Volume One, Chapter 16: A Midnight Visit to the Backyard

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Ling’er glanced at the jar of wine on the table, a troubled expression crossing her face. She spoke hesitantly, “Young master, I have seen all kinds of people at Spring Overflowing Pavilion, and I have heard of many strange and peculiar tastes—legs, feet, objects. When guests make odd requests, it is not my place to question. But this is the first time I’ve heard of a woman who neither sleeps nor drinks.”

Seeing Ling’er’s distressed look, Bai Chou adopted a resolute tone, his voice cold. “Enough! If I say drink, then drink. I’m here for entertainment, not to broaden your horizons!”

Ling’er appeared on the verge of tears, whispering, “Young master, I’ve already had quite a lot downstairs. If I take a few more sips, I will surely pass out drunk. How will I serve you then?”

Bai Chou pulled out more than ten gold coins from his sleeve and placed them on the table. “As long as you do as I say, this money is yours, no matter if you pass out drunk—I won’t blame you. If you don’t want to, I won’t force you. Go out and call another girl in; let’s see if she’ll drink! Damn it, who gave you the courage to bargain with me here?”

There is an old saying: “Money can make the devil grind corn; without money, you become the grinder.” No one in this world ever dares to defy money. If they do, it simply means the money isn’t enough.

Ling’er, already feeling aggrieved, was harshly scolded by Bai Chou. She thought to herself, “Fine, I’ll just leave.” But when she saw the shining gold coins on the table, she took a deep breath. When she looked up again, her face was full of smiles, and her tone had turned fragile. “Young master, will you keep your word?”

Feigning annoyance, Bai Chou waved his hand. “Hurry up. This small amount means nothing to me. Whether I’m satisfied depends on your performance.”

Hearing this, Ling’er said no more. She walked to the table, picked up the wine jar, and began drinking with gulps.

Bai Chou watched silently. Sure enough, as Ling’er said, in less than two breaths’ time, there was a loud crash as both she and the wine jar collapsed to the floor.

Bai Chou approached and tentatively called her name twice. Seeing no response, he checked her pulse and confirmed she had simply drunk too much and passed out cold.

He had intended to leave immediately, but reconsidered and lifted her onto the bed. Only then did he notice tears still clinging to the corner of Ling’er’s closed eyes.

Bai Chou was not heartless. He sighed and covered her with a thin blanket.

Walking to the window, he pushed open the latch, pretending to breathe fresh air. Stretching lazily, his eyes quickly scanned outside. Except for lights in the front yard, the backyard was utterly silent.

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Then, he jumped lightly down onto the grass outside the building.

Bai Chou, formerly a special forces soldier, had undergone systematic training in stealth. He pulled a black cloth over his face and stealthily crept forward, using the terrain and night shadows to conceal himself. Even if someone passed nearby, they would not notice him.

He knew Xiao Xiao’s small building was on the northernmost side, so he moved slowly northward, comparing it in his mind with the bird’s-eye map painted by Xin Qiji. The only discrepancy was the backyard, which had many large trees spaced every few yards—something the map could not show. Fortunately, he had now conducted an on-site reconnaissance.

After about the time it takes to burn an incense stick, he reached the edge of the Spring Overflowing Pavilion’s courtyard. Bai Chou noticed a small building standing there—not as grand or spacious as he had imagined, rather seeming somewhat out of place among the other backyard structures.

The small building was pitch black inside, the owner surely long asleep.

Bai Chou quietly crept to the windowsill and moistened a finger with saliva, silently piercing a small hole in the paper window. He pressed his eye to it and peered inside.

The hall was shrouded in darkness. After a moment, his eyes adjusted. By moonlight, he dimly made out a cross-shaped wooden frame over a person’s height at the center of the hall. Nearby, a table held various torture instruments—whips, shackles, branding irons, silver needles, and so forth. The whole scene was grotesquely eerie.

Had he not known he was inside a brothel, Bai Chou might have thought himself in a prison.

“Who’s there?” A faint female voice called from the second floor.

Bai Chou’s scalp tingled. He thought to himself: I didn’t make a sound just now—at most, a tiny noise from piercing the window paper—how skilled must the occupant be to detect even that?

Before he could react further, the door upstairs opened. A woman leaned on the railing and looked down, their eyes meeting.

“Who are you?” she asked calmly, showing no fear, only curiosity.

“I’m a guest here for fun at Spring Overflowing Pavilion. I couldn’t sleep, so I wandered out and happened upon this place,” Bai Chou replied casually.

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The woman chuckled quietly. “Wandering about, yet you need to cover your face with a black cloth?”

Bai Chou’s mind raced: Damn, this woman might be Xiao Xiao. If she reports this to Wei Tianpeng tonight, then making a move here the day after tomorrow will be impossible. For now, I must gauge her intentions. If that fails, the assassination will have to be reconsidered.

Bai Chou leapt up, grasping a post on the second-floor railing with his left hand. Swinging his body, he hooked his right leg over the eaves of the first floor. With a push, he flipped over the railing and landed lightly in front of the woman.

Up close, Bai Chou saw she wore a deep green dress, slender and graceful. The fitted garment revealed a delicate, alluring figure. Her pale face framed a pair of moist, sparkling eyes.

The woman showed no surprise at his sudden appearance. Calmly, she asked, “What is your purpose here? Wei Tianpeng?”

Bai Chou thought that talking on the railing risked being seen by a night wanderer, possibly causing trouble. So he stepped inside the guest room, found a seat, and sat down. “You’re clever, miss. You must be Xiao Xiao, yes?”

The woman gave a cold smile and replied lightly, “Calling me Xiao Xiao is not wrong—after all, that’s what they call me. You’re not from the Black Tiger Gang, are you?”

Bai Chou didn’t understand the implication. He explained, “Miss, I don’t know what you mean by Wei Tianpeng or the Black Tiger Gang. I’m a merchant from Qing China. I came to Spring Overflowing Pavilion today, but couldn’t sleep late into the night, so I wandered here by chance.”

Xiao Xiao stared at him intently. After a while, she raised an eyebrow and curled her lips in a cold smile. “Oh? If you just wandered here, please leave now. I need to rest.”

Seeing no point in arguing, Bai Chou stood to leave. As he reached the railing, Xiao Xiao called after him, “Don’t wander around tomorrow night. The whole place will be guarded by Black Tiger Gang members who come early to set up.”

Bai Chou spun sharply, startled. “You can guess why I came?”

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