“Brother Xiao means you don’t want to pay this life-buying money?”

“Then don’t blame this official for being impolite.”

Qian Chao raised his hand and clapped. Instantly, over ten people surrounded them in the room.

These people wore indigo blue coarse cloth servants’ clothing, but each had a vicious and evil appearance. At one glance, you could tell they were thugs and lackeys kept in the household.

“This official will tell you honestly—the court has ordered that by the end of this month, Nanqing spies lurking in the capital must be captured. If Brother Xiao doesn’t want to…”

“So much nonsense.”

Before he could finish, Shen Qianyu grabbed the teacup from the table and smashed it directly on Qian Chao’s head.

The teacup was a red underglaze high-stemmed cup. With one fierce strike, the broken porcelain shards directly pierced into Qian Chao’s eye socket. Shen Qianyu’s hand was also cut by the sharp edge, with bright red blood dripping to the ground, shocking all the thugs in the courtyard into stunned stillness.

Qian Chao rolled on the ground in pain, never having imagined someone could be so brutal—before he even finished speaking, a porcelain shard was thrust at him, nearly taking his life.

“Ahhh… capture him for me…”

While still wailing, Shen Qianyu bent down and lifted the man up. Between two fingers he held broken porcelain shards, which he clenched into a fist and struck viciously at his temple twice more.

In just a few breaths, Qian Chao lost his life in panic.

Dropping the porcelain shard in his hand, Shen Qianyu casually wiped the blood from his hands on his clothing.

“M-Minister… Qian?”

Though these desperadoes usually lived lives licking blood from knife edges, since becoming Qian Chao’s lackeys, they hadn’t witnessed such a scene in quite some time. For a moment, several of them were somewhat dazed.

Shen Qianyu’s features were cold and proud as he raised an eyebrow. “What are you standing there for? Come on.”

He turned his head to look around, kicked aside the already-cold Qian Chao, stepped forward to grab a fragrance table and broke off one of the legs, then weighed it in his hand a couple times, seeming quite satisfied.

“Attack! Brothers, capture this Nanqing spy and take him to the court for reward money. We might even get a minor official position.”

Hearing this, the burly men all became excited and rushed forward one by one.

Shen Qianyu had a tall build and heavy strength, and his nature carried several parts wickedness, so when he struck viciously, he showed no mercy.

Probably from killing too many of those who bullied him in Nanqing, his techniques now lacked proper form but every move was lethal, peculiarly effective.

In less than half a day, the main courtyard was strewn with corpses, blood flowing like a river.

Shen Qianyu’s body had also sustained quite a few injuries, but he was so accustomed to being hurt that pain had long become numb to him. Naturally, he didn’t feel any discomfort now.

The sky slowly darkened. Shen Qianyu grabbed a red sandalwood armchair and sat in the center of the hall.

He lowered his head to look at his outer robe, already soaked through with reddish-brown, and clicked his tongue. “What a bother.”

Going out looking like this would probably frighten quite a few people.

Lowering his head, he pulled Qian Chao up and efficiently stripped the brocade outer robe from his body to put on himself. However, his build was much larger than Qian Chao’s, so wearing it now, it was quite a bit too short.

Shen Qianyu didn’t care about these things. He gathered his collar and walked to the candle lamp, pushing the stand onto the curtains in the room.

“A pity about all these valuables.”

Seeing the sky had darkened, he walked to the tea table to get the soft candy, but when he reached out, he discovered his palm was soaked with brownish blood stains, filthy beyond measure.

“Troublesome.”

Grasping the hemp string on the candy package, he placed the soft candy inside his robe and wrapped it with clean clothing. After leaving a marker for Dong Chang to clean up, only then did he head toward Song Wan’s residence.

Though Song Wan’s residence was also on the outskirts of the capital, the location wasn’t particularly close to the capital proper. Even by carriage, it would take two cups of tea’s time. Shen Qianyu walked expressionlessly under the moonlight, not even noticing that the path he walked left a string of bright red footprints.

