Xiahou Yili came out holding a prescription, looking for someone to go and fetch the herbs. The moment she stepped outside, she saw Gao Xining standing not far from the door. She understood at once, and quickened her pace.

“Don’t worry — it’s nothing serious.”

Xiahou Yili smiled and said, “I’ve examined him. The ribs aren’t broken. There was some internal shock to the organs, but nothing critical. I’ve written out a prescription — once we get the herbs, he’ll need a course of treatment to recover. He just can’t practice martial arts for at least a month. Complete rest would be best.”

By the time she finished, Gao Xining let out a long, slow breath of relief.

“You’re remarkable.”

Gao Xining said it with genuine feeling.

Xiahou Yili flushed slightly and quickly said, “My mother is the truly remarkable one. What I’ve learned doesn’t even amount to a fifth of what she knows — I’m really just fumbling around with the basics. And you’re remarkable too, Gao miss. You nearly predicted every danger this time — that those people would be lying in wait, that they’d attack us. You really are something.”

Gao Xining laughed. “There’s no one else listening — let’s not flatter each other.”

She reached out and pulled Xiahou Yili in by the shoulder. Xiahou Yili startled at the sudden contact; Gao Xining didn’t think anything of it — she was well used to hugging girls.

By age, they were the same — but Xiahou Yili was a little shorter. Gao Xining was exceptionally tall for a young woman. Liu Yingyuan was around typical height for her age; Xiahou Yili was a little taller than Liu Yingyuan, and Gao Xining taller still.

What everyone found most enviable were Gao Xining’s legs — long and beautiful.

“You must have learned so much at Yunyin Mountain,” Gao Xining said, still walking.

Xiahou Yili nodded. “I did learn a fair amount — though it’s all a broad sweep rather than anything deep. My master also said I’d do better with broader study than my mother’s approach of devoting herself entirely to medicine… but my mother was just… such a loss.”

Gao Xining asked, “Did you ever learn formation strategy up there? Troop deployment?”

Xiahou Yili blinked, then shook her head. “That’s not something Yunyin Mountain teaches. The mountain is all women — there’s no one to instruct in matters of the battlefield.”

Gao Xining nodded. She had been hoping Xiahou Yili might teach her something. She always felt she wasn’t helping Li Chi enough, and if she could learn something of military craft, perhaps she could do just a little more in the future.

“Then — is there any particular skill,” Gao Xining said, “something unlike battlefield fighting… like capturing people. What’s the term… grappling and restraint?”

“That I did learn a little of,” Xiahou Yili said. “My master said girls are naturally at a disadvantage in strength against men, which puts them at a disadvantage in a fight — raw force can overcome ten techniques, so the only way to win is through precise, clever moves. My master taught me grappling and restraint. Do you want to learn? I can teach you.”

“No, no, no…” Gao Xining’s face went faintly pink. She said with a bit of embarrassment, “My aptitude for martial arts is… well, actually I have some talent for it, but — never mind. What I actually want is for you to teach someone else.”

“Teach who?”

Xiahou Yili added quickly, “I don’t know how well I can teach, but I’ll do my best.”

“Wonderful.” Gao Xining grinned. “Let me find the people first, and then I’ll come back to you.”

With that she turned and ran off. Xiahou Yili watched her go, baffled. What on earth is Gao miss planning?

—

A short while later, in the study.

Gao Xining looked at Yu Chaozong with a rather sheepish expression and asked carefully, “Brother Yu… would you be willing to lend me some people?”

Yu Chaozong already knew something of the relationship between Li Chi and Gao Xining — Yu Jiuling’s loose tongue had seen to that. So he smiled and said, “If my sister-in-law needs something, she only has to ask.”

Gao Xining’s face went red, but she didn’t deny it.

“I want to train a unit,” she said.

Yu Chaozong was startled. Not that he thought little of Gao Xining — it was just the words themselves that surprised him. He hadn’t expected this to be the request.

“What kind of unit would you be training?”

“Something like your scouts from Yanshan Camp — but not entirely scouts. More like the imperial Surveillance Bureau or the Law Enforcement Division.”

Yu Chaozong thought it over carefully and understood. He nodded. “I think I follow. You want to train a group to protect Li Chi.”

“Not just to protect Li Chi. To protect everyone.”

“Do you know how to train them?”

“I’ve thought through some of it myself.”

Gao Xining said, “May I try?”

Yu Chaozong considered it for a moment. “Yes. When I leave, I’ll continue sending people into the city over time — that will take quite a few days to arrange. But I’ll leave you a hundred of the men I brought with me. How’s that?”

Gao Xining looked like she could float away with joy.

“Thank you, Brother Yu!”

She clasped her hands together in the jianghu fashion.

Yu Chaozong stood and returned the salute. “Li Chi is my brother. That makes us all family. No need for any of this.”

—

Half an hour later, in the main hall.

Gao Xining looked around at those assembled. She gathered her words, then said, “I’ll be direct. I want to help Li Chi do something. All of you want to help Li Chi do something too. But none of us are fighters first and foremost, so right now there’s only so much we can do.”

She turned to Changmei the Daoist. “Master, I just spoke to Brother Yu and borrowed a hundred warriors from him. He agreed. I want to train these hundred men myself — but my own abilities are limited, so I need Master’s help, and everyone else’s too.”

Changmei said, “Whatever you have in mind, just say it.”

