Yu Jiuling took a drink of water, looking remarkably parched. In Cen Xiaoxiao’s words, the way he was drinking made it look like he was replenishing blood — a clear sign of excessive blood loss.

It took Yu Jiuling a good while before he caught the implication in Cen Xiaoxiao’s comment about “excessive blood loss.”

“And you call yourself a cold-blooded, heartless assassin?”

He shot Cen Xiaoxiao a glance.

Cen Xiaoxiao said: “That’s what the training aimed for — cold-blooded and heartless. But I never quite got there. I’ll admit, that’s a genuine failure on my part.”

Yu Jiuling gave him another glance.

He turned to Cao Lie and said: “Those so-called important figures who go to Apricot Blossom House are actually, in the vast majority, mid-to-low-ranking officers in the Tianming Army. No truly important figures among them.”

Cao Lie nodded. He had anticipated this.

Those who had truly risen to a certain level — first, they cared about their reputation, and even if they went, they wouldn’t loudly announce who they were. Second, they worried about their safety. Having climbed to a high position, who would want to take unnecessary risks?

Besides, in the eyes of everyone at this point, Yang Xuanji had the greatest likelihood of seizing the throne in the end. The men under him — each and every one of them would be a founding meritorious official when that day came.

Even so, nothing was absolute. These men had followed Yang Xuanji out of Shuzhou on campaign. It had already been about two years.

The vast majority of that time was spent in the military camp. Who would believe they felt no frustration?

Back in Shuzhou, had they ever lacked for diversions? But once on campaign, diversion became a luxury. Now that there was finally a place to relax, naturally they found the temptation difficult to resist.

“Waiting isn’t an option — we don’t have that much time.”

Cao Lie looked at Yu Jiuling. “If we take too long to return, Prince Ning will suspect what we’re attempting and worry that something has gone wrong — he might even launch a decisive battle against Yang Xuanji prematurely. So we must find a way to get this done quickly.”

Yu Jiuling said: “Just tell me what you need me to do.”

Cao Lie said: “We left in too much of a hurry this time and didn’t bring much gold and silver. That makes things harder to manage. We need to find some funds first.”

He looked at Cen Xiaoxiao. “Go figure something out.”

Cen Xiaoxiao nodded. “Leave it to me.”

Cao Lie opened his pack and retrieved a coin pouch from inside. The pouch contained individual gold beads, each worth two hundred taels of silver.

He handed the pouch to Yu Jiuling. “I’m going to trouble you with this.”

Yu Jiuling said: “No trouble at all — just tell me directly what needs to be done.”

Cao Lie said: “There are roughly ten thousand taels’ worth of gold beads in there. Take them to Apricot Blossom House. Don’t come back for a while — just stay there.”

Yu Jiuling was taken aback.

Much as he did rather enjoy going, staying there? Living there day after day?

Yu Jiuling instinctively reached down to support his lower back.

Cao Lie said: “Don’t actively seek anyone out or try to make anything happen. Just wait for the right moment, then pretend to be drunk, and let slip to the girls at the pleasure house that you’re extremely wealthy, that you want to buy yourself a position under the Tianming King, but have no connections — and that this frustrates you.”

Yu Jiuling understood immediately. Simply flash your wealth, and someone will take notice.

Cao Lie said: “I’ll arrange for someone to covertly protect you. Once Cen Xiaoxiao comes back with the funds, I have a way to get Zhuge Jingzhan to show himself.”

Yu Jiuling looked down at the full pouch of gold beads and steeled himself.

Cao Lie asked him: “Is there anything else you need?”

Yu Jiuling asked: “Do you have any medicine?”

Cao Lie: “…”

Cao Lie let out a sigh. “No — why would I have something like that?”

Yu Jiuling said: “I have some.”

Cao Lie: “…”

Yu Jiuling: “Want some?”

