SF 9

Although the Yuan family’s residence in the capital had long been unoccupied, it still occupied a prime stretch of land without the slightest hint of modesty. The grounds remained largely deserted, with only a few servants left behind to handle daily sweeping and upkeep.

If the master was expected to return to the capital, a message would be sent ahead from Jingzhou to alert them to prepare. As such, the servants were usually quite lax in their duties. One gatekeeper was practically half-deaf, and even if a celestial immortal came knocking, he would still take his sweet time finishing a drink before responding.

That afternoon, the city gates of the capital were about to be locked for the day. It seemed the gatekeeper had successfully lazed through another shift, when suddenly a series of urgent knocks echoed from outside the Yuan estate. The gatekeeper had just dozed off on a small couch and was rudely awakened. Cursing under his breath, he rose reluctantly and muttered to himself about which short-sighted flatterer had chosen such a time to come calling.

With the Yuan family’s master absent, any visitors to the estate were likely there to deliver gifts and curry favor. Over time, this had made the gatekeeper arrogant. He fancied himself half a master and looked down on everyone else.

“Who do you think you are? No sense of manners.” Since when was it acceptable to pound on the Yuan estate’s door like a war drum?

He grumbled about the thunderous knocking, already preparing a full belly of scolding for whoever it was. But the moment he touched the door latch, the main gate was kicked open from the outside. Before he could even shout, a solid kick landed squarely in his chest, knocking him flat to the ground.

It was not a light kick. The gatekeeper rolled on the ground, grimacing in pain and preparing to launch into a curse. But as soon as he looked up, the words died in his throat, and he turned pale as a sheet.

“Sec-sec-second Young Master…”

“You treacherous slave. With the master away, is this how you welcome guests?”

Yuan Xi tossed the riding whip in his hand to a servant who came jogging over, then spared only a brief glance at the gatekeeper. That one glance was enough to nearly scare the man into fainting.

Among the Yuan family’s servants, there was a well-known saying: offend Heaven, offend Earth, but never offend Second Young Master Yuan. Fortunately for the gatekeeper, this time Second Young Master Yuan seemed to be in a hurry. He had no time to deal with disobedient servants. With long strides and wind at his heels, he walked briskly toward the inner courtyard, issuing orders as he went to prepare a bath and fresh clothes, and to deliver a calling card to the Chief Eunuch’s residence.

From the moment he entered the estate to the time he had changed and refreshed himself, not even half an hour had passed. Yuan Xi then boarded his carriage once again and raced toward the Chief Eunuch’s manor.

“Well, well, what a rare guest. Who would have thought that Second Young Master Yuan would condescend to visit an old slave’s humble little home.”

There were not many people left who could still make Qin Chao smile like this. Whatever monstrous intentions might be hiding beneath that fat, Buddha-like face of his, at least in front of the Yuan family, he did not dare show them.

The Yuan clan had produced three dukes over four generations, making them one of the most powerful and prestigious noble families in the Great Xia dynasty. Their connections spanned the realm. When the Southern Garrison General of Jingzhou was toppled, the province had been thrown into chaos for a time. Whoever took over would end up badly burned, like someone grabbing a red-hot iron. In the end, the dim-witted late emperor had no choice. Even knowing it would be like drinking poison to quench his thirst, he still handed the fat piece of meat to the Yuan family.

Qin Chao understood perfectly well. With the current emperor too young to command authority, offending the Yuan family now would be asking for trouble. With their reputation, a single rallying cry from them could summon half the officials and nobles in the land. If that happened, even someone as fearsome as him, known as the Ninth Lord of the court might not have a good end.

“Chief Eunuch,” Yuan Xi said directly, skipping any pleasantries, “I have come to ask for a person.”

Qin Chao’s smile stiffened for the briefest moment, his heart filling with unease. He had already heard rumors that the master of Jinxiu Tower, Feng Wuge, had some connection with Yuan Xi. But he never expected the esteemed son of the Inspector-General to personally pay a visit to ask for someone. If it had been an ordinary formation master, Qin Chao would not have hesitated to make a show of generosity. But knowing the techniques Feng Wuge possessed, he was reluctant to let him go so easily.

“Second Young Master Yuan, whatever are you talking about? This old servant truly does not understand,” Qin Chao replied, feigning ignorance.

“Chief Eunuch, since I came knocking, naturally I have verified the matter. The current political climate is unstable. Prominent households secretly recruiting formation masters is hardly unusual. But the one you have found, Feng Wuge, happens to be a close friend of mine. I hope you will honor the Yuan family and release him. As a token of gratitude, I am willing to present you with four formation masters in exchange.”

At this point in the conversation, if Qin Chao continued to refuse, things would surely turn ugly. He considered the matter. That brat surnamed Feng had an inflexible backbone and carried a natural prejudice against eunuchs. It would be hard to extract anything useful from him in a short time. Even if they killed him, there might not be much to gain. Compared to that, four readily available formation masters were far more valuable. Besides, getting past the Yuan family for now did not mean they could not make another move on the boy later.

After weighing the options carefully, Qin Chao finally agreed to Yuan Xi’s request.

