Ning Chen settled the details of the partnership with Prince Duan and then left with the two hundred thousand taels in silver notes.

The trip had been well worth making.

The first reason he had chosen Prince Duan to work with was that the man could be relied on to keep his word, more or less.

The second was that Xiuzhou was Prince Duan’s own ground. Hand the business to him, and he could sit still and take the benefit of it.

The third was that it tied Prince Duan to Ning Chen’s boat with a knot he could not undo.

Back at the inn, they all rested for the night.

That night Ning Chen slept apart from Zisu and Yudie.

Because the next day they were going to make offerings to Yan Wenbo.

The following morning.

Ning Chen sent men out to buy incense and candles and the rest of what was needed.

Yan Wenbo had been sentenced at the time to the entire household to the sword, and Zisu had been taken out of Xiuzhou by Shang Lu, so there was nobody to claim the bodies. They had all been thrown onto the burying ground.

There was no gravestone, and the bodies had very likely been eaten by animals long ago.

The party came to the burying ground.

With no gravestone, all they could do was find a clear patch of ground and make the offerings there.

“Father, our Yan family was wronged, and now it has been put right… You can rest in peace when you go down below.”

Zisu cried until she could not get a word out, and her heart was torn to pieces.

She had run herself ragged for more than ten years to reach this day.

Ning Chen knelt down on the ground. “Lord Yan, my name is Ning Chen. You and I never met, but Zisu binds us close together… Set your mind at rest. For the rest of my life I will protect Zisu, and keep her safe and happy.”

It was already afternoon when they went back to the city.

Zisu’s eyes were red and swollen and her spirits were low.

Once they were back at the inn she fell into a heavy sleep.

Ning Chen and Yudie stayed with her the whole time.

It was evening by the time Zisu woke.

Ning Chen had a little food prepared, and Zisu forced down a few mouthfuls.

“Shall I have somebody pick a day and set up a stone for Lord Yan?”

Zisu shook her head gently. “An empty grave. What would be the meaning in it?”

Ning Chen thought about it and said, “Then when we are back in the capital, I will set up a spirit tablet for Lord Yan, so you can make your offerings to him every day.”

Zisu nodded gently.

The next morning at dawn the party set out for Qinghe County.

Yudie’s father had been beheaded, the men of the household exiled, the women sent into the courtesans’ quarter.

Ning Chen had asked Geng Jing long ago to look into whether any of Yudie’s family were still alive.

But so far there had been no word.

Yudie’s situation was much the same as Zisu’s.

After Liu Zhichen was beheaded there was nobody to claim the body.

Nor did anyone know where the body had gone.

So all they could do was find a clear patch of ground within the bounds of Qinghe County and make the offerings there.

Ning Chen stayed on in Xiuzhou for a few days.

Because after the offerings were done, Zisu and Yudie were both low in spirits and stayed that way.

Once the two of them were a little better, Ning Chen meant to pay a visit to the Ghost-Shadow Sect.

He had Gu Yichun and the others take Xiaoxing back to the capital.

He himself took Feng Qizheng, Zisu and Yudie and set out for the Ghost-Shadow Sect.

Because the Ghost-Shadow Sect was an assassins’ organization, it would not do for too many people to know where its headquarters were.

That day, as soon as it was light, Ning Chen and the others slipped quietly out of Xiuzhou.

On the road, Xie Siyu was leading the Ghost-Shadow Sect’s men in guarding them from the shadows, so there was no need to worry about safety.

At the same time, Xie Siyu would cut off any tail following Ning Chen and wipe away every trace.

Seven or eight days went by in a blur.

The capital. The imperial study in the palace.

The Xuan Emperor was reading memorials when Eunuch Quan came in from outside with his short, quick steps.

“Your Majesty. Word has just come in. Young Master Ning has gone missing.”

The Xuan Emperor’s face changed on the instant, and he frowned. “Missing? What does that mean, missing?”

Eunuch Quan bowed his head. “The Shadow Guard have sent word back. Young Master Ning slipped quietly out of Xiuzhou… and once he was outside the walls of Xiuzhou, every trace of him was gone.”

The Xuan Emperor’s heart gave a start. “So many people. How could they vanish without leaving a shadow behind?”

Eunuch Quan said, “Young Master Ning sent the party that went with him back to the capital… He took only Feng Qizheng and those two women.”

