Murong glanced at Wen Yan and saw her face had gone chalk white, her forehead slick with cold sweat, with the expression of someone who had seen a ghost.

“Young Miss, what on earth happened?”

Before Wen Yan could answer, more than a dozen figures in black suddenly leaped out of the shadows, and she instinctively scrambled behind Murong in fright.

“Murong — it’s them, it’s them.”

Murong saw that the alley was deserted in all directions. The dozen figures had already moved swiftly to surround them, and the distant sounds of festivity made crying out for help utterly futile.

“I saw them kill someone.” Wen Yan had never imagined she could be this unlucky — she had only needed to relieve herself, and the moment she stepped into the privy, she found three or four men stabbing a figure in a Western suit. In the pale moonlight, the man’s blood had pooled across the ground, a ghastly sight.

She had managed to keep herself from screaming, and began quietly retreating. But her foot caught a loose stone, and the sound it made caused the three or four black-clad men to turn their heads — their blades still dripping blood.

Wen Yan had grown up sheltered in wealth, without a day of hardship in her life, and had never faced anything like this. But she did not lose her footing or dissolve into screaming — she simply turned and ran.

She hadn’t made it far before they gave chase, and their numbers had doubled. It was clear they intended to silence her.

Murong felt her heart sink. She said quietly, “Young Miss, in a moment I’ll hold them off. You run — don’t go to find Miss Yan, head for wherever there are people.”

Yan Qing had only a few maids and two attendants with her. If this group were led to her, Yan Qing would be in danger as well.

It was not that Murong was being partial — it was that she needed to ensure Yan Qing’s safety. Besides, a crowd would also scatter the attackers’ attention, which was better than becoming a sitting target.

“This trouble started because of me — I won’t leave.” Wen Yan shook her head urgently. “If I go, you’ll die here. You don’t even have a weapon.”

Murong had not expected the Wen Family’s young miss to have such a stubborn and upright nature. In most circumstances like this, it would be the mistress who fled while the servant stayed to give her life — yet here she was, willing to stay.

It was not as if she wasn’t frightened. The hands gripping Murong’s arm were trembling without stopping.

“One death is better than two.” Murong suddenly shoved Wen Yan backward, and in a sharp voice called out, “Go — now!”

In the same instant, the dozen black-clad figures came rushing in, weapons raised.

“Do you know whose young miss this is?” Murong called out loudly as she met their attack. “If anything happens to her, not even all of your lives combined would be enough to pay for it.”

Worrying that Wen Yan might not make it out, Murong threw out these words hoping to intimidate the attackers. If they felt any fear, they might hold back.

“If it’s money you want, her family will pay it. But if she loses her life, her family has power and connections — they will hunt each one of you down.” Murong continued to shout as she fought, not knowing whether it would work.

Wen Yan had not actually planned to run, but she thought Murong was right — she would go out and get help. She refused to believe these people were truly beyond all law, brazen enough to kill in a place like Shun Cheng.

But she had barely run a few steps when one of the black-clad figures caught up to her. Wen Yan thought to herself: if it came to it, she would fight. She grabbed one attacker’s hand and bit down as hard as she could.

—

Meanwhile, the lantern festival outside remained lively and loud.

Yan Qing glanced toward the alley. “They’ve been gone a long time.”

“Miss, let me go check.” Dihuai stood up.

“Take Fu Gang with you.” Fu Gang was one of the Yan Mansion’s guards, with some skill in a fight — which was precisely why Yan Qing had brought him along.

Dihuai and Fu Gang had barely gone when the unease in Yan Qing’s chest deepened.

“Sister, have candy.” Nian Nian held his sugar figure up to Yan Qing’s lips, his eyes blinking mischievously.

Yan Qing smiled. “Sister is grown up — she doesn’t eat candy. Nian Nian can have it.”

“Does sister also worry about worms in her teeth?” Nian Nian asked, wide-eyed with curiosity.

Before Yan Qing could answer, she saw Dihuai come rushing back toward her. He was usually composed and deliberate, so seeing him in such a hurried state set something sinking in Yan Qing’s chest at once.

“Miss, something’s happened.” Dihuai’s brow was tightly creased. “The Young Miss from the Wen family and Murong were attacked in the alley. Murong is badly injured. The Young Miss is nowhere to be found.”

The moment Yan Qing heard it, a roaring sound seemed to fill her head.

But she steadied herself quickly. No matter how frantic she felt inside, she spoke in a measured, controlled voice. “Jing Zhi, go find Director Shi. If he’s not there, find Captain Zheng or Captain Bai.”

“Yes.” Jing Zhi longed to go check on Murong, but for now she could only follow her Miss’s instructions.

Yan Qing passed Nian Nian to the two maids behind her. “Take Nian Nian home first. Once you’re back, say nothing to anyone — just tell them we’ll be along shortly.”

The two maids took Nian Nian, acknowledged the instruction, and hurried away.

“Dihuai, get Murong to the hospital right away.” Yan Qing drew a long breath. “Whatever it takes, she must be kept alive.”

