"Just do it the way it was before."
The waiter responded and left. I looked around and felt the place looked familiar. Among the passersby were several brightly dressed and beautiful women with alluring and flamboyant smiles on their faces. Suddenly, it dawned on me—wasn't this the brothel street I'd visited during the day? I hadn't expected it to be so bustling at night.
The waiter quickly brought over various braised dishes, and while setting the table, he said, "Third Brother, do you want to hear the latest top-secret news?"
Xiao Nuo didn't say anything, but handed over the silver directly. The shopkeeper immediately beamed and bent down to whisper, "I heard that Miss Yu had an accident."
My eyes twitched – how did he know about something that just happened?
Xiao Nuo's expression remained unchanged as she asked softly, "What happened?"
"She became pregnant before marriage and refused to reveal who her lover was. After being severely beaten by Doctor Yu, she ran away from home."
I couldn't help but ask, "How did you know?"
The waiter glanced at me sideways, smiled without saying anything, and walked away after setting out the dishes.
“Zhang the Noodle Master is the most well-informed person in the entire Baili Town. He ensures the reliability of every piece of information, but he will never tell you its source.” Xiao Nuo handed me a pair of bamboo chopsticks and said as if nothing had happened, “The braised dishes here are exceptional, want to try some?”
I watched as Uncle Zhang, the owner of the restaurant, busily cooked noodles. He held up a pair of chopsticks several feet long and plunged them into the pot. The noodles immediately rolled smoothly onto the chopsticks and fell neatly into the bowl. His series of movements were so clean and efficient that they were breathtaking.
Who would have thought that such an inconspicuous little stall would be hiding such a hidden master?
Uncle Zhang personally brought over two bowls of noodles. The light shone on his face, and I was stunned for a moment—I had never seen such an ugly and horrifying face in my life. A dark brown, centipede-like scar ran diagonally across his face, indescribably ferocious and terrifying, making one never want to look at him a second time.
Fortunately, this old man with an ugly face had a very kind look in his eyes. He sat down next to Xiao Nuo with a smile and said, "What brings you here today?"
"I'm asking you about someone." Xiao Nuo didn't stand on ceremony and went straight to the point, "Black Tiger."
Uncle Zhang looked at him quietly for a while before saying, "When Black Tiger came to Baili Town two years ago, he was just a penniless hoodlum. Because he was ruthless and brave enough to fight, he quickly climbed up to Brother Biao, the town's boss at the time. Three months later, he killed Brother Biao and took his place. He then started a big business selling cold medicine powder, and has made a considerable fortune in the past year or so. Although he is fierce and domineering, he is very generous to his underlings, so he is very popular."
Xiao Nuo frowned and pondered, "So, the rise of the Cold Clothes Powder industry started after he took power? He's an outsider, yet he managed to launch an internal coup and become the leader in just three months. He's really quite capable."
I couldn't help but frown. Such a capable person was trembling and pale with fear when Xiao Mo asked him a question. If he wasn't good at pretending, then he must have had other plans.
Uncle Zhang suddenly chuckled a few times and said leisurely, "Why is Xiao San confused? In Baili Town, no matter how capable you are, if you don't have anyone backing you up, you'll find it hard to put your skills to use..."
Suddenly, the chopsticks in Xiao Nuo's hand broke in two. She immediately stood up, grabbed my hand, and said, "Sister, let's go!"
Uncle Zhang called out from behind, "Little San, Little San... Hey, kid, you're just running away without paying again..."
All the way, Xiao Nuo just pulled me along quickly. From my angle, his lips were tightly pursed, his gaze cold and his expression displeased. I rarely saw him so serious. Could it be that he had already guessed who the "someone behind" that Uncle Zhang had hinted at was?
After passing through several alleys, the sky grew darker, and the previous liveliness and brightness were gone. A few lanterns swayed in the evening breeze, casting long shadows of us, along with the cool moonlight, onto the bluestone pavement. Suddenly, that feeling of unease from before returned.
