The drumbeats from the Bell and Drum Tower arrived as scheduled.

Today, the area outside the Eight Great Alleys was exceptionally crowded, with both the noodle and wonton stalls completely full. Customers at the stalls ordered wontons but didn’t touch them, instead warily observing the passersby, sitting there for two full hours. Seeing that these customers had daggers and axes hidden on their persons, the stall owners could only swallow their words of urging.

Under the twilight, a dozen or so men emerged from Baiyu Garden in Baishun Alley, escorting Duke Du Qi towards Li Shamao Alley. Some of these men were blind in one eye, others were missing a hand; all were physically impaired.

As they passed by Yanzhi Alley, a bold woman on the second floor threw down a handkerchief and giggled, “Duke Qi, do patronize my business!” Seeing the handkerchief about to land on Duke Qi’s head, a man from the Sanshan Society quickly caught it in mid-air, looking up angrily. “Get lost! Is Duke Qi someone you can flirt with?”

The woman, however, was not afraid of them and chuckled mischievously, “What’s wrong with Duke Qi? He’s a man too. I threw that handkerchief for Duke Qi, why did you catch it? I wouldn’t even look twice at you!” Her teasing spurred on the other women in the alley, who opened their windows on the second floor to jeer at the man: “Big oaf, how come we’ve never seen you patronize our alley’s business? Are you all brawn and no use?” The man raised his finger, about to flare up at the women on the second floor, but Duke Qi pressed down his arm and smiled, “Forget it, forget it. Why get upset with them? You’re a big man.”

The dozen or so people arrived at Li Shamao Alley and entered the Yi Hong Courtyard. The madam of Yi Hong Courtyard came out smiling to greet them. “What a rare guest! It’s my first time seeing an esteemed elder like Duke Qi visit our Yi Hong Courtyard.” Duke Qi waved his hand. A man behind him took off a string of Buddhist coins and placed them in the madam’s hand. “Let the girls rest today; Yi Hong Courtyard will not be open for business.” The madam subtly ran her fingertips over the micro-carved patterns on the Buddhist coins. The man from the Sanshan Society frowned and said, “What, you don’t even trust the Sanshan Society?” The madam reached out and patted his chest. “How could that be? Thanks to the Sanshan Society’s usual patronage, I’ll give you a piece of news. Today, not only is my Yi Hong Courtyard booked, but even the neighboring Chunfeng Courtyard, Hongmei Garden, and Dengxian Tower were booked in advance by others. They were very generous.”

Duke Qi frowned. “Have the guests for those places arrived?” The madam said with a smile, “The guest for Dengxian Tower arrived past noon. He was just one person, sitting alone in the room. He wouldn’t let anyone in and seemed very reclusive.” Duke Qi looked thoughtful. “What does this person look like?” The madam whispered, “A lean man, around forty years old. Very short, and as skinny as a monkey.” Duke Qi frowned and remained silent for a long time. “What about Chunfeng Courtyard?” The madam continued, “The guests for Chunfeng Courtyard just arrived at You-shi (5-7 PM). Not only did they book the entire courtyard, but they also sent the madam and the girls away, giving each of them five taels of silver as a bonus and telling them to stay outside for the night. Furthermore, they brought their own stoves, tea sets, and tea leaves, not using anything from the courtyard at all.”

“Oh?” Duke Qi was a little surprised. “So generous. How many people did they bring?” The madam whispered, “More than twenty, and very fierce.” The man lowered himself and leaned close to Duke Qi’s ear. “Duke Qi, could it be the backer of Furuixiang who has arrived?” Duke Qi nodded. “Yes, it’s possible.” The man then asked, “Shall I go and investigate?” Duke Qi shook his head. “No need. Bringing so many people and being so generous, I can largely guess who it is. Don’t provoke him… Strange, who booked Hongmei Garden then?”

As they spoke, a group of people entered from outside the alley. Each person wore a bamboo hat, pulled low over their eyes, avoiding the gazes of others as they entered Hongmei Garden. What was strange was that these people’s steps were astonishingly uniform when they walked. The distance of each step and the height they lifted their feet were exactly the same. So much so that when they walked together, there was a strange sense of order. A man whispered, “Duke Qi, it’s Chen Wenren, the young master from the Second Branch of the Chen family. I’ve seen them at Baiyu Garden. Presumably, those around him are imperial guards.” Duke Qi looked thoughtful. “The Second Branch of the Chen family… so the person behind Heji is here too… Hmm, who is that person in Dengxian Tower then? And who else would come to join this commotion?”

At this moment, Chunfeng Courtyard was quiet. The young man who had previously watched wrestling with Chen Ji was leaning by the window, with an arm resting on the windowsill, his fingers tapping rhythmically. Beside him, a small red clay stove was burning, and on the stove sat a delicate silver pot. A burly man sat nearby, picked up the silver pot, poured tea into a blue-and-white porcelain cup, then pushed the teacup towards his hand. “Master, have some tea.” The young man picked up the teacup and brought it to his lips, slowly blowing on it, but his eyes peered through the window crack at Li Shamao Alley downstairs.

