After a night of rushing about, the first pale light of dawn was beginning to show in the east.
At the gate of Qingxi County, a brazier stood outside the guardroom where the soldiers usually kept watch, with a kettle of water heating over it.
Chen Xuance sat beside a small table, legs planted wide. Embroidered-robed officers came over from time to time to report on the search. They had spent half the night searching without finding so much as a hair of Mantanghong, and his brow gradually knitted as he grew uneasy.
After all, Commander Luo might seem gentle, but she had quite a temper. If several hundred men searched all night without accomplishing a thing, tomorrow they could forget about breakfast, and probably half their monthly pay would be docked too. The other half would be docked tomorrow.
But even with all her power gone, Mantanghong was still a formidable figure ranked in the top ten of the second tier. If she was determined to hide, how were a bunch of mud-legs like them supposed to find her...
And what about that lad Ye Xingge? Could walking a horse really take four hours?
Could it be that he had talked about catching roving bandits to prove himself, but had actually slipped into some young lady's bed...
The lad was quite handsome, so it really was possible...
Not far away, Constable Wang Shouyin stood at the city gate, gazing out beyond it. He wasn't worried about Ye Xingge slipping into some girl's bed.
After all, the lad's eyes were set on the heavens. He was only interested in peerless beauties of the jianghu, such as those of the Cloud and Rain Tower, Perfected Jiuhua, the Flower Judge, Mantanghong, and Long Erniang.
In the past, matchmakers had worn down his doorstep, but the lad hadn't even spared them a glance.
As for why he hadn't returned after so long, he was probably too embarrassed to come back without catching anyone.
But dawn was almost here. If he didn't come back soon, who would make breakfast for Lord Luo?
Having the grand commander eat tofu pudding at the gate would be a bit discourteous...
"Hyah-!"
Clip-clop, clip-clop...
Just as he was thinking this, the sound of a large group of horses came from the official road outside the gate.
Chen Xuance's ears twitched. Thinking someone had come from the capital with a message, he immediately rose, straightened his robes, and went beneath the gate arch to have a look.
By the dim light of dawn, he saw seven riders galloping toward them. At the front was a young man in a gray robe, riding a particularly eye-catching white horse.
The six riders behind him wore rust-green official robes, with heavy crossbows and official sabers hanging at their horses' sides. Though their clothes were the same, the hats of the Heaven-Observing Pavilion's four bureaus differed slightly.
Chen Xuance took a brief look and saw that they were from the Inspection Bureau. His face immediately darkened. He raised a hand to summon his attendants to their feet, then strode out of the gate with a hand on his saber.
Wang Shouyin's expression changed as well, and he hurried after him.
"What's going on? Did the Inspection Bureau arrest Xingge and bring him back?"
Ye Xingge had beaten up an Inspection Bureau officer only last night. If they had run into each other on the road, it would be perfectly normal for him to have been dealt with.
Chen Xuance had taken a few steps when he noticed blood on the gray-robed young man at the front. He flew into a rage.
"How dare you bastards!"
Shing, shing, shing-!
At his words, the dozen or so embroidered-robed officers following him drew their sabers and glared at the riders!
"Whoa-!"
The horses neighed outside the gate.
The Patrol Inspection Bureau men who had come along clearly didn't have the nerve to throw their weight around as Ye Xingge did. Seeing this, they hurriedly reined in their horses.
"Deputy Commissioner Chen, you misunderstand. Young Master Ye Xingge has just captured the important criminal Jiang Baichuan with Commander Ruan's assistance. We're only escorting the suspect here..."
"Bull fucking shit!"
Chen Xuance didn't believe a single word of it!
He might not know Ye Xingge, but how could he not know Ruan Jinyu?
If Ye Xingge ran into that dead eunuch and wasn't beaten half to death, it would only be because Commander Luo carried enough weight. And Ruan Jinyu had helped Ye Xingge catch an important criminal?
Even if Ye Xingge had made a contribution that couldn't be erased, would Ruan Jinyu obediently send such a key suspect over to Commander Luo?
No...
Could it be that Ye Xingge was crippled in a beating, and Ruan Jinyu sent him some credit by way of apology because he was afraid Lord Luo would retaliate?
At the thought, Chen Xuance's gaze darkened, and he immediately advanced with his saber to check.
