The visitor waiting in the front hall appeared to be a man of around fifty. When he saw Li Chi come in he rose, smiled, and asked, “Are you the proprietor of this depot? I’ve long heard that the proprietor of the Yongning Tongyuan Carriage Depot was a young man of remarkable ability—seeing you now, the reality surpasses the reputation.”
Li Chi returned the bow with a smile. “My thanks. And you are?”
The old man glanced around, then said with a somewhat troubled expression, “What I have to say is rather sensitive, so I must ask you to dismiss those around us.”
Li Chi said, “This man is my sworn brother. Whatever you have to say, you may speak freely.”
The old man looked at Tang Pidi, hesitated a moment, then said, “Very well, I’ll speak plainly. My master is a man of distinction here in Jizhou City—you only need know that he serves in the government. Due to certain private matters, he wishes to move his entire household out of Jizhou, and as the journey is long and he worries his household guard is insufficient, he wishes to engage your depot’s escorts.”
Li Chi said, “I won’t ask which official your master is, but there are a few things I’d prefer to establish clearly upfront: where are you moving to? How many people, how many vehicles, how much in valuables—I’d appreciate knowing. And also whether there are any enemies who might intercept you along the way.”
The old man thought for a moment and said, “My master has served in Jizhou his entire career, and has always conducted himself with goodwill toward all, so there are no enemies to speak of. He is moving to Yanzhou—he is a Yanzhou native, and his family’s ancestral property is there. This is his permanent return; he doesn’t plan to come back. The road is indeed long—a round trip would take roughly four months—so his concern is understandable, given how much unrest the north has seen.”
He looked at Li Chi and said, “The household is substantial—over a hundred people—and there are dozens of vehicles. It’s precisely because this journey is so demanding that we need you to deploy the depot’s entire escort. We will pay for both the outward journey and the return. You need only bring horses, not carriages—all food, clothing, and lodging will be provided by us, and we will not treat your men poorly—you’d eat and sleep the same as our master.”
Li Chi said, “One more question: why did you choose our Yongning Tongyuan?”
The old man said, “Two reasons. First, your depot’s name is a lucky one—once my master heard ‘Yongning Tongyuan,’ he made up his mind on the spot. Second—Li Gongzi, your exchange with the North’s foremost fighter, General Luo Jing of Luo, on the fighting platform—I was there and saw it. With your martial skill, protecting my master on his journey to Yanzhou should pose no difficulty.”
Li Chi smiled. “It seems you already know quite a bit about me.”
The old man said, “I have served my master for decades, and he treats me like family. So I hope you understand—since my master entrusted this matter to me, I must act in his interest with all my heart. I did make some modest inquiries about you, Li Gongzi, and learned that you are still enrolled at the Four-Page Academy. If it would be inconvenient for you to request leave from the academy, my master can speak to Dean Gao on your behalf—given my master’s standing, Dean Gao would extend that courtesy.”
Li Chi glanced at Tang Pidi. Tang Pidi gave Li Chi a slight nod.
Li Chi smiled. “In that case, could I come by your master’s estate tomorrow to have a look? For something this important, it pays to be prepared, so knowing more beforehand seems wise.”
The old man shook his head. “Li Gongzi, I beg your pardon, but the estate really isn’t convenient to visit. If we settle on a departure date, the household’s vehicles and convoy will be waiting outside the eastern city gate—there’s no need for you to bring your own carts, just horses. All expenses for the journey will be covered by us, and we won’t have you go short.”
Li Chi said, “In that case—I can’t give you an immediate answer. Let me discuss it with the brothers here who work as escorts. If most of them are willing to make this trip, we’ll take the business.”
The old man cupped his hands. “Very well—shall I return tomorrow?”
Li Chi nodded. “That works.”
He and Tang Pidi walked the old man to the door. As they stepped outside, Tang Pidi took a glance left and right. The old man understood he was checking how many men were outside—but he had come alone, with only a single waiting carriage and not even a driver. There was nothing for the depot’s men to observe, and so he thought nothing of it.
But the old man had misread Tang Pidi’s intent. Tang Pidi had glanced left and right only to draw the old man’s attention; behind his back, he had made a few hand signals, and the concealed Yu Jiuling understood at once that Tang Pidi wanted him to follow the man discreetly.
After seeing the old man off, Li Chi smiled and asked Tang Pidi: “That man is eight or nine parts suspicious. So why did you signal that I should accept the business?”
Tang Pidi said, “When he comes again tomorrow, ask for fifteen thousand taels. If someone is willing to shell out that sum, they’re here to wipe us all out. I want you to take the business so we can find out who is behind this.”
Li Chi made a sound of understanding. “As it happens, I need somewhere to lie low after the fighting platform business with Luo Jing—so we’ll take this job and see whose pockets are deep enough for this.”
Tang Pidi said, “If he agrees to fifteen thousand, then we want ten thousand up front. If he can produce that ten thousand, we’ll dare to take it.”
He turned around, smiling, and said: “No matter how formidable an opponent is, as long as they are human there’s nothing to fear—because so long as they are human, there is no one more fearsome than me.”
Li Chi sighed. “All these supremely confident lines you come out with—is there some kind of handbook you memorized them from?”
Tang Pidi looked at Li Chi and smiled. “I could write one for you.”
