Over a year had passed, and every street, alley, and lane of Yunping Prefecture was etched into his mind. Any information that could be learned openly, he could match and place.
Walking through the streets, he remembered which large shops had powerful backing and which small ones seemed humble but were actually not to be trifled with.
In his spare time, he would wander the city. Occasionally, if he spotted someone on his list, he would follow them for a while.
His skill at tailing people was formidable. After all this time, no one had noticed. As a result, he could recount the movements of many people with surprising accuracy.
In Yunping Prefecture, he was just a minor figure. Just as he was in the Western Hills, a small, inconspicuous creature.
Like a fish in water, he drew no attention.
The only difference was that he carried no bow and arrow in the city, harvesting no prey.
Hong Chu once again heard Lu Yang’s name and grew curious about him.
They had completed their inspection without encountering anyone.
On the way back, they met at a teahouse. The accompanying merchants were all in the main hall, sipping tea, cracking melon seeds, chatting, and laughing happily.
When they arrived, the second young master of the Ling family teased, “Chu Ge’er, after all this time out, what have you learned? Rarely do you leave home—any chance to secretly meet your lover?”
The fourth young master of the Bai family laughed. “Can’t you see? That lover is right there, following him!”
The hall erupted in laughter.
Hong Chu remained expressionless as he led his group inside. His six attendants immediately cleared the tables. Those seated at the central table were dragged up and thrown aside; some collided with the furniture, some fell to the ground. Wine jugs, teapots, plates, pastries, and melon seeds were all smashed, regardless of the consequences.
Other families’ attendants tried to interfere, but Li Feng tossed them aside, one by one.
Once the table was cleared, Hong Fifth clapped his hands. The shop managers quickly came over—five in total—to clean the tables and chairs three times, lay out fresh tablecloths and chair covers, and arrange silver pots, cups, chopsticks, and eight kinds of pastries on white porcelain plates, all perfectly presented.
Hong Chu took the main seat. Hong Fifth poured three cups of wine. Hong Chu drank one, while the other two were forcibly poured into the mouths of the Ling and Bai young masters by attendants holding their mouths shut.
“I am Hong Chu, second in the Hong family. You two useless brats, if you dare speak out of turn again, I’ll cut out your tongues,” Hong Chu said.
The Ling young master tried to protest, but an attendant shoved a silver cup into his mouth and pinched the root of his tongue. Tears streamed down his face, and he dared not speak again.
The act served as a warning. The Ling and Bai families remained silent. The chamber members standing nearby lowered their heads obediently. Even those who had taken seats scrambled up, all utterly cowed.
For a moment, the only sound in the room was the Ling young master’s wails.
Li Feng watched silently. The rumors were true: the most ruthless local power was the Hong family. Growing wealthy off the docks, they were not ordinary merchants.
The rest of the inspection went smoothly. Every family voiced opinions on the grand market. If there were no objections, they went to patrol the streets.
If a patrol found no issues, they patrolled again. They continued until the sun set, everyone’s legs trembling and throats hoarse, when Hong Chu finally relented.
He rose, called names one by one, and assigned management areas to each family.
“During the market, if a stall under your supervision has trouble, I’ll make your entire family disappear from Yunping Prefecture. Feel free to try me.”
After the inspection, Li Feng escorted Hong Chu safely to the Hong residence. Outside the mansion, Hong Chu dismounted and wandered a little, walking with Li Feng nearby.
“Boss Li, if it were you, where would you set up an ambush?”
Even wealthy merchants had limits; they could not act recklessly.
The Hong family’s ancestors had calculated their fortune, noting they prospered from water, and ultimately built their wealth off the docks. Hence, their residence was riverside.
A single road ran along the river. Nearby houses were long abandoned, now occupied only by Hong family servants. Supposedly, these residents were released as ordinary citizens, but in reality, they were still maintained by the family.
Sparse trees stood at the front gate. The riverbank was untended, bare, leaving nowhere to hide.
But, like other merchant families, their gate and walls were not high.
Li Feng looked around. If he were to choose, he would ambush along the river. Though there was nowhere to hide along the bank, darkness under the lamp provided cover.
The second option was the riverside trees. They were unremarkable, just as the river was. To reach the opposite bank, one would have to enter the water. To hide within the house, one could climb the trees.
Hong Chu looked at the riverbank and then at the nearby trees, smiling faintly.
Li Feng had said that the doorstep was a suitable assassination site—high risk, high success. He waited until Hong Chu entered the mansion and the main gate closed before bidding Hong Fifth farewell and preparing to return home.
Hong Fifth tried to take him to inspect the river, asking which part of the bank or which tree was suitable.
Li Feng declined.
“Fifth Brother Hong, I feel your young master has other plans. If you are uneasy, you can ask him again. I won’t go to the river to check trees and banks.”
Hong Fifth, experienced and thoughtful, understood and did not press further.
He cupped his hands toward Li Feng. “Brother Li, in the coming days, thank you for your efforts.”
Li Feng returned the gesture, mounted his horse, and headed home.
He arrived late; the alleys were already quiet.
Lu Liu sat on the bamboo bed, fanning himself. Two dogs, Erhuang and Weifeng, were lying by his feet.
Summer heat made lying near the dogs uncomfortable, but Lu Liu did not move, occasionally brushing against them.
Chen Guizhi approached with a lantern. “Go inside and wait. Mosquitoes are many tonight—they’ll bite your face all swollen.”
Lu Liu could not relax. Wealthy families could hire any guard—so why insist on asking Li Feng? It was clearly a risky assignment.
Even with advice to be careful at the market, who knew what might happen in the next two days? His anxiety surpassed even Li Feng’s climb up the mountain.
Li Feng told Chen Guizhi to go inside. “Mother, you go ahead and wash up with Shun Ge’er first. Take turns keeping an eye on the child. I’ll wait outside a bit longer.”
Bathing was quick in summer. Chen Guizhi and Shun Ge’er had already bathed. She insisted on staying to watch, letting Lu Liu skip his bath.
Lu Yang came from the neighboring yard with a box of ointment, applying it in thick swaths over Lu Liu. He covered his face, arms, and rolled up his pants to treat his legs.
The ointment had a strong scent, stopping itch and repelling insects.
Lu Liu pouted. “Brother, stop. It’s too expensive.”
After finishing, Lu Yang gave some remaining ointment to Lu Liu. “If your mother doesn’t need it, I’ll let you apply some on her too.”
Lu Liu had been bitten on his back. He turned to allow Lu Yang to apply the ointment, rubbing over the mosquito bites and pressing a small cross on each.
The smell was strong. Lu Liu teased, “When Dafeng comes home later, it’ll smell of you.”
Lu Yang handed him the ointment. “Don’t worry—he’ll only say you smell good. If he complains, you put some on him too. You’ll both smell the same; no one will mind.”
Lu Liu held the ointment and smiled sweetly.
Horse hooves sounded at the alley entrance. All three turned to look.
Sure enough, Li Feng had returned. Lu Liu ran to greet him, the two dogs bounding ahead.
