Daily Survival After Inheriting a Harem (GL) - Chapter 23.2

…

Zu Mianmian asked around for a while before finally finding out that Qiu Qi had gone into the study early in the morning again and had not come out for most of the day.

“She really has changed. In the past, she didn’t even know a single character, and now she practically wants to settle down in the study.”

Zu Mianmian carried the thing she had drugged and lightened her steps as she approached.

As soon as she stuck herself to the door, she heard the two people inside speaking quietly. Her first reaction was to withdraw the hand she had been about to use to knock, prick up her ears, and actively eavesdrop.

“If we are talking about the pleasure house with the best and largest business within five hundred li, it would be Heyang House. Moreover, it does business of selling art, not bodies. One song from the top courtesan has already risen to two hundred gold, yet visitors still arrive in an endless stream. The waiting list has already been scheduled until the year after next.”

“To go to this Heyang House… is there any minimum spending requirement?”

Qiu Qi’s voice sounded somewhat lacking in confidence.

“We should save wherever we can.”

“Minimum spending?”

Yan Wan reacted for a moment.

“If you are only sitting in the ordinary viewing seats, watching one song only requires three silver.”

“That’s still all right.”

The sound of things being packed came from inside.

“Then let’s set off now. We’ll go early and return early. When we come back, I’ll still need to bathe and wash off the smell, so Madam doesn’t discover it.”

Zu Mianmian’s eyes rolled nimbly. Schemes gradually rose in her mind. Listening to this, the two of them were going to act secretly, and they were even conveniently hiding it from Sister Pei. Wasn’t that exactly a good chance for her to act?

Thinking this, she immediately pushed open the door and inserted herself into the conversation between the two.

“My lord! I’m going too!”

Qiu Qi was nearly frightened into a heart attack by that shout. She clutched her fragile little heart and looked at Zu Mianmian with confusion.

“When did you start eavesdropping outside? You didn’t reveal a single footstep.”

“My footsteps are naturally light.”

Zu Mianmian softened her voice and imitated Lin Yujin’s tone. She knew this demon liked those weak and delicate types the most, so she had worked hard to learn from Lin Yujin for several days.

“I haven’t seen my lord for many days. Every day, I guard an empty room alone and miss you terribly.”

“What do you miss about me?”

Qiu Qi tactically leaned back.

“Of course I miss…”

Zu Mianmian threw her a seductive look.

“Your mighty dominance.”

Qiu Qi’s face was full of question marks: So霸道总裁-style romance is popular here too?

“Mianmian, in ordinary times, you should read less of those vulgar things spread among humans. They are not suitable for you,” Qiu Qi sincerely advised her.

“This concubine has not. This concubine reads only my lord’s beautiful masterpieces. I learned all these lines from there.”

Qiu Qi: Pretend I never said what I just said.

“My lord.”

Zu Mianmian ran over and hugged Qiu Qi’s arm. Her soft body pressed tightly against her, as if she wanted to melt into her.

“Mianmian also wants to have time alone with my lord. Please take Mianmian with you.”

Qiu Qi straightened her body and lowered her head to look at Zu Mianmian, who was frantically making eyes at her. She had never looked carefully before, but now, seeing her up close, she realized that this usually quiet and unnoticed girl was also very pleasing in appearance.

Soft, fair skin like marshmallows, a small nose, and pale pink cherry lips that fit together perfectly. When she looked up at you with that pleading gaze, her eyes seemed to shimmer with damp ripples. Qiu Qi could not help once again sighing over how consistent her aesthetic taste was with the original body’s.

A beauty voluntarily throwing herself into her arms—this had been a scene possible only in daydreams before. Yet at this moment, Qiu Qi behaved extremely like an upright gentleman. She slowly peeled away Zu Mianmian’s arm hooked around her and answered stiffly,

“Um, if you’re talking, just talk. Don’t keep touching me. I belong to Madam now. This isn’t appropriate.”

This was Zu Mianmian’s first time being rejected, and by this lecherous demon who used to touch her butt and take advantage of her at every turn. She opened her mouth in disbelief, and let out an unwilling cold laugh in her heart.

Pretend. Keep pretending. Let’s see if I don’t tear off this layer of your skin today.

“Does Mianmian not count as one of my lord’s people?”

Zu Mianmian added a sobbing tone, putting on the act fully.

“Uh, you really don’t.”

