Chapter 100

Zhang Yuehui stood on the roof of Huachao Pavilion, gazing out. The city of Lidu was shrouded in ink-black darkness, only the southeast corner was brightly lit.

That was the Shipbuilding Office.

In this enormous city, plans and accidents always happened in the blink of an eye.

Even someone as meticulous as him had not anticipated that someone would confess that the leader of the Bingchu Division was hidden in the Shipbuilding Office.

Wanyan Puruo was the catalyst in this case. Her arrival represented the will of the royal family, and the officials of Da Qi would be even more eager to fight for control of this city.

For the first time, Zhang Yuehui felt a sense of powerlessness.

He used to be fearless when he sought to destroy everything. He had nothing to fear, death was the worst that could happen. But now he had a weakness. This powerlessness came from the fact that he had begun to crawl on this land just like everyone else.

Wanyan Puruo had forced him to take a side, and he knew that it was against his conscience.

But where could his heart go? He had no answer. A man who had committed so many acts of treason could hardly suddenly develop a heart for his country and people.

More than anything, it was for Nan Yi.

When he said he would give the Return Hall to the Bingchu Division, it was just a word game. What he truly wanted was to run away with Nan Yi, and without him, the Return Hall would just be an empty shell. Whoever wanted it could take it.

The faint sound behind him was a woman’s cautious step, not that of an ordinary maid, and certainly not that of Wanyan Puruo.

He calmly reached for the trigger ring, the hidden weapons inside ready to spring out. He cautiously turned around and saw it was Nan Yi. He suspected he had seen wrongly. The wind was pulling the lantern, causing it to swing erratically, and her shadow danced along with it, falling on him, giving him a sense of reality.

“Zhang Yuehui, help me.”

She spoke before he could. She had run all the way here, her hair disheveled, stray strands brushing against her brows and eyes, looking somewhat pitiful.

For her to come seeking him and lower her stance, her request must not be an easy one.

Zhang Yuehui rarely became serious: “Take your time and speak.”

“Song Muchuan is in danger. Xie Que Shan has been taken by Hu Sha. He left this note and told me to come find you.”

Nan Yi didn’t try to hide anything. She figured Zhang Yuehui knew whatever he needed to know, so she handed over the note.

The thin piece of paper was a little warm to the touch.

— Xie Que Shan sent Nan Yi to find Zhang Yuehui to save Song Muchuan.

Just saying this out loud felt absurd and strange. People who had no connection were now being forced together.

But standing before her was Nan Yi, and Zhang Yuehui still took the note and unfolded it.

There were only four words: “Leaky Fish.”

Zhang Yuehui fought the urge to curse — if only Xie Que Shan had written a few more words, explained his plan more clearly, then he could have considered helping, doing Nan Yi a favor.

But then he realized. Xie Que Shan didn’t expect him to help at all, so of course, he couldn’t have told him too much. The vague words were only meant to ensure Nan Yi’s safety.

A sour feeling spread in his heart.

For the first time, he felt that Xie Que Shan was truly something else.

Nan Yi anxiously stared at Zhang Yuehui, who had already read the four words over and over.

“What does Xie Que Shan mean?” she finally couldn’t hold back and asked.

Zhang Yuehui had a vague guess, but he didn’t want to think too much about it. It was too risky. One wrong step and he’d be destroyed. Wanyan Puruo had already warned him.

He could only answer regretfully, “I don’t understand.”

Nan Yi’s face fell for a moment, but then her stubbornness flared up again: “Impossible, you must know.”

Xie Que Shan would never do something pointless. There had to be some meaning to handing these four words to Zhang Yuehui.

Zhang Yuehui thought to himself, “Since he’s already sent her here, I might as well take her with me, just to go with the flow.” But he was still rooted to the spot, doing nothing, his mind in conflict.

Nan Yi grew desperate and pulled a bracelet from her sleeve, holding it up before Zhang Yuehui.

“If you help me with this, I’ll wear the bracelet you gave me.”

Zhang Yuehui hadn’t expected Nan Yi to make this her condition. He instinctively thought of the good possibilities, and his heart suddenly leapt, causing his thoughts to freeze. He asked a foolish question, “What do you mean by wearing the bracelet?”

“What do you think it means?”

Nan Yi threw the question back at him.

Zhang Yuehui was momentarily speechless, then quickly understood.

It certainly wasn’t the meaning he was hoping for. But interestingly, she hadn’t admitted or denied anything. As long as there was even a tiny chance, he’d climb aboard, after all, he owed her.

Zhang Yuehui was once again forced to reconsider Nan Yi. He felt like he had been caught in his own trap, using the same tactics he had once employed, and strangely, they even had his shameless style.

Nan Yi was an incredibly quick learner. She could absorb prominent qualities from the people around her.

For example, Xie Que Shan’s cunning, Zhang Yuehui’s shamelessness. Then, she’d adapt and use them back on them.

Sentimental gestures could be discarded in the face of important matters. As long as she could force Zhang Yuehui to help, she’d wear ten bracelets. She didn’t care what Zhang Yuehui thought, whether he would consider it a sign of reconciliation—she never said a word. Later, if anyone insisted on making it something more, the bracelet was just a bracelet. He gave it to her as a gift, never calling it a token of love.

He left her with an unclear bracelet, making her ponder for years. Now, she was using it to save a life, and it didn’t seem excessive at all.

Zhang Yuehui also knew she was blatantly using him, but he found himself unable to resist. He really had no way out.

