If I, a death row inmate, am not to become a demon, am I to become a member of the Imperial Guard?

The main hall of Zuiyue Tower was as silent as a deep well.

The only sound was the soft bubbling of the pot of white fungus and lotus seed soup on the small clay stove in the corner.

The luminous pearl lay quietly on the rosewood table.

The light flowed and filled the room with radiance. The light was soft, yet not dazzling, casting an unpredictable glow on Jade Lady's exquisite face.

Her hand, which had been gently tucked into her sleeve, now rested unconsciously on the edge of the table. Her fingertips traced an invisible mark across the smooth wooden surface.

The man in front of me.

He was soaking wet, his hair still dripping, looking like a drowning ghost just pulled from the river. Yet he sat ramrod straight, his back as upright as a spear.

That composure formed a stark contrast with his appearance.

What alarmed her even more was the bead on the table.

For over a decade, Lady Yu had lived a life fraught with danger in Yangzhou. Information was her business, and people's hearts were her capital. She had seen salt merchants who spent money like water, and she had also seen wealthy patrons who spent lavishly.

I've never seen anyone like that before.

Using such a priceless treasure to buy only a vague and uncertain piece of information.

This is no longer just about being rich.

This is like throwing money at you, making you panic and leaving you with no way to refuse.

Lady Yu took a deep breath, suppressing the turmoil in her heart. She raised her eyes and looked at Zhou Yang again. This time, her gaze held less scrutiny and more inquiry.

"Young master, you are truly generous." She spoke slowly, her voice regaining its usual sweetness, though there was a hint of dryness at the end that she herself didn't realize. "This bead is more than enough to buy a piece of information."

Zhou Yang picked up the cup of tea in front of him, which had long since gone cold, and took a small sip. The tea was bitter, but as it slid down his throat, it cleared his chaotic thoughts somewhat.

"What others see as a treasure is something else entirely." He put down his teacup, the bottom clinking softly against the table. "But to me, it's just a price."

His tone was very calm, as if he were talking about something extremely ordinary.

Yu Niangzi's heart trembled again at that soft sound.

She suddenly realized she might have taken on a dangerous deal tonight. There was something dangerous about this man. It wasn't murderous intent, nor was it intimidation; it was a pure, undisguised...selfishness.

He'll give you anything you want as long as you're useful to him. But if you get in his way, he'll crush you without hesitation.

"What a fine 'price'." Lady Yu smiled, her smile returning to her face, but this time, there was something genuine in it. "What you want to know, young master, is about the strange light at Qixia Mountain?"

Zhou Yang nodded.

"To be honest, young master, I just received this news not long ago, and I haven't even had time to warm it up yet." Lady Yu leaned forward slightly and lowered her voice a few decibels. "Three nights ago, someone saw a purple pillar of light shooting into the sky at Qixia Mountain, thirty miles outside the city, and it lasted for the time it takes for an incense stick to burn. At the time, they thought someone was performing a night ritual for the gods, and no one paid any attention."

She paused for a moment, picked up the teapot on the table, and refilled Zhou Yang's cup with hot water. The rising steam blurred their vision.

"Until the next day," Lady Yu continued, "Qixia Mountain was sealed off by the Xie family."

"The Xie family?" Zhou Yang raised an eyebrow.

The Xie family of Yangzhou were the behind-the-scenes owners of the Grand Canal Gang and one of the most powerful salt merchants in the city. They controlled half of Yangzhou's water transport and salt routes, were incredibly wealthy, and had numerous followers.

"That's right, it's the Xie family," Yu Niangzi affirmed. "They've dispatched over a hundred guards to completely surround Qixia Mountain, preventing anyone from getting close. They've only told the outside world that their ancestral graves are there and they're repairing the feng shui. But that area of ​​Qixia Mountain isn't the Xie family's ancestral burial ground at all."

As she spoke, she pushed a small porcelain bottle in front of Zhou Yang.

"This is a little bit of something I extracted from a 'fatigue-relieving medicine' I bought from a head guard of the Xie family. Mixed into wine, it makes people less likely to lie."

Zhou Yang didn't touch the porcelain vase. His gaze was deep and somber.

The fact that they sealed off the mountain area and claimed a flimsy reason suggests they've discovered or found something important. That purple light is clearly the key.

"You received the message." Zhou Yang tapped his fingers lightly on the table, right next to the luminous pearl. "Now, it's time to talk about my 'price.' I need a detailed map of Qixia Mountain, as well as a map showing the Xie family's defenses in the mountain area."

