Though it is said that all under heaven is the Emperor’s land, Helan was so isolated that the "mountains were high and the Emperor was far away." The commoners in the city knew of Helan Terrace but were largely ignorant of the Son of Heaven. They relied on wandering martial artists to maintain order, and their sense of legality was practically non-existent.
The city was a chaotic mix of people, and a storm was clearly brewing. Recalling the eldest young master’s previous warning, it truly felt as though something was being plotted.
Before leaving Changluo, I had only heard of Zhongli Manor; arriving here, I realized how shallow my knowledge was. During dinner, I tried to inquire about the current state of the martial world. The waiter rattled off over twenty names without repeating a single one, each entangled in their own web of grievances. It left me in a daze, unable to remember any of them.
Eventually, I had to borrow a brush and paper to take notes as I listened. I spent a long time circling and underlining, but the more I wrote, the more of a muddled mess it became.
After dinner, Ye Tan escorted me back and asked, "Master, how did your inquiries go?"
"It’s too hard to remember. I don’t want to investigate anymore," I said sincerely.
Ye Tan nodded. "That is for the best."
Back in the guest room, Ye Tan laid out the bedding and then went back out to feed the horse.
Since I had become semi-paralyzed, he rarely left my side. We only ever booked one room. Still harboring my ulterior motives and hoping he might help me activate some sort of "cheat engine," we always shared the same bed at night. Every time, he would place me squarely in the middle, lying flat like a salted fish. Feeling this was inappropriate, I would exert myself to wiggle toward the inner side of the bed to leave some space for him.
Before I could finish moving, someone pushed the door open. The footsteps were unfamiliar; I had never seen this person before.
As soon as he entered, he shouted almost immediately, "Who are you? What are you doing in my room!"
In three strides, he reached my bedside, grabbed my wrist, and hauled me out.
I was hoisted up like a limp bedsheet. "This is my room, isn't it?" I asked, bewildered.
The man was a burly saber-wielder. He gripped me and sized me up for a long moment before saying, "Oh, sorry. Wrong room." He shoved me back onto the bed and strode out.
My wrist had already begun to swell from being lifted just now. As I was rubbing the redness, there were two knocks on the door, and someone pushed it open before I could respond.
This time it was a scholar in a navy-blue robe. He was beaming with a pleasant expression as he laughed, "You’ve arrived far too late! You certainly kept us waiting!"
While I was still lost in confusion, the scholar sat down boldly on my bed and leaned in close. "It’s me! Didn't your master tell you about me?"
"Where would I get a master?" I asked, puzzled. "And who are you?"
The scholar lowered his voice and whispered in my ear, "What’s the point of pretending? Several brothers from Taihang Ravine and Qilian Fort have been waiting for you for a long time."
I was even more baffled. "What even is Taihang Ravine?"
The scholar’s sharp eyes flashed. He narrowed them and pulled away. "I’ve mistaken the person. My apologies." He also left.
The door creaked open once more.
"Ah!!!" I screamed.
Ye Tan rushed to the bedside in a panic. "What happened?!"
"...Just, uh, cheering with joy," I stammered an explanation.
He finally breathed a sigh of relief, not blaming me for being jumpy. Seeing the bruise on my wrist, he quickly asked, "How did this happen? Does it hurt?"
Ye Tan immediately turned to fetch a basin of hot water and applied a warm towel to the injury. The sharp pain finally eased slightly. I said, "While you were gone, many people walked into the wrong room. Maybe the feng shui here is bad."
Ye Tan looked up for instructions. "Master, do you wish to change rooms?"
"You don't understand." I shook my head. "I’m saying that any room where Ye Tan isn't by my side has bad feng shui."
No sooner had I spoken than someone else burst through the door. He was dressed in white brocade and looked frantic. "Disaster has struck! Quickly, report to the Second Young Master—Little Young Master Qin has been captured by them!"