I am an orphan and was adopted by my master when I was young. My master is quiet by nature and will not express her care even if she cares for me. Therefore, I always feel a sense of distance from her, as if I see her from afar, immersed in her own space, and I can't touch her at all.
Xiao Zuo, the person I've always wanted to meet, is indeed as wise and affectionate as the legends say, perhaps even more so. However, looking at him is like gazing at the sun in the sky, a divine mountain I can never reach.
Only Xiao Nuo, the first person I met upon arriving in Baili City, with his radiant smile and bright eyes, was truly there before me. Even knowing it was just a mask, I still felt a deep connection with him. He understood me without me even saying a word. Was this understanding and knowledge so profound a blessing or a curse for me?
Especially looking at his profile like this, seeing a side of him I'd never seen before, it suddenly dawned on me that I don't really know him. How terrifying it is to let someone I don't know know me so well…
Xiao Nuo stopped at the corner of an alley. I quickly composed myself and looked closely. It was Puppet Alley, where Black Tiger lived. He winked at me, and I understood. I used my lightness skill to leap onto the roof. As I turned my head to look back down the wall, I heard a voice in my left ear say, "I'm here."
I turned my head, and sure enough, Xiao Nuo was right beside me—how did he get up here? I hadn't heard a sound at all!
It seems he not only concealed his wisdom but also his martial arts skills. You, Xiao Nuo, I'll settle this score with you sooner or later! When I win the bet with Xiao Zuo, the expression on this young master's face will surely be quite a sight.
"What are you laughing at?" A hint of amusement flashed in Xiao Nuo's eyes. It was rare for him to be unable to guess what I was thinking, so I raised my eyebrows and replied, "I won't tell you." With that, I lightly touched the ground with my toes and leaped towards Black Tiger's house.
Xiao Nuo had no choice but to follow behind me. We rode the wind, avoiding the patrolling guards, and almost simultaneously stepped onto the roof of the main house. I touched the roof tiles; they were very sturdy and difficult to lift. Xiao Nuo glanced around, then gestured to the large locust trees beside the house. I then silently slid down the back wall and disappeared into the shade of the trees. When I was hidden and looked up at the roof, Xiao Nuo was gone, nowhere to be found.
Just then, a low voice came from inside the room: "Boss, this is last month's account. More and more people are buying the Cold Relief Powder. We should continue to recruit people to refine the medicine and expand the scale..."
Another voice interrupted him, saying, "Let's put the cold medicine aside for now and talk about it after things calm down." I recognized the voice as Black Tiger's. Completely different from his fearful and timid demeanor in the main hall of the Xiao residence, he was calm and collected, even exuding an air of authority without anger. It was clear from his voice that he was someone accustomed to giving orders.
The man who had spoken earlier said, "Did the eldest young master say something? Surely he wouldn't just stop us from selling winter medicine in town, would he? Why don't we go and talk to Seventh Brother and ask him to make an exception?"
Black Tiger interrupted him again: "In short, I have my own plan for this matter, so don't interfere."
"Yes. Then I'll head out first..." As the door opened, a man who looked to be about fifty years old, resembling an accountant, came out carrying an account book.
When I caught sight of another dark figure following behind him, I no longer hesitated and followed.
The accountant, humming a tune, walked a long way before finally pushing open the door to a side room and going inside. The moment he entered and lit the candle on the table, I darted forward, drew my dagger, and pressed it against the back of his neck, shouting, "Don't scream! If you scream, I'll kill you!"
The accountant was startled by me, and the ledger in his hand fell to the ground with a thud. Xiao Nuo reached out, picked up the ledger, flipped through it a few times, and clicked his tongue, saying, "Wow, you made so much money in just one month. It seems that the business of Hanfu San is really profitable."
The accountant didn't dare turn around to look at us, and could only stammer, "You, you are, who are you? Do you know that this is Black Tiger's territory? How dare you, how dare you..."
