Jiang Si’s hand paused as she gave the brothel madam a meaningful smile.
The madam clutched a thick stack of silver notes, her face flushed with excitement. People in their profession didn’t earn clean money—what rule couldn’t be broken if the price was right? These silver notes added up to several hundred taels, enough to have one girl entertain two customers, let alone discuss a patron who wanted to redeem a young servant.
“Let’s be clear about this,” the madam said. “Once you leave this door, whatever connection exists between the young lady and the patron who redeemed Yu’er has nothing to do with Yan Chun House.”
Jiang Si rested her chin on her hand and nodded slightly. “Naturally.”
“Very well, young lady, ask your questions.” The madam moved to tuck the silver notes into her bodice.
A delicate hand reached out, gently pressing down on the stack of notes.
The madam, as if someone had cut a piece of her flesh, watched her visitor warily.
Jiang Si smiled. “No need to hurry, Madam. Surely you should tell me what I need to know before taking payment?”
The madam gave an embarrassed laugh.
“Does Madam know the identity of the person who redeemed Yu’er?”
“Young lady, that’s like asking about the color of the hen when buying eggs at the market.”
Jiang Si’s pretty face hardened. “When I buy eggs at the market, I don’t pay the price of a cow.”
If the madam thought she was just a shy young girl too embarrassed to speak directly, she was mistaken. She had come all this way and spent the money—who was she trying to impress with modesty now? If she didn’t get the information she wanted, she wouldn’t leave!
The madam rolled her eyes, thinking to herself: This delicate-looking girl has such thick skin!
“It’s fine if Madam doesn’t know who redeemed Yu’er. But surely you know his age and appearance? Tell me everything you know.”
The madam thought for a moment. “He was in his thirties, spoke with a capital accent, neither tall nor short, neither fat nor thin, ordinary-looking—the type you’d forget after the meeting. However—”
The madam drew out her words teasingly.
Jiang Si didn’t rush her.
The madam gave a knowing laugh. “This humble one has seen too many people in her life. Though that man was dressed decently enough, I could tell at a glance he was the type who usually loiters in the streets. It’s not unusual for such people to suddenly have money to redeem their lover, but, interestingly, he’d redeem a young servant girl. Of course, in our business of exchanging money for people, we don’t ask questions we shouldn’t…”
Jiang Si tapped her fingers lightly on the table, her voice tinged with disappointment. “So Madam is saying you only noticed he was a street ruffian, and know nothing else? Such an unremarkable person that you might not even recognize him if you saw him again?”
The madam waved her handkerchief proudly. “Young lady underestimates me. No matter how ordinary someone is, if they’ve done business with me, I remember them. However, once such a person disappears into the murky waters of the capital, leaving Jin Shui River behind, it would be extremely difficult for a young lady to find him.”
“It seems my money might not have been well spent,” Jiang Si said coolly.
She could tell the madam still had more to reveal.
“Hehe, though the man looked ordinary, he had one distinguishing feature.” The madam, seeing that Jiang Si wasn’t easily fooled, stopped playing coy. She pointed to her right ear. “He had a large mole on his right earlobe.”
Jiang Si quietly noted this detail, then asked, “Anything else? For instance, did he know Yu’er beforehand?”
The madam shook her head repeatedly. “Impossible.”
“How can Madam be so sure?”
The madam smiled. “When my people brought Yu’er to him, he asked, ‘Is this Yu’er?’ If he had known her before, he wouldn’t have asked such a question.”
Jiang Si nodded in agreement and proceeded to inquire about Yu’er’s situation at Yan Chun House.
For a girl with neither exceptional beauty nor special talents, the madam naturally didn’t know much.
Jiang Si asked directly, “Did Yu’er have any close friends at Yan Chun House?”
“There was a girl called Yan’zi who served our leading performer alongside her.” The madam answered promptly and summoned Yan’zi.
The young girl, accustomed to this environment, showed no timidity upon entering. Her bright eyes kept darting toward Jiang Si.
Jiang Si sat straight-backed with a gentle expression, appearing to the young girl as a rare, handsome youth.
“May I ask why Madam called for Yan’zi?”
“This young master has some questions for you. Tell him everything you know.” The madam, showing her astuteness, instructed Yan’zi before retreating to the inner room.
Though the inner room was separated only by a screen, Yan’zi suddenly felt more at ease, her glances toward Jiang Si growing bolder.
Jiang Si smiled warmly. “I hear from Madam that you and Yu’er were close friends.”
Yan’zi started, a flash of displeasure crossing her eyes.
Why Yu’er again?
They both served the leading performers, and she had been there even longer than Yu’er, yet Yu’er was the one who got redeemed.
Redemption—it was what they all dreamed of.
It would be different for the top courtesans in the premium pleasure boats who were used to wealthy patrons and looked down on ordinary men. But for those in middling establishments like Yan Chun House, not just the servant girls but even the courtesans themselves hoped to find a good man and leave this sordid place.
Yu’er’s luck was excessive—recently redeemed, and now such a handsome young master inquiring after her.
It was truly unfair.
“After spending so much time together, did Yu’er ever mention her family?”
Yan’zi covered her mouth and laughed. “People like us have no face to talk about family. Who wants others to know which family’s daughter works on a pleasure boat?”
“Not even in private?” Jiang Si’s hand turned, and a pair of gold earrings fell into Yan’zi’s palm.
Yan’zi quickly glanced toward the screen, hastily pocketed the earrings, and became more talkative.
While a handsome young master was pleasing to the eye, gold earrings were more substantial.
Jiang Si listened quietly, catching key details: Yu’er’s family had come from another region, her parents died on the journey, and before they could settle anywhere, her brother sold her. The brother was a gambling addict who still came around demanding money even after selling her, and she didn’t dare refuse for fear her younger sister would suffer at her brother’s hands…
When Yan’zi paused for breath, Jiang Si asked, “So Yu’er has a younger sister? How old is she, and where do they live with their brother?”
Yan’zi shook her head. “Yu’er never mentioned these details.”
Jiang Si closed her eyes in thought.
Since Yu’er’s family had traveled up the river to the capital, and due to lack of money, she was sold to a pleasure boat on Jin Shui River, with her brother frequently coming to extort money, couldn’t one deduce that her brother’s residence must be somewhere near Jin Shui River?
Seeing there was nothing more to learn, Jiang Si bid farewell to the madam.
The madam, having received her silver and fearing trouble, was eager to send this imposing guest away, personally escorting Jiang Si back to the main hall.
Under the brilliant lantern light, Jiang Si smiled sweetly. “Since I’m here, I should at least share a cup of tea with your leading performer.”