Chapter 72: A Night in A Gilded Cage

— Evening —

At the top floor of the Immortal Dream Tower, the sound of a zither played a joyous tune.

Wei Chen was sitting on a cushion behind a low banquet table. Yes, it was the same type of low lacquered table he often saw in ancient Chinese dramas in his previous life, especially in banquet scenes.

On top of the table were various dishes and liquor. Most importantly, the main dish had been personally prepared by Dream Butterfly herself. Each sip of the liquor was mellow, and the soft spice brought a pleasant warmth to Wei Chen’s palate. He had never tasted anything like it before.

Along with the array of Chinese-looking dishes, he was enjoying the atmosphere to the fullest.

This room at the top of the tower was known as the Immortal Dream Chamber, and from Wei Chen’s experience in the last few hours, it was obvious why it carried such a name.

Other than Dream Butterfly herself, there were several others who entered to help entertain the guest. The guests allowed here were considered VVIP of the Immortal Dream Garden.

There were dancers and men performing acrobatics and telling jokes. From Wei Chen’s perspective, he enjoyed the dancers the most. Of course he did, because which dude wouldn’t enjoy beautiful female dancers unless something in his preferences leaned elsewhere.

As for the acrobatics, they would have been interesting if he were not living in a world where people could demolish mountains with their bare hands. Although only the top of the population pyramid could do that, maybe this kind of performance was still considered impressive.

As for the jokes, Wei Chen had watched a lot of stand-up comedy in his previous life, and most of the jokes in this world did not click with him. For example, the comedy duo told jokes about poetry, but he had zero knowledge about the poetry of this world. He would be lying if he pretended to laugh. This caused the comedy duo to lose some of their confidence.

The music and entertainment session ended with Wei Chen applauding the employees who had worked their hardest to entertain the guest. Next was the private companionship session, the alone time with Dream Butterfly.

Normally, this session would be the part where courtesans bedded their guests, but since Dream Butterfly did not sell her body, he wondered what would actually happen.

Dream Butterfly stepped down from a small elevated stage and sat opposite Wei Chen. She smiled softly and then slowly and gracefully poured wine for him.

“Glory to you, Benefactor Wei. I dream of this moment every time I close my eyes,” Dream Butterfly said as she finished pouring the wine for him.

“Nice… is this the script for guests staying in this chamber?” Wei Chen quipped with a teasing smile before gulping down the wine Dream Butterfly poured for him.

“Script? What is that?” Dream Butterfly tilted her head slightly in confusion.

Seeing this, Wei Chen had to look away. This girl was too cute! Too beautiful!

He quickly suppressed his racing heart and took a breath before explaining.

“A script is like a word or sentence that you write beforehand and memorize to use on specific occasions. For example, an inn receptionist has a script to greet customers, bow, and ask something like, ’Hello, honorable guest, how may I help you today?’ That is a script.”

“Oh, I see. It is like the standard questions and answers we use in the lobby for guests.” Dream Butterfly nodded as she understood the meaning.

“That’s the gist of it.” Wei Chen smiled.

Then Dream Butterfly looked into Wei Chen’s eyes. “As for your earlier question, Benefactor Wei, it is not a script. It is my heartfelt feeling toward you.” The gorgeous girl spoke with a gentle smile.

Wei Chen smiled wryly at the sentence that sounded very much like a confession. This girl really dared to speak something so embarrassing.

“Why are you so interested in meeting me that much? Do not tell me…. it is love at first sight? HAHAHAHAHA!” Wei Chen laughed at his own teasing joke.

“Yes.”

“Huh?” Wei Chen’s brain suddenly stopped processing.

His expression froze, and he suddenly became polite. “Err… I beg your pardon?”

A red hue appeared on Dream Butterfly’s gorgeous face as a sweet smile bloomed like the first flower of spring.

“You could interpret it that way, Benefactor Wei.”

“…..”

“You’re serious!?” Wei Chen blurted out, dumbfounded.

