Хуанчэн Глубокий - Глава 5
Wang Meiren smiled and said, "Miss Yun, please don't overthink it. This matter is quite tricky. To be on the safe side, the buyer is willing to offer double the reward and would like to ask the two experts to join forces to ensure a successful strike."
Qi Mo looked quite interested and said, "Oh? I'd like to hear more about it?"
Lady Wang smiled, took out a scroll from her bosom, unfolded it on the table, and said, "Please take a look, both of you."
Yun Ran looked at it as instructed and saw a huge aerial view of the mansion on the scroll. The layout of each courtyard was clearly shown, and detailed annotations were made in tiny characters on the side.
Qi Mo glanced down and his expression changed slightly. He said in a low voice, "The Marquis of Chang Le's residence?"
Wang Meiren said, "That's right. The Chang Le Marquis's mansion is heavily guarded all year round. It is extremely dangerous to sneak into the mansion to accomplish this task. Therefore, the buyer is willing to pay a lot of money. After the task is completed, both Master Qi and Miss Yun will receive a reward of 100,000 gold coins."
Upon hearing this, Yun Ran's eyes flashed, and she was quite tempted.
A strange emotion flashed across Qi Mo's eyes. He lowered his eyelids slightly and asked calmly, "Is the mission to assassinate Marquis Chang Le?"
Wang Meiren smiled and said, "No, this mission is not to kill, but to steal treasure." He chuckled and continued, "Everyone knows that Marquis Qin Changling of Changle is the richest man in the world, and this Marquis is also famous for his love of collecting rare treasures. I heard that he has built a secret room in his mansion, which contains many priceless treasures. As far as I know, Marquis Qin recently acquired a rare treasure, the ancient Langhuan Jade Disc. This treasure is currently in the secret room of Marquis Qin's mansion, so I will have to trouble you two to go and retrieve it."
Yun Ran looked at the scroll on the table and said calmly, "The location of that secret room is not marked on the map."
Wang Meiren smiled wryly and said, "I have exhausted all my efforts and can only find out the terrain and guard distribution of the Yongle Marquis's residence. I have drawn this map for you two to refer to. As for the location of the secret room, I cannot find out no matter what. You two can only act according to the circumstances."
Qi Mo reached out and took the scroll, putting it into his pocket. He turned to Yun Ran and smiled, "I've heard that quite a few people have tried to sneak into the Marquis of Chang Le's mansion to steal treasures, but none of them have ever returned. I wonder if Miss Yun has the courage to go with me to the mansion to investigate and steal the Langhuan Jade Disc?"
Yun Ran said calmly, "Why does Chief Qi have to provoke me with such words? It's fine to join forces with you, but I hope that Chief Qi will show mercy this time and not try to frame Yun Ran again."
Wang Meiren's eyes flickered, and she smiled ambiguously: "So the two of you are old acquaintances. That's even better. With the two of you working together, you'll surely cooperate seamlessly and achieve great success. Sect Leader Qi, I'll have someone arrange your accommodations right away. You and Miss Yun will probably be sharing a room?"
Qi Mo looked at Yun Ran with a smile in his eyes. Yun Ran snorted, ignored the two of them, and walked straight out the door with a stern face.
As Yun Ran stepped out of the room, she saw the maid who had led the way earlier waiting at the door with a smile. The maid smiled sweetly at her and said, "My young master loves to joke with people. Please ignore him and come with me."
After saying that, she led the way and led Yun Ran to a quiet and elegant little house in the backyard. She turned around and smiled and said, "My name is Tian'er. This place was built for me by the young master. Although it is a bit remote, no idle people will come to disturb us. If you don't mind, please stay here for the next few days."
Seeing the exquisite construction of the small house, Yunran knew that a lot of thought had been put into it. Hearing the warm tone in her voice when she mentioned Consort Wang, she figured that this girl was no ordinary servant. So she nodded and smiled, "Thank you, Miss."
Tian'er seemed to have a great liking for Yun Ran. She was busy tidying up the room and preparing hot water and a change of clothes. When she saw Yun Ran finish washing up and change into women's clothes, her eyes lit up and she smiled mischievously, saying, "Miss Yun, with such a appearance, we should pay more attention to her when she walks around in our Lanxiang Pavilion."
Seeing her fair complexion, bright and clear eyes, and the two dimples on her cheeks that were particularly charming when she smiled, Yun Ran couldn't help but laugh and say, "With such a beautiful appearance as Miss Tian'er, how can your young master be at ease letting her walk around freely in Lanxiang Pavilion?"
Sweetie blushed, but her eyes revealed a sweet look. She whispered, "Young Master has been very kind to me. In this Fragrant Pavilion, no one dares to be rude to Sweetie."
When Yunran saw that when she was cleaning up the washbasin, she lifted her sleeve to reveal a small red mark on her forearm, and she was secretly surprised: it seems that Consort Wang really has a special feeling for this girl, Tian'er.
