The boy sitting on the wall had long since run out of patience. He slid down. "All right, all right, the match is over. Come see my fine horse!"
The boys sprang up in a clamorous crowd, and someone hooked an arm around his neck. "I heard your horse has Dayuan blood?"
"His grandfather was from Dayuan!"
"Let Brother Qinghuo ride first!"
"Where's Little Xu? He was looking for a carriage this morning!"
"I offered him mine! But he said he couldn't use my horse!"
"..."
Pei Ye and Xie Chuantang passed the boys, prompting a brief silence. The boys frowned as they looked them over, so Xie Chuantang said evenly, "It'll be dark soon. Get caught galloping through the city, and you'll get ten strokes of the paddle."
Perhaps she really did have that air about her: this little band of street-roaming adventurers actually fell speechless for a moment. One even explained, "We're going outside the city to ride."
But the next instant, a voice bawled out, "What fucking business is it of yours?"
Xie Chuantang paid them no further attention and walked farther in with Pei Ye.
"Drooping Willow Street used to be a military lane," she explained, turning her head. "The homes of the Imperial Guard's elite. But in the campaign against the Southern Border a dozen or so years ago, almost none of the people from this street came back."
"...Oh."
Pei Ye glanced back at the departing boys, then slowly rested his hand on his sword and looked toward the alley ahead.
They had no need to ask the neighbors where Zhang Piaoxu lived; the government's household registers already contained a clear record.
It was indeed a rather desolate street. Ordinary people were not fond of coming here, and there were hardly any elders or