“With all my heart, my lord. I have never felt this way before in my life.” Dream Butterfly spoke earnestly.

Wei Chen’s hand froze midair, and the wine cup unknowingly slipped from his grip. He stared deep into her eyes, trying to find any trace of mischief or deceit.

But there was none. Her eyes lacked any hint of joking or trickery. There was only sincerity and heartfelt emotion.

“Sigh…” Wei Chen let out a long breath as he grabbed a rag near the table and prepared to clean the spilled wine, but Dream Butterfly moved first. She gently and neatly wiped the wine, like a little virtuous wife.

Wei Chen’s hand, which had been frozen, slowly rested on the table as he calmed himself.

“Can you tell me why?” Wei Chen asked. Even in his previous life, his girlfriend had never been this direct. Back then, they were friends for years before changing their relationship status. This level of directness made him uncomfortable.

“At first… it was just envy, curiosity and… interest.” Dream Butterfly paused as she looked deep into Wei Chen’s eyes before continuing.

“I envy your freedom. As an adventurer, you can go anywhere under the heaven. I am curious about your tales and stories from your adventures, and that made me interested in you.” She said this while turning her gaze toward the pale silver moon hanging in the starry sky.

“From this room, through this balcony…. I always watched the spirit screen in the air that showed your adventures. It brought me joy and… yearning. It intensified my longing for the outside world.” Dream Butterfly said with a melancholic expression.

She remembered the first time she saw the strange screen appear in the air. That day, all the guards, even Murong Wen who was the protector of this place at the time, were alarmed and suspected someone was using a despicable artifact.

But in the end, it was a false alarm, and they all watched the broadcast together.

The gray world she lived in, the world she thought had lost all its color after that tragic incident and the cleansing fire that burned her previous home and warm family, suddenly changed.

After that, she looked forward to each broadcast, and her bland and quiet life gained color.

She finally had a goal, something to look forward to. Instead of living only for the matron who saved her life and raised her into who she was today, she began living for something more….

More… personal.

“But…” She looked back toward Wei Chen.

“The moment I met you from afar at the performance stage, I felt my heart beat like never before. My mind only had your figure, your silhouette. It was a strange feeling… like it came from the inside…”

“I began to think that maybe… maybe my life and hardship in my early days were for this moment…”

Hearing this, the wry smile on Wei Chen’s face began to fade as he solemnly looked at the goddess-like girl in front of him once more.

“Sigh~ You really are serious, aren’t you?” Wei Chen massaged his forehead as he looked at the girl.

Dream Butterfly did not say anything. Her eyes slowly drooped as if guilt suddenly struck her.

“Unfortunately… even though my heart longs for you, the union of the body with me is impossible.”

Hearing this, Wei Chen was neither alarmed nor disappointed. He had just met the girl. Even though she was very pleasant to the eyes and her personality was great, they still had just met. It had not clicked for him yet.

But if he said he was not interested in her, that would be a lie. It was like he liked her, but he was still not there yet.

“Are you cultivating some kind of power or method that requires you to keep your chastity to advance or something?” Wei Chen asked, curious.

“No, benefactor Wei, I am just a mortal who cannot cultivate. I have deficient spirit roots since birth due to my physique,” said Dream Butterfly.

“What kind of physique?” he asked.

“My physique is the Primordial Yin Devouring Physique. The moment I have intercourse with someone, it will kill that person. Their life and soul will be drained, and only a husked and dried body will remain,” said Dream Butterfly.

Damn… this is a trap. It is a good thing that I am not some horny young master. Otherwise… Wei Chen thought to himself as cold sweat ran down his back.

“So, not selling your body is out of consideration for the guests, not yourself, huh?” Wei Chen asked.

“Yes… but I also feel glad that I have this physique. If not for it, I would have lost my chastity a long time ago. I never regretted having it…” She looked up and gazed into Wei Chen’s eyes. “Until now…”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep