Dimensional Bookstore

There were people coming and going on the street, and Xie Changsheng, wearing coarse cloth, was not conspicuous in the crowd.

He sneaked out. The sleight of hand he cast in the house could only last for three hours. If he didn't get back within three hours, the madam would find out.

His life contract was still in the hands of the brothel. Once his escape was discovered, he would be beaten at best, or even killed.

But he still took such a risk and ran out. Because he wanted to go somewhere.

He turned into a rarely visited alley, and after turning around several times, he finally saw the bookstall.

Then he naturally met the bookstall owner who had only existed in the mouths of his patrons.

He looked surprisingly young, as if he was only a few years older than him, with handsome and gentle features and a graceful demeanor. He sat upright on the chair, his jade-like delicate and smooth fingers holding a book and reading it carefully, his long eyelashes like crow feathers drooped to cover the emotions in his eyes, and the corners of his lips were slightly raised, with a hint of leisurely smile. The whole person has the aura of a free and elegant scholar.

Ever since he learned the content of a strange book from Qiu Liang that day, he has been interested in these books. He learned that these books have been quietly circulating in the world for a long time. No one knows where these books came from, but they suddenly appeared in book stalls, bookstores, streets, and some people's tables one day... Information about these books is quietly circulating in secret circles.

However, there are no secrets in the brothel.

Once a man drinks and goes to bed, there will be no secrets forever.

Xie Changsheng learned about such a book stall from one of his patrons. The owner of the book stall sells strange books that are circulated privately. So he risked escaping from the brothel and came here.

He wanted to buy books.

Even though he was just a male prostitute.

But when he saw the owner, he was timid.

Perhaps because he had not been to school much, he had an instinctive awe and admiration for scholars. He pursed his lips, squatted down quietly, and his eyes slowly passed over the book covers on the bookstall, not daring to disturb the owner who was reading.

Then, as if it was fate, he casually opened a book called "Crescent Moon". He originally planned to flip through a few pages casually, but he was slowly fascinated and could not help turning page after page. His heart, which had been worn cold and hard, was deeply moved by the fate of the heroine Han Yuerong.

Han Yuerong, like him, was a miserable person.

She lost her father at a young age, and her mother relied on selling her property to make a living. Later, her mother remarried, and the new father treated the mother and daughter very well, so Han Yuerong went to school.

Xie Changsheng had heard that the daughters of wealthy families would go to some girls' schools, where the teachers were all female teachers, and some were even maids in the palace! Unexpectedly, her stepfather was so generous that he sent a girl to study. She was really blessed in her previous life!

However, the following plot was beyond his expectations.

Han Yuerong's new father died, and her mother became a secret prostitute to make a living.

Han Yuerong resented her mother for running away from home, but fate did not favor her. Under the continuous blows of life, she finally realized a truth: "Dignity and morality are what the rich say to others. For the poor, filling their stomachs is the greatest truth." Then she embarked on her mother's old path and became a secret prostitute. She desperately squeezed money from all kinds of men to support her mother who had become a beggar.

Xie Changsheng took a deep breath, and his hand holding the book trembled slightly, and he almost couldn't bear to read on. He had vaguely guessed the ending of Han Yuerong.

There are only three endings for bitches like them. One is to be old and ugly, become a beggar, and then be exposed in the wilderness. The other is to successfully coax a benefactor to redeem themselves, and then become a concubine of a rich man, or save money to redeem themselves, and live in poverty in a foreign land under an assumed name. The last one is to become a brothel madam and train more prostitutes to receive customers.

He continued to read on, and sure enough. Han Yuerong contracted syphilis and was eventually locked up in a reformatory by the high official who had molested her, leaving her to die. Although he didn't know what this reformatory was, he thought it should be a prison.

In the end, Han Yuerong's ending was just as tragic as the endings of countless prostitutes in this world.

Just like the truth that Han Yuerong realized in the article: "Dignity and morality are what the rich say to others, and for the poor, filling their stomachs is the greatest truth." Just as the ancients said: "When you have enough food and clothing, you know honor and disgrace, and when your granaries are full, you know etiquette."

If you can live an innocent life, who would be willing to do this flesh trade? Those who choose to be prostitutes are all miserable people who can't survive. He has seen many wives and daughters voluntarily become prostitutes to support the whole family, and he has also encountered people who sell their daughters and sisters to support the men in their family.

Xie Changsheng had a little sister who was sold by his father. She sent most of her monthly earnings back home, successfully supporting her brothers and helping her older brother marry a wife.

He also advised her not to send all her money back home, as she was getting older and needed to plan for her future. She remained silent, and when he urged her too hard, she sighed and said, "If I don't support them, I won't have a home. A hundred years later, I won't even have anyone to visit my grave."

Xie Changsheng couldn't help but feel sad when he heard this.

