This scoundrel is a bit of a swordsman.

Huayu Tower is located next to the imperial city. Anyone who comes to this brothel for the first time will have the illusion that this is a brothel.

This brothel was unlike any other; it occupied a vast area, its height only slightly shorter than the imperial city walls, and its decorations were as magnificent as a dazzling pearl. Coupled with the fact that one could see beautiful women dancing in the breeze atop the Flower Language Pavilion from afar, it was truly a grand spectacle in Yong'an.

Even before getting close, one could feel the bustling atmosphere of the entire street. The Huayu Building was a symbol of the prosperity of the entire capital city. This was the Bund, a place of extravagance, where everyone coming and going was dressed in finery and had extraordinary appearances.

What is most surprising is the owner of this Flower Language Pavilion. He is mysterious and no one knows his true face. But everyone knows that the owner must have extraordinary abilities to open a brothel under the Emperor Wu's nose.

This is also why Xiao Xingchen came here. In his previous life, Xiao Jianren spent almost all his free time here, so he was quite familiar with the place. Although it was his first time here, he entered with ease.

There are thresholds to enter the Flower Language Pavilion. Only three types of people are accepted: officials, nobles, and immortals. Officials and nobles are easy to understand, but the last one, immortals, refers to the distinction between mortals and immortals, specifically those who have ascended to the Ninth Heaven.

In their words, there's a difference between clouds and mud; they are clouds in the sky, so naturally they cannot stoop down to serve the mud on the ground.

This led to Huayu Tower's unique status as a brothel; in my previous life's terms, it was a high-end escort service. Of course, the corresponding service was truly exceptional; otherwise, it wouldn't have been able to capture the hearts of so many men.

"This isn't your first time in Beijing, is it? Why do you seem more familiar with Huayulou than I am?"

Zheng Youqian looked puzzled. The Flower Language Building had eight floors. The first floor was for identity verification, and the floors above were the real Flower Language Building.

Anyone visiting here for the first time would be confused by the rules, but Xiao Xingchen didn't even ask and just started going through the procedures.

"Even if you've never eaten pork, you've still seen pigs run, right? That's what I've heard."

He gave a perfunctory reply and began to enter the building.

Zheng Youqian didn't think much of it. The two entered the first floor and, familiar with the layout, headed towards the corresponding reception area.

There are nine doors on the first floor, namely,

Wealth, power, authority, nobility, honor, crown, support, strength, brocade

These nine doors encompass almost all the requirements for people of status. Anyone entering the building simply needs to match their identity to these nine characters, find the appropriate door, and someone will verify whether they meet the entry requirements.

Zheng Youqian entered through the "Wealth Gate," a very simple gate to enter. He simply left a valuable item as collateral, and once verified, he could ascend the stairs. This wasn't his first time there. He reached down and took a jade pendant from his waist, placing it on the tray at the "Wealth Gate."

Soon a beautifully dressed young woman came downstairs, then bowed and invited him upstairs.

Zheng Youqian nodded, then looked at Xiao Xingchen. Of the nine sects, only the one embodying the character "Power" suited his status. After all, he was a sword immortal, so entering the "Power" sect would be quite simple for him.

But Xiao Xingchen walked in the direction of... the Mian Gate.

"He's going to use the Crown Gate?"

The exclamation drew the attention of everyone waiting to enter. Since the "Mian" gate was erected there, almost no one had ever passed through, because no one understood the meaning of the character "Mian."

The other eight gates are easy to understand; they are simply about power, wealth, honor, and strength. But the "Crown" gate—many have tried to enter, but all have been rejected.

Speaking of this, we must mention another rule: once you pass through the "Mian" gate, you can go directly to the eighth floor. Although the first floor of the Flower Language Pavilion is used to verify identity, the eight floors above it are also strictly divided.

Every item verified here is scored on the guest; who goes to the second floor and who goes to the fifth floor are all evaluated.

Therefore, being able to reach a certain number of floors in the Flower Language Building has become a point of comparison for many people.

The higher the floor, the more extraordinary and noble the person's status.

The second floor is for those who have reached the threshold of the Flower Language Pavilion, but only barely crossed it. This floor is the lowest level of the Flower Language Pavilion.

Then, the evaluation progresses step by step, based on factors such as wealth and power; the higher one climbs, the greater their perceived value.

Huayulou explained it this way: You are a high-ranking official, second only to the emperor. You wouldn't like to see your subordinates sitting with you and drinking together, would you?

Everyone needs to find people who are on their level. Those who bow down to you cannot be your equals. This is what makes Huayulou different from other places; here, you only see people who stand at your level.

You can't see anyone higher than you, nor anyone lower than you—that's true strength.

Although many initially scoffed, the arrival of numerous high-ranking and powerful figures genuinely shocked many. Those people were upstairs, and they dared not approach them. The truth was always cruel; Huayu Tower was telling everyone that if you wanted to reach higher levels, you had to climb upwards with all your might.

Each floor here has connections and resources tailored to your needs. They've helped you get on the floor; whether you seize the opportunity depends on yourself. That's why, over the decades, the Flower Language Building has rapidly become a prominent and influential place in the Great Qian Dynasty.

Especially for officials from outside Yong'an, the first thing they do upon returning to the capital is come here. Even if they can only go to the second floor, they will do everything they can to befriend the people here.

As for this "crown" gate, no one has been known to have passed through it to this day.

So when Xiao Xingchen walked to the gate with the character "Mian" on it, all eyes on the first floor instantly focused on him.

Zheng Youqian had a toothache. He thought Xiao Xingchen must have been faking it; he didn't know the rules here at all.

That's why he abandoned the people who were there to greet him and ran straight towards them, trying to stop Xiao Xingchen.

To his surprise, Xiao Xingchen entered the Mian Gate almost without hesitation, a decisive action that drew gasps of astonishment.

It's important to know that there are many stories surrounding the "Crown Gate." Although it leads directly to the eighth level, the punishment for failing is extremely severe. At worst, it results in death; at best, it leads to financial ruin and an uncertain future.

These lessons were learned through blood and tears, which is why over the years, very few people have dared to walk through that gate. People jokingly refer to the "Crown Gate" as the "Gate of Death."

Since the other seven gates are enough for them to reach the Flower Language Pavilion, why bother to venture into an unknown, deadly gate?

But now, someone has actually broken in. How can this not be surprising?

Zheng Youqian stood there, feeling utterly frustrated, muttering to himself.

"Oh no, oh no! I forgot to tell him and he barged in! We're doomed! What are we going to do?"

Someone broke into the gate with the character "冕".

This news instantly attracted a lot of attention, and even the people upstairs couldn't help but focus their gaze on it.