"..." Hearing Xiaoxiao’s words, everyone felt a chill run through them; they had provoked a remarkable person, but thankfully they had pulled back at the brink. Now, it seed, they had turned an enemy into a friend.
Afterwards, the old madam quickly found soone to bring over brush, ink, paper, and inkstone. Xiaoxiao swiftly wrote a brief letter stating that she was at Yixiang Courtyard, and that she would auction herself that evening. She urged them to bid on her; if they didn’t co, she would belong to soone else.
Having taken things this far, Xiaoxiao was speechless. Later, the old madam sent soone to deliver the letter. The ssenger soon returned and reported that the letter had been delivered; this allowed Xiaoxiao to relax.
During the day, Xiaoxiao agonized over what performance could dazzle the audience that night. She had sung songs and perford magic tricks. On the third day, she had walked the T stage, flaunting her expressive eyes and eyebrows; on the fourth, she told risque jokes—she really put everything she had into her performances.
Seeing those girls, Xiaoxiao’s eyes lit up. Since everyone wanted to learn, why not have them all perform together? That would certainly amaze the audience. So, she found the old madam and had soone quickly prepare the costus and props needed for the evening. Since she was there, she might as well enjoy it; it was also going to be her last performance, after all.
In the course of teaching, Xiaoxiao found that the girls seed quite talented, especially the girl who played music without selling her body. She played a lovely tune, just like Wang Xiangxiang. The songs she sang could bring forth lodies. This pleasantly surprised Xiaoxiao. Therefore, that girl would provide the background music for the evening performance.
The other girls were also very good and learned quickly. Xiaoxiao felt that they might not need to sell their bodies; perhaps they could earn Silver just by performing their arts. So, she asked everyone what they thought, "If you could earn Silver by performing, would you still want to sell your bodies?"
"Of course not, we just don’t have any other choice," they replied.
"Yes, if we could earn Silver by performing, who would still sell their bodies?"
"But we don’t have any skills, we can only sell our bodies."
"..."
"..."
It turned out everyone was compelled by dire circumstances to sell their bodies, and they banded together out of shared misery. If there was soone to lend a hand, they too would prefer to live normal lives, perhaps even marry and have children.
When Xiaoxiao asked this, the old madam’s eyes started turning, as she sensed that Xiaoxiao’s question wasn’t casual—she must have a way to help the girls live without selling their bodies. If so, that would be excellent, considering everyone would age soon, and selling their bodies wasn’t a sustainable solution.
Moreover, hearing about the reputation of Yuelai Restaurant, the old madam beca even more certain of her thoughts. If they were backed by Yuelai Restaurant, they wouldn’t be bullied in the future.
So, the old madam spoke up to Xiaoxiao, "Miss Xiaoxiao, could you consider buying Yixiang Courtyard?"
The old madam thought that rely teaching them a few things wasn’t a long-term solution. Yixiang Courtyard would eventually close if it remained in her hands; ultimately, everyone would suffer.
As she spoke, the room fell silent; everyone looked towards Xiaoxiao and the old madam.
Seeing that Xiaoxiao didn’t speak, the old madam continued, "If Yixiang Courtyard doesn’t have consistently fresh ideas, I fear it will eventually fail. Perhaps you could take over and help keep Yixiang Courtyard running for a long ti."
The old madam’s words also struck a chord with the girls; they didn’t want to see Yixiang Courtyard destroyed on their watch.
"The madam makes sense. Young lady, please buy Yixiang Courtyard."
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