Chapter 530: Building Puzhou
Chapter 525 of "The Great Ming in the Box" opens with dynamic events: The brothel girl was utterly stunned.The salt merchants beside her were also stunned simultaneously.Oh shit,... Read on for more!
The brothel girl was utterly stunned.The salt merchants beside her were also stunned simultaneously.
Oh shit, so he had actually called her down just to hum a song?
This move was way too unconventional, catching everyone off guard.
That girl instantly forgot to recall the tune and said awkwardly, âSir, could⌠could you start over? I didnât catch the first two lines clearly.â
Surprisingly, Old Nan Feng wasnât angry at all. He happily started humming again with cheer.
Admittedly, the skills of brothel girls were seriously impressive. After Old Nan Feng had hummed through once, she had already memorized most of the tune. Strumming her pipa, a faint melody formed, though still with some errors. When Old Nan Feng hummed a second time, she had committed the whole tune to memory.
Seeing how fast she remembered, Old Nan Feng couldnât help but beam with joy. âIncredible! Incredible! There will be a rich reward for you.â
He tossed a silver ingot into the womanâs hand and laughed, âHurry to the back and rearrange this piece. You know better than I what kind of dance suits itâget some people to dance in the background, then come back on stage for a full song-and-dance performance.â
The girl quickly bowed and retreated backstage.
The madam greeted her. âThatâs it?â
The girl looked embarrassed. âI thought my innocence was lostâwho knew he actually taught me a tune and wants us to choreograph a dance right away?â
The madam said, âChoreograph it fast! Quick!â
The girl promptly began composing the music and choreographing the dance. This âCenter of the Worldâ brothelâs standard was truly phenomenal; though not on par with the elite Eight Beauties of Qin Huai from the Jiangnan pleasure districts, it was still of excellent quality. Hasty composing and choreographing to handle immediately only took about an hour.
After several more rounds of song and dance in the main hall outside, the madam stepped onto the stage and smiled. âJust now, our honored guest taught this girl a piece. Itâs now arranged, and the girls will perform it shortly for all our guests.â
Old Nan Feng was rushing with pride.
Then the same girl came back on stage holding her pipa, encircled by other girls. Positioned in center stage, she gently parted her red lips and began singing, while her companions danced in sync with the musicâs rhythm.
This makeshift dance couldnât be called beautiful, but choreography has a core rule: it must match the songâs mood and meaning.
The tune of âLove Love Loveâ taught by Old Nan Feng was bright and lively, so the dance set to it naturally turned bright and lively, filled with youthful zest.
The boy-killer style was truly well-deserved.
Once the dance began, all viewers immediately sensed a rhythm unlike any typical song and dance.
Ordinary performances tended toward slow, melodic tunes, with girls dancing in smooth, languid motions. Yet with this piece, they dashed around the stage like butterflies fluttering through blossoms.
They still wore their Chinese-style flutter-sleeve garments, but their moves were so vigorous that sleeves flew about wildly everywhere.
The audience below cried out:
âWow!â
âOh dear!â
âToday I saw something new.â
âThis performance is totally unlike anything before.â
âAt first, it seemed noisyâbut snapping back, it felt so hyped up!â
Once the dance finished, the girl withdrew backstage.
Old Nan Feng was thoroughly delighted and roared with laughter. âFunâthis is real fun! Hahaha, looks so refreshing, like fairies right before my eyes. All singers and dancers today get hefty rewardsâŚâ
He pulled out another silver ingot and slammed it onto the table.
However, this was the last silver ingot he carried today. Once it was gone, his fun would end. Laughing heartily, he stood up: âLetâs go!â
A group of Militia Soldiers swarmed around him as he strode out of the brothel and disappeared into the night.
His booming laughter still echoed through the streets: âA flashy world ought to be enjoyed flashily, ah, hahahaha!â
The madam chased after him to the doorway, watching his figure vanish into the darkness. She couldnât help but scratch her head: âWhat on earth did that fellow come here for?â
Puzhou Cityâs economy began to surge at breakneck speed.
Even Gao Yiye personally visited Puzhou. The people of Gaojia Village finally understand how crucially important Puzhou was in the eyes of the Deity.
Manpower, resources, technologyâall flowed into Puzhou as requested.
Suddenly, Puzhou City became Gaojia Villageâs top priority. Swarms of blue hats and yellow hats flooded into the city, hiring local workers en masse to feverishly mine ores and erect workshops of all kinds.
The government workshops couldnât pay artisans? No matterâGaojia Villageâs workshops took over, paying wages higher than before.
City walls crumbling? No problemâcement crews, deploy!
The flagstone roads pitted and potholed? Fear notâroad construction crews, advance!
Even the governorâs office got flagged by a blue hat for being âtoo dilapidatedâ and âdetrimental to urban aesthetics.â He drew a bold circle on its outer wall and prepared to write insideâŚ
Governor Qiu Qianfan rushed out in exasperation upon receiving the report, shouting: âHey now! What do you think youâre doing to my office? Havenât you heard âOfficials donât repair officesâ? This place doesnât need fixing!â
It was tradition: since officials rotated every three years, none invested in their offices, preferring to spend funds elsewhere rather than beautifying premises for successors.
The sheer decay of the long-neglected governorâs office went far beyond âdetrimental.â âCrumbling hazardâ was more accurate.
The blue hat showed no fear before the Honored Governor. People from Gaojia Village had acquired such unshakable confidence they treated even an official of Qiu Qianfanâs stature like a country bumpkin: âHonored Governor, you donât repair your office because youâll move on. But local citizens stay. Eyesores harm them. Donât worryâweâll fund repairs. Not a coin from your coffers.â
Qiu Qianfan grumbled: âFine. As long as no funds come from my purse⌠You think I enjoy living in this ruin? Only couldnât afford repairs!â
Satisfied, the blue hat dipped his brush in vermilion ink and inscribed a single characterâć (demolish)âwithin the circle.
The next morning, swarms of yellow hats arrived, scouring streets for buildings marked ć. They soon converged outside the governorâs office.
âLook! Demolish marking over there!â
âMove!â
Hammers swinging, they reduced the governorâs office to rubble: bang-bang-BOOM.
Homeless and office-less, Qiu Qianfan scrambled for workspace until a wealthy local family hastily offered their fabric shop.
And so, amid bolts of cloth and a prominent âTailoring: no cheating the good citizensâ sign, Qiu Qianfan conducted official business with ranks of solemn attendants flanking himâa scene like plastic mannequins in a modern storefront.