Outside the carriage, a person dressed in coarse linen clothes, named Yi Hua, waved the whip and drove the carriage out of the small alley, winding through several turns before finally reaching the main road.
Inside the carriage, Gu Fu tilted her head and nudged against Fu Yan, asking him, “What’s with your outfit today?”
Today, Fu Yan was dressed in black, in a style somewhat similar to the Secret Guard’s uniform, with narrow sleeves and a tight waist, and he even wore armguards. His long, silken white hair was all tied behind his neck with a ribbon.
This attire, which Gu Fu had never seen before, made Fu Yan appear much more sharp and spirited than usual. He no longer resembled a lofty, ethereal figure but rather an assassin moving through the night, armed with a sharp blade, coming and going without a trace.
Fu Yan took out an identical set of clothing from who knows where and said, “You have one too.”
Gu Fu raised an eyebrow, “I thought you were just here to find me?”
Fu Yan lowered his eyelids, “I wish I could.”
But if the Emperor were to find out that he had come to take Gu Fu from Prince An’s mansion without any reason in broad daylight, they might end up being summoned to the palace to be scolded again, like last time. He didn’t want Gu Fu to be punished and made to kneel again.
Gu Fu took the clothes and placed them on the table, then began untying the sash around her waist.
Fu Yan watched from the side, initially thinking that he had already seen everything that should and shouldn’t be seen, so there was no harm in looking again.
But he soon realized he was wrong.
Gu Fu’s movements in untying the sash were quick and efficient, with no trace of shyness or hesitation. After loosening the sash, she first took off the short shirt tucked into her skirt, revealing her straight and firm shoulders and back.
Then she stood up, and as she moved, the skirt with the loosened sash fell to the ground, leaving her only in the underpants she wore beneath the skirt.
The underpants were white and very thin, and with the slightest movement, her long, straight legs could be vaguely seen.
These were the legs Fu Yan had once seen without any barriers, had even touched, felt, and bitten with force. Back then, he hadn’t felt the slightest bit of shyness, but now, with just a thin layer of fabric in between, he felt an inexplicable awkwardness.
Fu Yan turned his face away, his restless gaze wandering back and forth within the limited space of the carriage, unable to find a place to settle.
Inside the carriage, there wasn’t enough room to stand upright, so Gu Fu bent over to untie the sash of her underpants. The white sash slipped from its knot with a long, soft rustling sound of fabric.
In the end, Fu Yan couldn’t hold back any longer and turned around, bumping his forehead against the carriage wall.
This time, the bump was quite hard. Gu Fu, who was changing her clothes, noticed Fu Yan’s discomfort after hearing the noise and asked, “Wangxi?”
Fu Yan kept his tone calm and replied to Gu Fu, “It’s nothing. You should hurry and change. After you’re done, I’ll undo your hair and take note of how you styled it, so I can help you redo it later.”
Gu Fu once again marveled at the differences between people: she could never manage to braid even a simple plait, yet Fu Yan could figure out how to style a complicated hairdo just by seeing it once.
After changing into her clothes, Gu Fu sat by the table to tie on the armguards, while Fu Yan moved behind her and began removing the ornaments from her hair one by one.
As the carriage continued to move, Gu Fu finally remembered to ask Fu Yan, “Where are we going?”
“Daixian Street,” Fu Yan replied. “Earlier, I had someone spread some rumors, one of which mentioned that the cargo ships at the Xishi Wharf were suspiciously overloaded, even though they supposedly carried only a small amount of goods. Do you remember?”
Gu Fu said, “I remember. Didn’t you send someone to investigate and find out that some households were secretly transporting goods in collusion with the dockworkers to avoid taxes?”
Fu Yan carefully placed Gu Fu’s hair ornaments aside and began undoing her hair, saying, “That’s correct. However, later we discovered that the cargo from three of those ships couldn’t be traced, and it disappeared as soon as it was unloaded.”
Gu Fu asked, “Any clues?”
