Xu Xinchen raised her head and saw the woman staring at her intently, her eyes scanning her face with a wary look.

What are you here for?

“Just like them,” she replied matter-of-factly.

The woman curled her lip. "You can do this? Have you done it before?"

Xu Xinchen nodded. The woman stared at her for a moment, remained silent for a few seconds, then released her hand and gestured with her chin, "Write it."

Xu Xinchen came out of the backyard and didn't see anyone. At this moment, the woman behind her walked over and said softly, "Come with me."

Xu Xinchen followed her through a maze of twists and turns, walking for an unknown amount of time, before finally arriving at a room. As soon as she reached the door, she heard girls laughing and joking inside. Pushing the door open, she found the girls who had just registered.

Several girls looked over and saw that the two of them had stopped what they were doing, and for a moment there was complete silence.

The woman pushed her inside, saying, "Find an outfit that suits you, change, and come out."

The door closed, and the girls who had been staring at her just moments before became lively again, pushing and shoving each other as they changed their clothes. Xu Xinchen walked to the clothes rack next to the fitting room and saw that there were only cheongsams, and the bottoms were slit very wide, almost reaching the top of the thighs.

She hesitated for a moment, but seeing that the girls next to her had changed quickly and efficiently, she didn't hesitate any longer and went straight into the changing room.

She followed the group of girls to the private rooms in front of the restaurant, where she encountered a smiling woman emerging from the private rooms. Several girls sweetly greeted her, "Boss lady."

The proprietress glanced at them, then pointed inside the door, "Go in."

Xu Xinchen was following behind several girls and was about to go inside when suddenly someone grabbed her wrist.

She turned around and heard the proprietress say to her, "Come with me."

The proprietress led her a few steps to a more secluded private room. She smiled and knocked on the door, waiting for a deep voice from inside, "Come in."

She pushed the door open and shoved her inside.

Xu Xinchen froze. The door behind her had already closed. At the round table in front of her sat three middle-aged men in suits, their eyes fixed on her.

Before Xu Xinchen could even comprehend what was happening, she was suddenly spun around and pulled into the arms of the nearest man. The pungent smell of alcohol assaulted her senses, and her arm was touched by someone. A lewd laugh came from above her head, "Old Zhao really put in a good job this time, you found a good one. Look at this skin, this face." As the man spoke, he lowered his head and leaned closer to her.

Xu Xinchen realized what was happening, her face flushed red, a fire burning in her heart, extremely ashamed and indignant. She struggled with all her might, but the difference in strength between the two was too great, and she could not escape no matter what she did.

In a moment of panic, she tilted her head upwards and heard a crisp sound. She quickly escaped, clutching her chest, and watched as the man clutched his chin in pain.

The other two men exchanged bewildered glances.

The man was furious. "What are you doing?"

"I..." Xu Xinchen accidentally caught sight of the other two men staring intently at her, her heart tightened, and she feigned panic, saying, "I'll go..."

Wrong room.

"Wrong way?" The man lowered his hand, staring at her in disbelief. After a moment of silence, he smiled indifferently. "Wrong way?"

He stood up and suddenly pulled her back, wrapping his arms around her waist. His eyes gleamed with a burning light as he said in a deep voice, "Let me tell you, you've gone the wrong way today, and you're not getting out."

Xu Xinchen placed her hand against his chest, frantically trying to stop his face from pressing down on her, but she wasn't strong enough. Just as his face was about to touch her skin, with a "slap," she raised her hand and slapped him down.

The air froze for a moment. The three men in the room were stunned. One of them covered his face and stared at her blankly. Xu Xinchen pushed him away, opened the door, and ran out.

The man realized what was happening and angrily cursed, pulling open the door and chasing after her, "You bitch, where are you going?" Two other men followed behind.

Xu Xinchen bumped into someone in her haste. She stopped and saw the shopkeeper's surprised expression.

........

In the backyard, the proprietress sat at the table with a livid face; the tea on the table had gone cold.

"Are you here to cause trouble on purpose?"

Her gaze kept darting over Xu Xinchen. She rattled off a string of words, "Do you even know who those guests were? You offended them today and just walked away. But you've really messed me up!"

"I'm sorry." Xu Xinchen knew it was her fault, so she didn't argue and just kept apologizing.

"Didn't you say you've done this before?" The proprietress's sharp gaze seemed to see right through her, and her face showed a contemptuous expression. "Why are you pretending to be innocent now?"

"I...that's not what I meant." Her face flushed red and then turned pale.

Just then, a noisy commotion arose at the entrance. Several girls walked into the courtyard, chatting and laughing. When they reached the landlady, one of the girls asked with a smile, "Landlady, is everything finished over there? Where's the payment?"

Xu Xinchen noticed several gazes directed at her.

"Oh dear, what's wrong with this little sister?"

The proprietress sat motionless in her chair and said sarcastically, "People say they've never done this before, but today, on their first day, they come and cause trouble. Do you believe they're here to wash dishes?"

After a moment of silence, several girls around her burst into laughter, some even bending over with exaggerated laughter. "You must be joking, right? How much money can you make washing dishes?"

"Playing dumb to fool others, boss lady, you'll have to play along."

"Alright, alright." The proprietress, exasperated by the commotion, frowned, pulled out a few bills from somewhere, and waved her hand impatiently. "Get out."

Once the room was quiet, she lifted her eyelids to look at the person in front of her. She sipped her tea slowly, her eyes lowered, and said casually, "I'll assume for now that you haven't done this before, but...would you like to join us? I'll give you time to think it over. As for the price..."

You don't need to worry.

She held up her hand to indicate a number.

Xu Xinchen stared at the number, momentarily stunned and bewildered. "I can't do it... and I've already messed it up, why are you still doing it...?"

"You're more valuable than them," the landlady said, looking at her with a half-smile. "So, how about it? Would you like to consider it?"

"I'm sorry." Xu Xinchen clenched her fists tightly, but still managed to utter those two words with difficulty.

Then she saw the proprietress's expression change.

"You're really asking for it! Besides your face, what else do you think you have that's worth anything? What are you pretending to be, this pure and virtuous woman? You're such an arrogant and ignorant brat!"

As Xu Xinchen left the restaurant, the proprietress's angry voice still echoed behind her, "You jinx, don't let me see you again!"

She walked briskly, and before she knew it, she had circled back to the restaurant she had been to before.

The intense sunlight made her dizzy. She squinted at the locked door, and suddenly a figure seemed to appear in front of her. The figure was dressed in a sharp suit, with a straight back and a cool aura that made him stand out in the crowd.

She blinked in disbelief. There were pedestrians coming and going all around her, but where was that person?

Xu Xinchen wandered around several streets, visiting all the restaurants in the city, but she couldn't find a suitable one. Every time she explained her purpose, the person would look her over several times and then stammer and refuse.