Wang Xueru immediately changed direction and headed towards Duhuanlou. As she walked, she said, "Brother Jingnian, you don't understand. Duhuanlou offers free drinks. We only need to pay for the food and drinks, and we can enjoy singing and dancing. Isn't that wonderful?"

"Besides, I've heard that the chefs at Duhuanlou cook dishes from the capital, which are different from the flavors at Xianweilou. Why not give it a try!"

The girl trailed off, her voice tinged with a hint of coquetry, "We're not going to pick up any girls. Even if Uncle Wei finds out, he won't do anything to you. Miao'er and I will vouch for you. We're just going to eat!"

Wei Jingnian had no choice but to go with Wang Xueru after much coaxing and pleading.

Duhuan Tower was bustling with activity today. Large red lanterns hung outside like fiery persimmons, and the golden tassels exuded an air of nobility. Amidst the glow of fireworks, the four gilded characters of Duhuan Tower stood out prominently, clearly visible even from a distance.

Sun Miao'er looked up and saw carved beams and painted rafters, resplendent in gold and jade, exuding an atmosphere of decadence and debauchery. Guests coming out of the building brushed past her, their bodies reeking of alcohol.

Just by smelling the aroma of the wine, you can tell that even the free drinks inside are not a scam, but rather top-quality products.

Sun Miao'er immediately pictured Hu Tingzhi's face. He was as slippery as an eel, and his business acumen was quite impressive. Looking around, there wasn't another person as willing to spend money as him in the entire Pingnan City and even Yingzhou.

Outside the Duhuan Tower, the girls soliciting customers were all young and beautiful. As soon as they saw Sun Miao'er and her two companions coming over, they hurriedly and warmly greeted them. The handkerchiefs brushed across Wei Jingnian's face, bringing with them a faint scent of perfume.

Sun Miao'er thought to herself that it wasn't the pungent scent of cheap cosmetics, but rather a light floral fragrance that wasn't offensive at all. When her master returned, she would definitely ask him to find out what kind of perfume Hu was using for his girls.

Despite the faint fragrance, Wei Jingnian was still unable to retreat in time, so he quickly went around behind Wang Xueru and pushed her forward.

Wang Xueru, like a seasoned pro, smiled and said, "Ladies, please take us to the private room on the second floor. We'll just have a meal."

The purpose of the visit was stated simply and clearly in one sentence.

The girls understood their intentions and called over the waiter to lead the way for them.

Upon entering the Duhuan Tower, Sun Miao'er was astonished to find that the interior was even more magnificent and beautiful than the exterior, dazzling her and leaving her unsure where to begin.

"Miss, we at Duhuan Pavilion have a rule: everyone must leave their name before entering, so we don't have trouble finding things if we lose them," the waiter said with a grin, taking out a booklet and a pen.

The reason for leaving a name before entering wasn't just to prevent the loss of belongings. It served two purposes: first, to maintain order and prevent trouble from being caused by the loss of items; and second, because such places of entertainment had connections with both the legitimate and criminal worlds, and the guests who came and went were all wealthy and powerful, so it was natural to keep a record of them.

Sun Miao'er and her group left their names. Many of the names on the roster were probably made up out of thin air, but since none of them had anything to hide, they all wrote their real names.

The hall was brightly lit, and the occasional giggles of women could be heard. On the opposite staircase, a man in fine clothes was leading a beautiful woman down the stairs. As he passed by Sun Miao'er, he even gave her a flirtatious wink.

It truly lives up to its nickname "Beauty's Den." Even if I were to combine all the beauties I've ever seen, I probably wouldn't have as many as those in Duhuan Tower.

As if possessed, Sun Miao'er followed the beautiful woman who had just passed by.

Suddenly, the waiter in front of us turned around and called out, "Miss, you're wrong, eat this way."

Sun Miao'er suddenly realized that eating and visiting prostitutes were not in the same place. However, it was better to separate them to avoid misunderstandings.

"You've come at just the right time, there's only one table left." The waiter lifted the beaded curtain outside the private room and gestured for them to enter.

Upon entering the private room, one finds a spacious, open hall in the center, where singers dance on a circular stage, while others play the zither and pipa. The second floor is surrounded by private rooms, each with beaded curtains at both ends to maximize the privacy of the guests.

If you wish to watch the song and dance performance, you can lift the beaded curtain so that outsiders cannot see the guests in the private room from other angles.

"What would you like to eat?" the waiter asked enthusiastically.

Wang Xueru was intently watching the dancers on stage when she casually replied, "Bring some of your restaurant's signature dishes, preferably from the capital. I'm tired of the southern flavors. Forget the free wine, we won't drink it. Just bring two pots of good tea."

"Alright!"

After the waiter left, Wang Xueru couldn't help but clap her hands, "Impressive, truly impressive."

"Indeed, it's ingenious." Wei Jingnian was slightly impressed by the scene at Duhuan Tower and couldn't help but praise it as well.

Sun Miao'er carefully observed the layout of Duhuan Tower. From the outside, the entire Duhuan Tower appeared as a unified whole, but once inside, she discovered that each part was independent. For example, visiting prostitutes and eating were two different things, and one could only get between them by passing through the suspended corridor in the middle.

The dining area only had people dancing on a stage; if you wanted to actually watch a song and dance performance, you had to go to another building.

Sun Miao'er stood upstairs, bored, and glanced down at the dancers below. Each one of them was graceful and beautiful, so much so that one couldn't bear to miss a single movement.

In a daze, a figure flashed through the crowd, dressed in blue with his hair tied up, appearing tall and imposing compared to the servants around him.

Sun Miao'er looked closely and realized that the face looked so familiar.

Isn't that a single hill?

Who would have thought that the usually self-disciplined and courteous Constable Shan would come to a place like this?

Sun Miao'er almost thought she had misjudged him, so she stopped there and looked for a while longer until the person turned the corner and entered Tingyue Pavilion, and then she was sure that it was Shan Qiu.

However, because Shan Qiu was dressed in casual clothes and had removed his sword, she didn't recognize him at first glance.

As expected, one cannot judge a book by its cover. Even Constable Shan would seek pleasure in his spare time. There's no way around it; after all, he does have a lot of work pressure. Besides, the place he goes to, Tingyue Tower, is a place to appreciate refined arts, so there's nothing wrong with it.

Inside the library on the top floor of Duhuan Tower.

Hu Tingzhi sat in his armchair, leisurely dozing off. He wondered how many suckers would come to hand over their money today.

"Manager, these are the guests who came in tonight. All the private rooms are full right now, and everyone who came to eat has left." The manager handed over the list.

Hu Tingzhi casually flipped through the roster. Many of the names were familiar, and he could recognize almost all of them as fake names. They used the same handwriting each time, but the names were written differently.

When he saw the name Sun Miao'er, his hand tightened around the booklet. "Ouch!"

I couldn't help but exclaim.

"Shopkeeper, what's wrong? Is something amiss?"

Hu Tingzhi placed the booklet face down on the table, took a deep breath, and said, "Our distinguished guest has arrived. We must go and meet him. At this crucial juncture, we can't afford to be negligent!"