The next day, Yun Ran changed into men's clothing and left Lanxiang Pavilion, strolling along the west side of the city to the outside of the Marquis of Changle's residence. He saw that the entire mansion occupied a vast area, appearing magnificent and orderly from the outside. The main gate was tightly closed, with two enormous stone lions sitting imposingly before it, exuding an air of solemnity.
Yun Ran waited quietly in a secluded spot by the street for a while, and noticed that several people passed by the Marquis's mansion from time to time. These people walked with heavy steps, landed silently, and had a wary look in their eyes. They were undoubtedly the guards hired by the Marquis's mansion.
She watched for a moment, but fearing to attract attention, she didn't dare linger and quietly left.
Since returning to Lanxiang Pavilion, Yunran has stayed indoors every day, only chatting with Tian'er in her room. Tian'er is cheerful and straightforward. Although she is not skilled in martial arts, she has been following Consort Wang for a long time and knows a lot about the affairs of the martial arts world. The two get along quite well.
Two more days passed, and Yun Ran saw that Qi Mo still hadn't shown up. Remembering that the map of the Marquis's residence was in his possession, she had no choice but to go to his residence herself to look for him.
She left the backyard and stepped into the garden, when she heard the laughter of a man and a woman. She quickly stopped, but it was too late to avoid them. She saw a young man in a brocade robe and jade belt embracing a woman and being intimate with her behind the flowers.
The woman was alluring, half-naked, writhing and moaning in the young man's arms. When she saw Yun Ran, she merely glanced up, not caring at all, and chuckled as she tried to continue. However, the man was displeased to see someone interrupting him. His face darkened, and he snorted, "How dare you!"
Yun Ran blushed slightly and turned to leave the garden, but the man pushed the woman in his arms away and shouted sharply, "Stop!" He stood up and leaped up, already behind Yun Ran, and grabbed at her left arm.
Yun Ran did not want to reveal her martial arts skills, so she could only slightly turn her body to avoid it. Then she heard the sound of tearing cloth. A piece of her left sleeve had been torn off by the man, revealing her forearm.
The young man, who had been furious, paused when he saw the scarlet mark on Yun Ran's fair and smooth forearm. His voice softened slightly as he asked, "How old are you? What's your name?"
Yun Ran lowered her head and remained silent. The man thought she was shy and smiled. He slowly walked around to Yun Ran's front. When he saw her face, his heart stirred. He turned back to the half-naked woman and ordered, "You can leave now. You don't need to serve me here."
The woman responded and left, leaving only Yun Ran and the young man in the large garden.
Yun Ran had a bad feeling. She glanced at him and saw that the man was very handsome, but his face was unusually pale and his eyes held a hint of ferocity.
His eyes were fixed on Yun Ran's face. When he saw Yun Ran timidly raise her eyes, her bright eyes shimmering like rippling water, his heart fluttered. His smile deepened, and he lowered his head to her ear, asking in a low voice, "Why aren't you answering? Are you a new girl at Lanxiang Pavilion?"
Yun Ran hurriedly took two steps back. The man raised his eyebrows slightly and said with a smile, "Since you've ruined my plans, then you'll have to pay for it with your own body." As he spoke, he reached out and put his arm around her shoulder.
Yun Ran frowned, a murderous intent stirring within her. She slowly moved her hand toward the soft sword at her waist, when she heard someone call out urgently, "Young Marquis."
The young man snorted and turned to look. He saw Wang Meiren approaching with a smile and a man in tow. She said with a smile, "My younger sister is young and ignorant and offended the young marquis. I apologize on her behalf."
Seeing Qi Mo following behind Wang Meiren with a calm expression, but secretly giving her a wink, Yun Ran quickly lowered her head and hid behind the two of them.
The young man's expression darkened slightly, and he frowned, saying, "Manager Wang, is this woman your sister?"
Lady Wang coughed and smiled, "It is indeed my younger sister. I suppose she was just playing around and wandered around in this garden, which has disturbed the young marquis. I hope the young marquis will forgive her."
The young marquis gave a light snort, and Consort Wang turned to Yun Ran and said, "Since the young marquis has already forgiven your unintentional mistake, why don't you hurry back to your room?"
Yun Ran lowered her head and left the garden, walking briskly towards the backyard. The young man stared at her graceful back, but his gaze was somewhat gloomy.
☆.Beauty is sad and passed away
Yun Ran returned to her room and waited for a while before Qi Mo arrived.
Seeing Yun Ran's indignant expression, he smiled and said, "Fortunately, Wanwan found Lady Wang in time, otherwise we would have almost caused a big mess."
Yun Ran snorted and asked coldly, "Who is that person?"
