21. Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-One
Mu Fanqing
Visiting with Ehuang was like discovering a piece of my home had been picked up and moved to this city. Perhaps the one good thing about this arranged marriage is that I get to see Ehuang more than I did when I was away cultivating.
However, that does come with its downside, since the reason I get to see her more is because she is hunting my husband.
After speaking with her today, I’ve finally accepted the fact that the smuggler that she is hunting must be Shu.
Who else could it be? What other great coincidence is there that she could be hunting some other smuggler who is likely staying in Yanzhou right now?
If the conversation I overheard in the cave is anything to go on, Xiao Wen is involved in the smuggling operation which means that he is likely working with Shu from the outside as a member of the investigators sent to investigate the smuggling and eventually bring their leader to justice.
Even though I did not see Ren Shang today, I know him well enough to know that he would never engage in criminal activities, which means that Xiao Wen has not only been dedicated to deceiving the Ministry of Justice but also fooling Ren Shang somehow.
And now poor Ehuang has joined the ranks of those purposefully misled in order to protect Shu’s secret.
Not just by Xiao Wen. I am now complicit in this as well.
I hated lying to Ehuang, sitting there as she spoke of her first few days on the job, knowing that the Xiao Wen she mentions is actually lying to her and Ren Shang. Forcing them along a merry, wild goose chase.
Ehuang is so eager to find the smuggler and prove to everyone in the Ministry of Justice that she has what it takes, that she didn’t get her position simply because of who father is.
And, like the horrid sister I am, I sat there listening to her go on about her aspirations for moving up in the ranks to eventually passing father knowing that in order for her to get that she had to ruin me.
So, I kept my mouth shut, like the selfish person I am. Because I didn’t want to subject my sister to the horrid either-or decision that lies before her. If I told her about Shu being the smuggler she would have to choose between her family and her aspirations.
It seems fairly obvious that Wen chose family loyalty, but then he was already born into the Fourth Family, he was already powerful and wealthy.
Ehuang was born the daughter of an eighth-rank official, and just like me she always wanted to make her mark on the world.
To be the opposite of our father who always played it safe, and actually earn merits for our family.
How could I ask her to give up on that dream just to keep me safe?
“This is all Shu’s fault,” I grumble to myself as I kick at a pebble on the road.
“Pardon?” Ting asks from behind me.
I shake my head, pressing my lips together.
I’m surprised and a little disappointed that I didn’t see Ren Shang there.
I had wanted to ask him how it has been for him since he left his cultivation.
I wonder if he regrets it. However, when I arrived at the inn it was only Ehuang waiting for me.
Not even Wen was there, although Ehuang had said that he should be nearby.
Ren Shang had apparently gone out to investigate the ghost market and find some evidence of the smuggler…
No, not smuggler. Shu. He wanted to find evidence of Shu’s undertakings.
I groan, reaching up to massage my forehead.
Since when has my life become so complicated?
I miss the quiet of my cultivation, the lack of outside pressures, and the peace I felt believing I was doing what I was supposed to be doing.
I want to go back to the academy. Forget about being an imperial scribe, I just want to never leave the academy again.
I want to sit for hours in absolute silence harnessing my inner core, or spend a thousand attempts to perfect a spell, and never have to worry about anything else ever again.
I pause when Chenghou catches the light, his golden form truly as detailed and intricate as if he was an actual bracelet.
And there’s another complication… The dragon I should never have taken on as my master. But now he is here and exactly the reason why I can’t betray Shu for my sister. Because if the imperial court orders an investigation into the Xiaos I will surely be caught in possession of a dragon.
And Shu might be able to avoid exile or beheading for the smuggling charges due to the important role he plays in this country. But the law against associating with dragons is as old as our dynasty and the punishment for it has always been clear.
I’ve been so angry at Shu for his greed and recklessness, but am I not just as guilty—if not more so?
“My lady?” Qu Ting asks stepping forward. “Are you feeling all right?”