The Xuan Emperor’s heart was suddenly hanging by a thread. “Could something have happened to him?”

“This is sheer madness. On the road to Xiuzhou he ran into four attempts on his life… and he has sent away all the guards at his side. What can he be thinking?”

Eunuch Quan said hurriedly, “Your Majesty, do not be angry. Young Master Ning must have wiped out his own trail on purpose.”

“On purpose?”

“Your Majesty, Young Master Ning left the city of Xiuzhou and vanished without leaving a shadow, and every trace was wiped away. That means somebody is helping him in secret.”

The Xuan Emperor let out a slight breath. “As long as he is safe… But why should he wipe out his trail?”

“That… this servant does not know.”

The Xuan Emperor’s brows drew tight and his spirits sank a little. “Quan Sheng. Do you think Ning Chen might blame this emperor for failing to keep hold of him in court, and disappear like this and never appear again?”

For a moment Eunuch Quan did not know how to answer.

The Xuan Emperor was silent for a while, then said, “Send out more men. This emperor must have Ning Chen found.”

“Yes. This servant will see to it at once.”

At the same time, in a certain hidden room.

The old man past fifty and the plump, pale young man in fine embroidered robes sat facing each other.

“Missing?”

The plump young man’s voice was somewhat shrill.

The old man past fifty gave a slight nod and said, “Ning Chen slipped quietly out of the city of Xiuzhou, and once he was outside it he vanished without leaving a shadow.”

The plump young man said quickly, “Could he be dead?”

The old man past fifty shook his head. “No. Somebody wiped away Ning Chen’s trail on purpose.”

“Who?”

“The Ghost-Shadow Sect.”

The plump young man was startled. “The greatest assassins’ organization in the jianghu?”

“Yes.”

“Why would they help Ning Chen?”

The old man past fifty shook his head and said, “That is not clear yet.”

The plump young man was silent for a while, then said, “If they are assassins, then of course it is for gain… I would guess Ning Chen put up a lot of silver.”

The old man past fifty shook his head. “I don’t think it looks like that… Every man we sent to kill Ning Chen failed, and not one of them came back alive.”

“And the Ghost-Shadow Sect has begun moving against the Dark Moon Tower… If Ning Chen and the Ghost-Shadow Sect were only a matter of money changing hands, they would not throw themselves into it like this.”

“I suspect there is some close relationship between Ning Chen and the Ghost-Shadow Sect that nobody knows about.”

The plump young man’s brows knitted tight. Several times he brought the cake in his hand up to his mouth and took it away again, which showed plainly how bad his mood was.

“How does the Dark Moon Tower’s strength compare with the Ghost-Shadow Sect’s?”

The old man past fifty said in a low voice, “A long way short of it… Now that the Dark Moon Tower has been marked by the Ghost-Shadow Sect, the Dark Moon Tower’s men cannot move again. To lift a hand is to die.”

“There is another thing. There is a second body of men protecting Ning Chen in secret… Every one of them is a master of arms, and there is nothing gentle in the way they strike.”

The plump young man was startled. “Who are they?”

“Not clear. We cannot find out who they are.”

The plump young man’s eyes turned vicious. “It seems we still thought too little of Ning Chen. His power is not only in the court and in the army… I never expected him to have the jianghu behind him too.”

“The Ghost-Shadow Sect? Put plainly, it is nothing but a power of the jianghu… They dare set themselves against us. Wipe them out.”

The old man past fifty smiled bitterly and said, “The Ghost-Shadow Sect’s men come and go like ghosts, and nobody knows where their strongholds are. Stamping them out would be very hard.”

The plump young man laughed coldly. “Have the Inspectorate do it.”

The old man past fifty was openly astonished. “How can we direct the Inspectorate? And besides, the Inspectorate might not be able to find where the Ghost-Shadow Sect is either.”

The plump young man smiled darkly. “Then you think far too little of the Inspectorate… The Inspectorate has not moved against the Ghost-Shadow Sect because it is a power of the jianghu, and they have never given it a thought.”

“If the Ghost-Shadow Sect’s men were to assassinate a great officer of the court, His Majesty would be in a towering rage, and then the Inspectorate would have no choice but to take it seriously.”

The eyes of the old man past fifty flickered slightly. “You mean… to plant the blame on them?”

(End of Chapter 388)