They were now shooting the next scene. Jiang Chao, played by Qi Haolin, raised a hand and casually signaled to the soldiers beside him. The soldiers immediately surrounded Rouge Pavilion.
Madam Huang, the owner of the brothel, immediately ran over when she saw what was happening. She was wearing numerous layers of makeup; as soon as she opened her mouth to speak, the air around her exploded with the powder flaking from her face.
“With all due respect, Sir, you can’t do this to us. We’re just honest folk doing honest work.”
“Honest folk doing honest work?”
Jiang Chao removed his gloves, an icy smile on his lips. “Since when is prostituting yourself ‘honest work’?”
Large patches of powder broke away from Madame Huang’s face as her expression froze in place.
“That doesn’t seem fair, sir. We’re just trying to feed ourselves in these troubled times. It’s so hard to earn a living these days. You can’t expect an old woman like me to take all these young ladies out to the streets to beg for food and jobs. Even if we tried that, someone would have to be willing to take us in, and you know very well that times are tough for everyone. We don’t have a choice. We have to sell ourselves, or starve.”
Madam Huang wept as she spoke, staining her handkerchief with copious amounts of makeup. The wrinkles in her old, sagging face surfaced in patches as her makeup continued to wear away. Jiang Chao was forced to press a finger under his nose to keep from inhaling the cloud of makeup powder and choking to death.
He signaled to his soldiers. A soldier ran over, extracted a search warrant from his uniform, and waved it under Madam Huang’s nose.
“Madam Huang, we have reason to suspect that you are harboring a communist. We will now search the building.”
Madam Huang teared up as soon as she heard the word “search.” She opened her mouth to protest, but before she could say a word Jiang Chao had already crumpled his gloves into a ball and stuffed it into her mouth. Madame Huang’s courage deflated at once; she could only whimper helplessly, too afraid to remove the gag and speak her mind.
Just then, the tension in the air was broken by the crisp clack-clack of high heels from above.
“Oh my— a search, you say? Well, you’ll find that there are only women here. Please, search to your heart’s content, but be quick about it. We’re running a business here, and my sisters have to earn money to be able to feed themselves.”
A foot appeared at the top of the wooden stairs, followed by a pair of lovely, perfect legs. Most of the men present were suddenly filled with the urge to run their hands over the exquisite calves, to feel whether they were just as smooth and supple as they looked. The legs belonged to a lady dressed in a blue cheongsam; she descended the stairs slowly, one hand upon the railing and the other casually fanning herself with a feather fan. There was something fascinating about the way she moved. When her face finally came into view, everyone present sucked in a breath, unable to contain their feelings of surprise and awe.
It was Hong Yao, Rouge Pavilion’s top prostitute. Her status at the top of the hierarchy meant that her services were reserved only for important customers—the average customer could not approach her or ask her to attend to them.
She sauntered across the room, stopping in front of Jiang Chao to gingerly place a hand upon his shoulder. She looked directly into his narrowed eyes.
Her lashes fluttered as she leaned into Jiang Chao’s chest.
Jiang Chao’s eyes narrowed further. His hand shot out, shoving Hong Yao roughly away before brushing his clothes in a manner that suggested he had come in contact with something dirty. He silently appraised Hong Yao with eyes that were utterly devoid of emotion.