Chapter 14: Selecting the Plaque

The largest Male Brothel in the Capital was called Qingfeng Pavilion. Great Gan did not forbid male love—men taking male wives was common—so even before nightfall, the brothel was bustling.

Jiang Feng looked thoroughly at home, exchanging a word with the proprietor before leading Jiang Sheng up to the second floor.

Jiang Sheng gawked around like a Kitty who’d never seen the world. A door beside them opened, and two men with bare chests came out, arms around each other’s waists. Jiang Sheng stared, rooted to the spot.

Jiang Feng yanked him along. “Stop staring at people.”

Jiang Sheng was already regretting this. “Gege, maybe we should go home? Cheng Jing has definitely gone to report by now. Lu Yan’s going to come catch us!”

Jiang Feng looked at him with disappointment. “You’re afraid of HIM?! Sheng’er, listen to Gege—you have to stand above him. Only then will he never dare bully you again.”

Jiang Sheng lowered his head and twisted his fingers, not daring to answer.

Standing above Lu Yan was, in fact, entirely achievable. He did it every day.

It did not, however, prevent Lu Yan from spanking his bottom.

Jiang Feng was tirelessly lecturing his brother on “knowledge” when a knock came at the door. “Young masters, may we come in?”

Jiang Feng straightened up at once, coughed twice. “Enter.”

Two men in green robes walked in. Jiang Sheng took one curious look and shot upright in fright.

Wait… why were they half-naked?

Belts hanging loose, chests just… out. Honestly, in the modern world this would be nothing—maybe he’d been in ancient times too long, because Jiang Sheng had apparently turned conservative. The sudden sight made him uncomfortable, and he instinctively squeezed his eyes shut.

One of the green-robed men burst out laughing. “First time at a place like this, little young master? How adorably green.”

It was his first time seeing such a pretty young master too, and he couldn’t help leaning in, reaching out to touch Jiang Sheng’s cheek—when Jiang Feng smacked his hand away. “Talk if you’re talking. Keep your hands off my brother!”

“…”

Come to a place like this and keep hands to yourself… just to LOOK?

And look they did. Purely look.

Jiang Feng pointed them out to Jiang Sheng. “When you pick a man, you pick a good physique. You only live once—can’t shortchange yourself, right?”

Jiang Sheng leaned in, studied them, and pronounced solemnly, “Lu Yan’s chest is bigger than theirs.”

Jiang Feng choked. “Pretty but useless doesn’t count either.”

Jiang Sheng was silent a moment, thinking of his own bottom.

“…That one’s actually pretty useful, though.”

The two men across from them, whose robes were green, were now turning green in the face as well. What was this—mockery?! Summoned, paid for, and then reviewed like livestock?!

Meanwhile, Jiang Feng was getting angry too.

He refused to believe that among all these men, not one could outdo Lu Yan.

He pulled a bag of gold from his robes and threw it on the table.

“Again! Bring me the very best your establishment has!”

The bag split open, gleaming gold spilling out.

Jiang Sheng whispered, “Gege, that’s too much.”

Jiang Feng lifted his chin. “Gege has money to burn.”

Soon, every unoccupied Male Courtesan in Qingfeng Pavilion had crowded into the private room, packing it full—some even queuing outside.

Those at the back, seeing someone come out, anxiously pressed, “Well?! Did you get picked?!”

The one who came out shook his head. “Said my arms were too thick. Only gave me one piece of gold.”

Holy— not even picked and still got gold!

The men behind surged with enthusiasm, the queue packed shoulder to shoulder.

And at that exact moment, a man walked up from the very back and planted himself at the front of the line.

“Hey, no cutting!”

“Who’s that? New guy?”

“Don’t you know the rules?!”

The man at the front turned around, eyes cold and predatory—and the queue fell silent at once. Mostly, though, it was the two guards flanking him, each toting a blade, looking entirely ready to start chopping at a moment’s notice.

Inside the room.

Jiang Sheng was exhausted, eyes crossed from looking. He slumped boneless in his chair, asking his gege when they could go home, he was hungry.

Jiang Feng’s competitive spirit had been fully ignited. He slapped the table. “Two more! I refuse to believe no one here has a better body than Lu Yan!”

Jiang Sheng muttered, “You’re about to run out of gold.”

Jiang Feng waved a grand hand. “It’s fine. Spend! Lu Yan’s rich beyond counting—it’d be a waste not to spend it.”

