Chapter 649: You Better Not Touch Me

Leng Shuangyue bowed to the two. "Miss, Young Master, I need to step out for a moment."

Qiu Honglei waved her hand. "Go on, and deal with those fellows properly."

Leng Shuangyue acknowledged and slowly walked out, thoughtfully closing the door behind her.

Qiu Honglei, who was nearby, smiled with pursed lips. "You're staring so intently. If you've taken a liking to her, I'll have her serve you tonight, no joke."

Zu An blushed deeply. "I wasn't looking at her; I was just lost in thought."

Qiu Honglei twisted her waist and sat directly on his lap, her hands looped around his neck. "I don't mind anyway. Since I can't truly serve you right now, it's the same if my personal maid serves you."

What had happened between them earlier had completely broken through the last layer of formality, so she had no reservations in front of her lover, sitting passionately and intimately in his arms.

Feeling her firm and shapely curves, Zu An realized he had become aroused. Qiu Honglei's cheeks instantly flushed, and her eyes, as she looked at him, seemed to well up. "You scoundrel," she whispered.

Zu An swallowed with difficulty. "Don't play with fire. You can't be with me intimately right now, yet you insist on acting this way."

Qiu Honglei said with a giggle, "What does it matter if the fire ignites? Have you forgotten this is the Pleasure Quarter? You can easily find plenty of sisters here to help you put out the fire."

'This enchantress!'

Zu An cursed silently, remembering the purpose of his visit, and with great willpower, gently pushed her away. "I'll go see who Cheng Xiong has invited this time."

"Cowardly man," Qiu Honglei muttered, though her heart was pounding. For Zu An, it was playing with fire, but wasn't it the same for her?

Zu An could have other women help him, but what about her?

She stuck out her tongue and secretly admonished herself that she really shouldn't behave like that anymore.

Zu An went to the window, opened it a crack, and observed the situation below.

He saw a short, stocky young man with a thick neck leading the group. Apparently trying to appear refined, he wore a blue gown popular among young noblemen in the capital. He intended to look cultured and elegant, but his bulging muscles made the clothes seem ill-fitting, making him look out of place.

"That's Cheng Gang," Qiu Honglei whispered as she came to his side. "He's clearly a vulgar martial artist, yet he insists on pretending to be a refined scholar." Her tone was filled with unconcealed disdain.

Zu An had a strange expression. It wasn't that women disliked muscular men; they just disliked ugly ones. In his previous life, some women online had a collective term for men like Cheng Gang—"shrimp men," meaning they were like shrimp, edible only if their heads were removed.

"Oh, so he invited the young masters of the Qin family," Qiu Honglei explained with some surprise, looking at the few people behind them. "The two behind, the one with thick eyebrows and large eyes is Qin Guangyuan, grandson of Duke Chengguo, and the one with delicate features is Qin Yongde, grandson of Duke Weiguo."

Duke Chengguo is Qin Zheng, Chu Chuyan's maternal grandfather, and Duke Weiguo is Qin Se, Chu Chuyan's second maternal grandfather.

It must be said that the Qin family's genes are indeed good; each of them is quite handsome. Cheng Gang, standing with them, looked like a servant.

It's actually understandable. Qin Zheng and Qin Se themselves were good-looking, and being in high positions, they married beautiful women. Their sons were also handsome men and beautiful women, so producing an ugly descendant would have been a rare occurrence.

"Oh, there's a familiar face?" Qiu Honglei said with a strange expression, poking Zu An with her elbow. "Your brother-in-law is here too. Should I arrange for the girls here to serve him well?"

Zu An also widened his eyes, looking at the last slender, petite figure with red lips and white teeth, truly a handsome young gentleman. Qin Yongde was also considered handsome, but compared to her, he was still far inferior.

"How did this girl end up in a place like this?" Zu An felt a headache. 'You're a woman disguised as a man, coming to a brothel to play; are you crazy?' Hearing Qiu Honglei's teasing laugh, he quickly said, "No need. Just treat him normally to avoid revealing anything."

"Young Master Qin, Young Master Chu, this way please," Cheng Gang's rough voice called out. He seemed like the host of the place, enthusiastically welcoming the group.

Shuangyue also skillfully greeted these guests. She originally intended to invite them indoors, but Qin Guangyuan, the one with thick eyebrows and large eyes, stopped her. "Just set it up in the courtyard."

