Probing

Today was Friday, August 12, 2022. The weather was clear, with a low of 22.1°C and a high of 36.9°C. The current feels-like temperature was 27°C. Today, a big boss would treat you to a visit to the pleasure quarters to hear some tunes, and discuss the novel's copyright while you were at it. Unless necessary, it was recommended that you stay home to avoid missing it.

The moment Guo Yuan opened his eyes, the narrator gave him a weather forecast and informed him that someone would be treating him to some tunes at the pleasure quarters.

The instant he heard someone was looking for him, Guo Yuan was no longer sleepy.

Lawyer Hu had only reminded him yesterday, and they were already contacting him today. That was fast.

But Guo Yuan was not worried. On the contrary, he was a little excited—and naturally, it was the visit to the pleasure quarters that excited him.

In the past, "pleasure quarters" might have needed some explaining. Nowadays, few people who read webnovels did not know what it meant.

As a man, Guo Yuan had fantasized about visiting a brothel while reading novels.

But such things could only remain fantasies. Places like that were illegal in modern society. Guo Yuan considered himself a respectable man; the most improper place he had ever visited in his life was an internet café.

Even when he had been in college on the island nation, he had not dared to go experience it. He had been afraid of getting caught in a vice raid—his lifelong reputation would have been ruined in an instant.

But today, a big boss wanted to treat him to a visit to the pleasure quarters and some music. Setting aside who this big boss was for the moment, if a big boss was the one treating him, safety should be guaranteed, right? Guo Yuan had long wanted to visit that kind of improper place and broaden his horizons.

Since he knew something might happen today, Guo Yuan naturally had to prepare himself.

After making do with a simple breakfast, Guo Yuan went online to look up "guides." No matter what, he needed some preparation for his first time visiting such a place.

Before he knew it, it was past eleven in the morning. Guo Yuan's phone rang, displaying an unfamiliar number.

"Hello?"

"Hello, Mr. Guo? Is this you?"

"It is. Who is this?"

"I'm the owner of Longcheng International Publishing House. My surname is Wang. Recently, our publishing house has had some collaborations with television stations on the island nation. We happened to come across your work and would like to meet with you to discuss the domestic film and television adaptation rights for 'White Night Walk.'"

That was a lie. Wang Qiu had not happened to come across his work—the television stations on the island nation wanted to jointly develop the rights to "White Night Walk" with him.

However, Lawyer Hu was on the island nation's side, so they had no way of getting a satisfactory price. Since he happened to be in the country, the island nation wanted Wang Qiu to handle him and push the price down.

Hearing the narrator's explanation, Guo Yuan's suspicions were confirmed. Sure enough, the publishing house owner had approached him for the very reason Lawyer Hu had mentioned in yesterday's email.

Now that he knew Wang Qiu's purpose, Guo Yuan did not act timid. He had intended to sell the domestic film and television rights anyway.

"Sure! Manager Wang, just give me the address!" Guo Yuan said with a smile.

"Why don't you give me your address instead, Mr. Guo? I'll have the driver pick you up."

"Alright! I'm at..." Guo Yuan then gave him his address.

About half an hour later, Guo Yuan received another call.

This time, a gentle female voice spoke from the other end. "Hello, Mr. Guo. I'm Manager Wang's secretary, Xiao Su. We're already at the entrance to your residential complex."

After hearing that, Guo Yuan tidied himself up a little and headed out.

The moment Guo Yuan left the complex, he spotted an Audi parked outside its entrance. As for which series it was or how much it cost, he had no idea.

When it came to Audi, Guo Yuan only recognized the Audi A6, and this car was clearly not one.

As Guo Yuan approached the car, a young woman in office attire and black stockings opened the rear door and stepped out.

Guo Yuan gave her a glance, and only one thought remained in his mind: Big!

The woman paid no attention to his gaze. She generously opened the front passenger door and gestured for him to enter. Guo Yuan got in without hesitation.

