Chapter 62: The Secret of Hua Man Ge!

Hua Man Ge, Phoenix Tower.

The procuress Ji Siniang, along with a crowd of warbling, chirping courtesans and famous singers, stood in the main hall with hunched backs.

On the perimeter stood the bouncers and guards of Hua Man Ge.

"Si Niang, what is going on? Why do you all look so listless?"

"Are you no longer doing business?"

Liu Qingmei sat before a round table, her face dark, staring at Ji Siniang who stood before her.

It was fortunate that she had followed!

Otherwise, she would not have known that in such a short time, the once exceptionally bustling Hua Man Ge had become as desolate as this! The entire Hua Man Ge, including the menial maids, guards, thugs, famous singers, and courtesans, likely numbered five or six hundred people.

If there were no income, the daily cost of food and basic needs for so many people was not a small sum!

Thump! As Liu Qingmei's words fell.

In an instant.

The Hua Man Ge procuress Ji Siniang, along with the crowd of courtesans and singers under her, all knelt to the ground.

"What are you doing!"

This sudden action immediately startled Liu Qingmei.

At this moment.

The still-charming Ji Siniang raised her head to look at Liu Qingmei, pain and unwillingness flickering in her eyes as she said: "Mistress, it is not that we are unwilling. In the past, our lowly lives were all controlled by the Blood Lotus Sect of the Zhou Kingdom, and we were not masters of our own actions. Now that you have taken over, it is only right, but if you want the girls to earn money for you, you must at least care whether we live or die..."

After finishing, Ji Siniang prostrated herself on the ground.

"How am I not caring if you live or die? Get up and explain yourself clearly!"

Liu Qingmei knitted her brows and scolded.

Ji Siniang immediately straightened her waist, looked at Liu Qingmei, and said timidly: "Mistress, you do not know, but the people of the Blood Lotus Sect planted a strange poison in our bodies. This poison flares up every half year, and if we do not take the antidote in time, we can only wait for death!"

"They rely on this secret poison to control us!"

"When the people from the Blood Lotus Sect came last time, first, they came to collect the silver we earned over the year; second, they came to devour the Pure Essence accumulated by the top courtesan Ruyan to increase the Cultivation Points of their Saintess; and third, they came to deliver this year's supply of antidote..."

"But, before we could receive the antidote, those people from the Blood Lotus Sect... were killed by you, Mistress."

"There is less than half a month left before the half-year flare-up. In half a month, we will all perish, so how could we have the heart to entertain guests and earn money..."

Ji Siniang was sorrowful and miserable, her words filled with the fear of death and a longing for life.

The crowd of singers and courtesans behind her also lowered their heads, their faces full of grief and despair.

Hate?

They were likely full of hatred, but this hatred could not be put into action.

Such is the world.

Living between this heaven and earth.

Those like them, who have no strength to truss a chicken, can only have their fates dominated by others.

Whether they live or die is no longer up to them.

There is no other way out to speak of.

Hearing these words from Ji Siniang, Liu Qingmei's brows tightened together, her expression cold.

She had previously found it strange that Ji Siniang did not look like a member of the Blood Lotus Sect, so how could she be controlled so obediently by them, handing over all the money earned each year except for necessary expenses?

She even spared no cost to cultivate top-tier courtesans.

Then offered them to the demoness of the Blood Lotus Sect to absorb their Pure Essence.

So, the crux of it all was here.

The Blood Lotus Sect is far away at Xiao Mountain in the Zhou Kingdom and could not do things personally, so they used poison to control them. What a vicious method!

"Rest assured, I will find every famous doctor in the city to find the antidote for you!"

Liu Qingmei immediately stated her position.

Coming from a prestigious family, although deep down she despised these shameless courtesans who lacked self-respect.

She could still understand and respect them.

Everyone has their own path.

Everyone has their own value and sense of existence in how they live, no matter how they live! Moreover, Hua Man Ge needs them to continue operating.

Otherwise, with a large mansion but no one inside, what customer would come to patronize it? However, when her words fell, they were not met with the expected enthusiasm.

Instead, Ji Siniang gave a bitter smile and shook her head helplessly.

"It is useless!"

"Mistress, to tell you the truth, it is not just now; years ago, when Hua Man Ge was first established and began soliciting guests, we sisters invited every famous doctor in the city, and even invited many famous divine doctors from other regions, but they were all helpless against this poison."

"There was once a woman known as the Little Medical Immortal of the jianghu who wanted to save us, but she still failed. Speaking of that time..."

"Thinking about it, we feel very sorry for that young girl. She was young and kind-hearted, originally trying to save us, but unexpectedly she was dragged down by us. That night, the people from the Blood Lotus Sect suddenly visited, and the young girl was tortured by three big men until... sigh... I have been in this business, and I could not bear to look; she was simply not in human shape anymore!"

Regret and pity appeared in Ji Siniang's eyes as she shook her head and sighed helplessly.

The Little Medical Immortal of the jianghu? Liu Qingmei raised an eyebrow.

Wasn't that the closing Disciple of the famous doctor Zhang Zishen of Qinghong Valley? It was said she left the mountain four years ago to travel the martial arts world, which caused quite a stir at the time, as a woman practicing medicine without avoiding the differences between men and women inevitably attracted the curiosity of many male martial artists.

But not long after, news about the Little Medical Immortal vanished.

At the time, it was thought she had returned to Qinghong Valley to seclude herself and refine her medical arts.

Now it seems the Little Medical Immortal actually died at the hands of the Blood Lotus Sect? She must have been tortured by the demons of the Blood Lotus Sect and then had her body destroyed without a trace. Even if Zhang Zishen of Qinghong Valley wanted revenge, he would have no way to enter.

Liu Qingmei's expression was grave.

The Demon Sect is hateful!

But immediately, she turned her gaze toward Ning Mu, her eyes flickering with unwillingness.

Since even the Disciple of Zhang Zishen is helpless, it seems the poison from the Blood Lotus Sect can only be cured by their unique antidote!

Could it be that Hua Man Ge is destined to perish just like this?

Ning Mu remained silent throughout.

However, the image of a graceful figure in plain clothes had already surfaced in his mind.

If Liuli Shitai could handle the Demon Seed Blood Lotus inside Ning Xiaoxiu, surely she must have a way to resolve the poison inside Ji Siniang and the others, right?

Thinking this, Ning Mu raised his head, first cast a reassuring look at Liu Qingmei, and then looked at Ji Siniang and the others, saying: "Everyone, within half a month, this Young Master guarantees to find a divine doctor who can remove this strange poison for you."

"But the prerequisite is that after the poison is removed, your future livelihoods must be subject to my arrangements."

Hearing this, Ji Siniang and the others looked at each other in dismay.

The courtesans standing a bit further away were whispering and exchanging words with one another.

Ji Siniang had already made it clear that many divine doctors had been invited and could not solve it, yet this young master was spouting wild talk; could he really have a way? Half a month was, to them, like waiting for the summons of the Grim Reaper at any moment.

One can imagine how desperate such an experience is! In fact, over these past few days, sisters had already been unable to endure this inner torment one after another and had gone to their deaths.

Some took poison to commit suicide, some hung themselves from beams with white silk, and some bound their feet and threw themselves into the river...

Some were discovered in time and saved.

But there were still those sisters who sought death in the middle of the night, and when discovered, they were already nothing but red powder and withered bones.

(End of this chapter)