In honor of their first job in half a year, the Yiji Hall had taken considerable care, arranging an assassin lineup that four hundred taels of silver would never normally buy. The generosity of this discount was truly unprecedented.
One Grade A Second Class assassin, four Grade B Second Class assassins. In their most prosperous days, a Grade B Second Class assassin would charge one hundred taels per kill — per person.
At that rate, four hundred taels would only buy four Grade B Second Class assassins. That meant the Grade A Second Class veteran was essentially thrown in for free.
Think of it this way: you buy four oranges, and they throw in a durian. What a deal.
Upon receiving their assignment, the five followed protocol and first spent a period of time surveilling the target before making their move, waiting for the most secure moment to strike.
Before that, the Dispatch Hall had already compiled the basic intelligence and distributed a copy to each of them.
“This isn’t going to be easy.”
One of the four Grade B Second Class assassins, Wang Chengxu, looked at his companion beside him and pointed to the information recorded in the dossier.
“The intelligence that just came through — this Li Chi has complicated connections. His closest associate is Xiahou Zuo. Xiahou Zuo is Prince Yu’s son. That alone means this four-hundred-tael job is already a raw deal.”
The Grade A Second Class assassin was named Feng Wuliu. He nodded and said, “Indeed. Prince Yu’s most cherished son is Xiahou Zuo, and Xiahou Zuo’s closest brother is Li Chi. The Dispatch Hall should have investigated this before accepting the job — they took a loss.”
The other three — one named Li Genda, one named Liu Yingwu, one named Zhang Tailai — were all familiar enough with one another, especially those of the same rank. At minimum they had met face to face.
In the old days when business was brisk, they rarely laid eyes on one another most of the year. The northern frontier, beneath the jurisdiction of Jizhou and Youzhou, was a vast territory with a lot of business — a whole year could pass without them seeing each other once.
But now things were different. Business was brutally slow, and none of them had any standing to look down on the others — they’d all gone half a year without a single job.
So in recent months, to cut expenses, everyone had been eating and sleeping at the Yiji Hall — after all, the hall had promised to cover meals and lodging.
None of these self-important assassins had ever imagined that one day, as members of the Yiji Hall, they would find themselves calculating over something as trivial as this. It was genuinely a bit humiliating…
Master Yu was right — although these people lived by the blade and made their living through killing, and although earning money was not exactly simple for them (a moment of carelessness could cost them their lives), they spent just as recklessly. None of them had developed a habit of saving.
Yao Wuhen was the exception, of course — he loved earning money but hated spending it. Beyond necessary expenses, he would not throw away a single copper coin.
The others, perhaps feeling that on any given day their lives might simply end, lived by the philosophy of enjoying each day as it came. They spent lavishly, lived comfortably, and some had even taken up permanent lodging at establishments of pleasure, with money flowing out like water.
Zhang Tailai was the eldest of the five and had been in the assassin trade the longest, yet his martial skill wasn’t particularly remarkable. What he possessed, in far greater measure than the others, was a sharp mind and extensive experience.
He was the most skilled among them at making a killing look like an accident — a point of personal pride. But his approach only worked on ordinary targets, for if the target was someone important and traveled with numerous bodyguards, his methods became very difficult to execute.
“Everyone bear with it. In times like these, if there’s money to be earned, count your blessings.”
Zhang Tailai said, “Old rules: scout the path first, get a thorough understanding of the target’s habits, routines, and schedule, then find an opportunity to act.”
Li Genda was the youngest of the five, but his martial skill far surpassed Zhang Tailai’s. He looked at Zhang Tailai and said, “How about this — Zhang-ge and I go first, observe for two or three days, confirm the timing for the move, and then we all go together and get it done?”
The Grade A Second Class assassin Feng Wuliu said coolly, “You four go and investigate. Once you’ve determined the time, location, and method, tell me, and I’ll finish the person off.”
Then he left.
After he was gone, Li Genda said with a flash of irritation, “What’s so great about him — just because his price tag is a bit higher?”
Zhang Tailai put a hand on his shoulder and said, “Never mind that. With your skill, you’ll certainly make it into the Grade A division one day, and then you’ll be the same.”
Li Genda said, “I’d never be like that. When I get there, I’ll still treat our brothers the same as always. I’d never put on that kind of sour, standoffish act.”
The four of them shared a small laugh. That was the nature of the hierarchy — those above could openly look down on those below, while those below could privately look down on those above.
“Division of labor.”
Zhang Tailai said, “I’ll pair with Li Genda. We’ll cover the daytime. Liu Yingwu and Wang Chengxu — you two cover the night. Plan for three days. Within three days, get a thorough read on everything there is to know about the target, Li Chi.”
“Understood!”
The other three nodded in unison. Li Genda said, “Anyway, the Grade A guy is the one actually doing the killing — we just need to do what we’re supposed to do. He’s the impressive one.”
—
Meanwhile, at the city gates of Jizhou City.
A young man who was clearly coming from a long journey — dust-covered and travel-worn — arrived at the gates. When he tried to enter, soldiers from the Military Preparedness General’s Office blocked him. Although he had a travel pass and identification documents on him, the guards simply refused to let him through.
The young man was held up for quite a while, and finally caught on. He reached into his coin pouch and took out some loose silver and copper coins, pressing all of it into the hands of the squad leader at the gate.
“I spent a lot on the road getting here — this is all I have.”
He handed over the coin pouch. The squad leader looked inside — roughly two or three taels of silver — and his expression immediately brightened.
“Search him. If he’s clean, let him through.”
The squad leader gave a wave of his hand.
