SF 13

Now that the news of the rebellion in Liangzhou was confirmed, the capital had become a veritable tiger’s den. With his leg still injured, Ling Xun urgently needed treatment before he could act.

But how the hell was he supposed to use this thing?

He glared at that stupid scrap of paper until he nearly burned a hole through it and still could not figure out how to apply it to formation work. He wanted nothing more than to storm into the Mu residence and drag the man out by his collar.

Just as he was about to claw off his own scalp in frustration, Yuan Xi returned. The moment he entered, he downed an entire pot of cold tea, then sat across from the bed and stared at Ling Xun with all sorts of meaningful expressions.

Ling Xun bristled. He hurled a shoe at him. “Hey, what are you staring at? Lost your mind?”

Yuan Xi did not answer. He walked to the bedside with his hands behind his back, studying Ling Xun like he was some rare creature never seen before, as if he wanted to pluck out every strand of his hair and count them one by one.

“Brace yourself. Don’t faint,” Yuan Xi said solemnly. With a sigh, he pulled out a thick stack of paper slips from his sleeve and threw them at Ling Xun.

“What’s this?” Ling Xun couldn’t tell what kind of fit Yuan Xi was having this time. He picked up the slips suspiciously and flipped through them one by one.

“Calling cards,” Yuan Xi answered concisely.

Ling Xun was about to say, what are you throwing Yuan family’s calling cards at me for, but his eyes caught the names written on them, and he froze.

“These cards…”

Yuan Xi nodded, playing along. “That’s right. They’re all for you.”

Ling Xun looked through them again, nearly going cross-eyed. One after another, each name written on the cards was a household name in court. Five out of the Nine Ministers were among them, and even one of the Three Excellencies, the Minister over the Masses himself, stated he would personally come to Yuan Manor to see him.

“Why do all these people want to see me?”

Ling Xun was not the least bit pleased. As a common merchant, he knew that in ordinary times, those high-ranking lords would not even spare him a proper glance, let alone give him the time of day unless he threw gold and silver at their feet. Now, all of a sudden, they were lining up to send him cards, and right on the eve of a military crisis no less. The whole thing reeked of a weasel paying New Year’s respects to a hen.

“You’re the talk of the capital now, a rising star. Of course they’re fighting to meet you.” Yuan Xi grabbed a fruit off the table and sat down on the bed to crunch into it.

Ling Xun kicked him twice impatiently. “Cut the sarcasm and tell me what’s going on.”

“What else? Your glorious act of standing up to the Chief Eunuch and almost getting beaten to death has spread far and wide.”

Ling Xun immediately understood. These days, everyone in court secretly wore their righteousness like a badge of honor, wishing they could hang a sign around their necks that read “I do not consort with traitorous eunuchs.” Anyone daring to defy Qin Chao would have a line of supporters behind them, eager to hand them a blade and cheer for them to take him out. But on the actual court floor, none of those righteous men dared utter a word. They stood by as the young emperor was puppeteered by Qin Chao, pretending to be blind and deaf to survive. That was no surprise. All the truly upright officials had already been eliminated in round after round of political purges.

Ling Xun suppressed the sneer in his heart, casually gathered up the cards, and said with a smile, “Well, that’s good news.”

Yuan Xi looked surprised. “What, you actually want to meet these old—these esteemed lords?”

He nearly said “old geezers,” but as a young noble himself, he managed to rein it in and correct himself in time.

Ling Xun, however, flopped back on the bed with a grin and kicked out his clumsy dog legs. “If they want to visit, let them visit. They’re not people I can afford to offend anyway. I’m just a humble commoner, not in a position to turn them away.”

Yuan Xi saw that he was not joking and sobered slightly. With a frown, he reminded him, “But now that your identity is exposed, it’s no longer safe for you to stay in the capital.”

In truth, Yuan Xi was one of the few who knew Feng Wuge was a formation master. Years ago, he had been in a hopeless situation, with no way out. If not for Feng Wuge saving his life with formation techniques, he would have long been buried in the dirt. From that moment on, Yuan Xi regarded Feng Wuge as a sworn brother and used the Yuan family’s influence to shelter him, helping the Jinxiu Pavilion rise swiftly across Jingzhou and Yizhou. He even secretly smoothed the path for Feng Wuge’s weapon smuggling network.

Ling Xun saw the worry on Yuan Xi’s face and, for once, spoke like a human being. “Since that old scoundrel Qin has his eye on me, he won’t stop now. It’d be easy enough for me to leave, but the Jinxiu Pavilion operates in plain sight. We need to make preparations. Don’t worry. Once I wrap things up here, I’ll leave.”

Yuan Xi knew Feng Wuge never did anything without benefit. If he wanted to meet those useless court officials, he must have a reason. Looking at that smile and thinking of all the prestigious houses sending visiting cards, Yuan Xi even started to wonder whether Feng Wuge had staged the entire scene as a way to win public sympathy.

“Anyway, don’t worry about me. I have something important to tell you…”

Ling Xun then told Yuan Xi about the military uprising in Liangzhou. Yuan Xi was stunned.

