Midnight…

Chen Ji woke up from a dream and slowly sat up.

In the simple apprentice dormitory, Liang Mao’er, She Dengke, and Liu Quxing were sound asleep. Liang Gou’er was nowhere to be found, still out God knows where, and hadn’t returned for the night.

Mao’er and Gou’er, usually inseparable, hadn’t gone out together today.

Chen Ji struggled to get off the bed and cautiously made his way to the courtyard. He needed to find out if Wu Hongbiao had been lying.

In the empty courtyard, only the crow remained, perched on an apricot tree branch.

Chen Ji turned to look at the courtyard wall, where a ladder had been propped.

No one was stepping on their brother’s shoulders to peek over the wall anymore, nor was anyone supporting their sister unsteadily from the other side of the wall.

The Young Lord and Princess White Carp had suddenly stopped going out to play, or perhaps they no longer used the medical hall as a shortcut. Tai Ping Medical Hall had returned to its former tranquility.

Chen Ji took some leftover food and water from the kitchen and was about to head out of the medical hall when the crow blocked his path, pointing outside the medical hall.

“Uncle Crow, what do you want to say?” Chen Ji was puzzled.

The crow spread its wings and gestured, first pointing outside the medical hall, then making a motion as if drawing a knife from its waist.

Chen Ji was stunned: “Are you saying that Tai Ping Medical Hall is being watched?”

The crow nodded with satisfaction.

Chen Ji’s heart tightened: “Uncle Crow, who is watching the medical hall? If it’s the Secret Service, blink once. If it’s Military Intelligence, blink twice.” The crow blinked three times…

Chen Ji: …

The crow bared its beak, as if mocking Chen Ji for the impending disaster.

Chen Ji frowned in thought, wondering why both parties were monitoring. What exactly had gone wrong?

And with both parties watching simultaneously, how was he supposed to go out and meet Wu Hongbiao?

The crow stopped enjoying Chen Ji’s predicament. It flapped its wings, signaling Chen Ji to follow, then flew onto the roof of the medical hall’s main hall.

Chen Ji brought a ladder and stealthily followed the crow up onto the roof.

At midnight, a man and a crow peered half their heads over the ridge of the roof, secretly looking at the shops opposite the main hall.

Anxi Street separated the two sides, and in the darkness, things were hazy and indistinct.

The crow pointed to the second floor of the third shop on the right. The room was dark, but the window had been opened a crack, providing a clear view of the Tai Ping Medical Hall’s main entrance.

The crow then pointed to the second floor of the second shop on the left; its window also had a crack, facing the main entrance of Tai Ping Medical Hall. Both sides seemed to be observing who went in and out of the medical hall.

Chen Ji muttered, “Good thing they didn’t rent the same place on both sides.”

The crow chuckled silently.

Chen Ji pulled his head back behind the roof ridge and whispered, “Uncle Crow, how many people are in the room on the right?”

The crow blinked three times: “Three.”

“And on the left?”

The crow blinked three times again: “Also three.”

Chen Ji felt a strong sense of crisis. If only one person was sent, it would be normal surveillance. But sending three at once meant they were preparing for an arrest or an assassination.

Good thing Uncle Crow was helping…

Chen Ji turned to the crow and smiled, “Thank you, Uncle Crow, for helping me again… Why are you willing to help me?”

The crow smiled silently, but did not answer.

Chen Ji then asked, “How should I get around to the fabric shop?”

The crow flapped its wings, signaling to go around the back.

Following the crow’s guidance, Chen Ji navigated through the shadows between the buildings along Anxi Street and climbed into the fabric shop’s backyard.

Not only that, but Uncle Crow even handled the aftermath; after Chen Ji entered the yard, it stopped on the courtyard wall to keep watch.

Hearing the sound of someone climbing over the wall, Wu Hongbiao, who had been lying on the ground, sat up cross-legged: “You finally came. Are Military Intelligence and the Secret Service still after me?”

