“No, I wasn’t crying.”
“Right. Sure.”
“I’m serious. I wasn’t crying.”
“I said I got it.”
Grinning to himself while he made fun of , Yeon Ryang stood there letting smack his forearm over and over.
Of course, it didn’t affect him at all. He lifted the corners of his mouth and mimicked my expression.
“I thought you were so little kid who’d lost her parents. You were standing there with this face, like this, like the whole world had collapsed...”
“Ah, stop it already!”
So irritating. It hadn’t been that bad.
His teasing made my face burn.
Chuckling, Yeon Ryang ruffled my hair all over again. I slapped his hand away, fixed my hair, and shot him a glare.
I’d thought he was acting strangely mature for once. Turns out he was exactly the sa as usual.
“But listen. I can’t pay you anymore. I spent it all on your food.”
He ate so much that even all the money we’d squeezed out of that bandit chief had disappeared into als. ...Gobul, was it? Sothing like that.
At this point, all I had left was maybe two taels of silver.
Even after my honest confession, Yeon Ryang stayed perfectly unconcerned.
“So what? You’re good at sothing, aren’t you, little sister? If we run out of travel money, we’ll just go raid a mountain stockade.”
“What? Seriously? Did you leave money on deposit with the greenwood?”
I let out a disbelieving laugh. That was the kind of thinking you expected from the unorthodox faction.
...Though saying that felt a little like spitting in my own face.
After checking the people around us, I lowered my voice and whispered,
“Once we leave Wuhan, let’s go rob soone. Soone weak and rich.”
“Fine, fine.”
Yeon Ryang shrugged and smirked. Cane gave a loud ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) cry of delight and sprang from my shoulder onto his.
“Chit!”
“There you go, furball. Better view of the world from my shoulder than from hers, right?”
“Grrrk!”
Laughing, Yeon Ryang patted Cane on the head, then turned back to .
“Well then, little sister. Shall we go?”
The fact that those familiar words sounded so strangely good to hear had to an I was simply glad to have him back.
Yeon Ryang knew his way around Wuhan well, as if he’d been there before.
He led naturally toward a street packed with food stalls and bought us stuffed pancakes.
“The pancakes here are good, little sister. Try one.”
Seeing him point at the pancake while chewing away with both cheeks puffed out made my own mouth water. The two of us wandered the street side by side, chewing as we walked.
“Ah, little sister. The Dragon Gate Inn is over there. The Martial Alliance’s main compound is right behind it.”
Yeon Ryang pointed off beside . When I turned my head, I saw an inn with an enormous signboard hanging across the front.
Dragon Gate Inn.
The place was supported by dozens of towering red-painted pillars. At that size, it had to have hundreds of rooms.
As I stared up at it in admiration, Yeon Ryang flashed his white teeth in a grin.
“Co on. Let’s stay here tonight.”
“Um, Brother. Do we really have to stay at this inn? How about sowhere else?”
“You worried it’ll be expensive? The prices are reasonable. Don’t worry, little sister. I’ll pay.”
No, that wasn’t the problem. The na just felt ominous.
Still, it wasn’t sitting alone in the middle of a desert, and we certainly weren’t going to be the only guests. I couldn’t exactly insist I hated it for no reason.
And of all the inns we’d stayed at so far, this one looked the nicest by far.
I nodded hesitantly and followed Yeon Ryang inside.
The wide first floor of the inn was noisy with people eating.
The second and third floors also seed to be used as dining areas, probably private rooms for guests who wanted a quieter al. It looked like the guest rooms started from the fourth floor up.
I hope they give us a high room. The view’s probably amazing.
After that brief thought, I looked over at Yeon Ryang.
“Are we eating?”
“Of course. Maybe we’ll have a drink too. We made it all the way to Wuhan.”
Yeon Ryang winked at and mid tipping back a cup.
Was this man secretly Korean or sothing?
I let out a short laugh and answered,
“Fine. Just one bottle. I’m not that hungry, though. Do they have anything light?”
“Let’s ask the inn runner. First, let’s si— whoa.”
The mont Yeon Ryang stepped toward a table, a person ca crashing down from the second floor with an enormous roar.
BOOM! CRASH! CRAAACK!
“Ugh...!”
The man landed hard enough to split a table in half and groaned while clutching his waist.
I jabbed Yeon Ryang in the side and looked at him as if to ask what the hell that was. He replied calmly,
“I told you. Get enough country bumpkins fresh out in the martial world together, and there’s always going to be a commotion.”
“You bastard...!”
“Eat your als with so dignity. Quit bothering people, you vermin.”
“How dare you! I’ll teach you a le— AAGH!”
Another man ca flying down after him.
Wow. I was watching a genre cliché happen right in front of . All we needed now was soone ordering bamboo-leaf liquor and a bowl of noodles.
As I stood there blankly staring up at the second floor, I spotted a man in a light jade robe lazily fanning himself.
I tilted my head at the familiar face, then realized I knew him.
That was the one Tang Yeongho had grabbed by the collar during the family gathering. What was his na again?
Zhuge Hyogang? Right. That was it.
I hurriedly covered my face.
Zhuge Hyogang had no idea who I was, but seeing a familiar face here still made uncomfortable.
Co to think of it, the Zhuge Clan was in Hubei too. This really was an orthodox stronghold.
When I frowned, Yeon Ryang asked,
“What is it, little sister? Is it another lookalike this ti?”
“This ti, it’s soone only I know.”
“Oh dear. You must have a lot of n in your heart, little sister. Still, if you ask your brother, that little Taoist from Gyun County was the most handso—”
This man was talking nonsense again.
