Chapter 31: A Pleasant Surprise

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“Are you leaving, my lord?” Zhou Miaotong asked after Wang Lu closed the cabinet door again.

Wang Lu handed her the knife and nodded. “I have something to take care of outside. You just go to sleep. That pill cost me one tael of silver, and it should keep him asleep for a day and two nights. But just in case, hold on to this knife. If he wakes up, give him another pill.”

As he spoke, Wang Lu took out another pill wrapped in white paper and placed it in Zhou Miaotong’s hand.

She accepted it and stared blankly at him. “Will you be coming back tonight? Should I leave the door open for you?”

Wang Lu was somewhat surprised by her attitude toward him. She seemed even more considerate than she had been toward Yan Junbin in the film. He could not tell whether this was because Zhou Miaotong possessed especially high professional standards, or for some other reason.

With a smile, Wang Lu ruffled her hair. “No need. I’ll come back tomorrow. By then, the silver will be taken care of, and all that remains will be the Ministry of Justice’s pardon. How does that sound? Not too slow, is it?”

Zhou Miaotong smiled and nodded. “Then be careful in everything you do. I’ll wait for you to take me out.”

Her words struck Wang Lu as strange yet again. Given their relationship, they seemed far too abrupt.

But this was no time to dwell on it. Wang Lu strapped on his saber and slipped over the wall, leaving the courtyard of Warm Fragrance Pavilion unseen.

“Who goes there?”

The moment Wang Lu emerged from the alley, he encountered two night watchmen carrying torches.

The sharp shout made him frown slightly.

With a roar, one of the torches was thrust forward. As it illuminated Wang Lu, the flames suddenly leapt high.

The watchman narrowed his eyes, then slowly widened them again. Swallowing hard, he stammered, “An… an Embroidered Uniform Guard?”

Wang Lu rested one hand on his saber and held the other behind his back as he silently watched the two men.

“Forgive us, my lord! Our eyes failed us—we didn’t realize it was you!” The two watchmen lowered their heads in terror, suddenly finding the ground beneath them utterly fascinating.

“You recognize me?” Wang Lu asked coolly.

“Yes, my lord…” One of the watchmen had only spoken halfway when he felt his companion tugging at him and immediately fell silent.

The other watchman appeared somewhat older. He smiled ingratiatingly and said, “My lord must be occupied with important business. We have never seen you before. Whoever asks, that is exactly what we will say.”

Wang Lu took out a broken tael of silver and tossed it over. The watchman fumbled to catch it, then immediately said, “Thank you for your generosity, my lord.”

The man who had stopped his companion was clearly the cleverer of the two.

Now that they had accepted the silver, they would not dare gossip later. Otherwise, neither of them would fare well. It was a weakness they shared—a mutual, if somewhat precarious, understanding.

Wang Lu nodded and strode away.

“Why would an Embroidered Uniform Guard come to Yellow Blossom Ward?” one watchman asked after he had gone.

The watchman holding the silver raised his hand and smacked him on the back of the head. “Don’t ask questions that aren’t yours to ask! If you want to survive in the capital, learn how to keep your mouth shut!”

Wang Lu moved swiftly. He knew no lightness skill, but years of constant training had strengthened every muscle in his body, so his speed was naturally far from slow.

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After eight years, Wang Lu was thoroughly familiar with the roads and districts of the capital. Half an hour later, he had reached the entrance to Lantern Market Alley.

When he approached Number Six, he stopped at once and listened carefully. A woman’s coquettish voice drifted from within.

Wang Lu covered his face, placed one hand against the wall, and vaulted onto it.

Crouching atop the wall, he saw that the gatehouse was dark, yet lewd sounds were already coming from inside.

“Guo Zhen himself is useless, but his servants certainly know how to enjoy themselves.” Wang Lu smiled faintly.

At least this spared him the trouble of sneaking in.

He leapt down from the wall. The full moon of the fifteenth day of the seventh month illuminated the trees and buildings in the courtyard. As long as he made no sound, reaching the rear courtyard was effortless.

Rustle, rustle.

The rear courtyard contained not only an artificial hill but also a stream. The residence was by no means ordinary, which made Wang Lu all the more eager to see what Guo Zhen had accumulated.