Chen Ji said, “They’re still looking for you, but they’ve been led to the West Market. I heard the fabric shop is being put up for sale soon. This isn’t a safe place to stay long; someone might come to look at the shop at any time.”

Wu Hongbiao thought for a moment and said, “Then I’ll clean this place up tomorrow. If someone comes, I’ll climb out of the yard first and climb back in after they leave.”

“It’s still not safe.”

Wu Hongbiao thought for a moment and said, “Have you found out the true identity of Commander Si Cao?”

Chen Ji was silent for a moment: “You need to answer some questions for me and do something for me before I can answer yours.”

Wu Hongbiao scrutinized Chen Ji: “You’ve changed.”

Chen Ji leaned against the doorframe, letting the moonlight stretch his shadow.

The former sworn brothers, one standing at the doorway and the other sitting on the ground, both looking disheveled, seemed like a pair of distressed comrades who had fallen on hard times together, yet they maintained a safe distance.

Wu Hongbiao said softly, “In the past, you hadn’t undergone long-term rigorous training, and your vigilance was very low. Of course, this also relates to the environment you grew up in. In the Jing Dynasty, we were conscripted into the harshest military camps in the North at the age of twelve, raised from childhood in a land of bitter cold.”

“Half of the year was winter.”

“There was only so much food in the military camp; if you weren’t exceptional enough, you’d go hungry, and two missed meals meant freezing to death.”

“There, even getting a full meal required scheming against each other.”

Wu Hongbiao continued, “You grew up in the Southern Ning Dynasty, a place of singing birds and fragrant flowers, where there are beautiful dancers and courtesans, and dashing scholars and imperial candidates. On the Qinhuai River, boat paddles and lamplit shadows abound. Living here, naturally, makes one… softer.”

Chen Ji asked calmly, “And now?”

Wu Hongbiao answered seriously, “It’s different now.”

“Although I don’t know what you’ve been through, you are now more like a qualified warrior.”

“While it’s a bit disappointing not to be trusted, I am genuinely happy for you. Only with you like this can we endure until the day we meet again.”

Chen Ji lowered his head: “You were betrayed by the Jing Dynasty, didn’t you consider defecting to the Secret Service?”

Wu Hongbiao’s expression suddenly became stern: “It wasn’t the Jing Dynasty that betrayed me, but Commander Si Cao. I told you before, I will never let the political filth of some individuals shake my faith. I also believe your uncle and his associates will rise again and purge the rogues from the court and the public. The common people of my Jing Dynasty have suffered enough. I won’t betray my homeland because of a few petty individuals.”

Chen Ji was silent. This was the first time he had heard the word ‘faith’ since coming to this world.

He didn’t want to dwell on the issue and asked the question he most wanted to ask: “You said the Commander Si Cao with the green-faced, fanged mask who’s skilled with a knife wants to kill us. Why do you say that?”

Wu Hongbiao looked puzzled: “Commander Si Cao is just Commander Si Cao. Why add so many adjectives? There’s only one Commander Si Cao.”

Chen Ji shook his head: “Just answer my question first.”

Wu Hongbiao recalled: “The people who came to kill me first tricked me by saying Commander Si Cao had ordered me to go to the East Market Cao Bang to pick up a batch of goods. I am a Pigeon-level spy. In the entire Luocheng, besides you, only Zhou Chengyi and Commander Si Cao are authorized to know my information. Moreover, on the day the assassins came, I also demanded they show Commander Si Cao’s token, and they did.”

“What was Commander Si Cao’s token?”

“A copy of ‘Luocheng Records’ with a special stamp from ‘Rong Bao Zhai.’ The top right corner of that stamp is chipped off; it can’t be counterfeited.”

Chen Ji finally understood. Wu Hongbiao didn’t know that there were other Commander Si Caos, nor that a new Commander Si Cao had arrived in Luocheng and ousted the original one.

Therefore, according to his own deduction, the one who wanted to kill them was Shopkeeper Yuan, not the Coachman Si Cao.

However, Chen Ji had to verify that Wu Hongbiao was not lying.

