Rose Hotel

Zhu Zhuqing headed straight for the hotel entrance.

Luo Yan followed behind her. He noticed that her back was straighter than usual.

He lagged a step behind as the red lantern light slid across her shoulders.

The hotel smelled even more fragrant inside.

Seeing customers enter, the waiter greeted them with a broad smile. "Are the two of you staying the night or dining?"

Zhu Zhuqing did not look at him and walked toward the front desk.

Luo Yan added from behind, "We're looking for someone. Don't register us yet."

Dai Mubai was still chatting and laughing with two young women at the counter.

With his back to them, one arm braced against the counter, he leaned back slightly. His smile seemed to make the whole lobby sway with him.

The two young women laughed as well.

One offered him wine, while the other pressed a handkerchief to his collar. It was hard to tell whether she was wiping his sweat or simply leaning closer.

Zhu Zhuqing stopped three steps away.

She did not call his name. She simply stood there.

One of the women beside Dai Mubai noticed her first. Tugging at Dai Mubai's sleeve, she said, "Young master, someone's here. That woman... she keeps staring at you."

Dai Mubai gave a lazy "Hm?" and turned around, still holding his wine cup, the smile at his lips not yet gone.

But the moment he met Zhu Zhuqing's eyes, that smile seemed to be stripped from his face.

He sensed an aura of the same origin, and the hand holding his cup froze halfway.

That was the scent of the Zhu Family, the unique aura of the Hell Spirit Cat...

He lowered his gaze, letting it travel down from her face.

Toward the full breasts utterly mismatched with her age.

Then he raised his head again and looked at her face.

That face was utterly cold.

"You are...?" Dai Mubai asked tentatively.

Before he could finish, two sets of hurried footsteps suddenly sounded from the stairs.

"Brother Mubai~"

"Darling~"

Like two clusters of pink-and-blue flowers, two young women rushed down the stairs and threw themselves into Dai Mubai's arms from either side.

They looked extremely alike. One wrapped her arms around his neck, while the other clung to his arm, their voices sweet enough to drip honey.

"Why haven't you come back yet? We've been waiting for you forever~"

"Exactly, exactly~ You promised tonight. You can't go looking for someone else again~"

Dai Mubai's entire body stiffened. He wanted to retreat, but the two soft bodies had already latched onto him.

He looked up at Zhu Zhuqing. She still stood where she was, neither moving nor getting angry, merely watching him.

Luo Yan gave a quiet "Oh?" from behind. He stepped closer and poked half his face out from behind Zhu Zhuqing's shoulder, looking at the two young women before looking at Dai Mubai.

"Young Master Dai~ What fine spirits you're in."

Luo Yan smiled, his tone light. "Little kitty was going to deliver some family correspondence to you, but it seems you're not exactly free. How about another day? You get back to your business first?"

Dai Mubai's expression had already turned as ugly as it could get. He reached out to push the two women away, but they clung to him tightly.

"Who are you? Why are you looking for our Brother Mubai?" One of the young women looked up at Zhu Zhuqing with a pout.

Zhu Zhuqing did not look at either of them.

She merely stepped to the side and, as naturally as could be, reached out to hook her arm through Luo Yan's.

Luo Yan's entire body instantly stiffened. He lowered his head and looked at the hand on his arm.

Her face remained cold, though her chin lifted slightly.

"My surname is Zhu."

Her voice was not loud, yet it fell clearly into everyone's ears. "The Zhu Family of the Star Luo Empire. We came to see Dai Mubai only to settle some old matters."

The two young women opened their mouths but suddenly found themselves speechless.

They looked from Zhu Zhuqing to Luo Yan. Luo Yan forced a calm smile, not daring to move his arm. Those two soft lumps were pressed rather tightly against him...

Dai Mubai's expression could not have looked worse.

He stared at Zhu Zhuqing, then swept his gaze toward Luo Yan. Something immensely complicated churned in his eyes—surprise, perhaps anger.

"Zhu... Zhuqing." At last, he called her name.

Zhu Zhuqing did not respond.

She only tightened her hold on Luo Yan's arm and pulled it closer to herself.

The motion was light, yet it carried an unyielding force that allowed no argument. Luo Yan was caught off guard and stumbled, nearly crashing into her shoulder.

He gave a startled "Hey" and hurriedly adjusted his footing.

But Zhu Zhuqing gave him little time. She had already turned and headed for the entrance, leaving Luo Yan no choice but to quickly follow.

"We'll talk tomorrow," she told Dai Mubai without looking back.

Then she dragged him through the lobby. The two young women did not dare say another word, the waiter shrank off to one side, and only Dai Mubai remained behind the counter.

He stared at their retreating backs. The traces of drunkenness in his eyes had completely vanished. He watched Zhu Zhuqing holding Luo Yan's arm, and she did not even look back at him once.

Before leaving, Luo Yan did cast Dai Mubai a swift glance over his shoulder.

Once outside, the night wind rushed at them. Zhu Zhuqing finally let go of him.

Luo Yan drew back the arm she had held for so long.