Several soldiers came forward and searched the young man thoroughly from top to bottom. Partly because of what had happened before — their comrades had let in a band of mountain bandits, which had ended in disaster — and partly because they were hoping to find a bit more silver on him.
The Military Preparedness General had erupted in fury and ordered severe punishment. Those soldiers who had been on gate duty that day were beaten nearly to the point of being unrecognizable, then thrown out of the garrison and left to whatever fate awaited them.
The Military Preparedness squad leader looked at the young man and said, “Don’t blame us for the thorough check. There was a bad incident recently, and our General Jiang was furious.”
The young man suddenly let out a small laugh — though he gave no explanation for it.
After the search found nothing amiss, the man was let through. He was not a Jizhou City native, and the identification papers he carried were of course genuine — legitimately obtained through back channels.
They had been arranged by Li Diudiu, who had asked Xiahou Zuo to procure them when this young man had left Jizhou City. His name was Yu Jiuling.
After entering the city, he made his way to Four Pages Academy — but upon arriving, learned that the academy had already begun its year-end holiday and that finding either Xiahou Zuo or Li Chi would not be easy.
He left the academy gates, found a secluded spot, pulled down his trousers, and retrieved another coin pouch from a hidden place on his person. He thought to himself: it was lucky he was quick-thinking. If he’d put all his silver out in the open, it might well have been confiscated.
He took out the pouch and gave it a sniff, then muttered a disgusted sound.
The smell was… a bit much.
He fished out a piece of loose silver from the pouch, ran back to the academy gates, and passed it to the gatekeeper.
“Big brother, do me a favor — I’m a good friend of Li Chi’s, and I truly have urgent business to see him about. Oh, and Xiahou Zuo made arrangements for me to go to the capital. I’ve just returned and only knew to come here to find them — but things are urgent and I can’t wait until they return from holiday.”
The gatekeeper took the silver, looked at it for a moment, then blinked. “This silver of yours is quite warm to the touch.”
Yu Jiuling said, “In this bitter winter cold, wasn’t I warming it up for you, big brother?”
The gatekeeper pocketed the silver and said, “Alright, then. Find somewhere to stay for the night. Come back tomorrow morning and wait here — Li Gongzi comes by the academy before noon each day. You should be able to run into him. As for where he lives, I genuinely don’t know.”
“Thank you, thank you so much!”
Yu Jiuling expressed his gratitude quickly, then turned and looked back — not far from the academy was a noodle shop. He’d been traveling all day without breakfast or lunch, his stomach practically hollow, and he ran over with his pack on his back and ducked inside.
Two bowls of noodles later, warmth spread through his body. The cold was driven off, and the exhaustion of the journey fully settled in.
He thought he’d find some cheap inn to stay the night, then come back first thing tomorrow morning to wait. But just as he stepped out of the noodle shop, he spotted Xiahou Zuo from a distance, strolling out of the academy, a dried cattail stalk dangling from his lips, that same casual, devil-may-care air as ever.
The moment Yu Jiuling laid eyes on Xiahou Zuo, his face lit up with emotion. He ran over in a single breath, not even stopping to feel aggrieved about the gatekeeper who had swindled him out of his silver.
He came to a gasping halt right in front of Xiahou Zuo and called out, “Young Master Xiahou!”
The sudden appearance gave Xiahou Zuo a start. He took a step back. “Who’s this rogue?”
Yu Jiuling pointed at his own face. “It’s me — it’s me, Young Master Xiahou! Yu Jiuling!”
Xiahou Zuo finally registered who this was. He recalled that more than half a year ago, he had taken on a little follower. He looked Yu Jiuling up and down, taking in all the dust coating him from head to toe, and let out a small laugh.
“Shake yourself off, and you’d have enough dirt to re-pave the road in front of the academy gates.”
Yu Jiuling grinned. “I was in a hurry on the way back — haven’t changed clothes in several days.”
Xiahou Zuo said, “Come on, let me take you to a bathhouse first.”
Yu Jiuling asked, “What about Li Chi — Li Gongzi?”
Xiahou Zuo said, “He should be at Yunzhai Tea House right now. Let me get you cleaned up first. You’re in a state that’s… hard to put into words. After a wash and a change of clothes, I’ll take you to Yunzhai Tea House to find him.”
Yu Jiuling agreed and followed Xiahou Zuo to the bathhouse.
Once there, Xiahou Zuo greeted a familiar attendant: “Get him a good scrubbing master. Don’t give him some new apprentice — a new hand couldn’t handle this job.”
The attendant quickly agreed and called for an experienced scrubbing master. The master took one look at the state of Yu Jiuling and the toothpick he’d been chewing dropped right out of his mouth.
“This is… a serious job.”
It was nearly a full hour before Yu Jiuling emerged from the bathhouse. Xiahou Zuo had already dozed off on a reclining chair outside. At the sight of this fresh, bright-looking young man before him, Xiahou Zuo smiled and said, “Now that’s more like it.”
Then he noticed the scrubbing master still leaning against the doorframe, gasping for air — sweat-drenched and exhausted, saying between breaths, “Don’t give me any more jobs today. That job was truly tiring — I need to rest a while.”
Yu Jiuling smiled with an apologetic embarrassment. “It was… honestly hard to put into words.”
The two of them made their way to Yunzhai Tea House. Li Diudiu’s session was just wrapping up, and spotting Yu Jiuling, he smiled and gave a wave.
Madam Sun watched Li Diudiu’s expression and said to the ladies seated around her, “My child’s godfather — how come he never smiles this radiantly when he sees a girl?”
One young woman nodded vigorously. “Exactly. Every time Young Master Xiahou comes, he smiles like that too. Now another handsome young man appears, and there it is again — that radiant smile.”
—