Chapter 200: Night Reconnaissance
Outside Yao Family Village, in the small forest where Lu Yun previously took down two Yellow Rank assassins, the ground was now covered in golden fallen leaves, but the dense branches could still provide cover for those inside.
Lu Yun and Uncle Bao stood in this forest, peering through the branches at Cuihe Garden at the end of the road ahead.
“Young Master, based on the clues provided by the Merchant Family, this subordinate carefully inspected the perimeter of Cuihe Garden.” Uncle Bao reported to Lu Yun in a raspy voice: “I discovered very deep carriage tracks on the road leading to the manor, likely caused by an extremely heavy vehicle.”
“Mm.” Lu Yun nodded. He had seen the damaged road surface from afar. The last time he came here, the carriage had traveled very smoothly, indicating the road was fine then.
“Autumn is dry, and it hasn’t rained lately. Those tracks came from the Luodu direction. They are very likely the gold carriage we’re looking for.” Uncle Bao paused, then continued: “Moreover, Xie Min has not left her home at all lately and hasn’t held any gatherings. It’s said she’s ill. Many people came to visit, but she refused them all outside the door. I think she’s feeling guilty, and that gold is most likely with her.”
As he spoke, Uncle Bao excitedly licked his lips and cackled: “I didn’t expect Lu Jian to be so deeply affectionate and loyal to Xie Min…”
“Mm.” Lu Yun nodded. Unless Lu Jian absolutely trusted Xie Min, he wouldn’t have entrusted such a matter to her. “But we can’t rely solely on guessing; we still need to confirm if that batch of gold is really in Cuihe Garden.” Having made up his mind, he said: “Tonight, we’ll sneak into Cuihe Garden.”
“Yes, that’s simple.” Uncle Bao said in a deep voice, then worriedly added: “But didn’t Lu Xian say Young Master can’t circulate Qi for a month? How about this subordinate goes alone.”
“No need to worry. I can still use two or three tenths of my cultivation. As long as I don’t run into a Grandmaster, there won’t be any problem.” Lu Yun shook his head. He was no longer the novice he once was and knew Grandmasters were rare—prominent figures who wouldn’t guard a home.
“That’s true. Young Master, be extremely careful then.” Uncle Bao always followed orders and didn’t object further. Besides, Cuihe Garden spanned dozens of acres with nearly a hundred buildings; he couldn’t search it alone.
Lu Yun then pulled out a blueprint as if by magic. Uncle Bao leaned in and saw it was the design plan for Cuihe Garden, clearly marking the layout and structures inside, even noting the underground secret rooms.
“Young Master, where did you find this thing?” Uncle Bao was overjoyed. With this map, they could accomplish much more with half the effort.
“Cuihe Garden was designed and built by the Merchant Family for Xie Min’s deceased husband. This is the original blueprint.” Lu Yun explained softly.
“Shang Luojia actually found this for Young Master!” Uncle Bao said delightedly: “That’s great! With the Merchant Family’s help, our revenge has even more chance of success!”
“Heh…” Hearing this, Lu Yun pictured that clever and cunning beautiful face and couldn’t help but give a bitter smile: “I’m afraid it’s like scheming with a tiger.”
“Young Master, what are you saying? With your abilities, can’t you handle a little girl in her teens?!” Uncle Bao shook his head dismissively, paused, and said: “Though she overpowered six or seven elders and a dozen siblings to take control of the Merchant Family General Office from Shang Yun, though in two or three years she elevated the Merchant Family’s business to a new level… though the people and things she schemes against every day outnumber what I’ve schemed in a lifetime…”
At this point, Uncle Bao finally swallowed and said: “Alright, Young Master might not necessarily be able to handle her.”
“Actually, she’s not hard to deal with. As long as she thinks it’s worth it, she’s very likely to do this deal.” Lu Yun said softly, then shifted his gaze to the blueprint. Together with Uncle Bao, he studied where Xie Min would hide the gold if it was in the garden and how they should search for the best results.
