Two young men are standing awkwardly in the middle of the conjunction.
A man with a dignified appearance and the style of East Asian nobel. His long black hair was pulled into a small bun. He wears a turban that reveals his high forehead, and a light blue ngu than dress. There is a nobel identity word peice on his shoulder, with a gold-plated embossed word "Pham" on it.
The other is completely opposite, a Western-style man. He wears a straight white button up shirt, belt, casual pants, vest, and a tie and an accessory with a deep ocean blue color sapphire around his collar which is definitely not the kind that you could randomly find at a downtown jeweler.
Despite their opposing sensations, they both have one thing in common, which is the style of wealthy and powerful people.
"Are you kidding me? What made you think that you could bring me here?"
Khac Tuan shifts his gaze forward and backward, pulling the fan over his face. If anyone recognizes him, his honor will get shattered.
Khac Tuan detests chaos, crowded places, and even noise. But the place to which Thai Thuy takes him has them all together. Even more, Khac Tuan himself is a principal court mandarin, a Confucianism student learning the words of sages and saints, but now is wandering near the Red-Light District.
He should NOT have agreed to hang out with Thai Thuy here. It was wrong to even think about it, not to mention, come here
"Come on, it's going to be fun. You'll fall in love with it right away." Thai Thuy lures him into a large brothel.
Nguyen Duc Thai Thuy, also known as Hoang Chinh, is Linh Nam's Emperor. This year he turns nineteen. Thai Thuy had ascended to the throne at the age of twelve, shortly after his father, Minh Dinh, passed away a few months ago. He has been living in France since then. Thai Thuy claimed he was going to study abroad, but in reality, he didn't want to come back.
That's right, Thai Thuy doesn't want to become an emperor.
Being an emperor, in his opinion, means being responsible not only for those around him but also for an entire nation. The Court believes in him, and mandarins eagerly await his return.
Khac Tuan clicks his tongue, put Linh Nam into Thai Thuy's hands just like backing the wrong horse. Thai Thuy can't even be responsible for his affairs, what to say about his God's people.
In France, he has excessive prosperity, friends and beautiful women. If it had been Khac Tuan, he would have stayed as well.
The Court thought that they could finally rely on Their Majesty, but who could have predicted that the son is also feeble as his father?
Thai Thuy's position is not for the faint of heart. Thai Thuy was forced to return by the Court and the Resident Superieur - his foster father. The Westerners always want to interfere in Linh Nam's internal affairs, but directly intervening isn't a good idea, so it's necessary to have a scarecrow stay there, and listen to whatever the headquarters commands.
Thai Thuy does not often say profound things, but when he returned to their country, he said something that Khac Tuan will never forget.
"After many years of living freely, I have the feeling of entering the prison cell from now on..."
Khac Tuan wanted to laugh at the time. With that said, do people like him seem like prisoners for their whole lives?
Yen Hoa is the name of the brothel which they entered.
These two words symbolized spring signs, Yen and Hoa, implying that this place is only springtime, the scene of spring.
"Oh, Mr. Thuy." The madam rushes to meet him when she sees him. Her keen eye has never overlooked any moneybags . "It's been a long time since I've seen you around here."
Thai Thuy has come to this place several times since he returned home, each time spending a large amount of money for the beautiful young "flowers" in the brothel. He knows how to play and is eager to do so.
Madam Yen Hoa is a short, bold, but sharp woman. She does not resemble the boorishness like other madams of this procurer job, rather, she looks like an honest business lady. Her eyes are sharp, arched eyebrows, and her lips aren't too red, but similar to moss rose flower color.
The Madam casts a glance at Khac Tuan. This time, Thai Thuy brings along another man who, while different, appears to be extremely wealthy. The Madam's face brightens as she thinks of the massive amount of money that is about to be received.
Having looked at Madam Yen Hoa's attitude, Khac Tuan can't help being curious, he asks nervously:
"Do you come here often?"
Thai Thuy glances at Khac Tuan, smiles faintly then puts his hands in the pants pockets and follows Madam Yen Hoa inside:
"Guess what?"
