Leng Shuangyue bowed towards the two of them. “Miss, young master, I have to step outside for a bit.”

Qiu Honglei waved her hand at her. “You should go. Take care of them well.”

Leng Shuangyue acknowledged her and left, closing the door behind her.

Qiu Honglei smiled. “Look at how your eyes are glued to her. If you want her, I’m more than willing to offer her to you. I’m being serious.”

Zu An blushed. “What do you mean? I was just preoccupied with some thoughts earlier on.”

Qiu Honglei turned around and sat in his lap, hooking her hands around his neck. “It’s not like I mind. Besides, I can’t take care of you. Wouldn’t it be the same if I had one of my girls take care of you instead?”

After what they had done in his room previously, the final barrier between them had been completely shattered. She was completely open with her lover as she sat intimately in his lap.

Zu An stiffened up, encouraged by the supple feeling of her bottom. Qiu Honglei blushed, looking at him with slightly misty eyes. “Naughty.”

Zu An swallowed. “You shouldn’t play with fire. You know you can’t give yourself to me, and yet you’re still doing this type of thing.”

Qiu Honglei giggled. “So what if a fire starts? Have you forgotten that this is a government brothel? We can always find some girls to help put out your fire.”

This she-devil!

Zu An groaned. He remembered why he had come, and used a healthy dose of willpower to push her away. “Let me see what kind of person this Cheng Gang is for myself.”

“Scaredy-cat,” Qiu Honglei teased him. Inside, though, her heart was pounding. If Zu An was playing with fire, then what about her?

Zu An could find other women to satisfy him, but what could she do?

She stuck out her tongue at him, while sternly reminding herself not to engage in such behavior in the future.

Zu An moved to the window and pushed it open just a little, peering at the situation below.

He saw a stout young man with a thick neck in the lead. He wore a blue vest that was popular amongst the young masters of the capital, as if trying to pose as a culture lover. He wanted to look scholarly and refined, but it did not suit his build at all.

Qiu Honglei introduced him, standing beside Zu An. Her voice was full of disdain. “That’s Cheng Gang. It’s obvious that he’s a coarse musclehead, yet he still wants to look like a scholar.” 

Zu An’s expression was a bit strange. It wasn’t that girls didn’t like muscular guys, they just didn’t like ugly guys. There was actually a term girls on the internet liked to call this type of man: shrimp men. You could only eat them after cutting off their heads.

Qiu Honglei seemed surprised by the people following him. “Hm? It seems the young master of the Qin clan is with him today. The one in the back with the thick brows and big eyes is the grandson of the State Duke of Triumph, Qin Guangyuan, while the one with more delicate features is the grandson of the State Duke of Prestige, Qin Yongde.”

The State Duke of Triumph was Chu Chuyan’s grandfather, Qin Zheng, while the State Duke of Prestige was Chu Chuyan’s granduncle, Qin Se.

He had to admit that the Qin clan had good genes. They all rated pretty highly on the attractiveness scale. Cheng Gang looked like a mere servant next to the two of them.

All this was within reason. Qin Zheng and Qin Se were both rather decent-looking, and given their high social status, they were able to marry beautiful women. Their children enjoyed the same benefits, and when both parties in the marriage were good-looking, the chance of producing an ugly child was low.

“Hm? There’s someone you recognize.” Qiu Honglei had a weird look on her face. She nudged Zu An with her elbow. “Your little brother-in-law is here as well. Should I have my girls take good care of him?”

Zu An caught sight of the petite figure in the very back, and his eyes widened as well. This kid really was attractive. Qin Yongde was already rather handsome, but he was still miles behind her in terms of looks.

Why did this kid run all the way here? Zu An’s head began to ache. Have you forgotten that you’re a cross-dresser? You’re begging for death by coming to such a place. When he heard Honglei’s teasing remark, he quickly replied, “There’s no need. Just treat him like how you normally would, so that they don’t find anything suspicious.”

“Young master Qin, young master Chu, this way please.” Cheng Gang’s boorish voice filled the air. He made it sound as though he was the master of the house, eagerly inviting them in.

Shangyue welcomed the guests skillfully as well. She was about to lead them inside, but the thick-browed Qin Guangyuan stopped her. “Let’s stay here in the courtyard.”