Cao Lie: “…”

Yu Jiuling rested at the inn for a day. The following afternoon, he headed back to Apricot Blossom House. As he walked away, his retreating figure called to mind two lines of verse:

*The winds blow cold over the Yi River’s shore — the brave warrior departs, his kidneys never to recover more.*

That night. Apricot Blossom House.

Auntie Yao was the madam of Apricot Blossom House. When the owner was away, she was the most powerful figure in the establishment.

Already forty years old, she still dressed in a vivid, showy fashion. She had always been reasonably attractive with a good figure, so she looked no more than thirty-two or thirty-three — quite striking in her own right.

“Zhen’er.”

She beckoned over a pretty young girl and pointed to the room where Yu Jiuling was staying. “That gentleman has already given away three gold beads just this afternoon — with such a generous hand, he must be well attended to. Find out his background too. Go yourself, get him to drink a little more, and draw him out.”

The girl called Zhen’er acknowledged this and swayed her way into Yu Jiuling’s room.

Yu Jiuling was at that moment reclining on a long chair, looking to be about seven or eight parts drunk.

The room already had three girls in attendance. When they saw Zhen’er enter, they were all noticeably displeased.

In Apricot Blossom House, Zhen’er was something of a prized figure. She was already favored and pampered, and good things invariably went her way. She was known to use her status to push others aside, which meant the other girls naturally ended up with far fewer benefits.

Today this free-spending out-of-town patron had returned for a second visit. Seeing how lavish he was being, and now Zhen’er pushing her way in again without any shame — how could they be pleased?

Yesterday, when the gentleman had first come, he had specifically asked for the most sought-after girl — and Zhen’er had turned him down, saying she found his looks unappetizing. Yet here she was today, coming of her own accord.

“Move aside, all of you — I’m here to attend to the gentleman.”

Zhen’er swept them with a glance. None of them dared make a scene with her directly, so they shifted aside with sullen expressions.

“Gentleman, is something wrong? I can see you’re frowning — are the others not attending to you well enough?”

Zhen’er settled in beside Yu Jiuling, her soft, warm body pressing lightly against him, one hand already resting gently against his forehead.

“Who are you?”

Yu Jiuling asked.

Zhen’er quickly said: “Yesterday, the gentleman wished to see me, but I was feeling a touch under the weather and wasn’t able to come — a terrible offense. Today… today I am already…”

She hadn’t finished speaking when Yu Jiuling shook his head with a hint of impatience. “Today, yesterday — it doesn’t matter.”

Zhen’er: “Pardon?”

Yu Jiuling opened his eyes and looked at her, and found she was indeed very beautiful.

He let out a sigh. “You couldn’t be bothered with me when I was nobody yesterday — today you come rushing to my bedside.”

The girl let out a soft laugh at that. She had thought the gentleman was angry — it turned out he was simply…

She leaned close to Yu Jiuling’s ear and let her lips brush lightly against his earlobe as she spoke.

“Does the gentleman not know? What Zhen’er does best is tend to gentlemen like you — observe, listen, question, and examine. I am the finest doctor there is.”

Yu Jiuling: “Examine?!”

Zhen’er parted her lips in a gentle smile, showing two neat rows of white teeth, which she clicked together softly. Then she breathed softly into Yu Jiuling’s ear: “Gentleman, are you afraid of this kind of examination?”

Yu Jiuling felt a sudden resurgence of vitality.

But he knew that for now, he needed these girls to think he was a wealthy fool. So he smiled and said: “Not feeling well — let’s play a little game first. Make me laugh, and there’ll be a reward for everyone.”

He reached into his robe and brought out several gold beads, placing them in a row on the tea table. “All of you — lean over this table, chins resting on the surface, no moving. Use just the tip of your tongue to push the beads away. Whoever pushes her bead the furthest wins it.”

A single gold bead was worth two hundred taels of silver — a considerable sum for these girls.

