As the night gradually faded, the morning mist lingered.
It was not yet the hour of Mao (between 5-7 AM), and the sky was still dark, yet countless vendors had already come out to set up their stalls.
The liveliness of the crowd dispelled the lingering chill of the previous night.
Where there were vendors, there were naturally customers.
The sounds of bargaining filled the entire morning market.
A young person with a high ponytail weaved through the bustling alleys.
Their slim shoulders and narrow waist made their figure flicker past like a shadow, with an orange silk ribbon swaying in the wind.
From behind, one might think they were a slender young man, but from the front, it was immediately clear—this was a pretty young girl disguised as a boy.
Lin Ting had a mission to get close to Duan Ling, but she would not neglect her bookstore business for it.
The mission had to be completed, but money also had to be earned.
She had risen early today to handle an upcoming business deal at the bookstore.
Dressed in men’s clothing and wearing a mask, she ensured that her face wouldn’t be seen, which also helped obscure her gender to some extent.
However, she didn’t frequently wear men’s clothing—it all depended on her mood.
This particular deal had been agreed upon before the young man left the capital for Suzhou.
It couldn’t be canceled—she didn’t want to pay a “breach of contract” penalty.
The most enticing part was that once the deal was completed, she would earn one hundred liang of silver.
Lin Ting skillfully took a detour to the bookstore, put on her mask, and climbed onto a wooden ladder beside the bookshelves, waiting for the client while flipping through a book.
The client had yet to inform her of the transaction details.
Their bookstore had always been clear about its business scope—gathering intelligence, finding lost items or people—but never engaging in anything illegal.
If a deal involved breaking the law, the contract would be void.
Thus, the client could choose when to reveal the specifics of the transaction, and it would undoubtedly fall within their permissible range—no need to worry.
She quickly finished a thin book, glancing occasionally at the entrance.
Where was the client?
They had agreed to meet at the hour of Chen (7-9 AM), but it was now nearly the hour of Si (9-11 AM), and there was still no sign of them.
She didn’t know what the client looked like, so she couldn’t go outside to look for them.
According to the rules, meetings were only to take place inside the bookstore—outside encounters were unsafe.
Was the client planning to back out?
Since opening the bookstore, she and the young man had only encountered this situation once before.
Back then, he had personally retrieved the breach of contract payment.
She had no idea what methods he used, but the client hadn’t dared to utter a single complaint, let alone cause them trouble.
The bookstore had remained in business ever since.
She decided to wait for another quarter of an hour.
If the client still didn’t arrive, she would head home.
Fifteen minutes passed, and the client still didn’t show up.
Instead, someone else did.
The wind chime hanging on the door suddenly swayed, jingling softly.
The red tassel at the end of it fluttered as a long, slender hand pushed the door open, letting in a slant of sunlight.
Lin Ting had been idly waiting, dusting the bookshelves with a feather duster.
At the sound of the chime, she turned her head.
Upon seeing who it was, her eyes widened.
A young man in a black robe stood there, still wearing that hideously ugly mask.
His long ponytail reached his waist, the xun (a traditional Chinese ocarina) remained at his waist, and he held a black iron longsword in his hand, exuding an icy presence.
She tossed aside the feather duster and ran over excitedly.
“Jin Anzai, you’re back!”
Jin Anzai replied, “Mm.”
Lin Ting stuffed the feather duster into his free hand.
“The bookstore is covered in dust. Since you’re free, clean it up… Weren’t you supposed to be gone for another half a month? Why are you back so early?”
He answered coolly, “I finished what I needed to do, so I returned early.”
“That was fast.”
She told him about the client who had failed to show up for their meeting.
“Do you think they’re planning to break the contract?”
Would her hundred liang of silver go to waste?
Jin Anzai closed the door, making the wind chime jingle again.
After the final lingering note, silence returned.
He calmly picked up the feather duster and began dusting the shelves, his voice indifferent.
“I’ll look into it.”
Lin Ting, long accustomed to his cold demeanor, plopped onto the rocking chair and began swinging back and forth.
“Did you go to Suzhou to see your relatives?”
The feather duster paused at the top shelf.
Jin Anzai’s grip on the wooden handle tightened.
“No. I have no relatives.”
Lin Ting let out an acknowledging “Oh,” having only asked out of casual curiosity.
Since he gave that answer, she didn’t press further into his personal matters.
“Good timing that you’re back. We have several more deals lined up.”
Without his help, it was really difficult for her to handle all the business alone.
“Got it,” he said.
Jin Anzai continued dusting one bookshelf after another, quite diligent.
Then, as if unintentionally, he asked, “Did anything significant happen in the capital while I was away?”
She glanced at him teasingly.
“Well, well, the sun must be rising from the west today. Since when do you care about the happenings in the capital?”
He didn’t bother responding.
Lin Ting, focused on calculating how much more money she needed to reach her goal of three thousand liang, casually said, “Actually, there was something big—Xie Manor was raided.”
When she first heard about it, she had been indifferent.
But now, the incident remained fresh in her memory.
“Funny thing—I was in West Street a few days ago and ran into the fifth young master of the Xie family. He had escaped before the execution and was hiding in a parade float, hoping to slip out of the city with the courtesan procession. But he got caught.”
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