Chapter 475: The Incident at Pinglou (Part 1)

Just as the Tubo people checked into the guest house of Honglu Temple that day, a major incident occurred in Pingkang Fang of Chang’an.
Pingkang Fang was a place for entertainment and pleasure in Chang’an—what we would call a red-light district today. It was filled with brothels, including both privately run establishments and those run by the government. In the Tang Dynasty, brothels served as venues for leisure and entertainment, not just for satisfying physical needs. In many high-end brothels, women performed arts rather than selling their bodies; they were called “ji,” and like those in the music districts, these young women were often highly talented, skilled in playing music, dancing, accompanying guests with drinks and poetry, and only spending the night with someone they liked.
In the northwest corner of Pingkang Fang, there was a brothel named Pinglou Tingfeng, with a rather elegant name. People usually simply called it Pinglou. It was considered one of the high-end brothels in Pingkang Fang. Moreover, it was not only a brothel but also a tavern, so business was booming from morning till night.
At noon, a group of seven or eight guests arrived at Pinglou. The person at the center of the group was Du Gu Changfeng, Li Qing’an’s brother-in-law. The Du family was one of the prominent families in Chang’an, with extensive connections. These people were all officials’ sons who had grown up together with Du Gu Changfeng. Some had joined the army, some served in the government, and of course, there were also some who led idle lives, relying on their parents’ wealth. But now, it was a reunion after a long time among friends, so they brought Du Gu Changfeng to Pingkang Fang to hold a banquet in his honor.
It was Changsun Nanyi who suggested going to Pinglou to drink wine. Changsun Nanyi was the younger son of Changsun Quanxu and currently served as a general in the Yulin Army. He had a bold and generous personality, always seeing it as his duty to save the good people in the world and was very quick to stand up for justice. Most bold people also loved wine, so Changsun Nanyi’s greatest hobby was to gather some colleagues and go to Pingkang Fang to drink wine.
Pinglou was also a place Changsun Nanyi often visited. As soon as he entered, he raised his voice and shouted, “Customers have arrived! Will you serve them or not?”
The shop staff recognized him. Luo, the owner, who was busy counting money, quickly came over with a smile and said, “We won’t serve any other customers—only General Changsun.”
“I didn’t bring any money! Aren’t you afraid?”
Luo replied with a smile, “It doesn’t matter if you don’t have money. Just enjoy the food, drinks, and entertainment. Pay when you can.”
Changsun Nanyi laughed heartily and turned to the others, saying, “See? How skillful at speaking! It’s really pleasing to hear.”
He then pointed at Du Gu Changfeng and said to Luo, “Today, we’re here to welcome my friend. Do you know who this friend of mine is? He’s Li Qing’an’s…”

Before he could finish speaking, Dugu Changfeng poked him, telling him to shut up. Changsun Nanyi laughed and swallowed his words, then said to Manager Luo, “For today’s meal and drinking, there’s the Fenglaiyi Room on the third floor. Invite Lady Bai Si and Xiao Lian’er to keep us company. Assign one companion to each of the other courtesans as well.”
“Sure! No problem. Lady Bai Si and Xiao Lian’er don’t have any clients either. Please, everyone, go upstairs.”
They all headed upstairs. At that moment, Dugu Changfeng complained to him, “Just eating and drinking is enough. Why do we need women?”
Changsun Nanyi chuckled and said, “It seems your sister-in-law controls you too tightly. After all, you’re the governor of Shangzhou and are about to become the deputy governor of Jingzhao. How can you not even understand the rules of the official world?”
“Are there rules about bringing women to official gatherings? I’ve never heard of that before.”
At that time, another general of the Yulin Army, Wei Yingwu, laughed and said, “Chang’an is different from ordinary counties. Many matters need to be discussed in brothels and entertainment venues. Especially since Brother Dugu is about to become the deputy governor of Jingzhao, he’ll have even more social engagements—almost daily drinking parties. Official matters are handled on the surface, but behind the scenes, things need to be discussed over wine. That’s why we brought Brother Dugu here today to help him get used to it.”
Everyone agreed, but Dugu Changfeng frowned deeply. He was a man who adhered to rules and didn’t approve of such official practices. Yet, he didn’t want to dampen everyone’s spirits, so he followed them into the elegant room on the third floor.
The brothel on the ground floor was quite large. The brothel and the tavern were separated by a wall, but people could move freely between them. The tavern had three floors. The first and second floors were filled with guests, but the two elegant rooms on the third floor were empty. Everyone entered the room on the right, took off their coats, and sat down. Immediately, two servants rushed over with two large barrels, each filled with ice. Inside the ice were ten bottles of fine wine each—this was the Tang Dynasty’s way of drinking wine, requiring it to be chilled. Many wealthy families had ice cellars or ice wells to store ice in winter for use in summer.
“Come! Fill everyone’s cups first.”
Changsun Nanyi was impatient. Before the courtesans arrived, he snatched the wine bottles and filled each person’s cup. He raised his cup, took a sip, smacked his lips, and said, “This wine is good. Come! Everyone, have a drink first.”
“Fine wine is like a boat, and beautiful women are like water. Without water, even with a boat, how can General Changsun taste the flavor of the wine?”

A group of women in red gauze dresses entered the door. Each of them was delicate and beautiful, with faces as lovely as flowers. At the front were two women dressed in white, even more graceful than the others. It was the woman in white leading the way who spoke. She smiled gently, took the wine pot with her delicate hands, and said to everyone, “Please take your seats. Let Sister Si and Lian’er pour you wine.”

