In her dazed and drowsy state, Bao Zhu was suddenly grabbed by her hair and forcefully plunged into the icy cold pool water. The shock instantly awakened her.

Before being dragged away and knocked unconscious, she had struggled desperately, but both her arms had been dislocated at the joints, rendering her unable to lift them in resistance. Two servant women vigorously scrubbed her with coarse cloth, rubbing so hard her skin was nearly raw.

One servant woman said cautiously, “Auntie, this girl’s body is quite clean.”

Someone on the shore replied sternly, “She’s the daughter of a rustic peasant, born in a humble thatched hut. Who knows if there are fleas and lice in her hair? Search carefully and scrub hard.”

Another male voice instructed, “She’s quite strong. When you reset her joints later, remember not to let her get her hands on any weapons.”

The woman on shore said, “Where would there be weapons in the inner quarters? We wouldn’t even give her an eyebrow razor to use.”

Instinctively sensing she was being watched by many strange gazes, Bao Zhu burned with rage. Since childhood, she had been accustomed to bathing surrounded by groups of servants, but had never been treated so roughly.

After being scrubbed for a long time, she was again dragged by her hair to the shore, dried off, and dressed in a maid’s clothing.

The woman the servants had called “Auntie” approached. Judging by her dress and makeup, she appeared to be a high-ranking matron. She examined Bao Zhu up and down with an appraising gaze, commenting, “Smooth and delicate skin, and good hair quality as well.” She then took Bao Zhu’s hands, feeling them front and back, saying, “The nails are too short. They need to grow out to look alluring.”

With her shoulder joints dislocated, even a gentle tug caused Bao Zhu excruciating pain. She wanted to kick the woman, but was held immobile by her hair being grabbed.

Two men stood on the shore, one tall and one short. The short one came over to reset her joints. Bao Zhu cried out in pain as tears streamed down her face, glaring fiercely at him. This man wore a short gray outfit and removed the black cloth from his face, revealing an ugly, pointed face like a rat’s. Though short in stature, he had large hands covered in prominent veins. The tall man was thin as a bamboo pole with a sallow complexion.

“This year’s job was too difficult. After much effort, we finally succeeded. We delivered the Guanyin safely without damaging her skin,” he said as if claiming credit.

Auntie asked again, “What about the other person?”

The rat-faced man curled his lips and said, “Same as every year, can’t get over it in his heart, needs time to recover. It’s still we two brothers who did the main work.”

Auntie snorted disdainfully, “Every year it’s the same complaints. Who doesn’t know your little thoughts?”

The tall, thin man narrowed his eyes and said solemnly, “Aunt Zhao doesn’t understand jianghu affairs. This year’s target was extremely difficult. We risked our lives – if anything had gone wrong, we’d have been separated from our heads.”

Aunt Zhao had no interest in these underworld stories and was already impatient. She handed over a written voucher, “Enough, enough. You brothers won’t be shortchanged on your reward. Go collect it.”

Only upon hearing “collect reward” did the man show a hint of smile. He took the voucher and left with the rat-faced man after paying their respects.

Bao Zhu listened carefully and found the tall man’s voice very familiar, almost identical to the peddler who had been calling out to sell cherries and cakes outside the wall earlier. She immediately understood – this group had been paid to kidnap her. There had been two bandits who entered the room to abduct her, plus the tall man outside who had created the diversion, making three people total. She didn’t know where the other one was or what he looked like.

After the two men entered the room, Shisan Lang had immediately stepped forward to protect her, but two fists were no match for four hands. After two moves, he was struck and sent flying by a palm strike from the gray-clothed rat-faced man. She didn’t know the extent of his injuries. Bao Zhu’s heart burned with anxiety, deeply worried about his safety.

She surveyed her surroundings and saw she was in an enclosed square courtyard. The buildings were tall, spacious and magnificent, with carved railings and jade balustrades, and a square pool in the center. This didn’t seem like an ordinary household.

The main gate was secured with iron locks, and Aunt Zhao was surrounded by a group of sturdy servant women. Bao Zhu assessed the situation and knew that with her own strength alone, it would be very difficult to force her way out.

Seeing that she no longer struggled, Aunt Zhao said with satisfaction, “Being docile and obedient will spare you suffering. Looking at your complexion and temperament, you must have been carefully trained by talent brokers. You should understand when to advance and retreat.”

Bao Zhu asked, “Where is this place? Who are you people?”

Aunt Zhao laughed heartily, her face showing a hint of mockery as she said leisurely, “This is the heavenly court above. Since you once played Guanyin, you can now be considered as having ascended to immortality.” The other women joined her laughter, their voices echoing through the courtyard with an indescribable eeriness.

