A Lewd Welcome Banquet Just For Me
I had been staying at Cao Cao's residence for several days now.
Every morning, noon, and evening, the entire household gathered in the main hall for meals.
Of course, we didn't share the same table. It was a gathering where each person had their own individual tray.
For reference, the meals were incredibly lavish.
Even though this was supposed to be a chaotic age of war, there was an abundance of meat dishes, and everything tasted so good that I was certain I'd gain a lot of weight if I stayed here much longer.
On either side of me sat Cao Cao's sons and nephews.
Cao Ang was on my right, and on my left sat Cao Anmin, with whom I'd recently grown close.
After finishing the meal, we brushed our teeth using willow twigs and roasted salt, then rinsed our mouths with tea.
The remaining time until the next meal was... simply free time.
Cao Cao had praised me highly for saving his family and given me a room in the main hall so I could live alongside his sons, yet he hadn't assigned me any actual duties.
He simply let me live freely within the house. With nothing else to do, I spent my time practicing archery at the shooting range inside the residence.
Thwack—
“Bullseye.”
I kept firing arrow after arrow at the targets, hitting them dead center.
In historical dramas, they often inserted archery scenes to show a troubled heart, complete with trembling hands. That was exactly my current state.
Once I grew tired of shooting, I would grab a staff or wooden sword and train by striking the training dummies.
That was how I had been passing the days.
“Young Master.”
“Ah, what is it?”
“Please speak more casually. This servant belongs to the household.”
It was Li Ga, the servant who had first woken me from sleep and guided me to the main hall, and who had continued handling various chores for me ever since.
“Lord Zumok dislikes such formalities, so please speak comfortably.”
“Ah, well then...”
I had heard that Cao Cao disliked being addressed with excessive respect by his subordinates.
It seemed he was quite particular about the prestige and authority of his clan.
“So, what is it...”
“A letter has arrived from your mother in Qiao County.”
“Ah!”
I took it and immediately unfolded the letter.
If it was from Mother, whom I had parted with in Wu Commandery, I needed to read it right away.
Hyeon-ah, are you doing well?
This mother of yours has also arrived safely in our hometown of Qiao County and is living very comfortably. I was overjoyed to hear that you saved the great elder of our family, Lord Cao Taiwei. Thanks to you, Lord Zumok has gifted us a fine house and even sent several servants. We are living quite well.
This mother intends to spend the rest of her life here, so do not worry about us. Accomplish great things there. I will always believe in you.
Cao Cao had apparently provided Mother back in Qiao County with both a house and servants.
Reading the letter made the tip of my nose sting for no reason.
After all, it was because I had been recognized as part of Cao Cao's family that I had come this far.
“I should write a reply to send back to Qiao County.”
“Young Master, if you write it here and give it to me, I will ensure it reaches Qiao County.”
Since Li Ga said he handled a lot of letters both incoming and outgoing, I decided to entrust him with delivering my reply to Mother.
And so, letters were received and sent in this manner. Before I knew it, it was time for the evening meal again.
During dinner, no conversation took place at all.
Everyone simply came, ate in silence, and at most offered praise like, “The food today is excellent,” directed at Lady Ding.
Once the meal was finished, servants quickly cleared the tables and brought out willow twigs for brushing teeth along with tea.
Just as I was thinking another day had passed, I stepped out into the courtyard to aid my digestion.
“Hey, Munyeol!”
“Hup!?”
Suddenly someone called my name and threw an arm around my shoulders from behind.
Startled, I turned my head to see it was Cao Hong.
“What are you doing out here alone?”
“Ah, Uncle Zalyeom!”
While staying here, I had been addressing Xiahou Dun, Cao Ren, Cao Hong, and Xiahou Yuan all as “Uncle.”
One of them, Cao Hong, patted my back and said meaningfully,
“Is life here treating you well?”
“Yes. Uncle Mengde has been treating me extremely well.”
“You just eat and sleep all day. Aren’t you bored?”
“To be honest, I do feel a bit restless...”
“Then it’s settled. Come out of the house tonight.”
“Pardon?”
“I’m hosting a banquet, and you’re the guest of honor. So you must come.”
Cao Hong suddenly grabbed me and declared he was throwing a banquet, insisting I attend.
I said I understood. He told me he would send a servant later to guide me.
With that in mind, when night fell, I went to bid the Cao family goodnight.
“Father, sleep well.”
“Oh, yes.”
Cao Cao always received greetings from his sons both when he woke up and before he went to sleep, and I was included among them.
In effect, I was being treated like one of his own sons.
“Munyeol, have you been up to anything lately?”
“No, Uncle. Thanks to your kind care, I’ve been very comfortable.”
“Good, then.”
“However, I must step out of the house for a while tonight.”
“Hmm? Why? Do you have business on the night roads?”
“Well… Uncle Zalyeom invited me to a banquet.”
At that moment, Lady Ding’s expression, who had been sitting beside Cao Cao, twisted dramatically.
Were Cao Hong and Lady Ding on bad terms? Why was she reacting like that?
“Zalyeom invited you, you say?”
“Yes, that is correct.”
“Haha, that rascal!”
While Cao Cao simply laughed it off, Lady Ding stared at me piercingly and asked,
“Did he truly tell you to come out?”
“Yes, he did.”
“Did he not ask you to bring any of the other children?”
“No… he did not. He said I was the protagonist of the night...”
“At least that’s something. Very well.”
Unlike Cao Cao, who laughed it off, Lady Ding still wore a displeased expression.
Seeing that, I began to get an idea.
It was a banquet Cao Cao could laugh about, but one Lady Ding absolutely despised… This was clearly no ordinary gathering.
