Chapter 3: Listening to Music at the Brothel, the Young Master Seeks the Exotic

"My reputation is being ruined by you fucking bastards!" Dylan Weedy raised a hand to give Shaun Sinjen two hard slaps, but the movement tugged at his torn muscles. Pain lanced through him, and he bared his teeth. "Slap yourself twice!" Shaun Sinjen gave himself two token smacks, then glanced at him. "Young Master, can't you even raise your hand? Makes sense. You worked a girl to death, so you've overexerted yourself!" "Get lost!" Dylan Weedy cursed, then turned to Shaun Sinjen. "Write this down. Get two doses of medicine from the apothecary, then have them carry me to the Brothel." Shaun Sinjen blinked. "Young Master, you're already this weak, and you still want to visit the Brothel for women? Can your body handle it?" "What do you mean, 'this weak'?" "Heroic. Handsome. Magnificent…" Shaun Sinjen quickly corrected himself. "I misspoke, Young Master. Just a slip of the tongue…" "Hmph. Ready the palanquin. I'm going to the Brothel to listen to music!" "Yes, sir!" In Benedict Weedy's study, Deputy General Warth knocked and entered. "Weedy, we've finished investigating. Young Master Zerba has an alibi." "What about Felix Flinter?" "His… his body was found in the canal. Someone had silenced him." Smack! Benedict Weedy slapped the desk and shot to his feet. "Goddammit! Who the hell wants the Weedy family line cut off? Find out who did it. Turn the whole matter inside out!" "Weedy, your old injuries haven't healed. Please, calm down…" At that moment, a guard hurried in. "Weedy, the Young Master has gone out." "Getting some fresh air might do him good. Did you send someone after him?" "Your personal guards, Wyatt Weedy and Weston Weedy, are protecting him from the shadows." "Wyatt Weedy and Weston Weedy are both battle-hardened experts. With those two watching him, that Little Bastard should be safe enough." Benedict Weedy nodded, then asked the question he would regret for the rest of his life. "Where did the boy go?" "Weedy, the Young Master went to the apothecary first, then took the medicine to the Brothel." Benedict Weedy covered his face. "I'm such a damn fool. That Little Bastard only ever goes to the Gambling House, the Brothel, or the Music Bureau. Why did I even ask?" "What medicine did he get?" "Weedy, this is the prescription." Benedict Weedy scanned the listed ingredients: Cistanche, Dodder Seed, horny goat weed, Cynomorium… "Weedy, I asked a doctor. He said it was an aphrodisiac…" Before the guard could finish, Benedict Weedy waved both hands frantically. "Enough! I know exactly what kind of Little Bastard he is. I was a fool to ask!" "Goddammit! I thought he'd finally changed after he started reciting poetry, spouting lines like 'a silver saddle shining on a white horse.'" Benedict Weedy clutched his chest in fury. "Who would've thought? That Little Bastard hasn't changed at all! He's taking aphrodisiacs to the Music Bureau. Is he planning to keep firing while reloading?" A household servant rushed in. "Weedy, someone outside is asking to see you. He claims to be an old friend from your days in the Martial World." "An old friend from the Martial World?" Benedict Weedy froze. In his youth, he had run with the Martial World and made quite a few friends. Later, some had followed him into the army, while others had been killed by their enemies. Life in the Martial World was short. Almost all of them had died by then. "Let him in." A moment later, an old man with completely white hair and beard entered. He wore coarse hemp robes and carried a yellow cloth satchel slung across his body. "Benedict, it's been thirty years. Do you still remember me?" "Everett!" Benedict Weedy hurried forward and gave the old man a crushing bear hug. Then he turned to Deputy General Warth. "This is Everett Murch, the greatest doctor in the Martial World and the leader of the Ghost Valley Medical Sect. He was such a legendary doctor that even when the emperor summoned him, he refused to enter the palace." "If any of your relatives has an illness nobody can cure, bring them here at once. Let this old coot treat them. He'll have them cured in no time." "Benedict is still exactly the same as he was thirty years ago," Everett Murch said with a wry smile. He shook his head. "I'm no longer the leader of the Ghost Valley Medical Sect. I grew old, so it was time to yield the position to the younger generation. These days, I merely carry the title of Supreme Elder of the Ghost Valley Medical Sect. I roam the world freely, unbound by anything. What a life!" "I'd love to retire to the sidelines too, but that Little Bastard, Dylan…" Benedict Weedy let out a long sigh. Everett Murch caught his wrist and took his pulse. "So the rumors from the Martial World were true. You were wounded on the battlefield. That's why I came, to treat your injuries." After speaking, Everett Murch casually picked up the two prescriptions from the desk. His eyes widened, and he snatched them up. "Benedict, who wrote these prescriptions?" Benedict Weedy's face reddened. "Don't get the wrong