Chapter 93 Rouge Review

Luoyang's brothels and theaters have always been prosperous, and Anle Pavilion, located in the south of the city, is a particularly famous den of brothels. After all, it is an old brand that has been circulating in Guanzhong for nearly three hundred years, and dignitaries from all over the country are happy to buy in.

On the stage in the hall, the singing girls had no rest all day long. Silla and Western dancers wearing short skirts with exposed belly danced barefoot to the sound of zithers and harps. But this was only the first step to attract the guests. After the guests stopped and sat down, the servants would select the rich guests and report them to the madam and pimp, who would arrange for girls to accompany them and then offer different price packages to induce them to spend.

Xiao Yan leaned against the wooden railing on the third floor, quietly observing the hustle and bustle downstairs, and could clearly see the entire process.

The reason why Anle Pavilion has been able to remain prosperous for three hundred years is not only because of the support of the Bad Boys, but also because of its mature operating model. This is also the reason why the Luoyang branch has been able to continue operating since the disbandment of the Bad Boys.

In the days since returning from Zhu Youzhen's palace, he has been staying in Anle Pavilion and has sorted out the main business model here.

Behind him, Yu Youshu came over lightly, then bowed and said, "Captain, there is a letter for you."

"Is it from the chief leader?"

Xiao Yan opened the envelope, quickly scanned it, and then looked up in surprise: "Tian Guixing?"

Yu Youshu explained, "Although Anle Pavilion is the location of our Luoyang branch, it is actually owned by Captain Tianguixing in name. A few days ago, I asked my fake mother to report some of your suggestions. Tianguixing was very satisfied and decided to give Anle Pavilion to you so that the captain can settle down in Luoyang."

"Give it to me?" Xiao Yan frowned and asked in surprise, "Such a large estate, don't you need me to go and see it in advance before giving it to you?"

"In fact, Tianguixing has not cared about Anle Pavilion's affairs for a long time." Yu Youshu said in a low voice with some embarrassment: "I think that Tianguixing may have too many properties, and Anle Pavilion only makes profits in Luoyang, so she may have forgotten about it a long time ago..."

"This……"

Xiao Yan was stunned for a moment after hearing this, then he smiled and said, "In this case, I should go to your house to thank you, right?"

"Tian Guixing is not in Luoyang." Yu Youshu shook her head gently, and the tassels on her gilded hairpin also swayed slowly. "Although I, Brother Liang and others grew up in Anle Pavilion, we have never seen the real Tian Guixing. We have not even seen the fake mother who manages the affairs of the pavilion. We don't even know whether Tian Guixing is a man or a woman... All the procedures are passed on by Tian Guixing's middleman who stayed in Guanzhong."

At this point, she added: "But according to the reliable information claimed by my fake mother, Tian Guixing should be a girl, but I have always been skeptical."

"So mysterious?"

Xiao Yan thought about it carefully and finally understood why the Bad People had been disbanded for nearly thirty years, but were still able to receive supplies intermittently and maintain the operation of most branches.

Yu Youshu nodded and said, "According to rumors from the previous generation of bad people, Tian Guixing doesn't seem to be proficient in martial arts, but he is very good at making money. I guess this is why he doesn't want to show up easily..."

"I really admire you." Xiao Yan was greatly impressed. In addition to the three-story main building, Anle Pavilion also had large and small courtyards, back buildings, etc., which occupied most of Yanfufang. However, it was basically impossible for him to acquire such a huge industry except by using trickery and robbery.

However, this extremely mysterious Tianguixing had never even seen him, and only sent a middleman to give it to him...

Just as I was thinking this, the old brothel owner with a mole on the corner of her mouth came up the stairs, panting, leading a few middle-aged men who looked like managers.

When she saw him from afar, she was already smiling happily, waving her round fan, and hurried over. Then, from a few steps away, she kept saying in annoyance: "Oh, my dear, why didn't you tell me about your relationship with the employer earlier? I really didn't recognize you these days and neglected you..."

Then, she pretended to be angry and looked at Yu Youshu: "And you, you clearly know the identity of our husband, but you made mother lose face like this!"

The latter bowed slightly, "My daughter only learned about Mr. Xiao's identity recently, and I was the first to tell you, mother."

"Oh, let's not talk about this." The madam waved her fan, turned her waist and walked to Xiao Yan, with an unstoppable smile on her face. She looked him up and down and said with emotion: "I never thought that after not seeing the boss for a long time, the boss already has a handsome young man like you..."

