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Chapter 530: Constructing Puzhou

The young woman was completely dumbfounded.

The salt merchants beside her were equally stunned.

Holy crap, he called her down here to actually hum a song?

This move was utterly audacious, catching everyone off guard.

The young woman instantly forgot the melody she was trying to memorize and said awkwardly, "Sir, could you... could you start from the beginning again? I didn't quite catch the first two lines."

Lao Nanfeng, surprisingly, didn't get angry. He chuckled and began humming again.

One had to admit, the skills of these brothel courtesans were truly remarkable. After Lao Nanfeng hummed through it once, the young woman had already memorized most of the tune. With a strum of her pipa, the melody vaguely took shape. There were a few errors, but after Lao Nanfeng hummed a second time, she had the entire piece committed to memory.

Seeing how quickly she learned, Lao Nanfeng was delighted. "Excellent, excellent! You'll be handsomely rewarded."

He tossed a silver ingot into her hand and laughed, "Go quickly to the back and re-arrange this tune. You know better than I what kind of dance suits this song. Arrange for some girls to accompany you backstage, then come back on stage to sing and dance it."

The madam approached, "Is that all?"

The young woman had an embarrassed expression. "I thought my virtue was about to be compromised, but who knew he actually wanted me to learn a song and immediately arrange a dance."

The madam urged, "Then arrange it quickly! Go!"

The young woman immediately set about arranging the music and choreography. The quality of the brothels in this "Central Kingdom" was indeed outstanding. While they couldn't compare to the top-tier "Eight Beauties of Qinhuai" in the Jiangnan region, they were still exceptionally talented. Arranging a tune and choreographing a dance for an impromptu performance would only take about an hour.

After several more rounds of songs and dances in the main hall, the madam stepped onto the stage, smiling. "Earlier, our esteemed guest taught one of our girls a new song. Now, the arrangement is complete, and the girls are ready to perform it for all our distinguished guests."

Lao Nanfeng's spirits lifted.

The same young woman reappeared on stage, holding her pipa. Around her, a group of other girls gathered. She stood in the center position, parted her crimson lips to sing, while the accompanying girls danced in rhythm with the music.

The impromptu choreography wasn't particularly stunning, but a fundamental principle of dance arrangement is to match the mood and essence of the song.

The tune of *Lovelovelove* that Lao Nanfeng taught her was bright and lively. Naturally, the dance created for it was also bright and lively, brimming with youthful energy.

The "heartthrob" style truly lived up to its name.

As the dance began, all the spectators immediately felt a rhythm unlike that of typical song and dance.

Ordinary songs and dances were mostly slow and graceful, with the girls moving in circular, unhurried motions. But with this tune, the girls dashed across the stage, dancing like colorful butterflies flitting through flowers.

They still wore their traditional Chinese attire with flowing cloud sleeves, but their dance was vigorous, their sleeves flailing wildly across the stage.

The audience below gasped, "Wow!"

"Oh my!"

"We're seeing something new today."

"This song and dance is completely different from before."

"At first, it seemed a bit noisy, but then I realized how exhilarating it was."

When the song and dance concluded, the young woman retreated backstage.

Lao Nanfeng was extremely pleased, roaring with laughter. "Interesting, now this is interesting, ha ha ha! What a thrill to watch, as if celestial maidens truly appeared before me. Everyone who sang and danced today will be heavily rewarded..."

He pulled out another silver ingot and slammed it onto the table.

However, this was the last silver ingot he had brought with him today. After producing it, he had no more to play with. He stood up, still laughing heartily. "Let's go!"

A group of militia soldiers surrounded him as he exited the brothel, swaggering away.

His booming laughter still echoed through the night streets: "This lively world, this is how one ought to live it, ha ha ha ha."

The madam chased him to the door, watching his retreating figure disappear into the night. She couldn't help but scratch her head, "What exactly was that man here for?"

---

Puzhou City's economy began to develop at a rapid pace.

Even Gao Yiye herself had personally traveled to Puzhou. The people of Gao Family Village naturally understood the immense importance Puzhou held in the eyes of the Heavenly Lord.

Manpower was provided when needed, supplies when needed, technology when needed.

Suddenly, Puzhou City became the top priority for Gao Family Village's work. Large numbers of Blue Hats and Yellow Hats poured into Puzhou City, hiring massive numbers of local workers to frantically dig mines and erect all sorts of workshops.

The government workshops couldn't pay the registered craftsmen? No problem, all of them were taken over by Gao Family Village's workshops. Not only were they paid, but they were paid even more.

The city walls were damaged? No problem, cement workers! Get to it!

The bluestone roads in the city were full of potholes from disrepair? No problem, road workers! Get to it!

Even the Prefectural Yamen, deemed "too dilapidated" and "detrimental to the city's appearance," caught the attention of a Blue Hat. He drew a circle on the outer wall of the yamen and even prepared to write characters inside...

Qiu Qianfan, hearing his subordinate's report, rushed out of the Prefectural Yamen, torn between laughter and tears, shouting, "Hey, hey, hey, what are you doing to my official residence? There's a saying, 'Officials don't repair their yamen!' Haven't you heard of it? This yamen doesn't need repairs."

Indeed, imperial officials served three-year terms and would be transferred once their tenure was up. Thus, officials never spent money repairing their yamen, as any improvements would only benefit their successor. It was better to use the allocated funds elsewhere.

It was easy to imagine how dilapidated an official yamen, which had not been repaired for years, would become. Calling it an eyesore was putting it mildly; "condemned building" was more fitting.

The Blue Hat, facing the Prefect, remained unperturbed. The people from Gao Family Village now possessed a strange sense of superiority, feeling as if they were addressing a bumpkin when speaking to an official of the Prefect's rank, utterly unafraid: "Prefect, you don't repair your yamen because you're transferred every three years, but the local common people aren't going anywhere. This appearance greatly affects the common people's sight. Don't worry, we'll cover the cost of repairing the yamen; you won't need to spend a single copper coin."

Qiu Qianfan conceded, "Alright, as long as it doesn't require funds from my office. Do you think I genuinely *want* to live in a broken-down official residence? I just don't have the money to fix it!"

Seeing his agreement, the Blue Hat picked up a brush, dipped it in red ink, and wrote the character "Demolish" inside the circle he had drawn.

After the "Demolish" sign was completed, a group of Yellow Hats arrived the next day. Their eyes wide, they scoured the streets for buildings marked with the "Demolish" character and soon found themselves in front of the Prefectural Yamen.

"Look, there's a 'Demolish' sign!"

"Charge!"

The Yellow Hats rushed forward, swung their heavy hammers, and with a series of resounding crashes, reduced the Prefectural Yamen to a flat expanse of ground.

Qiu Qianfan, having suddenly lost his official residence, was at a loss for where to conduct his business. Fortunately, a prominent local family was astute and immediately offered their fabric store.

Thus, until the new yamen could be built, Qiu Qianfan had to conduct his work in the fabric store, with a massive plaque hanging above his head that read: "Tailoring to Fit, Fair to All Ages."

Two rows of yamen runners stood on either side, looking much like the plastic mannequins in a modern clothing store.