I lower my hand and give my head a small shake. “I’m all right, I’m just feeling a little lightheaded.” I grimace as someone brushes past me as they move to the side to make way for a carriage. This street is too busy, I can barely even think. “I just need a bit of quiet.”
Ting nods and grips my arm, hurriedly leading me to a side alleyway that juts off the main street. I breathe in a sigh of relief as we escape the press of bodies.
“My lady, please have a seat,” Ting says as she pulls me deeper into the alleyway and toward the jutting step outside of someone’s back door.
I give my head a small shake as she presses on my shoulders. “I think I’m feeling better now, I was just getting a bit claustrophobic.”
Ting is trying to fan me with her hands, which isn’t really helping but I truly appreciate the effort. “We should have brought a carriage. Walking like this is not befitting of a lady of your status.”
I pause in adjusting my sleeves and glance at Ting. A lady of status? I suppose I’m not used to being considered one of those.
“A lady?”
I start slightly at the new voice and turn to see a woman making her way down the alley toward us. She is wearing a cloak with the hood pulled up so that her features are blocked from view.
I share a glance with Ting before I turn to the newcomer. I fold my hands in front of me, trying not to look like I’m trying to keep my ink brush within my grasp. I force a smile. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“I think it would be lovely to be a lady…” the woman sighs dreamily.
Ting grips my arm so hard that I think I might bruise. I grimace slightly as I reach up to pat her arm. “Wouldn’t we all?” I say, forcing a laugh. “Instead of having to wait here for my husband to get off work at the smithy.”
The woman chuckles as she moves another step closer. “You are certainly no blacksmith’s wife. I was once, the soot got everywhere. But you’re so spotless. Prim. Pretty enough to eat.”
I feel my eyes widen as the woman lunges toward me, without any further warning.
She raises her arm enough that I can see that she does not have an ordinary hand.
The skin is translucent as if it is thin as rice paper, revealing veins and tendons.
However, the most disconcerting part is that each of her fingers are tipped by black claws that are at least as long as my finger and deathly sharp.
So many things happen at once before I even have a moment to process.
Ting screams and throws herself in front of me, wrapping her arms tightly around me to shield me with her body.
I stumble back with the force of her and my arm strikes the wall hard.
At the same time, Chenghou springs to life and rises up off my wrist, biting the woman attacking us, hard on her own wrist. She screams and stumbles back just as a sword goes flying through the air where she had been only a second ago.
I feel my eyes widen as the sword buries itself into a crate on the other end of the alleyway, digging deep into the wood and almost buried up to the hilt with the force of the throw.
I whip my head around just in time to see Zhan Quanyu speed down the alleyway, sliding into place between Ting and I and the strange woman attacking us. “Sister-in-law!” he cries out. “Are you hurt?”
“Don’t worry about me!” I gasp, pointing at the woman. “Worry about her.”
The woman stumbles back another step as she hisses and before my eyes seems to grow taller.
She lunges forward with her fist up, swinging at Quanyu.
Quanyu sidesteps, raising his hand and catches her fist, twisting it and yanking her forward.
She stumbles a bit before she catches her balance, just enough for her hood to fly off and reveal that it’s actually a man underneath with a square jaw and a strong build.
I feel my eyes widen. There’s no way that this is the same person as the slim woman who approached me. This is a man, tall and broad, how could I have mistaken that?
Just as I wonder that, I realize that this must be the spirit that Shu was sent here to hunt. It would explain how Quanyu arrived so quickly. Maybe he was on the spirit’s tail and caught it just as it was attacking me.
The man and Quanyu engage in a flurry of blows. It’s clear that Quanyu has the upper hand here, he moves gracefully as if he isn’t currently fighting someone but is rather dancing.
He pulls back and turns, landing a kick square into his opponent’s chest, sending him flying backward. The man goes flying into the crates, smashing them as he lands in a heap.
Quanyu whirls and quickly looks me over. His eyes linger on my arm which is throbbing a bit. I hope he is looking at some visible wound and not Chenghou who hopefully he did not see move. “Are you hurt at all?”