While taking note of how Gu Fu’s hair was styled, Fu Yan responded, “The three ships belonged to different caravans, came from different places, and had different routes. The only thing they had in common was that they all went to Qingzhou and were all spice ships.”
“Spices?” Gu Fu tightened the straps on her armguards forcefully, “It seems that cargo must have a very strong smell.”
Fu Yan let down all of Gu Fu’s hair, combed it neatly, and tied it together. “It’s hard to say,” he replied.
“So…” Gu Fu pulled Fu Yan to sit beside her. “You’ve found the whereabouts of that cargo and want me to go with you to confirm it?”
Fu Yan nodded. “During the investigation of the corruption case in Qingzhou, I discovered that Prince Ying had dealings with the Cao Gang of Qingzhou. You know I have a habit of pinning everything on him, so I asked my senior brother to take advantage of the ghost trickery last time and persuade Prince An’s mansion to hold a grand birthday banquet for the old princess. Then, I had the people from the Secret Cabinet who were planted by the old princess’s side repeatedly mention how much she wanted to see Prince Ying, which led Prince An to plead with His Majesty, giving Prince Ying an excuse to leave the palace and visit the old princess.
“Sure enough, as soon as Prince Ying left the palace, one of his guards secretly left the group. The Secret Cabinet agents followed him in the shadows and confirmed that he entered Daixian Street.”
Outside the carriage, it was becoming quieter, indicating that they were approaching Daixian Street. After all, this area in the south of the city was far from the imperial city and didn’t have bustling markets like those in the east and west of the city. Although the land here was cheap, it was sparsely populated, with many abandoned and vacant houses.
In a low voice, Gu Fu asked Fu Yan, “Why didn’t you let the Secret Cabinet handle the investigation? Why take the risk yourself?”
Fu Yan grasped Gu Fu’s hand and said, “This way, I get to come and see you. Besides, you’re skilled in martial arts, and I’m good at light-footed techniques. The two of us together are less likely to make mistakes, and we can also spend some time alone.”
However, in Gu Fu’s palm, Fu Yan wrote, “If I let someone else go, His Majesty would find out.”
Fu Yan wanted to keep things hidden from the emperor, allowing Prince Ying to dig his own grave. However, he also wanted to know what Prince Ying was plotting and to have everything under control, so naturally, he needed to personally take action.
Fu Yan had a feeling that if he didn’t bring Gu Fu along this time, she would be extremely angry when she found out later.
As expected, Gu Fu grabbed the hand Fu Yan was using to write in her palm, leaned in to kiss the corner of his lips, and whispered, “Smart move.”
The carriage slowly passed through Daixian Street without stopping, instead turning onto the neighboring street and entering a narrow alley. After traveling two more blocks, it finally came to a halt.
Before arriving, Fu Yan had already memorized the route. After disembarking, he led Gu Fu up onto the rooftops, heading directly toward their destination.
The place they arrived at was a courtyard with several rows of tiled-roof houses, leaving only a small open space where a few carriages could park and unload goods.
The guard from Prince Ying’s mansion had stayed here for less than half a tea’s time before leaving. At this moment, only a few people were patrolling between the houses, while the rest…
Relying on her former scouting skills, Gu Fu carefully listened and observed, confirming that the remaining people were all inside the two-story house in the center.
Their purpose here was merely to confirm whether the extra items on the three cargo ships were related to Prince Ying and, if so, what exactly he had secretly transported to the capital.
Thus, they didn’t alarm anyone in the courtyard. Instead, Fu Yan, being skilled in light-footed techniques, sneaked into the rooms one by one to determine what was hidden inside and to verify the total quantity. Meanwhile, Gu Fu stayed on the rooftop, keeping watch and alerting Fu Yan to prevent him from being discovered by the patrolling guards when entering the houses.
The two of them had also agreed on a simple code: Gu Fu would mimic bird calls, using the number and length of the sounds to represent different messages, making long-distance communication easier.
Fu Yan easily entered the first tiled-roof house and came out after a short time, then proceeded to the next one.
