Niao Ni

Chapter 456 A Banquet at Hongmen with Daoist Principles (1)

On the east side of the third floor of Bao Yue Brothel was a large flower hall. Half of the floor overlooked the space, offering a view of the hall on the first floor below. The wide, Hu people's woolen carpet exuded a fishy and bloody red color, creating a unique atmosphere.

Today, the brothel had distinguished guests, so this section of the flower hall had been cleared. As the Second Prince entered, his eyes instinctively glanced at the door, noticing two newly painted gold characters. He couldn't help but wonder what they meant.

"Hong Men." (鸿门 – literally "Hong Gate")

Fan Xian, as the host, calmly smiled and welcomed everyone into the hall. The flower hall was separated by screens and velvet curtains. The air was thick with heat. As the important figures entered, the girls beside them took off their cloaks and outer garments, leaving them in their inner robes.

That was enough. Various exquisite teas and snacks were already placed on the tables, using fine Jiangnan tableware. The wine was served in top-quality glass cups, and the wine itself was the most expensive liquor in the world, Wuliangye. The girls attending were all stunningly beautiful and quietly attentive.

The Crown Prince naturally sat in the most honored position. He looked at Fan Xian and playfully scolded, "Only you can enjoy such luxury. Look at these things, all from the Three Workshops. The palace is still counting on them to exchange for silver. We wouldn't dare spend money like you."

The Qing Kingdom had simple and honest customs, and even the royal family and officials were more restrained, unlike the extravagant Northern Qi court. The banquet Fan Xian was hosting today was indeed a bit excessive. Everyone knew that the Internal Treasury was now under Fan Xian's control, so allocating some expenses was no problem. However, they wondered if the Crown Prince's words were a subtle jab.

Fan Xian's expression remained unchanged. He smiled and said, "We should seize the opportunity to enjoy ourselves while we can."

Xue Qing naturally sat at the first table on the left. He was there on imperial orders to watch the show, so he didn't care about anything else. Having lived in Jiangnan for a long time, he was used to such luxuries. Seeing the admiration of these important figures from the capital, he couldn't help but smile, thinking that it was not easy to live in Kyoto, and unfortunately, the enjoyment was far inferior to Jiangnan.

The banquet began, and the girls quietly and silently began to serve dishes and pour wine for the guests at each table. Although they had undergone special training in the past two days, they were still a little nervous when they suddenly saw so many important figures from the Qing Dynasty. Their rosy lips were tightly pursed.

The princes and officials present had all been to pleasure quarters before, but suddenly having so many people gathered in one hall was a bit overwhelming.

Actually, there weren't many guests, about a dozen, each accompanied by a girl, with a personal attendant kneeling behind them, which filled the flower hall quite a bit.

Serving Fan Xian was none other than the manager of Bao Yue Brothel, Miss Sang Wen.

In this kind of occasion, naturally it was inappropriate to start drinking and shouting, playing drinking games, or fondling the girls. Especially with Xue Qing and the two Deputy Commissioners of the Privy Council present, the young nobles were still somewhat restrained. The atmosphere in the hall was a bit quiet and dull, with only casual jokes about the court, such as Scholar Shu getting drunk in the snow street again yesterday.

Anyway, Shu Wu had a carefree personality and didn't mind being ridiculed by the younger generation.

No one dared to joke about the princes and Fan Xian, especially Fan Xian. Everyone was still guessing what the real purpose of this dinner was.

Amidst the awkwardness, Xue Qing drank his wine leisurely, playing with the small hand of the girl beside him. This lord immediately shed the air of an official and gained a bit of a middle-aged playboy vibe. It seemed that the former academician of the Imperial Academy had fought many battles with the "skeletons" of pleasure quarters.

The Second Prince took a shallow sip, smiled slightly at Fan Xian across from him, and said, "Anzhi, it's been a year since I've been to Bao Yue Brothel, and I've noticed that the girls here are much prettier than before."

...

...

The atmosphere in the hall immediately relaxed a bit. Fan Xian and the Second Prince, someone had to start the conversation.

"Nonsense," Fan Xian laughed and scolded. "With today's setup, it's impossible for this one Bao Yue Brothel to serve you all well... To be honest, these thirteen girls in the brothel today are not just women from my brothel. I've invited all the most famous women in Kyoto... Whether they're from the flower boats on the Liujing River or the Jiaofang Division, if you can find another popular girl after leaving this brothel tonight, I'll lose."

Everyone was stunned, thinking that this was a grand gesture. It wasn't about the money, but about making the pleasure industry in Kyoto obediently hand over their most famous girls within such a short time. Fan Xian's power was indeed... outrageous.

Everyone glanced sideways, and saw that the girls beside them were each shyly lowering their heads. After looking at them carefully, everyone couldn't help but laugh, recognizing one as someone from the Liujing River, and the other as a certain lady from the Jiaofang Division. They were all old acquaintances.

