Mrs. Jia looked at Chen Xian with a nervous expression.

Chen Xian smiled and gestured for her to sit down: "Please sit down."

They were quite polite.

The woman looked at the unremarkable-looking man and gave an awkward smile.

He hunched over, sitting on half a chair so he could stand up or kneel down at any moment.

Chen Xian frowned slightly. "What, do you have a problem with me, Aunt Jia?"

"I wouldn't dare."

The woman quickly sat up straight.

It looks just like those elementary school students who fold their arms together.

Fu Pingan pursed his lips, remained silent, and watched quietly.

Chen Xian: "I wonder if any of you, Madam Jia, are elderly women who haven't found a new husband yet, and are still of impeccable character, like dancers?"

Mrs. Jia breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that the man in front of her was going to say something about a very difficult business deal.

The woman smiled obsequiously and fawned, stood up from her chair, and moved closer to Chen Xian, looking like a lazy old cat, almost nestled into his arms.

"There are many, hehe, I wonder what you plan to do with them, sir?"

Chen Xian scolded, "Be serious!"

"Sorry, it's a habit."

"continue!"

"These dancers and singers initially had high standards. If they met a wealthy patron before the age of eighteen, they would be fine, receiving a few hundred taels of silver as a grooming fee. But if they were favored by a wealthy patron..."

Take her back as a concubine, and she'll never have to worry about food or clothing for the rest of her life.

But it also depends on whether the girl in our attic is interested in him.

They really didn't want their first guest to be a chubby, old-fashioned man with a roll of flesh around his waist, or a young, somewhat unkempt man; they didn't want to spend the night with him.

I don't want to pressure them.

The key issue is that all the girls want a handsome young man, but how can such a good thing exist?

You need to be both rich and handsome; before you know it, you've wasted a lot of your youth...

I'm being understanding towards them, since they're still young, not even eighteen yet, so I let them have their way.

But ultimately, the building still needs to make money, and the expenses for training them in singing and dancing still need to be paid by them.

By their mid-twenties, they either have to lower their expectations or switch careers to teach younger girls singing and dancing behind the scenes.

The latter earns less than the former, stays behind the scenes, and has almost no chance to find a young man.

When she gets old, she can either marry a merchant as a concubine.

"Or take your savings, find a place in the city to retire, and that's how your life will be..."

Chen Xian smiled lightly, "You're quite kind, indulging the girl's whims."

"That's right!"

The woman gave an awkward smile.

Fu Ping'an sneered, "How ironic, Uncle Xian, you don't know, Qunfang Pavilion actually has a slightly better reputation in the city. At least we haven't heard any rumors of them forcing girls to entertain customers."

Madam Jia chuckled dryly, "Don't mention it. The main thing is that everyone who comes here is someone of status. If they don't want to, they just give them more money. There's no such thing as legs that can't be broken."

Those customers who didn't want to deal with ugly women before—well, if they didn't want to, they'd just throw money at them. The girls would go in crying and come out happy; they were all unfortunate people. What girl doesn't love money?

Chen Xian: "Summon out how many people you have, I want to see them."

Madam Jia was slightly taken aback. She looked at Fu Ping'an, then opened her mouth again, hesitatingly saying, "Since this is your first time here, sir, given your reputation, if possible, I'll go out and tell you."

I'm afraid many young, fresh-faced girls of thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, or sixteen will offer themselves to me, so there's really no need for me to eat wilted, stale vegetables.

Chen Xian: "..."

Tsk, that's so sad. A girl in her early twenties is already being considered too old.

Chen Xian shook his head and said, "You don't understand, I just like older women."

Jia's mother: "..."

Good taste.

Before long, more than a dozen girls came in looking nervous.

Some women even looked at Chen Xian with fiery eyes.

The news has already spread throughout the building.

The city's eccentric philosopher appeared at the Qunfang Pavilion.

Fu Ping'an thought he was showing a handsome smile, like a peacock's tail in full bloom, but unfortunately, almost no one was looking at him.

Mrs. Jia introduced with a smile: "Sir, these are Zhenzhen, Ai'ai, and Lianlian..."

Chen Xian: "Please introduce yourselves, just say your real names."

One of them, who was tall, smiled and said, "Hello, sir. My name is Niu Aihua, I am twenty years old, and I am good at singing and dancing."

One of them was slightly shorter, with fair skin, and said nervously, "Sir, my name is Shi Qiaofeng, I am twenty-one years old, and I am skilled at playing the guqin and guzheng."

One of them, with a swaying physique and a calm expression, said, "Hello, sir. My name is Zhu Zhaodi, I'm twenty-two years old, and I know a little bit about everything..."

"Wang Pandi. Nineteen years old."

Chen Xian: "..."

"They are all...good names."

The dozen or so girls blushed slightly.

Chen Xian asked the somewhat apprehensive Jia Mama standing to the side, "I wonder how much silver it will cost to take all these girls' indentures?"

Mrs. Jia asked in surprise, "Sir, you must be joking. How could we possibly use it all?"

Chen Xian's face darkened: "What are you saying? I am already married and a respectable person."

Fu Ping'an retorted, "What are you saying? Uncle Xian practices boxing regularly; three or five men can't even get close to him. Who do you think you are?"

Chen Xian: "Shut up."

Madam Jia quickly explained, "These girls, although old and faded, are still helping to teach young women in the building skills of playing the zither, chess, calligraphy, painting, singing, and dancing."

They are all artists with exceptionally outstanding skills.

Chen Xian took out a silver note: "And now?"

Looking at the very tempting silver note with the red stamp, he chuckled dryly, "It's not that it's impossible, it's just that it's temporary. I need to find a replacement to teach, and it will take a lot of effort to find one."

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!