Early Spring Trip

Chapter 8

The young master's slender fingers gently stroked the wooden box, but he brought up another seemingly unrelated topic.

"Qianlang, did you notice anything unusual when no escort agency came to deliver gifts just now?"

"Yes. Several high-rise pavilions in front of my mansion have all been rented out. I roughly estimated that when the gifts were delivered, there were fourteen martial arts sects from both the north and south who were secretly watching."

"As expected, nothing in Cangzhou Prefecture can escape the eyes of Steward Cang," the young master said with a hint of approval. "But you still missed some clues."

"What does the young master mean..."

"In this martial world, have you ever heard of the Heavenly..." The young master paused, but did not finish his sentence. "Fine, let me put it this way: nowadays, I'm afraid most of the eyes in both the underworld and the legitimate world are on my Jun family."

After the young master finished speaking, he did not elaborate. Even the well-informed Steward Cang was somewhat puzzled at this moment.

"You can go out now. Let me have some peace and quiet."

Cang Qianlang turned and left.

In the secluded study, Young Master Ye An pondered for a long time before finally opening the nanmu wood box.

Chu Xia, carrying her dinner, had been waiting at the study door for quite some time.

There was no movement from the study for a long time. Through the window, one could see the young master sitting upright at the table, having been there for a full hour.

The master hadn't eaten, and neither had she. The early summer air was filled with enticing aromas, but the hunger only intensified her senses, and a feeling of desolation crept into her heart.

Disturbing the young master would mean being scolded to death, waiting would mean starving to death... Oh well, it's all the same whether I die or not. She cleared her throat and said directly, "Young master, it's time for dinner."

There was still no movement inside the house.

She then drawled out her words and called out again, "Young master, dinner..."

"Come in."

Chu Xia hurriedly pushed open the door and entered, only to see the young master putting away an object that looked like a scroll. He then said, "Put it down."

Another maid brought in water. The young master washed his hands and instructed Chuxia, "You should sit down and eat too."

"I'm not hungry," Chu Xia said righteously, though in her heart she was thinking... Once the young master finishes eating, she can slip away to the kitchen...

"Not hungry?" The young master gave her a half-smile. "You were so resentful just now, weren't you hungry?"

Well……

After the meal, the maid cleared away the dishes, and Chu Xia stayed in the study to serve him. Seeing that the young master was no longer as serious as before, she whispered, "Young master, do you have any free time now?"

"how?"

"If you have any free time, young master... you might as well talk to me to relieve your boredom."

Young Master Ye glanced at her and said, "I think you're not trying to amuse me, but rather just curious of your own, right?"

Chu Xia, having her thoughts exposed, stammered, "Young master... this servant was just curious."

The young master took a sip of tea but did not answer. Chu Xia dared not say anything more and simply stood aside quietly grinding ink.

After a while, a soft "clattering" sound came from outside the window, probably from a stray cat darting by.

The young master put down his pen and instructed Chu Xia, "You don't need to serve me here anymore. Go back and rest."

Chu Xia let out a soft "Ai" and yawned slightly. Just as she was about to leave, she heard the young master instruct, "Put my cloak on before you go."

Chu Xia was already a little sleepy, so she said "Oh" and turned to leave.

Once her footsteps had faded away, there was another "clatter" outside the window.

"Come in."

A figure slipped through the window, dressed in dark clothing, its face also hidden in the shadows.

The newcomer bowed to the young master and said in a deep voice, "Young master, Xuanwu has come here on summons."

"I didn't expect you to be the first to arrive." The young master raised his hand, indicating that there was no need for such formalities. "You must have been in Cangzhou City these past few days?"

"Yes," Xuanwu replied. "Young Master sent the Leopard Guards here for the Wumen Escort Agency to deliver gifts on behalf of someone, right?"

The young master suddenly smiled: "If I'm not mistaken, you should have already gathered information about this mysterious gift-giver, right?"

"Yes, without needing your instructions, young master, Xuanwu instructed his men to gather clues on the very first day the Nobody Escort Agency entered Cangzhou City."

"how?"

Xuanwu paused, looking somewhat dejected: "There are absolutely no clues."

The young master smiled knowingly: "Very good. Xuanwu, don't be discouraged, this is the best clue in itself."

"Young Master..."

The young master waved his hand, signaling him not to speak, and slowly said, "Let me ask you, if this mysterious person is an old friend of my Jun family, and is giving three generous gifts out of some friendship, then, Xuanwu, if you were the one giving the gifts, would you do it in such a grand manner?"

"Perhaps. You should know that such a grand display would greatly enhance the prestige of the Jun family."

"Then why would this person give a gift?"

"It's to... maintain our friendship."

"So, this is the first contradiction. If you want to maintain the relationship, why not leave no clues at all?" The young master paused, a flash of coldness crossing his eyes. "As for the second point... do you know what the gift-giver truly intended to give?"

"Beauty, fur coat, 'Ballad of Mountains and Rivers'."

"None of that. Why did the gift-giver send Wu Renqing from the Unmanned Escort Agency to personally escort the goods? It's because Wu Renqing and I have a close relationship. If he personally takes the task, I can't refuse. As for the beauty and the fur coat, they're just a smokescreen." A sharp glint flashed in the young master's dark eyes. "These two items are merely used to attract the attention of the entire city, whetting everyone's appetite so that everyone is scrambling to see the third item."

"So on the third day, 'Ballad of Mountains and Rivers' entered my residence, and in this world, those who should know and those who shouldn't know all found out." The young master smiled slightly: "So, the person who sent the gift brought a big problem."

"According to your analysis, young master, this... is actually a grand conspiracy?" Xuanwu was taken aback. "But young master, since you saw through it all along, why didn't you refuse those three generous gifts?"

