As night fell, Gu Qingyun donned the light padded jacket Xiao Huan had made for her last time, strapped her new saber to her waist, and wore the rabbit-fur boots crafted by Gu Qingyu. Tall and slender, she was an undeniably striking young woman with the sharp bearing of a martial artist, making it impossible not to steal a second glance at her.
When she stepped out of her room, Old Lady Zhang and the others couldn’t help but marvel at her appearance.
“Our Qingyun really grew up splendidly. Look at that posture—so upright and poised! Far handsomer than your brothers.”
“Truly. Qingyun is so strong, too. With her around, hauling water from the well is so much faster,” Gu Qingyu and the others chimed in with praise.
Elated by the praise, Gu Qingyun raised her brows playfully at everyone. “No matter how handsome I am, it’s useless—I can’t marry a young maiden anyway. This fine frame and good looks of mine are totally wasted!”
Old Lady Zhang swatted her lightly. “Stop fooling around! Talking such nonsense, blabbering on like that.”
Gu Qingyun didn’t mind in the slightest and flashed Old Lady Zhang a grin.
Lady Su handed her a waterskin. “Go on, then. There’s warm water inside; drink when you’re thirsty. Be careful out there, and don’t be late.”
“Understood,” Gu Qingyun replied. “It’s getting late and the chill is heavy in the air. Everyone, head back to your rooms and don’t stay outside too long.” With that, she turned and headed out the door.
The weather wasn’t great today, overcast and gloomy. Gu Qingyun felt the air carefully; it seemed even colder than a few days ago, suggesting it would likely snow before long.
Bai Fan was waiting outside the county yamen. Seeing him, Gu Qingyun quickened her pace and handed over Little Black from her arms. “Thanks for your hard work tonight.”
Taking Little Black, Bai Fan smiled at her. “What are you talking about? We’re partners! You used to let me rest all the time while taking the night patrol alone. Now that you have business, I’m duty-bound to step up.”
Entering the Personnel Office, the two checked in for roll call with the Clerk on night duty, collected their waist plaques and the lamp oil needed for the night, and prepared to head out one after the other toward the nearest streets.
Just as they turned, the Clerk called out from behind them, “You two be careful tonight. These past few days, a sinister wind has been blowing through the city. Quite a few young masters from wealthy families have fallen ill, and no one has found the cause yet. You two youngsters walking the night roads—if you encounter anything unusual, don’t meddle, don’t look, and don’t engage. Saving your skin comes first.”
“And don’t stray too far from the night watchmen during your patrol. Where there are more people, the Yang energy is stronger and it’s safer.”
Gu Qingyun and Bai Fan exchanged looks. Wait, when had the county seat become so unsafe? How come she didn’t know about this?
“By the way, while on night patrol, cover the neighboring streets too. The pay for the constables who didn’t show up tonight will be added to your food and wage allowance. I won’t have you working for nothing.”
Gu Qingyun fell silent for a moment before shaking her head. “Clerk, it’s not that we’re unwilling, but as you know, there are only two of us. Our patrol area is already massive, and we simply don’t have the energy to watch over other streets. You’d better see if those experienced constables can help out instead.”
Looking at the two youths who hadn’t even reached twenty, the Clerk sighed. “Fair enough. You’re too young. Go on your patrol; I’ll think of another way.”
Gu Qingyun bowed and left the county yamen together with Bai Fan.
Once they were far from the county yamen, Bai Fan voiced his worry: “Sister Yun, we just refused the Clerk. Will he give us a hard time for this?”
Gu Qingyun glanced at him and reassured him, “You’re overthinking it. He only brought it up in passing. Having no one to patrol those streets doesn’t hurt him, and he never expected us to agree in the first place. If something goes wrong on those streets later, he can deflect blame by claiming he already tried to find someone. The Clerk definitely anticipated that no one would be willing. We’re the youngest here, so no matter what, the blame won’t fall on us.”
“All right, focus on the watch. Come the second watch, I’ll need to slip away for a bit.”
...
Clack, clack-clack. Clack, clack-clack.
“Second watch! The night is deep! Every household, bolt your doors!”
Accompanied by the watchman’s calls, Gu Qingyun and Bai Fan patrolled a few more streets before she slipped away.
【Qi Concealment and Form Shrouding】. Gu Qingyun silently chanted the incantation. Spiritual light shone from beneath her feet, and her figure vanished in an instant.
She sped swiftly toward the city gates. The soldiers guarding the gate felt only a gust of wind sweep past, subconsciously pulling their padded coats tighter around themselves.
In merely a single breath, Gu Qingyun arrived at the banks of the Bai River. The Bai River was not far from the county seat, roughly seven or eight li away. The water flowed gently, its surface shimmering. The crops on both riverbanks grew exceptionally well, and even the surrounding weeds were noticeably lush.
Gu Qingyun surveyed the Bai River for a few moments, sensing the lingering spiritual power she had left on Wang Hu not far away.
She crept silently to a spot not far from Wang Hu. The scene before her made her raise an eyebrow: quite a few men stood along the riverbank—she estimated several dozen in total. Aside from Wang Hu and his companions, more than half belonged to affluent families.
Among them were many young masters from wealthy families accompanied by their servants. In such freezing weather, these people were willing to endure the biting wind just to wait here. Gu Qingyun was eager to see what could possibly possess such immense allure.
After waiting for about half a shichen, someone shouted, unable to conceal their boundless delight:
“It’s here! It’s here!”
Gu Qingyun looked out across the river and saw bright lights blazing in the distance. Even from so far away, she could still make out its shape clearly.
It was a two-story pleasure boat. Leaning against the ship’s windows stood over twenty women, each dressed in alluring finery, their eyes brimming with seductive charm.
As the pleasure boat drew closer, the crowd on the bank grew increasingly agitated. Some even shuffled forward toward the water’s edge; had someone not noticed in time and dragged one man back, he likely would have plunged into the river already.
Yet as the vessel drew nearer, the people ashore fell completely silent. In an instant, everyone’s face stiffened uncannily into vacant, dull expressions, every single one of them resembling a marionette. Only their eyes burned with carnal lust and voracious greed.
Not far from Gu Qingyun, Wang Hu’s eyes glazed over. Together with several other constables, he moved forward alongside the crowd.
Seeing that these men were about to walk straight into the river, Gu Qingyun threw caution to the wind regarding her stealth. She dashed to the front to block them, shoving them back with her hands and slapping them across the face a few times for good measure.
Eerily enough, not one of them snapped awake. Looking at them, Gu Qingyun felt a surge of irritation. But to avoid alerting the enemy, she refrained from using spiritual power and instead boarded the pleasure boat’s deck right along with them.
The moment they stepped onto the deck, more than twenty women swarmed forward. Crooking their fingers enticingly at Constable Wang and the others, they led them away, and the men followed without resistance.
Just as Gu Qingyun was about to pull them back, a breathtakingly beautiful woman approached her. Dressed in blue-green gauze garments, with skin as fair as snow and captivating peach blossom eyes that could enrapture souls, she remarked:
“Oh? We have an unfamiliar face today.”
The woman appraised Gu Qingyun for a moment before concealing her smile behind her sleeve. “Oh my, turns out to be an unformed slip of a girl. This is no place for you. You’d best get off the boat early.”
Gu Qingyun’s face turned stern as she flashed her waist plaque. “Yamen night patrol. These men fall under my jurisdiction. Let them go.”
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