Translated by Uhei and edited by Cyrrene.
The Eastern City of Yunguan is the area where wealthy merchants gathered, most of which are mansions with single-family houses, not on par with the grandeur of the officials’ residences, but at least it looked plenty wealthy to the eye.
Luo Wei walked into one of the mansions.
“Master,” the owner of the mansion greeted him; it was Uncle Hong from Ye Xiu’s former stockade. Now Jifeng Fort has become an escort bureau, and just within these few years, it has already made a lot of money. In the eyes of outsiders, Uncle Hong was already a wealthy man with a successful career. However, Uncle Hong glanced at Luo Wei who was standing in front of him, the real owner of the Jifeng Escort Bureau was Luo Wei.
“Where’s the person?” Luo Wei looked at the house and the walkways around the fake mountain1—it was all quite elegant.
“In the cell,” Uncle Hong said, “Young Master, please come with me.”
Luo Wei followed behind Uncle Hong, and only then did he ask, “Uncle Hong, how have you been?”
“Thanks to the Young Master for his concern,” Turning to Luo Wei, he smiled and said, “This little old man ‘s body has always been tough.”
“Did that person confess anything?” Luo Wei asked again. When dealing with such a sophisticated person as Uncle Hong, Luo Wei felt saying a single polite word was enough.
“This person is from Mingjian Villa,” said Uncle Hong, “and on his person is the waist-token of Mingjian Villa.”
“Was anything else confessed?”
“Only said that his Second Highness asked him to tell his family’s Villa Master that everything was fine, and tell his family’s Villa Master not to worry.”
Luo Wei stopped in his tracks, “His Second Highness asked him to pass on words like that?”
Hong Shu said: “I do not believe it either, but this person doesn’t look like he’s lying.”
The prison cell is built underground, and one would have to walk down hundreds of stone steps to reach it.
“This is it?” Luo Wei stood at the door to the cell. The stone door was closed, but the stench of blood and burnt meat still came from the crack of the door.
“This man’s tight-lipped,” Uncle Hong thought that Luo Wei was simply afraid of the goriness, and explained to Luo Wei, “You can’t pry his mouth open without torture.”
“Open the door,” Luo Wei said.
The messenger from Mingjian Villa, who had just taken orders from Long Xuan not long ago, was now tied to a high rack. After being tortured, one could not find a piece of good skin on this person’s body and he was holding onto his last breath.
“Aren’t people in the Jianghu capable of enduring punishment?” Luo Wei looked at the messenger and asked Uncle Hong, “Why is this person beaten to this state?”
“If we destroy his kungfu first, then this person wouldn’t be able to stand it,” said Uncle Hong in an old-fashioned manner.
Wei Lan at the back erupted in goosebumps. What kind of prison was this, it is clearly a torture chamber with all kinds of torture tools.
“Wake him up,” Luo Wei stepped back and stood down.
A basin of ice water was poured over the messager, and he was startled awake by the basin of ice water.
“What word does his Second Highness want you to take to Villa Master Luo?” Luo Wei asked when he saw that the man was awake.
The messenger couldn’t lift his head, so he had to effortfully roll his eyes upward.
“You don’t know me, it’s useless to look,” Luo Wei said, “Answer my question.”
“You are the third young master Luo,” Yet the messenger recognized Luo Wei after taking a single look at him.
“Have you seen me?” Luo Wei asked.
“Capable of catching,” the messenger said with difficulty, and would take a break when he said a few words, “me in Yunguan, except, except for the third son, there is no one else.”
“You are not stupid,” Luo Wei said: “What did his Second Highness say to you?”
“Just say, everything is fine.”
“Just this sentence?”
“Everything, wait for him to return to the capital and then it can be re-discussed.”
Luo Wei paced back and forth in front of the messenger. After taking a few steps, he stopped and asked, “When you left, did His Highness not remind you to be more careful?”
“He said so,” said the messenger.
Luo Wei turned around suddenly and walked out of the cell quickly.
“Young master,” Uncle Hong followed closely behind Luo Wei, “is there something wrong?”
