Li Qingge looked mildly surprised. “How did you know... ah!”

She remembered. Before Governor-General He had left Shihuan City, she had asked the He father and son whether Sun Fuping’s belongings had included a bamboo tube.

It’s been quite some time since then, yet this young man still remembered it clearly and immediately pointed it out. For someone who outwardly presents himself as straightforward and somewhat reckless, he truly is nothing of the sort.

Then again, ever since leaving Governor-General He’s side, he hasn’t appeared reckless at all.

“Yes. That’s exactly it.”

He Lingchuan thought for a moment. “How do you know it’s really in Nian Zanli’s hands, and not that the Minister of War of Wu Province took it instead?”

Back when Yuan fell into internal chaos, it had been Minister of War Dong Haoming who first rose in rebellion. Nian Zanli had held his troops in reserve and watched, only moving after He Chunhua sent his memorial to the capital. However, both men had maintained close ties with Sun Fuping.

“I investigated carefully in Wu Province. It isn’t with the Minister of War.” Li Qingge sounded completely certain. “And when Nian Zanli extorted Songyang Mansion, he already used that item as leverage. So I can confirm it’s in his possession.”

“If he already knows he can use it to threaten you, why would he ever hand it back?”

Li Qingge gave a rueful smile. “That is precisely the difficulty.”

“From what I’ve seen, Nian Zanli hasn’t been having an easy time of it in Lingxu City. Doesn’t Your Lordship have any way to get a grip on him?”

“I’ve tried more than once, but that man is impervious to both hard and soft approaches. He refuses to return it, no matter what I say. And if I push too hard, I’m afraid he’ll simply destroy the bamboo tube altogether. I could ask others for help, but the matter can’t be made too explicit. Otherwise it would only amount to driving away one tiger and welcoming in another...” She smiled bitterly. “After all, this is Lingxu City, not Yuan. I don’t have the advantage of home ground here.”

Her meaning was perfectly clear: she could not easily turn to other powerful figures for help, lest it become a case of inviting gods in and never being able to send them away again.

“And you trust me that much?” He Lingchuan asked. “You’re not afraid that if I get my hands on the bamboo tube, I’ll simply keep it for myself?”

Li Qingge’s smile was gentle and luminous. “Young Master is not that sort of person.”

He Lingchuan smiled too and picked up the inner armor. “What does Nian Zanli want out of Lingxu City?”

Li Qingge had lent him the violet-gold pestle so he could deal with Bai Ziqi, and had also sent people to deliver the Dragon Punishment Pillar to Wan’ge Swamp on his behalf. At the very least, he owed her two enormous favors already. He had no choice but to repay them.

“The Battle of Han River cost him heavily, and his plan to coordinate with Minister of War Dong Haoming in attacking Xia Province also failed. I believe that has become a knot in his heart, and it has also caused Lingxu City to treat him coolly.”

He Lingchuan nodded as he listened.

He was no longer the same as he had been a few months ago at the banks of the Han River, ignorant of monster states. His journeys through the vassal monster states and the several times he had nearly died had given him a much deeper understanding of Beijia, especially of Lingxu City. He was no longer gazing through fog.

If Nian Zanli, at the start of his uprising, had understood Lingxu City’s attitude toward him as clearly as He Lingchuan did now, his entire strategy would probably have shifted in major ways.

“In the last two months, Nian Zanli has spent enormous sums in Lingxu City, greasing palms high and low, all in hopes of getting influential figures to persuade the Monster Emperor.”

“And has it had any effect?” He Lingchuan asked with real concern.

“It has. I heard one piece of intelligence: he seems to have persuaded State Preceptor Qing Yang to speak on his behalf.”

A flicker passed through He Lingchuan’s eyes. “State Preceptor Qing Yang? But before the Battle of Han River, didn’t Nian Zanli ask State Preceptor Shuang Ye to allocate origin energy? Why would he switch sides now and seek out State Preceptor Qing Yang instead?”

“Perhaps precisely because the losses at Han River were so devastating?” Li Qingge did not state it outright, but the implication was unmistakable.

Hong Chenglue had sold Nian Zanli out during the Battle of Han River, and Hong Chenglue belonged to State Preceptor Shuang Ye’s camp. Nian Zanli had most likely developed a grievance because of that.