My hand sank, and the cold blade silenced him instantly.
Xiao Nuo said, "Actually, we don't mean any harm. We just want to ask you a few questions. As long as you answer honestly, we guarantee you'll be fine."
"W-what's the problem?"
"First, how many men does Black Tiger have under his command?"
“Hey, our boss has countless men under his command, who in the whole town isn’t afraid of us…” I pressed my hand down again, and the accountant immediately obediently replied, “There are a total of three hundred and sixty people on the register.”
Xiao Nuo smiled and said, "An answer should be this concise and clear. Second, how many people are actually responsible for selling the Cold Clothes Powder?"
There are probably more than thirty.
"So little?" Xiao Nuo squinted.
The accountant argued, "How big can this Baili Town be? It can be sold by just over thirty people. The problem is the sourcing and preparation of the goods; that would require more manpower."
"So, does Black Tiger sell the Cold-Resting Powder himself?"
"How could that be? Our boss just needs to sit there and collect the money. Why would he need to sell that stuff himself?"
"One last question, who is Seventh Brother?"
"Seventh Brother is Seventh Brother... that's what I call the Boss anyway."
Xiao Nuo glanced at me and smiled, "Excellent, you're very cooperative. When I'm in this line of work, you're welcome to be my accountant." With that, he chopped at the back of Xiao Nuo's neck, knocking him unconscious.
As we walked out of Puppet Alley, the moon was already high in the sky. I spoke first: "If he wasn't lying, then it must be Black Tiger who's lying?"
Xiao Nuo nodded: "I was wondering the same thing. Logically speaking, even if Sister Youli came to Baili Town to buy the Cold Clothes Powder, it shouldn't be Black Tiger's place to sell it to her personally. Since Black Tiger has never seen her, why did he admit it to Big Brother?"
“If he’s lying, it must be to cover up an even more unspeakable secret.” I turned my head, looked into his eyes, and said, word by word, “I really want to know, who is Seventh Brother? According to the accountant, this person not only has a lot of influence in Baili City, but he is also inextricably linked to Black Tiger’s ability to monopolize the Cold Relief Powder business in Baili Town. In that case, finding this big shot hidden behind the scenes is very likely the key to solving the case.”
Xiao Nuo was silent for a moment, then a strange expression appeared on her face. She looked at me with a half-smile and slowly said, "Sister, this Seventh Brother is clearly you, so why are you asking me who he is?"
———————————————————————————————————————
Ugh, this is so weird!
What does Xiao Nuonuo mean by that?
Feng MM is Seventh Brother? No way!!!
Does the butler really not have given up yet?
...
Knowing what everyone's going to say, I'll just shout it out for you all... Wahahaha, I'm laughing triumphantly, laughing triumphantly (countless bricks are thrown at me: Stealing lines, huh? Fine, we won't reply, let's see if you're still laughing triumphantly, hmph!)
Uh, well, everyone, I know I'm terrible at this, feel free to criticize me all you want, but please reply! Even if you don't give me points, I'll be happy to leave a few words; your replies are my motivation for posting... Does this sound familiar? Yeah, I've seen many authors say this, so I couldn't resist following the trend... Huh? You're going to criticize me for this too? No way!
Running away with their heads in their hands...
A Scheme Within a Scheme
"Sister, this Seventh Brother is clearly you, why are you asking me who he is?"
Feng Chenxi paused for a moment, then said, "You mean I'm Seventh Brother?"
“Yes.” Xiao Nuo smiled at her. “Am I wrong?”
Feng Chenxi rolled her eyes at him and said irritably, "If I were, I should call you Seventh Sister, not Seventh Brother."
"Who said that?" Xiao Nuo said leisurely. "Who said that someone called Seventh Brother must be a man? He could also be a woman."
The moonlight, as bright as silver, poured down from the sky, illuminating his eyebrows and eyes, making him indescribably handsome and refined, yet without a trace of joking.
