Chapter 33: Visiting the Brothel

Chapter 33: A Trip to the Brothel

Honestly, this was his first time dealing with something like this. He had zero experience and no clue what to do—just raw passion and gut instinct.

But with the Crown Prince's whole deal, even though the public outrage around here had mostly died down, it still didn't add up that he'd be hooked on hitting up brothels.

General Lu nodded. "Right, but it wasn't the Crown Prince—it was the Second Young Master."

"Zhiyan goes to brothels? That doesn't sound like him at all..."

"The Crown Prince did disappear, and he did stop by a brothel, but from what we found, his disappearance has nothing to do with it. He just passed through. It's the Second Young Master who's actually connected to this place."

Great. Just great.

No wonder they said he was the best fit for this. Did they think he was some kind of brothel veteran? Like he'd have an easier time digging up info?

In TV shows, big shots were always doing business in brothels or scoping out info there—it was like the ultimate spot for swapping secrets.

"General Lu, so what do you think went down with the Crown Prince?"

"I wish I knew. I've already sent out all kinds of teams, hoping to turn up something, but so far—nothing. It's like there's a web behind all this, and it's got Liangzhou all tangled up."

Yeah, that's what he figured.

Li Zhiming thought it over, keeping up his act, and said, "General Lu, you handle the open stuff, and I'll work under the radar. We'll each dig around on our own—maybe we'll turn something up. I'll start with the brothel."

"Alright."

First thing the next morning.

Word came in.

The earlier intel lined up with what General Lu had said.

But there was one thing General Lu had only skimmed over—barely mentioned, really—and that was Li Zhixing's little romance with the top courtesan.

Guess General Lu was so focused on the Crown Prince that he didn't give the brothel—which had nothing to do with him—much thought.

"Young Master, from what I dug up, the Second Young Master fell head over heels for the top courtesan here. I don't have all the details, but the madam said he showed up almost every day for a while, holed up with her the whole time, and sometimes even took her out on the town."

"..."

"Oh, and one more thing—word is the Second Young Master and the courtesan made secret vows to each other. But the madam doesn't seem to know who he really is, and she's not about to let go of her cash cow. So she shot down the idea of letting the courtesan buy her way out."

Li Zhiming clapped his hands together. "Let's roll. We're hitting the brothel to see her."

"Oh, and make sure we bring enough cash."

"Got it, got it. Young Master, let's get moving."

The two of them showed up at the brothel's front door. Sure enough, it was bustling—people streaming in and out, and business looked like it was booming.

"Oh, two handsome young masters! Come on in and have a good time!"

Li Zhiming didn't bother with formalities. He grinned and strolled right in. "Alright, alright. Bring out your top girl—I came here for her."

Now that was a big spender if she'd ever seen one.

The madam's face split into a huge grin, but she still gave a polite heads-up: "Young Master, Miss Wang is the crown jewel of this place, so we have to treat her like royalty. If anything's not up to your standards, I hope you'll be gracious about it."

There was definitely something loaded in that little speech.

Li Zhiming waved a hand, brushing it off. "No problem. I just want to see the lady. Name your price."

The madam's eyes lit up, and she rubbed her thumb and fingers together.

Feng Yin immediately passed over a hefty pouch. "That enough? Then go set it up."

"Sure thing, sure thing! Young Master, just give me a sec. I'll get it all set up right now."

Li Zhiming was shown to a room, with Feng Yin posted at the door. Before long, a woman showed up.

The madam beamed and nudged the woman forward. "Young Master, here's Miss Wang. You two have a nice chat now."

The top courtesan, Miss Wang, glided over with a soft smile, dripping with charm from head to toe. She hid her mouth behind her sleeve and giggled, "Young Master~"

That saccharine, flirty voice.

Li Zhiming shuddered—a chill ran down his spine for no good reason.

Li Zhixing's taste... Yikes.

Sure, the lady was pretty and all, but she had that whole seasoned, worldly vibe about her.

Her whole vibe was a far cry from some refined young lady of an official household.

Li Zhixing was a young master from a top-tier family, had aced the imperial exams, and was supposedly this upright, bookish scholar type. How the hell did he end up falling for someone like her?

It wasn't like he was judging her or anything.

It just felt off—nothing about her really blew him away.

When he didn't react, the courtesan edged in a bit closer. "Young Master, what's the matter? You look like you've got something on your mind. Can this humble girl help take your worries away?"

Ugh. Here we go.

Li Zhiming mulled it over and figured he'd just cut to the chase. "Miss, I'm here looking for someone. My older brother came by a while back, and I hear you two hit it off. He hasn't come home since, and my father's worried, so..."

As he talked, Li Zhiming kept a close eye on the courtesan's face.

A flicker of discomfort crossed her face, but her words gave nothing away.

"Young Master, you're talking about Young Master Li?"

"Yeah, him."

"Oh dear, you've come too late. A few days back, Young Master Li up and left without a word. I don't know where he went either—I've been asking around myself."

As she said that, she hid her face and started crying.

But the tears looked pretty damn fake.

Li Zhiming felt oddly annoyed, like he'd just been played for a fool.

He waved a hand, clearly impatient. "Got it. Well, since you've got food and booze here, how about you join me for a drink?"

"Sure thing."

Pretty soon, a table full of food and drinks was brought out.

During the meal, Li Zhiming did some more digging, casually slipping in a few questions.

The intel Feng Yin and his crew had dug up seemed to not quite line up with what this top courtesan had said.

Either the intel was wrong, or she was lying through her teeth.

He didn't come out and ask directly. After the meal, the courtesan wanted to stick around, acting unusually eager.

That alone didn't fit the profile of the courtesan that Feng Yin had dug up.

So what exactly was the problem here?

He didn't let her stay and headed back to the inn by himself.

Meanwhile, he heard that the courtesan played behind a curtain every night, which had become a regular form of entertainment for the local bigwigs.

Seems the courtesan had quite the name for herself around here.

Li Zhiming made a point of dressing up, tagged along with the crowd, and sat down below, waiting for the courtesan to play.

"Hey, boss, look—isn't that Magistrate Li?" Feng Yin leaned in and whispered.

He followed Feng Yin's gaze and sure enough, there was Magistrate Li—the local county magistrate.

The so-called "parent official" of the county.

So he was a regular here as well.

Magistrate Li sat in the best seat, grinning ear to ear, like some modern-day superfan chasing a celebrity.

"Get out here and play! Hurry it up, hurry it up! I've got money to burn. Come on, how long's it been since you last took the stage?"

Magistrate Li looked all worked up and antsy.

The madam seemed to be groveling before him, explaining herself in a cowering tone.

Magistrate Li, furious and humiliated, chucked over a heavy pouch—probably silver.

"I'm telling you, if I don't hear Miss Mu play today, I'll shut this brothel down myself."

The madam's face went white as she clutched the heavy pouch, looking seriously rattled.

"Yes, yes, sir, please wait a moment. I'll arrange it right away, right away."

The madam hurriedly rushed backstage.

Judging by that look, something was definitely wrong.