Xiao Nanhui’s gaze lingered for only a fraction of a second, yet the man sensed it instantly. A sharp, piercing look swept toward her. She instinctively averted her eyes, and in doing so, her gaze landed on the person following behind the square-faced man.
It was a young man with an expressionless face, though he possessed a pair of eyes that seemed to hold a faint, lingering smile. Whether due to illness or some other frailty, his posture was slightly hunched. He wore a smoke-colored robe that seemed tinged with a faint, reddish hue, a color that accentuated a fairness of complexion that blurred the lines of gender. That innate refinement and fragility reminded her, for no reason at all, of that day in the Duke of Xuanyuan’s back garden, and a sudden chill ran through her.
The white-clad gentleman at the neighboring table clearly noticed the pair as well. He instinctively touched his own face, causing white cosmetic powder to flutter down onto the table. He hastily brushed it away with his sleeve, a flicker of resentment rising in his heart. Suddenly, he was no longer in the mood to flirt with the beauties at his side.
The blue-clad swordsman walked straight to the innkeeper. Seeing the man’s extraordinary bearing, the innkeeper did not rebuke him for his uninvited entry. He raised a single eyelid and said, "Apologies, young master, but the inn is full. If you're looking for a bite to eat, you'll have to find a spot over there yourself. If you're looking for a room, you'll have to try elsewhere."
A subtle atmosphere of smugness filled the inn. Even the lowliest patrons crouching in the corners felt a surge of superiority. The white-clad gentleman could hardly hide the smile playing at the corners of his mouth; in high spirits, he refilled his cup and hummed, "Why lament the pace of the journey? There has always been an order of arrival."
The blue-clad swordsman seemed entirely oblivious. He simply reached into his sleeve, pulled out an object, and placed it on the greasy counter. "Has the innkeeper’s memory failed with age? Do I need to provide a reminder?"
Countless curious eyes in the inn stole glances at the object on the counter. Xiao Nanhui glimpsed it as well; it appeared to be a slip of paper stamped with a red seal.
However, the innkeeper, who usually looked at no one directly, took one look at that paper and his expression transformed into one of ancestral reverence. His lips actually began to stammer. "So... so it is Young Master Zhong. It has been many years since I last saw you. Why did you not send word in advance..."
*Young Master Zhong? Surely not.*
Xiao Nanhui’s ears twitched. Suddenly, the coarse tea in the inn tasted exceptionally bitter.
"The silver has already been received by the innkeeper. What else needs to be communicated?"
The innkeeper gave a dry laugh. "It is just... my humble establishment is crude. I should have prepared fine wine and delicacies to welcome you."
The blue-clad swordsman reclaimed the slip of paper and said curtly, "There is no need. Please lead the way, innkeeper. My master is unwell and wishes to rest early."
The innkeeper glanced at the person behind the swordsman and dithered for a moment. Then, with lingering reluctance, he took the copper key to the "Heaven" suite and headed toward the second floor.
Xiao Nanhui’s gaze remained glued to that copper key. Seeing that the wretched innkeeper didn't even spare her a glance, a flame of fury roared up within her.
Fifty taels of silver.
That was a full six months' salary for a lowly squad commander like her.
She stared at the empty noodle bowl before her, feeling the air around her grow stifling. Even the laughter of the women sounded grating. With a sharp snap, the chopsticks in her hand broke. She slammed her hand on the table and stood up, chasing after the three men heading upstairs. Behind her, Bolao scrambled to gather their scattered luggage.
"Wait!"
The three people in front of the guest room turned in unison. Standing at the top of the stairs was a tall, handsome youth with hair tied up, his face clouded with an unmistakable rage.
The blue-clad swordsman arched an eyebrow. The long-robed gentleman remained as though none of this concerned him. The innkeeper could only clear his throat and put on a feigned look of ignorance. "What is it?"
Xiao Nanhui marched up to the three of them, breathing heavily. She took a deep breath and first offered a formal bow. "Pardon the intrusion. I have already paid the silver for this room. The innkeeper was quite happy to take my money earlier. Is he now intending to throw me out to sleep in the stables?"
The innkeeper deliberately avoided Xiao Nanhui’s blade-like gaze and said evasively, "The young master may not be aware, but this Young Master Zhong booked this room long ago. Although I accepted your payment for a night's stay, I never specified it was for *tonight*."
She was furious. "I came to seek lodging tonight! Am I supposed to stay here eight hundred years from now?!"
