Naked escorts at a Wuhan karaoke bar

Chutian Metropolis Daily
June 10, 2009

Chutian Metropolis Daily, a Wuhan-based newspaper, launched an undercover investigation into a local nightclub to uncover the illegal erotic services it provides.

Here is the translation of the report, which was featured on today’s front page:

In recent months, our newspaper has been receiving letters from readers reporting that the May Flower nightclub in Wuchang offers “naked escort” services.

One reader wrote in a letter, “We are tourists from Gansu Province. One night in late May, a friend invited us to sing karaoke at the May Flower nightclub. At the nightclub, we were told by a waitress that there was a special service. The waitress,without our permission, disrobed in front of us and went completely naked.”

Continuing, the reader wrote, “Although some sauna and bathing center services may have been accepted by society, the May Flower nightclub’s naked escort service goes overboard and is an extremely bad influence. At present, police are inspecting entertainment venues and cracking down on erotic performances and forced prostitution. The night club, which shows total disregard for the police ban, should be shut down to purify the social environment.”

After receiving this letter, your correspondent got in touch with the reader, who said that he would like to lead me to the night club. At about 9 o’clock on the night of June 5th, I went to May Flower nightclub accompanied by the reader, Mr. Wang. A security guard ushered us in through a side door after Mr. Wang told him that we were there to sing karaoke. Inside the nightclub, a waitress came over and asked us if we had booked a room. When we told her that we didn’t, she apologized and told us that that because a refurbishment was underway, there were fewer rooms than usual, all of them had been booked or were in use. Mr. Wang was given a card with a phone number and we left.

The next day, Mr. Wang called the number and booked a room. We arrived at the nightclub at about 10 pm. A lead hostess greeted us at the hall. Talking through a walkie-talkie, she summoned seven women wearing heavy makeup for us to choose from. Mr. Wang said we just came to sing, so the hostess just assigned three of the women plus a waitress to operate the karaoke machine.

The cover charge for the room was 680 yuan and we could choose drinks equivalent to that amount. Mr. Wang ordered 10 beers and we started to sing. The three women moved closer to us and encouraged us to drink, trying to energize the atmosphere. We just couldn’t concentrate on singing.

Mr. Wang told me that the women would start to recommend their leisure services right away. This turned out to be true: after just a few minutes, a woman told us there was other great fun apart from singing. Feigning ignorance, Mr. Wang asked what it was. The woman appeared a bit surprised: “This must be your first time here. Didn’t the madam tell you?” Her companions also told us that we could enjoy ourselves any way we wanted.

Seeing that we still made no advances, one woman whispered in Mr. Wang’s ear that they could take off their clothes and it would only cost us a one hundred yuan tip for each of them, in addition to the two hundred yuan regular fee. One woman start to unbutton her blouse, but I stopped her.

…

After a while, the hostess opened the door. Finding everyone with their clothes on, she came up with an idea. Taking out a dice, she poured few cups of beer and suggested that we play a game of dice. If we lost, our punishment would be to drink a cup of beer. If the women lost, they would take off one item of clothing.

In order to prove they were not kidding, Mr. Wang played the dice with a woman. When she lost, she stood up and start to strip off her skirt. Trying to avoid the impending scene, I asked women not to strip further.

During the investigation, I asked the hostess whether she was concerned that this could cause trouble. She told me with pride that this was a good way to attract customers. Business was flourishing so much that rooms had to be booked in advance. She told me that few venues in Wuhan were as daring as this one, and that it had never been bothered by police inspections.

A woman said that the “naked escort” service was the nightclub’s specialty of the night club, and it had 40 to 50 escort ladies in its employment. When they were hired, they were told that they had to be able to strip in front of customers. Otherwise, they would not get the job.

During our investigation, I left the room pretending to make a phone call and wandered around the second floor. There were about 10 rooms, five of which kept the door shut. Even when the waiter delivered drinks, they opened it just enough to pass the drinks through but not enough to see what was going on inside.

At about 12 o’clock, our investigation was over. All the beer, fruit, and snacks cost 1,500 yuan. We also paid each of the escorts and the hostess 300 yuan apiece as a tip, and 200 yuan for the waitress who picked the songs for us. Three of us spent a total of 2,900 yuan that night. When we left, the place was still full of people.

Yesterday afternoon, I submitted my evidence to the provincial public security bureau. An officer told us that police were taking strict measures to wipe out sexually explicit performances. If they confirmed our evidence, the May Flower nightclub would be punished severely.