With her long wet hair draped over her, Bao Zhu felt a chill run down her spine. She had originally wanted to reveal her identity as a daughter of the Hongnong Yang clan, hoping to escape through this, but seeing this eerie situation, she figured her circumstances wouldn’t change because of it.

Aunt Zhao pointed toward the eastern buildings and said, “Before the master graces you with his presence, you’ll temporarily reside in this Nishang Court, awaiting his summons.” With these words, she led the servant women away in a leisurely manner.

Only after Aunt Zhao had gone far did young, beautiful women emerge from the surrounding buildings in small groups, looking at Bao Zhu with curious yet pitying gazes. It appeared at least thirty to forty people lived in this courtyard.

Though her shoulder joints had been reset, they still ached constantly. The blow to the back of her head when she was knocked unconscious earlier also caused lingering dizziness. Bao Zhu looked around helplessly with no plan, and could only decide to observe her environment while walking into the eastern room Aunt Zhao had indicated.

Though the buildings in Nishang Court appeared magnificent from outside, the interior furnishings were surprisingly sparse. The large common room was divided into many small chambers. The room Bao Zhu entered was unoccupied. In the cramped space, there was only a messy low couch and a small table for grooming. On the table sat a tin kettle for water and some simple cosmetics like lip rouge and eyebrow paint.

Bao Zhu reached out to search through the bedding and clothing on the couch but found nothing that could serve as a weapon. Fear, anger, and grievance all surged up at once, and tears flowed like a spring.

“Where are you from? What’s your name?”

An inquiring voice came from the doorway. Bao Zhu looked back and saw the silhouette of a young man leaning against the door frame, backlit. Seeing that graceful and elegant outline, she thought it was Wei Xun for a moment. However, it was only a momentary illusion of joy. She immediately knew she had mistaken the person, and looking more carefully, it was actually someone familiar.

She saw the youth had golden hair and green eyes, jade-like skin, and a high nose bridge – it was the Hu dancer from the Yao family troupe, Mi Falan.

Bao Zhu couldn’t help but be startled. Hearing him ask her name was exactly the same question she had asked him at the Golden Wave Pavilion. She assumed this person was an accomplice of the kidnappers, harboring malicious intent and asking what he already knew. Immediately, with tears in her eyes, she glared at him viciously.

The youth observed her for a moment, then stepped into the room, drawling lazily, “Cry away, cry away. The master especially likes this kind of tearful, pitiful appearance. Unfortunately, I haven’t had a drop of water today, so even if I wanted to cry, I couldn’t squeeze out tears.”

A woman outside called out loudly, “Don’t dawdle! Change clothes quickly! Otherwise you’ll miss the next dance!”

The youth walked straight to the couch and pulled a long-sleeved dance costume from the pile of clothes on the bed. In front of Bao Zhu, he untied his sash and smoothly removed his grape-patterned dance costume, changing into this one. Then he picked up a hu cap decorated with golden bells and put it on, bent down to fasten a golden bell anklet. His movements were practiced, as if this room was his own.

Bao Zhu noticed he seemed a head taller than when she last saw him, and his voice was more high-pitched, which left her somewhat confused. Not only that, but his earlobes were pierced with two sapphire glass earrings shaped like small drums.

“I’m your roommate, Mi Moyan.”

The youth introduced himself casually while changing clothes. After dressing, he walked to the small table and knelt down, reaching out to touch the tin water kettle. His eyes showed obvious longing, but after hesitating for a moment, he ultimately didn’t dare drink even a sip. He only scooped some oil from the lip rouge box and applied it to his slightly dry lips.

After finishing his costume change and makeup touch-up, he left the room and disappeared into the depths of the corridor with several elaborately dressed dancers.

Bao Zhu was full of questions and at a loss, hugging her knees and sobbing for a while. Suddenly remembering Aunt Zhao’s words about “awaiting summons before the master graces you with his presence” and the youth’s comment about “the master especially likes this tearful, pitiful appearance,” her stomach immediately churned with a nauseating sense of dread.

Having been abducted to this place, surrounded by servants and dancers who served a master, she vaguely guessed what fate awaited her, feeling even more terrified.

She mustn’t cry, absolutely mustn’t shed tears, couldn’t let them succeed. Bao Zhu gritted her teeth and made a decision. Covering her face, she struggled to endure, forcing the endless bitter tears back down her throat. She didn’t know how long it took, but finally managed to stop crying.

The sky gradually darkened, and the sounds around her died down accordingly. Lively music and dance could be faintly heard from afar. After a long while, the performers returned to Nishang Court, exhausted.

Golden bells jingled outside the door as the youth who called himself Mi Moyan returned. His silk clothes were soaked with sweat. Without removing his makeup or changing clothes, he immediately grabbed the tin kettle and gulped down water desperately – he seemed extremely thirsty.

After drinking his fill, he removed his hu cap and bells, loosened his hair knot, took off his brocade boots, and collapsed onto the couch in exhaustion.

