"Brother Huang, what are you laughing at?"

Gu Yanwu looked at Huang Zongxi doubtfully, and Huang Zongxi pointed to the upstairs: "The officials here are much more comfortable than the officials in the capital."

"The officials in the capital look good, but at the feet of the emperor, there are people watching everywhere. You have to be careful in everything you do. You have to go to court before dawn, start work after the morning is over, and go to court in the evening. Look at this

The local officials came here to enjoy themselves just now."

Gu Yanwu was also quite unhappy: "Yuanfu works in the cabinet early in the morning every day and often handles government affairs until late at night. Now as the chief minister, he only has three meals, three dishes and one soup a day. They really enjoy it."

Huang Zongxi smiled and said: "How can they compare with Yuan Fu? Yuan Fu has the court on his shoulders. They only have to be responsible for one side. They don't have to worry about major affairs of the court."

"Speaking of which, didn't Yuan Fu also say that if he is not in his position, he will not pursue his own affairs? If a local official can govern the people well, so that the people can have enough food and clothing, and the local industries can prosper, he is a capable minister and official. How about his private life?

, it’s a personal matter, and it’s hard for the court to take care of it even if it wants to.”

Gu Yanwu took a sip of wine: "I'm afraid that if they behave badly, the people's lives will be difficult."

Huang Zongxi nodded and glanced at the dignitaries of Yangzhou City on the second and third floors. They kept hugging the maikos, as if they were waiting for something new: "That's why Yuan Fu asked us to come and take a look."

The two of them were talking, and a new batch of girls from Zuixiang House came on stage. These girls seemed to have just arrived at Zuixiang House not long ago. Not only did they look young and young, but they also looked nervous, and their behavior didn't look like they were...

For ordinary prostitutes, Huang Zongxi could tell at a glance that something was wrong with these girls: "Brother Gu, these girls..."

Gu Yanwu said: "They are all from good families, and they seem to have been forcibly abducted here."

Huang Zongxi said in a deep voice: "I'll call a few people to come over and ask to see what's going on."

At this time, the madam has already stepped onto the stage. Although this madam is said to be an old madam, she is actually only in her thirties. It is the time when her charm is still there. She has a beautiful body and a good figure.

He twisted his waist and walked up to the stage step by step, attracting the attention of many people.

The madam smiled and said, "Today, you all have a good time."

"Everyone knows that our Zui Chun Tower selects a group of girls to come out every six months. Today is a good time."

"It's time for us girls in Zuichunlou to leave the court. Come on, come on, all the girls."

Following the Madam's words, these girls trembled, lowered their heads, and stood on the stage like goods, being scrutinized by the people upstairs and downstairs.

The madam then raised the heads of these girls one by one, showed their faces, and then asked these girls to tell themselves what talents they had.

This person who was trained by Zuichunlou must know how to play piano, chess, calligraphy and painting. After half a year of training, he can only have a rough understanding of chess, calligraphy and painting, but understanding and not understanding are two different things. This person still only eats this kind of tune, as if after having a rough grasp of talent,

What you do is no longer a vulgar thing but becomes an elegant thing.

Looking at these trembling girls standing on the stage like fledglings, the people upstairs and downstairs all showed knowing smiles, but Gu Yanwu's expression was not good-looking. He has been following Zhang Haogu for the past few years.

I see a lot of things around me, but I haven't seen people selling people openly in public like this for a long time.

"Do these people still think of this as something elegant?" Gu Yanwu gritted his teeth and said, this is forced human trafficking. Do they really think that the Ming Law is just a decoration?

The madam is still hawking her goods. This is not an ordinary event. These customers are spending huge sums of money to compete for the girls' boudoir.

Sure enough, as the Madam's words fell, the customers upstairs and downstairs began to bid, while the girls stood helplessly on the stage like goods and allowed these people to bid. It seemed that they had been trained so that they did not dare to resist.

.

Huang Zongxi also started bidding. He had not forgotten the purpose of coming here. He spent a lot of money to act like a wealthy gentleman from Jinling and bought the two girls' marriages. This also attracted admiration from the people around him.

