The Talkative Little Girl

The Hengdao Inn didn't look like much from the outside, but once inside, it seemed to contain a world of its own. After passing through the entrance and rounding a screen, there were no martial artists drinking or eating, nor was there a bustling main hall; instead, two large doors stood in the center.

They looked similar at a glance, but as soon as Chen Ye reached out to touch them, he felt the difference.

The door on the left was wood, which could be opened with a gentle push, while the one on the right was bronze and seemed to be held shut by a mechanism; pushing it open would likely require the strength of a thousand catties.

"Interesting. Is this a way to categorize martial artists the moment they step through the door?"

Chen Ye felt the proprietor was a clever person. Those with ability could pass through the bronze door, while those without had to take the wooden one; he imagined the hospitality provided behind each door was likely different as well.

Chen Ye could naturally push open the bronze door, but he was here to find someone, and who knew if the Heaven-class Room Four was on the left or the right.

Footsteps suddenly sounded from behind him. Chen Ye subconsciously shifted his stance to avoid having his back to the newcomer.

A young girl's voice drifted from behind: "Little Daoist, are you trying to enter through this bronze door but can't push it open? Do you want me to help you? The door-opening fee is only ten taels."

Chen Ye turned around to see a petite girl dressed in black. Her head didn't even reach his shoulder, and she was wearing a black night-traveler suit with a cloth mask, as if she were afraid people wouldn't know she was a thief.

As their eyes met, the masked girl's eyes widened, and she said in surprise: "What a coincidence, the Young Master has already arrived."

Chen Ye's gaze sharpened as he said: "I'm afraid you've mistaken me for someone else, miss. We have never met."

The girl replied: "No mistake, no mistake. Heaven-class Room Four, right? You and I have indeed never met, but I have long admired your reputation. I previously thought the rumors were exaggerated, but seeing you today, I realize that hearing about you is not as good as seeing you in person."

Chen Ye asked calmly: "Are you also with Heaven-class Room Four?"

The girl waved her hand and said: "I wouldn't go that far. I only just arrived today, didn't I? I heard the Young Master is recruiting heroes and gallants to save those abducted children. Although I don't have much talent, I wanted to come and join the fun. Oh, I forgot to introduce myself."

The girl cleared her throat and introduced herself solemnly: "This young lady's surname is Lan, given name Shi—the 'Lan' from 'blue coming out of the indigo,' and the 'Shi' from 'stones from other hills.' My friends in the jianghu are kind enough to call me Little Clever Hands."

As she spoke, the girl extended a pair of hands as delicate as spring onions, her fingers long and nimble. Then, right in front of Chen Ye, she took out two wires and, after a bit of manipulation on the bronze door, opened the thousand-catty barrier.

Lan Shi said to Chen Ye with a look of pride: "See? My craft isn't bad, is it?"

With that, she prepared to walk through the bronze door with Chen Ye.

Chen Ye looked at this overly familiar girl and felt something was quite strange. She had revealed far too much information; Heaven-class Room Four didn't seem to be the residence of a single person, but rather a large group of people who had been recruited together.

And their goal was actually those young boys and girls?

Although Chen Ye had heard that some in the jianghu were dissatisfied with the situation in Cui County, how could heroes who saved children beat a teahouse proprietor and his staff into critical condition over a few arguments?

With so many complex matters, Chen Ye couldn't quite get a read on the situation.

However, since this girl was so talkative, he might as well dig some more intelligence out of her.

Looking at the open bronze door, Chen Ye asked: "By opening this door, aren't you afraid that if I go in with you, I'll be breaking the inn's rules?"

This was clearly a test used by the Hengdao Inn to screen guests. Chen Ye could have pushed it open himself, but if he followed Lan Shi inside now, he would be taking advantage of someone else's effort.

But Lan Shi said: "The jianghu isn't just about fighting and killing; it's about connections. If you have a friend willing to bring you through the door, isn't that your own ability? Besides, Young Master, haven't you already passed through the bronze door before?"

She could even interpret it that way; this jianghu world was quite focused on social graces.

Chen Ye followed the girl through the bronze door. Lan Shi was like a cheerful little bird, skipping and hopping as she walked.

Chen Ye simply asked: "Miss Lan, this is our first meeting. How were you able to recognize me?"

Lan Shi laughed: "How could I possibly mistake you? Your face, Young Master, is enough to topple cities; where else in the world is there a second one? To be honest, before seeing you, I thought those praises were exaggerated—all that talk about 'one look at the Young Master and one's life is ruined.' How could it be that exaggerated?