He was inwardly quite pleased with himself. Gao Xining hadn’t called him “Daoist” — she had called him “Master.”

That one word had him glowing. On a scale of ten for self-satisfaction, he was currently at eleven.

“Master’s greatest strengths are disguise and… deception.” Gao Xining paused. “Well, I shouldn’t say deception, it’s more like —”

Changmei smiled. “Deception it is.”

Gao Xining laughed a little awkwardly, then pressed on. “So I want to ask Master to teach these hundred men disguise, deception, even divination — everything Master knows. If Master can do it, teach it all.”

Changmei nodded. “Teaching this sort of thing — I can certainly manage.”

Gao Xining turned to Yan Qingzhi. “These Yanshan Camp warriors are skilled fighters who know all manner of killing techniques, but most of them can’t read. In certain situations that would give them away. So I’d like to ask Mister Yan to teach them to read and write.”

Yan Qingzhi nodded. “Are you looking to train these people as assassins?”

“They already are assassins,” Gao Xining said. “I want to make them stronger — comprehensively stronger. So they won’t be out of their depth no matter what situation they enter.”

“I understand,” Yan Qingzhi said. “Leave it to me.”

Gao Xining turned to Xiahou Yili. “These soldiers all have some rough field medicine skills, but it’s mostly crude. I’d like to ask Miss Xiahou to teach them some medical knowledge — at minimum, how to treat different kinds of wounds.”

She added, “And beyond that, I’d like you to teach them grappling and restraint. Their combat style is powerful and aggressive — good for killing, but less suited for taking someone alive. When they need a prisoner, they might find themselves struggling.”

Xiahou Yili said, “As long as they’re willing to learn, I’ll teach them.”

Gao Xining turned to Jiang Ran, who was still a little ill at ease. He had come to truly belong among Li Chi’s people only through this recent ordeal, and his official background still set him slightly apart from the others. So he hadn’t expected Gao Xining to include him, let alone treat him with such careful respect.

“Mister Jiang.”

Gao Xining said, “I’d like to ask you to teach them the workings of the officialdom — official ranks and titles, divisions of authority, attire, conduct. Whatever might be useful, please don’t hold back.”

“No problem at all.” Jiang Ran said quickly. “I’m not skilled at much else, but pretending to be important — that I know a thing or two about. There’s also… I’m someone who’s always enjoyed playing a few tricks. If you need me to teach them gambling techniques, I can try my hand at that too.”

Gao Xining gave a respectful bow with clasped hands. “Thank you, Mister Jiang.”

“Not at all, not at all,” Jiang Ran said, flustered. “Truly, Miss, you’re far too gracious. We’re all on the same side now — doing things for our own people, no need to say thank you.”

Gao Xining turned to Tang Pidi. Before she could even speak, he said, “I’d already planned to keep drilling everyone who stays behind. One more hundred doesn’t change anything.”

Gao Xining smiled at that. Everyone was so willing. It moved her more than she could say — after all, she was just a young woman without much life experience yet, and not one of them had doubted her because of her age or inexperience.

“Each person’s time and energy is limited,” Gao Xining said. “These hundred people should set aside everything else for now. Every day, from morning to night, is for training.”

Tang Pidi nodded. “Understood.”

He looked at her and added, “You’ve left something out.”

Gao Xining asked immediately, “What is it?”

“Knowledge of this place.”

“If you’re going to train them into all-round experts,” Tang Pidi said, “that has to include local customs and geography — knowing every part of Jizhou City, every alley and corner, and not just what’s on the surface. The Daoist has traveled widely and knows a bit of the dialect from many regions — that part he can teach. As for knowledge of Jizhou City — not just the open side of it, but the hidden networks — there are two men under the command of Elder Ye Zhuzhu who know this city inside out, and they know its underground connections well too. They’re acquainted with Li Chi. I’d suggest you bring them in. If I remember right, one is called Ruan Chen and the other Ruan Mu.”

“Wonderful!” Gao Xining said. “Then we’ll ask two more teachers to join the team.”

Yu Jiuling was also present. He had regained some of his strength and was rocking back and forth in a reclining chair.

“Did you forget about me?” he said.

“I didn’t forget,” Gao Xining said. “You just haven’t recovered yet.”

“Don’t worry — I bounce back fast, faster than most.” He waved a hand. “Concealment, ambush, running — leave all of that to me. And bearing — that’s another thing. In the area of bearing, I’d say everyone present falls a little short of me. That part is essential to teach. What if they need to seduce a wealthy lady someday? My type of bearing is exactly what women go for, without a doubt.”

Gao Xining said, “You — please just say as little as possible.”

“Why?”

Everyone looked at Yu Jiuling. The look in every pair of eyes said roughly the same thing: *Do you not know what comes out of your own mouth?*

If this unit came out of training with a hundred chatterboxes modeled after him, all their other talents combined wouldn’t save them — they’d be beaten on sight.

“You people truly have no vision,” Yu Jiuling said with a sorrowful air, looking around at them. “What if a wealthy lady happens to like a man who talks this much? None of you understand the pleasure of conversation, the art of words. Which of you can say you’ve achieved what I have — where not just enemies want to hit you, but your own people do too?”

He rocked on. “You have no idea,” he said, “how wonderful it is to be the man everyone wants to hit — and no one ever manages to.”

—