idea. At my age, how could I possibly be prescribing an aphrodisiac? They were written by my Little Bastard, Dylan Weedy…" "These aren't aphrodisiacs!" Everett Murch clutched the prescriptions as if they were priceless treasures. "Marvelous! The dosage, the combination… I call myself the greatest doctor alive, but whoever devised these formulas is unquestionably more skilled than I am." "Everett, it's just an aphrodisiac prescription. You don't have to get so excited." Everett Murch waved him off. "Benedict, this isn't an aphrodisiac formula. It gently nourishes every limb, bone, and internal organ without harming the body. It's exactly the medicine you need." "I need it?" Benedict Weedy eyed Everett Murch suspiciously. "You old coot aren't trying to fool me, are you?" "I stake my life on it. I'm not deceiving you!" Everett Murch spoke solemnly, then turned his attention to the second prescription. "This formula is more complicated. It relaxes the Sinews and Meridians, promotes blood circulation, and treats torn muscles and damaged Sinews and Meridians. It even appears to have a Marrow Cleansing effect. It's perfect for your old injuries as well." Benedict Weedy jerked his chin at the Deputy General. "Go get the medicine according to this prescription." "Benedict, this prescription was really written by your grandson? Then his medical skill…" "Medical talent, my ass! He's a hopeless lecher whose only expertise is everything below the waist. I figure he spent money hunting down aphrodisiac formulas and copied these from them…" Benedict Weedy suddenly changed his tone. "Still, that boy might have some talent for medicine after all. How about I drag him back and let you give him a proper examination?" Meanwhile, Dylan Weedy had already guessed that nothing he did could escape Benedict Weedy's informants. Those two prescriptions were probably already in his father's hands. He had to find an opportunity to persuade the old man to drink the medicine… Servants carried Dylan Weedy into the Brothel, and every eye in the place turned toward him. "Even looking that wrecked, Young Master Weedy can still get laid!" "Damn, he had to be carried here to visit a Brothel!" "What a lust-crazed demon!" "A true role model for men like us!" "The Young Master is peerless!" The Madam had a mole beneath her chin with a single hair growing from it. She hurried forward to greet him. "Young Master, what an honor. But I do have a small favor to ask." "Speak." "Our girls are delicate and precious, so please go easy on them. The whole capital is saying you worked a girl to death. Apparently, everyone even saw her crap herself…" "Shaun Sinjen, slap her!" Shaun Sinjen turned and smacked the Old Madam twice. "Damn you! Keep wagging your tongue, and I'll tear down this henhouse of yours!" The Old Madam quickly lowered her head and fell silent. The Duke of Weedy had returned in triumph, and Dylan Weedy's influence had never been higher. Who would dare offend him? Dylan Weedy tossed the Old Madam a gold ingot. "Did getting slapped feel good?" The moment she saw the gold, the Old Madam's face bloomed into a smile. "Very good, very good! Two slaps earned me this much gold. I'm almost afraid to accept it. Why don't you give me a few more? Then I can take the gold with a clear conscience." "Cut the crap. Send a girl in." "Young Master, the Four foremost courtesans are all here. Which one would you like? Or all four at once?" "Today, I want to try something different. Find me someone big. Strong and sturdy. The more powerful, the better." "Holy shit. Does the Young Master want to try something exotic?" The Old Madam jumped, then immediately sent the Brothel's porter to fetch someone. A moment later, heavy footsteps made the floor tremble. A massive woman over six feet tall and weighing more than three hundred pounds lumbered into view like a sumo wrestler. "Mama, I haven't had a single customer since I entered this business. Which heavenly big brother finally picked me?" Her voice boomed like a great bell, though her tone was guileless. "This is the immortal… I mean, the Young Master," the Old Madam said. "Serve him well. Don't you dare neglect him!" The woman laughed heartily twice, then struck a coy pose. "Your servant, Jade Jauncy, pays respects to the Young Master!" "Don't worry, Young Master. I'll make sure you enjoy yourself. I'm clean, and I'm still a virgin!" Dylan Weedy looked at Jade Jauncy, who resembled a small mountain, and felt light-headed. "Are you strong?" Jade Jauncy lifted Shaun Sinjen with one hand, spun him around twice as if he weighed nothing, and set him back down. Dylan Weedy gave her a thumbs-up. "You're the one. Come with me to the room." "Young Master, let me carry you!" Jade Jauncy hoisted Dylan Weedy up with one hand, cradled him in her arms, and strode into the room. "Gulp, gulp, gulp!" Every patron in the Brothel swallowed hard. "That Young Master is truly a god among men!" "That broad has an enormous ass. She could probably crush me in one sitting." "The Young Master must have a fetish for trying every kind of exotic woman…"