"Where was he found?" Li Qingxian asked, stroking the child's head as he looked at the person carrying him.
"On the street. It looked like someone had thrown him out," the man replied.
Li Qingxian looked at the child once more.
Jiang Shifang appeared to be no more than eleven or twelve. He held his head high, still grinning foolishly.
"Do you remember your own name?"
Jiang Shifang only grinned foolishly.
"Do you remember your parents?"
"Hehe..." Jiang Shifang grinned as his sleeve swept beneath his nose, dragging away a string of glistening snot that sparkled in the morning light.
Liu Yitian asked, "Was he like this when you found him?"
"Yes. When I saw him, I felt he might be the one you were looking for, so I carried him here."
Li Qingxian silently used Qi-Gazing and Fortune-Observing. After several breaths, his gaze tightened, and he drew a deep breath.
"What is it?" Wang Buwu asked.
Li Qingxian shook his head and looked at Liu Yitian. "At the time, I chose two children. One was this Jiang Shifang; the other was named Cai Xuyuan. His parents came from Jiangnan to do business here. I had them tell me their address. Do you know that place?"
"I do."
"Lead the way. We're going there."
Liu Yitian took the lead, and the group wound away in a long procession.
Luo Nanqiong watched the Divine Bow Sect members depart and sighed softly.
The group threaded through streets and alleys. As dawn broke, they arrived at a solitary little courtyard on Changhe Road.
The courtyard gate stood half-open.
Liu Yitian knocked three times and shouted, "Is anyone inside?"
After calling several times, they finally heard hurried footsteps and a flustered reply from within. "Who is it?"
"We're old Cai's friends," Liu Yitian said.