Chapter 5: Broken Porcelain Shards

A mere quarter of an hour. Fleeting indeed, like a dewdrop touched by the dawn.

Chen Ji wasted no more words. He swiftly surveyed the study, his gaze flitting across the scattered scrolls and rice paper. Then, with practiced haste, he began to sift through the books lining the shelves.

"The rice paper is all blank, and the books are naught but common tomes. No hidden secrets reside within," Jiao Tu's voice, like a whisper of venom, reminded him.

Chen Ji turned, his footsteps carrying him into the courtyard. This was a *siheyuan*, a dwelling of two courtyards. He meticulously examined every detail, striving to uncover the faintest trace of a clue. In his heart, Chen Ji knew he possessed no true understanding of how to search for such things. His earlier pronouncements were born solely from the grim reality of facing two figures as merciless and venomous as vipers, capable of extinguishing his life with a mere thought.

As time trickled by, minute by minute, Yun Yang's patience began to fray. "Too slow, too slow. Let us add a little diversion. Do you see that *wutong* tree in the courtyard? For every leaf that falls as you hunt for clues, I shall grace you with the kiss of a needle."

No sooner had the words left his lips than a single leaf, withered and yellow, detached itself from a branch and drifted gently downwards.

Yun Yang raised his hand, catching the falling leaf with an almost theatrical sigh. "Your luck truly is meager, ah." With this, he moved towards Chen Ji and plunged a needle into the young man's *hukou*, the sensitive point between thumb and forefinger.

Chen Ji's face instantly flushed crimson. His entire body convulsed with searing pain. Despite the biting chill of late autumn, large beads of sweat erupted on his forehead, tracing paths down his temples. He cursed Yun Yang inwardly, but it offered no respite from the agony.

Yun Yang's voice was slow and measured, each word a deliberate prod. "Any time you lose due to this pain also counts within that quarter of an hour."

Chen Ji, supporting himself against the gnarled trunk of the *wutong* tree, slowly straightened his back. Step by painstaking step, he moved towards the kitchen. He had to find a clue before the second leaf fell!

Within the kitchen, little more than a stove of blue bricks stood alongside a collection of jars and bottles, holding the mundane spices and seasonings of everyday life. The room was remarkably clean and orderly, devoid of any extraneous clutter.

After examining every jar and bottle, Chen Ji stepped out of the kitchen. Yet, as soon as he emerged, he unexpectedly remained rooted to the spot.

He murmured to himself, "I feel something is amiss. I seem to have overlooked a crucial detail."

Yun Yang leaned against the kitchen doorframe, yawning languidly and toying with the silver needle between his fingers. "Time is all but spent. It seems I have squandered a quarter of an hour."

Chen Ji still stood unmoving, his mind a whirlwind, desperately trying to recall the detail he had missed! While he was lost in thought, another leaf detached itself from the *wutong* tree and spiraled downwards. Yun Yang, without hesitation, plunged a needle behind his ear.

In an instant, Chen Ji doubled over and sank to the ground, curled into a knot like a shrimp, utterly unable to move. He was on the precipice of fainting. But this time, before Yun Yang could even urge him, he straightened his body and returned to the kitchen. He emerged moments later, carrying two jars, both filled with a fine, white, crystalline powder.

Yun Yang glanced at them with a flicker of curiosity. "Two jars of salt? What is the meaning of this?"

"Why would a single kitchen possess two jars of salt?" Chen Ji asked, pinching a small amount of the fine white powder from one of the pottery jars and rubbing it between his fingertips. "This is not salt."

"Not salt?" Yun Yang's interest was piqued. He and Jiao Tu were adept at the arts of killing and concealment, framing others, and seizing credit. In the delicate dance of uncovering clues, they were indeed lacking.

Chen Ji extended his finger towards Yun Yang. "Taste it. What flavor does it hold?"

Yun Yang's reply was ungracious. "You are cautious, boy. What if it is poison? I shall not taste it."

Jiao Tu let out a soft chuckle. Were it not for the corpses strewn upon the ground, the laugh of this viperous maiden would have held a peculiar charm.

Yun Yang's face was etched with coldness. "Taste it, and be quick."

Chen Ji pinched a little of the white powder and placed it in his mouth. "Extremely astringent on the tongue, with no discernible flavor." He fell into deep thought. What could this substance be? Chen Ji swiftly searched the recesses of his memory, seeking an answer within the countless scrolls and volumes he had absorbed.

Wait, this is alum!