The moonlight was clear and bright, but Shen Qianyu had no mind to appreciate it.

His thoughts were complicated, his mind constantly calculating the current situation.

Not until he reached Song Wan’s residence did he furrow his brow deeply.

Such high courtyard walls—what were they guarding against?

Shen Qianyu looked up at the high wall that extended far above him, his brow knitted tightly.

If he threw the candy package into the courtyard, it would surely shatter into pieces. If that woman scolded him for it, his good intentions would have led to a mistake instead.

Shen Qianyu circled to the entrance and saw the heavy gate painted with who knows how many layers of tung oil. He sighed.

Whoever bought this residence made it seem as if they were desperately afraid someone would fly out.

After thinking, Shen Qianyu walked to the courtyard wall, gathered his breath and used the momentum to climb up. In just a few steps, he jumped into the courtyard.

Holding the Liu’s candy shop package and just about to set it down and leave, unexpectedly a sudden gust of force came from behind. Before he could stand steady, he was immediately struck in the back by something unknown and flew several zhang away.

“What petty thief dares enter my young miss’s courtyard?”

A water vat half a person’s height was like nothing in Jinshu’s hands. Shen Qianyu lay on the ground and suddenly coughed up a mouthful of blood.

“Speak! Who are you, and what are you doing in our young miss’s courtyard?”

“…”

Shen Qianyu lay on the ground, only feeling this strike had aggravated all his wounds. Moreover, being ambushed by a little maid with a water vat made him extremely frustrated inside, so he simply played dead.

Jinshu only saw that she had merely tapped him lightly, yet this person lay on the ground with a pool of blood spreading out, not moving at all. She was immediately frightened pale.

Though she had some brute strength, she had never killed anyone before…

Trembling, she set the water vat on the ground and quietly called for Luanjian.

The residence wasn’t large to begin with, and Heng Zhi and Heng Wu were on night watch and slept lightly. With a few calls, everyone was roused.

Song Wan came out wearing an outer robe. Seeing a strangely-dressed man lying on the ground, she too was startled.

“Miss… this person seems to be dead. What… what should we do?”

The moonlight was clear and bright, shining on the white jade bricks exceptionally clearly. The pool of blood beneath Shen Qianyu was naturally highlighted extremely obviously. Song Wan was protected behind Heng Zhi and Heng Wu, her brow lightly furrowed.

After a long silence, she looked at Shen Qianyu’s slightly rising and falling chest and said, “The person is still alive, just gravely injured.”

“Prowling into someone’s courtyard late at night—he’s surely no gentleman. Heng Wu, go to the room and get some ginseng slices to put in his mouth, then tie him up and send him to the riverside.”

A house full of women—whether this person was alive or dead, he couldn’t remain in the residence.

“Before dawn, people will go to the riverside to wash. As long as he doesn’t die tonight, tomorrow during daylight someone will send him to the authorities.”

Hearing this, Shen Qianyu’s deep eyes narrowed slightly. After a long while, he coughed lightly and sat up himself.

Jinshu and Luanjian immediately blocked him, while Heng Zhi and Heng Wu tightly surrounded Song Wan behind them. Old Lady Lang hurriedly grabbed a carrying pole from the courtyard in a defensive posture.

Watching the house full of women acting as if facing a great enemy, Shen Qianyu lazily raised an eyebrow. “No need to panic. I merely came to deliver something at someone’s request.”

He placed the Liu’s candy shop package he’d been holding beside him in front of him and slowly pushed it forward.

Song Wan saw the familiar candy package and was slightly stunned. “You know my elder brother?”

Only her brother knew she liked this. In her youth, every time he returned home, he would bring her one or two packages.

“You can consider it so.”

Shen Qianyu lowered his eyes, about to rise and leave, when he heard Song Wan suddenly say, “I seem to have seen you before. Are you that young eunuch from the Eastern Palace named Ji Rong?”