Behind the artificial hill, Wang Lu found a brick carved with a strange pattern and pressed it inward.

A deep rumble sounded, and a small opening appeared on the southern side of the hill.

Wang Lu glanced around to make sure no one had noticed. He took out a fire striker, lit it, and entered the artificial hill.

The moment he stepped inside, his eyes lit up.

The first tier of the two-level shelves was piled high with silver, every ingot weighing twenty taels.

The second tier held exquisite silk brocades embroidered in the Suzhou style.

Wang Lu pulled out a length of fabric and swept his arm beneath the silver. The ingots clattered into the cloth bundle.

He tied it shut and slung the silver over his back.

A rough estimate put the haul at around fourteen hundred taels.

Once the silver was secured, a jar farther inside caught his attention.

“More?” Wang Lu stepped forward and opened it.

But the instant he lifted the lid, his expression turned hideous.

“Damn!”

He hurriedly replaced the lid and fled with a livid face.

Before leaving, he did not forget to close the door again.

All the way home, the scene he had just witnessed kept flashing through Wang Lu’s mind. He was forced to quicken his pace desperately, determined to devote every ounce of strength to hurrying along rather than thinking about that revolting thing.

When he reached his home, Wang Lu vaulted over the wall with practiced ease. By then, he had almost forgotten the object that had so disgusted him.

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Then he let out a puzzled “Huh?” and said, “This is my own house. Why did I climb over the wall?”

Wang Lu stood there in confusion. It seemed that after vaulting over so many walls today, he had developed muscle memory.

But he was already on top. Could he really climb back down and enter properly?

Wang Lu jumped over the wall into his home, shoved the silver into a cabinet so old it was older than he was, then went to the water urn and bent down to gulp several mouthfuls. After wiping his mouth with an imperious sweep of his hand, he let out a faint sigh.

“Guo Zhen is more or less taken care of. Should I go see how things are with Shen Lian?”

Wang Lu returned to the bedside and sat down, pondering in the darkness.

Whether he went or not did not seem to matter much.

At worst, Yin Cheng would die.

What Wang Lu was struggling over was Pei Lun.

Pei Lun was a Hundred-Household Officer of the Southern Pacification Office, also known as the Southern Command Office. He held the same rank as Wang Lu. However, the Southern Pacification Office was responsible for discipline and order within the Embroidered Uniform Guard, whereas the Northern Pacification Office dealt with matters beyond it. One governed the inside; the other, the outside.

If Wang Lu wanted to make any plans concerning the Embroidered Uniform Guard, the Southern Pacification Office would inevitably have to lend a hand. At the very least, he needed someone there with enough influence to speak on his behalf.

Moreover, Pei Lun was both bold and meticulous during the Shen Lian case. He had nearly caught Shen Lian out several times. If Lu Wenzhao had not helped conceal Shen Lian’s activities, Pei Lun would have exposed Shen Lian’s entire background long ago.

His martial skills were not weak either—good enough to place him among the top ten, at the very least.

Wang Lu felt that a man like this was worth treating with special consideration.

But if he wanted Pei Lun to work for him, would he have to do what he had done with Guo Zhen and wait until Lu Wenzhao was about to kill him before shouting, “Spare him”?

That would be far too troublesome.

Wang Lu immediately rose to his feet, an idea already forming in his mind.

He still had to make his move through Yin Cheng.

…

By the moat, Yin Cheng glanced back at the men under Ling Yunkai who were pursuing him relentlessly. The alcohol in his system sobered almost instantly.

He ran with long, powerful strides and soon left them far behind.

But continuing to flee like this was obviously not a solution. Anyone could tell from his panic that he had committed some offense. Once he encountered the patrols ahead, he would be walking straight into a dead end.

Just as he passed an arched bridge, inspiration struck. With a sudden burst of speed, Yin Cheng leapt onto a small boat passing along the bank.

The boatman stared at him in terror. Before he could even speak, Yin Cheng kicked him overboard, sending him plunging into the river and splashing up a great sheet of water.

The men under Ling Yunkai immediately slowed. They watched as Yin Cheng shouted abuse at the old boatman and urged the boat onward at top speed, then turned to look at their commanding officer, Banner Captain Ling Yunkai.