The old madam also came over quickly: "Oh, you two young masters, you know how to take care of others. These two girls are definitely the most handsome and sensible ones. You two are in luck tonight. The girls have already gone upstairs to wait for you.

Already."

Huang Zongxi followed the madam upstairs and looked at the surroundings: "How are the net worth of those girls just now?"

The old bustard was stunned for a moment and said quickly: "Young master, don't worry, they are all innocent people."

Gu Yanwu asked: "Innocent people? Don't fool us."

The old bustard said helplessly: "Oh, you two gentlemen, we at Zuixianglou are famous for their integrity and are absolutely innocent. They all came here to find a living when they were desperate. I was kind enough to take them in. Otherwise, you

How can we live if we just leave a few girls alone?"

As he spoke, the madam smiled ambiguously: "You two young masters will love each other at first glance. If these girls weren't desperate, they wouldn't have met the young master here, right?"

Huang Zongxi also smiled: "He is a good talker. When we get here, you don't need to accompany me, right?"

The madam smiled and responded: "I understand, I understand."

After the madam left, Huang Zongxi and Gu Yanwu entered the room and saw a table of fine wine and food. Behind the boudoir screen, there were two faint figures.

Huang Zongxi and Gu Yanwu had just sat down, and the two figures walked out. It was indeed the two girls on the stage just now. The difference between these two girls and the others was that they still had life and stubbornness in their eyes.

This is also the reason why Huang Zongxi chose them. You should be able to find out something here.

The two girls bowed: "Sir, would you like some music?"

Huang Zongxi asked: "Girl, can you play the piano? Then you might as well play a piece of music."

Soon, the pipa strings sounded, and Huang Zongxi also began to look at the room. This was set up according to the standard young lady's boudoir. It should also be the daily residence of these two girls. The decoration looked quite elegant, which seemed to be in line with the romantic affair.

The curtains are soft and the dressing mirror is collapsed, and the harp, pipa and shengxiao are played together. Doesn’t this mean that the realm has reached a higher level?

Even people who are used to seeing the big world, Huang Zongxi can't help but sigh at the Zuixianglou's ability to pick people up. What do you like, what will be arranged for you, what do you lack, what will be made for you, such a brothel and boathouse,

It's really unusual.

As the zheng played, Huang Zongxi nodded slowly: "You two girls, why do you live here?"

The two girls didn't reply, as if they didn't want to talk about this topic.

Gu Yanwu asked: "But it touches the two girls' sadness?"

The one who seemed to be the elder sister of the two girls said: "Today is the day when my sister comes out of the cabinet. On such a day, do you two young masters have to say these things?"

Huang Zongxi looked serious: "It's okay to talk. It doesn't matter whether the girls believe it or not. The two of us will not do anything to the two girls."

Looking at the suspicious and wary looks of the girls, Huang Zongxi had a smile on his face. It seemed that Huang Zongxi's appearance really had an effect. After all, Huang Zongxi was also very handsome.

Speaking of which, throughout the ages, if you want to be an official, you must not have enough literary talent and outstanding appearance. This is not just the case in the Ming Dynasty, it has been like this in all dynasties. In the Han Dynasty, those with dignified appearance and upright appearance were selected to promote filial piety and integrity.

The Ming Dynasty also set a rule. Among the scholars, only those with upright appearance should be selected as officials. After all, your official position represents the dignity of the court. How can you be worthy of the court if you look crooked and cracked?

Huang Zongxi and Gu Yanwu were obviously good-looking, and they didn't have the ill-intentioned look of ordinary dandy sons of rich gentry, and they also sat with good manners.

The two girls seemed to believe Huang Zongxi's words and lowered their guard. Huang Zongxi then said: "You two girls, come up and tell us, we don't need wine, some tea will be fine."

The two girls sat opposite Huang Zongxi and Gu Yanwu. The younger one served tea. The older one was silent for a moment and slowly said: "My two sisters are actually from a scholarly family..."