Lady Yu smiled.

"Young master, what you want can't be bought with just a single pearl." Her slender fingers traced the smooth surface of the luminous pearl, feeling its warm coolness. "I have maps, and I can even find a way to get my hands on the Xie family's defense map. But... why should I take that risk for you?"

She finally revealed her true colors.

That's exactly what Zhou Yang was waiting for.

"Name your price." That was all there was to it.

"I don't want money." Lady Yu shook her head, her eyes sharpening. "I want you to do three things for me."

She extended a long, slender finger painted with nail polish.

"First, there's the deputy commissioner of the Yangzhou Salt Transport Office, named Qian Chang. He's ostensibly an official appointed by the court, but secretly he's embezzled a large amount of salt permits, enriching himself. He has a real ledger. I need you to retrieve it and hand it over to me."

The Salt Transport Commissioner controlled the salt monopoly in the entire Lianghuai region. In ancient times, salt was a valuable commodity. A deputy Salt Transport Commissioner could make a fortune. His account books for embezzling salt permits were a bombshell that could drag countless people down with him.

Zhou Yang stared at her expressionlessly.

Lady Yu extended her second finger.

"Secondly, there's a gang leader in the canal guild nicknamed 'Crossing-the-River Dragon,' named Yan Qi. This guy is arrogant and ruthless, and he's recently ruined several of my deals. I need you to teach him a lesson. Cut one of his tendons, then throw him into the canal to feed the fish, so he'll know that Yangzhou City isn't ruled by the Yan family."

Yan Qi, the Dragon Crossing the River.

Zhou Yang was very familiar with this name. A few days ago, while fishing by the lake, he was already planning out a script for this "lustful filial son." Unexpectedly, Lady Yu had also set her sights on him.

What a coincidence!

Looking at Zhou Yin's still calm face, Yu Niangzi felt a ripple in her heart.

Either of these actions would be a death sentence. Disrupting the Salt Transport Bureau meant breaking ties with the government. Taking action against the leader of the Grand Canal Gang meant making a blood feud with them.

Both of these forces are powerful enough to shake the earth if they stomp their feet in Yangzhou.

The man's face remained completely expressionless.

Is he an idiot who doesn't know what this means?

No, he's not stupid.

He simply has the confidence to back it up.

Lady Yu took a deep breath and stated her third condition. Her voice lowered involuntarily, trembling slightly.

"third……"

She held up her third finger.

"I have a younger sister named Yuzhu. Three years ago, she was tricked away by a man who said he would take her to see the prosperity of Jiangnan. In the end, she never came back."

"I investigated for three years, and all I knew was that the man was a businessman from out of town surnamed Liu. The last place someone saw them was in Nanjing. After that, there was no further news."

At this point, Yu Niangzi's eyes reddened slightly. The professional smile that always graced her face vanished completely. In its place was the worry and longing of an older sister for her younger sister.

"I need you to help me find her. Whether she's dead or alive, I want an answer."

Silence fell over the lobby once again.

Only that pot of lotus seed soup was still tirelessly steaming.

The first two conditions are business; they are exchanges of benefits.

This third condition is a private matter. It's about personal relationships.

Zhou Yang looked at her and remained silent for a long time.

He was weighing his options.

The first two conditions weren't difficult for him; they could even be considered favors he could easily do. Qian Chang's account books could become leverage he held over the government. Teaching Yan Qi a lesson was something he had planned all along.

But this third condition is too tricky.

In the vast sea of ​​people, a living person disappeared in Nanjing three years ago. Where are you supposed to find him? Let alone him, even the Embroidered Spring Banner of the Embroidered Uniform Guard would find it like looking for a needle in a haystack to find someone who deliberately conceals their identity in the two capitals and thirteen provinces of the Ming Dynasty.

His time is precious. His lifespan cannot be wasted.

"I can agree to the first two things," Zhou Yang finally spoke, his voice still calm. "But I'm afraid I can't comply with the third."

Yu Niangzi's heart sank suddenly, and the flame of hope that had just been ignited was extinguished in an instant.

"Why?" she pressed.

"Because that's a waste of time." Zhou Yang's answer was direct and cruel. "Three years ago, in Jinling City. A man surnamed Liu. The clues are too vague, practically nonexistent. I don't have time to waste searching for a needle in a haystack with you."

