Chapter 25: The Red Square (I)
Tianhuang City, Wancai Gate.
"Hurry up!
In the early morning, the carriages waiting to be unloaded were already crowded outside the Wancai Gate. Xia Yuqian sat on a dilapidated soliciting carriage, the car was crowded with people who also came from other places to work, she saw that there were too many cars and horses in front of her, and it would take a long time to queue up like this, so she simply settled the account with the coachman in advance, and planned to walk in on foot.
Tianhuang City is much more lively than Linglan City, and when she entered the Wancai Gate, Xia Yuqian found that she had really seen too little before, and she was dazzled by the dazzling array of goods and luxuriously decorated shops inside, and everyone who passed by her seemed to be very busy, even trotting while walking. Looking at them, she suddenly felt that life in Hongshan Village was simply too leisurely compared to here!
She held the address that Han Lingxiao had written for her tightly, but there were too many streets in Wancaimen, and she didn't know which street to go to, so she asked someone for a long time, but she still got lost while walking.
She felt a little frustrated, her stomach began to rumble, and she flipped through her bag, the carriage she was riding in in the past few days passed through several poor villages, and almost all the food she brought was distributed to the children begging along the road, and now the food has been distributed, so she can only hold back her hunger and continue to find her way.
"Hello, boss, excuse me, do you know how to get to the Red Square?" Xia Yuqian saw a kind-faced old woman placing the fruits on her small stall, so she stepped forward to inquire.
"Ah, Hongfang, it's a long way from here, you go straight first, just follow that street, then turn left, go straight and then right, and then ...... left."
The old woman gestured with her hand as she spoke, and Xia Yuqian hurriedly took out a note to write it down, but she still felt a little dizzy.
"You're going to the Red Square?" a crisp voice suddenly sounded in her ears.
Xia Yuqian turned her head and saw a beautiful sister wearing a red dance dress and a fruit basket standing aside and looking herself up and down, the sister was wearing an embroidered headscarf, two playful braids, her long eyelashes were a little charming, and the bright smile on her face was like a blooming red peony.
"Little girl, what are you doing in the Red Square? Look at you, you don't look like a rich lady, are you going to play with friends?"
"It was my friend who recommended me to work in Red Square. β
"Friend?" the woman looked at her suspiciously, "Not everyone can enter the Red Square, who is your friend?"
"This ...... It's inconvenient for me to say, I'm sorry to ......" Xia Yuqian turned around and was about to leave after speaking, but was grabbed by the other party's arm.
"Don't run, I can't eat you again!" she stretched out her hand to stop Xia Yuqian, "I'm just asking casually, it just so happens that I also work in the Red Workshop, so you can follow me!"
Xia Yuqian looked at her in surprise, but she was a little hesitant.
"Oh, let's go!"
Along the way, the woman talked endlessly, looking very talkative, and Xia Yuqian slowly relaxed her vigilance. After the initial conversation, I learned that her name was Thorn Flower, and she was a dancer in the Red Square, who had been working in the Red Square since she was a child, and now she was in her thirteenth year here.
"I don't know your name yet, how old are you?" asked Thornflower.
"My name is Xia Yuqian, and I am sixteen this year. β
"It's not that old...... Hongfang is a high-end inn integrating leisure, entertainment and accommodation in Wancaimen, and many rich people who come to Tianhuang City live here, if you mix well here, you will have the opportunity to meet those big people!"
Xia Yuqian shook her head.
"What about singing?"
Xia Yuqian shook her head again.
"Won't you know how to make music? Can you tell jokes? Tea will be made...... So tell me what you do? Can you read and write...... But these are useless in Red Square, I see that you are very beautiful, if you settle down, come to me to learn to dance, I can teach you...... Of course it's true! Don't underestimate me! I'm very famous in the Red Square, and many young masters and young ladies know me!"
Thorn Flower suddenly stopped, pointed to the front and said, "Oh, we're here!"
Xia Yuqian raised her head and saw at a glance the plaque with the two big characters of Red Square written on it and the huge palace made of mahogany. The palace is composed of several high pavilions, and the main entrance is full of endless streams of carriages and horses, and the people who get out of the carriages are all gorgeously dressed, dressed in gold and silver, and at a glance they know that they are princes and princes. There was a bustle in the building, with singing, instrumental music, and the sound of people laughing and chatting, like a prosperous party.
"Let's go, let's go in through the back door. β
The two walked around the back of the balcony and into the backyard, and through a cobblestone path, there were more and more people in fancy costumes, some of them putting on makeup for each other, others busy sorting each other's clothes, like actors about to perform on stage. Some of them were wearing simple casual clothes, squatting by the river to wash their clothes, while others were wearing the same plain white clothes, and they were cleaning hard around with tools.
"Sister Thorn Flower, are you back?" The dancers who were chatting on the side greeted Thorn Blossom enthusiastically, "Ouch, who is this little beauty?"
"Hmph, picked it up on the side of the road, are you envious?" said Thorn Flower with her arms around Xia Yuqian's neck.
"Ouch, why don't you pick up a handsome little guy and come back?"
"Not uncommon!" she said and grimaced at the group of little dancers, who also grimaced at her unconvinced.
"Yuqian, who did your friend recommend you to?"
Xia Yuqian hurriedly handed the letter of recommendation written by Han Lingxiao to Thorn Flower.
"Oh, don't show me, I'm illiterate!"
"It's a ...... named Xiao Han"
"What?" Thorn Flower's eyes widened in disbelief after hearing this, and Xia Yuqian hurriedly opened the envelope to show her the note.
"Oh, it's said that I'm illiterate!" Thorn Hua glanced at the note and returned it to Xia Yuqian, and asked, "Take a good look, are you sure you're right?"
Xia Yuqian took a closer look at the note again, "No, look, Xiao-Han-"
"Stop, stop, stop yelling!" Thorn Flower quickly covered her mouth, "This person's name can't be called randomly!"
She dragged Xia Yuqian to a corner behind the entrance of the hall, and after making sure that there was no one around, she asked cautiously: "Xiaoqian, I'm for your own good, you must tell me who recommended you to this person, otherwise if it's someone else's prank, if you make a mistake, you will die!"
"Ah...... How so?"
"How could it not! Let me tell you, Lord Xiao Han is the owner of our Red Fang, and her name is famous in the entire Wancaimen! And people are not only born to sink fish and geese, but also rank forty-ninth on the martial arts list! Have you ever heard of the martial arts list? Those who can be on that list are not people! It's a god!" Thorn Hua gushed a lot, and suddenly lowered her voice, "But Xiao Fang Master, she has a very bad temper, especially when she treats us people who have no identity and no status...... To put it mildly, she doesn't treat us as human servants, and I said did you offend anyone, otherwise people would treat you like this and recommend you to her?"
"Can't you...... I was introduced to me by a very nice brother of mine, and I'm sure he won't hurt me!"
"Can you have any brother? Is he very powerful? What is his name? Let me tell you, a little girl like you is too simple and naΓ―ve, and it is easy to be deceived by others, and if she is really good to you, it is absolutely impossible to recommend you to her!"
"No, he won't lie to me!" Xia Yuqian's anxious little face turned red after hearing this.
"Thorn Flower!"
The two were arguing when suddenly a rough voice came from outside the hallway......