I stepped hard on his foot, then slipped around the fallen n and sat at a table.
I had no idea how the dispute had started, but if they’d picked a fight with a young master of the Zhuge Clan, then Yeon Ryang was probably right—they were just inexperienced fools fresh out into the martial world.
Zhuge Hyogang, still fanning himself with an irritated expression, slowly ca down to the first floor.
The inn runner, who seed to think he was leaving, rushed over and bowed repeatedly.
“H-her— honored sir, if you would wait just a mont, we’ll clear out a private room on the third floor for you. Just a mont...”
“That won’t be necessary. I’ll sit on the first floor. Just make room for six.”
“Y-yes! Of course!”
The inn runner’s face brightened at once, and he hurried off to clear space.
“Let’s sit too, little sister.”
“All right.”
I cast another glance at Zhuge Hyogang, then took my seat.
Starting with him, the n who had co down from upstairs gathered around and sat in a circle.
One of the martial artists beside him asked,
“Division Leader, when will the third-generation disciples Wudang is sending arrive?”
“It seems that was supposed to be your job to look into and report to , Deputy Division Leader.”
Zhuge Hyogang’s chilly reply made the man’s face flush red.
“...Yes. My apologies.”
“This concerns the Martial Alliance. In the future, refrain from speaking carelessly about it outside.”
“Yes, Division Leader.”
Oh, so that sour personality hadn’t changed at all.
Judging by the way he was being addressed, Zhuge Hyogang seed to hold a fairly high position in the Martial Alliance.
After lowering his gaze indifferently, he spoke again.
“A carrier pigeon arrived this morning, so they should be here tomorrow or the day after.”
“Thank you. I’ll make sure to confirm it first and report next ti.”
“See that you do.”
...Were all the people in the Zhuge Clan like that?
If so, I could understand why Brother Un disliked his mother’s family.
I clicked my tongue and spent a mont cursing Zhuge Hyogang under my breath, then my eyes shifted to the table in front of Yeon Ryang, and I narrowed them.
The way he had set down his lidded teacup and chopsticks was exactly the sa as the Hao Gate signal Hwahong had once taught .
When Yeon Ryang tapped the table lightly, the inn runner hurried over and bowed.
“Honored sir, what do you need?”
“The cup is chipped. Please replace it. Ah, but I won’t need any water.”
“My apologies. I’ll replace it at once. What would you like to order?”
“What do you want, little sister?”
“What kind of noodle dish do you have that’s light?”
“We have hot dry noodles, miss. Boiled noodles tossed lightly in oil with sesa oil.”
“I’ll have that.”
“Two bowls of hot dry noodles. One bottle of sothing that pairs well with stead Wuchang fish. And prepare two guest rooms. We’re staying the night.”
“Yes, sir. I’ll have it ready imdiately.”
After taking the order, the inn runner picked up Yeon Ryang’s lidded cup and carried it away.
“Little sister, have you ever had Wuchang fish? The freshwater fish around here is excellent.”
“No. I haven’t.”
“The flesh gets so soft once it’s soaked in seasoning. You can look forward to it.”
Yeon Ryang kept chattering away with a bright smile, but I couldn’t focus on our conversation.
If you send the signal and wait a mont, an inn runner or courtesan will co over and ask what you need. Tell them the lidded cup is chipped and ask for it to be replaced. Then they’ll guide you to a private room.
Hwahong had taught that herself, so I was sure of it.
Yeon Ryang had just sent a signal to the Hao Gate.
Why was Yeon Ryang contacting the Hao Gate?
The thought left such a bad taste in my mouth that I could barely taste the food.
I half ate and half didn’t while watching him.
It felt like I’d just learned yet another one of his secrets.
*****
As soon as we finished eating and received our rooms, Yeon Ryang pressed a string of copper coins into my hand.
“Little sister. Here’s so spending money, so go buy sweets and amuse yourself. I’ll be out for about four hours.”
“Oh, co on, Brother. Am I a child?”
“You are, aren’t you?”
“Fine, whatever. Where are you going?”
“When a man reaches my age, he sotis needs a little adult ti. I’ll be back.”
Leaving behind that cryptic line, Yeon Ryang patted my shoulder and turned away.
Where was he going?
Suppressing my presence, I secretly followed him, then frowned the mont I saw the building he entered.
What kind of nonsense was that old man talking about if he was going to a pleasure house?
If I hadn’t known there was sothing going on behind the scenes, I would have kicked him in the calf.
Given that he’d contacted the Hao Gate at the inn and then co here, it seed likely this was where he was eting a Hao Gate contact.
No matter how I thought about it, there was only one reason Yeon Ryang would be eting the Hao Gate.
The antidote to the Blood Yin Parasite.
He had said he could only receive the antidote after sending in a report to the Sect. The four hours he ntioned were probably the ti it would take to do that.
If that was the case, then what exactly was the Hao Gate’s relationship with the Demonic Sect?
Were they simply couriers? Or had Demonic Sect influence taken root within the Hao Gate itself?
Considering the kinds of people the Hao Gate was made up of, it didn’t seem hard at all for Demonic Sect spies to hide inside it under false identities.
After all, no one was likely to investigate the backgrounds of courtesans, drivers, or inn runners in any detail.
I swallowed hard as I glanced sideways at the pleasure house.
I wanted to know what Yeon Ryang was doing through the Hao Gate.
Just as I started creeping toward the back entrance of the pleasure house, soone seized by the nape of the neck.
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