“This person can’t be kept, melt the body for me.” Luo Wei told Uncle Hong.
“What?” Uncle Hong immediately said, “We got caught in a trap?”
“Do things quickly, I’ll go out through the back door,” Luo Wei said, “Watch your subordinates’ tongues, don’t say I’ve been here.”
“Yes,” Uncle Hong went back to the cell again.
“Let’s go,” Luo Wei said to Wei Lan.
Luo Wei hurried out of the mansion through the corner gate, and before he and Wei Lan could walk out of this street, they heard loud voices coming from Uncle Hong’s mansion. The two of them sat atop the horses and looked over, and saw that there were people holding torches up high, and the flames were almost connected into a long winding line.
“Young master?” Wei Lan asked Luo Wei hurriedly, not knowing what happened.
“Let’s go first,” Luo Wei turned the horse around, cracking the whip and rushing to the west end of the street.
Uncle Hong rushed to the gate and saw that the leading general was someone from the Yunguan Lieutenant’s residence, the one who usually followed Vice-Commander Chang Ling around, “General Zhao,” Uncle Hong walked in front of the general, bowed and smiled. “What do you want here today?”
“I didn’t have any other way,” General Zhao had come here with great reluctance. In Yunguan, who didn’t know that this old man Hong was from the Commander General’s wife’s maiden family? “The people from the Second Highness,” General Zhao pointed to a few guard-like people standing not far from him, “Said that one of the guards under his Second Highness disappeared, and someone saw that it was a man from your3 old escort bureau who nabbed him.”
“Nothing like that happened ah,” Uncle Hong immediately called out as if suffering great injustice, “Isn’t this someone wanting to make trouble for an old man like me?! I’m just a runner for an escort bureau, dare I stir trouble with a prince or imperial grandson? I’ve lived to such an old age, would I only think of seeking death today?”
“You don’t need to be anxious,” General Zhao pulled Uncle Hong aside and said, “I don’t believe this is something you would do, but those people don’t agree ah. Look, why don’t we do it this way? You go find your wife, and I’ll be waiting here?”
“What time is it?” Uncle Hong said, “If I run to find my wife right now, haven’t I lived enough?”
“Have you finished talking?” Long Xuan’s bodyguard came over and said impatiently, “Are you trying to delay time?”
“Ol’ master guard,” General Zhao was displeased with these guards. If his Vice-Commander hadn’t told him to listen to these instructions, would he come here to offend people instead of going to sleep at night? “We always have to make things clear to the person involved, right?”
“The way I see it, you guys are trying to delay the time so that you can destroy the corpse and any traces?”
“You!”
“No, no,” Uncle Hong stopped General Zhao who was about to throw a fit and said to the guard: “No such thing, we are all ordinary commoners here, and we can’t afford to say that.”
“Are you a commoner ?” The guard said.
“What can this little old man be if he is not a commoner?” Uncle Hong had a smile on his face. “Did milord2 official misunderstand this little old man?”
“When can we search?” The guard asked General Zhao. Speaking to Uncle Hong, seemed to be detrimental to his standing.
General Zhao gave Uncle Hong a troubled look.
“Grandpa,” A little girl ran out of the house, and when she saw so many people outside the door, she was so frightened that she froze in place and didn’t dare to move.
“Milord officials, please,” Uncle Hong invited General Zhao and others to enter, while pulling the little girl to his side, saying, “Don’t be afraid, girl, these master officials are just going into the residence to find someone.”
Long Xuan’s guards were the first to enter the courtyard.
“It’s all done,” the little girl whispered to Uncle Hong.
“It’s none of your business here, go back to your room,” Uncle Hong said aloud to the little maiden, then walked to General Zhao’s side. Kidnapping the prince’s bodyguard, that was a great crime worthy of losing one’s head. As Uncle Hong was chatting with General Zhao, he was thankful that Luo Wei was vigilant.
1.假山 – Large pointed, free-standing rock that rich people put in their rock gardens. In their courtyards. For elegance.
2. 官爷 – respectful address for an official.
3. 您 – respectful form of “you”.