his head. Indeed, she was the kind of woman who often solicited outside brothels and could tell this was his first visit here, “Beauty speaks the truth. I am on a business trip and indeed came here by reputation.”

“Hehe… such a romantic disposition you have, sir. Look over there, do you see the tallest building, six stories high?” the brothel woman said, leaning on Gu Changsheng and pointing towards the end of the alley with her delicate fingers, “That’s Cool Breeze Bright Moon Tower. You go ahead, sir. When you have time, remember to visit Lichun Courtyard and have a few drinks with me.”

Gu Changsheng followed the direction of her finger and saw that Cool Breeze Bright Moon Tower was indeed strikingly distinctive, a single tall building that instantly overshadowed all other brothels.

Is this not a case of ‘a beacon does not fear the depths of the alley’? That Cool Breeze Bright Moon Tower is indeed at the very end of this Flower and Willow Alley!

To get there, one must traverse this whole alley of Red Sleeves Beckoning!

Zhou Zongbao and Si Xi, following behind Gu Changsheng, watched him flirt with the brothel woman as if no one else was around, and were immediately dumbfounded, their mouths agape wide enough to fit an egg.

“Is this her first time visiting a brothel?” Zhou Zongbao asked Xiao Si Xi in a low voice, full of doubt.

Looking at that familiar frivolous gesture, that hungry wolf glance, it didn’t look like it at all!

“This servant doesn’t know either…” Si Xi was sweating coldly.

Godfather! To say nothing about the modesty and virtue of noble ladies, his master was completely different from them, a far cry of ten thousand miles!

“The beauty indeed knows her place, Si Xi!” Gu Changsheng raised his hand to touch the brothel woman’s cheek and called out.

Si Xi caught the glance from Gu Changsheng and immediately came back to his senses, stepped forward, and from his bosom took out two ingots and handed them to the brothel woman.

Upon seeing the ingots, the brothel woman’s eyes widened in delight as she took them, quickly stepping away from Gu Changsheng and bowing in thanks, “Thank you for your generous gift, Husband, I wish you a delightful spring night!”

“Thanks for your kind words, beauty! Ha ha…” Gu Changsheng laughed and nodded his head, shaking his folding fan as he walked toward the end of the Flower and Willow Alley.

The brothel woman watching Gu Changsheng’s departing figure marveled, showing off the two hefty Large Ingots to her peers nearby, her eyes sparkling as she watched his retreating back, “This gentleman is truly generous. His demeanor and conduct are all remarkable. It remains to be seen which sister in Bright Moon Tower will catch his favor.”

“Stop with your foolish dreams. With our plain looks and common makeup, how could we catch the eye of such a gentleman? Let’s just save up our silver and hope to have a place to settle down when we grow old and lose our charms.”

“Yes!” the brothel woman nodded her head and started soliciting the passing pedestrians again.

Gu Changsheng and his party were already noticeable; he and Zhou Zongbao both were handsome and well-dressed. The brothel women, who frequently mingled in such settings, could immediately tell who the real patrons were, naturally, they didn’t let them pass easily.

Thus they frequently encountered brothel women trying to tempt them; each time, Gu Changsheng would simply state his destination and let Si Xi give them a tip.

After all, it wasn’t her silver she was spending; she didn’t mind at all!

Consider it aiding these poor women who are stuck in brothels!

As they walked, Gu Changsheng thought to herself that Cool Breeze Bright Moon Tower truly demanded respect. Fellow travelers are but rivals; an alley with more than a dozen brothels, yet all the soliciting women, upon hearing they were headed for Cool Breeze Bright Moon Tower, did not cling but instead kindly directed them.

No wonder Zhou Mu had said that all the Music and Dance Academies in the world belong to one family, and among the Four Kingdoms’ brothels, Bright is the most distinguished! It turns out this statement was indeed true!

Cool Breeze Bright Moon Tower indeed stood exceptional among the brothels in town, she indeed found a remarkable master for her beloved son. It looked like she would have to be a bit nicer to Flower Peacock from now on!

After about a half-hour, Gu Changsheng and her party finally reached the end of Hengtang Flower and Willow Alley, where the six-story Jade Building of Cool Breeze Bright Moon Tower loomed right in front of them.

Unlike the earlier clamor before other brothel doors, in front of Cool Breeze Bright Moon Tower, aside from the occasional customer coming in and out, there weren’t even any soliciting women around.

“Look at this presence–it truly lives up to the name of Cool Breeze Bright Moon Tower!”

Gu Changsheng looked at the Cool Breeze Bright Moon Tower’s grand gilded signboard and couldn’t help but nod her head.

The air was filled with the sound of silk and bamboo orchestra and women’s gentle singing, devoid of the earlier extravagant and luxurious air, instead offering a refreshing sensation.

“True gold fears not the ordeal of fire, fragrance fears not the depth of the alley, this Cool Breeze Bright Moon Tower indeed fears no lack of business, let’s go inside!” Gu Changsheng exclaimed in admiration, waved to Zhou Zongbao and Si Xi, and took the lead towards the grand entrance of Cool Breeze Bright Moon Tower.