Chapter 20
In the darkness, there was no way to tell if Yu Qin’s hurried breathing was from anger or embarrassment.
Yan Yunhe chuckled. “It seems there are no ledgers here. That old fox Wei Zhili wouldn’t easily leave evidence for us to find.”
Yu Qin fell silent, realizing that bringing up official business was Yan Yunhe’s way of changing the subject and smoothing over the lingering tension between them.
Yan Yunhe had worried that Yu Qin might not cooperate, but his concerns were unfounded. Lord Yu was even more dedicated to official matters than he was.
“What’s your next plan?” Yu Qin asked. “Shouldn’t we head straight to Kaiping?”
Yan Yunhe shook his head. “The Qingyi Gang must be no ordinary bandits. If they were only after the merchants’ goods and money in Yunzhou, Wei Zhili wouldn’t have gone through all that trouble.”
To put it bluntly, there were far simpler methods for officials to get their hands on wealthy merchants’ money. Why bother with a bunch of desperate outlaws who lived by the blade?
Yan Yunhe had a vague idea of what they were dealing with. If his guess proved right, this would no longer be about Yunzhou alone. The truth behind this case would shake the entire capital.
“Since we can’t find any leads through Wei Zhili, we’ll have to start investigating from the other end,” Yan Yunhe said.
He had just remembered where he had heard that voice speaking to Wei Zhili before.
Yan Yunhe’s lips curled into a faint smile. “Let’s go. We need to find our dear friend.”
…
Chen Qing hurried out of the Wei residence. He had an honest appearance and always greeted people with a smile, leaving a very good impression on his neighbors. Even those meeting him for the first time saw him as a simple, unassuming fellow.
When he returned to his residence, he found his heavily pregnant wife, Zhang Rong, sitting by the door, sewing clothes next to the dim light of an oil lamp. The baby would be born soon, and she wanted to make use of this time to finish a few more garments.
Chen Qing stepped forward and took the needlework from Zhang Rong’s hands. “Didn’t I tell you not to do this? Where’s the maid I bought for you?”
Zhang Rong snatched the clothes back, glaring at him. “That little girl isn’t as skilled as me.”
Chen Qing’s resolve faded under her glare. “I just don’t want you to strain your eyes.”
Zhang Rong tugged at his sweat-dampened clothes. “You’ve worked yourself to the bone to earn what little money we have. We need to save it for the baby.”
Chen Qing smiled helplessly. He had never been able to win an argument with his wife.
After dinner, Chen Qing took a moment to gently touch Zhang Rong’s belly before he rushed off to meet his brothers. The baby was five months along and already kicking. As he felt that growing life under his hand, his heart welled up with tenderness.
Once he left, Chen Qing’s expression darkened, and he quickened his pace.
Only when he was far enough from home did he stop in a dark alleyway. Turning around, he said, “I wonder what valiant hero would go to such great lengths to follow me all this way.”
Having roamed the jianghu, Chen Qing had naturally become skilled in martial arts, but it was clear that his pursuer's prowess was vastly superior. It wasn’t until he left his home and walked down the main street that he realized he was being followed.
Chen Qing’s face turned grim at the thought of someone tailing him all the way to his doorstep.
A figure stepped out of the shadows, revealing handsome features and a carefree smile. “Chen-dage, I didn’t expect to run into you again.”
Chen Qing stared at the man before him, whom he had met by chance at Yuanlai Inn. This man had claimed to be searching for his younger sister in Yunzhou, but he knew full well that it was just a lie.
This was none other than Yan Yunhe, the commander of the Divine Machine Battalion, tasked by the emperor himself with suppressing the bandits in Yunzhou. Moreover, he was the only son of the Marquis of Yong’an. Why would he have a sister in Yunzhou?
“Xiao Xiongdi.” Chen Qing then asked, “Have you found your sister yet?”
Yan Yunhe nodded. “I found her. She’s safe and sound.”
Chen Qing glanced behind him. “What about your friend who was traveling with you?”
