But now, Zhao Yu is clearly more cunning. He usually hides in the palace and doesn't show his face. He leaves all the outside affairs to the fox. If any problems arise, the fox takes the blame and it has nothing to do with him or Zhao Lidong.

With public opinion turning against them, the soap factory was being suppressed, with fire departments, industry and commerce departments, and other agencies coming to inspect it every few days. Fortunately, Tang Ping had closed the entertainment venues early on, otherwise it would have been even more troublesome.

Late at night, in a dilapidated rented room in the provincial capital.

Holding the money he had just received, Shen Wen was filled with excitement. He took out his phone and made a call, saying excitedly, "Hey, honey, I'm rich! Haha, guess how much I made in royalties this time?"

"How much did you earn?"

A woman's voice came from the other end of the phone.

Shen Wen laughed happily, "Twenty thousand yuan! Haha, a whole twenty thousand yuan, and I only wrote one article."

"Look at you, so easily excited about just 20,000 yuan?"

"Hehe, there's more to come. They said they want to hire me to write articles for them at a high price. We won't be short of money anymore."

The person on the other end of the phone said, "Okay, we've paid Mom's hospital bills. Keep the rest for yourself. Buy some good food. You're all alone in the provincial capital, so take good care of yourself. I have to go to work now; the shop has been really busy lately."

"Then you should take care of yourself too, honey. I'll be going back to Jinghai in a few days..."

Before Shen Wen could finish speaking, his wife had already hung up the phone.

Somewhat dejected, he walked downstairs to the convenience store and called out as soon as he reached the door, "Boss lady, settle all the debts you owe, and also, give me a pack of Furongwang cigarettes!"

"Oh, so the great writer Shen has struck it rich?" the proprietress teased.

Money gives a man courage.

With cash tucked in his pocket, Shen Wen felt confident and grinned, saying, "What fortune? Just some royalties. Boss lady, get another bottle of wine, and I'll go get some pig's head meat."

With fine cigarettes and liquor, and a plate of braised pig's head, Shen Wen ate with gusto, his mouth greasy with oil.

After paying the hospital fees tomorrow morning, I'll have a few hundred yuan left, enough to go back to Jinghai this weekend to see my wife and kids.

Because his mother was seriously ill, he had to take her to the provincial capital for treatment and even rented a house there.

Previously, his monthly royalties were only a few hundred yuan, barely enough to cover rent and living expenses. His wife sent money to pay for his mother's medical bills every month. Now that he can earn money himself, Shen Wen feels incredibly satisfied.

What worried him the most was that the article published in the Jinghai Daily had become a hit.

To be honest, he didn't know the specific details. He had heard of the Construction Group, but he didn't know Tang Ping at all.

Therefore, the article was written at the benefactor's behest to smear the other party.

However, none of this matters.

Anyway, making money is the most important thing.

On the way back, he passed through a small alley where several scantily clad young women, their long white legs exposed, stood by the alley and beckoned him over to play, calling out in a sweet voice, "Big brother, come and play!"

Shen Wen blushed and his heart pounded as he desperately tried to dodge.

The prostitutes these days are so promiscuous. Luckily, I held firm to my principles. I can't let down my wife who works hard at the Grand Palace during the night shift.

But as they approached the rented room, Sister Mei came out of the hair salon near the entrance. Her bright, peach-blossom eyes looked at Shen Wen, and she took his arm directly, saying in a low voice, "Brother Shen, come to my room tonight, I'll wash your hair."

Sister Mei was also a fallen woman. I heard that she used to be the top courtesan in entertainment venues. Her husband was killed by loan sharks because of his gambling addiction. As she got older and lost her beauty, Sister Mei retired from entertainment venues and started a small hair washing business.

However, she is different from others.

She rented a house on the first floor and had a seven-year-old daughter with her.

The little girl, with two pigtails, was sitting on a small stool doing her homework.

Having a child in tow while engaging in prostitution inevitably invites disdain, but Sister Mei, though over forty, still maintains a great figure, curvaceous and charming.

In addition, she is understanding, so many regular customers are willing to patronize her business.

Even through her clothes, Shen Wen could feel the grandeur of Mei Jie's breasts. A surge of excitement rose within him, and he said somewhat guiltily, "This...this isn't quite right..."

Sister Mei said pitifully, "Brother Shen, Xiaohong needs to pay her tuition soon, and I... I really have no other choice. Please, have pity on my daughter and me!"

Sponsoring a little girl's schooling shouldn't be considered a betrayal of one's wife, right?

After all, the little girl looked so pitiful.

After a fierce internal struggle, Shen Wen followed Sister Mei into the inner room as if possessed. As soon as the curtain was drawn, the sounds of men and women breathing heavily could be heard from inside.

A few minutes later, Shen Wen finished dressing with a satisfied look on his face. He took out a hundred yuan from his pocket, thought for a moment, and then took out two more bills to hand to Sister Mei.

After leaving the room, he was still a little reluctant to leave, and turned back to say, "Sister Mei, I'll come again tomorrow!"

Today was an exception; after drinking, Shen Wen felt he didn't perform well.

Inside the room, Sister Mei was cleaning up the mess when she sweetly replied, "Okay, thank you, Brother Shen."

Before leaving, Shen Wen glanced at the little girl's homework and pointed out with a smile, "You wrote this pinyin wrong, the initial consonant is..."

Before Shen Wen could finish speaking, the little girl glanced at him, then immediately ran away with her homework.

"Forehead....."

Shen Wen smiled awkwardly and went upstairs to his room.

Meanwhile, the nightlife at the Grand Palace was just beginning.

After Gao Qiqiang's Bai Jinhan, Wanshi Haoting, and Tang Ping's Wanzi Qianhong closed down and suspended operations, business at the Grand Palace experienced a boom.

It's incredibly popular; customers keep coming and going, and we don't have enough staff.

Most importantly, there aren't enough girls.

Some of the guests in the private rooms got so impatient waiting for the girls that they started cursing.

In the office, Fox reported to Zhao Yu with a smug look on his face: "Boss, business has been booming these past two days. The turnover alone has reached hundreds of thousands."

"Hehe, well done."

Zhao Yu crossed his legs, smoked a cigarette, and said with a smile, "If things continue like this, Tang Ping and Gao Qiqiang's establishments will both have to close down."

"Yeah, those two bastards, what class do they think they are to compete with us? Heh, I can just plant two bombs and scare them to death," the fox laughed.

Just then, a henchman rushed in, shouting, "Boss, Brother Fox, something bad has happened! The guests in the two private rooms are arguing over a girl. You'd better go and take a look!"

The fox turned its head, displeased, and said, "What's there to argue about? Damn it, you're all such troublemakers. Are you all useless? You can't even handle this little thing?"

"Brother Fox, the key is that those two are big shots, and we don't dare to advise them," the underling said.

Zhao Yu said, "Fox, go and take care of it. We don't have enough girls. Hurry up and recruit some, and try to poach all the girls from Wan Ziqianhong and Bai Jinhan."