Scouting Spring Breeze Pavilion

"Kangzi, go ask around again. What exact day will the hairpin Lin Qiniang ordered arrive at the jewelry shop?"

Shi Kang nodded.

"No problem, Brother Hao. I'll go right away."

With that, he turned and left.

Lu Hao also wanted to go to Lin Qiniang immediately and get his silver back.

But he had only just broken through the first Gate Breaking level yesterday. It would be best to further refine the Black Tiger Stance Art and Black Tiger Fist Technique first. That way, he would have better odds against Spring Breeze Pavilion's guards.

Sitting on the bed, Lu Hao rapidly weighed his options.

He could not block Lin Qiniang at the jewelry shop in broad daylight and demand his money. If he did, Lin Qiniang would simply insist that she had no money, and he could hardly rob her openly.

And Lin Qiniang would certainly buy the hairpin during the day. He had no way to trail her into an alley and rob her either.

The only viable method was to corner Lin Qiniang in her room on some night before the transaction and force her to hand over the silver she had swindled from the original owner.

But before that, he had to first familiarize himself with Spring Breeze Pavilion's layout and guard rotations, especially the patrol and gatekeeping routines of those guards at night.

The original owner's memories of Spring Breeze Pavilion consisted of nothing but the soft wooden bed in Lin Qiniang's room, the heavy scent of rouge on her body, and her ripe, peachlike, snowy-white breasts. He knew nothing else.

The original owner had only the vaguest idea of how many guards Spring Breeze Pavilion had or how strong they were.

If Shi Kang had not told him, he still would not have known that even the weakest guards in Spring Breeze Pavilion were Martial Apprentices at the first Gate Breaking level. He had to scout the place in advance and know both himself and his enemy before he could safely recover the silver Lin Qiniang had tricked away.

He decided to scout it in the latter half of the night, at the third watch. That was when people slept most deeply, and the guards were at their sleepiest. There would also be few pedestrians on the streets. Aside from the night watchmen, most of Spring Breeze Pavilion's guests should have already left, so no one would notice him.

However, this era had neither alarm clocks nor phones. Though night watchmen made the rounds, he feared that with alleys and courtyard walls between them, he might sleep too soundly to hear the watch calls. At least, after transmigrating here, he had not heard any watch calls last night. He did not know whether he had slept too deeply or whether no watchman came through his alley.

Lu Hao pondered for a moment, then found a bundle of incense sticks left behind by the original owner.

He pulled out one stick and lit it. After roughly the time it took to drink a cup of tea, he noted the length that had burned away.

Just then, the sound of a night watchman marking the hour came from the alley. It was the hour of the boar, roughly nine o'clock in the world before his transmigration.

Lu Hao estimated the length of time from the hour of the boar to the third watch and carved a shallow groove into the incense stick.

He then found a piece of cotton thread and tied it at the groove. The other end was attached to a copper coin, with a porcelain bowl placed beneath it. Then he lit the incense.

After finishing all this, Lu Hao fetched a basin of water, gave himself a quick wipe-down, and lay down to sleep.

At the third watch, the incense burned down to the shallow groove Lu Hao had carved. The cotton thread burned through, and the copper coin dropped into the bowl with a crisp clang, waking Lu Hao from his sleep.

Lu Hao rolled out of bed and ladled a scoop of cold water from the water jar into the basin. He splashed his face with it, instantly becoming alert.

He quietly opened the courtyard gate and looked around. Seeing no one in the alley, Lu Hao left home.

Clear moonlight spilled across the alley's stone path.

The alley was utterly quiet, with only the faint sound of his own footsteps audible.

After about a quarter of an hour, Lu Hao arrived at Blue-Robed Lane.

Spring Breeze Pavilion was the tallest building on Blue-Robed Lane. The three-story wooden structure stood deep within the alley, its upturned eaves casting a dark silhouette against the night. Lu Hao looked up and saw that the outline of its eaves blocked half the moon.

Two large red lanterns hung before Spring Breeze Pavilion, swaying gently in the night breeze. The two patches of light on the ground swayed with them.

Only a few scattered rooms in Spring Breeze Pavilion still had candlelight burning.

Lu Hao remembered that Lin Qiniang lived in the fifth room on the east side of the second floor. Looking up, he saw that dim yellow candlelight still shone from her room.

Through the window paper, two silhouettes moved from time to time. One was a woman rising and falling, the full curves of her chest bobbing with her movements.

Lu Hao circled Spring Breeze Pavilion once and saw two guards standing at the front courtyard gate.

Although it was already the third watch, with no pedestrians left on the road and no guests remaining in Spring Breeze Pavilion, the two guards still stood at the entrance.

They folded their arms and leaned against opposite gateposts. One guard had his eyes closed, dozing off. The other fought to stay awake, occasionally raising his head to glance around.

Lu Hao then went around to the back gate, where two more guards stood watch. These guards likewise leaned against the gateposts with narrowed eyes, nodding off.

Lu Hao made another circuit around Spring Breeze Pavilion, committing the surrounding terrain to memory.

Shi Kang had said the captain of the guards was a Martial Apprentice at the second Gate Breaking level, but Lu Hao did not know which room he was in.

At that moment, the sound of a night watchman marking the hour drifted from afar, echoing through the silent, deserted alley.

Lu Hao did not linger and swiftly left Blue-Robed Lane.

By the time he was on the road, he already had a plan.

After returning home, Lu Hao took off his clothes and went back to sleep.

The next morning, Lu Hao was awakened by the rumbling hunger in his stomach.

He got up, dressed, and headed straight for the poultry shop on Joyful Street.

Arriving at the stall, Lu Hao took out forty copper coins and placed them on the chopping block. "Boss, two more chickens."

The poultry shop owner wiped his hands on his apron and cautiously glanced at Lu Hao. Seeing that Lu Hao's expression was normal and that he did not seem to be looking for trouble, he finally relaxed.

Yesterday, Lu Hao had bought two chickens and paid him forty copper coins. After Lu Hao left, the owner had been anxious for half the day, afraid Lu Hao would use it as an excuse to make trouble for him.

Today, seeing Lu Hao buy chickens again at the market price, he stopped overthinking it. As long as Lu Hao paid and did not cause trouble, that was enough.

He took two slaughtered chickens, tied them with straw rope, and handed them to Lu Hao.

Lu Hao accepted the chickens and was about to leave when the owner called after him. "Brother Lu Hao!"

Lu Hao stopped and turned around.

The stall owner was holding out some chicken offal, with a faintly ingratiating smile on his face.

"Here's some chicken offal. If you don't mind, I'll wrap it up for you too."

Lu Hao had intended to refuse, but then reconsidered. Chicken offal was even cheaper than chicken meat. If the system could absorb it as well, he could save some more money.

Seeing that Lu Hao did not decline, the poultry shop owner took a dry lotus leaf, wrapped up the chicken offal, tied it with straw rope, and handed it to him.

"Thanks."

Lu Hao carried the two chickens and the bundle of chicken offal home.

When he reached his door, he saw Shi Kang standing outside.

The moment Shi Kang saw Lu Hao return, he hurried over.

"Brother Hao! I found out. The Glazed Hairpin Lin Qiniang ordered will arrive at the jewelry shop in seven days."