The ship set sail.
As the vessel gently rocked, inside an ordinary cabin, over ten black-clad figures stood silently with bowed heads. A woman in purple sat on a three-sided couch, with a carved low table in the center. On it, a lamb-fat porcelain cup held amber-colored medicine, its steam rising lazily.
Her slender fingers, adorned with crimson nails, lightly tapped the table. After a long while, she raised her red lips and lifted the cup, taking a small sip. The bitter taste spread through her mouth, reaching an extreme before a sweetness emerged at the root of her tongue. This exquisite flavor surpassed any amount of sugar, but those whose attention was completely captured by the bitterness would never have the chance to savor such beauty.
The woman slowly finished her cup of medicine. Only then did an attendant dare to report, “Master, the Shadow who replaced Cui Yichen has died, killed by the Crane Control Army.”
“That useless fool only died now?” The woman wiped her mouth with a handkerchief, raising a delicate eyebrow. “Has the Crane Control Army truly become a mere shell of its former self?”
She tucked the handkerchief into her sleeve. “Where’s the madman?”
“In the lower deck, traveling with Lu Danzhi,” the attendant replied, quickly explaining, “Lu Danzhi is also known as Cui Huya, the younger brother of Cui Huling. Years ago, he severed ties with the Cui family for unknown reasons. Cui Huya’s talents are vastly inferior to his brother’s, but he’s skilled in unique techniques.”
The woman gently stroked her red nails, murmuring, “So a fish slipped through the net.”
“Master, we also have news about the Lou and Mei families,” the attendant continued, head still bowed. After a pause with no response, he went on, “Lou Mingyue, the original heir to the Lou family, has joined the Crane Control Army. The position of the family head has fallen to Lou Xiaowu. The new head of the Mei family is Mei Zhengjing, and they’ve rebuilt in Bianjing. The Shadows await your orders on whether to eliminate them.”
“That won’t be necessary,” the woman said coolly.
The attendant was inwardly shocked. This was unlike the master’s usual style. She typically acted with ruthless decisiveness and wouldn’t suddenly show mercy by allowing these Crane Control families to continue their lineages.
“Any news about Elder Zhi of the Mei family?” she asked.
“Elder Zhi has not yet been released,” the attendant answered.
“Hmph, you old fox. Let’s see how long you can hide,” the woman said, her fingers gently caressing the porcelain cup, pressing harder until it made a cracking sound before releasing it.
Her lips curved into a slight smile. “Have Wei Yuzhi arrange a deal with the Song Emperor. Offer Cloud Master’s whereabouts in exchange for Elder Zhi.”
Legend had it that Cloud Master had attained an immortal body and wandered the four seas, often meditating on mountaintops and above the clouds. The emperor had sent people to search for traces of this immortal several times, but all returned empty-handed. Cloud Master was once just the head of a small Taoist temple, not particularly famous. However, five years ago, during a great famine in Lizhou, he displayed miraculous powers. He first conjured a mountain of grain out of thin air, then summoned clouds and rain to alleviate the drought in Lizhou.
Another time, passing through Jiangning Prefecture, he discovered that a riverside village was facing imminent disaster. He informed the Jiangning Prefect of this.
At the time, Jiangning was in its plum rain season, and the village was right by the dike. The prefect immediately thought of a “dike breach” and broke out in a cold sweat. Jiangning had just reinforced its dikes at the end of the previous year, and even heavy rain shouldn’t have caused problems. But if the dike did break, the entire Jiangning Prefecture would be affected. So, believing it better to be safe than sorry, the prefect personally led a team to inspect. To their shock, the dike was indeed on the verge of collapse. Water had already spilled over, and they watched helplessly as the river mouth was about to breach. The prefect quickly evacuated nearby villagers. Although the dike eventually broke, early preparations minimized casualties.
Afterward, riverside villagers wanted to build a shrine for Cloud Master, but he discouraged them. Cloud Master said he had revealed heaven’s secrets and must face heavenly punishment, so he dared not accept their honors.
Since then, Cloud Master vanished from sight. Stories about him spread by word of mouth, growing more and more miraculous with each telling.
The purple-clad woman stood up and straightened her clothes. Suddenly smiling as if recalling something pleasant, she looked as radiant as spring flowers. “I’m going for a walk. Don’t follow me.”
“Yes, Master.”
Their obedience was absolute. No one dared to advise against it, nor was there any need to.
Though young in years, this woman knew what should and shouldn’t be done. For this journey to the Great Song, she had made thorough preparations. Her plans for the Great Song extended over a decade into the future. Unless she ordered otherwise, the Shadows would continue executing these plans, even if she were to die.
The ship had been sailing for three hours, and dusk was falling.
Sensing many powerful martial artists on board, An Jiu and Chu Dingjiang stayed quietly in their cabin, observing the situation.
Due to government restrictions on weapons, especially in Bianjing, jianghu folk who kept their weapons close rarely gathered in the capital. The guards and attendants of officials and nobles in the city generally had martial arts skills below the fourth level, while those with higher skills were mostly in the Crane Control Army. The sudden appearance of numerous seventh and eighth-level experts on this ship was highly unusual.
At dinnertime, the two went out together.
As lighting fires on the ship was inconvenient, food options were limited. The boatmen didn’t provide hot meals for lower deck passengers. Those who could afford cabins usually brought servants, so the boatmen prepared meals for each room, waiting for them to collect.