The Quagmire of Desire: From Gambling Addict and Village Flower to Movie Queen

As dawn broke, a sliver of grayish-white light shone through the small window in the back room of the hair salon.

Sun Xiaoyan woke up.

She lay on the hard bed, covered with a thin blanket that smelled strange.

Beside her, Liu Meiling had already sat up and was applying something to her face in front of a small, cracked mirror on the bedside table.

"Awake? Get up quickly, Sister Hong will be calling you soon." Liu Meiling didn't even turn her head, her hands moving quickly.

Sun Xiaoyan didn't move, her eyes fixed on the dark water stain on the ceiling.

Last night's events felt like a dream, yet also not.

It felt like I was still holding those few banknotes in my hand; they were sticky and gritty.

"What are you daydreaming about?" Liu Meiling turned around, her face already covered in white powder and her lips painted red. "Hurry up, don't be late on the first day. Sister Hong doesn't like lazy people."

Sun Xiaoyan slowly sat up. Her suspender dress was wrinkled, and the neckline was askew, revealing most of her breast.

She didn't pull it up, she just sat there.

Seeing her like that, Liu Meiling frowned and handed her the powder compact in her hand: "Put some on, your face looks terrible. Customers don't like looking gloomy."

Sun Xiaoyan took the powder compact and, imitating Meiling, applied it to her face. The powder made her cough twice.

"You're so clumsy." Liu Meiling snatched it away and applied it to her face herself. "Close your eyes."

The cool powder puff brushed across her face as Sun Xiaoyan closed her eyes, listening to the sounds of cars and people gradually rising from the street outside.

"Alright." Liu Meiling clapped her hands. "Take a look."

Sun Xiaoyan opened her eyes and looked at the broken mirror.

The person in the mirror had a deathly pale face, blood-red lips, and dark circles around their eyes, looking like a ghost.

She didn't say anything.

Liu Meiling took out two more dresses and threw one at her: "Change into this one, the one from yesterday was torn."

The skirt is red, thinner and shorter than the one I wore yesterday.

Sun Xiaoyan silently changed into the dress, which clung tightly to her body, making her breasts bulge. The skirt was so short that her underwear could be seen when she moved.

Liu Meiling changed into a similar outfit and wiggled her hips in front of the mirror: "Not bad. Let's go downstairs."

Downstairs, Sister Hong was already sitting behind the counter, counting a stack of change. When she saw the two of them come down, she raised her eyelids slightly.

"Awake? Perfect timing." Sister Hong put away the change. "You two, sit by the door today. Learn from them, keep your eyes peeled when you see men passing by, and greet them. Xiaoyan, you're new here, so observe how Meiling does it."

"Okay, Sister Hong." Liu Meiling replied quickly, pulling Sun Xiaoyan toward the door.

There were two small plastic stools placed at the entrance of the hair salon.

Liu Meiling plopped down, spread her legs a little, leaned back, and struck a relaxed yet slightly seductive pose.

Sun Xiaoyan followed her example and sat down stiffly.

"Relax, you're so tense, who's going to look at you?" Liu Meiling said in a low voice. "Look at the people coming and going on the street, don't look away. If a man looks over, smile at him or wave gently."

Sun Xiaoyan tried looking at the street.

There weren't many people in the morning; occasionally someone would ride an electric bike there, or walk to buy groceries.

Her gaze met that of an old man pushing a tricycle to collect recyclables. The old man stared at her for several seconds, chuckled twice, and then slowly pedaled away.

Sun Xiaoyan's face felt a little hot, and she lowered her head.

"Why are you looking down?" Liu Meiling nudged her with her elbow. "We have to let them see! Only when they see us can we get business."

As they were talking, a man dressed in work clothes, who looked like a construction worker from a nearby site, strolled over slowly, his gaze sweeping over Liu Meiling and Sun Xiaoyan.

Liu Meiling immediately smiled and said softly, "Good morning, big brother. Want to come in and wash your hair?"

The man stopped, his eyes fixed on Liu Meiling's chest: "Hair washing? Any other services?"

"Yes, brother, you can have whatever you want." Liu Meiling smiled even sweeter and winked at him. "Come in and chat."

The man was clearly tempted and followed Liu Meiling into the hair salon.

Sun Xiaoyan watched Meiling's figure disappear behind the curtain, feeling a sense of emptiness in her heart.