The driver looked to be in his thirties. When Guo Yuan got into the car, he nodded slightly in greeting. After Guo Yuan fastened his seat belt and Secretary Xiao Su got in, he started the car.

The driver did not say a word throughout the ride. Secretary Xiao Su, however, cautiously asked Guo Yuan many questions.

Whenever a question contained a trap, the narrator gave him a prompt. Guo Yuan's answers were flawless from beginning to end.

About half an hour later, the car stopped in front of a small building called Jin Liyuan.

Guo Yuan looked outside through the car window. The building was clearly decorated in a retro style, leaving him somewhat confused.

Was this the pleasure quarters?

"Mr. Guo, please come with me. Manager Wang is upstairs." With that, the secretary opened the car door and led Guo Yuan inside.

The moment he entered the building, Guo Yuan understood what kind of place this was. It was actually an opera house.

Fuck! Hadn't they agreed on visiting the pleasure quarters to hear some tunes? What was this supposed to be—actually listening to music? The pleasure quarters had turned into an opera troupe? Had he looked all that up on Baidu for nothing?

Shouldn't socializing between adult men involve women in one hand and alcohol in the other?

Had he watched too much television? Or was he simply too poor to imagine what high-society socializing was like?

Guo Yuan followed the secretary inside when the sounds of various instruments suddenly rose from the stage.

The erhu, yueqin, suona, and yunluo sounded one after another, and the performer onstage made an appearance as well. "Alas, in this world, fame and fortune bind men tight; they cast aside their parents, abandon their wives, and leave their homeland behind."

Guo Yuan's knowledge of opera was limited to a certain god's line, "What a pity—an autumn wild goose, once broken apart, can scarcely become a pair again." He knew nothing else, much less had he ever watched this sort of thing in person.

After casting a curious glance toward the stage, he hurried after the secretary toward a private room on the second floor.

The secretary gently opened the door. A man dressed in casual clothes reclined halfway in a chair, his left hand tucked behind his back and his right hand holding a teapot. His eyes were half-closed as he swayed his head, softly echoing the opera lyrics from the stage.

The man had a ruddy complexion and a head of black hair. He looked to be around thirty or forty, but Guo Yuan felt that he was probably not that young. He had likely taken exceptionally good care of himself.

"Manager Wang, Mr. Guo has arrived," Secretary Xiao Su said softly.

Wang Qiu opened his eyes at that, gave Guo Yuan a glance, and made no move to get up. He merely pointed at the recliner beside him.

Having dealt with many renowned writers, Wang Qiu looked down on you somewhat when he saw how young you were. He deliberately meant to take you down a peg, hoping to overwhelm you with sheer presence.

It was a test, as well as a psychological tactic commonly used in business. It was meant to make you feel from the outset that you were not on his level and were unqualified to speak with him.

After hearing the narration, Guo Yuan frowned. To be honest, he had not understood all the twists and turns just now, but Wang Qiu's attitude truly made him uncomfortable from the bottom of his heart.

Guo Yuan disliked dealing with people who had some status and standing.

There was not a shred of sincerity between people—only calculation filling every inch of the space.

That was also why Guo Yuan had chosen to offer Lawyer Hu 3% of the proceeds to hire him back on the island nation.

He truly was not good at handling this sort of interpersonal relationship. If it had not been for the narration, Guo Yuan figured he would have been led around by the nose from beginning to end.

PS: The author is from Shanxi. The local form of traditional opera here is Jin Opera, whose vocal style is somewhat similar to Henan Opera. Shanxi Satellite TV used to have a program called Enter the Grand Stage. When I was little, an elderly neighbor of mine even took part in that show. There was also an opera house near my home called Pear Garden Spring, and I often went there with my grandparents as a child. Later, the urban village was demolished, and the opera house disappeared as well. There is a Jin Opera troupe in the newly built residential complex in the community, but I have never gone there again.