Redeeming Someone from the Pleasure House

Drip. Drip.

The blood dripping from his neck frightened Lin Shaoxiong. He still did not want to die.

The Four Seasonal Flowers of Yueyang County: Chun Feng, Xia Yu, Qiu Mei, and Dong Xue.

Someone was redeemed every few years; there was nothing strange about it. He was not a clean freak. A sip of the soup would do, and it would not cost much.

This time, buying Qiu Mei had been his second brother's idea. In his view, Gao Fei could buy her while he himself simply went to enjoy himself. Why waste cultivation resources?

Even if he did not get along with Gao Fei, it did not matter. He had encountered this before. No one would turn their nose up at silver; they only had to spend a little more.

Now things had turned out like this. Not only could he not keep his money, he had lost all face as well.

Thinking of this, he painfully fished three banknotes from his clothes. He had saved them for two years, along with this year's cultivation resources for himself and his second brother.

"Here! Can you let me go now?!"

Gao Fei glanced at the burly guard, as well as the dozen or so onlookers.

Remembering that his second uncle's family still had to live in Yueyang County, he took the banknotes and released Lin Shaoxiong.

One thousand taels per note, three thousand taels in total.

"Thank you, Third Young Master. Next time, take them out earlier, understand?"

The moment Lin Shaoxiong regained his freedom, his true nature immediately resurfaced.

"You've got nerve. Keep it safe for me. My second brother will come for it tomorrow."

Gao Fei took the banknotes and turned to leave, paying no heed whatsoever to his threat.

But his keen five senses allowed him to feel that utterly undisguised killing intent.

The farther he walked, the more uncomfortable he felt. The more he thought about it, the more something seemed wrong.

"No! I have to kill that brat."

Once the thought arose, he could no longer suppress it. He hurried to Spring Revival Pavilion.

He used ten taels of silver to have the madam open a private room for him on the second floor.

Compared to the stage on the first floor, the private room was not in the best position, but it happened to overlook the main entrance. He could see everyone coming and going.

At the same time, it was close to a window.

He tore off a corner of the tablecloth, climbed out through the window, pulled his collar high, and quickly chased after Lin Shaoxiong in the direction he had left.

He completed all this in less than the time it took to drink a cup of tea.

He was only trying his luck, seeing whether he could catch up.

"Help!"

To his surprise, before he had chased very far, he vaguely heard a woman crying for help.

Following the sound, he turned through an alley and saw the burly guard who had been following Lin Shaoxiong standing at the entrance of a house.

Anyone with even a little strength would not buy a house right next to Blossom Street for the sake of their reputation.

The people living here were generally commoners.

Gao Fei took out the tablecloth he had just swiped from Spring Revival Pavilion and covered his face.

The courtyard wall was not high. From around the corner, he easily vaulted over it.

A dark and windy night—the perfect night for murder.

Inside the courtyard, two people lay on the ground, dead or alive unknown. Lin Shaoxiong was tugging at a woman's clothes in the corner.

Using the shadows as cover, Gao Fei quietly approached from the side, grabbed Lin Shaoxiong's head with both hands, and twisted hard.

Lin Shaoxiong's head spun all the way around. Without making a sound, he collapsed straight to the ground.

System notification: Merit Points +10

Seeing the notification, Gao Fei could not help but sigh. This villain was worth as much as an Awakened Intelligence Minor Monster.

"Ah!"

The woman screamed again, but this time out of terror.

Gao Fei ignored her, climbed back out of the courtyard, and removed the tablecloth masking his face.

There were occasionally a few pedestrians on the road. He deliberately kept his distance from them; under the dim lights and darkness, they could only fail to make out his face.

He climbed through the window to the second floor and stood beside the railing, looking below. At this moment, there were no fewer than a hundred people in Spring Revival Pavilion.

All so that every single one of them would see him.

Then he kept replaying every detail of killing Lin Shaoxiong in his mind. There had been no loopholes.

While his thoughts were running wild, his second uncle and his cousin Gao Yan arrived together.

A father and son visiting a brothel together? Was that reasonable?

Even when the two were led into the private room, Gao Fei had not figured it out.

"Second Uncle, why did you bring Little Yan along?"

"I brought him to broaden his horizons, so he won't freeze up at the sight of a woman and get deceived by one."

Gao Fei felt like his second uncle was talking about him, but he had no proof.

Gao Linyue found a seat and sat down. "Little Yan, sit. What are you standing around for?"

"One pot of tea, several teacups, and four chairs cost as much as an ordinary family's living expenses for a year. Is it worth it?"

