At the third quarter of the Mao hour (5:45 AM), morning dew clung to the cracks between the blue bricks of the Lu Mansion’s corner gate. Zhang Shun huddled against the wall, a dew-soaked scrap of paper pinched between his fingertips. As Jiang Wan took the paper, the words "Group Ren to shift defense tonight" were blurred by moisture, looking like the tangled, dark threads of the Remnant Plum Pavilion. She turned to Mr. Zhou, her silver hairpin flashing coldly in the morning light. "Tell Zhang Shun to hold off on passing along any more fake intelligence. First, have him locate the entrance to the main stronghold. The more desperate the Remnant Plum Pavilion is to shift their defenses, the more it proves they have a dark secret hidden there."
Lu Jingyuan chuckled softly while wiping down his sword, the blade reflecting the certainty in his eyes. "Zhang Shun has been with me since he was thirteen. He spent three months undercover at the Sky Wolf Stronghold years ago; he even learned to mimic the old chieftain’s snoring perfectly." He lowered his voice. "Besides, he is wearing the custom-made Withered Plum Jade Pendant you gave him. When the sect leader sees it, he will only recognize one of his own."
At the first quarter of the Si hour (9:15 AM), in the shadows of the alley behind Cien Temple, Zhang Shun half-carried and half-dragged a severely wounded junior steward, evading three patrols of scouts. The frothy blood the steward coughed up splattered onto Zhang Shun’s lapels, …
Chapter 273