Jiang Sheng: “???”

Spending MY HUSBAND’S money to hire male courtesans?

Just making sure the Kitty dies as fast as possible.

Jiang Feng called out, “Next!”

Someone pushed the door open. Jiang Feng looked up. “You—”

His voice cut off like a hand had closed around his throat.

“Sheng’er—you you you you—”

Jiang Feng’s voice was shaking.

Jiang Sheng blearily lifted his head—and instantly matched his gege, eyes going huge, both of them trembling in unison.

“You you you you you—”

Lu Yan smiled faintly. “Little Master, how do you find me? Could I serve you well?”

Jiang Sheng nodded rapidly—then shook his head just as violently, straining to declare his position. “I HAVE A HUSBAND!”

Lu Yan’s expression cooled, degree by degree. “Oh? You still remember you have a Husband?”

Jiang Sheng guiltily looked away, turning to his gege and signaling frantically with his eyes.

Jiang Feng coughed. “Little brother, you really shouldn’t be in a place like this. Not that Gege is lecturing, but—you’re a married man now. None of this nonsense.”

Jiang Sheng: “…” What is the meaning of this?

Lu Yan had no attention to spare for anyone else, and no patience to watch Jiang Sheng and his gege exchange significant looks. From the moment Cheng Jing had intercepted him at the palace gates and told him where his Wife had gone, Lu Yan had ridden here at a dead gallop, fury shooting straight through the crown of his head.

One moment of inattention, and the little thing turned the heavens upside down.

He’d been good for barely two days!

Lu Yan stared at him, expressionless. “Had enough fun? Ready to go home?”

Jiang Sheng knew his Husband far too well.

The calmer the surface, the more terrifying the eruption to come.

His bottom was already aching in phantom, inside and out.

He scurried over at once, hugging Lu Yan’s arm, saying sweetly, “Home! Want to go home!”

Unfortunately, the window for selling cute had closed.

Lu Yan looked down at him, gaze flat, took his Wife’s hand, and turned to leave.

Jiang Feng was left standing there, crying “Hey, hey, HEY” several times before hurrying after.

But the moment they stepped outside, Jiang Feng was instantly surrounded.

Everyone wanted their gold.

Jiang Feng panicked. “I didn’t even LOOK at any of you! Why should I pay you?!”

The crowd shouted back, “The ones in front who didn’t get picked got paid! We want ours too!”

Jiang Feng was livid!

So they were ALL shameless freeloaders, huh?!

But trapped in the crowd, he emptied his pockets and couldn’t dig out half a copper.

Out of options, he bellowed for Jiang Sheng, “Sheng’er! Pay up for Gege!”

Jiang Sheng was about to explode!

Backstabbing him just now, and NOW coming to him for money!

His little face went stern, head turned away, playing deaf.

“Our Lu Yan manages the money. You’re wasting your time, Gege.”

Jiang Feng ground his teeth. “You little ingrate, leaving Gege to die—”

“It’s just a bit of money.”

Lu Yan spoke up suddenly, his gaze deep and unreadable as it rested on Jiang Feng. “I can pay. But Gege will write an IOU.”

Jiang Feng: “?!”

An entire PRINCE’S MANOR! Night-Luminous Pearls for his brother to play marbles with—and now he wanted an IOU?!

But Lu Yan wore an expression of pure impatience, and it was clear that if Jiang Feng didn’t sign, he really would walk away. Out of options, Jiang Feng ground his teeth and wrote the IOU—and pressed his thumbprint to it.

Utter humiliation! UTTER HUMILIATION!

Jiang Feng cursed Lu Yan several hundred times in his heart, and watching the two walk off, hurried to catch up—only to be stopped at the door by Cheng Jing.

Cheng Jing smiled sweetly. “Young Master Jiang, why not ride in my carriage? Don’t disturb His Highness and the Master.”

The lovebirds were busy.

Cracking melon seeds.

Jiang Sheng bit down on a handkerchief, tears splattering down—but he didn’t even dare cry out loud, terrified the people outside would hear. Where would his dignity go then?!

The Kitty has DIGNITY!

But his bottom also wanted to live!

Jiang Sheng’s robes were bunched up, held against his chest, legs spread as he sat in his Husband’s lap and let him play.

Though he genuinely couldn’t fathom why Lu Yan carried salve around even in a carriage!

The scent seemed different this time, too. Citrus.

Jiang Sheng spared a stray thread of thought for this.

