Translator: CinderTL
The interior of the building was meticulously designed. A raised platform dominated the front, where seven or eight graceful women danced with fluid movements, their slender white legs flashing tantalizingly between the swirling skirts.
Below, individual cubicles were partitioned by screens, numbering around twenty. Each cubicle faced the stage, allowing patrons to enjoy the dance while indulging in more intimate activities.
Each cubicle contained a lounge chair, a wooden table, a pot of clear wine, and several plates of pastries.
The lounge chair was spacious enough to accommodate three people comfortably. Xu Sanyan reclined lazily against it, the secret realm fruit pressed behind him.
The young woman beside him picked up a pastry from the wooden table and gently fed it to his mouth.
"Young master, does it taste good?" she asked softly.
"Delicious," he replied.
Xu Sanyan's arm slipped around her waist, pulling her close until they were pressed tightly together.
"Young master, why the rush?~ Why not enjoy the sisters' dance first?" The girl twisted her body coyly, her casual touches only fueling his desire.
"How old are you?" Xu Sanyan asked casually.
"This servant is forty-seven," she replied, raising a wine cup to feed him.
"Over forty, huh..."
Xu Sanyan gazed at her delicate face. This was the benefit of cultivation—someone over forty looked no different from a seventeen- or eighteen-year-old.
The girl's cultivation level was low, merely at the Celestial Being Realm. Of course, if her cultivation were higher, she wouldn't be here, entertaining men.
"Why don't you marry into a good family while you're still young?"
Pressuring virtuous women into prostitution and urging prostitutes to reform—this was a common flaw in men, and Xu Sanyan was no exception.
"Ah... it's a long story. I've lived in this city since I was a child. My skills are meager, and I have no special talents. What else could I do to make a living?"
"Are you also a member of the Wang Family?" Xu Sanyan's hand, which had been resting on her waist, slowly slid downward.
The girl's voice carried a hint of melancholy. "Just a distant branch, I'm afraid. Though we share the Wang surname, we've long lost contact with the main family in the inner city. We're even forbidden from entering it."
A hint of relief flickered across the girl's face. "Fortunately, I have a younger brother. His talent is exceptional—he reached the Celestial Being Realm in his early thirties. Two years ago, he joined the Wang Clan Martial Hall, giving him a chance to be reinstated into the Wang Family's genealogy."
Xu Sanyan nodded. Reaching the Celestial Being Realm in one's early thirties was indeed decent talent. He then asked curiously, "What about your parents?"
The girl's expression darkened considerably, her voice becoming heavy. "My father passed away when I was young. My mother has been frail for years, requiring constant medication to sustain her life."
Xu Sanyan frowned slightly, finding her story strangely familiar.
A deceased father, a sick mother, a studying younger brother, and a broken her.
Do all girls in this line of work use the same sob story?
Xu Sanyan couldn't tell if she was telling the truth, but he felt genuine pity. He silently patted her shoulder in comfort. "Ah... you've had it rough."
Tears welled up in the girl's eyes, as if he had touched a raw nerve. She began to sob softly.
Xu Sanyan pulled her into his arms, murmuring soothing words. "Don't cry. Tonight, give it your all and make me feel good, and I'll give you extra."
Looks like I'll be doing two good deeds today, getting tomorrow's out of the way too.
"Uh..." The girl froze, surprised. After all that talk, she'd thought she'd be getting some extra money. In the end, she still had to earn her keep.
But she couldn't show her disappointment. Instead, she smiled sweetly, threw herself into his arms, and cooed, "Thank you, young master."
Xu Sanyan comforted her while lifting her skirt. "I forgot to ask—what are your rates here?"
"If you're staying overnight, it's just ten spirit stones. If you want me to keep you company, you can tip me whatever you feel like."
Not bad at all, Xu Sanyan thought, nodding approvingly.
With that settled, he decided not to take a free ride this time. His hands grew bolder, his touches more confident—after all, he wasn't going to waste his money.
On the stage, the dancers moved with graceful fluidity. As cultivators, their bodies were supple, effortlessly executing complex poses that drew gasps of admiration from the audience.
Xu Sanyan narrowed his eyes slightly, completely absorbed in the performance, showing no trace of the urgency of a man on the run.
The young woman beside him gazed curiously at the tightly bound sphere. Unable to resist, she asked, "Young master, why do you always carry this thing around?"
Xu Sanyan opened his eyes, a flicker of coldness passing through his pupils. He reached out, lifted her chin with a finger, and murmured, "Your professional skills are lacking."
Meeting his gaze, the woman involuntarily trembled, a chill shooting through her from the soles of her feet to the crown of her head.
Realizing she had overstepped, she hastily apologized, "This servant was too nosy. Please forgive me, young master."
"Heh, that's more like it."
The coldness in Xu Sanyan's eyes vanished, replaced by a warm smile. His fingers, still pinching her chin, casually patted her cheek as he pulled her upstairs.
Bang!
The wooden door slammed shut, and faint cries of alarm from the woman echoed within the room.
Her soft gasps mingled with the music and dancing below, like cicadas chirping in the rain—their shrill calls piercing through the steady drizzle.
This brothel and music hall was a place of leisure, where such affairs needed no special occasion. When the mood struck, anything was possible.
The young woman never imagined that a customer she'd casually picked up would possess such boundless stamina.
For half the night, her cries rang out like cicadas, growing hoarse by the end. The servant boy passing by several times to refill tea and water heard the increasingly feeble cries and couldn't help but shake his head slightly, a flicker of pity in his heart.
Truly, money is hard to earn and shit is hard to swallow, he thought. Even spreading your legs for customers isn't as easy as it looks.
As dusk began to settle, deep within the Wang Family's estate in the inner city, in an elegant young woman's chamber, Wang Zixuan lay pale on her bed, her left arm securely splinted and slung across her chest.
Four others were present in the room: Wang Qingyu and Wang Ruixin, the sisters, as well as a middle-aged woman and an old man.
Having finished treating Wang Zixuan's injury, the old man rose and turned to the woman. "It's nothing serious—just a fractured bone. I've applied the medicine; she'll recover with rest."
The woman gazed at her daughter on the bed, her eyes brimming with concern. Hearing the old man's words, she breathed a sigh of relief and repeatedly thanked him. "Thank you so much, Seventh Uncle. I'll see you out."
"No need," the old man replied, turning to leave.
"Thank you, Seventh Grandfather," Wang Zixuan murmured softly, sighing inwardly. To get myself married off, I've really put myself through the wringer.
"Xuan'er, rest well. Your mother will find whoever hurt you. How dare anyone attack you on Wang Family territory? They're courting death!"
The woman's anger grew with each word. She grabbed Wang Qingyu and Ruixin by the arms and strode out, eager to uncover the full story.
The three women exchanged subtle glances, their eyes flickering slightly. They had already rehearsed their story; there would be no inconsistencies.
(End of the Chapter)
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