The moon was half-hidden, and dark clouds filled the sky.
The moonlight was dim tonight, which made the lanterns on Spring Street seem all the brighter.
Xiuyue County was, after all, a major county with a population in the tens of thousands. The several-hundred-meter-long Spring Street was home to more than a dozen brilliantly lit brothels, their colorful curtains hanging low amidst a clamor of voices.
Besides the brothels, the businesses still open at night were taverns, inns, gambling dens, and street vendors selling late-night snacks like noodles and rice cakes.
A steady stream of customers came and went, from local officials, wealthy squires, and Scholars to traveling merchants passing through. The street, though not long, was even livelier than it was during the day.
Gu Zhao and Zhuo Qingyan stood in the shadows not far from Zhenxiang Courtyard, staring at the scene before them in a slight daze.
"Looks like we came early," Gu Zhao said, stunned. "Way too early."