But he soon saw Ye Xingge riding up, lively and well, with another person draped across the back of his horse. Still a few steps away, Ye Xingge swung himself down from the saddle.
"Lord Chen, don't misunderstand. These men really did escort me back..."
"?"
The Judicial Review Bureau's many military officers froze in their anger, their eyes full of confusion.
Wang Shouyin was baffled too. He asked in a low voice:
"Xingge, what happened?"
Now that Ye Xingge was back at his base, he naturally no longer had to worry about his safety. He told them the truth.
"I was investigating a lead in Muyang and got lucky enough to catch Jiang Baichuan. I meant to bring him straight back, but Commander Ruan arrived with his men."
When Chen Xuance saw that Ye Xingge had caught the man on his own, he thought that made more sense. If Ruan Jinyu had really been involved, there was no way the man could have been brought back. His gaze darkened slightly as he asked:
"And then? Did Commander Ruan make things difficult for you?"
Ye Xingge spread his hands slightly and glanced back at the six embroidered-robed officers who had escorted him. It wasn't easy to say it outright.
The Inspection Bureau men knew they couldn't keep what had happened a secret, so they put it nicely.
"Commander Ruan never meant to steal the credit. He was only pretending, to test Brother Ye's courage. Sure enough, Brother Ye proved worthy of Commander Luo's regard. He drew his saber on the spot and planted himself across the restaurant entrance! Commander Ruan was greatly impressed and had us escort Young Master Ye and the suspect back. Lord Chen, when you submit your report, don't forget to mention Commander Ruan."
"..."
Silence fell outside the gate.
Chen Xuance and the many military officers turned to look at Ye Xingge, disbelief filling their eyes. They thought to themselves:
Ruan Jinyu used threats and intimidation to steal credit, and that was just pretending?
And after Ruan Jinyu surrounded him, he dared draw his saber all by himself?
Chen Xuance knew he wouldn't dare be that reckless when facing a formidable second-tier figure.
After all, the case belonged to the authorities, but his life was his own.
It was true that Lord Luo protected his own and would repay an eye for an eye. But if Ruan Jinyu really flew into a rage out of humiliation and killed him by accident, even if Lord Luo killed Ruan Jinyu, wouldn't he still be dead?
To gamble on whether the notorious Ruan Jinyu would deal a killing blow, all for a little reward from the authorities-he certainly didn't dare.
But the Inspection Bureau men could confirm it, which meant it was absolutely true.
If Ruan Jinyu had been willing to let go, the only explanation was that this lad really had shown no regard for his life.
Ruan Jinyu had feared things would get too big to contain, so he had settled for the next best thing.
At the thought, Chen Xuance looked at Ye Xingge, his eyes full of admiration. He could also imagine how difficult it must have been for the lad at the time. He raised a hand and patted him on the shoulder.
"Good lad, you've got guts!"
The remaining military officers nodded repeatedly. With the Inspection Bureau men still present, it wasn't proper to curse Ruan Jinyu to their faces, so they gathered around Ye Xingge and headed into the city.
"Come on, let's go give Lord Luo the good news!"
"Thanks for your hard work, Brother Ye. You weren't hurt, were you?"
"No, my clothes just got torn..."
"Tsk, tsk, tsk. With skills like that, being a shopkeeper is a terrible waste of talent..."
A short while later, at the Wujian Inn.
Dawn was breaking, and the inn's main hall was brightly lit. Jiang Baichuan, still unconscious, had been propped against a corridor pillar, and the wound on his shoulder had been bandaged to stop the bleeding.
Several military officers, including Chen Xuance, stood beneath the stairs with their heads high and chests out, the corners of their mouths practically reaching their noses. From head to toe, they radiated a single question: Aren't we guys fucking amazing?
Ye Xingge was surrounded by them, but he didn't mind that they had followed him here to claim some credit. They had waited only a moment when footsteps sounded upstairs.
Tap, tap, tap...
Luo Xuanqing came slowly down the stairs in a long blue-green dress, holding a black cat. She studied Jiang Baichuan leaning against the pillar, then looked at Ye Xingge, who was filthy and stained with blood. Her expression seemed calm, but her foxlike eyes had clearly widened as she spoke gently.
"Oh? Impressive! You didn't come up with any new tricks at the drinking table just now, but you turned around and pulled off something big for me out there!"
Hearing that tone, Chen Xuance knew Commander Luo was so happy she was about to take flight.
