Harmony Mode

As soon as Wang Jingyuan entered Spring Breeze Tower, several people swarmed around him. Everyone on the second-floor balconies and in the entrance hall had clearly witnessed what had happened outside, including the thick stack of banknotes Wang Jingyuan had displayed.

If the two of them had not been carrying swords and looked like martial artists, those girls would have called out to tease and solicit them long ago. Now that the troublesome little brat had left, if they did not seize the chance now, when would they?

An hour later, Yue Lingshan returned from the horse market and saw that Wang Jingyuan had already come out of Spring Breeze Tower. He was squatting by the entrance, staring blankly ahead as though he had lost all his strength and tricks.

He had somehow found some tobacco leaves and crudely rolled them into a cigarette. He merely smoked in silence, head lowered and wordless.

Though she was angry that Wang Jingyuan had gone to a brothel, seeing him like this, Yue Lingshan could not help walking over and asking irritably, "Did you spend all your money?"

Wang Jingyuan slowly raised his head. "No, I didn't spend much."

"Then why do you look half-dead?"

Wang Jingyuan stubbed out his cigarette and said in utter confusion, "I just don't get it. Isn't a place like this supposed to put people first? Shouldn't customers get whatever they ask for?"

Hearing that, Yue Lingshan flared up at once. "Tell me honestly, what exactly did you do?!"

Wang Jingyuan told the truth. "I just wanted to spar with them, but none of them agreed."

"Spar?!"

An hour earlier...

The moment Wang Jingyuan entered Spring Breeze Tower, he was ushered inside by a group of lightly dressed young women. "Sir," "young hero," "young master," even "Daddy"—they called out with overwhelming enthusiasm.

Before long, the procuress of Spring Breeze Tower came out personally and began asking Wang Jingyuan about his preferences.

Wang Jingyuan was, after all, a modern man. Unlike the creeps of this era who preferred girls barely out of childhood, he only accepted adults.

So he looked the procuress up and down and said to this twenty-four- or twenty-five-year-old "fading beauty," "No need to choose. You'll do."

The procuress's heart stirred when she saw Wang Jingyuan's handsome, refined features, but she quickly composed herself. "Young master, you jest. This humble woman still has business to manage and cannot leave even for a moment."

Of course, there was another reason. The procuress's protector was her former lover. Though she ran the business at Spring Breeze Tower, she was not allowed to entertain guests. There was no need to explain such things to Wang Jingyuan.

Wang Jingyuan did not press the matter. "Fine, then arrange someone over eighteen for me."

The procuress was slightly startled. At first, she had thought it was because she had maintained herself well and still possessed some charm. Who would have thought that this was his preference? Still, a customer's request had to be fulfilled.

Soon, a table of food and wine was prepared, and along with it, a young woman was sent into Wang Jingyuan's private room.

The moment Wang Jingyuan saw the woman enter, he hurried over. "Let me see what this is all about. I wonder whether the Hot Coffee part of this game is hands-on or just CG."

But when Wang Jingyuan reached out to touch her, mosaic censorship suddenly appeared over the woman's body. What he touched was hard and cold, as if he were feeling a marble wall.

[Warning: Restricted content is not yet available!]

Wang Jingyuan's face immediately fell. Wasn't the selling point supposed to be hardcore realism? How was this realistic?! I could have accepted some stupid QTE minigame involving a rocking bed, but you just banned it outright? What the hell was that supposed to mean?!

What was even more absurd was that outside the game, there would have been countless MODs and anti-censorship patches on the forums. But now that he had transmigrated into the game itself, where was he supposed to find an anti-censorship patch?!

Then Wang Jingyuan had an idea. He suddenly remembered that Yue Lingshan was also a woman, and during one of their earlier sparring matches, his Heart-Crushing Kick had landed on her backside. The feedback he had gotten at the time had been remarkably springy.

That definitely had not felt like censored game content. So that meant...

Harmony Mode did not take effect during combat!

That made sense too. If Harmony Mode were always active, then if a female NPC stripped naked and fought him, would he be able to fight while facing a wall of hard mosaic censorship?

Wang Jingyuan flipped both hands and produced two daggers, handing one to the young woman. She accepted it in bewilderment, only to see Wang Jingyuan grip the other in his hand and say, "Let's do something exciting. I want you to keep stabbing me and maintain combat status, then I..."

Before Wang Jingyuan could finish, the young woman screamed, threw down the dagger, and fled as fast as she could. Not long afterward, the procuress entered the room.

She had just seen the young woman run out and flee back into the rear courtyard. Before she could ask what had happened, she had rushed into the room first to apologize to Wang Jingyuan.

"Young master, please forgive her. Who knows what got into her today..." The procuress had only gotten halfway through her words when she saw a dagger embedded in the floor, as well as the other one in Wang Jingyuan's hand.

"Young master... what is this?"

Wang Jingyuan casually set the dagger on the table. "Nothing. I just wanted her to spar with me while we 'sparred.' Before I could finish explaining, she ran away."

The procuress's scalp went numb. "The sparring you mean is...?"

"Just attacking me, really. I was worried her fists and kicks would be too weak to put us into combat status, so I prepared a dagger for her." Wang Jingyuan glanced at the other dagger on the table. "This one is for me to defend myself with. Catching blades barehanded is still asking too much of me."

After saying that, Wang Jingyuan looked at the procuress with shining eyes. "How about you do it instead? I promise, I'll only defend. I won't counterattack."

With a thud, the procuress dropped to her knees. "Please, great hero, show mercy and spare this humble woman!"

Seeing the procuress kneeling before him, Wang Jingyuan suddenly lost all interest. Afterward, he even offered a hefty reward, yet not a single young woman in all of Spring Breeze Tower was willing to spar with him.

He could only sit alone in the private room and eat the entire banquet. The procuress even feared that he might suddenly get "in the mood," so after he finished eating, she only sent in a male attendant to tell him that Spring Breeze Tower would cover the cost of the meal.

They were trying to send the plague god away.

Even in a game, Wang Jingyuan could not accept forcing someone. He quickly finished eating and left Spring Breeze Tower. As he passed the entrance, he asked the old doorkeeper for some tobacco leaves, rolled them up casually, and squatted outside alone to smoke.

Until Yue Lingshan returned.

Yue Lingshan gave him a suspicious look. "What sparring?"

"One dagger each. She attacks, I defend, and we maintain combat status. Who knew that the moment I took out the dagger, I'd scare her into running away?"

"Hehehehe, what were you thinking, looking for someone to spar with in a place like that? That place is... Never mind, I won't explain it to you." Hearing this, Yue Lingshan's eyes curved into crescents. "If you want to spar, just come find me."

Wang Jingyuan looked Yue Lingshan up and down. "Maybe you still don't understand... Forget it. As for you, wait another two years."

Wang Jingyuan turned to look at the two horses Yue Lingshan had led back from the horse market. Why did one of them look a little off?

"This one is... a mule?"

Yue Lingshan looked a little embarrassed too. "Who told you to make me mad? You should be grateful I bought you a mule at all."

What could Wang Jingyuan even say?

That was rubbing salt in the wound.

Wonderful!