Xiao Yan had a strange look on his face and glanced at Yu Youshu.

The latter was also surprised, and then laughed innocently with his hands covering his mouth.

Over there, the madam had already taken out the letter from her bosom and handed it to Xiao Yan, then said solemnly: "Since you are the son of the host family, I will definitely follow your lead from now on. This Anle Pavilion should have a real master sitting in charge."

Xiao Yan took it and quickly read it, only then did he see that the words on the letter revealed a sense of majesty. And although the relationship between Xiao Yan and the owner of the letter was not revealed, the last sentence "treat him as if he were me" made it very easy to guess.

In addition, he looked too young, which inevitably made the brothel owner think that he was the son of Tianguixing.

Xiao Yan was too lazy to correct them, so he waved his hand to let the stewards leave, and said to the madam, "Since the fake mother has received the letter, I will not be polite."

"My lord, if you have any orders, just send me."

"Although I am a new official, I am clearly an outsider. I am not as experienced as my fake mother who has been in charge of Anle Pavilion for many years. Therefore, I do not want to make any changes. I only have a few ideas. I hope my fake mother can figure out their feasibility after listening to them."

After hearing this, the madam was extremely happy and responded repeatedly: "My dear, just tell me! Even if you want the most attractive beauty in this pass, I can invite her for you!"

"As far as I know, Anle Pavilion is now the top brand in Luoyang?"

"I am not boasting," the madam said with great pride, "Among all the brothels in Luoyang, none can surpass our Anle Pavilion in terms of fame."

"So what about Luoyang? Guanzhong? Central Plains?"

"This..." The madam hesitated for a moment, then laughed softly and said, "In Guanzhong, maybe she is still somewhat famous."

Xiao Yan smiled and said with his hands behind his back, "No, no, no, Anle Pavilion has been passed down for three hundred years, so it should be the best pavilion in the world. And we should not only focus on the dignitaries in Luoyang City, but also expand the scope. In addition to spending money, we should have some things that other restaurants don't have."

"Forgive my ignorance, I don't know what you mean..."

"Does the fake mother know about the match?"

"Of course I know that," the madam thought, "If those wanderers in the martial arts world want to become famous, they often challenge others to a duel in this way. If they win, they will become famous, but if they lose, they will be extremely humiliated, or even lose their lives."

"What if we use this method in Anle Pavilion?" Xiao Yan said, "I want to create a list called 'Rouge Review', divided into a main list and a secondary list, to evaluate beauty and talent, and list the twenty most beautiful women in the world."

"Rouge Review? The most beautiful woman in the world?" The madam was stunned for a moment.

"Yes, it's not Anle Pavilion, nor Luoyang, Guanzhong, but the whole world. Central Plains, Shu, Jiangnan, Hebei, Western Regions, Mobei..." Xiao Yan supported the wooden railing with both hands and said in a calm voice: "The women listed on it don't have to be from our Anle Pavilion, but this list must be drawn up by our Anle Pavilion."

The madam was frightened.

Xiao Yan was still talking: "This rouge review should not only have comments on each of the beauties written on it, but also have portraits and indicate where the people are from, so that people will be convinced." "But, we don't have so many people and money to search for beauties all over the world, let alone the most beautiful women in the world." The old procuress was stunned.

"No hurry, we just need to give the list, and the beauties on it will be judged by people all over the world." Xiao Yan smiled faintly and said, "We just need to give a standard for evaluation."

"Evaluation Standards?"

"We only need to list a woman who is at the bottom of the list and the top of the secondary list in the Rouge Review, and the 19 above her will be selected by the people of the world."

On the side, although Yu Youshu had known this idea for a long time, she was still somewhat surprised by Xiao Yan's strategy at this moment, and secretly admired him in her heart.

At the same time, the madam smacked her lips and asked, "What do you mean, sir?"

Xiao Yan smiled faintly, raised a finger, and then turned and pointed at Yu Youshu who was frowning in thought.

"Next, I want to build momentum for Lady Yu."

The madam was stunned at first, but after thinking about it carefully, she was instantly surprised: "My dear, this plan is very good. If this 'Rouge Review' can really be done, this method will not only make Youshu famous, but also make my Anle Pavilion famous throughout the world."