Shuangyue was startled for a moment but quickly reacted. "Alright!" She then immediately had the maids arrange drinks and fruits in the courtyard.

Qiu Honglei commented, "They must want to discuss something confidential and are afraid of being overheard, so they deliberately chose an open area."

Zu An nodded, agreeing with her assessment.

At this moment, Cheng Gang laughed heartily. "Shuangyue, these are all extraordinary young masters, but today's guest of honor is Young Master Chu. It's his first time in a place like this, so just serve him well."

A faint blush flashed across Chu Youzhao's face, but she quickly returned to normal. "No need, I'm fine by myself," she said.

Qin Yongde, who was handsome and nearby, also laughed and patted her shoulder. "Youzhao is still too inexperienced. As a man, you'll get used to it after a few more visits. Miss Shuangyue here is exceptional in both beauty and talent; having her serve you for your first time couldn't be better."

Chu Youzhao subtly evaded his hand, feeling extremely awkward. She regretted coming to this place with them if she had known earlier. 'Ah, it's so tiring pretending to be a man,' she thought, 'and having to deal with all these messy social obligations.'

Shuangyue said with a beaming smile, "This Young Master Chu is truly handsome."

She naturally knew Chu Youzhao's connection to the Chu family of Mingyue City and thought, 'He's Young Master Zu's brother-in-law, so he truly must be well-entertained.'

The few people nearby teased, "Shuangyue sees our brother Youzhao as handsome, and her heart is fluttering!"

Qin Yongde also laughed. "Even the Murong family's eldest young lady was completely smitten by him, let alone a courtesan!"

Qin Guangyuan frowned slightly. "Second brother, mind your words."

Qin Yongde also realized his mistake. Comparing Miss Murong with a courtesan in a pleasure quarter was indeed inappropriate. "I truly deserve a penalty drink," he said. "I'll fine myself three cups."

Soon, the group began drinking and enjoying themselves. Each person had two girls arranged to accompany them, while Chu Youzhao was personally accompanied by the courtesan queen, Shuangyue.

Watching the Qin brothers, Cheng Gang, and the girls embracing and casually touching each other, Zu An felt as if he was back in a familiar scene from certain clubs in his previous life.

Well, as a veteran keyboard warrior, of course he hadn't been there himself; he had only learned about it online.

Compared to the others who were perfectly at ease, Chu Youzhao was restless. She kept shifting sideways and looked warily at the beautiful courtesan queen. "Don't touch me," she said.

Shuangyue giggled. "Young Master Chu, why are you so wary? I won't eat you."

Chu Youzhao secretly frowned, thinking that these women from pleasure quarters truly had no shame. However, she couldn't show her disapproval, so she simply said lightly, "I'm not used to physical contact with others."

"Alright, I'll sit further away then," Shuangyue said, not seeming suspicious. 'What kind of men haven't I seen in a brothel?' she thought, 'There are even more exaggerated quirks.' "Since it's Young Master's first time here, I'll toast Young Master."

Chu Youzhao bit her lip. Seeing the flirtatious scenes nearby, her heart was filled with shame and annoyance. She didn't refuse the drink; she needed something to distract herself.

Seeing Chu Youzhao was willing to drink, Shuangyue's eyes curved like crescent moons as she smiled. She then urged her to drink cup after cup. As the courtesan queen of the Pleasure Quarter, her reasons for urging drinks were varied and numerous. Chu Youzhao, with little experience, couldn't resist, and despite wanting to refuse, she unknowingly drank a lot of alcohol.

Qiu Honglei, upstairs in the distance, smiled with pursed lips. "Your brother-in-law is quite an interesting person, though he seems a bit effeminate."

Zu An rolled his eyes. 'Is that girl stupid? It's bad enough she came to a brothel, but she dared to drink so much? Isn't she afraid of getting drunk and lying around in the brothel, exposing her cross-dressing?'

After a while, Cheng Gang coughed. "Miss Shuangyue, we brothers need to have a private talk."

Leng Shuangyue stood up and bowed. "Gentlemen, if you need anything, just call for me." Then she slowly left with the girls under her.

Zu An's spirits lifted. "Here it comes!"

Watching others with soft, fragrant beauties in their arms while he could only watch was quite unbearable.

Qiu Honglei had a worried look. "With them deliberately hiding their words, we probably won't be able to hear what they're saying from here."