She sat alone by the door, even more stiff.

A few minutes later, Liu Meiling came out with a smile on her face. She walked over to Sun Xiaoyan and whispered, "It's settled, one hundred. Sister Hong takes thirty, and I'll keep seventy. You keep an eye on things, you're next."

Before Sun Xiaoyan could react, Liu Meiling had already turned around and gone back into the house.

A little while later, a bespectacled, somewhat refined-looking man walked over, his steps a little hesitant.

Remembering Meiling's words, Sun Xiaoyan took a deep breath, forced a smile, and said softly, "Boss...would you like to come in and sit down?"

The man glanced at her, adjusted his glasses, and asked, "What's the price range?"

"Come in...come in and let's talk." Sun Xiaoyan's voice trembled slightly.

The man hesitated for a moment, but still followed her into the hair salon.

Sister Hong glanced at the man and quoted a price.

The man nodded and paid the money. Sister Hong gestured for Sun Xiaoyan to take him to the back.

It's still that same small cubicle, and that same narrow bed.

The man was more polite than the one from last night, but he was just as quick.

Sun Xiaoyan closed her eyes, her body no longer trembling as it had been the night before, but it was still stiff.

Her mind was blank; she wasn't thinking about anything and was just waiting for it to end.

It didn't seem like long before the man finished, pulled up his pants, and left.

Sun Xiaoyan sat up and put on her skirt.

Four twenty-yuan bills were lying on the bed.

She picked it up, held it in her hand, and walked out of the cubicle.

Downstairs, Liu Meiling had just seen the worker off, and the two bumped into each other in the narrow corridor.

Liu Meiling glanced at the money in her hand and smiled, "Not bad, Xiaoyan, you've opened for business."

Sun Xiaoyan didn't smile; she simply handed the money to Sister Hong, who was waiting at the bottom of the stairs. Sister Hong took it and made a note of it in a small notebook.

"Alright, let's eat." Sister Hong put away her notebook.

Lunch was a boxed lunch that Sister Hong bought from outside, consisting of one meat dish and two vegetable dishes. Sun Xiaoyan ate very slowly, and didn't really enjoy it.

In the afternoon, more and more guests arrived.

Sun Xiaoyan and Liu Meiling took turns sitting at the door and leading the guests in.

Sun Xiaoyan went from being stiff at first to eventually being able to imitate Meiling, giving passing men a flirty wink or whispering, "Come and have some fun."

She found herself feeling... numb.

It still hurts a little, and it's still uncomfortable, but it doesn't seem as unbearable as it used to be.

I feel more at ease, especially when I'm holding those banknotes in my hand.

At least I have a place to sleep and food to eat tonight.

In the evening, Liu Meiling closed another deal.

After seeing the guests off, she moved closer to Sun Xiaoyan, and the two sat together on a small stool by the door to smoke.

Liu Meiling handed one to Sun Xiaoyan, who took it and lit it skillfully.

She has stopped coughing now.

"Xiaoyan," Liu Meiling exhaled a smoke ring, watching the neon lights gradually illuminate the street, "we need to save money."

"Hmm?" Sun Xiaoyan looked at her.

"We can't stay here forever," Liu Meiling said in a low voice. "This place is too shabby, and Sister Hong is taking a lot of kickbacks. Let's take more jobs, save up the money, and when we have enough, we'll rent a place and go solo. I heard some women work solo and earn more, and they're more free."

Sun Xiaoyan didn't say anything, she just smoked.

"Think about it," Liu Meiling continued, "when the time comes, we can rent our own place, dress up nicely, and cater to higher-class clients. All the money we earn will be ours. Wouldn't that be better than staying here?"

The lights of distant skyscrapers shone brightly, while the red lights of the nearby hair salon area cast an ambiguous glow.

As Sun Xiaoyan looked at the lights, her gaze slowly shifted from blankness to an empty longing.

The desire for money.

"Mmm," she finally replied.

Liu Meiling laughed and patted her leg: "That's right. When sisters are of one mind, their strength can break metal."

As darkness fell completely, the red lights in the hair salon area became even more conspicuous, like countless ambiguous eyes opening in this area.

Sun Xiaoyan and Liu Meiling sat side by side under the neon lights, their figures bathed in a blurry red glow.

They stopped talking and just stared at the street, waiting for the next man who might stop.

Like two items displayed in a shop window, with price tags marked.