Which only made Lu Yan more displeased—seeing him distracted, the man’s hands grew heavier, making Jiang Sheng shudder and whimper.

A Wife raised by your own hand from childhood—what a fine thing.

Lu Yan knew every inch of his body, knew exactly where to touch to make Jiang Sheng shiver, cry, and look at him with reddened eyes.

“Playing with one’s Wife”—the very phrase sounded delightful.

But Lu Yan was nursing a fire in his chest today. He knew precisely where Jiang Sheng’s limit lay, and deliberately stopped just short, denying him release—leaving Jiang Sheng’s eyes wide open, unfocused and desperate.

Lu Yan drew his fingers out at leisure, wiped them clean, and thoughtfully redressed his Wife’s clothes. If one ignored everything he’d just done, he was the picture of a considerate husband.

Jiang Sheng spat out the handkerchief and burrowed, sniffling, into his Husband’s arms, biting at Lu Yan’s chest.

Lu Yan stroked his hair. “After the bar last time—what did you promise me when you got home?”

Naturally: sitting on Lu Yan’s lap with a swollen bottom, swearing through tears that he would never, ever go again.

Jiang Sheng offered a small, shifty defense. “This isn’t a bar. And I really didn’t DO anything. Just looked…”

A smack landed on his bottom.

Lu Yan said coldly, “Looking wasn’t enough? What else did you want to do?”

Jiang Sheng pursed his lips and went silent.

The carriage soon returned to the manor. Jiang Sheng played dead and refused to walk, so Lu Yan simply carried him in.

From a distance, he could see his gege staring after them, eyes about to pop out of his head. Jiang Sheng’s little face flushed, and he buried it in Lu Yan’s shoulder.

The ostrich Kitty.

Jiang Sheng’s instincts told him this wasn’t over. Knowing how petty Lu Yan was, there was no way he’d let it slide so easily.

But after they got home, Lu Yan never mentioned it again—as if the matter were closed.

Until nightfall.

Lu Yan carried over a tray. On it sat a great many plaques.

His tone was perfectly even. “I’ve been wondering why you like running off to places like that. Perhaps Baby is still young, curiosity running high. Well—if you like to play, we’ll simply play at home. Outside is filthy.”

Jiang Sheng: “?”

Suspecting a trap, he didn’t dare answer.

“This is modeled after Qingfeng Pavilion. Whichever Male Courtesan you like, select his plaque.”

Jiang Sheng nearly thought he’d hallucinated.

What? Lu Yan wanted him to Select the Plaque?!

He was near tears. “Husband, I won’t select! I only want to live with you! I’ll never go to a place like that again!”

Lu Yan smiled. “Select, Baby.”

The man’s tone brooked no refusal. Jiang Sheng, wronged to his core, pursed his lips and looked down at the plaques—nothing on them was readable, just assorted courtesan names.

Qingzhi. Baiyu. Qingfeng…

His fingers trembled, and he flipped one at random.

Lu Yan nodded, said nothing, and carried the tray away.

Jiang Sheng’s heart pounded with dread.

No, wait. What exactly did Lu Yan mean by this?

Was this some kind of test?!

Was some Qingfeng or Baiyu actually going to walk through that door in a minute…

Just as Jiang Sheng’s thoughts spiraled, the door pushed open. He whipped his head up—and blanked.

Lu Yan stood there in an outfit nearly identical to the Male Brothel’s—only darker, a long black robe, likewise with no belt cinching it, chest bared, walking in just like that.

Jiang Sheng’s lips moved. “…Qingfeng?”

Lu Yan even nodded. “Little Master. Qingfeng is here to serve you.”

Jiang Sheng: “…”

What a “service.” Lu Yan, a bellyful of fire, looked ready to devour Jiang Sheng whole. Even as his hands never stopped, he kissed Jiang Sheng’s ear. “Little Master—did Qingfeng serve you well?”

Jiang Sheng’s tears fell in fat drops.

And the cruelest part: when it was over, it wasn’t over. Lu Yan brought the tray back around and made him select again.

The man’s tone was calm. “Since you love it so much, select the entire tray. Play your fill, and you’ll never want to go again.”

Jiang Sheng, tears in his eyes, seethed in silence, not daring to speak.

Did it even need saying? Qingfeng was him. Baiyu was him. Every last one of these ridiculous “Male Courtesans” was HIM!!!

Who exactly was playing whom here?!