Half an hour later.
A figure wearing a bamboo hat slowly came to a stop at a corner of the bustling street. Chattering female voices, as melodious as orioles, drifted from the building ahead, accompanied now and then by pleasant strings and pipes.
"Are you sure this is all right?" the red-haired girl asked cautiously from beneath the hat.
"It's fine, Saintess." A missionary spoke earnestly. "Come in with us. As long as you don't take off the hat, no one will recognize you."
The red-haired girl nodded firmly. "All right."
After several missionaries negotiated with the staff, they entered Sleeve Dance Pavilion without trouble. The missionaries' foreign appearances drew the attention of both guests and dancers, and they were all quite curious about the mysterious hat-wearing figure behind them. Still, no one suspected she was a woman.
When the lead missionary produced a heavy ingot of silver, the short man from the dance pavilion immediately broke into a fawning smile and led them upstairs.
"Honored guests, this is the finest private room in our pavilion. It's spacious, attended, and has the best view. Are you satisfied?"
The red-haired girl entered the private room. From here, she could clearly see the women dancing gracefully below to enchanting music, as well as the guests scattered before the stage. Most were scholars without much money who had nonetheless come to sample some refined romance. From up here, it rather felt like looking down upon all living things.
Seeing the red-haired girl nod, the missionary took out another ingot of silver, stuffed it into the short man's hand, and said in standard Chinese:
"This room will do. Bring us some food... and we don't need anyone to attend us. Don't let anyone come in and disturb us."
The short man froze. "Not even