After all, once today's battle report reached the capital and Duke Zhang saw that more than a thousand people in the Inspection Bureau couldn't match one young man who hadn't even taken up his post, wouldn't he whip Ruan Jinyu until he spun like a top?
And Ye Xingge had faced superior numbers all alone and wrested the credit right out of Ruan Jinyu's hands, slapping that dead eunuch in the face three times in one night.
Lord Luo was showing restraint and composure by not going up and giving the lad a couple of kisses as a reward...
Ye Xingge had his own purpose and remained relatively calm. He replied modestly:
"You flatter me, my lady. I was just lucky..."
Luo Xuanqing came up to him, tossed the big fat cat aside, and circled Ye Xingge, sizing him up.
"I'll grant that you were lucky to catch Jiang Baichuan, but without the courage to splatter blood within five paces, would Ruan Jinyu have backed down? If everyone under me risked their lives like you, I might already be the Heaven-Observing Decree. Why would I still be on equal footing with that dead eunuch..."
Ye Xingge thought that Great Beauty Luo, with her bearing of a superior at once aloof and alluring, really did resemble an imperial noble consort. He replied with a smile:
"My lady, you praise me too highly. Lord Chen gave me this opportunity today. If he hadn't trusted me and given me a saber, I wouldn't have had a chance to prove myself..."
Chen Xuance held his head high and chest out, thinking this lad was someone worth knowing.
"Hmph."
After praising him, Luo Xuanqing narrowed her eyes, a hint of severity appearing in them.
"But recklessly charging ahead for credit isn't a good habit. Since you had a lead, why didn't you report it beforehand and take some men with you?"
Ye Xingge had prepared an answer long ago.
"Today I only heard that the authorities were all looking for Jiang Baichuan after I'd left the city. Back when I was at the inn, I often heard travelers talking nonsense. I don't know who mentioned Jiang Baichuan's mistress, and I didn't dare take it seriously, so I went to check by myself. Who would have thought I'd run straight into him..."
Luo Xuanqing nodded slightly. Inns and taverns were places where information gathered, after all, so she had no doubts. She turned to the suspect.
"Did you get anything out of him?"
Ye Xingge replied, "He said the contact was the Shunyuan Pawnshop, probably the one in Dahe Town. I meant to bring him back and question him carefully, but Commander Ruan came charging in."
Luo Xuanqing knew this information was crucial and immediately gave orders.
"Take him away and question him. Chen Xuance, lead a team to the pawnshop yourself. If Yang Tuyan and Mantanghong are both caught by our bureau..."
"Understood!"
Chen Xuance could already imagine that dead eunuch returning without a single achievement and being whipped into a little whirlwind by the Heaven-Observing Decree. He quickly carried the suspect out.
Seeing this, Ye Xingge volunteered.
"I know the local area. I can lead Lord Chen there..."
"You stop right there!"
Luo Xuanqing raised a hand to block his path, narrowing her eyes slightly as she adopted the manner of an icy female superior.
"You've been running around all night. Why run off again instead of getting a proper rest? You won't get any less credit."
Ye Xingge had already considered the possibility that he wouldn't be sent along, which was why he had used various methods to encrypt it, to prevent anyone else from deciphering it.
And since Chen Xuance and the others wouldn't understand it, they would surely have to come back and report. To avoid adding feet to a snake and arousing suspicion, Ye Xingge smiled and said:
"I'm not actually tired. Hmm... it's almost dawn. Are you hungry, Lord Luo? How about I stir-fry a couple of dishes?"
Luo Xuanqing had intended to let Ye Xingge rest first, but judging by the lad's appearance, he was probably too excited by his recent achievement to sleep. She nodded.
"That's fine. Bring them to my room in a little while. I'll give you a special reward."
"Oh?"
Ye Xingge paused and looked at Great Beauty Luo's swaying, shapely posterior beneath her blue-green dress. He figured she was teasing him.
The great beauty, who had watched the whole exchange, seemed hungry again. She too spoke by his ear.
"That little hussy... stir-fry a few dishes for me too, and bring a jar of good wine. No reward."
"?"
Ye Xingge blinked and thought:
No reward, and you still have the nerve to order food?
You eat my food, sleep in my place, and order me around. Are you treating me as your man?
But seeing as things were going smoothly, he smiled it off and turned toward the inn's rear courtyard...