Whispers of a Lonely City Beyond the Heavens – Chapter 37

Ch 37: Another Adventure

“There’s no time to explain slowly.” Long Yang grabbed his shoulders and shook him hard a few times, hoping to jolt him into clarity.

“Now, listen carefully and do exactly as I say, no questions. Tomorrow morning, go straight to Prefect Xu and hand him the gold bars. If Prefect Xu isn’t there, find someone in charge under him. Tell them I once asked you to join me in a theft, but you refused. The day before yesterday, I gave you these gold bars, and you didn’t dare keep them for yourself, fearing I’d make a big mistake later and drag you all into trouble, so you reported it to the authorities.”

“But why should I do this?”

“No more questions. Brother, from now on, take good care of Mother and don’t drink too much.”

Long Yang hugged Lin Yuan tightly, patted his back, and said, “Go back. Hide the stuff well and act like nothing happened.”

“I’ll do as you say.” Lin Yuan scratched his head and walked off.

After getting into the carriage, Long Yang told the coachman to head toward Wisteria Alley, a lane outside the back wall of the Commissioner’s Office. It wasn’t far from the Prefect’s Office or the Regional Military Command, and the alley was home to several wealthy households.

As the carriage entered the alley, he pushed open the window to look outside. The lane was pitch black.

They stopped in front of the Rice Fragrance Tavern, got out, and sent the carriage away. The two of them quietly climbed to the third floor, opened a west-facing window, and observed the activity inside the Commissioner’s Office.

The vast courtyard of the Commissioner’s Office lay silent in the darkness, with light spilling out from only one tall building.

In the middle of the night, with a fine rain falling like silk, could someone still be awake?

Rain Spirit Grass was crucial—would they have someone guarding it even at night?

Long Yang didn’t dare dwell on it. For now, he just hoped that light would go out soon. They waited a long while, but the light stayed on.

They couldn’t wait any longer!

They descended the stairs and entered the alley.

Long Yang leaped up, ran a couple of steps along the wall, and peered over the top for a moment. There was no movement inside. He signaled, then jumped down first.

As soon as he landed, Wei Wei dropped silently beside him, followed by Xiao Hei, which landed as quietly as a cat.

Long Yang quickly scanned their surroundings, then led them toward a building. He pushed open a window, jumped inside, and once Wei Wei and Xiao Hei followed, he hurriedly closed it again.

“Big Brother, where do we look?” Wei Wei whispered.

“I have a plan.” Long Yang pulled a Rain Spirit Grass leaf from his pocket and let Xiao Hei sniff it. “Xiao Hei, not a sound—let’s go find the Rain Spirit Grass.”

Xiao Hei was remarkably clever and stayed completely silent. Normally, it would have let out a couple of soft whimpers.

They pushed open the back window and jumped out.

Xiao Hei sniffed the air, then headed northwest. It seemed very familiar with the area, moving as lightly as a cat.

Long Yang followed closely, occasionally correcting its path. They needed not only to find the Rain Spirit Grass but also to take the safest route possible.

Tian Weihu wouldn’t patrol at night himself, but he might have assigned men to do it. To avoid detection, relying on trees and bushes for cover wasn’t enough—they sometimes had to pass through empty rooms, inching closer to their goal bit by bit.

Along the way, Xiao Hei kept sniffing, its pauses growing shorter and its pace quickening. Its initial judgment had been spot on, and now they pressed on toward the northwest.

Long Yang felt a growing unease—the light was coming from that direction. If someone was keeping watch over the Rain Spirit Grass with the light on, he’d be out of options.

They drew closer to the source of the light.

They climbed into a large room that seemed like a guest dining hall and quietly moved toward the western chamber.

Groping their way forward like the blind, they reached the door. Suddenly, Xiao Hei opened its mouth and tugged hard at Long Yang’s pant leg.

Startled at first, he quickly grew alert: someone was in this room. He signaled urgently, and he and Wei Wei split to either side of the door, pressing their ears to the crack to listen.

“…That guy just won’t sleep—what do we do?” Someone inside was discussing, their voice low but tinged with frustration.

“Blow some knockout incense in there.”

“No way, Second Brother. That guy’s skills are too strong—if he senses anything, he’ll hold his breath and strike.”

The other person fell silent for a moment. “I don’t know if Big Brother and Third Brother have succeeded. If they’ve knocked out the others, the eight of us can regroup here, and we won’t have to fear Tian Weihu.”

“They split up to search. We agreed to meet here. It’s been so long with no sign of them—could something have gone wrong?”

After a while, someone let out a heavy sigh. “We can’t wait any longer. Let’s go check—deal with the others first, then take on Tian Weihu.”

Long Yang peeked and saw two shadowy figures climb out the window, one after the other.

Wei Wei said with delight, “Big Brother, they’re here to steal the herbs too. They’re actually helping us!”

Long Yang almost said, “That might not be a good thing,” but held back, instead replying, “Wei Wei, Tian Weihu is definitely in that lit building, and the Rain Spirit Grass is probably there too. Now, we need to be even more careful.”

They climbed out the window and continued toward the light.

The light spilling from the third-floor window didn’t reach the ground below. Using the cover of darkness, they circled to the back of the building, quietly climbed onto the roof, and lay flat on the glazed tiles, peering down.

After a while, someone ascended the stairs and stood in the corridor, reporting, “Lord, we’ve spotted two more—eight in total now.”

“Why haven’t you captured them yet?” Tian Weihu’s voice came from inside.

“They’re all under watch. But their skills are impressive, and they’re acting separately. I’m worried that if we move, some might slip away. Please, Lord, take action yourself.”

Long Yang was stunned: Tian Weihu had indeed set up hidden sentries—they even knew the exact number of intruders. Those people were in trouble…

Tian Weihu let out a cold laugh. “Fine. There shouldn’t be any more coming. Once they’re dealt with, I can finally sleep.”

The light didn’t go out, but Tian Weihu must have left.

Long Yang waited a bit longer, then said, “Wei Wei, let’s go down.”

They quickly dropped onto the third-floor corridor, pushed open the door, and stepped inside.

Xiao Hei sniffed around, then led them rushing into a room.

On a desk by the window, a glass-shaded glazed lamp burned brightly, its light carrying a faint sandalwood scent.

Long Yang glanced over and saw a sheet of paper on the desk with a few freshly written lines. The wastebasket below was stuffed with crumpled paper balls.

Xiao Hei began pawing at a wooden cabinet. Wei Wei opened it, revealing a dozen flat wooden boxes inside. Xiao Hei sniffed, placed a paw on one of the boxes, and looked up at Long Yang. Long Yang hurriedly opened it to check.

Thank heaven—he didn’t need to search anymore!

Inside the wooden box were three stalks of Rain Spirit Grass, along with some milky-white fungi and a single pill.