Once their plan was set, the two lay in wait in the small forest, quietly awaiting nightfall.
.
In the dead of night, with a cold moon and sparse stars, frost blanketing the ground, and autumn insects wailing mournfully.
Lu Yun and Uncle Bao quietly approached Cuihe Garden. Still some distance away, they heard dogs barking incessantly inside.
“Last time, there weren’t this many dogs.” Lu Yun said softly to Uncle Bao.
“Different times call for different measures.” Uncle Bao rasped: “Young Master, wait here. This subordinate will clear the path.” He pulled an oiled paper bag from his bosom, opened it to reveal a meaty aroma—pills of some sort.
“Don’t alert the enemy.” Lu Yun knew this wasn’t the time to show off, so he nodded and watched Uncle Bao leap onto the two-zhang-high wall top.
Uncle Bao gauged the direction of the barking, then flicked his fingers repeatedly, sending the pills right to the fierce dogs. Miraculously, the dogs that had been barking furiously at the intruder’s scent quieted upon smelling the pills. They all extended their scarlet tongues and swallowed the pills.
By the time the house servants guarding the yard heard the barking and came with torches to check, the vicious dogs were all lazily lying on the ground, looking utterly serene.
“They were barking so fiercely earlier,” one house servant puzzled: “Why’d they stop now?”
“One dog barks and a hundred follow,” another house servant yawned: “What reason you gonna tell a dog.” He urged his companions: “Come on, let’s finish this patrol and switch shifts.”
“Mm.” The other house servants nodded, shrinking their necks as they walked away: “Winter hasn’t even started, and nights are this cold. We have to patrol day and night in this wilderness—who knows what there’s to patrol.”
“Shut up.” The house servants’ voices faded, fragments carried by the night wind: “Didn’t you notice fewer people in the manor? All the master’s confidants…”
Once the guards were completely gone, Uncle Bao waved to Lu Yun, who immediately reached the high wall, circulated Qi for wall-climbing gecko skill, and silently scaled the courtyard wall.
“Uncle, impressive.” Lu Yun clearly saw the vicious dogs’ glowing green eyes spot him, yet they showed no reaction, as if seeing their own master.
“Heh heh, minor trick—a folk thief’s dog-drugging formula, but this subordinate improved it to make the dogs so lazy they wouldn’t bark even if the sky fell.” Uncle Bao said, leaping down from the wall top. Lu Yun followed. They passed the vicious dogs and cautiously headed deeper into Cuihe Garden.
Along the way, Uncle Bao repeated the process on several more vicious dogs and dodged numerous patrolling house servants, finally reaching the inner courtyard.
Cuihe Garden’s inner courtyard was brightly lit, illuminating the withered lotus in the pond in exquisite detail. The defenses here were tighter than the outer courtyard, with overt patrols and many hidden sentries.
“No silver three hundred taels…” Uncle Bao chuckled softly: “Oh, no—three million taels.”
Though heavily guarded, with their cultivation, as long as they stayed silent, even an Earth Rank Grandmaster wouldn’t detect them. The two split up to search. Lu Yun used the terrain for cover, evading the guards’ sight, darting through shadows several times, and slipped into an empty treasury to search for the stolen gold.
After more than half an hour, Lu Yun and Uncle Bao regrouped at the rendezvous and simultaneously asked: “How’d it go?” Then shook their heads in unison.
“Cuihe Garden is large, but there are only a few places to hide things.” Uncle Bao frowned: “We’ve searched them all.”
“No, there’s one more.” The map of Cuihe Garden appeared in Lu Yun’s mind.
“Young Master means…” Uncle Bao whispered: “The secret room under Xie Min’s bedroom?”
“Gold is heavy but takes little space; a small room can hold it.” Lu Yun nodded, and they headed toward Xie Min’s bedroom.
.
Moments later, the two reached under the rear window of the main bedroom. Even at this hour, voices were speaking inside.
