"What?"

Qingdeng was stunned immediately, and his voice broke uncontrollably when he spoke.

"Bai Ju is not here anymore? When was she not here?"

The counter clerk sighed heavily.

"Alas... Sir, it's really an unlucky time for you to come..."

"The white chrysanthemum disappeared suddenly this evening."

"As early as half a month ago, we noticed that she was very close to a poor samurai named Irie Matahachiro."

"Ever since I met this man, Bai Ju has become less interested in work."

"Not only is he perfunctory when picking up guests, but he also often smiles in the air."

"We have seen this situation too many times - silly girls who fall in love have this kind of behavior."

"We wanted to remind her not to do stupid things, but... before we could go find her, we received the news that 'Bai Ju can't be found' more than an hour ago."

"We guess that she ran away with Matahachiro Irie."

Speaking of this, the counter clerk could not suppress his emotions and gritted his teeth.

"Damn it! This dead girl is such a heartless little beast!"

“When she was about to starve to death on the street, we took her in, provided her with food and drink, and taught her music, chess, calligraphy and painting, so that she could survive in the fiercely competitive Yoshiwara community where girls are eliminated every month.

One bite to eat.”

"It's just that she doesn't want to repay her, she actually ran away privately!"

"It's really disgusting!"

Although the government built walls and dug ditches to prevent the wandering girls from escaping, the harsh living conditions still forced the wandering girls to scramble to escape - and there were many who succeeded in escaping.

Their means of escaping include but are not limited to: dressing up as men and sneaking out of the gate, hiding in a bucket that transports urine and feces, and bribed officials at the Shirobei Club...

Since the birth of Yoshiwara, incidents of "wandering girls eloping with their lovers" have become commonplace.

Some people often think that wandering girls have to come into contact with so many men every day, so they should have become numb to love and matters between men and women.

This is not the case.

Because I have eaten too much bitterness, I feel refreshing after tasting any sweetness.

This is why, no matter in ancient or modern times, there are frequent incidents of "a mortal woman eloping with her lover".

Novelists and playwrights in the Edo period particularly favored the "traveling girl theme" and often compiled love stories in which "traveling girls run away for love" - ​​mostly tragedies.

Qingdeng was not in the mood to listen to the counter staff complaining here.

Although he knew there was little hope, he still asked:

"As for where Baiju went...do you have a general idea?"

The counter clerk smiled bitterly.

"Sir, we also want to know where Bai Ju has gone. If we knew where Bai Ju is now, we would have sent someone to capture her long ago!"

…

…

Qingden walked out of Thousand Flower House with a solemn expression.

——Tsk... My luck is too bad...

Qingdeng rubbed his eyebrows and said "Hey", turning his frustrated mood into a voice.

A good living person, she would have disappeared earlier or later, but she disappeared today when he had something urgent to look for her...

If Bai Ju really ran away with her lover as the counter clerk said, then that would be fine.

What Qingdeng fears the most is... Bai Ju is silenced by the gangster who does not act according to common sense...

After all, according to what Higasaka said, Kamenosuke Yuki was particularly fond of Shirogiku and would always have a chat with her whenever he came to Yoshiwara.

It cannot be ruled out that in order to reduce the probability of exposing their whereabouts, the gangs will silence all the relevant people involved with them...

Just as Qingdeng was standing on the busy street with people coming and going, thinking hard about what to do next——

"Hey, boy, boy!"

An old female voice came from beside him.

"Um?"

Because the sound came from a very low position, Qingdeng had to lower his chin at several angles.

First, a pair of bright and lively eyes broke into Qingdeng's retina.

She is a very short old woman.

Qingden thought she looked familiar, and after blinking, he remembered where this familiarity came from—it was the old woman he had crossed paths with when he first entered Thousand Flowers House.

Before Qingteng crossed the threshold of Qianhuaya, she was arguing with the counter staff about something.

The old woman is probably in her 80s.

She has frosty hair and a simple but clean blue kimono.

Her hair, which had turned gray early, was incompatible with her energetic appearance.

The petite body is a bit thin, and the bones of the hands and feet look like they are connected with screws and nuts.

Although his face is covered with traces of time, his skin is very fair.

Although layers of wrinkles covered up the original appearance of the facial features, Qingdeng relied on his rich experience of having close contact with many beautiful girls. He dared to conclude that this old woman must have been a particularly cute lady when she was young.

beauty.

"Mother-in-law, is something wrong?"

Qingdeng asked.

"Young man, are you looking for Bai Ju?"

--Um?

Qingden raised his eyebrows, raised his gaze, and carefully looked at the old woman from head to toe several times.

She must have heard the conversation I had with the counter staff just now, Qingdeng thought to himself.

Although he didn't know why the old woman asked this question, Qingdeng still answered truthfully:

"Yes, what's wrong?"

The old woman nodded thoughtfully.

Then, she said something shocking:

"In that case...young man, do you want to cooperate with me? Let's get Bai Ju back together."

"cooperate?"

Qingden blinked in surprise.

Things were developing and changing so quickly and suddenly that he felt a little overwhelmed.

After gathering his emotions, he asked:

"Mother-in-law, I don't know, who are you?"

"Ah, sorry, I was so busy talking that I forgot to introduce myself."

The old woman cleared her throat, and then straightened her already straight waist like a strong bamboo stick.

"My name is Gua Shengxiu, and I am currently considered an old official in the Shirobei Club."

As soon as the old woman...that is, Gua Shengxiu finished speaking, Qingdeng's expression was instantly dominated by strong astonishment.

He subconsciously looked at the other person a few more times.

——She is... "Yoshiwara Doshin" Kuao Xiu?

Qingdeng never expected that he would meet this legendary heroine in such a place and in such a way...

Seeing the famous "Yoshiwara Doshin" certainly surprised Ayoto.

But what surprised him even more was the proposal the big man just mentioned.

Qingdeng suppressed the astonishment in his heart for the time being and asked with a serious face:

"Mother-in-law...ah, no, Miss Guasheng, I don't know what you meant by what you just said?"

"That's what it means literally."

The melons grow beautifully in the melon road.

"I know Bai Ju's temperament very well. She is not the kind of girl who would elope with others. So I think there must be another reason for her disappearance."

"I'm worried about her safety."
To be continued...