After all, Yoshiwara is not a real castle. Although there are residential areas for ordinary people and small-scale markets, the area they occupy is not large.
Occupying most of Yoshiwara's land are the densely packed brothels of prostitutes.
"The main street in the center of Yoshiwara is called 'Nakano-machi'. It is the widest street in Yoshiwara, and almost all important events are held in Nakano-machi."
After taking Ogata on a brief tour of Yoshiwara's residential areas and markets, Ueyu led Ogata back to the avenue that neatly divided Yoshiwara into two halves - Naka-no-machi.
I planned to start by taking Ogata on a simple tour of the large area of ​​brothels centered on Nakano-machi.
"The closer the yukata is to Naka-no-Machi, the higher the quality of the yukata. And conversely, the farther the yukata is from Naka-no-Machi, the lower the quality of the yukata."
"The 'Rashomon Riverbank' that I told you about last night, where sick and elderly prostitutes gather, is located at the westernmost part of Yoshiwara."
"'Rashomon Riverbank' is also a key supervision area of ​​our Shirobei Club."
"That place is the most chaotic place in our Yoshiwara."
"Because the prostitutes who make a living at 'Rashomon Riverbank' are mostly sick or elderly."
"So there are always some beasts who take advantage of the weak bodies of the prostitutes there and go to the Rashomon Riverbank to rob them of their money and their women."
Uesugi is very eloquent and good at preaching. Ogata thinks she might have the potential to be a teacher.
After leaving Uesugi's house, Uesugi never stopped talking and kept introducing various details about Yoshiwara to Ogata.
But Guasheng can always use the shortest and most humorous words to summarize this supposedly complicated knowledge.
Thanks to Uesugi's constant popularization of various knowledge about Yoshiwara, Ogata did not feel bored when touring various places in Yoshiwara.
Before they knew it, they had returned to Naka-no-machi, the main street in the center of Yoshiwara.
The current time is around 9 o'clock in the morning.
Since it was already past the early morning when the sun was just rising, more and more people were walking around the streets of Yoshiwara.
The lifestyle of prostitutes is the opposite of that of ordinary people.
Ordinary people work during the day and sleep and rest at night.
The prostitutes sleep and rest during the day and start working at night.
At this time, many prostitutes are still sleeping and resting in their beds.
Of course, there were also some very energetic girls who sneaked out of their respective girl houses to play around.
After returning to Nakano-machi, Obe discovered that compared to when he had just arrived in Yoshiwara, there were many more prostitutes who had come out to play in Nakano-machi.
However, since there were not many entertainment activities in this era, and they could not leave Yoshiwara freely, the only way for these prostitutes who sneaked out to play to entertain themselves and relax was to get together and chat.
Some of these prostitutes who sneak out to play still comb their hair and put on makeup properly.
Some of them are very casual, not only do they not wear makeup, they don't even comb their hair, leaving their hair long.
As soon as Ogata and Ueo appeared in Nakano-machi, Ogata saw three prostitutes chatting together not far away and suddenly waved to them.
After seeing the three prostitutes waving at them, Uesugi immediately held the wooden sword at his waist and walked quickly towards the three prostitutes.
Although he didn't understand why the three girls suddenly waved to them, Ogata hurriedly followed them.
Among these three prostitutes, two had their hair combed into neat Shimada buns, and only one had her hair loose, with her long, straight black hair hanging down behind her.
When Guasheng saw the three of them waving and walking towards him quickly, the only prostitute who didn't have her hair in a bun smiled and said to Guasheng:
"Yoshiwara Satoshi! Are you on patrol so early?"
"Well... you can also consider it as a patrol." Uesugi said with a smile, "I am currently taking this newcomer who just started working in our club today to familiarize himself with Yoshiwara. I am also patrolling Yoshiwara at the same time."
After saying that, Uesugi turned sideways and introduced Ogata who was standing behind him:
"This is the new guy who joined our club today - Majima Goro."
"Hello." Ogata bowed to the three prostitutes in front of him, "I am Majima Goro."
"Hey~~" The long-haired courtesan looked Ogata up and down with curiosity, "You look like a very reliable samurai! I'm leaving Yoshiwara's security in your hands!"
"My life will depend on it."
"There are a lot more foreigners coming to Edo recently." Another smaller prostitute standing next to the prostitute with long hair suddenly sighed, "It has made Yoshiwara a lot more chaotic than before. It's really unbearable."
