Hot flashes

Sun Da glanced at him.

"It's full," he said. "Fully full. But the rations and pay allocated by the Ministry of War have been decreasing year by year. And that rations don't belong to the imperial court."

Zhao Ting was silent for a moment. Then he asked a question: "Is it possible to get hold of the accounts for those grain warehouses?"

Sun Da hesitated.

"Prefect Qi is keeping a close eye on things. The account books are locked in his study, and he always carries the key with him. I tried to bribe one of his servants, but before I could even deliver the message, the servant was beaten up and kicked out of the mansion."

"If you can't get your hands on the account books, then keep an eye on people," Zhao Ting said. "Who Prefect Qi met, where he went, when he went, and how long he stayed—can you keep track of all that?"

Sun nodded.

"Yes. I've been in this city for ten years. I can't speak for other things, but I'm confident I can keep an eye on someone."

Zhao Ting took out a piece of silver from his pocket and placed it in Sun Da's palm. Sun Da tried to push the silver back, but Zhao Ting held his hand down.

"I'm buying drinks for the brothers," Zhao Ting said. "I'll stay in this city for three days. After three days, whether they find anything or not, I have to leave."

Sun Da clutched the silver and nodded.

Zhao Ting stayed in Xuzhou for three days.

Sun Dalai reported that Prefect Qi had gone to the military camp again last night, this time in the middle of the night, and did not return until almost dawn. When he returned, he was accompanied by another person—the person was wrapped in a cloak, so his face could not be seen, but he was very tall and walked with a limp in his left leg.

When Zhao Ting heard the words "left leg lame", his teacup paused for a moment.

"What did that person look like?"

Sun Da shook his head. "I didn't see clearly. Prefect Qi personally escorted him out, seeing him to the door and saying a few words. My men were too far away to hear what they said."

Zhao Ting didn't ask any more questions. That afternoon, he left Xuzhou with his men.

At the end of September, Zhao Ting's secret report was sent to the capital.

Chen Shen took the letter and delivered it directly to the Qianqing Palace.

Xiao Jue read the letter, folded it neatly, and put it into the box on the table.

On the third day of the tenth month, Zhou Heng was in his duty room at the Hanlin Academy, looking through the official gazettes sent from various places.

The contents of the official gazette were nothing new; they were nothing more than news of rain in one place, a good harvest in another, an official's promotion in one place, and an official's punishment in another.

When he turned to a local gazette from Xuzhou, his fingers suddenly stopped.

The official gazette stated that Qi Luan, the prefect of Xuzhou, was commended by the imperial court for his "effective governance, which brought peace and prosperity to the people," and was awarded ten bolts of brocade and five hundred taels of silver.

------

Shen House.

Shen Duan met someone in the study.

The man was wearing a dark gray cloak, which he removed as he entered. This revealed a long, thin face with high cheekbones, deep-set eyes, and a slight limp in his left leg.

Shen Duan glanced at him.

The man found a seat, picked up his teacup, and took a sip. The tea was cold; he frowned, then put it down.

"Is everything arranged in Xuzhou?" Shen Duan asked.

The man nodded. "Zhou Jing is a smart man; he knows what to do."

Shen Duan held his prayer beads in his hand, remaining silent.

The man added, "The grain in the granary is enough to last three months. As for the generals in the military camp, they are all from the Cui family. They won't question why they only need the Cui family's word."

Shen Duan remained silent.

The man looked at him, waited a moment, and then asked, "Does Lord Shen have any further instructions?"

Shen Duan put down the prayer beads.

"Go back and tell Cui Yin," he said, "to tell him to wait a little longer. It's not the right time yet."

The man paused for a moment.

Shen Duan looked at him, his voice neither loud nor soft. "The spies in the capital haven't been completely withdrawn yet."

The man was silent for a moment, then nodded. "Don't worry, Lord Shen, I will pass on the message to Lord Cui."

He stood up, put his hood back on, covering most of his face.

Shen Duan sat there, counting the prayer beads one by one. The man walked to the door, and Shen Duan's voice came from behind him.

"Tell Qi Luan to tone it down. Entering the military camp in the middle of the night is too conspicuous."

The man paused for a moment, then pushed open the door and left without turning around.

The door closed.

Shen Duan stopped counting the prayer beads.