Everyone applauded and laughed. “Wonderful! How could we refuse Sister Si’s wine?”

The women took their seats, with one guest sitting beside each of them. Soon, the room was filled with a pleasant fragrance, accompanied by soft chatter.

Changsun Nanyi noticed that Dugu Changfeng was staring at the woman in white at the front, so he nudged him with his arm and joked, “It seems you really haven’t seen much of the world. Is that already enough to captivate you? When she pours wine for you with her cherry-like lips, won’t you go crazy?”

Dugu Changfeng blushed and stammered, “That can’t be right!”

Though he said that, he was somewhat tempted. The thought of a beauty pouring wine with her delicate lips was truly enchanting.

Changsun Nanyi, being more rough, pulled Sister Si over and forced her to sit next to Dugu Changfeng. He laughed and said, “Sister Si, today you’ll take care of this Brother Dugu. If you serve him well, whenever there are matters at Pinglou, just go to Jingzhao Prefecture and see him.”

He then smiled ambiguously at Dugu Changfeng and said, “Sister Si is best at playing the flute to attract phoenixes. Since your name is Changfeng, aren’t you two meant for each other?”

Although Sister Si’s wrists hurt from being pulled by Changsun Nanyi, his last words made her eyes shine. Having met many people, she found Dugu Changfeng quite handsome. Moreover, his surname was Dugu. Who didn’t know that Li Qing’an was the son-in-law of the Dugu family? Could Dugu Changfeng be him…

Her eyes sparkled as she smiled softly. She leaned against Dugu Changfeng, whispered sweetly in his ear, “You are Changfeng, and I am the phoenix. Let’s savor the flute music in the inner chamber. Sir Dugu, are you the new Deputy Governor of Jingzhao?”

Dugu Changfeng had strict upbringing and had never set foot in brothels or places of pleasure in his youth. Later, he went out to serve as an official, dedicated to governing the people. He couldn’t understand these subtly suggestive love poems. But Sister Si’s gentle advances overwhelmed him. While trying to avoid her, he asked curiously, “How did you guess I’m the Deputy Governor of Jingzhao?”

Sister Si often dealt with officials and guests, and she knew that the position of Deputy Governor of Jingzhao was vacant. She had only been testing Dugu Changfeng earlier, not expecting him to admit it. She was overjoyed. If she could win Dugu Changfeng as her lover, she could help her father and brothers find a good business, allowing her to focus on running a legitimate shop.

Just then, a noisy commotion came from outside. People were making vulgar jokes and laughing recklessly, as if a group had entered the room next door. Hearing the noise, everyone frowned. What kind of people were those? So tasteless.

The door was suddenly pushed open a crack, and Luo, the shopkeeper, waved at Si Niang. Si Niang then smiled gently at Du Gu Changfeng and said, “Changfeng, wait a moment. I’ll be right back.”

She went outside and asked, “What’s the matter?”

“Si Niang, the people next door want you to go serve drinks. Leave this place to Lian Er!”

Si Niang, who had her eyes on Du Gu Changfeng, refused to leave. Her expression darkened as she said, “Shopkeeper, this isn’t fair! There’s always a rule of first come, first served. Besides, my customers here are also important. Please find someone else!”

With that, she turned to leave, but Luo quickly grabbed her and pleaded, “I know the rule of first come, first served, but we can’t afford to anger those people next door. They specifically asked for you. Please help your uncle!”

“Who are they? Why so domineering?”

Luo lowered his voice and said, “They’re officers from the Jinwu Wei and the Guanzhong Army. We can’t mess with them.”

Although Changsun Nanyi and the others were part of the Yulin Army, their jurisdiction was limited to the imperial city and palace. Pingkang Fang belonged to Wannian County, which was under the control of the Jinwu Wei. So ordinary shops couldn’t afford to anger them unless they had strong backing. Unfortunately, Pinglou had no such backing—it was run by a merchant from Yangzhou.

Hearing it was the Jinwu Wei, Si Niang became even more reluctant to go. Those people were extremely vulgar when drinking—they would strip women of their clothes. Last time, one of their sisters refused, and they stripped her, threw her down from the second floor, breaking her waist.

“I’m not going. Just say I’m serving customers.”

She broke free from Luo’s grasp and rushed back inside in a panic. Though Si Niang escaped back inside, she was still worried about possible retaliation. She sat next to Du Gu Changfeng, visibly uneasy. Changsun Nanyi, who was experienced, noticed her changed expression after she left and asked, “Si Niang, did the people next door ask you to go?”

Si Niang nodded slightly and said gloomily, “I don’t want to go!”

“If you don’t want to go, then don’t. Stay here with Brother Changfeng. Don’t worry; with me here, no one will force you to serve drinks.”

“What boldness!”

With a bang, the door was kicked open. A group of armored officers stepped in. Leading them was a man with a hawk-like nose and eagle-like eyes, a face covered in fleshy protrusions, wearing silver armor and a silver helmet—this was the attire of the Jinwu Guard. Those above the rank of Lieutenant General in the Jinwu Guard all wore silver armor and helmets. Standing beside him was another high-ranking officer wearing a red sleeve on his left arm; he belonged to the Guanzhong Army.
Seeing this man, Si Niang turned pale with fear, trembling all over, and slowly hid behind Du Gu Changfeng.
“Young master… save me!”