Gao Yan looked around, shook his head, and sat down.

Gao Fei glanced at his somewhat needlessly anxious cousin. He had been an angry youth before too. It was normal.

"It's not coming out of your pocket. Use your eyes more and your mouth less."

Just then, the madam stepped onto the stage below.

"Gentlemen, everyone already knows why we are here tonight, so I won't waste words. First, let my daughter Qiu Mei perform a dance."

After saying that, the madam retreated to the edge of the stage.

Qiu Mei emerged, swept her gaze around, and only revealed a faint smile after spotting Gao Fei.

She wore a low-cut white ruqun trimmed with lace. Every bounce as she danced tugged at the heartstrings.

"The view from the second floor really is different."

"Look, she's bending over. Did you see that? Qiu Mei really has a great figure."

"I saw. It was just that tiny bit short. This seat was worth the money."

"Should we try bidding?"

Suddenly, a woman's voice rang out.

"Oh my! Sir, you're pinching me!"

The conversation next door slapped Gao Yan across the face with resounding smacks.

Gao Fei glanced at him. His cousin could still hold steady—not bad. His skin was thick enough, and he knew how to put on an act.

Gao Linyue, on the other hand, sat upright and proper, as though he were appreciating the performance.

There was nothing particularly special about the dance. It was far less seductive than the pretty girls in videos from Gao Fei's previous life.

In any case, Gao Fei could not appreciate it. He could only look at the places that drew his gaze.

A man's voice sounded next door.

"Come, I'll pinch you so you can get your revenge."

"Why did you stop? Keep going!"

"My hand's gone numb..."

After the time it took to drink a cup of tea, the dance ended.

The curiosity in Gao Yan's heart was thoroughly stirred up. He leaned his head close to Gao Fei's ear.

"Brother, what are they doing next door?"

"Kids shouldn't meddle in so much."

Gao Fei did not explain. This was something his second uncle had to explain.

Knock, knock, knock!

A knock sounded against the folding screen. "Come in!"

Xiaocui entered.

At that very moment, the madam's voice began calling bids from the stage downstairs.

"Starting bid for redemption: one thousand five hundred taels. Bidding begins."

Without asking permission, Xiaocui walked directly to the railing, picked up a palm-sized plaque, and raised it.

The madam's voice immediately rang out.

"Private Room Seven bids one thousand six hundred taels. Any higher?"

Gao Fei shook his head and spoke.

"If you don't want your mistress bought by someone else, listen to me. Hold steady for a while."

Xiaocui nodded upon hearing this. They had to bid the first time; otherwise, if no one bought her, it would be embarrassing.

Clearly, her worries were unnecessary. The price quickly rose to two thousand, and the pace of bidding began to slow.

"Bid two thousand three hundred directly."

Xiaocui grew a little anxious. They only had three thousand taels, and she still needed to redeem herself.

"Any bid higher than Private Room Seven? Any?"

"Private Room Nine, two thousand five hundred taels."

"Private Room Seven, three thousand taels." Xiaocui's hand trembled as she raised the plaque.

When Private Room Nine called out three thousand three hundred taels, Xiaocui fell straight to the floor, tears streaming down her face.

Qiu Mei, who had been smiling on the stage, now looked at the madam with a sharp glint in her eyes.

Gao Fei shook his head, took the plaque from her, and walked to the railing.

"I bid four thousand taels. Everything has its limit; excess is as bad as deficiency."

The madam had calculated Qiu Mei's value at around three thousand taels.

Four thousand taels was already more than enough. Usually, it only went for a little over two thousand.

It was nearly double.

If the other party chose not to buy, and Qiu Mei was bought by someone arranging a scheme, she could not openly appear at Spring Revival Pavilion anymore. She could only receive clients in private, lowering Qiu Mei's standing.

Then the madam would suffer a huge loss.

Gao Fei knew someone had set them up, but Qiu Mei was a person, not merchandise. If she had been an object, he would have let her go and found a chance to snatch her back.

But not a person. She still needed to live a normal life in the future.

More than a thousand taels—he would just treat it as buying Spirit Stones.

Looking at Xiaocui, who was still sitting on the ground in a daze, Gao Fei extended his right hand.

"Give me the banknotes. I'll settle the bill. I just don't know how much silver it'll take to redeem you?"

This time, Xiaocui did not hesitate. She directly pulled them from her bosom and handed them to Gao Fei. Thinking of something, she broke into a wide grin.

"I'm very cheap. Three hundred is enough."