He gave an awkward laugh. "Next time you need to borrow me to make someone mad, could you give me some warning? I nearly thought you were going to drag me into a ditch."

Zhu Zhuqing ignored him and continued down the long street.

Luo Yan rubbed his arm and followed.

The light fell across her face, making it seem even colder than before, though the tips of her ears were slightly red.

"You're not planning to stay there tonight?" Luo Yan asked.

"I am," Zhu Zhuqing said. "Somewhere else."

"What about me?"

"Do as you please."

She did not stop walking. "But don't sleep too far away."

Luo Yan froze for a moment, then laughed. "Little kitty, isn't that a bit too much? You use me as a shield, then worry I'll run off. What does that make me?"

Zhu Zhuqing did not answer. She stopped before an old inn and turned to glance at Luo Yan.

That look merely confirmed whether he was still following her.

"We'll stay here," she said.

Luo Yan looked up at the inn's old signboard, then looked at Zhu Zhuqing.

Just as he was about to follow her inside, something caught the corner of his eye across the street.

A man had just emerged from an alley.

The man was lean, with a face full of beard and a pair of square-framed glasses perched on his nose. He looked around as he walked, clutching a neatly folded square of paper in his hand as he headed toward a tea stall.

Luo Yan's feet abruptly stopped. He narrowed his eyes and looked over there.

The lighting was dim, but he would recognize that face even if it were burned to ashes.

Zhu Zhuqing had already reached the doorway. Seeing that he had not followed, she turned back and asked, "What is it?"

Luo Yan did not answer.

He slowly tilted his head, looked for several more seconds, then forced the words through clenched teeth. "I think... I found the crooked merchant who sold me that fake map."

"What?" Zhu Zhuqing was startled.

She followed his gaze. The man had already sat down at the tea stall and was spreading that sheet of paper across the table, gesturing to the stall owner.

From afar, it really did look as though he were discussing some business deal.

"Are you sure?" she asked.

"It's him!" Luo Yan gritted his teeth, and his body shot forward the instant the words left his mouth.

"You crooked merchant!!!"

The shout was full of force, without a trace of his usual lazy manner.

The man at the tea stall had been gesturing over the map with the stall owner. Startled by the sudden roar, he jolted so hard that half a bowl of tea sloshed out.

When he turned around, his face first went blank under the lamplight, then his eyes widened sharply.

"Damn it!" Without the slightest hesitation, he got up and ran.

He moved unbelievably fast, diving headfirst into a nearby alley.

"Don't run—!" Luo Yan gave chase at full speed.

He was truly furious. He had remembered that face for two years. One fake map had made him wander through barren mountains and wild forests like a ghost.

If he did not chase that bastard until his belt snapped today, he would write his name backward.

Zhu Zhuqing decisively joined the pursuit. Luo Yan chased from the front while she vaulted over walls beside him to take shortcuts. One on the left and one on the right, they clamped down tightly on the fleeing gray figure.

"You crooked merchant, did you ever think this day would come when you sold me that earthworm map?" Luo Yan cursed as he ran.

Without looking back, Flender replied as he ran, "Little brother, what earthworm map? This is called a 'Heartfelt Map'! Don't judge it by its crooked lines—the artistic conception is what matters! You're the one who doesn't know how to read it!"

"Artistic conception, my ass! If I don't stuff that lousy map back into your mouth today, my name isn't Luo Yan!"

"Leave some room for others, little brother, so we can meet again someday!" Flender shrieked strangely, swerving underfoot and darting into another alley.

He was clearly extremely familiar with Suotuo City, taking nothing but obscure routes.

After chasing through two alleys, Luo Yan found that Flender's shadow had disappeared ahead of him.

He stood at the alley entrance with his hands braced on his knees, breathing heavily, several strands of hair stuck to his forehead with sweat.

"This old bastard... is he a rat or something..." He gritted his teeth and looked up, scanning the low walls on both sides.

But that man had long since crawled out through some hole in the wall.

Zhu Zhuqing dropped down from the top of a wall to one side and stood beside him. She had barely even lost her breath.

"We lost him," Luo Yan said, the anger in his voice not yet gone.

"He knows the city's alleys."

Zhu Zhuqing's tone was calm. "We only just arrived, after all. It's normal that we couldn't catch him tonight."

"Normal?"

Luo Yan straightened. "When that guy sold me a fake map, he never told me anything was normal. Before I met you, do you know how many circles I ran through those woods? I got so sick of looking at trees I nearly threw up!"

Zhu Zhuqing looked at him. His face was slightly flushed from running and anger.

She had never seen him like this. Luo Yan, who was always smiling and always saying, "Don't worry," could apparently lose his temper over something like this too.

She said nothing and merely stepped closer. Luo Yan was still fuming and did not notice her. He lowered his head and dusted off the hem of his clothes.

Zhu Zhuqing suddenly reached out and gave his back an extremely light pat.

"It's fine. He can run today, but he can't run forever. He won't be leaving here anytime soon."

"Hmph!" Luo Yan snorted coldly. "Just wait!"

"Third Brother, this is the... Suotuo City the Grandmaster mentioned?"

"It should be right."