Transmigrated into a farmer's lucky charm, all the villains in the family panicked.

Zhen Linqing dropped his languid expression and said softly, "Brother Pang, please have a seat."

"We're new here and we're worried about what exactly we need to do."

"Now that you're here, we'll follow your orders."

Pang Shan didn't stand on ceremony. He sat down at the table, poured himself a cup of tea to moisten his throat, and then began to get down to business.

"Our people here are mainly responsible for intelligence gathering and transmission."

"If it were just rescuing one or two people, we could handle it ourselves. But this time we have to rescue a whole family of more than a dozen people, who are being held in different places. We simply don't have enough manpower."

"Moreover, this intelligence network took many years and countless people to build."

"The master specifically instructed us to avoid touching the intelligence network as much as possible. Once the intelligence network is exposed, the loss will not be limited to a few people in this one city or region, but will be the eyes and ears of the entire Great Yan Kingdom. It would be a losing proposition."

Zhen Linqing and Yun Qiaoqiao naturally understood, and they had no objections.

"So the higher-ups have transferred several groups of people from various places," Pang Shan continued. "You are one group, and there are two other groups that have also arrived in Tiandu City and settled in different places."

"The inn is crowded and noisy; it's not a place to discuss business."

"Go to Taoyuan Hutong on West Street at the end of Chenshi (7-9 AM) tomorrow morning."

"There's a big locust tree in the alley, it's easy to spot. There are two doors next to the locust tree, one on the left and one on the right."

"Knock on the right door, knock three times."

"Someone will open the door and lead you in."

Zhen Linqing nodded: "Okay, we'll be there on time tomorrow."

Pang Shan sat for a while longer, chatting idly with Zhen Linqing about the prices in the capital, the weather, and which restaurant had the best mutton—all trivial matters. After putting on a good show, he got up with a smile and took his leave.

As he left, he loudly said at the door, "Then Brother Zhen, you should rest early. Come to my house tomorrow and we'll have a good drink together."

Then he walked down the stairs with a wobbly gait.

The next morning, Zhen Linqing and Yun Qiaoqiao got up early, had a casual breakfast downstairs at the inn, and set off at the appointed time.

Taoyuan Hutong on West Street is not hard to find, and the big locust tree is particularly eye-catching, with its canopy blocking out the sun and its trunk so thick that two people cannot wrap their arms around it.

Several elderly women were picking beans and chatting under the tree.

They walked a few steps into the alley and sure enough, they saw the two doors next to the big locust tree.

Zhen Linqing stepped forward and knocked three times on the door on the right.

The door creaked open a crack, and a child of about ten years old peeked out from inside.

He said somewhat impatiently, "Why are you knocking on the door so early in the morning? What are you doing here?"

With a gentle smile, Zhen Linqing cupped his hands and said, "My name is Niu Daxiao, and I've come to visit a friend. My surname is Pang, and my given name is Shan."

The child's eyes flickered slightly, he yawned, and muttered, "Alright, alright, I know."

He lazily opened the door and let the two of them in.

After the two crossed the threshold, he peeked out again and glanced at the pedestrians in the alley.

Across the street, an old man selling sesame cakes was dozing off; in the distance, a woman was squatting by the well washing clothes; under the big locust tree, several old women were gossiping about the widow Liu next door—nothing suspicious about it.

He then closed the door, bolted it, and turned around, his impatience completely gone.

"This way, please."

The boy's tone became noticeably more respectful as he pointed towards the backyard.

Zhen Linqing and Yun Qiaoqiao followed them through the front hall, past a hanging flower gate, and through a small courtyard with a crooked jujube tree, until they reached the backyard.

The boy stopped in front of the woodshed, pushed the door open, and gestured for them to come in: "Please come in, everyone is waiting inside."

Zhen Linqing thanked her and went inside with Yun Qiaoqiao.

It was indeed a woodshed inside.

There was a pile of chopped firewood in the corner, and several bundles of dry grass were stacked to one side. The air was filled with the smell of dry wood chips.

But next to the largest pile of firewood in the corner of the woodshed, a dark tunnel entrance was clearly visible, with earthen steps leading down to the bottom, with no end in sight.

A man was standing next to the entrance of the tunnel; it was Pang Shan, who had come to the inn looking for them last night.

Pang Shan smiled and nodded: "It's good that you're here. Come on over."

Zhen Linqing and Yun Qiaoqiao followed Pang Shan down into the tunnel.

The steps were narrow and steep, and every few steps a small oil lamp was stuck in the earthen walls on both sides, the flames flickering slightly in the damp air.

They hadn't gone far down when they heard a dull rustling sound overhead. It turned out that the stone slab above the tunnel entrance had closed automatically.

The three walked for an unknown amount of time in the dimly lit tunnel, passing several forks in the road, before finally entering a rather spacious dark room.

In the center of the dark room sat a long table. Scattered around it sat a dozen or so people, men and women, some dressed in plain clothes like ordinary people, others in fine clothes like nobles.

Everyone had a serious expression on their face, and they maintained a distance that was neither too close nor too distant from each other.

Pang Shan led Zhen Linqing and Yun Qiaoqiao to sit down in an empty seat, then stepped aside and leaned against the wall without saying a word.

At the head seat at the far end of the long table sat a middle-aged man of average build.

He wore a dark gray robe and had a very ordinary appearance, but when his eyes swept over, they carried a sense of imposing authority.

He saw Zhen Linqing and Yun Qiaoqiao come in and nodded slightly.

"Hello everyone, my code name is Skyhawk. I'm in charge of coordinating this operation."

He glanced around at the dozen or so people in the dark room: "Today, everyone here must not use their real names; address each other by code names."

"After the operation is over, everyone should return to their respective positions and there should be no further contact between them."

He first pointed to a man and a woman on his left.

Both were dressed in black, the woman was slender and had a cold and beautiful face, while the man was lean and slender, his fingers unconsciously twirling a copper coin.

Skyhawk said, "These two are codenamed Black Snake and White Snake."

The two nodded slightly, their expressions remaining unchanged.

Then Skyhawk pointed to the four men on his right.

These four people have different physiques and temperaments.

One was burly and strong like an iron tower, another had a thin face with a scholarly air, one had a shrewd look with smiling eyes, and the other was taciturn with lowered eyes.

Tianying pointed to them one by one: "White Tiger, Azure Dragon, Vermilion Bird, Black Tortoise."

The four people nodded in turn.

Tianying pointed to two almost identical men sitting in the corner: "Tianlang, Dilang."

The two of them grinned at the same time, revealing identical canine teeth.

Tianying then pointed to three men not far behind the White Snake: "They are Tianyi, Tianer, and Tiansan."

Finally, Tianying's gaze fell on Zhen Linqing and Yun Qiaoqiao.

Zhen Linqing stood up, clasped his hands in greeting, and said, "My name is Qingniao."

He turned to the side and pointed to Yun Qiaoqiao beside him, saying, "This is Bai He..."