Chapter 005: The Courtesan of Luoyang

A turtle keeper is a man who does odd jobs in the pleasure quarters, generally also serving as a security guard, though in the south they are called turtle keepers, and in the north, big teapots.

Such people occupy an extremely low social status; once they take up this trade, even their descendants cannot hold their heads up.

But don't underestimate such people.

The people who do this work are almost all trained by the madam herself. Such people fight fiercely and strike viciously, and they are especially cruel when dealing with poor scholars who have neither money nor influence, or with people who owe debts and refuse to repay.

Breaking bones is nothing serious; beating someone to death is not unheard of.

For someone like Wang Shao’ai, if he ran out of money or squandered his family fortune in the brothel and could not produce any cash, these people would turn hostile and deny any acquaintance, beating him and throwing him out, or even beating him to death.

"Young Master Yuan, Young Master Wang..."

The pimp stepped forward, cupped his hands, and asked with a grin, "I wonder which ladies you two gentlemen are looking for today. As it happens, we have a few new girls here at Shuyu Pavilion. I wonder if you might be interested."

Yuan Zhen said, "I am here today to see Miss Yushu."

The pimp said, “So Young Master Yuan is here to see Miss Yushu. As it happens, Miss Yushu has no guests today. How about I announce you to her?”

Yuan Zhen nodded, took a piece of broken silver from his bosom, and pressed it into the pimp's hand. "Then I'll trouble you."

The pimp said, "Then which lady is Young Master Wang looking for? The usual, Miss Xiaoqi?"

Wang Bo shook his head, pointed at the several foreign dancing girls on the stage, and said, "Who is that foreign girl in the third row?"

In ancient times, Huji referred to young women who sold wine in taverns run by the Hu people.

The pimp said, “Which of the Hu Ji maidens has caught Young Master Wang’s fancy?”

Wang Bo nodded.

The brothel keeper added, "Young Master Wang, these foreign dancers were actually invited by our madam to perform. They may accompany guests in drinking, but they absolutely will not provide other services. I hope you can understand, Young Master Wang."

Wang Bo said, "Forget it then."

So they don't entertain clients. Wang Bo had thought the foreign dancing girls here were all courtesans of the Shuyu Pavilion, but he hadn't expected they were merely performers hired by the madam.

But the dancing is really quite good, at least much better than those actresses dancing on TV dramas.

One is a professional, the other an amateur.

Who is good and who is bad is clear at a glance.

The pimp said, "Then, Young Master Wang, do you need me to inform Miss Xiaoqi?"

"No need. Go attend to your duties. If I need anything, I'll look for you." Wang Bo waved his hand.

The pimp withdrew with a look of astonishment, still finding it inconceivable: this Young Master Wang had come to a brothel but didn't seek a girl—wasn't that just too strange?

Could it be that he's changed his ways?

But if he has changed his ways, why come to a brothel at all.

After the pimp withdrew, Yuan Zhen said with a look of astonishment, “What’s the matter with you today, Brother Shao’ai? Could it be that you look down on the common beauties here?”

Wang Bo shook his head and said, "That's not it. I just haven't found one that catches my eye yet."

Yuan Zhen teased with a smile, "I didn't expect that after just a few days apart, Brother Shao'ai's standards would have risen so high. I wonder what kind of girl could possibly catch your discerning eye. Could it be that you've set your sights on Luoyang's top courtesan, Yin Ruiji?"

Wang Bo was about to scoff when he suddenly caught on. "Wait, who did you just say? Yin Ruiji?"

"Exactly, the Luoyang courtesan Yin Ruiji, who has captivated all of Luoyang. Even the high officials and nobles wish to win her favor, but unfortunately, Miss Yin Ruiji is proud by nature, cold to everyone, and also highly skilled in martial arts. To this day, no one has ever been admitted into her boudoir."

Wang Bo listened, dumbstruck. This defied science.

When Yuan Zhen brought up Yin Ruiji, Wang Bo finally sorted out some of his thoughts.

During the Tang dynasty, there was the Luoyang courtesan Yin Ruiji and the young master of the Qingxin Tea House, Yuan Zhen.

With these two names linked together, Wang Bo finally figured out the origin of this world.

Young Detective Dee: Rise of the Sea Dragon!

This was likewise a movie world; Wang Bo had seen this movie before, but because it had been a while, he had forgotten some of the story's content, though he remembered the gist.

This story tells of how Wu Zetian dispatched troops to attack a country, only for a hundred thousand naval forces to be completely annihilated by a sea monster.

So the common folk believed this was the Dragon King causing trouble and all made offerings to the Dragon King.

In addition to offering incense and sacrifices, the Great Tang also selected a woman as an offering to worship the Dragon King.

And this woman was none other than Yin Ruiji, the courtesan queen of Luoyang.

And by coincidence, at that very moment, Di Renjie arrived in Luoyang and became entangled in the Dragon King case. He cooperated with Yuchi Zhenjin, the Chief Justice of the Court of Judicial Review; the two were both adversaries and allies, and in the end, they joined forces to crack the case.

Besides this, Yin Ruiji and Yuan Zhen were also key figures in the Dragon King case.

To be precise, Yuan Zhen is the key figure; Yin Ruiji was drawn in by association.

When Wu Zetian dispatched troops to attack the enemy state, there was a small country sandwiched between the two nations. Wang Bo remembered that this country seemed to be the Eastern Island Kingdom.

Wang Bo remembered the name of this small country so clearly because at the time he thought the East Island Country was Japan.

But later I discovered that this Dongdao Country was not Japan.

It was merely a sparsely populated maritime nation.

This small country was caught in the crossfire of the war between the Great Tang and its enemy, suffering heavy losses. As a result, some people from the Eastern Island nation sought revenge, sneaking into Luoyang and capturing the young proprietor of the Pure Heart Tea House.

That is, this Yuan Zhen by Wang Bo's side.

Their aim was simple: after seizing Yuan Zhen, they would gain control of the Pure Heart Tea House, then introduce a gu poison into the tribute tea, and through that tea, deliver the poison into the bodies of princes, ministers, the emperor, and the empress.

Once the time is ripe, it will be tantamount to holding the lives of the entire court, including the emperor and empress, in their hands.

When the time came, they could steal the sky and swap the sun, seizing control of the entire Tang Empire.

But at the most critical juncture of the plan, they made a mistake.

Yuan Zhen has escaped!

Yuan Zhen, whom they had captured, managed to escape from their hands at a critical moment. So, in order to recapture Yuan Zhen, this group found his lover, Yin Ruiji, and attempted to locate Yuan Zhen through her.

But in the end, they never managed to capture Yuan Zhen.

In the end, one misstep led to another.

Their conspiracy ultimately failed, and they were jointly wiped out by Di Renjie and Yuchi Zhenjin.

However, Wang Bo recalled that in the story, after Yin Ruiji was elected the top courtesan of Luoyang, her fame soared, attracting many nobles and aristocrats. Interestingly, she did not love money, but only talent. After reading the poems written by Yuan Zhen, she was so captivated that she could not put them down, and finally paid a personal visit to him, after which the two became inseparable lovers.

But now, Yin Ruiji has already become the top courtesan of Luoyang, yet she has not come to see Yuan Zhen.

This isn't how the story goes.

Moreover, Wang Bo seemed to have heard something rather unbelievable.