Chapter 20 Free - riding, Human Nature

Zhang Jing only had half of his body numb and couldn't move freely. Otherwise, he would definitely have given Wang Ao a few hard slaps.

However, looking at Wang Ao's face, which was swollen like a pig's head, he finally softened a bit and said irritably, "What else do you want?

You hit people without asking for the facts. That's bad enough, but you even spoke rudely to your superior and even ordered your subordinates to attack a thousand - household. If they really took this seriously, the lightest punishment would be fifty big boards.

It wouldn't be excessive even if you were demoted or dismissed from your post. Be more restrained in your actions from now on."

Upon hearing the last sentence, all the arrogance in Wang Ao vanished completely.

Zhang Jing wasn't exaggerating at all. Just based on the charge of disobeying superiors, if it was really investigated, he would surely be in big trouble.

He had lost his temper at that time. Now, when he calmed down and thought about it, he suddenly felt a sense of fear and no longer dared to mention seeking revenge.

On the other side.

Li Qing took the household registration information that Liu Qiang had found and carefully read it through. Unfortunately, he didn't find what he was looking for.

"Is there anything else besides this?"

Liu Qiang gently shook his head. "The identity information of Wang Hai's three direct family generations is all here. If we want to investigate further, we can only look into the collateral family information. But in that case, it won't be done in a day or two."

"By the way, my lord, could you please tell me specifically what you want to investigate?" Liu Qiang said. "Having a direction will make it easier for me to start."

Li Qing pondered for a moment. "I want you to check if he has any powerful background."

Li Yu suddenly interrupted, "My lord, one of Wang Hai's neighbors mentioned that Wang Hai's cousin seems to have married a big shot. Wang Hai only became what he is now by taking advantage of her."

"Cousin?"

Li Qing's spirits lifted. "Check this cousin and find out just how big a figure her husband is."

"This subordinate will do as you command."

Liu Qiang cupped his hands and led the others away.

Li Qing leaned back in his chair, tapping the table with his index finger. He thought to himself,

"It's better to confirm the target first. And give them a psychological buffer. Telling them directly to go to Bashu to investigate the imperial son - in - law might be too hard for them to accept at once."

Li Qing sat quietly in the yamen for a while. Seeing that it was getting close to dusk, he got up and walked out.

Seeing that Zhang Jing was still standing there with his back to him, hands behind his back, Li Qing walked up amusedly and patted him on the shoulder.

Zhang Jing was startled, and the numb pain in his body suddenly lessened significantly. He turned to look at Li Qing, a mix of annoyance and helplessness on his face. Finally, he said indifferently, "Thousand - household Li has quite the skills."

"I'm very sorry for the offense." Li Qing smiled and then turned to leave.

The Drunken Immortal Tower.

The girls in the front hall had just been cracking melon seeds and hadn't started receiving guests yet.

In the backyard, business had just started. There were only about ten guests, and it was a bit deserted.

Li Qing walked straight ahead, paid three taels of silver at the end, and entered the inner hall.

He had indeed come a bit early today. The pure - hearted courtesans hadn't taken the stage yet, and several of the top courtesans were helping the madam arrange the gauze curtains on the stage.

In the entire inner hall, he was the only guest, so naturally he immediately became the focus.

When the madam saw Li Qing, she was stunned for a moment, then rushed forward with a worldly - wise look, and said affectionately, "Oh~ Isn't this Mr. Li?

All the girls have been talking about you all day. My ears are almost calloused from hearing it."

"Hehe..." Li Qing forced a smile, thinking that the madam just wanted to get money from him.

Unexpectedly, the madam didn't mention money at all. She directly greeted him attentively and led him to the second floor. Then she took out a 'membership card' from her sleeve and said, "Mr. Li, you won't need to spend money when you come here in the future."

"Ah? This..." Li Qing forced a laugh. "I can't accept something for nothing. Madam, what's the reason..."

The madam smiled and said, "I just like straightforward people like you, sir."

No, how am I straightforward... Li Qing quickly grabbed the madam and said, "Please, madam, explain clearly."

"It's not a big deal." The madam said, "Didn't you write a poem for Miss Wanling last night? I want to publicize it to raise Miss Wanling's status."

Is that all?

Li Qing was completely confused. Were poems and lyrics so valuable?

He had overlooked the term 'celebrity effect'. A top - notch poem paired with a charming pure - hearted courtesan like Wanling, once promoted, could bring in a huge amount of 'traffic'.

The Drunken Immortal Tower was indeed a first - class brothel in the capital, but it wasn't without competitors. In fact, at this level of brothels, the differences were minimal.

After all, which girl wasn't as tender as if they could squeeze out water?

If you wanted to firmly hold the top position, you had to have a top - tier courtesan who could truly hold down the place. It wasn't just about looks and talent; fame was also of utmost importance.

In terms of appearance and talent, Wanling was top - notch. What she lacked was fame. Now, coincidentally, there was the poem "To Wanling", which was a perfect match.

Based on this, the madam was so enthusiastic.

Of course, she could have promoted it without Li Qing's consent, but she was still a bit apprehensive.