Through the narrations of these two girls, Huang Zongxi and Gu Yanwu also knew the reason. The eldest of these two girls was named Qiao Ya and the younger was named Qiao Wan. They were actually from Suzhou, and their family was a well-known scholarly family in the local area. Although it cannot be said that

Although he is extremely wealthy, he also has no worries about food and clothing. He has no shortage of food and clothing.

Later, the mother died of illness and the father remarried, but the stepmother always felt that the sisters were in the way and wanted to marry them off as soon as possible. However, the father loved them and the stepmother was not easy to force.

Until my father suddenly fell ill, and I didn’t know what was going on. He asked for medical treatment, but it didn’t work. Gradually, he became thinner and thinner, and the power of the family was also controlled by the stepmother. Until the father died of illness, the stepmother did not force him at this time.

They were married and sold directly to Yangzhou.

The two girls suspected that their father's death from illness might be related to their stepmother. They were not allowed to get married because they were afraid that they would take advantage of their husband's family's influence to fight for the family property. After all, these two girls were well-known and admired in Suzhou.

There were a large number of people, many of whom were descendants of gentry, officials, and officials.

Gu Yanwu frowned: "Hasn't the imperial court already issued repeated orders to strictly prohibit the sale of human beings? Moreover, the imperial court's new policy is being implemented, so why is there still such a thing?"

Su Ya said: "Sir, how much majesty does the imperial decree still have when it leaves the place where it is issued in the capital? How much dignity does it have when it reaches Jiangnan?"

Gu Yanwu choked, and Huang Zongxi was silent for a moment, then asked: "I don't know, do you two girls know that there is a person named Zhang Xiaowan in Zuixianglou?"

Qiao Ya became a little wary: "You two gentlemen are here for Sister Zhang?"

Huang Zongxi nodded slightly: "To save her, but also to save you."

"Why do we believe you?" Qiao Ya asked.

Huang Zongxi said: "We heard that many people helped Zhang Xiaowan and Zhou Ling'er when they escaped. Didn't they know there were two girls?"

Without waiting for a reply, Huang Zongxi said: "Don't worry, we two are not bad people. We are from Jinling."

"Jinling, was it sent by Governor Wang? Does Governor Wang know about us?" Qiao Wan asked with some surprise.

Gu Yanwu nodded: "Yes, Governor Wang knew what was going on here and sent me and I to investigate."

"Sister?" Qiao Wan looked at her sister expectantly.

Although Qiao Ya was still a little hesitant, she finally nodded: "Anyway, my two sisters have fallen to this point, and there is not much hope. I will trust you for once today."

Huang Zongxi motioned to Gu Yanwu to take out a pen and paper, and then said: "Please two girls please elaborate."

As Qiao Ya and Qiao Wan narrated, the inside story of Zuixiang Tower was revealed to Huang Zongxi.

The Zuixiang House is not just about human trafficking and kidnapping. In fact, these girls were trained by the Zuixiang House. After training, they became the tools of the Zuixiang House. They were sent to the officials in Yangzhou by the Zuixiang House.

Whether it is the government or the gentry, they are caught in the boat of Zuixianglou by a web of female sex.

Not only that, every year, Zuixianglou forcibly robbed or forced good families to sell their daughters. Whether these good families were serving in the court or receiving guests on a daily basis, the money they received was given to the local officials in Yangzhou by Zuixianglou for bribes. With the local government in Yangzhou

As a backer, Zuixianglou's business grew bigger and bigger. There were Zuixianglou not only in Yangzhou City, but also in various places in Yangzhou Prefecture. They recruited the gentry and bribed officials. There were not many officials who came to Yangzhou who were not bribed by them.

, the merchants who came to Yangzhou became their new prey.

As for Zhang Xiaowan, after escaping, she was beaten and scolded by Zuixianglou and then locked up and planned to be sent to another place in the future.

After saying this, Qiao Ya sighed softly: "Our original intention is to count as many sisters as we can escape. After all, here, we will eventually have no control over ourselves."
To be continued...