Chapter 185 Are you calling me a madam?
It took a few seconds for Scarlet to process what captain Zorl was asking or accusing her of. To her understanding, someone had secretly opened a brothel on her planet without going through the proper process and she was captain Zorl's first suspect.
"What exactly are you saying to my sister captain Zorl?" Carolyn asked him with a hostile expression on her face. "Please keep in mind that she is not just the governor but the daughter of a noble house and wife of a general who is related to the emperor. Her reputation cannot afford to undergo such a slander."
"I am simply asking questions, which happens to be my job." Captain Zorl responded. "All I need is the governor's reassurance that she did not sanction the operation of an illegal brothel and the RGB will handle the issue from there."
Scarlet's tongue finally loosened and she looked at Carolyn before looking back at captain Zorl and asking, "Are you calling me a madam? Do you think that with my busy schedule I have the time to run...pr....courtesans on the side?" She did not want to call them prostitutes, it might sound demeaning. And their profession was also generally accepted on this world it seemed. In fact, it was considered a necessity and brothels were called pleasure houses.
"I am not calling you anything governor, I just received a tip that the unfinished building at the edge of crab lake is being used to house a secret pleasure house. If permission came from you or general Esong we can overlook the matter of the permit briefly as long as it's filed before night comes." Captain Zorl answered politely and even made a concession which he would never make for anyone else.
His new statement however angered Scarlet even more than he expected. "Now you think my husband sanctioned the illegal brothel? Why? Does he secretly indulge in the pleasures of the pleasure house?"
Captain Zorl looked at Carolyn for help and she shrugged. 'You started this, finish it.' her eyes conveyed. He could have asked his questions without making them sound accusatory.?And of all places he chose this public place which was so close to a space port which was somewhat over crowded. He should have asked her to talk in private or enacted a sound barrier. RGB officers were permitted to use them when questioning a suspect in public if it was an emergency.
"Take me to the brothel, now." She commanded.
Carolyn pulled Scarlet's hand and looked at her quizzically. "Are you crazy, you are a noble woman, you cannot be seen visiting a pleasure house. Mother will wring your neck like a chicken." She turned a fierce gaze on captain Zorl and declared, "My sister is going nowhere."
"I am the governor of the blue star first, nobility comes second to me, we cannot have news spread that the blue star overridden with crime. We only have one developed city so far, if we cannot handle such small things when we are small, it will become worse when we grow bigger. I need to know who is sabotaging our good progress." Scarlet could not sit by idly and watch this happen.
"Then I will go." Carolyn replied. "Those people are coming to meet you." She tilted the direction of a group of obvious mecha warriors that Adler was bringing her way.
"Captain Zorl, I am ordering you to keep this matter private.?If no arrests are going to made then keep it silent. If the person behind the pleasure houses wants to file for a permit make sure that the pleasure house is miles away from the nearest school. I will not have children?anywhere near it.?It should also be very far away from the temple and all the workers must have a certificate of good health from the hospital." She spoke hurriedly, not wanting the mecha warriors to find them whispering about this.?Carolyn was right. as a woman from a noble family married to a man from upper nobility, she should not even be overheard discussing pleasure houses.
She did wonder however about which women on the blue star were working in that place.?Esong had mentioned to her that pleasure houses made a lot of money in winter because unmarried men spent on to two months worth of their earnings in there. He also said that it was a way they distracted themselves from the bitterness of the winter.
She pushed Carolyn and captain Zorl away quickly while putting on a fake smile for the newly arrived mecha warriors.
"Hey sister." Adler waved as he looked at Carolyn and captain Zorl who almost appeared to be escaping quickly with the way they were running away. "Is something wrong?"
"Nooo," Scarlet replied in a high pitch. "All is well, what could possibly be wrong? Our blue star is peaceful and normal as usual."?Anyone that knew her could easily tell that when she spoke in a high pitched voice, she was hiding something.
"Right." Adler responded doubtfully. "This is Captain Vangar, he is the leader of the mecha warriors that have been sent to keep us safe this winter. He wanted to introduce himself to you and also get some information from you about the city, both the habited and uninhabited areas."
"Pleasure to meet you captain Vangar," Scarlet held out her gloved hand to shake his, "I am Scarlet Su, governor of the blue star."
"The pleasure is all mine." Captain Vangar smiled, "I have been wanting to pay a visit to the blue star for a while now. It's a beautiful planet and we will do our best to keep it this way."
Captain Vangar was a large man with red curly hair and a red well trimmed beard. He had a jolly face that appeared to be smiling a lot of the time. He also had a calm assuring aura about him which made one feel safe.
"Then I will thank you in advance captain, we will be counting on you a lot this winter. Please do not hesitate to come to when you need anything. Also, please try to keep the mutated beasts and mechas out of the city. We have only just built and I am keeping my fingers crossed while hoping that when the suns come out again, our buildings will still be standing."
"I cannot make any promises but we will do our best. Now I want your assistance in mapping all the important areas where we should pay the most attention to. I would also like to see where the shelters are, those above ground and the ones that are below. If you need any help reinforcing them, we will start on that immediately."
Thee was a lot to do and many arrangements to make. But she made sure to sneak out a text to her husband, informing him about the illegal brothel.
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