Feng Miao Jun’s heart sank. Could her luck be this bad? “Have you seen the portrait?”
“Yes, they’re posting them throughout the streets of the city.” Chen Da Chang had a good memory. “A man around forty, with round eyes, a mole at the corner of his forehead, a full beard covering his cheeks, and rugged features.”
…Her luck truly was terrible. The portrait was drawn to match Mo Ti Zhun—every detail matched perfectly!
“How long until they search here?”
“The guards have split into several directions. Those heading this way—” Chen Da Chang estimated the time, “are now at the east end of the main street. They’ll reach us in at most one double-hour.”
One double-hour… however she calculated, it wasn’t enough. Mo Ti Zhun still needed two double hours to awaken. What could she do? Good things never came easily—she knew the Grand Preceptor’s favor wouldn’t be simple to obtain!
Seeing her furrowed brow in deep thought, Peng Bai glanced out the window. “The city has many wells, and there’s one behind the inn.”
Was he suggesting they stuff the Grand Preceptor into a well? That idea seemed rather unethical; that well water was used for livestock. Had Feng Miao Jun not been so preoccupied, she might have laughed out loud.
Chen Da Chang interjected, “They’re searching the wells too, sending people down whether they contain water or not.”
Even the wells weren’t spared? Both Peng Bai and Feng Miao Jun’s expressions darkened. Should they abandon this favor and throw Mo Ti Zhun out to fend for himself? But with the current tense situation, the inn was fully occupied with many watchful eyes. Mo Ti Zhun’s nearly four-hundred-pound body would be discovered before they could get him out the door, and they would still be implicated.
Should they simply surrender?
Feng Miao Jun clutched the chair back, murmuring, “Just two more double-hours, only two more double-hours…” If they could hold out for two more double-hours, Mo Ti Zhun would awaken and could handle the current predicament himself. But how could she manage this? Moving Mo Ti Zhun was nearly impossible, and this small room had nowhere to hide someone. When the pursuers came to search, they would catch him red-handed.
What could be done?
Chen Da Chang lowered his voice, “What if I create a disturbance to draw them away?”
“That won’t work,” Peng Bai shook his head. “They know such tactics and won’t fall for it.”
“That’s not necessarily true—it depends on how we execute it!” Feng Miao Jun’s eyes gradually brightened. “Only one squad of guards is searching in this direction. If we can delay them for two double hours, we’ll succeed.”
She turned to Peng Bai, “Among our men, is there anyone who naturally has a beard? The fuller the better. Oh, and he must be nimble and fast.”
Peng Bai and Chen Da Chang exchanged glances. “There is one, originally a mountain bandit. But his beard doesn’t reach his cheeks…” Many men of the time cultivated fine beards, so finding someone with facial hair wasn’t difficult.
Feng Miao Jun dumped all the trinkets she had bought during her afternoon shopping onto the table and sorted through them, pulling out two items. One was a jar of transparent adhesive. This substance was called Bird Glue, derived from a tree. It had excellent adhesive properties but dissolved in water. Locals commonly use it to catch birds. Feng Miao Jun had bought some to experiment with, but now it would serve a different purpose.
Peng Bai understood her intention but hesitated. “Where would we get a beard for him? If we cut hair for it, there’s not enough time…”
Feng Miao Jun smiled, revealing eight white little teeth. “Why look for hair when we have some ready-made?”
Peng Bai followed her glance toward the bed.
“…”
Was it what he thought? No, no, no!
Under Peng Bai’s stunned gaze, Feng Miao Jun took action herself, evenly brushing a layer of adhesive over Mo Ti Zhun’s chin and cheeks, essentially covering his entire beard.
The noble Grand Preceptor remained oblivious, at her mercy.
After waiting a short while for the glue to dry completely, she turned to ask Chen Da Chang, “Do you have a dagger? Let me see your cutting skills—have you ever shaved someone’s beard?”
“No,” Chen Da Chang admitted honestly, “I’ve only scraped the hair off pigs back in my hometown.”
“That’ll do, it’s all the same.”
Peng Bai thought to himself, “…How is that the same at all?”
Feng Miao Jun pointed at Mo Ti Zhun. “Shave off this man’s beard right at the skin, and it must be intact, intact, absolutely intact.”
Chen Da Chang didn’t care who the unconscious person was; the princess’s instructions were as binding as imperial edicts. So he indeed drew his dagger and carefully shaved the Grand Preceptor’s beard.
Despite his caution, he still nicked the skin twice. Just as he grew concerned, the dagger tip met great resistance and couldn’t penetrate further.
The Grand Preceptor’s skin was thick enough to be impervious to blades.
Chen Da Chang, however, recognized the quality when he saw it and couldn’t help but view the man on the bed with newfound respect. He wasn’t stupid; one look behind the curtain told him the person the guards were hunting was being sheltered by his princess. But he only needed to help the princess carry out her plan; the reasons didn’t concern him.
Once the beard was shaved off, the adhesive had become transparent soft skin covered with dense facial hair. Peng Bai called over the mountain bandit subordinate and attached pieces of the fake beard to his face, then trimmed it slightly, transforming him remarkably into a man with a full beard. Comparing him to the original, Feng Miao Jun took out a cinnabar to mark a spot at his temple, then brushed it black with ink.
These were Mo Ti Zhun’s facial features, which needed to be recognizable.
At first glance, this man truly resembled Mo Ti Zhun somewhat, and the portrait couldn’t capture Mo Ti Zhun’s height anyway. As for whether his eyes were round enough, that was subjective.
“Where are the guards now?”
Chen Da Chang calculated silently. “Almost at the center of the street, I think?”
So Feng Miao Jun gave the bearded man instructions. He nodded, put on a veiled hat, grabbed a water pouch, and left.
With many merchants coming and going through the city, a man wearing a veiled hat wasn’t particularly conspicuous.
Peng Bai stayed at the inn, while Feng Miao Jun said to Chen Da Chang, “Let’s go watch the excitement.” Rather than sitting anxiously waiting, it was better to go out and adapt to the situation, ready to devise strategies if needed.
Chen Da Chang led her toward the main street. Both were small and thin, able to slip through gaps in the crowd, advancing quite quickly.
Feng Miao Jun’s destiKingdom was the Gan Lu Inn on the main street of Tian Shui City.
The meal hours had passed, but with the large influx of visitors to Tian Shui these past two days, there were still many people having quick meals at the Gan Lu Inn, with the main hall about half full. Feng Miao Jun first ordered a bowl of licorice fruit water, found a window seat, and ate slowly. Chen Da Chang, clutching his stomach, went to the back.
The local well water was particularly suitable for soaking fruits and vegetables. Besides preserving freshness, it enhanced flavor. When boiled with licorice and four or five other medicinal ingredients into a juice, then used to pickle fruits, it created a clever combiKingdom of sour, sweet, and salty flavors. Feng Miao Jun specially paid an extra six wen for two small pieces of ice, making it even more refreshingly cool in the sweltering heat, seemingly suppressing the body’s inner heat.
After tasting it, Feng Miao Jun couldn’t stop praising it and couldn’t resist ordering another bowl. Just then, Chen Da Chang’s figure flashed by the window. Feng Miao Jun looked up to see him quickly wink at her before turning to leave. She couldn’t help but smile, feeling the weight on her heart lighten a little.