The man reminded him, “Master, tonight you are scheduled to go with Minister Wu of the Ministry of Rites to the Imperial Music Bureau to watch a play. If the censors find out you came to a place like Li Shamao Alley, they will surely impeach you.” “Just make sure they don’t find out,” the young man said with a smile. “Plays like the Four Dreams of Bianliang are so fake; how can they compare to real action? Heji and Furuixiang have gathered over six hundred men here in the Eight Great Alleys. Those people today will likely not return alive. If I don’t come and see it now, I won’t get to see them at all.” Zhou Kuang frowned. “Master, what’s so good about watching hoodlums fight? If you truly want to see something, I’ll take you to the mountains when the Five Armies Camp and the Ten Thousand Year Army conduct their drills.” The young man shook his head helplessly. “What I want to see isn’t martial arts.” Zhou Kuang was startled. “Then what are you watching?” The young man smiled mysteriously. “I’m watching human nature… Those people are quite interesting. Thirty-odd people want to challenge two major martial arts gangs. They have guts. Zhou Kuang, you’re from the Five Armies Camp. Tell me, do they have any chance of winning today?” The man named Zhou Kuang pondered for a moment. “No chance of winning. If one or two manage to escape, that would be good.”

The young man drank the tea in the blue-and-white porcelain cup in one gulp. “What a pity. I quite liked that paoge.” The man sat in front of the small stove and said, “Master, why don’t you protect him?” The young man smiled. “After protecting him, handing over the outer city’s business for him to manage, and then watching him be corrupted by fame and fortune for ten years, turning into someone like Zhu Guan? That wouldn’t be pretty to watch. The storytellers always like to talk about how benevolent Heji’s old patriarch was, but they never dare to tell how, ten years after gaining fame, that old patriarch ruthlessly eliminated dissenters.”

The young man looked out the window. “Zhou Kuang, flowers should wither into dust instantly when they are at their most vibrant. Heroes should be killed when their names echo throughout the land. There should be no living legends in the jianghu, because as long as a legend lives, there will be a day of decay. Rather than decay, it’s better to die early.” The man remained silent. The young man’s gaze returned from the window, and he looked at the man. “Zhou Kuang, if I ever become like that, just cut me down.” The man named Zhou Kuang shook his head. “Master, it would implicate nine generations of your family.” The young man said dismissively, “No guts.” Zhou Kuang retorted, “Master, why don’t you just commit suicide?” The young man said with a smile, “No, I’m afraid of pain.” Zhou Kuang lowered his head and secretly rolled his eyes.

The young man’s gaze returned to the window. “I heard Minister Wu say that the Four Dreams of Bianliang is about the loves and hates between two noble individuals and two common individuals. Haha, I wonder which impoverished scholar had that daydream. Always talking about love and romance, don’t they get tired of it? If I were to write, I’d write about four men abandoning their studies to join the army, leading troops north, ending a thousand years of suffering for two dynasties, and giving the people a stable life.” The man pouring tea whispered, “You did indeed write under a pseudonym, but it wasn’t well-written, and Wenyuan Bookstore didn’t want it.” The young man’s expression froze. “That’s because Wenyuan Bookstore has no taste… Hmm, what time is it now? Why haven’t those people arrived yet?”

It was midnight. Even the guests in the Eight Great Alleys began to gradually disperse, but the people he was waiting for hadn’t arrived. Several distinguished guests remained in Li Shamao Alley, and hundreds of people waited outside the Eight Great Alleys. Everyone waited from You-shi until Zi-shi, watching the candles in the lanterns being replaced again and again, and red wax tears dripping onto the ground. Still nothing happened.

In Yi Hong Courtyard, Duke Qi, being elderly, couldn’t endure it much longer and began to doze off. Not until the night watchman passed by did he wake with a start. “Where are they?” The man in the room whispered, “Duke Qi, they didn’t come tonight. The guests at Chunfeng Courtyard and Dengxian Tower are still waiting, but the young master from the Chen family’s Second Branch in Hongmei Garden couldn’t wait any longer and left early.” Duke Qi said irritably, “Damn it! Could it be that these people guessed that Heji and Furuixiang would join forces today, so they deliberately stood us up? Are they trying to wear us down?” The man asked, “Will they never come again?” Duke Qi chuckled angrily, “If they really don’t come again, wouldn’t Qian Ping’s fingers have been cut off for nothing? How was the business at home tonight?” The man reported, “Tonight, Baiyu Garden was fully booked.” Duke Qi was a little surprised. “Fully booked?” The man explained, “They say it was Zhang Zheng, the young master of Minister Zhang Zhuo’s family. He led a group of friends to our Baiyu Garden to listen to music. They didn’t call for girls, just a bunch of grown men playing drinking games; it was quite dull.” Duke Qi smacked his lips. “I love to have fun, and the young one does too. This Zhang family is quite interesting.” The man asked, “Duke Qi, shall we go back and rest?” Duke Qi shook his head. “Let’s wait a little longer. Those little rascals might show up again at night. I need to see that formation with my own eyes.”

At this moment, playful noises came from a distance. A group of people came from the direction of Baishun Alley, arm in arm. They casually walked through the streets and alleys, under the watchful eyes of many stick-wielding men. Upon reaching the intersection of Li Shamao Alley and Hanjiatan Alley, a young man waved and said, “My carriage is parked on the other side, so I won’t be walking with you all.” The others cupped their hands in farewell. “See you tomorrow!” After saying that, the group dispersed into several smaller teams, heading towards various alleys. Chen Ji walked among the crowd, quietly memorizing the distribution of personnel in each alley, and simply walked away as if no one else was around.