Chapter 123 - Mi Hui (2) (1/2)
They arrived at the hua lou and they were welcomed by one of the shopkeepers. The shopkeeper took them to the usual place and this time, Yao Ying felt more comfortable because he knew that he was here purely for business matter.
Yao Ying paid attention to the shopkeeper. He was a bit old -- around forty years old and his hair was more to the greyish side. Although he was old, his movement was quite agile, probably because he was very thin and had a little bit of martial arts skills. If there was a strong wind, he would probably be blown away by it --- he looked that fragile. However, his eyes were sharp, showing that he was clever and his smile was quite sly.
”Shopkeeper He... I want to welcome my friend to the hua lou life,” Lin Jian smiled proudly. ”Call my favorite Mi Hui for me.” One of the courtesans were called Mi Hui, it was a part of their disguise. So once he called Mi Hui, it meant that Lin Jian wanted to meet with the inner circle of the organization. To other regular customers or oblivious shopkeepers, they would only think that Lin Jian want to call Mi Hui -- one of the courtesans.
Lin Jian already told him about it on the way there. He even asked Lin Jian, what if there was a confusion between the two Mi Hui --- the courtesan or the organization. Lin Jian laughed at him and explained, ”Don't worry! Only three people which are able to call the organization -- Uncle Wang, me, and now... you. Unless there is a token to move them, other people can't easily call them. Besides, you can only ask for the organization to the three senior shopkeepers.”
Yao Ying nodded in understanding. ”What about General Lin?”
”Ah... Father doesn't want to handle hua lou. He is a bit miffed at women --- except the love of his life,” Lin Jian said.
”Is the one who welcomed us one of the inner circle shopkeepers?” Yao Ying asked.
”Yes. Shopkeeper He is one of them and he's the one I trusted the most,” Lin Jian answered and also gave Yao Ying a hint.
”Will I also be able to meet the two housekeepers today?”
Lin Jian shook his head. ”No... it will be too obvious because they usually handle everything behind the scene. If we accidentally meet them, I will let you know. For now, shopkeeper He will be just fine. He's our main contact anyway.”
Yao Ying knew what Lin Jian said was correct, so he didn't really make a fuss about it. A few servants served them luxurious dishes along with the most expensive wine on the table. They already knew Young Master Lin's preferences, so Lin Jian didn't need to order anything and everything would be prepared and delivered to him.
”Is there a need to order this many dishes?” Yao Ying sighed, still feeling that they were really wasting foods here.
”Don't worry. This is on me!” Lin Jian said.
”That's not what I mean,” Yao Ying answered in disdain. He was a peasant and knew how hard it was for peasants had to work just to serve foods on the table for their families. That's why his heart felt slightly aching when he saw people wasting foods like this. ”If you weren't able to finish the food, I will bring the leftovers with me.”
”What for?” Lin Jian asked. He was a young master who was born with a silver spoon on his mouth, so he didn't really understand Yao Ying's train of thought.
Yao Ying explained patiently because it seemed like the young master needed to be taught to care more about the peasants. ”To give them to the people who don't have enough foods to eat. If we can't eat it all, in the end... the foods will be thrown away and don't you feel that it's a waste of foods?”
Lin Jian was surprised with the way Yao Ying's mind worked, but it made sense. He nodded in agreement and he vowed that he would also do this next time.
”Let's eat while waiting for Mi Hui.” Lin Jian was pretty hungry and it was also time to eat lunch. Yao Ying nodded in agreement because he started to get hungry too.
They both eat heartily and in the middle of eating, the door was opened from the outside. ”Young Master Lin... Young Master Wang...” Three beautiful women came into the room and greeted them politely. Yao Ying knew that he was Young Master Wang, but he felt that it was a bit weird because other people rarely called him with that surname and he still didn't get used to it.
Yao Ying watched them carefully and one woman in a soft pink robe stood out from the rest. The woman is a stunning beauty and her delicate makeup made her appear more seductive. When she greeted them, her bearing was magnificent and elegant. It was on par with Yao Ling, but he preferred Yao Ling's exquisite beauty. If he wasn't in a hua lou, he would have probably mistaken this woman as the daughter of a prominent family.