There was no sympathy in his eyes, only the shrewdness and calculation of a businessman.

Lady Yu gave a bitter laugh and shook her head: "In the end, I still overestimated you, young master. You're just a profit-driven person after all."

A profit-driven person.

Zhou Yang neither agreed nor disagreed with this title.

He always was.

"You want my help? Fine." He looked at Yu Niangzi, his tone leaving no room for argument. "Give me more clues. What kind of business does that man surnamed Liu run? What does he look like? Does he have any unusual birthmarks or scars? What did your sister, Yuzhu, have with her when she disappeared? Was there any keepsake?"

"The more clues you give me, the greater my chances of finding her. Otherwise, let's not even talk."

He didn't say he wouldn't help, but instead offered his own terms.

He wanted Yu Niangzi to prove that this matter was worth his time and effort.

Lady Yu was stunned.

Looking at the man in front of her, she suddenly felt that he was not a cold-blooded profiteer, but rather a... shrewd shopkeeper.

Every effort must be anticipated in anticipation of a return.

Her mind raced back to the scene three years ago when her younger sister left home.

"That man... was a silk merchant!" She suddenly remembered something, her voice becoming urgent. "He said he owned a silk shop in Suzhou! Oh, and he had a large, black mole on the back of his left hand!"

"My sister... when my sister passed away, she was wearing a jade pendant! It was a keepsake left to her by my mother, the color of mutton fat jade, with a pair of mandarin ducks carved on it!"

As Yu Niangzi spoke, she became more and more excited, her body trembling slightly as she stood on tiptoe.

"Is that all?" Zhou Yang asked.

"That's...that's all!" Lady Yu looked at him anxiously.

Zhou Yang pondered for a moment.

A silk merchant with a mole on his left hand; his target is Nanjing.

Although the clues are still vague, at least there is a direction to follow.

"Okay." He finally nodded. "I agree to this. But I can't guarantee the outcome. Don't blame me if we can't find it."

"Definitely! As long as you keep looking, there will definitely be results!" Yu Niangzi saw hope again, and she nodded vigorously, as if she had grasped the last straw.

The deal is done.

Lady Yu stood up, walked to the multi-treasure pavilion at the back of the hall, and took out an oilcloth package. She returned to the table and placed the package in front of Zhou Yang.

Upon opening the package, one finds a yellowed parchment scroll.

"This is a topographical map of Qixia Mountain, with every path and cave clearly marked." Yu Niangzi pointed to a spot on the map. "I'll send someone to deliver the Xie family's defenses first thing tomorrow morning. Their main focus is on the front of the mountain; the back is weakly defended. You can start your attack from here."

Zhou Yang picked up the map and looked at it carefully.

The map was drawn in great detail, even marking the location of the mountain spring.

"The beads are yours." He closed the map, stood up, and said, "I'll come back for the other two things after this is done."

"Very well! We await your good news, young master!" Lady Yu also stood up and gave a deep bow.

Zhou Yang didn't say another word and turned to leave.

He pushed open the door of Zuiyue Tower, and the night breeze, carrying moisture, rushed towards him, instantly dispelling the smell of alcohol and warmth from his body.

The streets outside were exceptionally clean, washed by the heavy rain. The lanterns hanging from the shops on both sides of the bluestone pavement were reflected in the light, a bright red that looked as if blood was flowing through them.

Zhao Liu and several Imperial Guard captains had been waiting in the shadows at the street corner for some time. Upon seeing Zhou Yang emerge, they immediately came to greet him.

"My lord," Zhao Liu called out in a low voice.

Zhou Yang tucked the map into his pocket and glanced at the wet streets.

Instead of returning to the inn immediately, he turned onto another road.

"Go to the Salt Transport Office."

Zhao Liu was taken aback: "Sir, now?"

"Now." Zhou Yang's tone left no room for argument.

Yu Niangzi's first condition was the account book of Qian Chang, the deputy salt transport commissioner.

Now that the business has been accepted, there's no reason to delay. The longer it drags on, the more things could go wrong. If word gets out and Qian Chang becomes prepared, it will be much harder to make a move.

Moreover, he also wanted to see what kind of corrupt official this Lady Yu was targeting.

The Salt Transport Office was located in the east of the city, not far from the Drunken Moon Pavilion.

The group quickened their pace, and their figures soon disappeared into the deep night of Yangzhou.

The night breeze blew by, ruffling the hem of Zhou Yang's clothes. He had already taken his first step.