Because Li Qing's surname was Li.

Among the six dukes of the Ming Dynasty, two had the surname Li. One was Li Shanchang, who was the only civil official to reach the position of duke. He was also related to the emperor by marriage. His son married the emperor's eldest daughter.

The other one was even more remarkable. His mother was the emperor's own sister, and he was the emperor's nephew.

Neither of these two dukes could be offended by the Drunken Immortal Tower in terms of their status and position. Even though there was a powerful backer behind the brothel, it wouldn't work because it couldn't be made public.

Moreover, the way the Eighth Prince threw money around yesterday and his attitude towards Li Qing made her even more certain that Li Qing's identity was extraordinary.

He casually threw out five hundred taels. It might seem like he was stupid, but it also proved that he had a lot of money and didn't care about it at all. He just spent money for fun.

Also, the Eighth Prince covered his face from beginning to end, and his attendants even said that if they didn't rush back before curfew and were discovered, they would be beaten to death.

With such strict family rules, how could his power be insignificant?

Furthermore, even the wealthiest landlords wouldn't dare to beat their servants to death.

As the saying goes, birds of a feather flock together. By analogy, the madam came to the conclusion: This Mr. Li had an extremely powerful background!

If Li Qing knew about the madam's reasoning, he would surely sigh: She's really like Conan.

Seeing that Li Qing still didn't agree, the madam thought the condition she offered was too low. Indeed, how much was a'membership card' worth?

So she said, "Mr. Li, how about this? From now on, as long as Wanling and the others are free and willing, you can come anytime without paying!"

"Ah?"

Li Qing had just come out of his confusion, and upon hearing this, he was completely shocked. Although he couldn't figure out the reason, with a chance to get something for free right in front of him, how could he miss it?

It wasn't that he was stingy; free - riding was human nature.

"Well, all right!" Li Qing said with restraint.

He didn't want to show too much joy, for fear that the madam would think the offer was too high and then go back on her word.

Seeing his reaction, the madam became even more convinced of her speculation.

She smiled and said, "Although that poem was given by the young master to Wanling, since it was written by the young master, it surely has to bear your name. I wonder if the young master..."

Li Qing thought for a while and said, "Just put 'Mr. Li'."

After all, he now had a household registration. When out and about, it was safer to use an alias.

The madam nodded in understanding and said obsequiously, "Please come in, young master."

Li Qing smiled, pushed the door, and entered the private room.

Only Lianxiang was in the room. She was flipping through a picture - book boredly. When she saw him come in, she quickly hid the book in the drawer.

"The young master is here?"

Lianxiang happily came forward and said, "The young master is really a man of his word. I thought you would forget me after that one night of passion."

"How could I?" Li Qing said with a faint smile. "Miss Lianxiang is as gentle as water. After last night, I've been unable to eat or drink all day."

Lianxiang gave him a shy and happy glance, and coquettishly snorted, "You just know how to say nice things to please me. A man like you, how could you lack beautiful women?"

She took his arm and sat him down. "Young master, please wait a moment. I'll go call Sister Hongxiu and Miss Wanling."

With that, she gracefully left.

Two quarters of an hour later, the three women came in together. Hongxiu was carrying a food box.

Accompanied by beautiful ladies and accompanied by fine wine, it was a lot of fun.

After a lively chat, Lianxiang and Hongxiu went to wash up, leaving only Wanling in the room.

"Young master, let this little girl dance a dance for you to make up for what was owed last night."

"No need. Chatting like this is also very nice." Li Qing smiled. "You're so delicate. How could I bear to make you tired?"

Wanling's face suddenly turned red, and she lowered her head. Her hair like a waterfall naturally hung down, covering her beautiful face, only revealing her delicate and charming neck, which was incredibly lovely.

Soon she hid her shyness, raised her head, and continued chatting with Li Qing. But there was less of her usual gentleness and more of a childishness.

"Miss Wanling..."

"Young master, you can just call this little girl Wanling."

Li Qing followed her request. "Wanling, for a woman as beautiful as you, have you ever encountered any rascals?

Don't get me wrong. I'm just worried about your safety."

Hearing the second half of the sentence, Wanling smiled like a flower. She raised her fair chin and said, "All this little girl has to do is shout, and someone will rush in immediately."

As she spoke, she glanced at Li Qing. "Young master, you'd better not have any improper thoughts."

"Of course not."

Li Qing waved his hand, wearing a worried expression. "But what if the other party is rich and powerful?"

"Don't worry. There's someone backing the restaurant."

"Who is it?"

Wanling opened her mouth, but stopped in time.

Li Qing was extremely curious, yet still put on an understanding look. "If it's something you can't talk about, then don't say it."

Though he said this, his face showed disappointment.

Wanling hesitated for a moment, then whispered, "This little girl only found out about this by chance. Young master, please don't spread it."

Li Qing quickly lowered his voice too. "Definitely, definitely."

"A princess."

Li Qing nodded slightly, thinking to himself, "Just as I thought."

But then he heard Wanling add in a whisper, "Princess Anqing."