Qi Mo said, "Qin Luo, the second son of the Marquis of Yongle." He looked down at the mark on Yun Ran's arm and smiled faintly. "I heard that this young marquis is very strict with his family, but he is arrogant and domineering outside and has a bad character. You are quite unlucky to have offended him this time."
Yun Ran recalled that it was Qi Mo who instructed A Luo to apply the virginity mark to her, which had already caused her trouble twice. She couldn't help but feel resentful and asked indifferently, "The head of the Qi family has been missing these past few days. I suppose he's trying to find out the location of that secret room?"
Qi Mo's eyes flickered, and he slowly said, "You could say that..."
Before he could finish speaking, a soft laugh came from outside the door, followed by a delicate female voice: "So this is where Master Qi is. I've been looking for you for a long time." A fragrant breeze wafted by, and a woman entered the room.
Yun Ran recognized her as the woman who had been intimate with Qin Luo in the garden. She had changed into a red dress, washed off her makeup, and had her hair in a loose bun. She looked languid and less alluring than before, but possessed a different kind of charm and allure.
When Qi Mo saw the woman, his eyes lit up with a smile. He said, "I was just talking to Miss Yun about Wanwan, and here you are. Do you have some kind of super hearing?"
Wanwan's beautiful eyes darted around, and she asked with a charming laugh, "What, Master Qi, are you talking about me behind my back?"
Qi Mo smiled and said, "I wouldn't dare. Wanwan just helped deliver the message, and I was just saying that I should thank her properly."
Wanwan smiled, glanced at him, and slowly asked, "So, how does Master Qi plan to thank me?"
Qi Mo coughed, glanced at Yun Ran, but didn't answer. Wanwan smiled charmingly and stepped forward, taking his arm and saying softly, "Why don't we go to Wanwan's room now and continue the conversation we didn't finish last night?"
Yun Ran watched the two flirting with cold eyes from the side, and suddenly said, "Since Chief Qi has things to do, please do as you please. Just leave that scroll behind."
Qi Mo raised an eyebrow, gesturing for Wanwan to leave first. After she closed the door, he said in a deep voice, "Could it be that you're already planning to take action? We haven't found out the location of that secret room yet, so we can't rush things."
Yun Ran said coldly, "Chief Qi enjoys all the tenderness in Lanxiang Pavilion every day, so he is naturally not in a hurry. However, Yun Ran does not have much time to waste here, so please lend Yun Ran the map of the Marquis's mansion first." As she spoke, she stretched out her hand to him.
Left with no other choice, Qi Mo took the scroll out of his pocket and handed it to Yun Ran, instructing her, "I will come to see you tomorrow, and we will discuss this further. Do not act rashly."
Yun Ran watched his figure disappear quickly behind the door, gave a slight cold smile, and opened the scroll to examine it carefully.
That night, Yunran lay in bed, listening to Tian'er's deep breathing, sound asleep. She quietly got up, changed into her night clothes, and drifted out the door.
Yun Ran left Lanxiang Pavilion and headed west, stepping across eaves and ridges, flying across the road. In no time, she arrived outside the Chang Le Marquis's residence.
She hid in a secluded spot outside the walls of the Marquis's mansion, waiting for her chance to strike, when she suddenly heard someone whisper from the northwest corner inside the walls, "Who goes there!" Then came the sound of footsteps, and the surrounding guards, having heard the warning, rushed over. One of them said in a deep voice, "How dare you! You even dare to block my way?"
Yun Ran recognized the man's cold voice as that of the young marquis Qin Luo, who had tried to be rude to her earlier that day. Sure enough, the guard's voice was respectful as he said, "So it's the young marquis."
Qin Luo snorted coldly, "Let's continue the night patrol." Then, with a whoosh of wind, he had already leaped over the wall. The moonlight shone down, clearly illuminating Qin Luo's pale face. His eyes gleamed, and a smile played on his lips. He moved swiftly and disappeared into the darkness in an instant.
When Yun Ran saw that Young Master Qin had left the mansion late at night, she was quite surprised. Without thinking too much about it, she took advantage of the guards' distraction and quickly slipped over the wall to enter the mansion.
She had been diligently memorizing the layout of the mansion during the day and now knew it by heart. Following her memory, she avoided the guards, quietly bypassed the outer courtyard, and went deep into the inner courtyard of the mansion.
Yun Ran lay hidden in the shadows of the corner of the room, watching the inner courtyard fall into complete silence and darkness, with no one patrolling back and forth.
She hesitated for a moment, realizing something was amiss, and was about to throw the pebble she was holding when she suddenly felt a rustling sound behind her; someone was already approaching from behind. Yun Ran's heart sank, and she was about to leap into the inner courtyard when the person was several times faster than her, grabbing her and gently pressing her shoulder, signaling her to duck and hide. Yun Ran turned her head and saw Qi Mo dressed in black, his brows slightly furrowed. When he saw her looking at him, he smiled at her, but his expression was extremely solemn.