Gongzi Ye'an smiled and said, "The tree may wish to be still, but the wind will not cease. The trouble that is meant to come will still come no matter how much you try to avoid it. Besides... if I don't accept these three generous gifts, how will I know what the other party will do next?"

"Does the young master intend to... strike after the enemy has made their move?"

Young Master Ye An stood up, paced a few steps by the window, and instructed, "These next few days will be tough for you. You must intercept all news of people entering or leaving Cangzhou, and report any unusual activity immediately."

Xuanwu replied solemnly, "Yes."

Just as Xuanwu was about to leave, Gongzi Ye'an suddenly smiled: "Qinglong, have you been listening enough outside the window?"

A soft chuckle came from outside the window, followed by a figure flashing in. It was a very handsome young man of seventeen or eighteen, who said lazily, "Young master, you're so long-winded. You've talked for so long, but you haven't gotten to the most important thing."

He glanced at Xuanwu again and said, "Xuanwu, you've been listening to the young master for half a day but haven't dared to ask a single question. You're really too reserved."

Young Master Ye An smiled and asked, "What do you want to ask?"

Qinglong rubbed his nose: "Young master, what exactly is this 'Ballad of Mountains and Rivers'?"

Xuanwu also raised its head, clearly showing great curiosity.

The young master chuckled, looking at the listless youth, and said, "I cannot be certain at this moment."

"Young master may not know, but I do." Azure Dragon smiled smugly, glancing deliberately at Black Tortoise. "That 'Ballad of Mountains and Rivers' is—"

Xuanwu couldn't help but ask, "What is it?"

Qinglong said smugly, "It's a treasure."

Xuanwu couldn't help but roll his eyes, but among the four leopard guards, Qinglong was the youngest, and the young master favored him, so he never held it against him.

The young master, however, asked with great patience, "How did you know?"

"It's because I returned to Shu Garden half an hour ago and encountered four groups of people who came to spy on this thing," Qinglong said with a smirk. "But don't worry, young master, they've all been dealt with."

Qinglong still had a childlike nature. After the young master praised him a few times, he said seriously, "Qinglong, you are in charge of guarding the Four Leopard Guards. Now, because of this 'Ballad of Mountains and Rivers,' there will only be more and more uninvited guests. From today onwards, you will lead your secret guards and be responsible for protecting the Jun Mansion. If anything goes wrong, you will no longer be a Leopard Guard."

The Azure Dragon and Black Tortoise accepted their orders without further ado and left.

That night, the young master rested peacefully at Linjiang Pavilion.

When he stepped into Linjiang Pavilion, Chu Xia had already gone to sleep.

When the hour of Chou (1-3 AM) arrived, Gongzi Ye'an woke up on his own. After a while, he indeed heard some slight noises outside.

It seems... another nightmare in early summer.

He put on his clothes and got up, sitting down by her bedside as usual. Just as he reached out to touch her shoulder, he heard a tinkling sound outside.

The young master's eyes were slightly cool, but he did not wake Chu Xia. He simply stood up, put his hands behind his back, and faced the glass window.

The moonlight outside the window was dim, and thick clouds obscured all light.

Another ding-dong.

A very thin, short arrow shot in from outside the house, aiming precisely at the young master's brow.

It came with tremendous speed, an unparalleled speed that Young Master Ye An had never seen before, and in no time, it reached the tip of his nose.

With a flick of his finger, the young master sent the short arrow silently falling to the ground.

Even after the short arrows had been knocked down, the young master did not relax. Sure enough, several more short arrows followed, all shooting in from different angles, leaving no room for evasion.

Just as the young master was about to make a move, he suddenly heard Chu Xia scream behind him. The scream was very loud, indicating that her nightmare was getting worse.

A thought struck him, and without regard for anything else, he turned to check. He only managed to knock down three arrows in time. With the last one remaining, he bent down and embraced Chu Xia, but the hidden weapon just grazed past his ear and struck the wall with a clang, its fletching still trembling.

“Early summer…I’m dreaming…” The young master looked into her open eyes and gently comforted her, “Don’t be afraid, it’s just a dream.”

No more hidden weapons came from outside the window. Chu Xia stared at the young master for a while in a daze. Perhaps she really thought she was dreaming, so she obediently closed her eyes again.

Only when her breathing gradually calmed did the young master put her down, push open the door, and leave the pavilion.

A dark shadow swung down from the eaves of Linjiang Pavilion, revealing Qinglong standing in the darkness, his tone full of annoyance: "Young Master."

"Is this your defense?" Young Master Ye An said coldly. "If I hadn't woken up just now, another person in the Jun family would have died in vain."

Qinglong lowered his head and said in a low voice, "Young Master... the last batch of Qinglong's secret guards will arrive at dawn. Originally, I thought the safest place in this mansion would be around you, so I planned to place the defenses elsewhere first... who knew... who knew... that there is a girl in your pavilion who doesn't know martial arts, and she can't even avoid the scouting arrows..."

“I punish you for one sentence, and you offer ten explanations in response.” The young master rubbed his temples and said in a low voice, “You must not be so careless in the future.”

"If any more villains dare to intrude here, I will not be called Azure Dragon." Azure Dragon felt increasingly humiliated, and after saying this fiercely, he disappeared.

"Azure Dragon—" the young master called out quietly.

As expected, Qinglong hung halfway upside down from the eaves again and said softly, "Young master, is there anything else?"

The young master tossed him an extremely fine silk thread and a string of bells, and calmly said, "Take a look at your opponent this time."

Snow began to fall from the horizon, a few cool flakes landing on Qinglong's face. He felt a chill and blurted out, "Tiangang?"

The wind and snow howled, causing the young master's sleeves to flutter. He gazed indifferently into the distance and murmured, "Yes."