"I've seen plenty of famous courtesans who are renowned throughout the world, each boasting that they are peerless beauties and claiming that even the Emperor would want to take them back as his Empress. But when you actually see them, they're just acting aloof and have some talent. Everyone is human; no matter how beautiful, it's hard to make everyone lose their souls.

"But you are different, Young Master. I almost fell for you the moment I looked at you. Hehe, luckily I'm still young and haven't reached the age where I think about men."

Chen Ye had wanted to know who exactly this girl had mistaken him for, but she had rambled on about a bunch of nonsense and never got to the point.

But she was truly talkative; as she walked along with Chen Ye, her mouth never stopped.

"The Young Master has truly been in the limelight lately. I hear many heroes from the greenwoods have come to join him to discuss the grand plan. There's the Bone-Splitting Mad Owl, the Black Mountain Viper Fiend, and even the Nine-Fingered Skinning Ghost... they are all famous figures."

Is this right?

Chen Ye was confused. These names didn't sound like good people at all; yet, they all came to save children?

What kind of "grand plan" were they discussing? Rebellion?

Chen Ye was speechless, but before he could ask for clarification, the girl moved on to another topic.

At one moment she complained that a cup of tea at the Hengdao Inn was expensive as hell, at the next she lamented that there were countless wealthy bullies in Cui County, and she kept boasting about her light-foot skills, claiming she could visit several houses in one night and rob the rich to help the poor every day.

Judging by her tone, she was quite proud of her wall-scaling and roof-leaping methods.

Chen Ye couldn't get a word in, so he could only maintain a polite smile and listen carefully.

The two walked forward, and before long, they arrived at a bustling hall. This finally looked a bit like an inn, with a dozen tables filled with martial artists of all shapes and sizes.

Some were drinking, some were gambling, and the place was rowdy and lively.

Chen Ye scanned his surroundings, wanting to find this "Young Master." According to Lan Shi, this person behind the scenes should also be a handsome and dashing man.

But among the martial artists present, not to mention that they weren't all beauties, the best-looking ones could only be described as having decent features. However, the female martial artists were all quite good-looking—at the very least, they were above average, and he didn't see any ugly ones.

Could it be that the Young Master wasn't here?

Before Chen Ye could ask, the sound of a wine cup shattering on the floor came from the side.

This wasn't a signal for hidden blades to appear, but rather a graceful female martial artist who had seen Chen Ye's face and accidentally dropped her cup.

By the time Chen Ye looked over, the swordswoman was still staring blankly, until Lan Shi took the initiative to walk over and greet her: "Sister Fu Ying, why are you here too?"

Lan Shi's voice brought the swordswoman back to her senses, and she grabbed Lan Shi's arm, saying excitedly: "Little Stone! Who is this young hero?!"

Lan Shi looked quite proud as she said loudly: "Sister Fu Ying, look at this face of peerless beauty; do I even need to introduce him? Of course, it's the number one handsome man of the pugilistic world, the young master Jiang Shiyue."

Chen Ye shook his head with a wry smile. The number one handsome man of the pugilistic world—people actually accepted this nickname? Didn't he feel embarrassed?

However, he had finally figured out the identity of the mastermind behind Room Heaven-Four.

Lan Shi's shout caused quite a few people to turn their heads, and most of them froze on the spot the moment they saw Chen Ye's face.

The filter effect brought about by the spiritual energy marrow-cleansing was too exaggerated; at first glance, it could truly leave ordinary people feeling stunned.

However, there were also those with drunken, hazy eyes who couldn't see Chen Ye's appearance clearly at all, only hearing Lan Shi's claim of "the number one handsome man of the pugilistic world," and they immediately shouted: "Which shameless, base wretch dares to impersonate my young master's title?"

Chen Ye followed the sound and looked over. The person being so rude was a scarred-faced drunkard, whose scar stretched from his left ear to his chin, making him look hideous and vicious.

Lan Shi said in surprise: "He... isn't he the Bone-Splitting Mad Owl? I heard he likes to snap people's leg bones the most. Young Master, isn't he one of the heroes who came to join you?"

"Snap people's leg bones, you say? It seems I haven't found the wrong person." Chen Ye plunged the Ten Thousand Soul Banner in his hand into the ground and said to the Bone-Splitting Mad Owl: "Were you the one who broke the leg of that waiter at the Baiye Teahouse?"