After a long silence, he said, “I need you to do something.”

“What is it?”

“Meet Commander Si Cao.”

Wu Hongbiao’s face showed astonishment.

Early morning, the Luocheng Prefectural Office.

A golden lacquered plaque, “Luocheng Prefectural Bureau,” hung above the office.

Officials at the entrance of the prefectural office hurried to clock in, some junior watchmen whispering, “Hurry, hurry! If we’re late, His Honor the Vice Prefect will reprimand us again.”

Just as they were speaking, a carriage engraved with canary patterns slowly pulled up to the entrance of the prefectural office. The officials, no longer minding their clock-in, stopped in their tracks and bowed in salute.

The coachman pulled back the curtain and hooked it onto the carriage body, then picked up a stool and placed it beside the carriage before softly saying, “Second Master, we’ve arrived.”

Liu Mingxian, clad in a blue official robe, with a black gauze cap on his head, a jade-buckled leather belt loosely tied around his waist, and wearing black boots with white soles, slowly descended from the carriage.

“Greetings, Lord Assistant Prefect.”

“Greetings, Lord Assistant Prefect.”

Liu Mingxian grunted from his nostrils, and only then did the officials dare to straighten up and rush into the prefectural office.

By custom, Liu Mingxian, a fifth-rank official, was not qualified to ride in such a canary-patterned carriage. However, the Liu family’s Elder Liu held a high position, and Yuzhou was the Liu family’s exclusive territory, so naturally, no one dared to comment.

Once Liu Mingxian entered the office, the coachman drove the carriage to the side, put on a bamboo hat, and squatted by the entrance, chatting about trivial matters with other coachmen and sedan chair bearers.

The coachman asked with a smile, “Er Niu, did your master go out to have fun again last night?”

Er Niu chuckled, “Hah, when does my master *not* go out? Last night he went to the Embroidery Pavilion in White Clothes Alley and supposedly met the courtesan head, Miss Liu.”

The coachman exclaimed, “Now all the gentlemen in Luocheng want to see what Miss Liu looks like. What did your master say?”

Er Niu replied honestly, “My master said that Miss Liu is indeed a wonderful person, but unfortunately, she’s protected by the Xu family, so no one dares to do anything to her.”

The coachman paused for a breath, then asked again, “Old Li, what about you? What did you do last night?”

“What else could I do?”

Old Li yawned, “Last night, a group of secret agents came to the Imperial Manufactory, saying they wanted to inspect the storeroom ledgers. My master had to stay inside all night, unable to leave for even half a step. He was only released this morning. My master didn’t even go home; he came straight here.”

The coachman chuckled, “You really had it rough. Go back and have your wife give you a good back massage.”

“My wife might hit me, but a back massage is out of the question!”

The coachmen and sedan chair bearers burst into laughter.

At that moment, Liu Mingxian’s coachman inadvertently scanned the street and his expression immediately darkened.

Across the street, a pale-faced young man stood still, staring directly at him.

The coachman said to the others, “I haven’t eaten breakfast yet. I’m going to grab a bowl of tofu pudding. You all keep chatting.”

“Alright, bring me two *youtiao* when you come back!”

The Coachman Si Cao then quickly walked into the crowd. As he walked, he suddenly darted to the young man’s side, grabbed his arm, and led him into a narrow alley.

Once they were in the alley, the Coachman Si Cao growled, “Wu Hongbiao, are you out of your mind? The Secret Service and Military Intelligence are both looking for you, and you still dare to stay in Luocheng!”

Wu Hongbiao whispered, “I can’t leave.”

The Coachman Si Cao asked in a serious tone, “How did you know my identity, and how did you find me here?”

Wu Hongbiao lowered his head: “I tracked you before.”

Si Cao sneered, “You tracked me? With your abilities, you could track me? Have you already defected to the Ning Dynasty Secret Service?”

Wu Hongbiao looked up and met Si Cao’s gaze: “I am, after all, an elite under Lord Lu, specially dispatched to the Southern Dynasty. Don’t underestimate me.”

