Verdigris House

The **Verdigris House** (緑青館, "Rokushoukan") is a well-established brothel in the red light district of Li's capital. Managed by the Madam, it is the home of the famous Three Princesses and their senior sister Fengxian, and the birthplace of their younger sister Maomao.

## Overview

Like other brothels in the red light district, the Verdigris House is rank-based. Courtesans start at a lower rank, and the better their ability to entertain customers, the more their rank rises; the three highest-ranked courtesans become the Three Princesses. Older courtesans may be redeemed by customers who favor them. Verdigris House contains managing staff, manservants, courtesans, and "kamuro" who assist the courtesans.

## Personnel

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### Management

Though owned by the Owner (Okan-san), Verdigris House is largely controlled by the Madam, a former high-ranked courtesan who manages the brothel with the maximum possible stinginess. The brothel is also managed by the capable manservant head, Ukyou.

### Three Princesses

The Three Princesses of Verdigris House are the three top-ranked courtesans of Verdigris House and much of the reason for Verdigris House's fame; they are well-known throughout the capital of Li, including the Imperial Palace. It is said that a year's worth of salary is required to spend a single night with a Princess. Once a Princess retires, the Madam trains another courtesan to take her place.

### Pharmacists

The Verdigris House contains a pharmacy run by Luomen; its pharmacists treat the personnel of the brothel. In particular, STDs such as syphilis pose a threat to courtesans.

## Entertainment

Courtesans entertain customers through a variety of fine arts or games, such as dancing, poetry, Go, and shogi. They will also serve tea to customers and, in some cases, provide night services. Most courtesans specialize in one or two specific areas:

* Fengxian: board games (Go and shogi)
* Pairin: dancing and night services
* Meimei: board games (Go and shogi) and poetry
* Joka: poetry

## Ranking and Pricing

Like other brothels, the Verdigris House operates with a rank-based system; the better a courtesan is at her craft, the higher-ranked she will become. Verdigris House holds middle and high-class courtesans.

The price of a visit varies based on the type of service and length of time. Merely having a cup of tea with a courtesan is far cheaper than a night of service, and staying an extended amount of time is more expensive. However, the rank of the courtesan is the highest factor; a low-ranked courtesan can be visited at a reasonable frequency and price, while the highest-ranked take very few visits and are nearly exclusively visited by wealthy officials, artisans, or merchants. However, favors can be pulled in order to bypass payment; for example, Maomao was able to secure Lihaku a visit with Pairin in exchange for helping her visit Verdigris House.

## Lifestyle

Courtesans may join the brothel as young adults, or they may start out as "kamuro", young girls who assist the courtesans and are trained to become courtesans. Because training and amenities take up time and money, courtesans owe the brothel a certain amount of money that is to be paid off through their service towards the brothel. At Verdigris House, the youngest possible age to become a courtesan is 15. Courtesans typically retire before they lose their youth and beauty before or around the age of 30; however, there are notable exceptions: Pairin is well into her 30s and has not lost her beauty.

## Purchase

After retirement, courtesans may be redeemed by interested customers. The price of redeeming a courtesan is determined based on how much the courtesan still owes the brothel and how much money the courtesan could have made if they stayed at the brothel; it is because of the latter rule that a high-ranked courtesan is so expensive to redeem. Verdigris House also takes into account the money required for the traditional farewell party that they use to send off courtesans.

However, a courtesan's price can be lowered by the "quality" of the courtesan; for example, if a courtesan is perceived to have mental issues such as sleepwalking, their price will be considerably lowered, or they will not be sold at all. Furthermore, a courtesan's price will be lowered by the loss of virginity, since an untouched courtesan is most desirable for buyers. Most significantly, if they become pregnant and/or have a child, they will essentially become worthless, even if they are extremely high-ranked.