Qiu Qi was acting extremely straight at this moment, as if she could not hear the meaning in Zu Mianmian’s words at all.

“I originally planned to disband the harem and let everyone leave. You were the ones who weren’t willing. The relationship now can at most be considered… landlord and tenants.”

Zu Mianmian secretly gritted her teeth. She knew going soft would not work, so she simply lowered her voice and whispered beside Qiu Qi’s ear,

“My lord, if you don’t take me with you, I’ll tell Sister Pei about this. She hates those places for seeking flowers and asking after willows the most.”

Hey, little girl. You’re even playing threats?

“Keep up. Pay your own entrance fee.”

—Unfortunately, Qiu Qi was wife-controlled.

…..

Since she was going out anyway, Qiu Qi stopped by Auntie Wang’s shop in the west of the city.

Previously, Lu Ren had introduced Auntie Wang as someone famous for making mechanisms and hidden weapons. Her craftsmanship was skillful, and she had deep research into all kinds of physical structures. So Qiu Qi had sent someone to deliver a blueprint to her. After many rounds of revisions in between, she could finally pick up the goods today.

When she entered, she went in alone and did not let Yan Wan or Zu Mianmian follow.

Auntie Wang had gone three days straight without closing her eyes while working on Qiu Qi’s order. But not only did she not feel tired, the more she worked, the more excited she became. If Qiu Qi had not given her hush money, she would definitely have gone everywhere bragging about how miraculous the thing she had made was.

“My lord, you’re finally here!”

Auntie Wang’s face was red, and her eyes were shining. She impatiently presented the item to Qiu Qi.

“Please take a look. I modified everything again according to your requirements. There shouldn’t be any problems this time, right?”

Qiu Qi took the item and tested how it felt in her hand. It was indeed very nice and fit her hand well. Perhaps because women were more detail-oriented, even the patterns on the outer shell had been made exquisitely. If someone said this thing was a piece of art, people would probably believe it.

“It works. I’m very satisfied. Thank you for your hard work.”

Qiu Qi readily paid the deposit.

“Not at all. Being able to see such a precious blueprint is my honor.”

“Hahaha. If I have work in the future, I’ll come to you again.”

After the transaction ended, Qiu Qi swaggered out of the shop.

“Where’s the thing?”

Zu Mianmian looked behind her.

“Tucked in my pocket. Let’s go. Time to handle the serious business.”

…

Heyang House was located in the center of the busiest street and had an open, upright grandeur that this line of business usually did not possess.

Unlike in TV dramas, there were no lightly dressed women waving their arms and calling for customers on the second floor. On the contrary, there was not a single figure in the corridor. The wind lifted the lanterns, and the bright yellow tassels swayed. If one listened closely, it seemed one could hear the soft laughter of women slipping out from the cracks of the doors, teasing people’s hearts until they itched.

Although they claimed on the surface that they only sold art and not bodies, those who understood all understood. As long as the gold was enough, there was no request that could not be satisfied.

“My lord, since Mianmian is here to look after you, I will not go in.”

Yan Wan stopped at the entrance, seemingly truly disliking this kind of place.

Qiu Qi understood her feelings.

“Then go wait for us at the teahouse opposite. If something happens, I’ll blow the whistle.”

“Thank you, my lord.”

After Yan Wan finished speaking, she entered the teahouse opposite without looking back.

Qiu Qi tied on her face veil, then turned and handed one to Zu Mianmian too.

“Let’s go.”

“Are… are we really going in?”

Zu Mianmian began retreating at the door.

She had grown up in a mountain village since childhood. Later, after being sold into the original body’s courtyard, she rarely went out. When had she ever seen this kind of scene? Just hearing a few ambiguous laughing voices between men and women made her face turn unbearably red.

“Didn’t you say you’d read all my drawings?”

Qiu Qi lowered her head to look at her. Her smile carried a bit of wickedness.

“What? You’re already shy just from coming here? When you were acting spoiled earlier, you looked pretty bold. This doesn’t seem like you.”

Zu Mianmian angrily gritted her teeth.

“Then I’ll go in! I’ve never been afraid of anyone!”

“Then hurry and follow me. If some pervert abducts you and takes liberties with you later, I won’t save you.”

With her hands behind her back, Qiu Qi had already crossed the threshold and walked toward the viewing seats.

Zu Mianmian panicked. Her little steps moved extremely quickly, following Qiu Qi closely without leaving her side.