At that moment, Fu Gang came running back, cradling a bloodied figure in his arms. A winding trail of blood marked the path he had come from.

Yan Qing rushed forward to check on her. She reached out and pressed two fingers to Murong’s carotid pulse — a motion she had performed countless times, yet now her fingers were trembling faintly.

“Quickly — to the hospital.” Yan Qing’s voice wavered. Murong’s breathing was barely there, a single thread of life holding on.

“Miss, what about you?” Dihuai asked.

“I’ll wait here for the people from the Military Police Bureau. Wen Yan is gone — I have to find her.”

She could see what Dihuai was worried about, and she spoke to reassure him. “I’ll stay right where I am. Besides, those people won’t double back now. I’ll be fine. Get Murong to the hospital — no matter what, keep her alive.”

Even if she went along, there was nothing she could do. But if she stayed at the scene, she might still find traces that could lead to Wen Yan.

Dihuai’s car was parked not far away in a nearby lot — cutting through the short way, it wasn’t too far.

After Dihuai left, Yan Qing sat in an agony of waiting for half an hour before Jing Zhi finally came hurrying back. Because of the festival crowds, she had taken a longer route around.

Walking ahead of her was Zheng Yun and several officers from the bureau.

“Miss Yan.” Zheng Yun, unlike Bai Jin, had never changed how he addressed her.

Seeing that Shi Ting had not come, Yan Qing guessed he was not at the bureau. But if he was not there, Zheng Yun would surely have sent word to him — which could only mean one thing.

“Shi Ting is not in Shun Cheng?”

Zheng Yun nodded. “Seventh Brother left for Bei Guan Cheng three days ago with the Marshal. He’ll be back tomorrow.”

Bei Guan Cheng was the primary coal mining district of Bei Di. The coal deposits discovered there accounted for sixty percent of the country’s total known reserves.

Bei Di guarded this mining region like a prized possession, and many factions had their eyes fixed hungrily on this rich prize.

Shi Ting had not mentioned any of this in his letters — most likely he had received the order at the last moment. In recent times, the Marshal seemed to be calling on him more and more frequently, and for matters that were far from trivial.

What Yan Qing could not determine, however, was whether the Marshal truly valued Shi Ting’s abilities — or whether he was using him to balance the rivalries among his sons.

“Captain Zheng, I’m sorry to trouble you.” Yan Qing said. “My cousin went missing just now in an alley nearby, and my maid was severely injured.”

Zheng Yun had already heard the full account from Jing Zhi on the way over. Looking now at Yan Qing’s taut, pale face, he understood the gravity of it. He had heard that Yan Qing and the missing Wen Young Miss were very close.

“Let’s go look at the alley first and see whether the attackers left any clues.” Zheng Yun thought privately that Seventh Brother had picked the worst possible time to leave — the moment he was gone, something this thorny had to happen.

When they entered the alley and saw the state of things, Yan Qing felt her heart drop.

Murong knew how to fight, but two fists could not hold off so many. Judging from the wounds on her body, she had ultimately gone down simply because she was outnumbered.

The thought of Murong made Yan Qing breathe in deeply. She had already sent Jing Zhi to stay at the hospital, and for now she had no choice but to set aside her worry and focus entirely on helping Zheng Yun find Wen Yan.

Wen Yan had come to Shun Cheng for the first time, and this had happened. Yan Qing could not have predicted it, but she could not be absolved of responsibility either.

“The footprints are chaotic — at least ten people.” Zheng Yun crouched down with a flashlight and examined the ground. “The blood traces are tangled and complex. Although Murong was badly wounded, she appears to have injured several of them in return.”

“What’s this?” Someone picked up a pin-like ornament from the ground.

Yan Qing quickly took it. Without needing a close look, she recognized it as something belonging to Wen Yan. Moreover, there were bloodstains on the brooch.

“Ayan…” Yan Qing’s hand closed tight around it, the pin digging into her palm.

Zheng Yun had his men continue searching while he rose and came to stand before Yan Qing. Seeing the pallor of her face, he opened his mouth to offer some comfort. “Miss Yan, perhaps things are not as bad as they seem.”

Yan Qing had already steadied herself. She lifted her gaze, her eyes dark and calm. “If those people had only wanted to rob or abduct, they would not have moved in a group of over ten. Such a large gathering draws too much attention. My guess is that Wen Yan and Murong stumbled upon them by accident in this alley, and something happened to set them against them.”

Zheng Yun frowned. “If it truly was a group of over ten gathered here, it’s possible these were guild members.”

“A guild?” In Shun Cheng, guilds large and small numbered beyond counting. With no physical evidence left at the scene, there was no way to investigate every guild — and besides, these organizations operated beyond the Military Police Bureau’s reach. Even the infighting among them was something the bureau had no authority over.

“Captain Zheng, something was found!” A voice called out from farther down the alley.

Zheng Yun immediately steered Yan Qing forward.

—