Across from the entrance to Renshou Lane stood a small brokerage.
Smoke curled through the air. Shopkeeper Sun sat in a grand armchair with one leg crossed over the other, holding a gleaming purple clay teapot and sipping from its spout.
A few clerks who also worked as brokers and hangers-on gathered around him, arguing animatedly.
" if you ask me, that family in Number Seven Courtyard may be in the funeral business, but they're still in for a rough time." A sharp-faced clerk lowered his voice. "That well's got something wrong with it, Boss Sun. How much did you take from them this time?"
Shopkeeper Sun didn't even raise his eyelids. He took another leisurely sip. "I collected what was due and earned what I could. Whether they manage to stay there is up to their own luck."
He curled his lip. "Anyway, the contract was clear. Money and goods exchanged, no refunds. We're not responsible for what happens afterward."
"Exactly!" another, broad-shouldered hanger-on chimed in, his face showing a hint of malicious glee. "Weren't all the previous tenants the same? The one who lasted longest, if I remember right, was that stubborn caravan guard from the west of the city. Less than seven days later, his whole family disappeared!"
"The house was spotless, as if no one had ever lived there. It was downright creepy."
"The shortest stay was probably that scholar from out of town. He vanished on the third day." The sharp-faced clerk hunched his shoulders as if afraid something might hear him. "They say something crawled out of the well. Lord Scar from the Tide Gang took people to investigate afterward, but all he did was have them seal the well tight and forbid anyone from bringing it up again."
"The Tide Gang can't be