Next to her, Yu Youshu, who was gently pointed at by Xiao Yan, was stunned for a moment, and then her cheeks turned red, showing great excitement.

But the former had already turned to the madam and said, "Listen carefully, in the next two days, you need to arrange a grand banquet. You can invite all the dignitaries from Luoyang and even Guanzhong to gather in Anle Pavilion. All expenses will be waived for them. You just need to invite them."

"My dear, what should this banquet be called?"

"Select the most beautiful woman in Luoyang."

The madam was stunned for a moment, then whispered, "Although I'm not boasting, there are still many brothels in Luoyang City that are as good as ours. Isn't it too ostentatious for you, my dear?"

"Why not? Send them an invitation. If they want to compete for the title of Oiran, each building can send a beautiful woman to Anle Pavilion."

"But they may not give us face..."

Xiao Yan smiled faintly and said, "No, they will give me face."

The madam hesitated for a moment, guessing that it must be the old boss behind the scenes, so she stopped refutation.

At this time, Xiao Yan said again: "And I need you to set up a wooden tablet made of fragrant wood in the lobby, called 'Heroes' Challenge List', with golden characters engraved on it, and list the first, second and third. When the banquet begins, the women who want to compete for the title of the most beautiful woman can go on stage to show their talents, and then the guests will judge them, and then they will compete against each other, so that each guest can write a poem or spend money, and each will have a share, until the last most beautiful woman is selected. And the most beautiful woman who has made the most contribution to her will be ranked first, and so on..."

"Eventually, the list can be sent to Luoyang, and someone will be assigned to announce the name of the top-ranked person."

He spoke for a long time, but by the end, the madam's eyes had widened.

As the operator of a restaurant, she understood best what these wealthy businessmen and dignitaries were looking for when they came to these places!

It is true that they want to have fun, but for them, it is too simple. However, if they can gain a lot of face and show their courage to spend a lot of money on a beautiful woman, they will really be crazy!

Moreover, she had already thought about how much money Anle Pavilion would earn that night if this thing was put on display...

Thinking of this, she kept waving her fan to wipe away the hot sweat that oozed from her excitement, and said excitedly: "My dear, please speak slowly. I want to write it down word by word..."

After saying that, she quickly called over another manager to write for her.

…………

After the madam happily left with the densely packed letters in her hands, Xiao Yan was able to lean against the wooden railing again and observe the noisy scene in the lobby downstairs.

Behind her, Yu Youshu was filled with thoughts, and finally just smiled bitterly and said, "Captain, this is really..."

"What? Do you have any objection?" Xiao Yan turned around and looked at him, saying, "If you don't want to, I can change the candidate. The selection of the courtesan is just for the purpose of launching the 'Rouge Review'."

Yu Youshu bowed her head, blushing: "I know myself well, but I am afraid I cannot take the title of the most beautiful lady as the captain wishes..."

"Madam Yu is too modest, and I already have a plan, so you don't need to be nervous." Xiao Yan laughed out loud, then paused and thought: "But I heard that Madam Yu is really ready to redeem herself. If she really doesn't want to, Xiao will never force her. As for the Rouge Review, I can try another method and list the first one..."

Yu Youshu was curious when she heard this, "Captain, has the most beautiful woman in the world been chosen?"

Xiao Yan waved his hand and just smiled faintly.

The former could not hide his curiosity and wanted to muster up the courage to gossip a little more, but he suddenly heard an inexplicable noise coming from downstairs.

They both looked up and saw an indigo figure walking in from the door of Anle Pavilion. Not only her, but there was also another beautiful woman with an exceptionally beautiful face and figure standing side by side.

The combination of these two women instantly attracted many guests who were lingering over the dancers.

Xiao Yan stood by the railing and couldn't help but chuckle.

Below, the girl frowned and avoided the noisy guests. She was about to whisper to Miao Chengtian next to her, but suddenly she felt something in her heart and looked up.

She has a cool face, an extraordinary temperament, and a pair of beautiful eyes that are exceptionally bright. In this rather secular occasion, she has an aura that attracts a lot of attention.

Xiao Yan slowly met her gaze.

Yu Youshu stood behind Xiao Yan, looking over his shoulder. She could see that the girl's cold face curled up subconsciously at first, but then she froze in an instant after seeing her.

The next moment, she felt a vague hostility.

　I still owe three thousand words, and I will definitely make up for it this month!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)