98: When Jade Becomes Virgin

The next morning.

Jiang Lan opened his eyes, his expression somewhat dazed.

He felt a dull pressure, as if something was weighing him down.

Warm, soft, and yielding.

He turned his head and saw Gu Yan'er lying beside him, one hand resting on his chest, and one leg draped over his waist.

Memories of last night flooded Jiang Lan's mind, and his expression became complicated.

He hadn't expected that, after two lives, he would lose his virginity in a pleasure quarter.

Gently, he moved the girl off him. Jiang Lan lifted a corner of the quilt and swung his legs out of bed.

His movements weren't particularly quiet, but the girl must have been exhausted from last night, as she didn't notice him leaving and continued to breathe evenly.

He looked at the lifted corner of the quilt.

Specks of crimson blood stained the silk sheets.

“Phew...”

Jiang Lan let out a long breath.

A pure courtesan, she sold her art, not her body.

Yesterday, he had thought it was just an excuse to raise her value, but he hadn't expected her to be telling the truth.

This was Great Yan, not the modern era he came from.

The tech tree hadn't advanced to the point of faking such things.

But the deed was done, and he wasn't the kind of person to be heartless after the fact.

Without much thought, Jiang Lan got dressed and pushed the door open.

As soon as he stepped out, Jiang Lan noticed that the madam was standing right outside the door.

The madam's face still held a smile, though it was slightly unnatural.

“Sir, you've come out.”

Jiang Lan looked at the madam.

“Waiting for me?”

The madam hesitated, saying, “Gu Yan'er is a pure courtesan of our establishment. Sir, you have taken her purity. In the future...”

“How much silver?”

“Ah?” The madam was stunned.

Jiang Lan repeated, “I asked you, how much silver?”

The madam seemed to be calculating, then said after a moment:

“For breaking her purity, it would be at least a hundred taels of silver.”

“Not that. I'm asking about buying her freedom.”

The madam reacted quickly, her eyes widening.

“Sir, you want to buy Gu Yan'er's freedom?”

As if afraid Jiang Lan would change his mind, the madam's words came out like a rapid-fire barrage.

“Five hundred taels, Sir. Gu Yan'er is the daughter of a convicted official, her background is clean, she is definitely worth that much.”

“I'll go get the money. Don't let anyone disturb her.”

Jiang Lan said, then turned and went downstairs.

The madam wanted to stop him.

He said he was getting money, but who knew if that was true?

If he ran off, not only would she not get the money for her freedom, but the money for breaking her purity would also be gone.

However, the thought of stopping him only flashed for a moment before the madam suppressed it.

After all, the last time Jiang Lan came, he only drank a few jars of wine but left five taels of gold. He must be a person who wasn't short on money.

Furthermore, she also knew that Jiang Lan worked for the Demon Suppression Division.

If he really ran, could a monk run away from his temple?

On the other side, Jiang Lan was already walking on the street.

Gold ingots, though not heavy for him, would make his chest bulge if he carried too many.

Normally, carrying one or two in his pocket was fine, but if he carried all twenty-plus remaining ones, it would be a heavy burden.

As for the price to buy Gu Yan'er's freedom, Jiang Lan didn't care.

A pure courtesan, once her purity was broken, was no longer a pure courtesan.

If she wasn't a pure courtesan, then she would naturally have to entertain guests.

If Gu Yan'er were to entertain guests, putting aside everything else, he himself couldn't accept it.

He was a man, after all.

A moment later, Jiang Lan returned to his small courtyard.

He saw Bao Jing waiting at the courtyard entrance.

Seeing Jiang Lan return, Bao Jing let out a long sigh of relief.

“amitabha, Benefactor Jiang did not return all night. Little Monk thought Benefactor had changed his mind.”

Jiang Lan also twitched his lips.

He really had no proper business. He had clearly agreed to go kill demons, but he had slept with a girl outside.

Sleeping with a girl was one thing, but he was also going to buy her freedom.

He actually didn't know what was going on. It was just by some strange impulse that he entered the gates of Chun Quan Courtyard, then by some strange impulse he drank some wine, and finally, by some strange impulse, he took the girl back to his room.

He spoke:

“No, it's just that I still have some personal matters to handle. You'll have to wait for me a bit.”

“No problem.” Bao Jing nodded.

He had waited a whole day, what was a little more waiting?

Jiang Lan walked into the room and took out all the gold ingots stored in the cabinet.

Returning outside the courtyard, Jiang Lan glanced at Bao Jing, thought for a moment, then said:

“You come with me.”

After this departure, he didn't plan to return to the small courtyard.

When going out with Bao Jing, it would definitely be impossible to bring Gu Yan'er.

But leaving a girl alone in this small courtyard was also unsafe.

So, Jiang Lan's plan was to send her to Lin Hong Hall, then find a few people to help look after her, and as for the rest, he would deal with it when he returned.

“Okay.” Bao Jing agreed, then walked out of the courtyard gate. After Jiang Lan locked it, he walked with him towards the street.

A moment later, they returned to Chun Quan Courtyard.

Jiang Lan stopped, “Are you coming in with me?”

Bao Jing stood frozen in place.

“Huh?”

He had thought Jiang Lan was going back to the Demon Suppression Division, but he hadn't expected it to be to such a pleasure quarter.

Bao Jing waved his hands repeatedly.

“No, no, no, no, Little Monk is not going.”

At this moment, he seemed to return to the state of blushing easily when he first met Jiang Lan.

Jiang Lan shrugged.

Right.

Bao Jing was a monk, after all. Although he had basically committed all the precepts he could, he probably couldn't adapt to female beauty for a while.

“Then you go to Lin Hong Hall and wait for me. I'll be there in a bit.”

Bao Jing replied:

“Okay, Little Monk will go now.”

After speaking, he scurried towards the main gate of the Demon Suppression Division diagonally opposite.

Jiang Lan smiled, then turned and pushed open the door to enter Chun Quan Courtyard.

Inside Chun Quan Courtyard, the madam was standing at the entrance, looking as if she had been waiting for a long time.

But in reality, from the time Jiang Lan left until now, it had only been a little over a quarter of an hour.

Seeing Jiang Lan return, the madam's eyes lit up.

“Sir, you're finally back.”

Jiang Lan glanced sideways at the madam and walked towards the counter.

He reached into his chest and took out ten gold ingots, arranging them in a line on the counter.

The madam's eyes looked as if they were about to drill into the gold.

“Is that enough?”

“Enough, enough! This old servant will immediately remove Miss Gu Yan'er's slave status.”

With that, she ducked behind the counter and began rummaging through things.

Jiang Lan didn't wait there. Instead, he turned and went upstairs.

Returning to the room he had left earlier, he pushed the door open and entered.

Gu Yan'er was already awake.

However, she was completely covered by the quilt, her shoulders shaking, and occasional sobs could be heard, clearly indicating she was crying.

Jiang Lan turned and closed the door, then walked to the bedside in a few steps and gently patted the person under the quilt.

Feeling the movement, the sobbing under the quilt immediately stopped.

A moment later, a small head, tear-streaked like pear blossoms in the rain, emerged from under the quilt.

“Sir, why... did you come back?”

Jiang Lan had a playful smile on his lips.

“What, I can't come back?”

“No, it's just, your servant...” Speaking of this, she seemed unable to hold back, and tears welled up in Gu Yan'er's eyes again.