"Don't worry!" Uesugi raised his hand and patted his small chest vigorously. "Anyone who dares to cause trouble in Yoshiwara, our Shirobei Club will bring all these people to justice!"
"You are so reliable." The courtesan with long hair said with a smile, "You are worthy of being our Yoshiwara Satoshi."
"Please don't call me Yoshiwara Ri Doshin." Ueyoshi's tone showed a strong sense of helplessness. "The word 'Yoshiwara Ri Doshin' has so many syllables. Don't you find it troublesome to pronounce it?"
"I don't think so." The long-haired girl said as she reached into her collar and took out a small paper bag from inside her collar. "Here, this is for you."
"Huh? What is this?" Guasheng looked puzzled as he reached out to take the small paper bag handed to him by the prostitute with untied hair.
"This is some yokan that one of my guests gave me last night."
"He said this yokan comes from a very popular shop in Edo."
"I heard the customer tell me the name of the store, but I forgot it. I tried the yokan and it was delicious."
"He gave me too much yokan. My friends and I can't finish it all, so I'll give the rest to you guys!"
"Ah! Thank you!" Guasheng was not polite and said thank you loudly. Then he looked at the small paper bag in his hand with expectant eyes, and his throat moved because of swallowing saliva.
After bidding farewell to the three prostitutes, Guasheng could not wait to open the paper package of food that the prostitute with untied hair had just given them.
There were six yokan lying quietly inside the paper package.
Although it has the word "sheep" in its name, Japanese yokan does not contain mutton and is a dessert.
The original yokan did contain mutton. It was a soup made with mutton during the Tang Dynasty.
After this delicacy was introduced to Japan, it underwent a magical transformation.
There are many sects of Buddhism in Japan. Some sects adhere to strict precepts, such as not eating meat and drinking alcohol or taking wives and concubines.
Some factions are no different from ordinary people. They can eat meat and drink wine and have three wives and four concubines.
Because monks who observe strict precepts do not eat meat, these monks have modified the dish "Yokan".
Red beans, kudzu powder and flour are used to make the shape of goat liver. The Japanese words "liver" and "soup" have similar pronunciations, so "goat liver" is called "yokan".
Later, it gradually became popular in the tea ceremony and became a famous snack.
During the Edo period, the original flavor of yokan, red bean, evolved into different flavors such as sweet potato and chestnut.
Ogata glanced at the yokan in the paper package - it was chestnut flavored.
Because there were 6 yokan in total , which was just enough for the two of them to split in half, Uoe handed 3 of them to Ogata.
Ogata went straight to Yoshiwara as soon as he got up today, without even having breakfast.
As he was feeling a little hungry, Ogata accepted the three yokan handed to him by Ueo without hesitation, and then he and Ueo started to feast on them.
The two men had just said goodbye to the three prostitutes and had not walked a few steps when they saw a few prostitutes waving at them on the street not far away.
"Good morning, little one!"
"Good morning! Don't call me a fool! Why don't you call me by my proper name..."
"Isn't it too serious to just call you Guasheng? Little Guasheng, who is the person behind you?"
These girls were just like the three girls just now. They just came to say hello to Uesugi and ask who this stranger Ogata was.
"Come here, little guy, these are steamed buns that one of my guests gave me. I know you like steamed buns the most, so I specially saved a few for you."
"Ah! Thank you!"
After saying goodbye to Guasheng, these prostitutes gave the two some food just like the three prostitutes did before.
This time, what Ogata and the other man received were a few steamed buns.
…
…
"Melon! Good morning!"
…
"Xiao Tongxin, here, this is for you. Thank you for helping me get back the guy who stole my money when I wasn't paying attention a few days ago!"
…
"I can't eat any more of this, I'll give it to you guys."
…
Following Ueyoshi's tour through the "Yujoya area" is a real "stop-and-go" tour...
Every time they walked a certain distance, Ogata and the other man... or to be more precise, Ueoki would be stopped by the prostitutes who had sneaked out to play outside the prostitutes' house.
These prostitutes have different names for Guasheng.
Some people just call him by his surname properly.
Some called Guasheng by his nickname "Yoshiwara-ri Doshin".
Some people call their children affectionately by nicknames like "Xiaoguasheng" or "Xiaogua".
Although they have different names, these prostitutes are all very enthusiastic about Uonei.
They either simply greeted the grower or gave him some food while greeting him.
