Chapter 18: A Taiwanese Drinker Newly Arrived on the Mainland

“This is an exception—hurry back to your dorm, fix your makeup, and then return to work.”

The hotel’s deputy general manager earned most of his income from three sources: salary, bonuses, and tips from the clientele. Notably, the tips given to management staff from Taiwan like himself were often more generous than those received by the hostesses and madams. Normally strict with the hostesses and madams, Deputy Manager Zhang made an exception this time, sensing that the wealthy patron Chen Anlong was showing renewed interest in Hao Meng. He refrained from any punishment, unusually magnanimous for once.

By the time Hao Meng finished her makeup and returned to the hotel, it was the busiest hour for entertaining guests. The flurry of work drove her personal troubles from her mind. After attending to all the guests who had booked rooms through her, it was already past ten o’clock. She had drunk a fair amount, and her cheeks were flushed as she sat at the edge of the hotel’s dance hall, hoping for a brief rest.

A floor supervisor approached her quietly. “Madam Hao, President Chen from Dafeng would like you to go to his room.”

Many guests shared common surnames, so the hotel’s training for madams, hostesses, and even waiters always stressed the importance of remembering not only guests’ surnames but also their professions, positions, or status, to avoid confusion. Hearing that Chen Anlong was here but hadn’t booked a room through her, Hao Meng couldn’t help but complain inwardly: “He booked a room through me yesterday, yet still wants my service today. Doesn’t he know to ask the madam who handled his booking?”

In this world of fleeting pleasures, anyone might do something self-serving for money. Though displeased, Hao Meng showed no sign of it before the floor supervisor.

She entered the private room to find six male guests. Besides Chen Anlong and his bodyguard, three of the others were his boon companions from past drinking sessions—men Hao Meng recognized. The last, a man in his forties with excellent bearing and a striking appearance, she had not seen before.

Wang Fang was attending to Chen Anlong, and his driver had also been paired with a girl for drinks—something that hadn’t happened before. Each of his three cronies had a madam sitting beside them, which piqued Hao Meng’s curiosity.

In the pleasure business, talk of romance and poetry always came down to money. During working hours, every madam hoped to seat more girls at tables, attend to more guests, and collect tips—their chief source of income. Even for a VIP like Chen Anlong, who wasn’t especially generous at one time, few madams would willingly spend the entire night with him. Since Wang Fang had stayed here all night without going to other rooms, it suggested Chen Anlong had tipped her handsomely the night before, making her willing to stay tonight. But his three cronies, all deputy managers at factories and not true bosses, lacked the means to make a madam want to stay with them all night. That all three madams remained in the room, evidently with no intention of leaving, was what intrigued Hao Meng.

With these questions in her mind, Hao Meng courteously toasted Chen Anlong first. The room was drinking Blue Ribbon Martell—a foreign brand that cost over four hundred in stores, but 1,288 a bottle in the hotel. Not top-shelf, but certainly in the high-consumption class.

Just as Hao Meng raised her glass to Chen Anlong, he stood and stopped her, gesturing toward the distinguished man beside him. “This is Mr. Zhan, newly arrived from Taiwan and planning to invest here on the mainland. He’s our guest of honor tonight; I’m just accompanying him. I asked you to come specifically to keep him company.”

Chen Anlong was known for his extravagance at the Happy Family, as well as his arrogance—even with business partners at the table, he always played the superior. For him to call himself “just a companion” might have been mere politeness, but the fact that he rose to introduce the man showed true respect. The gentleman, for his part, remained seated, confirming that his status was indeed exceptional.

Hao Meng guessed that the other three madams present all night were not there for the drinks, but to get close to this Mr. Zhan.

Sensing the situation, Hao Meng cautiously took a seat beside Mr. Zhan. During their conversation, she learned his full name was Zhan Haocheng, and he intended to open a large shoe factory in Humen Town. Chen Anlong seemed somewhat in awe of him—not only was Zhan a shareholder in Chen’s factory, but Chen had borrowed money from him when founding the business, and still hadn’t repaid it. In terms of power and wealth, Chen was clearly a tier below.

Throughout the evening, Zhan Haocheng was the picture of politeness and gentlemanly charm. He even promised that whenever he came to the Happy Family, he would book his rooms through Hao Meng. But Hao Meng, familiar with empty promises made at drinking tables, didn’t take these words to heart.

Before midnight, Zhan distributed tips to all the female companions in the room. Before leaving, he asked Hao Meng to have the three unfinished bottles of Martell stored at the bar under her name—effectively giving them to her.

Whether to hostesses or madams, Zhan gave each one thousand, awarding Hao Meng an extra five hundred. The standard rate at the Happy Family was two, five, or eight hundred; for simply accompanying guests to drink, Chen Anlong’s usual five hundred per madam was already considered generous. Zhan gave double what even the generous Chen Anlong did, no doubt to flaunt his wealth.

Normally, after entertaining at the hotel, Chen Anlong would leave with a woman on his arm. Tonight, as Zhan left without a female companion, Chen did the same, and the hostesses and madams accompanying them also departed.

Hao Meng, troubled by her emotions, found little joy even in the generous tip. She had no interest in speculating whether Zhan’s lavishness was a prelude to seduction, or whether he was playing a long game in hopes of forging a lasting relationship. Alone in the room, she put on “Love That Came Too Late” and sang for her own solace.

“How many years must a love be buried, how many days must a letter be delayed?” Overcome by emotion, she had sung only two lines before tears welled in her eyes and her voice grew choked.

The door opened. Wang Fang, having seen Chen Anlong and Zhan off, returned to the room. She failed to notice Hao Meng’s distress, and complained, “With a generous guest like Mr. Zhan, the other madams are all scrambling to ingratiate themselves. Why didn’t you see him off and try to build a connection?”

Hao Meng shook her head in silence, ignoring Wang Fang’s words and continuing to sing, but tears streamed down her face.

“What’s wrong?” Only then did Wang Fang notice the sorrow in Hao Meng’s eyes and ask with concern.

Her question only made Hao Meng’s mood worse. The song shifted from “Love That Came Too Late” to “When the Dream Ends.” When she sang the line, “You said you loved someone you shouldn’t have,” she could no longer hold back—she flung the microphone onto the table, collapsed onto the sofa, and wept bitterly.