“We fell out. He wanted to go to Kaiping, but I wanted to stay in Yunzhou.” Yan Yunhe shrugged. “Now I have nowhere to go. Chen-dage, can I stay with you tonight?”
Chen Qing couldn’t tell if Yan Yunhe was telling the truth or how much he actually knew. He forced a warm smile and stepped forward to throw his arm around Yan Yunhe’s shoulder. “Of course! Dage will take you out for meat and wine. We’re not going home until we’re drunk!”
The pair huddled together, chatting and joking, seemingly oblivious to the peculiarity of their encounter.
Chen Qing had already arranged to meet his brothers at a tavern. Seeing that he suddenly brought someone along, the two men waiting inside exchanged puzzled glances. But they had worked together for years; they could tell Chen Qing’s intentions from a single look.
Without Chen Qing needing to say a word, a cup of tampered wine was pressed to Yan Yunhe’s lips. The imperial envoy showed no sign of suspicion and drained it in one gulp. As Yan Yunhe swallowed the wine, Chen Qing’s back was drenched in sweat. None of them had expected that knocking him out would be so easy.
Once Yan Yunhe collapsed face-down on the table, unconscious, Chen Qing ordered his two brothers to carry him to a bed. The three men then retreated to the side room.
Zhou Ran lowered his voice. “Dage, what are you doing? Why did you bring him here?”
Chen Qing wiped the sweat from his brow, feeling as if he was riding a tiger and could not get off.1 “He must have realized something was off. He shook off our trackers on the road, but now he practically walked right to our doorstep in Yunzhou.”
Xu Hu, the most quick-tempered brother, said, “Now that he’s already seen our faces, we have no choice but to kill him.”
Zhou Ran, the Qingyi Gang’s strategist, despised his third brother’s recklessness. “He’s an imperial envoy! Do you want our entire families exterminated?”
Xu Hu retorted, “When the imperial envoy brings his troops and discovers what we’ve been doing, we’ll be exterminated anyway! Killing him now will buy us time to pack our bags and leave this place.”
Zhou Ran ignored him and turned to Chen Qing. “Have you made contact with them? We haven’t heard anything for over a month. The goods from the capital are still sitting in the stronghold and we haven’t received instructions on what to do with them. Something’s not right!”
Chen Qing’s expression turned grave. “I went to the capital. The contact point we had arranged was already deserted.”
Zhou Ran gritted his teeth. “It seems we’ve been abandoned. Are they planning to pin everything on us?”
With that, he glared fiercely at Xu Hu. “All because of your carelessness. If you hadn’t dropped that crate in our last transport, exposing its contents for everyone to see, they wouldn’t be so eager to silence us now!”
Xu Hu retorted defiantly, “It was that fool Wei Zhili! He had the audacity to try and double-cross us, and then he reported us to the court to bring the imperial soldiers down on us. How is that my fault? Besides, the smell from the crates was so strong even a corpse could tell what was inside!”
“You—!”
“Enough!” Chen Qing interrupted, his complexion flickering. After a moment, he gritted out, “Go back and divide the remaining money in the warehouse. Tell the brothers to take their wives and children and run away while they can. Lie low for now and find a place to hide.”
Zhou Ran's expression shifted slightly. “Dage, what are you planning?”
There was a subtle twist on Chen Qing’s usually honest face. He gazed toward the room where they left Yan Yunhe, his eyes glinting with ruthless resolution. “If they won’t show mercy, neither will I!”
…
Yu Qin walked into the alleyway, holding the Ministry of War’s troop deployment token. His shadow lengthened under the glow of the street lanterns until it was completely swallowed by darkness.
Before long, a subordinate from the Embroidered Uniform Guard landed lightly beside him.
The subordinate bowed respectfully before whispering, “Commander, when do we strike?”
Yu Qin glanced at the token in his hand, recalling how Yan Yunhe had entrusted it to him without a second thought.
“Soon,” he murmured, his lashes drooping slightly. “It’s almost time.”
The token in his hand was the perfect proof of it.
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