“And did State Preceptor Qing Yang succeed in moving him?”

“It seems that the Lord Emperor’s attitude was beginning to soften—”

He Lingchuan’s heart tightened. State Preceptor Qing Yang’s influence truly was formidable. Xia Province in Yuan had only just lived through the Battle of Han River. It had barely had time to breathe and recover. Was it now to face war yet again?

As a transmigrator, he did not feel as deeply bound to Yuan as someone native would, but even so, he had no wish to see living beings there plunged into further catastrophe.

But Li Qingge went on, “However, at exactly that moment, the elixir of youth case erupted, and Qingfu Temple was blown up. Superficially, it had nothing to do with the Spring Palace, but...”

“But the clues quietly pointed toward the Spring Palace, and the gods were enraged, weren’t they?” He Lingchuan smiled. “If the gods are displeased, then the Lord Emperor probably can’t very well take State Preceptor Qing Yang’s advice into account.”

“Exactly. So Nian Zanli’s plan was shelved on the spot. He spent so much money, called in so many favors, and in the end, all he had was a bamboo basket dipped in water.”

He Lingchuan understood now. No wonder Nian Zanli had looked so drawn and gloomy at the Dun Garden auction.

So he had been smashing into walls all over Lingxu City.

Who would have thought that by chasing down the elixir of youth case, He Lingchuan had accidentally blown apart Nian Zanli’s plan to borrow troops as well?

The two matters had nothing to do with each other at first. And yet, somehow, they had ended up tangled together anyway.

His father truly ought to send him a silk banner in gratitude. Otherwise, Beijia’s iron hooves would soon have been trampling across Xia Province in Yuan.

“To borrow men and power from Beijia and fight his way back into favor, he’s been using the bamboo tube to extort Songyang Mansion for money and assistance.” Li Qingge’s smile faded. “I may enjoy traveling the world, but in the end, I am still a person of Yuan. How could I possibly cooperate with him in attacking my own motherland?”

He Lingchuan lowered his gaze and thought, Impressive.

Every word Li Qingge spoke seemed to refer only to herself, but from beginning to end, she had been reminding him of one thing: people of Yuan should help people of Yuan. If he helped her recover the bamboo tube, then he would be helping to spare his own motherland from the scourge of war.

Once she set a moral burden like that on the table, it was very hard for him to refuse.

Li Qingge continued, “Xia Province was already weak to begin with, and after being torn apart by war for a full year, it is still badly wounded and far from recovered. The last time I passed through the outskirts of Dunyu, I saw that the people were still in hardship. There were old folk just past fifty who had already lost all their teeth, yet still couldn’t get a bowl of porridge.” She shook her head. “If Nian Zanli can be stopped here, it will also be of immense help to your father.”

He Lingchuan’s expression grew serious, and he said, “Even setting aside questions of homeland and righteousness, Your Lordship has helped me several times already. This debt of gratitude ought to be repaid. However, I’ve been in Lingxu City for less than ten days. Do you truly think I can be of use?”

Favors were like currents between people. Only when they flowed back and forth could they keep multiplying.

“Young Master is now a close friend of the Crown Prince of Chiyan, and you’ve even managed to become a special envoy of Chiyan. You’re now famous throughout Lingxu because of both the elixir of youth case and the post station bombing.” Li Qingge rested her chin lightly on one hand. “The fact that Nian Zanli took the initiative to send you a gift already shows that he believes you are worth investing in.” She leaned slightly toward him before asking, “Do you know that the ruler of Chiyan is on good terms with the State of Xuluo?”

The State of Xuluo and the State of Baoshu both bordered Yuan.

“I don’t,” He Lingchuan answered honestly. “Three months ago, I couldn’t even recite the full list of Beijia’s vassal monster states. But as for Nian Zanli, I’ll do what I can.”

Li Qingge rose at once and bowed to him with graceful sincerity. “Young Master is truly a man of honor. Qingge cannot thank you enough.”

“We’re both from Yuan. Why say such things?” He returned her own earlier phrasing to her. “But I’m new to Lingxu City. I don’t have enough people.”