Some military intelligence popular science books had mentioned that alum was one of the primary materials used in crafting secret letters for espionage. When words were penned with alum water, the writing would vanish upon drying. This clandestine technique originated in the thirteenth century and was frequently employed by spies until the time of World War I and World War II.

Chen Ji pondered for a long while, then confirmed his discovery. "The spies of the Jing Dynasty utilize alum to write secret letters. Zhou Cheng Yi concealed this substance in his home, mixing it with salt to mislead others. He kept it in such a readily accessible location, so close at hand. This indicates that secret letters were exchanged with great frequency. Therefore... Zhou Cheng Yi's dwelling must contain the secret correspondence exchanged between him and other spies."

He immediately retrieved the vinegar jar from the kitchen and returned to the study. He spread the pristine white rice papers upon the table, one by one, tore a piece of cloth from his clothing, dipped it in the vinegar, and gently wiped every surface of the rice paper.

He wiped five, then six sheets of rice paper, yet still did not uncover the answer he sought. Time marched on, minute by agonizing minute. In the biting chill of autumn, fine, glistening beads of sweat formed on Chen Ji's forehead. He turned his head to look at Zhou Cheng Yi, only to see that the other's face remained serene, devoid of any panic. Could he have guessed wrongly?

No, absolutely not!

At that moment, a gust of cold wind swept through the courtyard. The withered yellow leaves on the *wutong* tree fell like a cascade of gold. Yun Yang smiled. "Your luck is not sufficient, ah..."

"Found it!"

"Hmm?" Yun Yang's gaze snapped towards Chen Ji.

As Chen Ji wiped the twelfth piece of rice paper, the area touched by the pale yellow vinegar liquid revealed a row of crimson characters: "Li Ji Sweet Water Shop in Li Jing Lane, City East. If in danger, go there immediately."

When Yun Yang saw these words, his eyes suddenly blazed with excitement. "This is a new base established by Jing Dynasty spies! Perhaps a high-ranking figure from the Jing Dynasty military intelligence department has arrived in Luo City!" With this, he looked at Jiao Tu, his voice ringing with anticipation. "A great merit!"

Jiao Tu's thoughts were a silent echo: *Kill this boy, and the merit is ours.*

"Impossible. I pledged not to kill him. Besides, he is not one of our secret spy department members. The merit shall still be attributed to both you and me."

"Good..."

In stark contrast, Zhou Cheng Yi, the Jing Dynasty spy, his face now ashen as dead ashes, no longer maintained his pretense. He immediately drew a hidden soft sword from his waist sash and lunged towards Chen Ji, a desperate, final act of aggression, intending to fight to the death and silence him. The Jing Dynasty spy's swift assault, in the blink of an eye, shed his earlier wretched appearance, transforming him into a creature of fierce, untamed desperation.

Chen Ji retreated rapidly, and Jiao Tu, on the other side, suddenly leaped up like the shadow of a ghost, dancing like a butterfly. She blocked Zhou Cheng Yi's path. Their figures blurred past each other. The silver needle clutched between her two fingers, like a dragonfly skimming water, pierced Zhou Cheng Yi in the waist.

With a dull thud, Zhou Cheng Yi collapsed to the ground, raising a cloud of dust.

It was also at this moment that a surge of cool air flowed out from Zhou Cheng Yi's body, like a gray-white, flowing flood dragon in the black of night, drilling into Chen Ji's body. This was a sensation he had never experienced in his seventeen years of life. The ice flow was like the glacial water from a snow-capped mountain, clear and pure, meandering ceaselessly within his blood.

Where did this ice flow come from? Why did it come? Chen Ji did not know. The scenes he had witnessed this night were things that belonged only in the realm of fantastical tales. This world was utterly different from the one he knew!

Chen Ji observed Jiao Tu and Yun Yang and discovered that these two seemed utterly unaware of what had just transpired. Could it be that only he could perceive this phenomenon?

Yun Yang, seeing that Zhou Cheng Yi was no longer capable of resistance, turned his gaze towards Chen Ji with a spark of interest. "How would you, a mere apprentice from a medical hall, possess such knowledge?"

Chen Ji explained without hesitation. "Alum can be used in medicine. It possesses the effects of staunching bleeding, treating ulcers, and alleviating pain, thus I have some understanding of this substance."

"Oh?" Yun Yang pinched a little alum from the jar and placed it in his mouth. "Just so, I have been plagued by vexation recently and suffer from a mouth ulcer."

