Jin Ban Hua

"Oh, Young Master Fang is here! Girls, come greet our guest!"

As Fang Yunhua entered the Wonderful Music Tower, the sharp-eyed madam came straight over to welcome him.

She had been coveting the patronage of a distinguished guest like Fang Yunhua for ages. After all, Yan Wushuang, now the Capital City's foremost courtesan, had supposedly stood out from a host of peerless beauties thanks to a past liaison with this Amorous Young Master.

Even now, her throne as the foremost courtesan remained unassailable.

Fang Yunhua, however, felt little nostalgia for that old liaison. Apart from a few fairly pleasant nights, neither of them had invested any real feelings in it. It had been more like an alliance between two powerful parties, each helping the other succeed.

Previously, his strength had not been enough to earn him greater renown and, in turn, bolster Mount Hua's endeavors. Fang Yunhua had more or less been forced to take the path of romantic notoriety.

As a wandering martial hero from a prestigious sect, he inevitably encountered a few romantic blossoms along his travels. He polished up some of the exploits worth spreading, then hitched his name to the already famous Chu Liuxiang and Wuhua to borrow their shine.

That was the real reason his title of Amorous Young Master had grown ever more resounding.

Although Yan Wushuang was another of those romantic blossoms, hers was dusted all over with gold. Everyone knew that anyone who could run a brothel in the Capital City was no ordinary figure. Those seemingly delicate courtesans were even more likely to be secret weapons prepared by some high-ranking official.

Yan Wushuang, for instance, definitely knew martial arts. Some intimate contact-particularly a few tests of her flexibility-had left him quite certain of that.

Using their liaison as a springboard, the people behind her had begun building Yan Wushuang's reputation, while Fang Yunhua had caught a ride on the same favorable wind. After all, the higher they raised his amorous reputation, the more valuable the foremost courtesan's title became.

Now that both sides had secured a win, they could gradually let the relationship cool.

That was also one reason Fang Yunhua had specifically ruled out the Jade Hall of Spring, where Yan Wushuang resided, when he wrote to Jin Ban Hua about meeting in the Capital City.

Now that he had appeared at the Wonderful Music Tower, he would not even need to do anything. Her rivals, jealous of Yan Wushuang's position as foremost courtesan-especially the owners behind the Capital City's other two great brothels-would naturally help sever his ties with her.

"Old Fang!"

The door to a private room opened, and Jin Ban Hua, dressed in outrageously flashy clothes that fairly screamed wealth from head to toe, excitedly waved to Fang Yunhua.

Seeing that another guest had already invited Fang Yunhua, the flock of twittering beauties surrounding him could only reluctantly withdraw. Still, they did not forget to ask the madam who was serving in that room. From the looks of it, they still wanted to make another attempt.

To Fang Yunhua, quite a few of these brothel women could be called beauties in looks and figure, but they remained a far cry from an extraordinary woman like Hua Zhenzhen, who deeply captivated him inside and out.

Naturally, he would not waste any spare energy on such commonplace painted beauties.

Young Master Jin, however, was nowhere near so discerning. He had a woman in each arm and felt he could still take on two more.

Fang Yunhua did not dismiss the two brothel women serving him, either. There were still little tasks for them to do, such as pouring wine and serving food.

"Old Fang, you really helped me vent my anger this time!"

The moment Fang Yunhua sat down, Jin Ban Hua spoke with excitement written all over his face.

"The whole martial world is talking about it! Chu Liuxiang went to Mount Hua to steal a treasure, but you caught him and fought him for three hundred rounds before he fled with his tail between his legs. You really should have given him a vicious beating!"

"That rumor..." Fang Yunhua sighed inwardly.

Public opinion was not as easy to control as it had been in his previous life. One major drawback of word of mouth was how easily stories went astray. Otherwise, the romantic debts attributed to him as the Amorous Young Master would not have included unfamiliar names even he had never heard before.

