Chapter 34: A Thousand Charms and Alluring Grace

Early morning at Sixiang Pavilion.

After leaving the small courtyard where he had been hiding, Chen Tiansheng made his way back to Sixiang Pavilion, following the path Yue Wumiao was likely to take. He did not spot her along the way.

"Hey, young Mr. Chen, why are you here?"

The madam, puffing on her pipe at the entrance, asked with curiosity as she saw him approaching.

Chen Tiansheng laughed and said, "You are a busy woman, Sister. I stepped out last night while you were attending to guests."

The madam scrutinized him. Aside from his somewhat pale complexion, the boy didn't seem to be lying, so she scolded him, "Since you’ve taken on the job of a bodyguard, stop wandering off. If anything happens to Miss Yue, I’ll make you pay!"

Chen Tiansheng scratched his head in embarrassment and agreed. As he walked through the door, the madam tapped him on the backside with her pipe and gave him a flirtatious wink. Chen Tiansheng feigned shyness and ran upstairs, drawing a triumphant laugh from the woman.

Using his skills in deception and street performance, Chen Tiansheng had managed to bluff his way through. However, the situation regarding Yue Wumiao was troublesome. She lacked the specialized climbing skills to descend from the city walls without sustaining heavy injuries; even if she managed to return to the pavilion, she could not simply scale the walls back into her room.

Judging by his conversation with the madam, Yue Wumiao had not yet returned, and he couldn't help but wonder if something had happened along the way. In the vast city of Qingzhou, he wouldn't be able to help her if she had encountered an accident, and besides, he was currently suffering from severe injuries himself. He could only hope that fortune would favor her.

As he reached the top floor, the two maids guarding Yue Wumiao’s door were startled. One of them asked, "Why are you coming up from downstairs?"

After Chen Tiansheng entered the room the night before, he hadn't come out. They had been worried about what might be happening inside, but there hadn't been a sound. Even if there had been, they wouldn't have dared to interrupt for fear of offending Yue Wumiao and being dismissed. Seeing him come up from downstairs now struck them as strange.

Chen Tiansheng used his street-smart poise to remain calm. "After I went in last night, Miss Yue asked me to take care of some business. It was rather discreet, so I didn't tell you."

One maid covered her mouth in shock. "You left through the window? This is six stories high!"

Looking at Chen Tiansheng’s slender frame, the maids couldn't believe he possessed such formidable skills, but faced with the reality, they had little choice. The way they looked at him now held a hint of newfound respect.

Chen Tiansheng didn't say much; he just smiled and prepared to return to his room. He would delay the inevitable regarding Yue Wumiao as long as he could. If the people at the pavilion eventually discovered she was missing and held him accountable, they would have no grounds to blame him if they couldn't find a reason.

"Ask Young Master Chen to come in."

Just then, Yue Wumiao’s voice drifted from inside the room.

Chen Tiansheng frowned, surprised that she was already back. Judging by the maids' reactions, they weren't pretending, which meant Yue Wumiao hadn't entered through the front door—she must have come in through the back window. How could she have managed that height?

While he was lost in thought, the maids opened the door and whispered, "Please."

***

Chen Tiansheng hesitated for a moment before entering. The maids closed the door behind him. He scanned the room but saw no one; she must have been behind the beaded curtain.

"Young Master Chen, I am glad to see you returned safely," came Yue Wumiao’s faint voice from behind the curtain.

"How did you get back?" Chen Tiansheng asked.

No sooner had he spoken than someone pushed aside the beaded curtain and strode out, acting full of himself. "It was yours truly who saved the beauty!"

Chen Tiansheng was stunned. The man before him was Jiang Yu!

"Young Master Jiang, please, keep your voice down," Yue Wumiao said, shielding her shoulder as she emerged. She glanced toward the door and offered a soft warning.

"I know what I'm doing," Jiang Yu replied. He walked up to Chen Tiansheng, circled him twice, and clicked his tongue. "Tsk, tsk. To think that someone from our Fanwu Pavilion has been reduced to doing odd jobs at a brothel, and can't even protect his own employer. You’ve shamed us all."

*Fanwu Pavilion!*

Yue Wumiao’s heart skipped a beat. Although she wasn't a member of the Fan Dao Society, she knew full well what the Fanwu Pavilion was. It was a place only for geniuses of the street-level path-skills.

