The Apothecary Diaries: Volume 14 [Parts 1 to 13] by Natsu Hyuuga

Author:Natsu Hyuuga
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Light Novel, partial, mystery, anime, drama, female protagonist, history, eunuchs, print by square enix
Publisher: J-Novel Club (generated)

Chapter 8: The Vanished Thief (Part Two)

Maomao went up to the second floor. The rooms on that level were smaller than the ones on the third floor. It would be fair to say that room size was directly correlated with status in the brothel.

The most cramped chambers in the Verdigris House were just big enough to hold a bed and a place to drink tea. The lack of space meant there wasn’t much room for personal effects; and anyway, most of the women didn’t have money to blow on clothing, so they often shared with other courtesans.

The area below Joka’s room was relatively spacious—it was where the rooms of the best-selling women were located. Still, each room was probably only a third the size of the one allotted to Joka—which was to say, there were three rooms below hers.

“What do you mean, you want to look in my room?” asked a courtesan who had been practicing the erhu. She narrowed her eyes at Maomao. This was someone who had entered the brothel after Maomao had gone to serve in the rear palace. She was Maomao’s age, and didn’t appear to think very highly of her. Maomao regarded the Verdigris House as an old haunt, but for someone who didn’t know her, she probably just looked like a stranger who came and went frequently for reasons unknown and despite not being a courtesan herself.

“The thief escaped from the window of our sister Joka’s room. So I wanted to get a look from the room directly below hers.”

“If he jumped down, then you should check the courtyard.”

“I did.”

This woman was beautiful, as befitted a top earner, and she had a haughty attitude to match. Maomao, however, had grown up in the brothel herself, and then lived in the rear palace on top of that. She wasn’t about to be intimidated by a snippy reception.

“I have the madam’s permission. Get out of my way and stop wasting my time.” As she spoke, Maomao glanced at the madam downstairs.

The other woman was evidently cowed by that, because she quickly backed down. “All right, all right. Just go in and look, then.”

“Gee, thanks.”

Maomao looked around the room. There was a bed, a table, and a chair, along with a desk and a chest for clothing. There was a mild, reasonably pleasant smell of perfume. Between that and the girl’s proficiency with the erhu, Maomao guessed that she must have come from a well-to-do family.

People love fallen aristocrats and widows from good houses, she thought.

The highest-quality brothels valued intelligence and maturity in their women. Besides, there was a certain twisted kind of customer who was particularly attracted to ladies who had fallen from high places. Other things being equal, a girl from a good background would fetch a higher price than a country bumpkin—not least because the brothel would be spared the expense of educating her.

She’d have been better off if she had been sold into the rear palace.

A maid in the rear palace had more possible futures open to her than even the most sought-after prostitute.

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