Chapter 1856 - Mayor Liu's Busy Schedule
Traveling to Qiongzhou from Guangzhou was no difficult matter. Before the Australians took Guangzhou, Dabo Shipping had maintained an office at Tianzi Wharf, with scheduled vessels plying between Lingao and Guangzhou every few days—quite convenient. Now, the Wuyang Relay Station on the banks of the Pearl River had been taken over by Dabo as its Guangzhou Operations Department, and scheduled service had increased to daily departures. Ships bound for Lingao as well as packet boats to Qiongshan ran regularly.
If Zhang Dai wished to go, he need only purchase a ticket and set off. However, in those days, traveling far from home was not to be undertaken lightly, and lodging as a guest brought its own host of inconveniences. To ensure a smooth journey, anyone of even modest means and status would write ahead to an acquaintance at the destination, requesting assistance. If one had no relatives or friends there, one would round up a connection however possible and carry a letter of introduction for a personal call, soliciting the recipient's hospitality. For the gentry and great families, such mutual accommodation was commonplace.
Zhang Dai naturally made similar arrangements for his visit to Lingao. The Liang family had connections with the Australians; he had originally planned to ask Liang Cunhou to make the necessary introductions.
Now that Guangzhou had fallen, the Liangs were a family that had "received imperial favor for generations" and could hardly maintain open ties with the Australians. Indeed, all the gentry of Guangzhou had adopted this posture—none wished to acquire a reputation for "submitting to the Australians" and thereby cause needless trouble for relatives and friends. Especially those whose fathers, brothers, or sons were still serving in the Ming bureaucracy or studying for examination—they dared not have any further dealings with the Australians.
Since the Liang family could not openly act, Zhang Dai had a backup plan: Mr. Zhao from Sanshui, the xiucai in Hangzhou.
In Hangzhou, Zhao Yingong had associated with him frequently enough to be called a friend—not because Zhang Dai was captivated by Zhao's singular charisma or personal magnetism, but because Zhang Pu, the leader of the Revival Society, had advised it.
Among the Hangzhou gentry, Zhao Yingong's "Australian background" was an open secret. Zhang Pu's view went further: Zhao was in all likelihood the Australians' agent—perhaps himself an Australian.
Zhang Pu was not entirely ignorant of the Australians' activities in Guangdong. Compared to the Eastern Barbarians, the Australians brought both benefits and drawbacks to the Ming; they were not like the Manchus, who existed solely to plunder. If properly guided and utilized, the Australians might serve as a tonic to prolong the dynasty's life.
He had therefore hinted to Zhang Dai that it would be worthwhile to cultivate a friendship with Mr. Zhao—to maintain amicable relations that could serve as a reliable channel of communication when needed, and to glean at least some insight into Australian internal affairs. Zhang Pu knew that the court was astonishingly ignorant of its various enemies.
Zhang Dai did not think as strategically or as far ahead as Zhang Pu, but he had always cherished novelties and fine objects, and Mr. Zhao's array of "Australian goods" suited his tastes perfectly. He was therefore happy to oblige.
Before heading south, Zhang Dai had specifically called on Zhao Yingong to request a letter of introduction.
When Zhao Yingong heard that Zhang Dai intended to visit Lingao, he was most obliging. He thumped his chest and declared that everything was in hand, then dashed off a letter addressed to "The Master of Runshitang."
Zhang Dai did not know who this Master of Runshitang was, but so long as he bore the letter, he could seek out the Runshitang establishment upon arriving in Lingao and all would be well.
To his surprise, he discovered that Runshitang had a branch office right here in Guangzhou. This simplified matters greatly. His plan settled, he dispatched a manservant with his visiting card to Runshitang, announcing that he would call in person at his convenience.
"...Through the public-order crackdown, business registration, and household surveys of the city's vice industry, the Cleanup and Rectification Task Force has obtained a preliminary picture of the brothel and vice-trade workforce throughout Guangzhou's urban area, including the four gate suburbs.
"Within the urban area there are 194 registered and licensed brothels, with 1,548 registered workers and 3,445 auxiliary personnel. The youngest prostitute is 10 years old; the oldest 55 (note: excluding pipa zai trainees). Women aged 16–25 account for just under 50% of the total. For detailed age distribution, see the table below...
"By origin, 62% of prostitutes come from hereditary entertainer households, 27% from boat-dweller households, and 11% from commoner families. However, our investigation reveals that many madams from entertainer households purchase impoverished girls and pass them off as their own daughters to circumvent legal prohibitions on forcing commoner women into prostitution. These figures therefore do not accurately reflect the true origins of prostitutes...