He doubted her? He actually, really doubted her!
At this thought, an indescribable, strange feeling suddenly welled up in Feng Chenxi's heart, making her extremely uncomfortable. Even her lips involuntarily tightened. She stared at him coldly for a long while before saying, "If you're joking, then I'm sorry, I don't think this joke is funny. If you really suspect that I am that Seventh Brother, then—may I suspect that you are the real Seventh Brother?"
Of course, she was just saying it in anger. She knew better than anyone that neither she nor Xiao Nuo could be that Seventh Brother.
She said that simply to let Xiao Nuo experience what it's like to be suspected without cause.
But to everyone's surprise, as soon as he finished speaking, Xiao Nuo generously replied, "Of course! Seventh Brother is me, and I am Seventh Brother. It's not impossible."
"Xiao Nuo!" Feng Chenxi suddenly shouted, "Are you ever going to stop? One minute you say I'm the Seventh Brother, the next you say you're the Seventh Brother. What are you up to? What do you mean by this?"
She was usually a very patient person, and from childhood to adulthood, very few people could make her angry. She had almost never been driven to such a state of fury as this. But now, Xiao Nuo's suspicion and his nonchalance truly made her feel incredibly embarrassed and infuriated.
As soon as she got angry, Xiao Nuo immediately cried out in protest: "Sister, can't you be reasonable? You're unhappy when I say you're the Seventh Brother, so I'll say I'm the Seventh Brother, but you're still unhappy..." She shook her head as she spoke, "Sigh, women are just women, they're unreasonable."
Feng Chenxi laughed in exasperation, saying repeatedly, "Fine, fine, I'm being unreasonable, you're the most reasonable, okay?"
After speaking, she turned to leave, but Xiao Nuo grabbed her sleeve tightly: "Sister, don't go!"
"Why aren't you leaving?" Feng Chenxi stubbornly refused to turn around and look at him, coldly saying, "Do you want me to stay here and listen to your nonsense until dawn?"
"No need until dawn," Xiao Nuo replied with a grin. "It'll be done in a little while."
Feng Chenxi sneered, unwilling to say anything more, and even less willing to engage in any further entanglement with him. She simply stood there with her head down, locked in a stalemate with him.
A moment later, Xiao Nuo was the first to surrender, loosening his grip and muttering, "Alright, alright, if you want to leave, then leave. I'll venture into the dragon's den and tiger's lair by myself."
Feng Chenxi pretended not to hear anything, smoothed out the wrinkled sleeves he had been pinching, and walked forward on her own. After a few steps, she realized that he really hadn't followed her, and her heart tightened. She tried to hold back, but couldn't feel at ease. She turned around and saw Xiao Nuo squatting under a tree next to the high wall, his head in his hands. The shadows of the tree swayed, casting dappled patterns on his body, making him look lonely and pitiful.
Feng Chenxi gritted her teeth, telling herself this was a one-time thing and she wouldn't do it again, so she went back and asked, suppressing her anger, "Are you planning to sleep here?"
Xiao Nuo raised her head and looked at her with a wronged expression, saying, "I'm about to venture into a den of dragons and tigers, and I might even lose my life. How can I possibly sleep?"
Feng Chenxi was both annoyed and amused. She looked around and said, "Where is the dragon's den? Where is the tiger's lair? I can't see either of them."
“Right there.” Xiao Nuo raised her right thumb and gestured towards the high wall behind her.
Inside the high walls was Black Tiger's residence.
Feng Chenxi glared at him and said, "This is the 'dragon's den and tiger's lair' you were talking about? Have you forgotten that we just strolled around inside unscathed..."
Before he could finish speaking, a thought suddenly struck him, and he exclaimed in surprise, "Oh! Something's not right!"
Xiao Nuo slowly stood up, looking at her calmly and said, "Sister, do you also feel that something is wrong?"