The innkeeper gave a slippery, rogue-like grin. "The young master jokes. Whether this shop will still be here in eight hundred years is hard to say, but the young master certainly won't be."
It was the first time she had encountered someone so brazenly shameless. After the initial surge of anger, she grew quiet. Though young, she had galloped across battlefields and slain countless enemies; was she really going to be swindled by a black-hearted innkeeper? If all else failed, she would settle it with her fists.
As the thought crossed her mind, her eyes unconsciously sized up the three men, particularly the blue-clad swordsman.
At that moment, Bolao caught up, lugging their bags. Seeing the situation, he knew Xiao Nanhui had been cheated. He looked at the innkeeper with a cold smirk. "Old brother, that cloth pouch at your waist looks quite heavy. I wonder how many treasures are hidden inside? If some ill-intentioned person were to set their sights on it, out here in the middle of nowhere, what would you do?"
Whether it was an illusion or not, as Bolao spoke those words, the expressionless long-robed gentleman seemed to lift an eyebrow slightly.
The innkeeper felt the threat and clearly began to retreat. "I am but a businessman. Please, masters, do not make things difficult for a small person like me."
Bolao, well-versed in the art of seizing opportunities and haggling, took the chance to say, "Doesn't this Heaven suite have a partition? How about we share it with these two gentlemen, half for each of us?"
The innkeeper instinctively protested, "How can that be? Even with a partition, it is still—"
"It is fine."
The long-robed man, who had been silent until now, suddenly spoke. Xiao Nanhui froze.
That voice instantly transported her back to that day in the main hall of Yongye Temple.
The same two words—the tone, the timbre, even that same indifferent cadence—were identical.
"A chance encounter. There is no need for difficulty."
Having spoken, the long-robed man didn't look at her again. He unlocked the door and entered the room. He beckoned to the blue-clad swordsman still standing at the door, looking somewhat weary. "Weixiang, I am a bit tired."
Xiao Nanhui’s eyes were fixed on the hand that had flashed by. That slender hand wore a string of prayer beads of extraordinary quality; the more she looked, the more familiar they seemed.
Hearing this, the blue-clad swordsman said no more and followed him into the inner room. The two of them closed the partition, lowered the heavy curtains, and all became silent.
Xiao Nanhui’s thoughts were still stuck on what she had just seen, leaving her in a daze. Bolao had already extended a palm toward the innkeeper. "A perfectly good Heaven suite, yet we only get half. I'll trouble you to return half the silver, old brother."
The innkeeper’s small eyes squeezed together in distress. Reluctantly, he pulled out two silver ingots. "I don't have any small change to give..."
Before he could finish, Bolao’s hand darted toward his waist pouch. He snatched a silver ingot and, with a sharp exertion of two fingers, snapped the silver in half.
He tossed one half back to the innkeeper and stuffed the other half, along with the previous twenty taels, back into their luggage. Taking Xiao Nanhui’s hand, he marched into the room with his head held high and slammed the door shut.
Once the door was closed, Xiao Nanhui snapped out of it and whispered urgently, "I’ve seen those two before."
Bolao gave an "oh" and kicked off his two rain-soaked boots, looking down to wiggle his frozen toes.
"I saw one of them at the entrance of the main hall the day I went to Yongye Temple. The sword he carries is five or six inches longer than usual; I noticed it right away. As for the other one, though I didn't see his face then, I remember his voice. And the prayer beads on his hand, and..." She paused for a moment before continuing hesitantly, "There’s a scent on him. I smelled it in the main hall before."
"A scent?" Bolao finally looked over. "What kind of scent?"
"I can't quite describe it. It's like the smell of aged temple ash mixed with some kind of herbs or medicine. It’s a bit bitter. Smelling it makes one’s bones feel cold and one’s forehead feel chilled..."
"You're describing the smell of camphor, aren't you?" Bolao said, sniffing the air vigorously. He didn't seem to catch the faint scent, but after confirming there was nothing toxic or harmful, he didn't care much. He gave Xiao Nanhui a look, signaling that walls have ears, and said with a yawn, "Alright, alright. After such a long day, we'll talk about the big things tomorrow."
Xiao Nanhui fell silent, but she couldn't get past this hurdle. News of the Secret Seal had leaked out in secret, and various factions were bound to move upon hearing the rumors. Coming from Que City, she was operating in the light, unlike those hidden forces waiting for their chance.
