Black Crow

A moment later.

Chen Mu brought Liu Song, Li Tie, and seven or eight Yamen Runners to a cluster of alleyways west of Nine Stripes Ward.

This was territory where the Thieves Guild was active.

The Thieves Guild sounded like a single gang, but its insides were actually a complete mess. Some stole, some abducted people, and they did not operate solely in Nine Stripes Ward. They were entirely different from comparatively well-organized gangs like the Red Gold Gang and the Black Crow Sect.

Indeed, the Thieves Guild had always been suppressed by gangs like the Red Gold Gang. The Red Gold Gang collected "safety silver," or protection money, while the Thieves Guild stole and abducted people, damaging the Red Gold Gang's income.

The Thieves Guild entrenched in this area had also given the Red Gold Gang no small amount of benefits before it could operate here.

"Yo, good morning, sir!"

Outside the alley, a shifty-eyed man had spotted Chen Mu's group long ago. Yet he did not run. Instead, he rose with a smile, bowed, and cupped his hands toward Chen Mu and the others.

Chen Mu said nothing. Liu Song, standing beside him, asked coldly, "Where's your boss?"

"Fifth Master is inside. May I ask, sir, are you here looking for someone or looking for something..."

The man lowered his head and asked in a quiet voice.

Liu Song cursed, "What decisions can you make? Lead the way!"

"Yes, yes."

The man glanced at Chen Mu in his blue robes and answered repeatedly with a placating smile. "This way, gentlemen."

In truth, he was not really trying to ask Chen Mu's group why they had come. He merely wanted to stall for time, giving the people inside a chance to be warned and react. After all, when the authorities came knocking, it could hardly be good news.

And a head runner had come, leading a whole group. That called for even greater caution.

The man carefully led Chen Mu's group into the alleyways. The lanes in this area were all extremely narrow and crisscrossed like a maze. After winding around turn after turn, they finally arrived at a spacious courtyard.

Inside the courtyard.

A man of around forty or fifty, his sideburns graying and a tobacco pipe and pouch hanging from his waist, came out to greet them. Smiling warmly, he cupped his hands at Chen Mu and said, "You must be Runner Chen of the City Guard. If you needed anything, all you had to do was call. Why trouble yourself to make the trip here in person?"

Others might not know, but as the "Fifth Master" of the Thieves Guild in this area, he knew that Chen Mu was not merely on brotherly terms with Min Baoyi. He had even climbed into Xu Hongyu's good graces at the City Guard Main Division. His future was boundless.

He could deal with ordinary Yamen Runners and even Head Runners as usual, but he had no desire whatsoever to offend Chen Mu.

"You're Fifth Master, then. I've heard much about you. One of my relatives has gone missing, and I need your help finding someone."

"Her name is Zhang Youying. She's a girl, not yet twenty."

Chen Mu spoke in an even tone.

The moment Fifth Master heard this, he smiled. "A small matter. Just give the word, and we'll handle it at once... Xiao Liu, go find her. See which blind fool dared lay hands on Runner Chen's relative!"

Someone immediately answered from nearby, then hurried away.

Fifth Master cupped his hands toward Chen Mu again. "Finding someone will take a little time. This humble place is rather rough, but I do have a few bottles of good wine stashed away. Runner Chen, why not sit and rest, wet your throat a little?"

"No need."

Chen Mu replied blandly.

"Fine, then. Please rest as you like."

Fifth Master answered with a fawning smile, and the group waited in the courtyard for news.

About half an hour later.

A lean man who had run off earlier slipped back in. He hesitated when he saw Chen Mu, but still went to Fifth Master first and muttered a few words into his ear.

After listening, Fifth Master's brows creased slightly. Then he gave a bitter smile and said, "Sir, Xiao Liu asked the people on the abductors' side. No one had heard of or seen your relative. Those people would not dare defy me, so they most likely truly don't know."

"Don't know?"

Liu Song stepped forward and asked in a deep voice, "In Nine Stripes Ward, when something goes missing or someone disappears, is there really anything you, Fifth Master, don't know about?"

Fifth Master was struck speechless for a moment, unsure how to answer. He looked at Chen Mu, hesitated again and again, then finally said, "Sir, you should know as well. Over the past two or three months, rather a lot of people have gone missing. But in truth, most of it has nothing to do with us. As for where those people went, we genuinely don't know. But if I had to say... we do have a rough direction of suspicion."

"Speak."

Chen Mu said flatly.

Fifth Master looked around. After a brief hesitation, he still took several steps forward, came to Chen Mu's side, and lowered his voice. "It seems the Black Crow Sect is up to something, though this is only our guess..."

He did not want to offend Chen Mu, nor did he want to offend the Black Crow Sect. But Chen Mu had come to his door, and there was truly no way around it.

The Black Crow Sect?

Hearing Fifth Master's words, Chen Mu's brows immediately drew together.

Compared to the Thieves Guild and figures like Fifth Master, the Black Crow Sect was far more troublesome.

From what he had learned during this time, the Black Crow Sect's territory and influence in Nine Stripes Ward were somewhat inferior to the Red Gold Gang's. The problem was that the Red Gold Gang only entrenched itself in Nine Stripes Ward, while the Black Crow Sect had footholds and influence in several nearby wards.

Under ordinary circumstances, if the Black Crow Sect was involved, he would not be inclined to meddle. But Chen Hong had come pleading to him, so he had to help somehow.

Chen Mu thought for a moment, then looked at Fifth Master again. "Are you sure?"

Fifth Master gave an embarrassed smile. "This is our line of work..."

He did not actually have any evidence, nor was he truly certain. But at his level, all sorts of news found its way into his ears, and over these past two or three months, the Black Crow Sect had been the most suspicious thing by far.

"Fine."

Chen Mu nodded, turned, and left with Liu Song and the others.

Only after seeing Chen Mu leave did Fifth Master let out a slight breath of relief.

The lean man beside him edged closer and said, "Fifth Master, why were you so polite to him? He's only a head runner, not even a Runner Office chief."

"What the hell do you know?"

Fifth Master slapped the man across the forehead irritably.

With his experience, Chen Mu not only had backing and connections, but his personal strength was likely anything but simple as well. He would certainly become someone important in the future, at the very least rising to become a Runner Office chief. He was fundamentally different from those other Head Runners who merely muddled along, eating and waiting to die.

Otherwise, he never would have revealed the Black Crow Sect's information just now. If the Black Crow Sect found out and came looking for trouble, would that not be inviting disaster for no reason at all?

"Chief Chen, where are we going now?"

After leaving the alley, Liu Song asked quietly beside Chen Mu.

Fifth Master had spoken so softly just now that even standing nearby, he had not heard what the man said. But from their expressions, he could guess that Fifth Master must have given Chen Mu some useful information. Otherwise, Chen Mu would not have left so easily.

After a brief moment of thought, Chen Mu said, "To the Red Gold Gang."

That was right.

Rather than seek out the Black Crow Sect, they were going to seek out the Red Gold Gang.

For the moment, it was unclear whether Fifth Master's information was true or false. But the Red Gold Gang and the Black Crow Sect had always been hostile to each other and had clashed many times. The person who understood you best was bound to be your enemy.

Whether the Black Crow Sect had secretly been seizing people to carry out some scheme, the Red Gold Gang would certainly know something. They might even know more than Fifth Master did, and they definitely would not conceal it from him. After all, they would be more than happy to see him go make trouble for the Black Crow Sect.