The Madam leads them both into a large room. There are many Western mandarins, and also many Vietnamese mandarins. There are even Vietnamese women who marry Frenchmen here, all kinds of types.
However, Yen Hoa is not as Khac Tuan expected.
In his mind, the brothel is a dark, murky place. This heinous place where people buy and sell prostitution has nothing good to offer. Speaking of brothels, people only think of prostitutes that dress poorly, sell drugs, and all the bad things.
Yen Hoa is not exactly flawless, but it is not as filthy as other brothels.
Yen Hoa is candlelit and decorated like a cozy tavern. In Yen Hoa, the prostitutes wear discreet Ao tac, walk with a straight back and curved waist, they move gracefully as if they had been taught very carefully. People might not have realized it's a brothel if everyone doesn't have beautiful makeup and powdered skin.
"Mister, would you like tea or wine?"
A prostitute approaches Khac Tuan and Thai Thuy's table, then considerately asks. Soft voice, phoenix eyes, charming eyelashes. Khac Tuan glances at Thai Thuy for help, and the young emperor waves his hand.
"We will just get some tea, I'll call you if I need anything else."
"Yes Sir." The prostitute bows gently, takes the tray of tea and wine then leaves.
Khac Tuan takes a look around. Customers come to the shop to buy prostitutes, look at prostitutes, and not all of them are men. There're also elderly widows sipping tea leisurely. Everyone is assigned to different tables, and everyone's eyes are drawn to the prostitutes, but no one dares to touch them.
The prostitutes contain both men and women.
"Hey" Khac Tuan calls Thai Thuy. "This isn't like other brothels, is it?"
Thai Thuy is stunned for a moment before bursting out laughing.
"Who do you think I am? I'm Linh Nam's emperor. I don't go to disparate places."
Khac Tuan pouts mockingly. Even if it isn't filthy, it's still a brothel.
The Madam approaches Thai Thuy's shoulder from behind, whispering softly.
"Mr. Thuy, you arrive on the day we have a new 'flower'. Male, but very attractive. Particularly still brand new."
Thai Thuy doesn't miss a word, smiling brightly and waving his hand. Males are not his type. However, a slight twist isn't always a bad thing.
The torch lights on the four sides have been blown out, and all of the light appears to be focused on the large wood stage in the center of the room. A few prostitutes sit neatly on the guard, some holding the lute, others the flute, clanking the entire area. No one in them catches the eye of Thai Thuy.
Perhaps this is why the 'flower', who is being led out by an assistant, stands out even more.
Everyone's makeup is the same, but looking closely at that male prostitute, the others are all overshadowed. Red Ao tac, folded turban, white skin, and flushed cheeks. When being led to the wooden platform, the male prostitute is wearing a red cloth that resembles a Northern bride, which makes everyone curious. When he sits down on the mat to sing, holding a concussion sticks in his hand, he opens the cloth and attracts all the stare from the audiences.
Thai Thuy has never seen a boy like that before.
The boy is about nineteen years old, with a kind and gentle face. His lashes droop in resignation, but his eyes are as sharp as swords. His forehead is high, like an intelligent, well-educated, and ambitious person, but the smile at the corner of his lips is delicate and soft, like a girl raised in the gynaeceum.
The clanking beat with the vocal is warm and clear, just like the sound of a canary.
"As red as blood flows in our vein
As white as snow turn into rain
Fifteen years were, indeed, a long time
Some age like rocks, some age like wine."
Thai Thuy is stunned for a moment before putting the teacup onto the table. When he turns to the side to look at Khac Tuan, he notices that he is also frowning and looking at the male prostitute.
Special to the point that even an apathetic person like Pham Khac Tuan has to look, is only one person in a thousand years.
Thai Thuy waves his hand to call Madam Yen Hoa, who is standing on one side. She is not surprised when she is called and comes over cheerfully.
"Yes, Mr. Thuy. What can I help you with?"
Thai Thuy places a large stack of money on the table, then points to the male prostitute who is still singing Hong Tuyet.
When I was young, you were no more than a child
When you grown up, I turned into an old guy
The old guy seemed very happy
The grown up child seemed awrkwardly.
"That prostitute, I choose him"