Ji Kang had been wondering what exactly “delivering a letter in the loudest way possible” meant ever since Lu Wu mentioned it yesterday.

Now, standing in front of the Mo family residence front gate and listening to Lu Wu literally speak loudly enough for the passersby and vagrants skulking in nearby alleys to hear, Ji Kang felt somewhat absurd.

But he agreed that they didn’t really have any other options. They were only given one method of contacting the Azure Grove Sect’s spy and the wall they were supposed to leave a coded message on no longer existed.

What could they do? They definitely couldn’t embezzle the five hundred taels of gold. They couldn’t get rid of it by tossing it into a sewer or some such, the sect would just assume they had embezzled it.

Their only option seemed to be to make as much commotion out of their delivering the letter that was their cover story and make sure everyone in Anwon knew a group of Azure Grove Sect cultivators was here and hope their spy got into contact with them.

If this failed their only real option would be to bring the gold back to the Azure Grove Sect with them and if that’s what ended up happening Ji Kang would be furious. He had carried 35 catties of gold through woods, over rivers, and while running from an angry mob in Zaotong. If at the end of this they brought the gold right back to where it came from he thought he might burst a blood vessel in his forehead out of sheer anger.

However, just because this was the only idea they four of them could think of didn’t mean Ji Kang didn’t feel ridiculous trooping through half of Anwon looking serious this morning in an effort to make their presence known.

They hadn’t literally walked through half of the enormous city, but they had made their route from their inn to the Mo residence hugely circuitous. And to top it all off, he was still carrying 35 catties of gold around on his back.

They couldn’t leave it back at their inn after all, what if someone looked through their bags while they were gone? Having the gold stolen due to carelessness wouldn’t be any better than having embezzled it as far as the sect would be concerned.

While Ji Kang stood flanking Lu Wu like a loyal subordinate, listening to him shout at the steward, who was very confused why a messenger was shouting at him, he had plenty of time and misery to focus his dislike onto the appropriate target.

He hadn’t forgotten that Elder Geng Yazhu was responsible for sending him, Yu Shuren, and Lu Wu on this mission, and someday he promised he would get his appropriately petty revenge.

He wasn’t planning anything particularly heinous for Geng Yazhu, he wasn’t really suffering anything more than embarrassment and physical discomfort, and he hadn’t forgotten that he was partially responsible for starting this by encouraging Lu Wu’s pettiness.

As the steward let the four boys into the Mo manor, Ji Kang pondered the best ways to inflict embarrassment or discomfort on Elder Geng. Spreading rumors that he was secretly lusting after his disciple Guo Ru for example.

Of course Ji Kang knew he would never waste his time in such a foolish manner as actually taking steps to bring embarrassment to an elder who could kill him with a single slap if it was ever discovered he had been the one behind it. ‘If’ was a laughably optimistic conjunction to use in this context. When Elder Geng figured out who was behind it, he would kill Ji Kang.

But he could still indulge himself in this petty revenge fantasy while following behind Lu Wu and playing the part of a slightly stupid sycophant. He wanted to be perceived as slightly stupid because he was carrying around a heavy traveler’s pack while delivering a letter in a city.

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If people didn’t think he was an idiot then they would start wondering why he was bringing this heavy bag everywhere. Someone attacking them because they wanted to steal whatever they thought was being carried around, guarded by four cultivators at all times, was the exact last thing Ji Kang wanted to deal with today.

Ji Kang and Yu Shuren were told to wait in the garden while Lu Wu and Jin Xun went inside the main hall and delivered the letter from Jin Xun’s relative.

The garden was beautiful and tasteful. Clearly it had been constructed and maintained by experts in whatever the art of gardening was called. Ji Kang didn’t have much of an eye for these types of things, but you didn’t need to have an experienced eye to see the natural balance and beauty depicted in the way the stream wove between the artificial mountains, or how the pavilions on said mountains perfectly harmonized civilization and nature.

Relaxing in the garden he started wondering once again what the contents of the letter they had brought for Mo Xinyue, the matriarch of the Mo family, were. Ji Kang had never suggested opening the letter to satisfy his rabid curiosity, but he had been speculating internally about the contents often throughout the trip.

Maybe the letter was probing the Mo family’s stance in the brewing tension between factions vying for the throne. Or perhaps it was simply a personal letter from one old friend to another. It could be about anything and it was absolutely none of his business. That didn’t stop him from being curious though.

Ji Kang’s internal musings were interrupted by the sudden certainty that someone was observing him.

He had noticed in Zaotong that his cultivation had not only sharpened all of his natural senses but seemed to have added a sixth sense that detected imminent danger. He had enlisted Yu Shuren’s help in testing this new sense on the boat ride downriver and had discovered that it not only gave him warnings about danger but also alerted him when he was being watched.

Ji Kang did his best to not change anything about his manner at this new discovery. He tried to remain relaxed and didn’t look around for the source of the gaze. If whoever was watching him had ill intentions then the advantage of surprise would be on his side as long as they didn’t know he knew about them.

“Brother Yu, do you think we’ll be leaving Anwon today or waiting a few days so our young master can explore the city?” Ji Kang struck up a conversation.

Yu Shuren looked at Ji Kang with a puzzled expression.

“Of course we’ll be staying for a few more days. We’ll need to find a suitable ship for our passage up the Hua river anyway, so even without any other reasons we’d likely be staying for a few more days in Anwon waiting for that.” Yu Shuren seemed confused by Ji Kang’s uncharacteristically thoughtless question, but he sensibly didn’t mention their secret mission.

Ji Kang sighed and took his bag off his back and sat down on a waist high rock beside the path, placing the bag beside his seat.

“Ahhh, how I wish to be back on the river again. Sailing down the Nabei river training with you was the right way to live. I want to spend all my life like that.” Ji Kang leaned back in a posture of perfect relaxation.

Yu Shuren instantly knew something was wrong. He knew Ji Kang well and this was obviously a performance. If Ji Kang was putting on a performance it meant that there was an intended audience.

Yu Shuren’s pupils shrank, but he quickly copied Ji Kang in acting as casually as possible.

“You know, I have to agree. Training and cultivating with a friend is the true secret to happiness. Heavens, this pack is too heavy. I wish we could have left them back at the inn. If only young master Lu hadn’t gotten himself riled up thinking the manager was the shifty type who would steal anything we left behind for the day.” Yu Shuren shrugged out of his pack, careful to disguise just how heavy it actually was.

Now that both of them had taken off their bags they wouldn’t be so encumbered if the unknown watcher attacked.

Ji Kang recognized that his coded message had been received. They carried on their faux casual chatter for the time it took to brew a cup of tea before the sensation of being watched finally vanished.

Ji Kang straightened and quickly scanned all of the possible vantage points that could allow a hidden watcher to view their position. Knowing where the person had been hidden wouldn’t help now, but it was valuable training for the future. He doubted this would be the first time someone tried to watch him secretly.