A Different Method

Xiao Hong hung from the beam by her neck, swaying back and forth. Seemingly tired of that posture, she drifted up, hooked her feet over the beam, and hung upside down, face-to-face with the seated Pan Yun and Xue Shao.

Xue Shao could not help shifting his gaze away. Staring fixedly at the window, he said to Pan Yun, "So they knew about your agreement with Cao Jixiang. They came for the silver this time. There is no way word leaked from our side, so something went wrong on Cao Jixiang's end?"

Pan Yun rubbed her fingers together in silent thought. After a long while, she said, "I trust Cao Jixiang's loyalty and capability. Do you think he might have been unable to resist telling the little emperor first?"

Xue Shao fell silent.

Pan Yun pressed a hand to her forehead. "I forgot to warn him before leaving not to tell the emperor yet."

Having swayed enough, Xiao Hong released the beam and floated back and forth sideways. It looked as though she were lying before the two of them. Bored, she asked, "Do I still need to keep watch? Can I show myself now?"

Pan Yun said, "No need to keep watching. You can show yourself now, but you must look human. Do not act like a ghost."

Xiao Hong floated upright in boredom. "I think those pirates are not being honest. They must still be hiding many things. I'll go scare them; perhaps they'll start talking."

Pan Yun looked out at the dark night beyond the cabin, thoughtful. "That is a method..."

Xiao Hong's eyes lit up, but Pan Yun instead flew with her to the main ship to find Yang Shan and proposed locking the four pirates together.

Yang Shan had used every method at his disposal,