I suck in a breath, feeling my eyes widen as the man pushes to his feet. He has Quanyu’s sword now held in his hand. “Look out!” I cry just as he flings the sword to Quanyu.
Quanyu could easily dodge the blade, I’ve seen enough of his skills to know that, but if he did so then Ting or I could be hit by the sword. He must realize that because he stands there unmoving.
Suddenly another sword arcs through the air and crashes into Quanyu’s blade as it flew through the air. Both swords crash to the ground as Gao Liying steps forward, her cloak fanning around her as she stops.
The cloaked figure must not have liked his odds because he already disappearing from view, having used the distraction of the sword to make a run for it.
“Guards!” she barks. “After him!”
Several guards rush past us, chasing the man deeper into the alleyway. That leaves only Quanyu, Ting, me, and the general here in the alleyway.
Quanyu smiles slightly as if enjoying an inside joke in his head before he steps over to the sword and lifts it up. He turns to Gao Liying and bows slightly, folding his hand over his sword as he does so. “I thank you for your timely intervention, General.”
Her eyes flash angrily as she takes him in. “What do you think you were doing? You could have been killed.”
“Please, it would take much more than that to kill me.” He pats his chest proudly. “I know I don’t look it, but I’m actually quite sturdy.”
“Even the best soldiers can still die by the blade,” she mutters as she pushes past him and picks up her own sword. She slides it into her sheath in one single practiced movement.
“I’ve been more at risk whilst training with Shu’er.”
Her mouth twists in displeasure at his mention of Shu and I feel myself straighten a bit at that.
Ting pulls away, patting me down as she tries to find any signs of a wound. “My lady, are you all right?”
I nod, grimacing slightly as Ting’s question draws the attention of both Quanyu and Liying toward me.
I pull slightly away from Ting, straightening.
“I’m fine,” I say as she grasps my hand and twists it toward her to better look at the slight scrape on my arm.
Since everyone is acting like the attack was the greater problem, I can only assume that they did not actually see Chenghou.
Liying arrived too late and Ting had her arms wrapped around me, facing in the opposite direction.
The biggest threat would have been Quanyu, but I can only hope that my attacker’s body blocked Chenghou from view.
Still, I quickly pull my arm out of Ting’s hold and tuck it slightly behind me, allowing my skirts and sleeve to hide it from view.
Quanyu hurries over to me, looking me over with concern. “Are you sure?” he demands. He holds out a hand, resting it on my shoulder before he hisses and grabs the arm I’m specifically trying to hide. He holds it up, twisting for a better look. “You’re bleeding. Oh, no, Shu is going to kill me.”
I yank my hand out of his hold, returning my arm behind my back. “I’m fine, it’s just a small scratch.”
Liying is watching this all, her face impassive, however her eyes shine with disgust. “Lady Xiao, you being attacked here is a dereliction of my duties in keeping the streets safe. Please allow me to make up for it by escorting you back to the governor’s mansion.”
I press my lips together, glancing from Ting to Quanyu. So much for a quiet second to recollect my thoughts. I nod once and she turns and begins walking back toward the governor’s mansion. I follow, but my eyes are on Quanyu. “What are you even doing here?” I hiss.
“Boss wanted me to make sure that you were safe. I thought he was being overbearing but apparently I was wrong.”
I don’t think I’m just imagining the way that Liying’s back straightens at the mention of Shu. I feel myself frown. Surely, she isn’t still holding out hope to marry him. Not after their conversation in the courtyard…
And yet, I cannot deny that she immediately tuned in at his every mention.
How exactly does he expect to perform business here as a smuggler when the general in charge of the guards is this obsessed with him?
He is an idiot, if he wanted to be a smuggler then he should at least learn to be more inconspicuous, but it seems as though he forms intense bonds of either love or hate with everyone he meets.
I move my hand over, clutching at my wrist and the dragon bracelet on it. How am I supposed to cultivate in peace if he is going to ruin it by getting caught?