Li Chi smiled. “It seems Master Ye was right—the gates are about to open. If just now that man had said we leave the day the gates open, we couldn’t have agreed. It must be the day after at the earliest.”
Tang Pidi said, “Because you want to wait for news from Yanshan Camp? The gates have been shut for many days—if Yanshan Camp left someone outside Jizhou, they’ll come in the moment the gates open and look for news of you and Zhuang Wudi as quickly as they can.”
Li Chi said, “You’re so sharp—within the entire depot, no, within the entire world, you’re second only to me.”
Tang Pidi turned and walked away, speaking as he went: “Being second to you is nothing—at least there’s no one above you.”
Li Chi turned that sentence over carefully in his mind and suddenly felt that the compliment was genuinely artful. There was no way to argue against it—speaking in plain facts really was the highest form of flattery.
He grinned to himself: “*At least there’s no one above you…* Ha—no wonder people love to hear kind words. Flattery really does have a flavor.”
Tang Pidi narrowed his eyes at Li Chi, then sighed: “At times brilliant beyond belief; at times as dense as a wooden block.”
Li Chi shot him a sideways look. “Don’t forget—you just said yourself you’re second only to me. Your fourteen-character assessment applies to yourself as well.”
Tang Pidi walked on and said, “Applied to myself, there’s nothing unflattering about it: *at times brilliant like Li Chi, at times dense like Li Chi*—I don’t particularly mind.”
Li Chi: “……”
He was only now truly appreciating the art in that *second only to* line.
—
That evening, Yu Jiuling returned to the depot looking thoroughly deflated. He glanced at Li Chi and said, “Ran into an old fox. I followed him for a full half-day—nearly walked a circuit of all of Jizhou City—and he never went home. After leaving us he found a place for lunch, then went to a teahouse and listened to storytelling for over an hour. After that I thought surely he’d head back, but he went to a bathhouse and soaked for over an hour. By the time he came out it was nearly dark, and then he went to a restaurant and ordered himself a meal—and I thought *now* he’ll go home—but he went to a pleasure house.”
Li Chi counted on his fingers: “So you ate at the same restaurant for lunch, then listened to storytelling at the same teahouse, then soaked at the same bathhouse, then ate dinner at the same restaurant again… There’s no way we’re reimbursing your travel expenses today.”
Yu Jiuling stared at Li Chi, eyes wide with astonishment. “How do you see things from such a cutting angle?”
Li Chi said, “Because I just noticed you were using an air of frustration and indignation to disguise your true purpose—which is to say you spent a good deal of money and want to be reimbursed.”
Yu Jiuling: “There’s no living with you.”
Li Chi burst out laughing, then tossed a coin purse at Yu Jiuling. “Just teasing you.”
Yu Jiuling weighed the purse—heavy enough—and grinned. “You’re the best, boss. That fellow went to the Shuangxing Banyue House, which is why I came back—I’ve got Ruan Chen and Ruan Mu keeping watch there. He didn’t spot me, but he definitely felt someone on his tail, which is why he wandered half the day without going home. It’s better that I’ve pulled back—if he realizes I’ve left, he’ll relax. Ruan Chen and Ruan Mu know that kind of establishment far better than I do; they’ll send word as soon as there’s anything to report.”
Tang Pidi suddenly asked, “Ruan Chen and Ruan Mu—the characters in their names meaning morning and evening, the ones that stand for early and late?”
Yu Jiuling nodded. “That’s right.”
Tang Pidi said, “And these two fellows work in pleasure houses regularly?”
Yu Jiuling nodded. “That’s right.”
Tang Pidi sighed. “That explains it.”
Yu Jiuling thought about it, and then his eyes went wide. He turned to Li Chi: “Can you interpret a name that way? That actually makes a lot of sense, doesn’t it?”
As he spoke he pulled the purse open and looked inside—a few dozen copper coins, and the rest pebbles. He looked up at Li Chi. Li Chi said with the utmost seriousness, “No getting upset.”
Yu Jiuling: “Can I curse you? I hope that from your wedding night onwards you wet the bed…”
Zhuang Wudi was just walking out and happened to catch those words. He paused and started counting on his fingers. Yu Jiuling found this peculiar and asked, “Brother Zhuang, what are you counting?”
Zhuang Wudi looked at him and answered in his usual flat tone, “How many times.”
Li Chi narrowed his eyes at Zhuang Wudi. Zhuang Wudi turned and went back inside.
Tang Pidi considered this for a moment, then sighed. “The man counted how many times—but you haven’t got any.”
Yu Jiuling thought about it, and then let out a wail.
—
The Shuangxing House.
The old man walked to the window and looked out. He was certain the person who had been trailing him all day was gone. He was curious who it had been—he’d sensed a tail but couldn’t catch a glimpse of the man. He hadn’t encountered that kind of skilled operative in many years.
There was a soft knock at the door. A rather fine-looking young woman came in and bowed to the old man. “Mister Shi—did those people at the carriage depot fall for it?”
The old man shook his head. “No. They heard my pitch and will certainly know it’s a trap.”
The young woman’s expression changed. “Then what do we do?”
The old man’s lips curved upward slightly. “They saw through it—but they’ll walk in regardless.”
The young woman asked, “Why? Why would they step into a trap they know is there?”
The old man said, “Because I really will give them ten thousand taels of silver.”
He turned back and looked at the young woman. “For ten thousand taels of silver—would you step in?”
—