…

From outside, one might not be able to directly feel the luxurious air of Heyang House, but once they sat down in the viewing seats that could hold at least five hundred people, Qiu Qi felt it a little.

The circular stage below the seats was big enough to hold a twenty-person group dance formation. It was completely different from those tiny stages Qiu Qi had seen on TV before, where even five people standing there looked crowded. Its size could rival half a basketball court at her school.

If the person holding the female lead script were not herself, Qiu Qi would almost suspect that the boss lady had transmigrated here too.

After all, look at this stage effect, this audience atmosphere. Add a light stick in hand, and wouldn’t it be almost the same as a concert?

“Whoa!!!! Shi Luoning! Shi Luoning!”

“Shi Luoning has the finale performance today, right? I came just for this!”

“You can’t see anything from back here! Are there any empty seats in front? I’ll pay double the ticket price if someone gives me a seat!”

These cheers were not only shouted by men. Qiu Qi discovered that there were also quite a few women seated here, and they even seemed much more excited than the men. It could be seen that this top courtesan called Shi Luoning truly had some extraordinary ability.

Among this group of people who were completely out of place with them, Qiu Qi and Zu Mianmian covered their ears in perfect sync.

All right. What she said earlier had not been precise enough. This was fucking a concert venue!

The opening began around five minutes later than the official time. Only after the audience’s appetite had been thoroughly whetted did the concealing curtain slowly draw open, revealing several beautiful people holding instruments behind it.

Qiu Qi took out the small telescope from her robe and carefully examined the looks of these women.

Their makeup was not glamorous, only lightly applied. Yet with just a few strokes, the girls’ skin looked translucent and their complexions looked very good. In modern terms, this was tea-art makeup: seductive without form, the favorite of straight men.

As expected of the most popular pleasure house. Even the “appetizers” were this delicious.

Qiu Qi nodded and seriously wrote the treasures she had realized into her little notebook.

Zu Mianmian felt truly awkward squeezed into the crowd. Especially since the middle-aged man beside her kept pressing against her, seemingly intentionally yet unintentionally. That sweaty stench made her head swell.

Compared to this smelly man, she was more willing to lean closer to Qiu Qi. At least Qiu Qi’s scent was a refreshing stream of clean water among this crowd that smelled either of sweat or heavy rouge.

“Mm?”

Qiu Qi felt the force pressing against her side.

“What’s wrong?”

Zu Mianmian’s face flushed red. She whispered into Qiu Qi’s ear,

“When can we leave?”

The alone time she wanted was not this kind of crowded scene. How was she supposed to make a move in this pile of people?

Qiu Qi patted her shoulder.

“Wait a bit more. We paid the entrance fee. Wouldn’t it be a pity not to watch enough to get our money’s worth?”

Zu Mianmian twisted uncomfortably and pressed closer to her.

Onstage, the song had just changed. A woman wearing a peach-colored long dress walked up while holding a pipa. Her slender fingers moved slightly, and pleasant music slowly flowed forth.

Putting everything else aside, her musical skill truly had work put into it. This made Qiu Qi feel that the ticket price had been somewhat worth it.

As the order moved further back, the performing courtesans grew more and more famous, and the shouts in the crowd also grew louder and louder. Several people shouted with a force as if they were about to tear their throats open to express their excitement.

Qiu Qi shook her head in disapproval and poured herself a mouthful of the mouth-rinsing tea gifted with admission.

When she turned her head, however, she discovered that Zu Mianmian, who had still been muttering just now, had gone silent. Her head was buried, and she looked somewhat uncomfortable.

“What’s wrong?”

What else could it be? After the performance began, the man beside Zu Mianmian had started making vague little moves on her. After realizing she was not resisting, he became increasingly excessive. First, he used his thigh to slowly rub against Zu Mianmian’s body. When he felt that was not enough, he secretly stretched out his claw and pressed it against her waist.

At first, Zu Mianmian really thought it was because there were too many people and the seats were too close, making physical contact unavoidable. But once that wandering hand started becoming brazen, even the slowest fool would know what was going on.

Zu Mianmian lowered her head, emotions gathering in her eyes. She was not someone who liked stirring up trouble, but if someone pushed further again and again, she was not a vegetarian either.

Just as she clenched her fist and wanted to strike back, she caught sight of a pale sleeve sweeping past her. The person whose clothes carried a faint fragrance lifted the man beside her with one hand, and with a wave, threw him into the air.