Chen Tiansheng was a member of the Fanwu Pavilion! Perhaps that explained it—this was the man who had single-handedly killed Zheng Peng and managed to escape from Zheng Guangzhong! She remembered Zheng Peng and his cronies calling Chen Tiansheng an "immortal." Why would an immortal be in the Fan Dao Society, or a member of the Fanwu Pavilion? Yue Wumiao was deeply confused, but out of respect for his privacy, she didn't bring it up.

Seeing Chen Tiansheng’s puzzled look, Yue Wumiao explained, "It was Young Master Jiang who found me on the road and brought me back." She didn't mention that they had gone out together.

Jiang Yu stood before Chen Tiansheng, trying to look down on him, but realized the other man wasn't shorter than him—in fact, he was slightly taller. He took two steps back and said, "Chen Tiansheng, your work as a bodyguard has been a disaster. You didn't even know your employer had left and was in danger. Quit the job; I’ll finish it for you!"

"Young Master Jiang, it’s not what you think," Yue Wumiao explained. "I sent Mr. Chen away so I could go out on my own." She didn't know the nature of the relationship between Chen Tiansheng and Jiang Yu, and she couldn't let Jiang word get out that Chen Tiansheng had been with her. If that leaked, the Longhu Manor would know that the man in black who had been with her was Chen Tiansheng.

Seeing Yue Wumiao defend him made Jiang Yu angry. "Regardless, he is at fault for not even knowing she was gone."

***

Jiang Yu glared at Chen Tiansheng, as if daring him to respond. Yue Wumiao couldn't say much more; she couldn't very well reveal the truth.

Chen Tiansheng didn't argue. He simply asked calmly, "I thought you looked down on work at the brothel?"

Jiang Yu opened his mouth, then hesitated. He usually did look down on such tasks, but the mission involving the Qingzhou beauty Yue Wumiao was different! On the day he returned to the city, it happened to be the day of the beauty's procession. He had seen her and was instantly captivated. That was exactly why he had brought her back to the pavilion.

Watching Jiang Yu hesitate, Chen Tiansheng didn't feel like bickering. "Regardless, thank you for this. But how did you run into Miss Yue?"

Upon being thanked, Jiang Yu puffed up with pride. He straightened his clothes and said, "The morning market on East Street is the best in all of Qingzhou. I’ve had the habit of eating there since I was a kid. Tsk, look at you—you’ve probably never even tasted it, you poor wretch." Suddenly, he slapped his thigh and shouted, "Dammit, it’s already the hour of the dragon! The tiger-skin chicken feet will all be gone by now. I’m not talking to you two anymore!"

With that, he opened the window, looked left and right, and leaped out. He vanished in an instant.

Chen Tiansheng and Yue Wumiao exchanged glances and shrugged in unison. Though Jiang Yu was arrogant, he wasn't a bad person. At the very least, he hadn't shown any murderous intent toward Chen Tiansheng, and he was blunt rather than two-faced.

After closing the window, Yue Wumiao bowed to Chen Tiansheng. "Thank you."

Chen Tiansheng gave a bright smile. "It’s my job. I’m just glad to see you're safe." When he had decided to push her back into the city, he had been terrified that she might die from the fall. Seeing her walk now put his mind at ease, and he secretly marveled at her resilience.

Yue Wumiao smiled warmly and asked with concern, "You took a palm strike from Zheng Guangzhong earlier. Are you alright?"

Chen Tiansheng straightened his back and gave a thumbs-up. "No problem at all!"

Seeing him act as if nothing was wrong, Yue Wumiao felt a weight lift from her heart. This man had faced Zheng Guangzhong alone for her sake; she had been truly afraid that something might happen to him. As for her own fall, an ordinary woman would certainly not have survived, but her Yan Sect technique, *Thousand Charms*, had allowed her to temper her body with inner energy. Aside from her dislocated shoulder, which Jiang Yu had reset, she was largely unharmed.

Once back in his own room, Chen Tiansheng coughed up a mouthful of blood, which was flecked with pieces of his own internal organs.

*No problem?*

There was a massive problem.

Without daring to think further, he sat cross-legged and began to cultivate.