Si Cao still didn’t believe him. He slightly narrowed his eyes, his hand reaching into his sleeve, ready to draw a short knife at any moment. He quickly scanned the surroundings but found no one closing in.

The Secret Service used over a hundred men by the Qinhuai River last time and still couldn’t catch him. If Wu Hongbiao had defected, the Secret Service would have probably dispatched troublesome guards from the Mengjin Grand Camp to surround him by now.

Si Cao said thoughtfully, “You’re not hiding under an assumed name right now. Why are you looking for me?”

Wu Hongbiao said, “Someone came with your token to lure and kill me. Naturally, I had to come and ask you directly, Commander Si Cao, why did you try to kill me?”

“Not me. Someone wants to clean us out,” Si Cao replied in a deep voice.

“How can you prove that?”

Si Cao sneered, “If I wanted to kill you, would you be alive today? Don’t waste time. Since you’re alive, go immediately to Tai Ping Medical Hall and inform Chen Ji of the situation. Tell him that tomorrow evening, both of you are to come back to this alley, and I will arrange for your departure from Luocheng!”

“Where to?”

“A traveling merchant will take you back to the Jing Dynasty. Go back and find his uncle. Only by staying with him can you be temporarily safe,” Si Cao said.

Wu Hongbiao turned and left. At the same time, two tabby cats on the eaves of the grey tiled roof stopped their frolicking, jumped off the roof, and disappeared into the vast Luocheng…

At noon, Wuyun jumped from the rooftop into the courtyard. It raised a paw and gently patted Chen Ji, but couldn’t wake him.

Wuyun waited patiently until Chen Ji gasped, waking from a nightmare of an ancient battlefield. He touched his neck; Feng Huai had just slashed him there.

Chen Ji looked at Wuyun: “You’re injured again?”

Wuyun lifted its head: “Victory! From now on, Anxi Street is mine!”

Chen Ji looked at it with reverence: “Terrific!”

Wuyun recounted the day’s events of monitoring Wu Hongbiao. Chen Ji concluded: Wu Hongbiao hadn’t lied, and the Coachman Si Cao hadn’t intended to kill him. The previous day, he had indeed come to protect him.

The one who wanted to kill him was Shopkeeper Yuan.

Wuyun suddenly asked, “Are you leaving the Ning Dynasty?”

Chen Ji was silent.

Should he go? If he left, he could at least stop living as a double agent. In the Jing Dynasty, he also had an uncle who was a former high-ranking official. Even if he was out of office, a lean camel is still bigger than a horse. Even without power, he could at least buy more ginseng, right?

Although he wouldn’t see some of his new friends anymore, they wouldn’t be coming to the medical hall anyway.

The only person he couldn’t bear to leave was Old Man Yao. What would happen to him if Chen Ji left? He could only entrust him to She Dengke and Liu Quxing.

No matter how he looked at it, Chen Ji should leave. It wasn’t the choice he most wanted to make, but it was the most sensible one.

Chen Ji looked at Wuyun: “Are you willing to come with me?”

Wuyun thought for a moment: “Although it’s a bit of a shame about Anxi Street, which I just conquered, I’ll go wherever you go.”

Chen Ji took a deep breath: “Alright, we’ll leave tomorrow afternoon, departing from this trouble-ridden place.”

He slowly rose and moved into the courtyard, looking at the large water vat in the southeast corner, the apricot tree in the middle of the yard, the closed main house, and the bustling main hall of the medical hall…

Chen Ji hadn’t been in this world for long, but even though he had only lived there for just over ten days, a sense of reluctance filled his eyes when he thought about leaving.

At that moment, Liu Quxing returned to the backyard to wash his hands. He looked at Chen Ji in surprise: “Oh, you’re finally awake!”

Chen Ji smiled, took out a piece of broken silver, and handed it over: “Senior Brother, could you help me buy some meat and vegetables? I want to cook a meal for everyone.”