Only the Second Prince's eyes dimmed slightly. Ironically, among the dozen or so girls on the floor today, four of them belonged to the Liujing River affairs previously managed by the heir, Hongcheng. But later, Yuan Meng died in Jiangnan, Shi Qing'er defected to Fan Xian, and Li Hongcheng was grounded by Prince Jing...

He raised his head and looked at Fan Xian from afar. He saw that Fan Xian's expression was calm, but his eyes seemed to be smiling, making it unclear whether Fan Xian wanted to demonstrate his power through this small matter, or if he had other ideas.

The Second Prince smiled slightly and said, "Bao Yue Brothel is well managed, thanks to Miss Sang's cleverness and wisdom. I'll toast you a cup."

After saying this, he raised the wine glass in his hand and toasted Sang Wen beside Fan Xian from afar.

As a prince, calling himself "zai xia" (在下 – a humble way to refer to oneself) was in line with his usual gentle demeanor. Moreover, in a pleasure setting, it wouldn't be appropriate to focus solely on hierarchy. Everyone didn't mind, but they did mind... why was the first toast for Sang Wen? Where did that leave today's host, Fan Xian?

At this time, Sang Wen was leaning against Fan Xian, picking up a strand of moss and feeding it to his lips. Hearing this, she couldn't help but pause and look back at Fan Xian.

Fan Xian nodded with a smile. Sang Wen stood up, gave a slight bow to the Second Prince, and drank the cup dry. Without waiting for the Second Prince to say more, she poured another cup for herself and toasted the Crown Prince and the First Prince, who were sitting at the head of the table.

The Crown Prince was acting strangely today, only teasing the beauty in his arms. The beauty was being coaxed by the crown prince of a country, and her whole body was already weak. The Crown Prince seemed very proud, and didn't pay much attention to the undercurrents between the Second Prince and Fan Xian at the banquet.

The First Prince drank a cup with Sang Wen, but sighed.

The Second Prince's expression remained unchanged. He smiled and said, "It's rare to have so many friends here today. We should have some entertainment. Since Miss Sang became the manager of Bao Yue Brothel, the people of Kyoto have no longer had the chance to hear her sing. I wonder if we could ask Miss Sang Wen to sing a song."

Sang Wen smiled slightly, her gentle face calm. She stood up, preparing to get her instrument, but unexpectedly, her hand was held by Fan Xian.

Fan Xian held Sang Wen's hand, quietly looking at the Second Prince, and said, "Sang Wen doesn't sing anymore."

Sang Wen was stunned, thinking, why make the banquet uneasy because of such a small matter? She had been a singer since she was a child and was used to performing at banquets. For a moment, she forgot that Fan Xian was someone who didn't like his people serving others.

The Second Prince frowned. A hint of incomprehension flashed across his handsome face. He didn't seem to expect Fan Xian to be so firm. After the banquet started, they were both testing each other's attitudes. He also wanted to know what Fan Xian was planning to do after returning to Kyoto this time, so he said a few words in succession.

Unexpectedly, Fan Xian's response was so... anticlimactic.

Fan Xian glanced at the Second Prince, thinking that he had created this anticlimactic scene today, but the purpose... was to ruin the scenery. Ren Shaoan, the Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, sitting to his lower left, tugged at his sleeve, reminding him to be careful, but he just smiled.

The Deputy Commissioner of the Privy Council narrowed his eyes and said, "Little Fan, what you're saying... Does the identity of the princes mean nothing? How could asking this girl to sing a song be a problem?"

Fan Xian's confrontation in front of the Privy Council that day had already created a crack between him and the military, especially since the assassination in the valley had not been investigated, and the two sides could not have peace.

The Qing Kingdom's soldiers were always simple, direct, and rough. This Deputy Commissioner, whose surname was Qu and given name was Xiangdong, was the vanguard officer in the last Northern Expedition. With great military merit, he was naturally not afraid of Fan Xian's power. Hearing Fan Xian's cold words, he spoke sarcastically.

Fan Xian was not angry, but smiled and said, "Miss Sang only sings at Chen Garden now. If Deputy Commissioner Qu wants to listen, go to the Chen Garden outside the capital and ask Dean Chen. Asking me is useless."

The three words "Dean Chen" were thrown out like black lightning. The Second Prince smiled and said nothing, while the Deputy Commissioner Qu of the Privy Council also changed his expression and swallowed the harsh words that followed back into his stomach.

"Drink!"

Amidst the awkwardness, thunder rumbled in silence. The First Prince, who had been silent for a long time, suddenly raised his glass and shouted loudly. He was from the military and had a heroic personality. Today, he wanted to mend the relationship between Fan Xian and the military, and at the same time, he wanted to reduce the gaps between his brothers. But seeing such a strange situation at the table, a strange anger surged in his chest, so he shouted.