“Hahaha, so it’s a banquet hosted by Zalyeom? It wouldn’t be bad for you to attend.”
“Husband...”
Cao Cao’s reaction, and then Lady Ding’s reaction.
It was certain now.
This had to be one of those dirty, women-related banquets.
“Go on, then. Depending on how things go, I won’t mind if you return tomorrow morning.”
Cao Cao saying that only confirmed my suspicions further.
In this country where human rights were nonexistent, I was already nervous about what kind of obscene banquet awaited me.
After bidding them goodnight, I was waiting in the courtyard when Li Ga soon approached.
“Young Master, you were here? Someone is waiting for you outside.”
“Ah, I’ve been waiting.”
Following Li Ga’s guidance, I was able to leave Cao Cao’s residence.
“Are you Young Master Munyeol? We have been waiting.”
“…A carriage?”
They had even brought a carriage. Two attendants respectfully escorted me aboard.
I had no idea where exactly Cao Hong was taking me, but it seemed they had prepared quite extravagantly.
Once I boarded, the driver rode for quite a while. When the carriage finally stopped and I stepped down, an enormous pleasure house stood before me.
“Whoa, it’s huge.”
“Please follow me inside.”
It was unmistakably a brothel filled with courtesans. The moment I stepped inside, an entirely different world unfolded.
Even late at night, countless lanterns created an atmosphere of endless revelry. Laughter and music never ceased.
Whenever I passed by, courtesans greeted me politely. Every one of them wore thin, nearly transparent clothing that accentuated their breasts and legs, naturally drawing the eye.
Was it really acceptable to dress like that during the Han Dynasty?
Moreover, whenever our eyes met, they all smiled at me.
“Young Master, this is the place.”
When the attendant who had brought me opened the door, I saw the entire Cao clan gathered inside the spacious room—the same faces I had seen at Cao Cao’s mansion.
“My lord, I have brought him.”
“Oho, Munyeol has arrived! Come, sit here.”
Uncle Cao Hong immediately stood up when I entered and guided me to the prepared seat.
His face was flushed red and his beard was damp. It looked like he had already been drinking heavily before I arrived.
“Brothers, the protagonist of tonight has arrived—Cao Munyeol!”
“Hah, the kid really showed up the moment Zalyeom said he was throwing a banquet. Must’ve been looking forward to it.”
The one drunkenly waving an empty cup in one corner was Xiahou Dun.
Beside him, Xiahou Yuan was calmly trying to restrain him, while across from them sat Cao Ren, who was devouring meat and alcohol with gusto.
“What kind of banquet is this?”
“The kind where you get to enjoy quite the spectacle.”
“Pardon?”
Cao Hong grinned widely, sat me down beside him, and clapped his hands twice.
I still couldn’t quite adjust to the atmosphere, so I filled my own cup and downed it in one go.
This was clearly the second century of the Han Dynasty during the Three Kingdoms era, yet the behavior here felt exactly like a 21st-century after-party where the chairman’s relative, directors, and executives from the same family company gathered for round two of drinking.
Clap— Clap—
“What are you waiting for? Come in at once.”
When Cao Hong clapped twice more, the door opened.
The courtesans in those sheer garments I had passed earlier were standing ready.
But each of them was holding something.
Upon closer inspection, they were drums.
Women carrying drums were filing in. Were they going to play music by striking the drums from inside?
“Uh, ugh? Brother Zalyeom, are you really going to do ‘that’…?”
Cao Ren, who had been focused only on meat and alcohol, suddenly turned bright red as he asked Cao Hong.
“It’s been a while. Shall we do ‘that’ once?”
Just what is ‘that’?
Cao Ren swallowed hard while staring at the courtesans. Cao Hong laughed heartily and gestured for them to begin. Xiahou Dun also widened his eyes, saying he was in for a good show.
On the other hand, Xiahou Yuan simply poured himself more wine and smirked as if he couldn’t care less.
“We shall now begin.”
Starting with the lead courtesan, they each placed the drums they carried at their feet.
Then they all stepped onto the drums and began performing by tapping them lightly with their feet.
It was exactly like tap dancing performed on drums.
Yet Cao Ren watched with clenched fists, clearly anticipating something more.
Don’t tell me they’re going to dance on the drums and then start stripping?
“Munyeol, you probably never saw anything like this down south in Wu Commandery. Enjoy it properly.”
At Cao Hong’s words, the courtesans—who had been tapping the drums with their feet while dancing—suddenly lifted one leg high.
I thought about how flexible their bodies were for only a moment. Then, all at once, they began slowly untying the strings of the white socks on their feet.
“O-oh! Ooooooh!”
Uncle Cao Ren, it’s just one sock. Is that really worth getting so excited about?
Cao Ren was completely absorbed, his eyes practically bulging out of his head.
Xiahou Dun clapped enthusiastically, cheering them on to keep going.
The moment the courtesans removed their socks, Cao Ren looked like he might burst a blood vessel.
Beautiful, snow-white feet—freshly washed and with neatly trimmed nails—were revealed.
When they resumed dancing on the drums with bare feet, everyone in the room except me watched the performance with faces full of intense excitement.
As the performance reached its peak, they slowly untied and removed the remaining sock as well. Now dancing with both bare feet on the drums, they struck them even harder, producing louder sounds.
“This is the best! Truly the greatest performance!”
Cao Ren shouted in excitement. Cao Hong laughed heartily and asked me,
“It’s the kind of banquet any real man should enjoy, right? What do you think, Munyeol?”
“Uh, well… this is...”
Was taking off a single pair of socks and dancing barefoot on drums really considered such a lewd banquet?
To be honest… is this even erotic? What’s so dirty about a barefoot dance...
…was what I wanted to say.