He himself was just blinded by the sanctimonious appearance of the "immortals" during his escape during the drought, thinking that he wouldn't have to starve in the immortal world and could survive.

Unexpectedly, he was sold into a brothel by the "immortal" and did this thing that brought shame to his ancestors. He is the only one left in his family, and he relies on elixirs to survive until now. A hundred years later, he would just end up like Han Yuerong.

If he had known this, he might as well have been cut off and entered the palace and became a eunuch, instead of suffering in this fairy world for so many years.

…

Le Jing closed his book and sighed with satisfaction, only to find the young man who had been squatting in front of the bookstall for an unknown amount of time.

He was wearing a white cloth gown commonly worn by civilians, with his hair standing high. He must have been an adult. From Le Jing's perspective, we could only see that he was frowning and his eyes were glued to a book. You could tell he was fascinated by it.

Perhaps sensing Le Jing's gaze, the young man raised his head, revealing a childish face that was white and rosy. His eyes were as dark as grapes. He didn't look like an adult, but like a boy of fifteen or sixteen years old.

However, the age of people in the fairy world cannot be judged from their appearance.

"Hello." The young man put down the book, stood up awkwardly, and smiled shyly, with two dimples looming: "I'm sorry, I started flipping through the book without your permission."

Le Jing also stood up and said disapprovingly: "Books are put out for people to read. I'm very happy that you like my book." He lowered his eyes and glanced at the title of the book that the young man put down - "Crescent Moon" , this is a memoir of a prostitute in the early years of the Republic of China written by Mr. Lao She.

"You like this book?"

Xie Changsheng's anger and sadness when he was reading just now were brought out again by the boss's words.

He lowered his eyes and covered up the tears in his eyes. The tear stains under the corners of his eyes were as red as blood: "I don't like it, it's too sad."

"And this is the charm of tragedy." The boss's clear voice floated in the wind: "Tragedy is tearing beautiful things into pieces for people to see. Only in this way can it trigger people's thinking and anger against darkness. The pursuit and yearning for beauty and light.”

Xie Changsheng pursed his lips and raised his eyes to look at Le Jing with deep stubbornness: "But I don't like tragedies. The reality is already so sad, and I would like to read some books with happy endings."

There were emotions he didn't understand brewing in the young man's eyes, and finally he sighed: "Indeed, tragedy does not conform to the Chinese people's aesthetic of happy endings. But a certain tragedy is a reflection of a certain social reality. Tragedy is there, and it must always be Someone tell it."

He bent down and picked up "Crescent Moon" with pity in his eyes that moved Xie Changsheng deeply: "This is a confession of a prostitute. How could it be a comedy in such a dark cannibalistic society? The author just wants to Through tragedy, it tells readers how dark and terrible this society is. In that cannibalistic world, countless innocent women became Han Yuerong and did not end well. "

"Prostitutes are innocent, but the fault lies with the society that forces girls into prostitution."

Xie Changsheng opened his eyes wide. This was the first time in his life that he encountered a man who complained about prostitutes. He blurted out: "What about male prostitutes? What do you think of male prostitutes?"

He regretted the words as soon as he asked them. He was afraid that his boss would see something, so he quickly made up for it: "I just asked casually. After all, compared with weak women, it is shameful for a man to willingly lower himself to do such a thing." Lie Zong’s face!”

"No matter who you are, what's wrong with wanting to have a full stomach?" The young man's dark eyes were as cold as a star: "In an era like that, just to survive, you have to do your best. As for dignity, it comes from having a full stomach. Things that only people can consider.”

In the modern society where materialism prevails, many young men and women voluntarily sell themselves for money and power. This is an era that laughs at poverty but not at prostitution. But in the old society, ninety-nine percent of those doing the flesh business were not voluntary. In that society where women's chastity is more important than heaven and men are required to make contributions, those who fall into the world are poor people who cannot survive.

For such poor people, Le Jing respects their efforts to survive and will not show any disdain in his heart.

Xie Changsheng lowered his head suddenly, preventing the young man from seeing the tears surging in his eyes.

In the eyes of the young man, he did not see any disdain or sympathy. He was just discussing the matter and expressing his views rationally.

But for Xie Changsheng, not showing contempt or sympathy is the greatest kindness in itself. He received very little kindness in his life, and every bit of it was enough to warm him for the rest of his life.

He shook his voice and tried to spit out easy syllables: "Xie Changsheng."

"What?"

"My name is Xie Changsheng." He raised his head and looked at Le Jing longingly, and asked seriously and forcefully: "Can you remember my name?"

The young man's dark eyes were filled with tears, looking more and more like two washed grapes.

Le Jing looked at the boy for a few seconds and nodded solemnly, "Okay."

The young man bent his eyes and smiled, tears finally falling down.

His name is Xie Changsheng.

He had lived.

It's great that someone remembers.