Flowery Hair: A Maidservant

Chapter 11, Lesson 1 of the Brothel

Seemingly surprised, the servants searched Meng Shu's entire body but couldn't find the dagger, even though they had been secretly watching her and had seen her put the dagger away.

Seeing this, Madam Wei waved for the servants to leave, her tone suddenly turning cold: "Chunya came with you. She is less capable and disobedient, so she can only do menial tasks now. In the future, she will serve as a servant to the noblemen."

“There are always kind-hearted masters who will give some benefits to their subordinates when they are happy.”

"They're all servants. Think it over carefully: do you want to learn some skills peacefully, or become a lowly person in Chunfeng Brothel like Chunya?"

Holding one end of the dagger, Mother Wei gently cupped Meng Shu's face in her hands. "You're a good prospect. I've said so much, and brought you to the torture chamber just to give you a wake-up call."

His tone shifted again, becoming more gentle and admonishing: "Our Chunfeng Tower in Lin'an is not some ordinary tile-roofed hut. From high-ranking officials to young masters of noble families, even a small favor from me is enough for you to live a life of luxury from now on."

Seeing Meng Shu's distraught appearance, Wei Mama felt even more sorry for her and chuckled, "Would I harm you? You've been sick for several days, and it was I who found a doctor to prepare medicine for you. Granny Bian told me about your background; you're a girl who passed the imperial examinations, so you must be well-versed in poetry and literature. Tomorrow, you'll go with Huanyun and serve her."

Huanyun has been the top courtesan at Chunfeng Tower for the past two years. Assigning her to serve was simply Wei Mama's plan to raise her own status while Meng Shu was making public appearances.

She was no stranger to manipulating people, and she was equally adept at subtly building momentum for the girls under her command.

Huanyun, as the most popular courtesan, has a separate courtyard in Chunfeng Tower called Tingyunfang.

The next morning, Dingxiang, Huanyun's maid, took Mengshu over. Tingyunfang had two main rooms, with side rooms and secondary rooms on either side.

Dingxiang tiptoed into the courtyard and gestured for Meng Shu to be quiet. Huanyun was still asleep at this time.

After settling Meng Shu in the left side room, Dingxiang gently instructed, "Miss Huanyun has a good temperament, so we'll have an easier time under her care. Just be careful with one thing: she's prone to sleepiness, so don't make any noise in the courtyard before noon."

"Girl, eat between noon and late afternoon. Remember to take the food box from the kitchen every day. Girl, eat light food. She doesn't eat fish, shrimp, crab, or anything with a strong gamey smell, or anything with a strong odor like ginger or garlic. The kitchen staff know all this. Just pay attention to these things."

"In addition, at the hour of You (5-7 PM), you must be on time to wait with the young lady on the third floor of Chunfeng Tower. She will give you instructions on what to do."

"The main house is to be cleaned twice a day, once around noon after the young lady gets up, and once before 7 PM. Do you remember that?"

Meng Shu agreed. Ding Xiang was mainly responsible for dressing up and arranging clothes and jewelry. There was also a male follower called Yu Gong, who was responsible for monitoring the girl's movements.

After noon, Huanyun got up, and Dingxiang helped her with her dressing. She didn't let Meng Shu come over, but passed a message through a mahogany painted landscape screen, saying that she had just recovered from her illness and should rest for a few more days so as not to offend the distinguished guest with her sickness.

He then pointed to a sandalwood box on one side of the main hall, which contained silk thread and fabric, and instructed Meng Shu to embroider some handkerchiefs and forehead bands in the next few days when she had nothing to do.

In addition, as a prospective courtesan of Chunfeng Tower, Meng Shu also needs to spend one hour each morning and afternoon learning skills from the madams. Besides the etiquette of serving guests, she also needs to learn various talents such as playing the zither, chess, calligraphy and painting, tea ceremony, singing and dancing, flower arranging, wine tasting, and discussing incense.

Judging from his talent, he should first explore various fields and then specialize in one.

This was the fifth day since Meng Shu came to Chunfeng Tower, around 1:00 PM.

Yu Gong summoned about ten women, including Meng Shufuzi, to a private room. The room was luxuriously furnished, with sheer curtains dividing it in two, beyond which lay a large canopy bed.

As a seasoned veteran who had been immersed in the brothel for over thirty years, Wei Mama's first lesson was to directly destroy the other party's sense of shame and trample the self-esteem of the girls below under her feet.

Meng Shu and the others knelt on the ground in turn, each with a small table beside them, on which was placed a picture book. Meng Shu lowered her eyes and saw clearly that the picture book contained the three words "erotic pictures".

The air was filled with the scent of perfume and unknown spices, and Mother Wei wandered around with a long bamboo stick in her hand.

"Today, your mother will teach you how to make a living. Open your eyes wide and learn carefully."

Fu Zi was illiterate, but she looked curiously at the picture book on the table. After she flipped through two pages, she immediately cried out in embarrassment and flung out the erotic pictures.

With a "thud," the sketchbook fell to the ground. On the open page, two crookedly drawn little figures were performing a difficult pose...

Mother Wei immediately swung her bamboo stick and slammed it hard on Fu Zi's arm.

“Are you ashamed, little hooves? This is your livelihood from now on. If you miss this lesson and make a mistake after the sign is hung up, making Chunfenglou a laughing stock, the mothers will have to make you suffer with the stick.”

Meng Shu's face also flushed red, and the four-poster bed behind the curtain seemed to be hinting at what was about to happen.

Just as I was deep in thought, a man and a woman entered.

The man was Turtle Claw, a clerk from the outer hall of Chunfeng Tower, nicknamed Golden Hammer. The woman was wearing a light-colored thin shirt and was Chun Ya, whom they hadn't seen for two days. At this moment, her face was blank, and her slender neck and bare arms were covered with bruises.

Mother Wei clapped her hands, signaling the two fishermen to lift the curtain to the vicinity of the canopy bed. She then sat down and pointed to the erotic book, saying, "If you want to make a living in this field, you have to be familiar with the fun in bed. This book of erotic paintings contains thirty-six pictures and seventy-two secret techniques. Jin's eldest son will demonstrate them one by one. Open your eyes wide and watch carefully."

As she spoke, Wei's mother glanced at the girls below with a playful look, but she noticed that Meng Shu, who was sitting in the middle, had no expression on her face and was just staring blankly at Chun Ya's back.