Most people would gradually relax their vigilance during repeated actions, but Gu Fu became increasingly focused, slowly returning to her state of mind from the northern borders.
She lay on the rooftop with an excellent vantage point, her breathing growing lighter, and the sounds around her becoming clearer. The footsteps of the patrolling guards, the faint rustle of their clothes as they moved, the distant argument coming from the second floor, and the clashing of weapons all drifted into her ears with the breeze.
As Fu Yan moved, she adjusted her position, though she was not as swift and silent as Fu Yan, who moved like a phantom, but her movements were light enough not to alert anyone in the courtyard.
When Fu Yan entered the fifth tiled-roof house, two patrolling guards suddenly decided to turn back and have a drink. They changed direction and headed straight toward the house where Fu Yan was.
Gu Fu let out a bird call to warn Fu Yan, who immediately hid. When the two patrolling men entered, they got caught up in drinking and making a racket, oblivious to the fact that there was another person in the room.
Time slowly passed, and the more they drank, the more intoxicated they became, even smashing a wine jar, which attracted the attention of the other patrolling guards.
Gu Fu had often heard people say, “Care makes one panic,” but she never believed it—or rather, she didn’t think such a situation would happen to her. She had faced countless storms, and when it came to Fu Yan, she should be even more cautious and composed. How could she lose her composure?
But when she truly encountered a situation that might put Fu Yan in danger, she realized—so much for staying calm.
Fu Yan’s light-footed skills were indeed impressive, but that was all. If he were discovered, he might be trapped inside the room with no way out.
She was too far away from Fu Yan; perhaps she should get closer. That way, if anything unexpected happened, she could quickly step in and rescue him. But doing so would likely expose herself, and she would be discovered before Fu Yan was.
Thus, Gu Fu found herself torn between reason and impulse. One half urged her to stay still, telling her to trust Fu Yan, analyzing that as long as he wasn’t discovered, they could retreat safely. Even if he was discovered, he might get injured, but she could still rush in and get him out. The other half, driven by frantic unease, pushed her to get closer. Although being discovered would ruin all of Fu Yan’s plans, at least it would ensure that he wouldn’t be harmed in the slightest.
For a brief moment, Gu Fu lost her ability to make a judgment. When she came to her senses, she suppressed her impulse and refrained from ruining Fu Yan’s plan. She quietly watched the room, her eyes resembling those of a cat hunting in the night, eerily still and focused.
The patrolling guards, hearing the noise, cursed as they dragged the two drunk men out of the room to the well in the courtyard, where they splashed water on them to sober them up. One of the guards went to the two-story central house to report, and soon after, about a dozen men came out of the house and gathered in the courtyard, seemingly ready to punish the two for drinking while on duty.
Gu Fu, seeing that everyone was now in the courtyard, let out another bird call, signaling Fu Yan to come out quickly.
Fu Yan emerged from the room and continued searching the next one.
This time, he moved faster, even taking a brief look inside the two-story house. When he came out, Gu Fu pulled him back to the secluded alley they had come from. However, instead of heading straight for Yi Hua, they positioned themselves in another corner, where Yi Hua could see them but at a distance from the carriage.
As soon as they landed, Gu Fu hugged Fu Yan tightly, her arms around his waist with such force that it felt like she was trying to squeeze the life out of him.
Fu Yan let her hold him, unfazed by the pain, and even lowered his head to hers in a comforting gesture.
But Gu Fu clearly felt that this small comfort wasn’t enough, so she grabbed the back of Fu Yan’s head, stood on tiptoe, and bit his lips, roughly gnawing at him before finally stopping.
They vaguely heard the sound of the carriage approaching, and the two of them, still breathless, pulled away from each other.
Before Yi Hua arrived, Gu Fu quickly asked, “What was inside?”
Fu Yan, savoring the taste, pecked Gu Fu on the lips again. Just as he was about to speak, Gu Fu caught a whiff of the scent clinging to him and asked, “Gunpowder?”
Fu Yan nodded. “The amount stored in there is enough to blow open several palace gates simultaneously.”
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