Wang Chen reminded him, eyes wide:
"This man joined the rebels!!!"
Hu Xiezhi echoed him, eyes wide:
"He joined the rebels! We can't spare someone who joined the rebels!!!"
Wang Chen leaned forward, striking while the iron was hot:
"And he's one of the ringleaders! One of the rebel prince's trusted strategists!"
Hu Xiezhi tossed his head, his words firm as hammered nails:
"Then he certainly won't get away!"
"You're sure this time?"
"How could I not be sure? When old Hu handles things, two words: rest easy!"
Hu Xiezhi climbed into his carriage and headed home. Just before he reached his residence, an effeminate man stopped the carriage alone.
"The Commandant of the Guards' carriage! Stand aside!"
"My master invites Commandant Hu to join her for tea."
Several personal guards gripped their sword hilts, eyeing this uninvited visitor warily.
Hu Xiezhi lounged crookedly inside the carriage, the wine going to his head and his eyelids fighting to stay open. Faintly hearing the commotion outside, he muttered, "What the hell kind of tea are we drinking in the dead of night..."
He heard a guard outside ask:
"Who is your master?"
"The Marquis of Xichang's Residence."
Hu Xiezhi sobered up at once!
"Please wait a moment."
The guard hurried back to report.
Hu Xiezhi immediately called out:
"Tea sounds wonderful! I love drinking tea!"
The Six Purities Pavilion's teahouse had a narrow, modest frontage: a single black-lacquered wooden door, without even a signboard. At first glance, it looked like an ordinary small household. Only after entering did one discover an entirely different world.
Covered walkways surrounded a courtyard on all four sides. An old plum tree grew within it, its twisted branches occupying half the central court. Secluded tearooms stood scattered at the ends of the walkways, some