Tome of Troubled Times

Chapter 283: Third Lady Yuan

Huangsha Market was in complete chaos.

Chi Li and the others from the temple dashed out, heading directly toward the direction of Yue Hongling’s voice.

A Ferghana horse, far superior to her previous poor steed, galloped away under the morning sun, quickly becoming a distant dot on the horizon. Yue Hongling’s mocking voice was carried by the wind. “Chi Li, I thought you had the heart of a true warrior. We agreed on a duel, yet you bring so many people to charge at me. Do you still consider yourself a warrior?”

Chi Li’s face turned grim. He ignored her taunt, waved his hand, and commanded as if he had not heard anything, “Chase her down!”

He did have the heart of a warrior, and he would have relished a fierce duel with Yue Hongling under different circumstances.

However, as someone from the temple, he prioritized finding the secret realm that had eluded countless people for many years, pursuing the guidance of the ancient Tngri.

Compared to this goal, his personal martial pursuits were secondary.

At this moment, Yue Hongling held important clues about the secret realm. He could not afford to let her escape.

“Where the hell did she get a Ferghana horse!” One of his subordinates panted heavily as they gave chase. “Did she get it from the secret realm?”

Yue Hongling turned around and shot an arrow, knocking one of the members of the temple off his horse. “Chi Li, if you have the guts, chase me on your own. Stop sending your men to their deaths!”

Chi Li took a deep breath and suddenly leaped off his horse, flying through the air.

His speed was far greater than that of a horse.

Yue Hongling glanced back, smiled slightly, and spurred her horse faster.

Seeing his terrifying speed, Yue Hongling judged that Chi Li must have indeed gotten a glimpse of the Profound Mysteries... He was undoubtedly the most promising in the Grasslands, worthy of once being the first hidden dragon. Furthermore, with the teachings of the Great Shaman, his strength had advanced rapidly, especially in areas related to the Profound Mysteries, far surpassing someone like her who had had to figure everything out on her own.

Fortunately, with Zhao Changhe’s help, she had kept pace and was at around the same level as Chi Li.

She was filled with fighting spirit, but unfortunately, she had not come to fight this time. Her mission was to distract the members of the temple to facilitate Zhao Changhe’s plans. She would carry this out dutifully even if she did not know what exactly his plans were. What she had to do now was to lead these experts away as far as she could from Zhao Changhe.

Yue Hongling realized she had almost grown accustomed to working in tandem with Zhao Changhe. Whether it was exploring the secret realm, breaking open formations, attacking Batu, or beheading an envoy, she could not have done any of these on her own. Even at this moment, she was luring enemies away while he infiltrated the market.

Suddenly, she almost forgot what she used to do when she was alone.

Yue Hongling found herself enjoying this moment of facing enemies alone. It seemed that she still held hints of that solitary nature in her heart. While she cherished his companionship, she also enjoyed independence.

It was likely that Zhao Changhe felt the same.

They truly did see another version of themselves in each other.

*

Amidst the chaos, Zhao Changhe once again disguised himself, smearing his face with the last of his disguise ointment before entering Rooms Available Inn.

With him having run out of the disguise ointment, this was probably the last time he would be using this disguise for the foreseeable future. If he wanted to disguise himself again in the future, he needed to find another set of the ingredients required to make the ointment... Or maybe I can just ask Sisi for another batch next time.

As this thought crossed his mind, he spotted Lady Three sitting on the bar counter, her little feet propped up as she went through a ledger.

Apart from her, the dining hall was completely empty.

It was not just the dining hall or the inn, actually; the entire market outside, which was usually as bustling as a busy port, was now eerily quiet.

The Warring Lion Tribe’s battles, the urgency of the Yanmen campaign, the presence of the temple’s personnel, and the lake having been designated as a restricted area all signaled a looming storm. Any merchant with a bit of sensitivity had already left in a hurry, and there were no more drunken patrons leering at Lady Three’s charms.

Lady Three knew someone had come in, but she did not even raise her head to look up from her ledger. She sighed. “Wars, wars, what’s the point of all these wars? All they do is make me lose money...”

She even sniffed for added effect. Her little feet kicked around in frustration. “A bunch of idiots!”

Zhao Changhe said expressionlessly, “Why is an old lady like you pretending to be a young girl?”

Lady Three: “?”

Zhao Changhe casually hopped onto a seat beside her on the counter and said lazily, “I have a big business deal for you. Interested?”

Lady Three looked him up and down and sneered. “Are you going to say that you want to buy me?”

“I already called you an old lady. Can’t you take a hint?”

Lady Three gritted her teeth. “I know your deals. They always make me pay, and it’s never about me making money! Just spill it—how much do you want for the secret of how to enter the secret realm?”

As she spoke, the doors and windows shut tightly on their own. At this moment, not even a fly could get out.