Yun Ran lowered her body as he instructed. After a moment, she saw figures moving around. More than ten men in black had silently appeared in the inner courtyard. These men wandered around, looked around the courtyard, exchanged hand gestures, and then quietly left.
Yun Ran was secretly alarmed, knowing that these men in black must be skilled secret guards from the Yongle Marquis's residence. The scroll did not indicate the inner courtyard guards, suggesting that Consort Wang's information was incomplete. If Qi Mo hadn't arrived in time to stop her, her slightly rash actions would have allowed these guards to discover her whereabouts, and the consequences would have been dire.
Seeing her changing expression, Qi Mo smiled slightly and gently tugged at her clothes. Yun Ran quickly composed herself, turned around, and followed him as he lightly leaped off the roof, retracing their steps.
The two proceeded cautiously, avoiding the patrolling guards, and climbed over the walls of the Marquis's residence. They ran side by side for a while, and when Yunran saw that they were far from the Marquis's residence, she stopped and asked softly, "How did you get here?"
Qi Mo smiled and said, "I couldn't sleep last night, and I thought that Miss Yun would definitely not listen to me obediently. She might come to the Marquis's residence tonight to investigate, so I rushed over."
Yun Ran raised her eyes and asked, "These past few days you've been getting quite close to that Miss Wanwan. I suppose you asked her to help you find out what's going on in the Marquis's mansion?"
Qi Mo smiled faintly and said, "This Miss Wanwan is very shrewd and well-informed. Today she has found out almost everything about the Marquis's secret guards, so she came to me to tell me the details and also squeezed a lot of money out of me."
Yun Ran nodded and said nothing more. The two flew back to Lanxiang Pavilion, and by then it was almost dawn.
Qi Mo escorted Yun Ran to the backyard, then stopped and said, "The inner courtyard of the Marquis of Chang Le's residence is so heavily guarded; the secret room is most likely located inside. Let Miss Yun go back and rest for a while, and then we can discuss our next steps."
Yun Ran lowered her eyes and pondered for a moment, then suddenly asked, "Have you found out the exact time of the guards' shift change?"
Qi Mo's eyes flashed, and he said, "Not bad, why?"
Yun Ran smiled slightly and said softly, "I might be able to find out where the secret room is. Please ask Chief Qi to come here to find me again at 5 pm so we can make a plan and carry it out tonight."
Qi Mo looked at her, a hint of appreciation in his eyes, and replied, "Okay."
He watched Yun Ran turn and walk towards the small house, a slight smile on his lips. He secretly rejoiced, feeling that rescuing this woman outside Jizhou City was indeed a wise move. Just as Yun Ran pushed open the door, her back suddenly stiffened. Qi Mo was slightly taken aback, and then he heard Yun Ran's hoarse voice calling to him in a low voice, "Chief Qi."
The room was in disarray, filled with the stench of blood and gore, an eerie atmosphere permeating the entire space. Tian'er lay naked, her soft, white breasts covered in bruises, quietly on the bed in a pool of blood. Between her legs, a dagger was plunged straight into her heart.
Yun Ran approached the bedside and looked down to see that the bloodstains between her legs were still wet. Her once sweet and smiling face still showed signs of fear and pain. Yun Ran couldn't help but clench her fists slightly.
Qi Mo remained silent for a moment, then stepped forward and pulled out the dagger. He saw that the edge of the handle was inlaid with gold and gemstones, exuding an air of luxury. When he saw the words engraved on it, his brows furrowed slightly, and he glanced at Yun Ran.
Yun Ran stared at the flamboyant "Luo" character on the controller, her gaze instantly turning icy, and said, word by word, "It really is him."
As the sun set, Yunran slowly returned to her small house. The bloodstains had been cleaned up, and Tian'er's body had long since been removed. Everything in the room was spotless, as if it had never been defiled.
Wang Meiren stood by the window, her back view desolate.
His voice was slightly lower than usual: "I heard that Miss Yun is planning to break into the Marquis of Chang Le's mansion to steal treasure again tonight?"
Yun Ran asked, "Did Qi Mo tell you?"
Wang Meiren chuckled softly, slowly turned around, and the sunset glow made his eyes slightly red. He gazed at Yun Ran for a moment, as if he remembered something, and smiled slightly as he said softly, "Tian'er loves to watch the sunset, so I had someone open another window here."
Yun Ran lowered her eyes, and heard him continue softly, "Although Lanxiang Pavilion is a brothel with a diverse clientele, with me protecting her, no one has ever dared to show her the slightest disrespect. I built a separate courtyard here, intending for her to live here in peace and quiet, until one day..."
His voice suddenly stopped, his eyes narrowed slightly, and he didn't continue. After a long while, he sighed softly and said in a low voice, "But in the end, I still couldn't protect her."