The two Deputy Commissioners of the Privy Council were also from the military, and their heroism was no less than others. With a slight frown, they drank the three or two ounces of wine in their hands, and turned their wrists to show Fan Xian.

Fan Xian smiled slightly, placed the mouth of the cup to his lips, and slowly tilted it. Although the speed was slow, it was uninterrupted. Clear spring entered the lake, and the cup was emptied.

The Crown Prince at the head of the table helplessly raised his glass to the First Prince and said, "Brother, I was about to drink, your loud voice almost scared the wine out of my cup."

Everyone laughed.

The Crown Prince then smiled at the two Deputy Commissioners of the Privy Council and said, "Don't think about bringing the military's ways to Bao Yue Brothel. This prince knows that you and Anzhi have some resentment towards each other, but since this matter has not been clarified, why should officials be angry with each other? Even if you are angry, don't compete in drinking."

He pointed at Fan Xian and smiled at the two Deputy Commissioners of the Privy Council, "Have you forgotten? In front of the palace hall the year before, Little Fan drank three thousand cups in one night and turned that Northern Qi lord into a dead pig. When it comes to drinking, Anzhi is not afraid of you military men."

Xin Qiwu, as a member of the Crown Prince's faction, knew what his master wanted to do, and quickly chimed in, "Two Generals, I think it's okay to compete in drinking with Little Fan. Little Fan stopped writing poetry after that night. If we can get him to write another three hundred poems, so that the *Ban Xian Zhai* poetry collection can have a sequel, the Privy Council will have made a great contribution to the world... I'm afraid His Majesty will be extremely happy."

As soon as these words came out, everyone agreed. Even Xue Qing became interested and invited Fan Xian to drink a few cups, and then forced the two Deputy Commissioners of the Privy Council to compete in drinking with Fan Xian.

After a round of drinks, the atmosphere in the hall became much more lively, and Fan Xian's heroic drinking also made the two Privy Council officials feel a little better.

At this time, the Second Prince suddenly smiled and said, "Speaking of Anzhi no longer writing poetry after that night, it is indeed a great loss to the world... But I heard that when Anzhi was in Northern Qi, he wrote a poem for the Northern Qi Saintess. I wonder if this is true."

This was the most famous scandal in the world last year. The people of Northern Qi were unhappy, but the people of Southern Qing were extremely happy. Hearing this, a group of important figures who were a little tipsy began to make a fuss, insisting on hearing Fan Xian tell the specific details of the story.

Fan Xian laughed and cursed a few times, naturally unwilling to elaborate, and casually dismissed it. The corner of his eye glanced at the Crown Prince. He was a little surprised. This Crown Prince was indeed much more promising than he was two years ago. But the Crown Prince now has less and less real power, and he's just watching himself and the Second Prince fight... He wants to reap the benefits? Where does his confidence come from? He's not his father.

...

...

The banquet gradually came to an end, and everyone's spirits gradually rose. The First Prince stood up and grabbed those people, forcing them to drink. Fan Xian secretly smiled as he watched this scene, thinking that this guy was probably too strictly disciplined by the Northern Qi Grand Princess in the royal palace. Today, he finally had a chance to come out and have fun, so he naturally wouldn't let go of this opportunity.

Fan Xian also saw that the Crown Prince seemed a little drunk, while the Second Prince still maintained a clear state of mind. He couldn't help but smile slightly and said, "I haven't returned to Kyoto for a year, and I miss the gentlemen of Kyoto very much."

His expression suddenly changed, and he sighed sadly, "Unfortunately, before entering the capital, I was attacked by thieves. More than a dozen of my subordinates died. These people were all officials of the Supervisory Council, talents of the court. They worked hard for the court in Jiangnan, and they were finally about to return to Kyoto to reunite with their families, but they died tragically a dozen miles outside the city of Kyoto... Those women and children at home who are waiting for them to return are probably still living in sorrow at home."

He raised the strong wine in his cup, drank it all in one gulp, and said in a deep voice, "Thinking of this, this wine... is really a bit hard to drink."

The noisy flower hall on the third floor of Bao Yue Brothel suddenly fell silent. Everyone knew that tonight's highlight had finally arrived.

...

...

About five miles away from Bao Yue Brothel, in a quiet alley, a group of men in black suddenly appeared at the entrance and end of the alley, blocking it tightly.

The leader, Mu Tie, looked at the three people in the alley with a stern face, and pointed to the leader and said, "Are you called Yang Gongcheng?"

The leader slowly placed his right hand on the bulge at his waist and said coldly, "That's right. What can I do for you?"

Mu Tie grinned, a strange look flashing across his dark face, "Just confirming your identity as one of the Eight Generals, to avoid killing the wrong person."