And those hidden forces were many. First, there were the Emperor’s own confidants; after all, whether the Secret Seal was real or fake, if it fell into the hands of others, it would surely be used to cause trouble.
Second was the Bai Clan of Bijiang, who currently held significant power. The Bai Clan had long been plotting to seize control; if they could obtain the Secret Seal, it would be seen as the will of Heaven, and they might just turn the world upside down.
As for the third, it was the local powers scattered across the land with ambiguous attitudes. For instance, Huozhou, the region closest to the Northern Marshes. Huozhou was held by the Shen Clan, who once had a lord-vassal relationship with the Qiu Clan. Despite the barren land and backward agriculture, the region was rich in coal and iron and maintained a private army disguised as a boat gang. After the Su Family established their capital in Que City, Huozhou bowed on the surface but never truly submitted, maintaining a facade of peace through the coal and iron trade. Yet the situation was so delicate it could collapse overnight, and the matter of the Secret Seal was the variable.
Finally, though the Niexuan Dynasty had been gone for a hundred years, had the ghosts of the Qiu Clan truly vanished? Or were they, at this very moment, peering from some dark corner at the things that once belonged to them?
Who was the person she met at Yongye Temple? Was meeting them again a coincidence? Had her identity been exposed? How many people in this tiny inn tonight harbored secret intentions, and when would they reveal their true faces?
Xiao Nanhui pondered deeply, consumed by worry.
On the other side of the wall, the long-robed gentleman leaned against the bed. His narrow eyes no longer concealed their brilliance, revealing a sense of pressure completely different from before. His left hand toyed with the prayer beads on his wrist, his thoughts unknown.
The blue-clad swordsman was checking the doors and windows, inspecting almost every crack.
"Weixiang."
Ding Weixiang pulled his thoughts back and bowed in response. "Master, please rest early. I will keep watch."
The man on the bed shook his head. "There is no need to keep watch tonight. You haven't had a good night's sleep in days. Get some rest tonight; there will be much to do in the coming days."
Ding Weixiang was somewhat puzzled and insisted, "This subordinate..."
"Enough. If I tell you to sleep, sleep." The man paused, the corners of his mouth curling into an involuntary arc. "Someone is keeping watch for us tonight."
Outside the window, the night rain continued, seemingly mixed with tiny grains of ice that made a fine, tapping sound against the roof tiles.
Xiao Nanhui did not sleep all night, her eyes snapping open at the slightest disturbance. At times she pressed her ear to the wall to listen, at others she peered through the window. By morning, dark circles had formed under her eyes. Bolao, on the other hand, slept like the dead until dawn.
At daybreak, the rain finally stopped, but a thick mist descended. Exhausted after a night of vigilance, Xiao Nanhui finally couldn't help but doze off. Suddenly, a light thud sounded against the window frame. She woke instantly, only to find the neighboring room already empty, the lamp extinguished. She rushed to the window to investigate.
There was only a tiny nick on the window frame, as if struck by a small pebble. Looking out from the window, the mist was boundless, the visibility only a few yards. There were no suspicious figures in sight, and no further sound.
Bolao also got up and looked closely, reaching a conclusion: "This person’s stone-throwing skill is far worse than yours."
She had a different view. "Not being good at throwing stones doesn't mean they aren't a master. To hit the window frame exactly without piercing the window paper in this weather is no easy feat."
Bolao blinked. "He throws a stone and runs away—what does that mean?"
She shook her head and reached her hand out the window, confirming the rain had ceased.
"Pack our things. We're going to the ferry."
***
| Chinese | English | Notes/Explanation |
| :--- | :--- | :--- |
| 钟公子 | Young Master Zhong | The mysterious, sickly young man. |
| 丁未翔 | Ding Weixiang | The blue-clad swordsman/guard. |
| 秘玺 | Secret Seal | A significant plot object/artifact. |
| 碧疆白氏 | Bai Clan of Bijiang | A powerful regional faction. |
| 霍州 | Huozhou | A region near the Northern Marshes. |
| 沈氏 | Shen Clan | The ruling clan of Huozhou. |
| 夙家 | Su Family | The current ruling imperial family. |
| 涅泫王朝 | Niexuan Dynasty | The fallen dynasty that preceded the current one. |
| 裘氏 | Qiu Clan | The imperial clan of the fallen Niexuan Dynasty. |
| 队正 | Squad Commander | Xiao Nanhui's military rank (Dui Zheng). |
| 天字号房 | Heaven Suite | The highest class of room in an inn. |