Seeing this, Bao Zhu was terrified, thinking she really had to share a room with a strange man. After pondering for a moment, she asked, “What’s your relationship to Mi Falan?”

Hearing this name, the youth immediately sat up and asked urgently, “You know Falan?”

Bao Zhu said, “I once watched the Yao family troupe perform. Though I never spoke with him, you two look so alike – are you brothers?”

Mi Moyan was stunned for a while, murmuring, “Yes, that’s a famous music and dance troupe.” After a pause, he said with a heart full of bitterness, “We’re twins.”

Bao Zhu immediately recalled the details of her interactions with the Yao family troupe members, and remembering Yao Jiangzhen’s claim of being part of the “ascending to immortality family,” the answer to her confusion became clear.

“You were also a Guanyin slave,” she said.

Mi Moyan lowered his head and remained silent for a long time before finally admitting, “I was from three years ago.”

Bao Zhu asked in surprise, “Are all Guanyin slaves brought here after the parade and kept here?”

Mi Moyan looked into her eyes that still held a glimmer of hope, then after a moment looked away and said quietly, “They once lived here.”

Bao Zhu asked urgently, “Once? Then where are they now? Where have they been taken?”

Mi Moyan said nothing more. He silently walked outside to the open pool in the courtyard, removed his outer robe, slowly knelt down, and scooped water to wash the sweat from dancing off his body. Under the dim moonlight, he pushed aside his disheveled golden hair, revealing his thin back covered in layers of old whip scars.

After washing, he returned to the room, gathered the colorful dance costumes piled on the couch, moved them to the small table, and simply cleared space for another person. Then he layered some coarse cloths together, spread them on the bedding beneath him, and lay down against the wall.

Seeing him make room for half the couch, Bao Zhu frowned and said, “I can’t possibly sleep on the same couch as a strange man.”

Mi Moyan said flatly, “Don’t worry, I’m no longer a man. I won’t do anything bad to you.”

Bao Zhu was stunned for a moment. Connecting this with the youth’s high-pitched voice, smooth skin, and somewhat feminine temperament, she immediately understood.

She had been surrounded by countless neither-male-nor-female palace servants, so was extremely familiar with their appearance and mannerisms. After being castrated, they had difficulty controlling urination and defecation. When on duty serving their masters, they dared not drink much water to avoid embarrassing odors.

“You’re a eunuch?”

Mi Moyan pillowed his head on his arm and gave a self-mocking snort, “Only respectable people with official positions can be called eunuchs. I’m just a castrated slave for people’s entertainment.”

Bao Zhu had no words. The night was already deep. She couldn’t escape and had nowhere to go. Finally, she had no choice but to lie down fully clothed at the edge of the couch.

The walls were very thin. In the silence under the eaves, she could even hear the breathing of dancers next door. Both had heavy hearts, staring at the ceiling with open eyes, neither able to sleep.

After a while, Mi Moyan suddenly asked, “What does Falan look like now? Has he grown a beard?”

Bao Zhu shook her head, “No, he still looks like a youth, almost exactly like you.” She thought these twin brothers appeared to be only fifteen or sixteen now. Three years ago when Mi Moyan was abducted, he wouldn’t have been much older than Shisan Lang – still just a child.

So what the common people enviously called “ascending to immortality,” being chosen from millions for their beauty, was nothing more than being kidnapped by bandits to this place hidden from daylight, enduring humiliation as slaves and servants.

Bao Zhu thought of the figurines offered on the Guanyin statue’s lotus platform – six females and one male. Mi Moyan was now in Nishang Court, but where had the other six girls gone?

“What’s your name? Where are you from?” The youth by the wall asked this question once again.

Bao Zhu pondered for a moment and replied, “My name is Dan Niao, courtesy name Long Nu. I come from Chang’an.”

Mi Moyan laughed softly, “That’s a strange name, sounds like a stage name. You’re also from the entertainment quarter, aren’t you?”

Bao Zhu took a deep breath, struggling to suppress surging tears, and remained silent.

The glory of being above ten thousand people during the parade, the honor of being the center of attention – all were mere illusions, bait hidden beneath a beautiful shell. A hunt even more sinister and despicable than the human traffickers who disguised themselves as pregnant women to “receive Guanyin.”

Author’s Note: Though commoners mostly had names but no courtesy names, according to Tang dynasty records in “Beili Zhi,” courtesans mostly had courtesy names, possibly related to their usual interactions with nobles and literati. Referencing “The Tang Dynasty’s System of Base People,” some slaves of base status had no surnames (not absolute), and due to officials’ crimes, their nobly-born female relatives would be stripped of status and enslaved, so even those with good breeding might be mistaken as coming from the entertainment quarters.

Dan Niao is another name for phoenix.