Thanks to the help of Gua Sheng, Ogata was able to taste a variety of delicacies including yokan, steamed buns, daifuku, glutinous rice dumplings, etc. in less than an hour.
Ogata himself couldn't remember how much food he and Ueo had gotten from so many prostitutes.
After stuffing a piece of Dorayaki that a certain prostitute had just given them into his mouth and swallowing it, Ogata said to Uekusa beside him in a tone that contained a bit of helplessness and admiration:
"Ms. Ueyu, you are so popular among the prostitutes... Every prostitute knows you and greets you warmly."
"Not only did he greet you warmly, he also gave you a bunch of food."
The scene where the prostitutes gave food to the melons just now... Although it may be a bit strange to say this, Ogata really felt like he was "feeding a pet"...
Whenever a prostitute brought food to him, Guasheng would be very excited and happily accept it. In addition, Guasheng was very short, and most of the prostitutes were taller than him, so it seemed more like "feeding a pet"...
"It might have something to do with the fact that I'm a girl too."
Uzuo said in a half-joking tone.
"I am the only woman among all the people in the Shirobei Club who are responsible for maintaining Yoshiwara's law and order, so compared to other men, the girls must prefer me as a woman."
After saying that, Uesugi handed the last piece of daifuku left in the paper bag to Ogata.
"Come on, Mashima-kun, I can't eat anymore, so I'll give you this daifuku."
Ogata didn't refuse and took the daifuku handed to him by Ueoka and started to eat it.
Looking at the half-bitten Daifuku in his hand, Ogata asked Ueyu beside him in a voice that was a little unclear due to the Daifuku stuffed in his mouth:
"Why do the girls have so much food?"
"Most of these foods are given by the guests." Guasheng replied, "There are only a few guests who can generously give gold, silver and jewelry to the prostitutes."
“In fact, most of the people who come to Yoshiwara are ordinary people.”
"The only things that ordinary people can give away without looking shabby are gourmet foods."
"Yuujou are not allowed to go in and out of Yoshiwara freely, so if someone brings them some food from outside Yoshiwara that they don't usually eat, they are still very happy."
"Sometimes the food sent by the guests is too much, and the girls will share it with their friends, or with the officials of our Shirobei Club."
Having said this, Guasheng licked his lips.
"I think I ate too much just now... I feel a little thirsty..."
Hearing what Uesugi said, Ogata also felt his throat getting dry.
Ogata looked around and asked, "Is there any teahouse nearby?"
"Ah!" Uesugi suddenly seemed to remember something and suddenly called out softly, "Mashima-kun, I'm going to take you to a place, you follow me."
"Where are we going?" Ogata asked puzzledly.
"Stay in the house."
Ueyu said a name that was quite unfamiliar to Ogata.
“Every day, different customers visit Yoshiwara.”
" Some are ordinary country folk."
"Some are warriors or merchants with good family backgrounds."
"If you want to entertain these distinguished guests, it is not enough to be beautiful, you also need to have good conversation, knowledge and cultivation."
"So we opened a toyaya in the Shirobei Club."
"You can think of the house as a school that teaches girls to read and write."
"We, the Shirobei Club, hire teachers to come to Tsumuga to teach."
"Because it's free, there are many girls who can't read or write or who want to have a deeper education who sign up to study in the Ruya."
"Even our Furin-tafu went to learn from Tsumuga."
"The oiran also went there to study?" Ogata raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Anyone who can become an oiran must be more educated than many samurai from wealthy families, right?"
"Furin Taifu is a very studious person. He goes to the Ruya every day to read and write, and he never slacks off."
After saying that, Guasheng raised his head and glanced at the position of the sun.
"The class should have started in the residence by now."
After listening to Ueo's introduction to the details of the school, Ogata praised it sincerely:
"You're teaching the girls to read and write for free... This is a really good place. This way, when the girls leave Yoshiwara, they'll have a skill."
After listening to Uesugi's introduction to the Ruya, Ogata couldn't help but feel a little curious about this school that was open specifically to courtesans.
“I think this house is great, too.”
Guasheng said with a grin.
"By improving the education of prostitutes, they will have the opportunity to entertain customers who can spend a lot of money, and they can raise enough money to redeem themselves more quickly."
"It was the idea of ​​the current head of our Shirobei Club, the Sixth Shirobei, to build this house open to prostitutes for free."
"Although the cost of building and operating the house is borne by our Shirobei Club, almost everyone in our club is full of praise for Shirobei's idea of ​​teaching the girls to read and write for free."
"But does this have anything to do with our trip to Ruya now?" Ogata nodded and asked.
"There is always a very good tea in the house."
"I usually patrol Yoshiwara. When I feel thirsty, I go to the Tsumuga and drink some of their tea."
"I will take you to taste the tea in the house now."
"By the way, I'll take you to remember where the house is."
"Okay." After listening to Uesugi's introduction to Ryuya, Ogata, who was already somewhat curious about Ryuya, nodded without any hesitation.
"Then let's go." Uesugi adjusted the wooden sword at his waist, then led Ogata to the nearby intersection.
After turning the corner, Ogata and Ueo suddenly spotted three prostitutes gathering on the side of the road not far away, looking suspicious.
Feeling somewhat puzzled, Guasheng stepped forward:
"What are you doing?"
When the three prostitutes saw Guasheng coming, they did not show any panic, but greeted him enthusiastically.
"Nothing." One of the three, a very tall prostitute, said, "It's just that a customer gave me an interesting item last night, and I was showing it to my two friends."
"Oh? Something interesting?" Guasheng looked curious, "What is it?"
"This... Miss Guayushi, you'd better not know what this is." The tall prostitute smiled bitterly, "I don't think you would like this kind of thing, Miss Guayushi. So I'd better not show it to you, sorry."
"Oh, it's okay." Although he was rejected by the tall prostitute, Guasheng, who was not a gossipy person, did not show any frustration or dissatisfaction.
After waving his hand cheerfully, he said, "Then I'll be leaving first. You three can chat slowly."
…
…
After Ogata and Ueo left, the three girls hurriedly gathered together .
"Look." The tall prostitute took out a thick paper bag from her bosom. After unwrapping the bag, she revealed what was inside - a pill as thick as an adult's thumb that emitted a strange smell.
"This is the 'human gall pill'." The tall prostitute said word by word.
The other two prostitutes looked at the black pill and swallowed their saliva.
"Is this the 'Human Bile Pill'..." one of the girls murmured.
"Is this really the authentic product from the Yamada Asaemon family?" asked another prostitute.
"That should be it..." the tall prostitute said, "Anyway, the customer who gave me this pill said it was genuine. As for whether it is genuine or not, I'm not sure."
"The customer who gave you this pill is really strange... Why would he give you a pill specifically for treating lung disease?"
"He is a medicine dealer." The tall prostitute said, "He can't give me gold, silver or jewelry, so he always gives me medicine."
"I told him a few days ago that I've been coughing a lot lately, so when he came to see me last night, he specially gave me this 'human gall pill'. But he sent the medicine too late... My cough is gone."
"This is the first time I've seen a 'human gall pill' made from human gallbladder... Would it taste very bitter... By the way, why didn't you show your 'human gall pill' to Guasheng just now?"
"I've heard someone say before that Miss Guasheng doesn't like this kind of medicine made from human organs, so it's better not to show her this 'human gall pill'. It would be bad if Miss Guasheng is unhappy."
After saying that, the tall prostitute rewrapped the human gallbladder pill and put it back in her arms.
"Now that your cough has healed, what are you going to do with these 'human bile pills'? Are you going to sell them? If these pills are really genuine products from the Yamada Asaemon family, they should be able to sell for a lot of money." asked the prostitute standing on the left hand side of the tall prostitute.
"I don't care about that little money." The tall prostitute smiled bitterly, "Anyway, just keep it for now. Maybe you will need this medicine someday in the future."
“The Yamada Asaemon family…” The girl standing to the right of the tall girl shuddered as if she remembered something horrible. “I never thought that I would have the chance to see the medicine made by the Yamada Asaemon family in my lifetime.”
"Me too." The tall girl nodded in agreement. "I've always heard that the mansion of the Yamada Asaemon family is full of dead bodies... It's scary just to think about it..."
"I've also heard that the mansion of the Yamada Asaemon family is full of corpses, and new corpses are delivered to their house every once in a while... I've always been curious about how the people in their family sleep with corpses every day. Wouldn't they feel like they can't eat or sleep?"
"They may have gotten used to it a long time ago." The tall girl replied, "Anyway, I can't imagine what their daily lives are like... Forget it, let's not talk about this horrible topic. Let's talk about something more relaxing and interesting."