“Anything you require, just say the word.” Li Qingge’s voice turned soft and low as she raised a cup to him, then added, “Songyang Mansion has several clever people in Lingxu City as well. They’ve all been operating here for more than three years. Young Master may use them as he pleases.”

He Lingchuan raised a brow. “How long has Your Lordship been building up business in Lingxu City?”

“Five years ago, I opened the first branch here.”

“That’s remarkably fast.” He Lingchuan smiled. “I went to Dun Garden a few days ago. That great misty mountain screen from Songyang Mansion was magnificent.” It was impossible to miss. Every guest who passed through had to glance at it once or twice, and the signature and seal of Songyang Mansion sat right there in the lower left corner.

Dun Garden belonged to General Golden Horn. It was not as though just any petty merchant could wander in and advertise there.

Lingxu City had been developing for six hundred years. Its commercial order must long since have solidified. For Songyang Mansion to tear even a small opening in that structure and wedge itself in within such a short time showed just how formidable Li Qingge truly was.

Yet, her eyebrows drew together in a trace of genuine worry. “After all that hard work, we’ve achieved only this much, and even that has come at the wrong time. Nian Zanli needs money and influence all over Lingxu City, so he’s begun treating me like his personal treasury, coming every few days to demand money and goods.”

He Lingchuan picked up a slice of squirrel fish with pine nuts and ate it slowly. “To think he sees Songyang Mansion as nothing more than a money tree. He’s badly underestimated Your Lordship.”

In his eyes, Li Qingge’s talent for making money was only a lesser part of herself.

Take just one example: years ago, Songyang Mansion had already opened a branch in the capital of the northern monster state. At that time, relations between Yuan and Beijia were already extremely poor. Songyang Mansion was, after all, a Daoist sect that had risen out of Yuan, and Li Qingge herself held a marquisate there. Yet she openly conducted business on both sides, and Yuan tolerated it.

Meanwhile, her husband had been executed for treason and collusion with the enemy.

From any angle one looked at it, she should not have been someone able to stand apart from the current.

And yet, she had done exactly that. Songyang Mansion not only survived intact, but also saw its business grow larger and larger.

Had it been some ordinary merchant in her place, their head would have rolled several times over by now.

He Lingchuan made a bold guess to himself. Could she have struck some private understanding or deal with the Royal Court of Yuan?

Li Qingge did not bother with false modesty. Her fine brows tightened. “Nian Zanli has spent most of his years in Xun Province and rarely returned to Shihuan. I suspect he doesn’t really understand either Songyang Mansion or me. Sun Fuping didn’t tell him much, either. For now, he’s only extorting some money and material goods from me. But once he’s had the bamboo tube in hand for a while, he’ll probably start investigating in earnest. After that... It will become troublesome.”

He Lingchuan said gravely, “I’ll try to figure things out.”

“Oh, and be careful. Don’t let Nian Zanli destroy the bamboo tube. Better yet, don’t let him remove the stopper.”

He Lingchuan nodded. By now, he had a fair idea what was inside the bamboo tube.

“By the way, I’ve got a newly made little toy here. Would Young Master like to try it out?”

A toy? A newly made toy I could try out? 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

He Lingchuan hurriedly shoved the strange and not entirely innocent thoughts rising in his mind back into a corner. “Sure.”

Li Qingge took out a small box. “Tracking bees. From the name alone, you ought to be able to guess what it does, no?”

The box was octagonal, rather like a case for a pocket watch. On the lid, the cloisonné curling pattern[1] formed the shape of a bee. The overall design was refined and elegant.

Since she said tracking bees, He Lingchuan had half expected that when the box opened, two tiny bees would fly out.

Nothing of the sort happened.

Inside was something like a compass, mounted on a sandalwood panel marked with scale divisions and characters. In the center were two small needles, one long and one short.

Isn’t this just a... compass? Though admittedly, the box is beautifully made.

“Interesting. How do you use it?” Li Qingge was always generous with practical benefits, even when favors were being called in.

She turned the box over, and He Lingchuan saw that there was also a hidden compartment on the back.

1. I don’t think it’s actually exactly cloisonné, but it’s close enough that I feel like it’s fine to translate it this way. Anyway, I’ve added a sample image of the actual technique used here, which is 掐丝缠纹. Feel free to correct me if I’m wrong. ☜