Chapter 140: The Foshan Trip, Part Six

Stay calm! Stay calm! Liu San commanded himself. What was done, was done. Panicking wouldn’t help. Besides, they weren’t ordinary Ming citizens. What was the big deal about killing a Jinyiwei brat? If he felt a pang of mercy because she was a girl, he could always kidnap her and take her back as a sex slave.

With that dark thought, his composure returned. He picked up the teapot, poured a cup for Huang Tianyu, and gestured for him to calm down.

Huang Tianyu, who had been thoroughly startled, was now also suspicious. A respected member of the Jinyiwei could easily extort local officials and wealthy families. Why resort to petty theft? He whispered, “Liu San, something is fishy here.”

“I agree,” Liu San nodded, his eyes narrowed. “Very fishy.”

The girl was only fifteen. A fifteen-year-old girl serving in the Jinyiwei? This wasn’t some historical drama or a wuxia novel with female constables and sword-wielding heroines.

“What’s wrong? Cat got your tongue? Hmph! Hurry up and untie me! Let this old gal go!”

Liu San paused for a moment, then stood up and bowed to her with an exaggerated flourish.

“Please forgive our impertinence, Miss Qianqian! Since you are serving the court, it was a grave misunderstanding on our part. We will escort you to the county yamen first thing tomorrow morning. Then, whether you want us punished or executed, we will be entirely at your disposal.”

“No need. This old gal is merciful. Just let me go now.” Hearing she was to be sent to the yamen, a flicker of panic crossed the girl’s face. This made Liu San even more certain. He deliberately pressed on:

“No, no, we must properly escort you. We’ll also prepare a banquet to calm your nerves, and then we’ll have to ask you to put in a good word for us with the Baihu…”

“I said no, so no! Let me go! The Baihu is a very busy man!” The girl was growing impatient.

That sealed it. Whatever her connection to the Jinyiwei, she was just as afraid of them as they were.

Liu San hesitated. He could have let her go or sent her to the yamen before, but now he needed to find out her true identity. After all, the plaque didn’t look like a forgery.

Could she have stolen it? Liu San shook his head. What would be the point? It was far too dangerous to impersonate an agent.

With this in mind, Liu San said slowly, “Miss Qianqian, I can refrain from sending you to the yamen, but you must answer a few of my questions.”

“Hey, how dare you!” Qianqian’s expression changed. “Who do you think you are, interrogating me?”

Just as Liu San was about to speak, Huang Tianyu gestured towards Shucui, who was kneeling on the side, her eyes wide as she watched the drama unfold. It wasn’t wise to talk with her present.

He called Gao Di over and told him to take Shucui out. They wouldn’t release her yet, but would keep her in his room for the time being.

Once Huang Tianyu had closed the door, Liu San said, “This isn’t an interrogation. We just want to know where you’re from.”

“Hmph, you think you’re worthy of knowing who I am?”

“If you don’t tell us, you’ll likely have to tell the yamen,” Liu San said calmly. “Of course, you could show them this plaque… if you dare.”

Qianqian’s face turned beet red. “Why wouldn’t I dare! This is a real plaque! I got it from Uncle Li—” She realized her slip and swallowed the rest of her words.

Though she hadn’t finished, Liu San and Huang Tianyu understood. The girl likely had a relative or friend in the Jinyiwei and had gotten the plaque from them. It was something she couldn’t use openly. No wonder she was afraid of the authorities. If she showed the plaque, the local Jinyiwei would know a colleague was in town, and her cover would be blown.

“Qianqian, just tell us the truth. How did you get this plaque? You look like you come from a good family. Why did you resort to stealing?” Liu San put on his kindest, most avuncular expression. “If you’re in some kind of trouble, I’ll help if I can.”

Qianqian’s eyes darted around. After a careful mix of threats and persuasion from Liu San, she finally confessed.

Her real name was Li Yongxun, and she was the daughter of a Xiaoqi under the command of a Jinyiwei Baihu in Nanjing. As for why she was in Guangzhou, so far from home, it was a classic tale: her father was forcing her into a marriage, so she had run away.

“…I didn’t want to steal, but I ran out of money, and even my bracelet was stolen,” she said, her voice catching as she started to whimper. Huang Tianyu’s heart softened.

“Old Liu, I don’t think it’s a big deal. She’s just a kid who made a mistake…”

“Uncle, please let me go—boo hoo hoo…”

So, she’s a runaway. Liu San thought this was a tricky situation. Whether her story was true or not, she clearly had some connection to the Jinyiwei. Sending her to the authorities was out of the question; it would attract their attention. But letting her go was also risky. She seemed inexperienced, but her cunning eyes suggested she was full of tricks. What if she caused more trouble?

