The next day—
"Miss Wanwan, time to get up!"
Yun Feiwan, still deep in sleep, was startled awake by a round of knocking on her door.
Rubbing her sleepy eyes, she had barely opened the door when a few maidservants and matrons hoisted her up and carried her off.
What is going on?!
By the time she snapped back to her senses, she had already been pressed down in front of a bronze mirror.
The sandalwood table was crowded with all sorts of cosmetics, and a refreshing floral scent hung in the air.
Two young maids stood behind her, methodically helping her wash and dress!
"Oh, Miss Wanwan, today is your very first time meeting the guests, so you must dress up properly."
Amidst her confusion, Mother Wang pushed open the door holding a pink feather fan and explained with a smile:
"Don't worry, you're so pretty that Mother... ahem, Elder Sister here will definitely make you look gorgeous!"
Operating under the principle that one must bow one's head when living under someone else's roof, Yun Feiwan had no choice but to be cooperative for the moment.
"Miss Wanwan, you may not know this, but any new and pretty young lady here has to open her doors to guests on her second day.
Of course, Mother would never force a young lady of your status to be sold into prostitution, so you can rest easy about that."
"That's right, that's right! Your skin is so nice, as white as a freshly boiled egg, and so smooth and tender that I didn't even dare apply makeup too heavily.
In my opinion, the top beauty next door isn't even as pretty as you, Miss!"
The two young maids were not old, right at the age where they loved to chatter, and in no time at all, they babbled out practically everything Yun Feiwan wanted to know.
As long as she wasn't being sold, anything else was fine.
Putting her heart back at ease, she squinted her eyes and prepared to catch a quick nap while still half-asleep.
Forty-five minutes later—
"Miss, wake up!"
With her little mouth parted as if about to bite into a chicken leg, Yun Feiwan was shaken awake by the maid. She instinctively wiped the non-existent drool from the corner of her mouth, only to be instantly struck dumb with amazement the moment she raised her eyes!
In the mirror, a pair of delicate hands gently touched her forehead.
Her ink-black hair had been styled into a winding-snake bun, adorned with an emerald and pearl hairpin, and the few fluttering tassels swayed slightly with the owner's movements.
Her slender, moth-wing eyebrows stretched up toward her temples, framing a pair of eyes that shimmered with watery light, sparkling and vibrant like autumn water.
With a nose like carved jade, skin like congealed lard, and tender pink lips like cherries parted slightly, the blooming peach blossom painted between her brows lent a touch of alluring charm to an otherwise lively young maiden.
Is this me?
Yun Feiwan stood up, spun around in front of the bronze mirror, and felt her own face in sheer disbelief.
This youthful maiden in a moon-white brocade long dress, draped in a light blue gauze overlay with a waist that could be spanned by a single grip, was actually her!
From the moment she transmigrated until now, this was the first time she was seeing her own appearance.
She looked about eighty percent similar to her real-world self, though a bit more youthful and serene, and coupled with the styling by the maids of Yihong Brothel, she was simply as gorgeous as a fairy descended from the heavens.
"I am so gorgeous~"
Yun Feiwan cupped her little face and smiled with her eyes curved into crescents.
You can't really blame her for being narcissistic; as the female protagonist of a novel, she naturally possessed extraordinary looks, otherwise how could she become the male lead's white moonlight after her death?
"My, my, Elder Sister here really had an eye for this! Wanwan, my dear, you truly look like an absolute beauty~"
Once Mother Wang saw how Yun Feiwan looked after being dressed up, she couldn't stop grinning from ear to ear!
She couldn't wait to take Yun Feiwan by the hand and lead her gently toward the main hall, chattering away with introductions:
"Today is your big day, and if you perform well, you're bound to make a name for yourself!
Hmph, let's see what that old hag from Chunxiang Tower has to compare with me now!"
Watching Mother Wang's fighting spirit, Yun Feiwan remained silent.
Judging by the time, that scoundrel of a male lead, Xuantian Ze, should be arriving to take her back to her maiden home soon enough. She just wondered what kind of tricks he wanted to pull this time to humiliate her.
Sure enough, speak of the devil.
The two of them had barely crossed the corridor when they ran straight into Xuantian Ze, who was wearing a foul expression.
Seeming rather impatient, he furrowed his brow tightly and opened his mouth to scold them, but the moment he raised his eyes and caught sight of her appearance, a flash of astonishment crossed his gaze!
Look at that—men were entirely visual creatures who could never resist a gorgeous beauty.
Those long legs, that slender waist, and that tender, fair skin!
As long as you were pretty enough, even if he supposedly hated you on the surface, that pair of eyes glued to you and refusing to look away completely betrayed his true preferences.
"Yun Feiwan, are you dressed up like this because you know you were wrong and want to win my favor?"
Xuantian Ze's mood was clearly quite good; the moment he thought she had dressed up specially for him, more than half of the anger from the previous night melted away.
Yet before Yun Feiwan could speak, Mother Wang stepped forward with a beaming smile:
"Oh my, Your Lordship, are you here specially to watch Wanwan's debut performance?
Wanwan spent a full three quarters of an hour getting dressed up! Trust me, today she will definitely catch the eye of every single guest here!"
Mother Wang was unaware of Xuantian Ze's true identity, simply assuming he was some wealthy young master who had taken an interest in Yun Feiwan.
With a single sentence, the slight smile on Xuantian Ze's face instantly collapsed!
The astonishment in his eyes was replaced by fury, and even the hand gripping his armrest tightened involuntarily, his words dripping with sarcasm:
"Ha! Yun Feiwan, are you really that desperate to seduce men?
First you schemed by hook or by crook to marry this Prince, and when you couldn't get my favor, you cast your gaze onto other people. You truly are utterly cheap!"
With that, he swept his gaze up and down over Yun Feiwan, clicking his tongue repeatedly:
"Tsk tsk tsk, you certainly do have some looks, and dressed so scandalously—this brothel really suits you!
Didn't you love to perform? Didn't you love putting on a show for men? Then you can dance your heart out for me today! If you don't finish dancing, don't even bother coming back home!"
At this, Yun Feiwan coyly clutched her chest and took a few steps back, raising a pair of watery eyes to maintain the female lead's "gorgeous yet miserable" persona.
According to the original text, she should be crying and shaking her head right now, enduring grievances and humiliation while biting her lip in absolute silence.
Of course, if she were truly an ancient young lady of high birth, such words would undoubtedly be the utmost disgrace to a woman.
But Yun Feiwan was different; deep down, she possessed the free soul of a modern person.
Especially after being degraded and insulted like this by Xuantian Ze, a rebellious streak flared up inside her!
And so, while maintaining the fragile, innocent flower persona on the outside—with tears shimmering in her eyes—Yun Feiwan simply blurted out her true thoughts aloud:
"I think I'm gorgeous too! Today, in this entire Yihong Brothel, I, Miss here, am the prettiest babe of them all!
Don't worry, I won't let down your expectations. I'll dance to my heart's content, my dear... husband!"
Dropping those words, Yun Feiwan swished her hips and walked away without looking back, leaving Xuantian Ze sitting in his wheelchair, furious yet with no outlet for his rage.
Watching her retreating figure, he gripped the wheelchair so tightly that the veins on his hands bulged:
"Fine, very well, Yun Feiwan! I want to see if you even have the face to return home today!"