Jiao Tu stood directly upon Zhou Cheng Yi's back, her foot pressing down with casual disregard. "What time is it for idle chatter? First, dispatch men to Li Jing Lane and deal with that Li Ji Sweet Water Shop."

Immediately, eight black-clothed figures, waiting for orders, mounted their horses and galloped directly towards Li Jing Lane. The crisp sound of hooves echoed on the midnight green flagstone road, tearing through the quiet night.

Chen Ji asked, "May I depart now?"

"Hmm... probably not," Yun Yang shook his head.

"Do you regret it?"

"No, not that. I merely said you could live, but I did not say I would set you free," Yun Yang brushed the dust from his clothes. "I must first escort you to the inner prison and interrogate you properly."

"Interrogate me regarding what?"

"For example, you, an apprentice from the imperial physician's hall of King Jing's Mansion, why would you appear at Zhou Cheng Yi's mansion at midnight? Is King Jing not already in collusion with the northern Jing Dynasty through Zhou Cheng Yi, intending to borrow the power of the Jing Dynasty to plot rebellion?" Yun Yang shrugged. "You see, I have many questions I wish to pose."

Jiao Tu's voice, laced with temptation, chimed in. "Although Zhou Cheng Yi is but a minor county magistrate, if you can expose King Jing, we shall bestow upon you wealth and honor!"

Chen Ji inwardly sighed at the complexity of his predicament, which seemed to spiral far beyond his initial imagining. Where was the Jing Dynasty? And who was King Jing? Were the deceased's connections truly so intricate?

He replied, "I came to deliver medicine and was innocently entangled." Chen Ji's answer was spurred by his observation of two packets of medicinal materials marked 'Tai Ping Medical Hall' in the kitchen. They were wrapped in yellow paper and placed beside the sand pot stove, still unopened.

Yun Yang shook his head. "This is merely your account. I only believe the answer I extract through interrogation."

Chen Ji changed the subject. "Do you wish to apprehend that high-ranking figure from the Jing Dynasty military intelligence department?"

"The men dispatched to capture him have already departed."

"You will not apprehend that person in the sweet water shop in Li Jing Lane. It is clearly merely a location used to facilitate Zhou Cheng Yi's escape. No high-ranking figure will be found there."

Yun Yang's face creased with thoughtfulness. "Do you possess any other clues?"

Chen Ji closed his mouth, remaining silent.

Yun Yang moved in front of Chen Ji, his middle and index fingers gripping the slender silver needle, and lightly tapped Chen Ji's shoulder socket. In an instant, Chen Ji felt a searing pain invade him. In mere breaths, sweat drenched his clothes. But the pain, as quickly as it came, vanished. After a few more breaths, it dissipated without a trace, as if the agony had been an illusion.

Yun Yang said casually, "I possess many more methods such as this. Having traversed the *Jianghu* these past years, few can endure more than three of my needles."

Yet Chen Ji still kept his mouth shut, uttering not a word.

Yun Yang again plunged a needle into the back of Chen Ji's hand. The young man's body trembled uncontrollably, but he made no sound. Yun Yang continuously administered two more needles. Still, Chen Ji remained silent.

"He can endure this?" Yun Yang exclaimed, a flicker of surprise in his eyes.

The next second, a piece of broken porcelain suddenly flipped out from Chen Ji's palm. He trembled and slashed it towards his neck artery! The fragment of broken porcelain had been concealed in his palm all along.

The broken porcelain shard stopped abruptly before reaching his neck. Only Yun Yang's hand was seen, gripping Chen Ji's wrist. "Threatening with death?"

"Enough, if we tarry any longer, the great merit will elude us," Jiao Tu stood up and extended three fingers. "I swear upon my mother's name that as long as you reveal the intelligence and assist us in attaining this merit, I shall return your freedom."

Yun Yang also rose and held out three fingers. "I too swear upon my parents' names. If I lie, may they forever be cast into the endless depths of hell."

Chen Ji remained silent, weighing the gravity of the oath. People of this era should be superstitious, thus oaths held immense weight... No, he still could not fully believe it. But if he demonstrated sufficient capability, making himself useful enough, could he gamble his life upon it?

Finally, he gasped and said, "The alum water characters on that rice paper must have been written when it was procured. It is highly probable that the high-ranking Jing Dynasty figure you mentioned penned it himself. Therefore, the clues you should have been seeking all this time were not in Li Jing Lane, but in the shop that sells that rice paper. This shop is the most vital intelligence channel."