"Based on a comprehensive assessment of brothel scale, décor, price level, and traditional social perception, Guangzhou's brothels may be roughly classified into four tiers. First-tier establishments typically operate as 'Guild Houses' or 'Grand Barges' (floating brothels). In terms of scale, they employ at least 10 prostitutes, sometimes more than 20, plus a number of pipa zai trainees. The buildings are lavishly furnished; the women are generally young and attractive, mostly from entertainer households. Many are literate and skilled in music, chess, painting, and calligraphy; some are also adept at poetry. Certain famous courtesans enjoy renown throughout the province. The women suffer relatively little abuse and enjoy a comparatively high standard of living. Prices are very high; the primary services are banqueting, singing, pouring wine, tea accompaniment, and keeping guests company. Such establishments are extremely rare in the industry—only 9 in the urban area, less than 5%, with 134 workers comprising 8.6% of the workforce...
"Notably, although first-tier brothel workers account for under 10% of the total, auxiliary personnel in these establishments—including attendants, cooks, procuresses, craftsmen, and the like—constitute over two-thirds of all auxiliary workers. Revenue and profit account for more than half of the entire industry. Economies of scale are very pronounced...
"Second-tier brothels are primarily smaller in scale than first-tier establishments but comparable in quality. Locally they are called 'semi-private.' These operate as 'book salons' or 'painted pleasure boats'—compact, elegant premises with only 1–2 working women, plus maidservants and pipa zai trainees. In practice, the maidservants are also workers. Business operations resemble those of first-tier houses, and there are famous courtesans among them. Workers are mostly from entertainer households, often run as family businesses—the madam and courtesan are frequently mother and daughter. There are 38 second-tier brothels in the urban area, with 80 workers (including maidservants)...
"Third- and fourth-tier brothels are purely transactional, with crude facilities and no pretense of elegance. Fourth-tier establishments sometimes lack proper buildings entirely, operating out of shanties and lean-tos on wasteland outside the city walls. These cater to lower-class patrons; their workers are generally older or less attractive. Because prices are extremely low and maximum profit extraction is the goal, some women service more than twenty clients in a single day. Abuse and exploitation are at their worst. These establishments are also the epicenters of venereal disease; for data on sexually transmitted infections among third- and fourth-tier prostitutes, see the table below...
"In addition to registered and licensed brothels, there are 6 establishments operating under the guise of Buddhist convents, with conditions roughly similar to first- and second-tier houses. There are also boat-people's 'flower boats,' 'saltwater girls,' and 'earthen dens' run by beggar-gang leaders. Due to the mobility of these venues and workers, an initial estimate places the workforce between 1,000 and 2,000, mostly transient individuals without household registration...
"Beyond brothels, Guangzhou has four or five 'young master halls'—male brothels—operating on a scale and in a manner roughly similar to second-tier establishments, with approximately 50 workers. These have also been included in the current vice-industry rectification...
"In summary, the scale of the vice industry in Guangzhou is considerable, and the proportion of workers relative to the urban population is also quite high. This is closely related to its status as a cosmopolitan trading port..."
"This Preliminary Survey Report on Guangzhou's Vice Industry is more or less finalized." Liu Xiang closed the manuscript with satisfaction and nodded at Zhang Yunmi. Zhang Yunmi's expression at that moment resembled that of a certain female graduate student Liu Xiang had once supervised years ago—back before D-Day, when he was still an unpaid doctoral candidate slaving for his advisor—a girl who had desperately needed to complete her dissertation within a month.
"Give co-authorship to Lu Cheng—she's been running around for you for two weeks," Liu Xiang casually added Lu Cheng's name to the cover page. Zhang Yunmi murmured agreement, but her eyes narrowed meaningfully.
Liu Xiang pretended not to notice. He chatted about a few other work matters, then dismissed Zhang Yunmi.
The moment Zhang Yunmi stepped out of the office, she saw Lu Cheng approaching gracefully with a stack of documents. Zhang Yunmi gave a mysterious smile by way of greeting and walked on. As they passed, Lu Cheng's sidelong glance caught the article's cover and the two awkwardly inserted names. A small surge of excitement flickered through her, but she steadied herself within seconds and knocked rhythmically on Liu Xiang's door.
"Mayor, today someone presented Mr. Zhao of Hangzhou's visiting card at the Runshitang Guangzhou Commercial Station, requesting to see the 'Master of Runshitang.'" Lu Cheng handed over a kraft-paper document folder.
"Elder Zhao... hmm, news from him?" Liu Xiang was somewhat bewildered—so much so that he nearly blurted out a word that ought to be censored in front of a naturalized citizen. "Could it be that things have gotten tense on his end now that we've taken Guangzhou? Last I heard, he was 'inspecting the Japan trade route'—there shouldn't be any problem!" Liu Xiang silently speculated.
"Who is the visitor? Did they leave a card?"
"Yes." Lu Cheng replied. "His name is Zhang Dai. Here is his visiting card."
"Zhang Dai—that name sounds familiar... Should be someone famous." Liu Xiang studied the large red visiting card, then pulled from his drawer an unmarked volume bound in black cardboard—an "Elements Only Reading"—and thumbed through it for some time before locating Zhang Dai under the "Z—Zhang" heading.
Zhang Dai, Revival Society... Jiangnan literati circles... Liu Xiang snapped the book shut with a slightly heavy motion, producing a dull thump.
(End of Chapter)