Zhao Changhe could see the malevolent intent behind Lady Three’s usual facade.

It seemed that she believed she could just capture and interrogate him rather than pay for the information she wanted.

Honestly, Lady Three had not expected Zhao Changhe to dare come to her inn all alone. Does he really think that I only sell drinks and flirt with my customers?

Facing Lady Three’s malicious gaze, Zhao Changhe acted as if he did not notice anything amiss. He nonchalantly reached behind the counter, pulled out a bottle of wine, and took a big gulp. “Jiangnan osmanthus wine is still better.”

Lady Three smiled seductively. “You can drink as much as you want, for the rest of your life if you wish.”

“There is no point in capturing and interrogating me. Even if you get answers from me, you won’t be able to avoid Ubalu and Chi Li. In the end, you’ll just be doing the dirty work for the barbarians. The best you can do is report to the fifth lord and have him come personally. But once he arrives, your personal ambitions will have nowhere to flourish. You’d be better off cooperating with me.”

Lady Three’s eyes flashed with surprise, but she smiled and said, “What personal ambitions could I possibly have? I just love money...”

“Really?” Zhao Changhe was noncommittal and continued, “Then report to the fifth lord first. I’ll give him information on the secret realm in exchange for him doing something for me. I don’t have any need for your money nor you.”

“Can you please tell me what you need the fifth lord to do first?”

“When Timur uses his Ranking of Heaven strength to bully others, I’ll need the fifth lord to restrain him. I believe that he does not fear Timur.”

“No wonder you said it conflicts with my personal ambitions... He indeed does not fear Timur, but if he intervenes, how will I continue to do business in the Grasslands?” Lady Three smiled seductively. “How about you give me the secrets, and I’ll promise you anything...”

Zhao Changhe jumped sideways by three chi, landing on the edge of the counter.

Lady Three laughed. “Look at how scared you are. Is that necessary?”

Zhao Changhe said, “You should know that if you support another force, your business will thrive even more. Your ambitions do not lay in finding secret realms for the fifth lord... or rather, you aren’t really working for the fifth lord at all.”

Lady Three’s expression turned cold.

Zhao Changhe jumped off the counter, walked to the window, and gazed into the distance. “I asked Batu... Huangsha Lake had a special name many, many years ago. It seemed to be called Black...”

Before he could finish, a jade hand was already at his throat.

But as the hand grabbed, it only got hold of a softly glowing gemstone.

Lady Three quickly withdrew her strength, her grasp turning into a gentle stroke along his neck. As she pulled back, the gemstone rested in her palm.

Lady Three’s eyes shone even brighter than the gemstone.

“Maybe this isn’t rightfully mine, but for some reason, both Hongling and I have always inexplicably felt that it should belong to you. Maybe it’s because you’ve devoted your whole life to it, and it would be truly pitiful to take it from you; or maybe it’s because if we did, we’d be in a fight to the death. I like Chichi, and I like Big Sister Fire Serpent of Yi. I don’t want to be your enemy.”

As Lady Three listened, her expression started with surprise but turned playful at his mention of liking “Big Sister Fire Serpent of Yi.”

Zhao Changhe turned around and smiled brilliantly. “There was more in the secret realm, but first come, first served. I can’t give you everything. Nevertheless, this gemstone should be what you need the most. I’m giving it to you for free, asking for nothing in return. I don’t need your money nor you. So is there really a need for you to interrogate me?”

Lady Three smiled seductively. “Would you like to have your Big Sister Fire Serpent of Yi?”

“Yes. Can you help me woo her?”

“Heh...” Lady Three laughed softly while holding the gemstone, and then she burst into loud laughter. She clutched her stomach from laughing so hard. “Yes, I can help you with that.”

Zhao Changhe, though slightly annoyed by her laughter, said calmly, “You’ve always wanted this gemstone, not the secret realm itself. However, Ying Five is different. He wants the alternate space. You two no longer have conflicting interests. Can you convey my proposal to the fifth lord now?”

“Sure.” Lady Three moved toward the back of the house. After a while, a carrier pigeon took off.

“The fifth lord isn’t far from here. He’ll receive the message soon, and I can assure you that he will agree.” Lady Three looked at him with bright eyes. “You gave me this gemstone. Are you sure that you don’t need me to do anything in return? I can do anything for you.”

“Instead of asking you to do something, it’s more like we’re going to work together and do something that you’ve wanted to do for a long time and even tried to have others do for you.”

“Oh?”

“Kill Ubalu. I know you won’t kill him yourself because you’re worried the Tome of Troubled Times will expose you for it. But this time, I can take the blame for you.”

Lady Three’s eyes curved into a smile. “What a clever little man.”

“Just tell me whether you’ll do it or not.”

“I will.”

If anyone overheard the last two sentences, they might think that a delightful deal had been struck.