Chapter 234: Chapter 102 Accidental Encounter at Yuxian Tower_2
"My beauty, let’s go up... upstairs," she mumbled, embracing Lu Tong as they headed upstairs.
Lu Tong tenderly supported Yin Zheng’s arm, and the two staggered up to the second floor.
Qi Yutai was holding a banquet in a private room of Yuxian Tower, and now, deep into the night, the feast neared its end. With the heavy downpour outside, Qi Yutai was likely to stay in Yuxian Tower for the night.
The upper floors were the luxurious chambers, designated for affluent guests and the noble young masters to stay overnight. They came at a hefty price. When Du Changqing’s father was still alive and the Du Family had not yet fallen into decline, Young Master Du wouldn’t dare spend the night here, fearing he’d be swindled out of a large sum. Yin Zheng and Lu Tong had emptied all the consultation fees previously given by Princess Consort Wen for this outing.
Yin Zheng, holding onto Lu Tong, made her way to the second floor. At the entrance sat a man drinking wine, seemingly the pimp, who giggly approached upon seeing them. Yin Zheng, understanding the situation, slapped a silver note into his hand, and the man stepped aside, making way: "Please come in, my lord! Come right in!"
The entire second floor was refurbished to resemble the Embroidery Pavilion of a maiden’s boudoir, with a row of carved bamboo windows, from within which came the sweet sound of women’s flirtatious laughter, which was enough to warm one’s ear.
Yin Zheng wasn’t warmed by this; instead, she felt pained by the Silver she had just parted with, whispering a complaint, "Just to stay here a night costs a hundred taels of Silver for a single room. No wonder there’s a saying, ’A boatload of gold and Silver can never fill the debts of pleasure quarters.’" She then sighed, "But considering how costly it is here, the Silver needed to buy oneself out must be even more."
Back then, Yin Zheng’s heart was set on gathering enough Silver to buy her freedom and return home, yet she hadn’t reached that day before being cast out at Mass Burial Mound. Now entering this place again, she couldn’t help but feel wistful.
Outside these intricately carved windows, some doors had a floral crown hanging, signifying occupancy, while those without meant the room was empty.
Lu Tong looked back, and not seeing the pimp any longer, she turned and pushed open a door with a floral crown hanging directly in front of her.
"Ah—"
A sudden scream came from the room, where a man and woman were half-dressed in intimate embrace, rudely interrupted by the intrusion. The man snapped, "Who’s there?"
Yin Zheng stumbled forward, belching from the wine, "...have we arrived?"
Lu Tong, supporting her, politely spoke to the two inside the room, "The young master is drunk and has entered the wrong room by mistake, please forgive us." With that said, they quickly left.
The door closed behind them, unable to muffle the ongoing cursing and the woman’s soft consoling from within. Lu Tong glanced at the floral crown hanging by the door, her eyes flickering.
"Not this one."
Qi Yutai’s men vanished quickly and there was no sign of them in the halls of Yuxian Tower. The rooms of the Embroidery Pavilion on the second floor all looked the same, with no one able to discern which one Qi Yutai might be in.
She had no choice but to search them one by one.
Even before arriving, Lu Tong had inquired about Qi Yutai’s appearance, having seen his portrait, and she knew that man just now was not him.
She picked up Yin Zheng’s arm again, making sure her veil was properly in place, "Let’s try the next room."
The Embroidery Pavilion was larger than they had imagined.
Lu Tong and Yin Zheng "accidentally" entered one warm room after another that had floral crowns, and by the time they checked the last one, more than half an hour had passed.
The two of them entered and exited quickly, Yin Zheng still appearing drunk and dazed, and despite interrupting many romantic encounters along the way, since the occupants were preoccupied with continuing their business, no one pursued them, and they remained unnoticed.
Yin Zheng, holding onto Lu Tong’s hand, whispered, "Miss, how come we still haven’t found him? Could it be that he has already left?"
They had searched the entire Embroidery Pavilion without spotting Qi Yutai. With the night getting late, walking the corridors any longer might attract attention.
Lu Tong shook her head, "No, he must be here."
"But..."
Lu Tong looked up, her gaze fixing on an even higher level of the Embroidery Pavilion. The eaves curled upwards, revealing a corner that seemed like a bewitching wing in the rainy night, mysterious and splendid.
"Isn’t there another floor above?" Lu Tong said, "I want to go up."
The third floor appeared to be undisturbed, at least Lu Tong hadn’t seen anyone go up after entering Yuxian Tower.
But if there was nobody on the upper floor, why would there be a need for such a specially refurbished level? It wasn’t likely for the courtesan singers. It didn’t seem that way either.
She tightened her grip on Yin Zheng, "I’ll try it."
That was Lu Tong’s plan but, just as they had reached halfway up the stairs to the third floor, the drinking pimp from earlier, who knew from where, sprang out to stop them, not letting them go any farther.
Breathing alcohol fumes, Yin Zheng offered another silver note, "The young master... the young master has plenty of Silver!"
"Oh, dear," the pimp fixated firmly on the silver note in Yin Zheng’s hand, chuckling along, "This is not a matter of Silver, you see! You simply can’t go up there!"
"Burp, what’s so off-limits about it?"
The pimp leaned in and confided, "I’ll tell you the truth, the upstairs is reserved for high-ranking officials. We, running a small business, can’t afford to offend such people. My lord, better choose another room."