“The Liangzhou forces have already reached Tianshui? When did this happen?”

Ling Xun thought about the date Fang Jue had given him. “About five days ago.”

“This is bad. Once Tianshui falls, there’s no barrier left to protect the capital. Chen Bing has commanded the Liangzhou garrison for generations, and his troops are known as wolves and tigers. This is not going to end well. I must return to Jingzhou and tell my father.”

Ling Xun nodded in agreement. “You’d best leave today. Delays only bring more danger.”

Yuan Xi swore. “You’ve got a lot of nerve. I rushed half a month to rescue you, haven’t even spent a single night in my own home, and now I have to head back out again.”

But Ling Xun, who had long since lost any sense of guilt or shame, simply dug at the callus in his ear and looked as if to say, I never asked you to rescue me.

Yuan Xi nearly coughed up blood.

“You’re really not coming with me? If the intel is true and the capital is locked down, escaping will be much harder later.”

Ling Xun shook his head. “I truly can’t leave yet.” Then he changed the subject. “Did you send a visiting card to the Mu Residence?”

“I did,” Yuan Xi replied, “but the master of the Mu Residence is not currently home. Word is, he’s already left the capital.”

Not home?

But then again, that made sense. If he truly had the talent to aid a ruler, how could he not have predicted what was coming and allowed himself to be trapped in the city? What kind of strategist would that be?

Ling Xun’s final shred of hope vanished. It looked like he would have to rely on himself to decipher that sheet of paper.

Before leaving, Yuan Xi took off his waist token and tossed it to Ling Xun. “I won’t meddle in your jianghu types’ business, but take this just in case. Who knows how much use it’ll be if the capital truly turns chaotic.”

Ling Xun weighed the token in his hand and did not offer much thanks. He simply cupped a hand in salute. “Next time we meet, drinks are on me.”

Not long after Yuan Xi left, a servant came to report that someone from the Minister of Civil Affairs household had arrived. Having heard that the owner of Jinxiu Pavilion was gravely injured, they were concerned that the Yuan residence, empty for so long, might lack proper care. Since the master of the house was away and the servants might be negligent, they had come to escort him to the minister’s residence to recover.

Ling Xun had long suspected that these shrewd old foxes already knew he had offended the Chief Eunuch and probably also knew of his identity as a formation master. That they still wanted to meet him, and had even gone through the formal trouble of sending visiting cards, meant their motives were anything but simple. If he had to guess, they probably wanted to use him as a knife to kill their enemies from the shadows. What surprised him was how eager they were. Yuan Xi had barely left, and they had already arrived to “receive” him.

“Sir, what should we do…” The steward left in charge of the Yuan residence looked anxious. Offending the Minister household was not an option, but he also dared not turn over the second young master’s guest behind his back.

Ling Xun, ever tactful, simply waved his hand. “Since the Minister of Civil Affairs has extended such kindness, how could I possibly decline? Please convey my thanks and let them know I’ll be out shortly. It would be disrespectful to meet the Minister in disarray.”

The steward breathed a sigh of relief and left to deliver the message.

Ling Xun slowly dressed himself in the new robes prepared for him by the Yuan residence. He asked a maid to comb his hair. He wore a long robe with wide sleeves and a jade belt at the waist. Once he had finished tidying himself, he looked positively dignified. Standing before the bronze mirror, he struck a pose that made the maid holding the mirror flush red. Ling Xun could not resist a cheeky comment.

“What’s with the blush? Never seen a man as handsome and dashing as me?”

He resembled a pampered favorite who had just received the emperor’s favor, delicate and refined in appearance. Supported by attendants, Ling Xun swayed gracefully as he left the Yuan residence.

The moment he stepped out the main gate, several stall vendors across the street glanced his way. Two peddlers with carts were also making their way down the road. Their eyes carried a sharpness no common man possessed.

Ling Xun gave a faint shake of his head.

At the street corner, Fang Jue stood hugging his sword, staring coldly at him before vanishing into the shadows. The stall owners resumed hawking their wares. The peddlers passed by without even a glance. Everything returned to normal.

The Minister of Civil Affairs’ carriage was already waiting. Surrounded by attendants helping him with exaggerated care, Ling Xun climbed aboard.

The ride was smooth at first. Ling Xun was even in such a good mood that he occasionally lifted the curtain to watch the bustle on either side of the street. But just as they neared the Minister’s residence, he suddenly shouted,

“Stop the carriage!”

“Master Feng, we’re nearly there. If there’s anything you need, you can wait until we arrive.”

“I said stop the carriage!”

The attendants from the Minister’s residence were used to serving nobles and high officials. They looked down on someone as humble as the owner of an embroidery house. Initially, they had no intention of obeying. But the man in the carriage no longer sounded like a harmless merchant. His voice had turned cold and commanding, a chill edge to each word. It felt like an entirely different person had taken his place. A subtle yet overwhelming pressure radiated from within, making their spines tingle with fear. There was even a trace of killing intent.

They quickly reined in the horses.

Before the carriage had even come to a full stop, Ling Xun leapt out and dashed into the nearest alley.

But the figure he had been chasing was already gone.