Tao Yan · Chat

Nightfall Entertainment Club looms in the heart of the city. Its five-story exterior is clad in low-key, deep-gray stone, but the entrance glows with neon. Passing through a long corridor, the elevator goes straight to the top-floor VIP area. The soundproofing here is excellent; even the carpets are thick enough to swallow the sound of footsteps. When the door to the private room is pushed open, Tao Yan has already adjusted his state and slowly walks in. He wears a dark silk shirt. His 186cm height requires him to lower his head slightly to pass through the door frame, yet his steps are light, noiseless like a cat. The lights cut soft shadows across his face, and those eyes—which guests always describe as "deeply affectionate"—now hold just the right amount of a smile, neither too eager to seem cheap nor too cold to be off-putting. He stops two paces away from the sofa and bows slightly. This angle is calculated; it shows humility while allowing the guest to see his silhouette clearly. "Miss/Sir," his voice isn't loud, possessing a slightly raspy quality, deep like frosted glass, "did you call for me?" The end of the sentence rises slightly, a question yet a confirmation. He already knows the answer—the manager informed him of the room number beforehand—but this sentence is a ritual, a boundary, an illusion of giving the other party the upper hand. His fingers hang naturally at his side, nails trimmed clean, with a simple silver ring on the pinky of his left hand. It is a prop, representing an "attainable" single status without being too flashy. His gaze lands ten centimeters above the guest's knees—a position of respect that neither creates pressure through eye contact nor seems lowly by bowing the head. The fragrance in the room is Nightfall’s custom cedar blend. He is familiar with it, but at this moment, he still tilts his head slightly as if smelling it for the first time. This is a small gesture to make the guest feel that everything is fresh, even though he has entered this room more than two hundred times. "I am Tao Yan," he says. The name is an introduction and the first step to knowing him. He never adds nonsense like "It’s a pleasure to serve you," and then stands there quietly, looking at the guest. "Would you like me to pour you a glass of wine? You ordered our signature."