Shuangyue was momentarily stunned, but she reacted quickly. “Sure!” She ordered her maids to bring some drinks and refreshments out.

“I believe they’re discussing something highly secret, and are afraid of outsiders listening in,” commented Qiu Honglei. “That’s why they’ve chosen a more open space.”

Zu An nodded. Her thoughts mirrored his own.

Cheng Gang laughed and said, “Shuangyue, all these young masters are truly formidable. However, the star of tonight is young master Chu. This is his first visit to such an establishment. You have to take good care of him.”

Chu Youzhao blushed, but quickly covered it up. “It’s fine. I’m okay being left alone.”

The handsome Qin Yongde chuckled and patted her shoulder. “Youzhao is still a little shy. We’re all men, aren’t we? You’ll get used to it as we come here more often. Lady Shuangyue is quite a beauty. She’s an excellent choice for your first experience.”

Chu Youzhao evaded his touch in a tactful manner, but she felt rather frustrated inside. I wouldn’t have come with them to this place if I’d known it was going to be like this! Sigh, it’s so tiring pretending to be a guy… There’s so much nonsense to worry about.

Shuangyue smiled. “Young master Chu is truly dashing.”

She was familiar with Chu Youzhao’s relationship to Brightmoon City’s Chu clan. Since he was Zu An’s brother-in-law, she supposed that it would be good to treat him well.

The others used her words to tease him further. “Even Shuangyue seems to have been charmed by Brother Youzhao! Haha!”

Qin Yongde also smiled. “Even the first miss of the Murong clan has been completely captivated by him. What more a brothel girl?”

Qin Guangyuan frowned slightly. “Second brother, please speak cautiously.”

Qin Yongde belatedly realized that comparing the first miss of the Murong clan to a brothel girl wasn’t appropriate. “That wasn’t nice of me. I’ll drink three cups as a punishment.”

The bunch of them were soon drinking cheerfully, each of them with two girls to keep them company, while Chu Youzhao had Shuangyue at her side.

As he watched the Qin brothers and Cheng Gang gleefully taking advantage of the girls beside them, Zu An felt as though he’d been returned to the clubbing scene in his past world.

Uh… As a highly-experienced keyboard warrior, he obviously hadn’t been to those places before. He’d only heard about them online.

While these fellows seemed like fish in water, Chu Youzhao fidgeted restlessly, continuously shuffling to the side and watching the lovely courtesan beside her vigilantly. “Don’t touch me.”

Shangyue giggled. “Why are you so nervous, young master Chu? I won’t eat you.”

Chu Youzhao frowned. These brothel women really had no sense of shame. However, that was hardly something she could say right now. “I’m not used to physical contact with others,” she said instead.

“No problem. I’ll sit slightly further away.” Shuangyue didn’t suspect a thing, since she had met all sorts of men in this place,  many with even stranger behavior. “Since this is the young master’s first time here, this humble one will pour a glass to honor you.”

Chu Youzhao bit her lip. The actions of her companions left her feeling rather ashamed. She didn’t refuse the drink, since she desperately needed something to divert her attention.

Shuangyue beamed when she saw that Chu Youzhao was willing to drink, and quickly poured her one glass after another. As the courtesan queen of a government brothel, she knew all the tricks to get her clients to drink. The inexperienced Chu Youzhao was no match for her. Despite her initial intentions not to drink too much, she still downed a fair bit.

Within the building, Qiu Honglei smiled. “Your little brother-in-law is quite a gentleman. He’s just slightly too feminine.”

Zu An rolled his eyes. Is this girl stupid? It’s one thing to  come to a brothel, but are you really going to drink that much as well? Aren’t you afraid that you’ll black out, and that your identity will be exposed?

After a period of carousing, Cheng Gang coughed and said, “Lady Shuangyue, we have something we need to discuss amongst ourselves.”

Leng Shuangyue rose and bowed. “If there is anything you need, my lords, please let this humble one know.” Then, she withdrew with the other girls.

Zu An’s face lit up. “They’re starting!”

This wait had truly been rather hard to endure. He’d had to watch them play around without being able to do anything himself.

Qiu Honglei looked worried. “We might not be able to hear anything once they deliberately conceal what they are saying.”