“I think we should take her with us,” Huang Tianyu suggested.

“No. Her father is probably looking for her everywhere. Traveling with a girl would draw too much attention and could bring us trouble,” Liu San rejected the idea. “Let her go.”

“Qianqian, since this is your first offense, you can leave at dawn,” Liu San said. “Don’t get involved in this kind of thievery again. It brings shame to your family.”

“Thank you, uncle,” Li Yongxun said, now looking like an innocent, misguided youth. “But uncle, I have nowhere to go now…”

This is bad, Liu San thought. The little brat is latching onto us. “You should go home.”

“I’m not going back! Father wants me to marry some pretty boy! Besides, Nanjing is thousands of miles from here. Are you really going to let a little girl like me travel that far alone?”

Sweat beaded on Liu San’s forehead. He and Huang Tianyu exchanged a look. We’re not that close to you! Whether you marry a pretty boy or an ugly one has nothing to do with us—we’re not here to liberate women.

“Then you’re on your own,” Huang Tianyu said, finally realizing the girl was a menace.

“Where are you going, uncle?” Li Yongxun asked slyly.

“Into the city on business tomorrow.”

“Liar! You’re clearly going to Foshan!”

Huang Tianyu groaned inwardly. It seemed she had already figured out their plans—which wasn’t hard; she just had to ask at the front desk.

“Since you’re going to Foshan, can you take me with you?”

The two men were stunned. Was she crazy or just infatuated? Why would she want to travel with two strange men?

Huang Tianyu cleared his throat. “Look, we’re a group of men without any female companions. It’s not convenient to travel with a young girl.”

“You both look like merchants!” Li Yongxun retorted. “What’s wrong with having a young maidservant with you?”

“It’s not that it’s wrong, it’s just… inconvenient!” Huang Tianyu was getting annoyed. “Aren’t you afraid we’ll take you to a remote place, tie you up, and sell you to a brothel?”

“Hmph, you think I haven’t been to one? I scared the madam and the pimps out of their wits. You wouldn’t dare—” Li Yongxun seemed quite proud of her protective talisman. “Unless you think the Jinyiwei are all incompetent.”

The Jinyiwei are indeed incompetent, Huang Tianyu thought resentfully. Even the most formidable secret police were no match for Li Zicheng and the Manchus. But saying that out loud would be unwise.

“…Besides, I think you uncles are good people.”

Receiving a “good person card” out of the blue was somewhat depressing, especially for Huang Tianyu, who had truly been a “good person” this time.

After a long, circular conversation, they still couldn’t convince the girl to leave them alone. Finally, Liu San said in exasperation, “What are you going to do in Foshan? We’re going there on business, not for sightseeing!”

“I have a sister who married into a family in Foshan. I’m going to her place. Please, just do a good deed and give me a ride.”

Liu San had considered tying her up and leaving her in a room at the inn for a few days, but that would cause too much trouble for Qiwei. As a major enterprise of the Guangzhou station, it was already a prominent target and didn’t need the added attention of the Jinyiwei.

Since she insisted on coming, he decided to take her. Once they reached Foshan, it wouldn’t matter whether her story about her sister was true or not. Whatever they did with her then wouldn’t involve the Guangzhou station. The journey from Guangzhou to Foshan was short, only two days by riverboat, according to the innkeeper. The route was heavily populated, so nothing major could happen.

With that in mind, he nodded. “Alright, we’ll take you to Foshan. But first, you must write a document stating that you voluntarily asked us to escort you and that we have no further obligations to each other upon arrival.”

“Deal.” Li Yongxun wrote the document. Liu San took it, blew it dry, and tucked it safely into his coat.

“It’s already the third watch. It’s getting late—” Liu San realized they needed to get her a room.

Huang Tianyu sighed. “Let Miss Li have my room. I’ll stay with you.”

“Alright,” Liu San agreed.

“I have another bundle at Shucui’s place,” Li Yongxun requested. “Please release Shucui and have her fetch it for me.”

“Fine.” Liu San told Gao Di to release Shucui and get Li Yongxun’s bundle. He also sent Chen Tong to check on Manager Yang’s room to make sure he hadn’t been disturbed.

The next morning, at the crack of dawn, Liu San and Huang Tianyu got up to wash. They went to Li Yongxun’s room and found her already dressed in a simple blue cloth dress, looking like an ordinary maid. She had a bundle on her back and a long, cloth-wrapped object tied to her umbrella.

Huang Tianyu asked, “What’s in there?”

“A Xiuchun Dao,” Li Yongxun said with a hint of pride. “Standard issue for our guard.”

“You probably stole that from your Uncle Li too.”

“Of course not! My father had it made for me!”