"A Ru, do you recognize which of those items is Su embroidery?" Mu Fengqie asked worriedly.
Don't be fooled by the fact that there were four of them. In reality, they might as well be just one person. There was no point in counting on Jing Xunce and Yuan Yuhan. She could only hope that they wouldn't be eliminated in the first round.
A Ru shook her head blankly. "I'm not good at needlework. I might be able to recognize ordinary fabrics, but Su embroidery has been a rare tribute to the palace since I was a child. It's really beyond me."
Mu Fengqie couldn't help but put her hand on her forehead. Just as she feared, she had forgotten that A Ru, just like her, had no interest in the things that women usually liked.
Mu Fengqie immediately became nervous. This was bad. Even three Zhuge Liangs among them couldn't match a single good-for-nothing. Did they really have to rely on luck?
Yuan Yuhan frowned as well. "Neither I nor Zhanzhi are familiar with women's needlework. If you two don't know either, we might not be able to find the clue."
Jing Xunce had been sitting there quietly, observing. He wasn't as flustered as Mu Fengqie. Instead, he had been watching the others' reactions.
Most of the people were looking blank. Only one person got up confidently and placed a bamboo stick in the flower pot numbered 13. Jing Xunce narrowed his eyes.
"Vote for number 13."
"Huh?"
The other three were startled by Jing Xunce's sudden words. He had been silent all this time, and he didn't seem to know the answer. Why was he so calm when he said number 13?
A Ru couldn't help but roll her eyes and complained, "Brother-in-law, even if you don't know, you don't have to give up like this. Shouldn't we at least check the number of votes from others before making a decision?"
This was their only option now. The other flower pots had far more votes than number 13. Moreover, the handkerchief in number 13 was just an ordinary one. Although the pattern was a bit novel, it was still just an ordinary handkerchief.
"Vote for number 13. It won't be wrong," Jing Xunce said confidently as always.
A Ru was about to argue, but Yuan Yuhan interrupted her. "A Ru, let's vote for number 13. Zhanzhi must have his reasons for being so calm. We should trust him. Let's go."
With that, Yuan Yuhan pulled A Ru and placed their bamboo sticks in the flower pot numbered 13. A Ru was extremely nervous. Her heart was in a complete mess the moment she dropped the stick in.
There were only a dozen or so bamboo sticks in number 13, while the others had nearly dozens. The difference in numbers made A Ru feel uneasy. But the bamboo stick had already been cast, and there was no turning back.
After a stick of incense burned out, the madam took out the handkerchief from number 13 and showed it to everyone. There were gasps in the Fenghua Tower. Half of the people couldn't believe their eyes.
"Congratulations to the ladies who chose number 13. You've passed the first round. You can pay to choose your favorite young men to spend a wonderful night with them on the first floor. Ladies who want to meet the top courtesans can pay fifty taels of silver to go upstairs for the next round."
A Ru could hardly believe her ears. She stared at Jing Xunce with wide eyes as if he were a strange person. "Brother-in-law, how did you know that number 13 was the Su embroidery?"
"See that woman at that table? Does she look familiar to you?" Jing Xunce pointed at the tall woman diagonally in front of them.
A Ru looked in the direction Jing Xunce was pointing and saw the big and stout woman. She just couldn't get used to the sight. This woman looked more like a man. Although her features were delicate, her big and stout figure didn't look like a woman at all.
Mu Fengqie was also observing the "woman" carefully. Suddenly, she had an epiphany. The figure in her mind overlapped with the person in front of her.
"So it's him! What is he doing here?" Mu Fengqie immediately became alert.
The person dressed as a woman was none other than Tule Haojia. At first, Mu Fengqie just thought this person was strange. Then she felt a bit familiar. And then the image of Tule Haojia in his grassland outfit appeared in her mind.
Hearing this, A Ru also had an epiphany. She looked at Tule Haojia with a disgusted expression. This person had a delicate face, but when dressed as a woman, his figure was really an eyesore. Only his face was presentable.
"My goodness! How did he end up like this? Is Tule Haojia following us all the way? Otherwise, what is he doing here?"
A Ru didn't believe in such a coincidence. They seemed to run into Tule Haojia wherever they went. It was the same in Beiming, and now they met him again in Nanqing. It was just too much of a coincidence.
However, if Tule Haojia heard this, he would probably feel extremely wronged. He came here for some personal matters and didn't expect to run into Mu Fengqie and her group.
When he saw A Ru and Yuan Yuhan, his eyes lit up. Then his eyes quickly scanned the Fenghua Tower to look for Mu Fengqie. Sure enough, he saw Mu Fengqie standing out like a crane in a flock of chickens.
Sure enough, the woman he had his eye on was always the most unique one wherever she went. He didn't need to look for her deliberately. He would always spot her at first sight in a crowd.
"He voted for number 13, so I'm sure he must know the answer," Jing Xunce said calmly.
Tule Haojia and Jing Xunce were on opposite sides. Jing Xunce also regarded him as a respectable opponent. A person like him could only be a friend or an enemy to Jing Xunce. However, Jing Xunce quite admired Tule Haojia.
Tule Haojia looked at Mu Fengqie, and coincidentally, Mu Fengqie was also looking at him. When their eyes met, Mu Fengqie felt a jolt and quickly averted her gaze.
"We'd better be careful. Tule Haojia's appearance here is no coincidence. Maybe there's something he wants here too," Mu Fengqie said, bowing her head in thought.
She clearly saw a flash of surprise on Tule Haojia's face when he saw her. Obviously, he didn't know she was here beforehand. And since Tule Haojia happened to be in the Fenghua Tower, it meant there was something here that he wanted.
Jing Xunce nodded as well. His eyes kept drifting towards Tule Haojia as he said warily, "Let's wait and see what happens. Don't tip him off."
The group took out their silver and followed the madam upstairs. There were about twenty of them. Upstairs was a whole new scene, but the men still looked like they were in a pornographic picture.
A Ru and Mu Fengqie both had blushing faces. It was the first time they had looked at men's bodies so openly. Yuan Yuhan and Jing Xunce always tried to stand in front of them to prevent them from seeing the naked men.