I looked at him coldly. "Did you also walk into the wrong room?"
The man in brocade looked confused. "Why do you say 'also'..."
Ye Tan was quite impatient. "Get out."
The man struggled to stay. "We are all from Zhongli Manor, please, show some leniency..."
Ye Tan glared at him, and the man instantly shut his mouth, slinking away to close the door. His exit line was a bit different from the others: "I shall return another day."
I said solemnly, "It seems the feng shui of this room is bad regardless of whether Ye Tan is here or not."
Ye Tan: "..."
In the middle of the night, while I was sleeping soundly, someone crept in for a visit. He was holding a small fire-starter, and a large piece of white paper was stuck to his chest with the words: "Don't hack me, I'm one of us."
Looking at it made me really want to hack him.
"Are you mistaking the person again, or just the room?" Why couldn't I get a moment of peace here?
"...So that's how it is. You two have unknown origins and have aroused suspicion; you must have been tested by others already. There were too many eyes and ears during the day, so it wasn't convenient for me to speak." As he drew closer, I recognized him as the young man in white brocade. He lowered his voice with a troubled expression. "Young Master Jun, do you truly not remember? That day at the Ye Manor in Changluo, when you were treating Brother Ye’s injuries, I was the one helping Master Jiaoyi carry his medicine chest."
"Did that happen?" Ye Tan and I looked at each other, neither of us having any recollection. At that time, we were so desperate to save a life that we couldn't care less about anyone else. We truly hadn't noticed the several attendants nearby.
"Yes, yes. You two only have eyes for each other; naturally, you wouldn't remember us extras," the man in brocade said, sounding hurt.
"Name, origin, and purpose," Ye Tan asked dryly.
Seeing that we were willing to talk, the man was overjoyed. He hurriedly said, "This humble one is Yun Jiangli. I manage several of the Second Young Master’s cloth shops and often travel around. You two must have seen the young master who was captured at the city gate today. I only ask that for the sake of the Seventh Young Master, Qin Kezou, Brother Ye might lend me a hand to rescue him."
When Yun Jiangli mentioned that name, Ye Tan’s expression darkened. He frowned and did not refuse directly, but glanced sideways at me.
Yun Jiangli added, "I have already sent a messenger pigeon back to Zhongli Manor, but... the Helan Terrace martial arts tournament is approaching. After these two days, the guards will be even more alert. It will only be harder to save him then."
"Why save him?" I asked curiously.
Yun Jiangli was stunned by my question. "If I don't save him, won't he lose his life?"
That made a lot of sense.
I tugged on Ye Tan’s sleeve. "Tan, what do you think?"
Ye Tan said respectfully, "I await Master's orders."
He still maintained that lukewarm, detached attitude. I said, "Then let's give it a try. If it’s easy to save him, we will; if it’s too much trouble, forget it."
Yun Jiangli’s mouth twitched. "...Thank you."
Of course, it would be better if he could be saved; after all, I wanted to see the new plot developments.
Since we were about to cause trouble on someone else's turf, we couldn't stay at Helan Terrace any longer. Ye Tan led me through a winding path and first escorted me out of the city. A carriage was hidden in the shade of the trees, fully stocked with tea, fruit, and basic necessities.
"Quite well-prepared," I remarked, flipping through a stack of picture books in the carriage with satisfaction.
"Nonsense, I have been planning for days to save Little Qin." Yun Jiangli snatched the books from my hand and put them back. "These are all his treasures; don't you go touching them."
It seemed this "Little Qin" and Ye Tan would have a lot in common.
Ye Tan stared at me, then suddenly said, "This is not right. Leaving Master here alone is unsafe if there is a trap."
I asked curiously, "Why do you say that as if you could actually win if someone attacked?"
Ye Tan said, "Point taken."
He then sped away side-by-side with Yun Jiangli.
Lately, my communication efficiency with Ye Tan was becoming higher and higher.
I was very satisfied.
***
