Yoshiwara in Edo was a pleasure quarter opened with the shogunate's permission in 1617 at Fukiyacho in Nihonbashi. After the great fire of 1657 it was moved to Nihonzutsumi in Asakusa, and from then on was called the "New Yoshiwara." It was surrounded by a moat called the "blackened-teeth ditch," and the great gate was the only way in or out.
Where Shimabara in Kyoto prized prestige and culture, Yoshiwara in Edo prized dash and hari, pride and backbone. It is said the Yoshiwara courtesans never warmed to a guest they disliked, even a daimyo.
After coming into his inheritance, Yonosuke made the rounds of the pleasure quarters of the three cities and came to Yoshiwara in Edo too. A Yoshiwara tayu was slow to warm to a guest; on a first visit she only exchanged cups and hardly spoke. On a second visit she was still reserved. Only on the third visit did he become a "regular," with chopsticks set aside just for him. These customs of "first meeting," "second visit" and "regular" were the etiquette of play at Yoshiwara.
Comparing the courtesans of Kyoto, Osaka and Edo, Saikaku cites a saying of the time: "Give a Kyoto courtesan Edo's pride, and play with her in an Osaka ageya." The beauty and grace of Kyoto's courtesans, the proud spirit of Edo's, and the splendor of Osaka's ageya, houses where courtesans were called for entertainment. Through the customs of the pleasure quarters, he draws the character of each city.
In each pleasure quarter Yonosuke played out the games of love with all sorts of courtesans and spent money like water. His way of playing also mirrored the dreams and longings of the townspeople.