If you want something, you need to ask sincerely, and sincerity will open even the hardest of hearts.

He accepted it.

Zhang Yuehui sighed, lowered his gaze, and took Nan Yi’s hand, sliding the bracelet onto her wrist.

“Wait here for me. Don’t run around or you’ll cause me trouble.”

Nan Yi replied more readily than she had imagined, and a little of the tension in her body finally relaxed.

“Okay.”

With that, Zhang Yuehui lightly leapt off the rooftop, like a graceful celestial being.

She hadn’t expected that this young man could perform lightness skills. How many things had he tricked her about? Nan Yi held back the curse rising in her mouth.

At last, the task Xie Que Shan entrusted to her was done.

With these two brilliant minds working together, surely they had a better chance of success than ordinary people?

Nan Yi knew there was nothing more she could do now. The rest was up to waiting.

Just then, a squad of Qiyi soldiers passed by the street below.

“The general has given an order for us to support the Ship Bureau. Hurry up and follow us.”

Nan Yi perked up her ears, a thought flashing through her mind.

——

Before Xie Que Shan entered the Ship Bureau, he was searched and had all his weapons and sharp tools removed.

He bypassed the official wall, and the courtyard was filled with kneeling craftsmen and clerks. Hu Sha had given everyone paper and pens, demanding they identify the leader of the Bingchu Division. Those who refused to write were tortured, and those who identified the person were executed on the spot. For a time, the Ship Bureau turned into a hellish place, with wails of agony echoing throughout.

Xie Que Shan’s gaze swept across the crowd, but Song Muchuan was not among them.

Passing through the flower gate, he saw a small pavilion burned beyond recognition. The fire had already been extinguished, but thick smoke still lingered in the air.

“Isn’t this strange? Just as I was about to investigate the Ship Bureau, the pavilion warehouse there caught fire, and all the documents were burned.”

“Have the arsonists been found?”

While responding, Xie Que Shan scanned the surroundings and noticed that the dark corners of the square courtyard were filled with hidden soldiers.

“Does Lord Xie also think it was man-made? I think so too, but the cause of the fire was just an old, neglected candleholder collapsing... At the time, there was no one in the pavilion warehouse. I have to admit, it was done very skillfully,” Hu Sha said with a sinister smile, pushing open the half-burned door.

Song Muchuan sat at the ruined desk, his white robe stained with dust. Moonlight filtered through the burned roof, creating a sense of dramatic descent. His hands were bound behind his back, and in front of him lay paper and pen, but the paper was blank.

He hadn’t written anyone’s name, but the Qiyi soldiers hadn’t tortured him. They had simply tied him to the chair.

“Lord Xie, this Mr. Song, is he an old friend of yours?”

Xie Que Shan and Song Muchuan exchanged a long look.

“We are strangers now,” Xie Que Shan replied indifferently.

“That makes things easier,” Hu Sha said, drawing a dagger from his waist and coldly offering it to Xie Que Shan.

“He is the leader of the Bingchu Division. You should kill him.”

“Didn’t you ask me to interrogate him?” Xie Que Shan paid no attention to the dagger, his gaze cold and sharp as he stared at Hu Sha.

“What’s wrong? Does Lord Xie hesitate to kill him?” Hu Sha’s smile suddenly vanished, replaced by a chilling killing intent. He lightly poked the tip of the dagger against Xie Que Shan’s chest.

“Shielding the people of the Bingchu Division is a serious crime! Or could it be that you are working together?”

Xie Que Shan laughed and took the dagger from Hu Sha’s hand. “If we were working together, wouldn’t General Hu Sha have just earned a great merit?”

“That’s why I need Lord Xie to help me with this. Whether I can earn a great merit depends on the two of you.”

Hu Sha walked over to Song Muchuan and loosened the ropes binding his hands.

“Of course, to be fair... If Mr. Song is willing to identify Lord Xie as a member of the Bingchu Division, then you can live.”

Song Muchuan’s eyes finally showed some emotion as he looked at Xie Que Shan in disbelief.

What a scene of self-inflicted slaughter.

Xie Que Shan laughed. He finally understood—Hu Sha wasn’t targeting Song Muchuan at all, but him.

If he didn’t kill Song Muchuan, it would be seen as a problem with his loyalty. But if he did kill Song Muchuan... the hidden soldiers outside would swarm in, subduing him and framing him for murder and silencing the evidence.

At that point, it could be claimed that the Ship Bureau was a trap set by Hu Sha to flush out the snakes. Anyone who made a move would be labeled an internal traitor.

And since all the soldiers here were Hu Sha’s men, Xie Que Shan would have no way to explain himself.

At that moment, Nan Yi had already changed into the clothes of a Qiyi soldier and slipped into the Ship Bureau, crouching on the opposite rooftop to observe. The door to the room was wide open, and she could clearly hear everything inside.

Nan Yi’s heart raced. She had also seen the hidden soldiers outside and immediately realized that no matter whether Xie Que Shan killed Song Muchuan or not, it was a deadlock.

She noticed that the wrist of the hand holding the dagger slightly turned. Even from a distance, as if by instinct, she instantly understood Xie Que Shan’s intention.

He was going to kill Hu Sha!

But there were hidden soldiers everywhere. If he killed Hu Sha, how would he escape?

Was he planning to trade his own life for Song Muchuan’s?!

What about Zhang Yuehui? What did he need Zhang Yuehui for? The situation here was so urgent, everything could change in an instant. Could what was happening outside affect the situation here?