The girls immediately jostled to lean over the table in a row. Yu Jiuling stood behind them taking in the view of their elegant curves and thought to himself — who could encounter this and not get a little dizzy?

By evening, Yu Jiuling had made a convincing show of being very drunk and had let a fair amount of loose talk slip out.

Once Yu Jiuling had been put to bed and settled, Zhen’er quietly slipped out of the room to report to Auntie Yao.

After Auntie Yao heard Zhen’er out, her eyes flickered with thought.

“Master Xun told us the last time he came — if any spies from the enemy side come to gather information, they’ll most likely start right here in Lingshan County. Do you think this man could be a spy sent down from the north?”

Zhen’er shook her head. “He doesn’t seem like one at all.”

Auntie Yao said: “If he truly is just someone who wants to find a position in the Tianming King’s forces and has confirmed he’s no spy, then we can broker the introduction and take some good commission from it. That Master Yu seems to have money to burn — just these past two days, he’s already spent over a thousand taels in the house.”

Before the Tianming Army arrived in Lingshan County, an entire month’s earnings at Apricot Blossom House might not have amounted to a thousand taels — this was, after all, a small place.

Small enough that if a man walked out of Apricot Blossom House today, half the county would know about it by tomorrow — and possibly with details included.

Before daylight, Zhen’er quietly slipped back into Yu Jiuling’s room and lay down beside him to sleep.

When Yu Jiuling woke up, Zhen’er was quick to help him dress, then brought hot water to wash his face and hands, wiping them gently for him with such tender care that any man would have been tempted to let himself be compromised.

Yu Jiuling appeared to be exceptionally pleased with her. He said he felt cooped up in the house and took Zhen’er out to stroll through the streets. Along the way he bought and bought — just in jewelry alone he spent several hundred taels on her. A patron like this, who wouldn’t envy her?

At this, the girls who had first been attending Yu Jiuling became even more sour.

They started barging into Yu Jiuling’s room without even asking Auntie Yao’s permission, squeezing in and refusing to leave.

Another day passed. Zhen’er went to see Auntie Yao, now largely certain that this man was no spy.

First, what spy would be this conspicuous? Second, what spy would come carrying this much gold and silver? Third — and most importantly — what spy would disappear into a pleasure house and refuse to come out?

“Then let’s arrange an introduction.”

Auntie Yao said: “I’ll go invite Officer Sun right now. He’s Master Xun’s subordinate, and right now Officer Sun is the one in charge in Lingshan County.”

Zhen’er said: “Then I’ll go see Master Yu and tell him that Auntie can help, but a little payment will be needed to grease the right palms.”

Auntie Yao nodded approvingly. “Good girl — off you go. But keep attending to Master Yu carefully. Patrons like him don’t come along often.”

Zhen’er acknowledged this and hurried back, genuinely worried that Yu Jiuling might have been talked into going off with some other girl.

She came downstairs to find Yu Jiuling was in the courtyard, directing some twenty-odd girls in a game of tug-of-war.

Whichever side won, every girl on that side would receive ten taels of silver as a reward. These delicate, pampered girls had their sleeves rolled up and everything.

“Gentleman, I need to speak with you.”

Zhen’er pulled Yu Jiuling aside and lowered her voice. “I know what’s on the gentleman’s mind, and I know what’s troubling him. So first thing this morning I went to beg Auntie on your behalf, asking her to look into whether she could help broker an introduction…”

Yu Jiuling: “An introduction? She’s trying to arrange a match for me?”

Zhen’er cursed him silently as an idiot, yet kept her face utterly sincere as she said: “Auntie has gone to seek an audience with Officer Sun — that would be Sun Chong, the Tianming Army officer currently stationed in the county. He can facilitate an introduction.”

Yu Jiuling immediately brightened up. “Really? If this works out, from now on the only one allowed to treat my ailment is you — no one else.”

Zhen’er paused, then cursed him silently as an idiot again.

But she still had to put on an expression of great joy and delight.

—