IHOEAYSTTTIW Chapter 39

Chapter 39: The methods used to attract customers in brothels and with rocking cars are not that different.

As expected, the pleasure district was unlike any other place. The vermilion doors shone with extravagance under the glow of the lanterns, and the air was thick with the scent of face powder. Even the large red lanterns hanging at the entrance were many times bigger than those of ordinary homes.

Lin Yan peered through the crack in the window, vaguely catching sight of an ornate palace lantern hanging from the ceiling, its light soft and ambiguous. Inside the room, women played instruments and recited poetry, their figures graceful and alluring.

The pure and foolish Lin University student had never seen such a sight before and unconsciously stepped into the encirclement.

Lin Yan didn’t attract much attention, but when Yun Qi rushed over, the women soliciting customers at the door immediately greeted him with smiles. One of them, holding a fan to partially cover her face, gave Yun Qi a flirty wink and teased, “Young master, come have some fun~”

Yun Qi pulled Lin Yan back a couple of steps, hiding behind him.

Hearing the woman’s affected, gentle voice, Lin Yan’s mind wandered for a moment.

He seemed to have heard this kind of solicitation before, even the wording was similar. Lin Yan repeated it to himself a couple of times and finally realized where this strange familiarity came from.

“Little handsome guy, come play~”

Wasn’t this the rocking car outside the supermarket?

Lin Yan chuckled, waiting with amusement for what the woman would say next.

The woman who had come to solicit customers had seen all kinds of guests, but Lin Yan’s reaction was a first for her.

Her movements stiffened for a moment, but she quickly plastered on a smile again. She casually took two steps to the side, but conveniently caught her real target.

The woman gave Yun Qi a flirty wink, the fragrance from her handkerchief wafting over, “Young master, today is the Ghost Festival, aren’t you willing to spend more time with this humble servant?”

Yun Qi dodged the woman’s outstretched hand at an odd angle, tugging on Lin Yan’s sleeve and whispering, “Brother, it’s enough to look outside, it’s better not to…”

“What’s so interesting outside? Young master, come in and sit.” The woman blocked Yun Qi, casually picking up a jug of wine from a maid and offering it to Yun Qi, “Today is the Ghost Festival, Cuier will take the liberty to offer you a jug of wine, how about it?”

Yun Qi waved his hands repeatedly, pulling Lin Yan back two steps.

Cuier put down the wine jug, took two quick steps forward, her voice tinged with a hint of reproach, “Does the young master dislike Cuier’s appearance, or…”

Yun Qi quickened his pace, pulling Lin Yan and slipping into the crowd.

“It’s all Yanzi’s fault for taking away that easy-to-use rouge. Now I can’t even handle a young kid with this makeup.” Cuier tsked, taking out a mirror to look left and right. Seeing a new pimple sprouting on her temple, she stuffed the mirror away.

Yun Qi pulled Lin Yan around the pleasure district in a perfunctory manner, then prepared to leave. But he had never been to this place before, and there were so many people on the street during the Ghost Festival. Plus, he had terrible sense of direction and somehow ended up back in front of the Drunken Pleasure Tower.

Cuier, still soliciting customers at the door, immediately spotted these two unlucky customers. Always a hard worker, she had no desire to try to recruit them again. Instead, she set her sights on an old man who was half-buried in the ground.

“Little Cuier, you’re still young. Watch your older sister.” The purple-clad woman who had just come out patted Cuier’s shoulder, waving her fan as she went to greet them.

“Would you like to come in and take a look, young master?” The purple-clad woman walked up to them. Meeting Yun Qi’s wary gaze, she suddenly switched her target. Without even looking at Yun Qi, she gave all her tenderness to Lin Yan, making a graceful bow with a charming posture, “You’re so handsome, young master, you must be gentle and affectionate.”

Lin Yan was tempted, but he still shook his head with great difficulty.

“I know you don’t find me attractive, but Mama said if I don’t recruit any customers today, she’ll sell me to Old Man Zhang, who’s over seventy years old.” The woman took out a handkerchief from her sleeve, dabbing it under her eyes, “Please have pity on me, young master, come in and take a look.”

Lin Yan didn’t reply, but his feet had already begun to move uncontrollably.

Knowing he couldn’t stop him, Yun Qi reluctantly followed him inside, muttering in a disgruntled tone, “Brother, don’t get too close to them. This is a gold-consuming den.”

Lin Yan was only curious about what an ancient brothel looked like and had no interest in hiring a prostitute. He patted the sulky kid’s head, casually reassuring him, “Relax, relax, I’m just going in to take a look.”

“Is this your first time, young master? Let me show you around?” The purple-clad woman gave Cuier a triumphant look, leading them inside.

Inside the Drunken Pleasure Tower, the buildings were carved with beams and painted pillars, and red lanterns swayed with ambiguous light. On the stage, women dressed in silk robes, their sleeves fluttering, moved with light steps, their eyes filled with emotion, looking around gracefully. The patrons clinked glasses, most of them already drunk, still not forgetting to flirt with the women beside them, pretending to be cultured by reciting two lines of poetry that made no sense.

Lin Yan lost interest after taking two glances, and the thought of leaving sprouted into a small seedling. The purple-clad woman subtly blocked Lin Yan’s path, smiling softly, “These are all new girls, and their performances aren’t very interesting. Please sit for a while, young master, and you’ll soon see Xuanji’s performance.”

Yun Qi cleverly dodged the outstretched hand, took out a silver coin from his purse, and threw it into the woman’s arms, coldly ordering, “Find a quiet private room.”

The woman weighed the silver coin in her hand, her smile becoming even more enthusiastic, “Please follow me, young masters.”

The stairs in the Drunken Pleasure Tower were very narrow, and the way to the private rooms was winding and circuitous. Every few steps, they would see girls soliciting customers and drunken patrons.

The girls who had been through the mill in this kind of place were very good at reading people. They weren’t very interested in Lin Yan, but Yun Qi, who was following behind Lin Yan, was more popular.

Yun Qi dodged left and right, his evasion skills maxed out, and the “MISS” above his head almost never stopped appearing.

The journey was particularly difficult, but fortunately, the private room was close at hand.

Having gone to such lengths to detour, yet still unable to win over these two customers, the woman felt a little regret, but she didn’t show it on her face at all.

“Please rest for a while, young masters. I’ll go get you some wine.” She gave the two people in the room a shallow bow, thoughtfully closing the door behind her.

Lin Yan leaned back on the soft couch, took an orange from the fruit basket, peeled it open, and stuffed it into Yun Qi’s mouth, teasing with a raised corner of his mouth, “You look like Tang Sanzang entering the Spider Cave.”

“I’m very faithful, unlike you, brother…” Yun Qi swallowed the orange in his mouth, imitating the woman’s earlier gesture, waving a rag, “Gentle and affectionate.”

Lin Yan laughed so hard his stomach hurt, and it took him a long time to catch his breath. He retorted, “I didn’t…”

Before Lin Yan could finish speaking, there were two knocks on the door, and a woman dressed in gauze came in with a tray, bowing gracefully, “Young masters, here’s the wine you ordered, and…”

Yun Qi went to take the tray, but the woman suddenly cried out and fell towards Yun Qi. Yun Qi instinctively dodged to the side, but it was too late, and the woman grabbed his wrist.

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