Seeing the excited Jin Ban Hua drain another brimming cup by himself, Fang Yunhua had no desire to explain.

After all, Chu Liuxiang showing up at Mount Hua for no apparent reason was suspicious enough in itself.

He could hardly say that Chu Liuxiang had come to investigate because he suspected Fang Yunhua of getting a Divine Water Palace disciple pregnant. Actually dragging the Divine Water Palace into this would mean real trouble.

So, for now, Commander Chu would have to suffer a little injustice.

Still, there was one thing he needed to remind Jin Ban Hua about.

"He's very powerful. In lightness skills alone, he truly is the undisputed best in the world. Getting on his bad side would be a serious headache."

"I know. My old man already told me. It's only the White Jade Beauty. The Capital City Four Treasures are just a lot of hype anyway. My family could pick out a few other things at random and prop up another set of Four Treasures."

Fang Yunhua believed that.

The magnificent sword sheath Jin Ban Hua had set on the table, inlaid with no fewer than eighteen gemstones, was already valuable enough to rival the much-vaunted White Jade Beauty.

"But I just can't swallow it!" After another sip of wine, Jin Ban Hua began ranting without restraint.

"Chu Liuxiang is a complete bastard! He's a thief and a robber, yet everyone in the martial world keeps singing his praises. And get this-I only found out a few days ago that he sold the White Jade Beauty, then went to Jiangnan to provide disaster relief!

"He took my belongings to make a name for himself! Is that something a decent human being does?

"Does he really think this young master can't afford that handful of coppers?"

Smack! Jin Ban Hua slapped a thick stack of banknotes onto the table. It was even more than the sum Fang Yunhua had paid earlier to redeem the White Jade Beauty at three times its price.

"This money isn't worth a damn! It can't buy back my dignity!"

The more Jin Ban Hua spoke, the more worked up he became, while the eyes of the two brothel women serving him began gleaming green with greed. They had long heard that the Capital City's Jin Family was a rare breed of filthy-rich moneybags, and that its young master was a peerless wastrel seen only once in a century.

But with the allure of money radiating from every inch of him, how could they not be intoxicated?

In any case, they were definitely going to make a tidy little sum tonight!

That only made them more attentive.

Jin Ban Hua, however, yanked his arm out of the woman's embrace, his face still simmering with anger.

"Old Fang, you ought to know what kind of person I am. If Chu Liuxiang had just asked me properly, I wouldn't have cared about eight hundred thousand or a million taels of silver. I would even have gladly helped boost his reputation!

"But what did he do? He took my treasured collection to spread his own charitable fame!"

Slap! Slap! Slap!

Jin Ban Hua began slapping his own face, and he did not hold back. Fang Yunhua could already see his cheeks reddening before his eyes.

"I've lost every scrap of dignity! What will the people in the Capital City think of Young Master Jin now? My old man even stopped me from taking revenge. I've never felt so stifled in my life!"

Watching Jin Ban Hua grow angrier with every word, Fang Yunhua took out the surprise he had prepared.

"Naturally, I couldn't let you lose face like that, Old Jin. Take a look."

"What is it?" Perhaps a little dizzy from drinking, Jin Ban Hua first circulated his internal energy to dispel the effects of the wine before looking at the Jade Box. Only then did he remember the surprise Liao Gang had mentioned earlier.

In truth, he had not thought much of it. After all, what was there that Young Master Jin could not buy?

Then he opened the Jade Box, and his still slightly bleary eyes instantly lit up. First he rubbed his eyes, then carefully took out the White Jade Beauty resting inside.

After examining it closely, Jin Ban Hua's breathing grew increasingly rapid.

And the look he turned on Fang Yunhua, like a wild beast with red light blazing in its eyes, made the latter's "delicate body shudder"!

"Ahem, Old Jin, calm down. If you really can't, I'll wait an incense stick's worth of time. Go let off some steam first."