"What do you do, and do you have an invitation?"
Taken aback, Ling Zhenfei realized this place truly had its unique features—it even required invitations, likely serving as verification after making an appointnt.
Annie glanced at the man and said, "This is Mr. Ling, we have an appointnt."
The security guard looked at the two and said, "So it's Mr. Ling. Please co inside; to the third courtyard, Qiuhua Hall."
As the door opened, Ling Zhenfei and Annie walked in, only to understand what a hidden paradise this was. The bustling outside world was contrasted by the exceptional tranquility inside, where the thick walls shielded the city's noise, and the gardens were dotted with plants, pavilions, terraces, and towers.
Gazing ahead, Ling Zhenfei felt a sense of Jiangnan's water towns, a rare sight in the chilly Northeast.
The place seed much warr than other areas; just entering it made one feel a bit warr, leaving Ling Zhenfei very surprised.
Annie explained, "Jiagong Mansion has four courtyard layers in total, the first presents the spring, the second, sumr, the third, autumn, and the fourth, winter. I love autumn, so the third courtyard is the most beautiful."
Ling Zhenfei looked at Annie: "I didn't expect you to be so familiar with this place."
Smiling, Annie said, "Of course, after you stay here for a few days, you will understand it very well too."
As they talked, they headed toward the second courtyard; it had about a dozen houses, all of which seed very nice and comfortable to live in.
There was a large pond in the second courtyard, teeming with fish swimming among the water, a delightful sight, surrounded by tall trees and even tropical plants.
Being able to sustain tropical plants in the Northeast, Jiagong Mansion indeed was extraordinary.
The third courtyard symbolized autumn, and it was autumn at the ti. Upon entering, one was greeted by a courtyard full of fragrant flowers, plum blossoms in full bloom, and red maple leaves blazing like a fla.
Only when they reached Qiuhua Hall did Ling Zhenfei realize that inside, it was yet another world entirely, enveloped by maple leaves. They had to walk along the path under the plum blossoms to reach Qiuhua Hall.
Falling asleep with the scent of flowers, living in such a place was truly comfortable; one could not help but envy the wealthy.
However, Ling Zhenfei only found it awkward when he realized that inside Qiuhua Hall, apart from the study and living room, there was only one bedroom, likely intended for a couple.
A man and a woman sharing one room—how would that work? It was baffling what Annie had been thinking, but luckily, Ling Zhenfei hadn't planned on sleeping that night; his reason for coming was Tang Sen.
"You should rest," Ling Zhenfei told Annie.
Faced with the situation, Annie also felt embarrassed: "What about you?"
Ling Zhenfei said, "Don't worry, we cultivators sleep while sitting."
Surprised, Annie asked, "Are you serious, really sleeping while sitting?"
"Certainly, we call sleeping 'entering ditation.' Once in the state of entering ditation, it's the sa as sleeping."
"Well then, I'm going to sleep. Good night." Annie was truly exhausted by then, having had so drinks and with it being so late, she could hardly keep her eyes open anymore.
Ling Zhenfei used his Divine Sense to check and, finding Annie truly asleep, he changed into different clothes, put on a mask, and quietly sneaked out.
Releasing his Divine Sense, Ling Zhenfei instantly enveloped his surroundings, making sure that he would notice even the slightest movent around him very clearly.
Now, what he had to do was find the underground entrance of Jiagong Mansion, but with such a large mansion, locating a small underground entrance was no easy feat.
After so thought, Ling Zhenfei headed straight for the courtyard entrance, where special personnel were present at the entrance of each courtyard to receive guests.
"Hello, is there anything I can help you with?" asked a person who looked like a butler, smiling at Ling Zhenfei.
"Well, I was wondering if there is any place for entertainnt in our Jiagong Mansion? I'm really bored in the evening."
No sooner had Ling Zhenfei spoken than the person burst into laughter, "What kind of entertainnt could there possibly be this late at night? If Mr. you're truly bored, you could read a book or surf the net to pass the ti."
Ling Zhenfei's mind raced; it seed that the people of Jiagong Mansion were still quite guarded. Not just anyone who ca could go underground in the mansion, but for Ling Zhenfei, going underground was a must.
"What are you implying? Am I here to amuse you? Can't I go underground at Jiagong Mansion?"
The person still smiling, replied, "Mr., you must be joking. Our Jiagong Mansion doesn't have anything underground. Take a look at this large courtyard. Below there are lakes and pipes, how would one even go down there? Please, stop joking around."
Ling Zhenfei knew this person must surely be aware of the underground, but simply wouldn't tell just anyone.
"In that case, call your manager over. I need to have a word with your manager about this service quality; I'm very dissatisfied. You think I ca to your mansion just to sleep? I ca here to have fun."
"But sir..."
"There are no 'buts'. I know that your Jiagong Mansion's underground doesn't host ordinary guests, but I was referred here by a friend. I am very clear about what goes on down there, that's why I ca to your mansion."
The butler-like person sized up Ling Zhenfei and said, "Since that's the case, then co with , Mr. I really am making an exception for you here."
"Thank you very much for that."
Ling Zhenfei followed the butler to the second-level courtyard and into one of the rooms.
To the untrained eye, the room looked no different from any ordinary room, even slightly more disorganized than the others. Once the two of them had entered, the butler pressed a button on the wall, and the bookcase slowly shifted.
Behind the bookcase appeared a large door, and the butler led Ling Zhenfei through it.
Inside the door was an elevator. After entering, the butler pressed the number 2, and the elevator began to descend.
Ling Zhenfei realized that there must be at least two floors of space below; without the butler, an ordinary person would indeed have no way of entering this place.
The elevator descended for about fifteen seconds, and when the doors opened, Ling Zhenfei found himself in a completely different world.
The sight that t Ling Zhenfei's eyes filled him with astonishnt, even giving him the sensation of returning to the Imperial Palace Club with its glittering opulence, however, the only thing missing here was the abundance of beautiful won.
This place looked like a massive casino, with every conceivable gambling device and a countless array of entertainnt options.
Under the butler's lead, Ling Zhenfei walked inside where the butler inford him that chips could be exchanged at the entrance, and all gambling and entertainnt activities within used chips for paynt.
Ling Zhenfei was quite familiar with this casino; he had won his first bucket of gold gambling in a place like this.
It had been a long ti since he had been to this casino, and Ling Zhenfei couldn't help feeling a bit of an itch to play. Since he was here to find Tang Sen, it was impossible not to look for so thods to draw him out.
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