The fat middle-aged man’s scream cut across the air, finally turning into a painful cry when he landed on the floor by the entrance.

Qiu Qi rarely showed such a cold, hard expression. She said in a low voice toward that man,

“Get lost. If I see you again next time, I’ll chop off your hand. You even dare touch my person?”

The man clutched his chest and staggered to his feet, his face flushed red.

“What the hell are you, and what are you to her? I didn’t even do anything to her!”

“What I am to her isn’t important.”

Qiu Qi gave a cold snort.

“What’s important is that you should worry about yourself first. If you don’t disappear from my sight in three seconds, I’ll give you two choices: lose the left hand that touched her just now, or lose both hands together. How about it? Want to try?”

“You!”

Before the man could spit out anything else, Qiu Qi backhanded a teacup out. Her thin arm did not look as if it had used much strength, but the cup that flew out embedded itself firmly into the wall, creating a small deep pit. The sturdy wall was instantly broken open by the huge impact, extending several cracks. The venue, which had been extremely lively just now, was now so quiet that only the sound of wall dust falling to the floor could be heard.

Qiu Qi was wearing a face veil, so the man could not recognize who she was. Seeing that shocking strength, he thought she was a rare spiritual arts user and was instantly so frightened he nearly peed himself. He hurriedly crawled on the ground, crying as he kowtowed to Qiu Qi.

“I was wrong, I was wrong! Please, my lord, be magnanimous and spare my life. I’ll never dare again.”

“Get lost.”

“Eh! I’ll get lost right now!”

This farce drew the gazes of several hundred people entirely onto the final row of the viewing seats.

Qiu Qi turned back, and after seeing those death stares, belatedly realized just how big of a commotion she had caused.

The next performance was supposed to be Shi Luoning’s finale, but before the prelude even began, Qiu Qi had interrupted it with one shout.

Qiu Qi’s gaze drifted a little farther away. On the stage, the woman in red behind the guqin, wearing a face veil, was also looking at her. Because of the distance, Qiu Qi temporarily could not see the expression in her eyes.

“Sorry. Please continue.”

Qiu Qi covered her eyes as if hiding her ears while stealing a bell and quietly sat back down beside Zu Mianmian.

The audience’s attention was quickly drawn back to the beauty on the stage, and Qiu Qi finally escaped those piercing gazes.

Zu Mianmian spoke, somewhat awkward and uncomfortable.

“What were you doing just now?”

“Beating someone up.”

Qiu Qi tossed a grape into her mouth.

“A person like that is just cheap. According to the way you people say it, he should be drowned in a pig cage.”

Zu Mianmian was amused by her words. She pressed her lips together and smiled, but replied,

“You still want to beat people up in your current state? If he hadn’t just been an ordinary human, you would have already been lying flat on the ground, you idiot.”

“Yes, yes, yes. I was being sentimental, acting on my own, and getting overly enthusiastic.”

Qiu Qi answered perfunctorily, her eyes fixed on the person onstage.

“There won’t be a next time.”

Onstage, the program gradually rose toward its climax under Shi Luoning’s increasingly gorgeous technique. She was different from the green-tea sisters earlier. Her eye makeup and hair ornaments were extremely gorgeous and luxurious, and even the clothes on her body were blood-red. That eye-catching red set off her snow-white skin, making her look like a delicate rose in full bloom.

Shi Luoning had a unique aura. Perhaps that was why she could become the top courtesan and remain popular for so long. She had a charm that made you clearly know this rose had thorns, yet still unable to help rushing toward her like a moth to flame.

After one song ended, they began auctioning the second half’s one-on-one private song service time. There were five slots total, and the further back they went, the higher the price.

Taking advantage of the lively atmosphere and no one looking their way, Qiu Qi secretly grabbed melon seeds from the fruit tray and stuffed them into her pocket. She thought that once the auction ended, she could more or less withdraw. If she went back at this hour, it would still not count as too late, and she would not be scolded by her parent—Madam.

Unexpectedly, a voice suddenly froze her movement just as she was about to turn around.

“That righteous and courageous my lord, would you be willing to share a cup with Luoning?”

This was the privilege of Heyang House’s courtesan: she could independently choose one guest she wanted to serve that night.

“Who?”

Qiu Qi followed Zu Mianmian’s gaze and pointed at herself.

“Righteous and courageous? Share a cup? Me?”

Are you kidding? If I go back late, I’m going to get beaten by my guardian.