Yuan Xi felt a quiet breath of relief in his chest. In truth, more than half a month had passed since he received Yue Qing’s letter. He had traveled day and night without rest and could not have arrived any faster. If he included the time since Feng Wuge had been captured, it had been close to a full month. He had no way of knowing whether Feng Wuge was still alive in Qin Chao’s hands.

As it turned out, that brat was lucky enough to still be breathing. At least Yuan Xi had not come all this way just to collect a corpse.

Qin Chao personally arranged a carriage and escort to accompany Yuan Xi to retrieve the prisoner. But when Yuan Xi finally laid eyes on Feng Wuge, locked up with death-row convicts, he nearly killed the bastard on the spot. Inside the pitch-dark cell, a group of vicious prisoners had surrounded Feng Wuge. One was pounding on his legs, another was massaging his shoulders, a third had stripped off his own clothes to fan away the mosquitoes and heat from his body. And Feng Wuge, half-lidded eyes closed, was calmly enjoying the treatment, looking utterly content.

So all the hardship, hunger, and fear of the past month had gone straight to the dogs.

When Ling Xun caught sight of Yuan Xi standing outside the cell, he did not look the least bit surprised. He broke into a warm smile and called out affectionately, “Zijin, you came.”

Perhaps it was just the lighting, but the dark circles under Yuan Xi’s eyes seemed to deepen on the spot. With a stony face, he ordered the guards to open the cell and drag this heartless bastard out.

Ling Xun seemed reluctant. He said goodbye to each of the condemned prisoners one by one, acting like they were old friends parting forever. He made a whole show of it, hugging, weeping, and laughing. When he got to a tall, leopard-eyed man, he clung to him dramatically, as if they were lovers torn apart by fate, and looked just about ready to break into a farewell ballad.

Yuan Xi could not take it anymore. He ground out through clenched teeth, “Feng Wuge.”

Ling Xun slither out of the cell like a boneless eel.

Qin Chao had originally been concerned that Feng Wuge’s slender frame would not survive the rough handling of those brutes. But seeing him so lively, Qin Chao began to worry he might complain to Yuan Xi instead. Now, watching his behavior, Qin Chao decided he must be a simpleton. His brain clearly did not work properly. No wonder he had the nerve to speak so rudely about eunuchs right to his face.

Yuan Xi had come in with a furious expression, but it quickly changed when he noticed that Feng Wuge was injured. His leg had been hurt, and not lightly. The rage that had just been gathering in his chest dissipated instantly. He gave Qin Chao a long look, offered a simple word of thanks, and left the prison with Feng Wuge in tow.

“Zijin, I knew you were a man of loyalty. I just knew you would come save me.”

“Shut up. Let me see your leg.”

Ling Xun had just climbed into the carriage and was about to launch into a dramatic speech filled with tears and gratitude, but Yuan Xi shut him down before he could begin. He pulled open Feng Wuge’s outer robe and frowned deeply when he saw the bruises around the kneecap.

“What happened? Why did that old eunuch lay such a heavy hand on you?”

While continuing the journey, Yuan Xi had dispatched men to investigate what had happened in the capital. All he had learned was that Qin Chao had been gathering formation masters, and Feng Wuge had been one of the unlucky ones caught. He had apparently offended the Chief Eunuch and been thrown into prison, but Yuan Xi had no idea what had transpired in detail.

Ling Xun covered the wound with his robe again and gave a dry recounting of what had happened that day. Yuan Xi was speechless for a long time, as if he had heard a tall tale. He finally asked in disbelief, “You’re telling me you said to Qin Chao’s face that your knees don’t bend for incomplete men, and then you asked him to test it with a beating?”

“More or less,” Ling Xun replied with a nod, casually lifting the curtain of the carriage to look outside.

Yuan Xi took a long moment to collect himself before erupting in a rapid-fire barrage. “Feng Wuge, are you trying to get yourself killed? Do you not care if you end up crippled? Do you not care if that bastard Qin Chao tortures you to death? What if Yue Qing hadn’t found the mark you left behind? What if I hadn’t arrived in time?”

“What else could I do? Worst case, I die. But I will never kneel to those dickless eunuchs.”

Yuan Xi stared at the back of his head, messy as a bird’s nest, not even sure what to think. If Feng Wuge were truly inflexible, he could navigate politics better than anyone. But if he were truly charming and smooth, how had he ended up in such a pitiful state? If he had just bowed his head a little, he would not have suffered so much.

Ling Xun leaned against the carriage window, exposing his pretty, pale face. Just then, a cart driver passed by, caught a glimpse of him, and mistook him for some noble young lady. His eyes went wide, and in his daze he nearly steered his cart into a ditch. The man who caused it all clapped the window frame and let out a loud, coarse laugh like a man, startling the poor driver into thinking he had seen a ghost.

And so, laughing and joking the whole way, they made their way back to the Yuan estate. But just before they arrived, Ling Xun caught sight of a gate on the side of the road.

He had been to the capital several times, and he was especially familiar with this part of town near the Yuan estate. He remembered that this particular residence had been abandoned for years. Looking more closely, he saw that the dark gate bore no name plaque, only a simple wooden sign with two characters: Mu Residence.

He did not know why, but those two characters felt like a wedge hammered straight into his heart, lodged deep and unmoving.