Finest Servant

Chapter 517 The Lip Print on the Jade Flute

"Brother Lin, of course I know you have lofty ambitions and are a man of integrity. If it were women of our Great Hua, I, Gao Qiu, would never do such a heinous act. But she's a Turkic woman! Do you know how many Great Hua women the Turkic people have ravaged? When will this blood feud be avenged? Taking a Turkic woman—can that even be considered theft? This is the duty of every righteous Great Hua man, to avenge our sisters and bring honor to our nation!" Gao Qiu was indignant, spittle flying as he spoke.

"Taking Turkic women isn't considered theft? That's great—oh, no, Brother Gao, you misunderstood. What I meant is that it's too soon!" Lord Lin quickly corrected himself, his expression becoming serious. "What I mean is, we should at least wait until we reach the Turkic royal court, overthrow the tyrannical rule of Khan Bilge, and then take action. Our ideals should be grander—Brother Gao, where have you hidden that Turkic woman? I'll go seek vengeance right now!"

"I originally intended to bring her back—we found the carriage she was riding in when we searched a civilian house," Gao Qiu sighed regretfully. "But that stubborn Du Xiuyuan insisted on the Marshal's regulations against looting civilian property, punishable by military law. We hadn't even entered the courtyard when he stopped me. Isn't that infuriating? Taking women and looting property are two completely different things! Brother Lin, you must teach Du Xiuyuan a lesson. If he could be even one percent as flexible as you, he'd surely defeat the noamds."

‘So, Yueya'er hasn't been captured yet,’ Lin Wanrong sighed deeply, feeling a slight sense of disappointment. He patted Gao Qiu on the shoulder and said, "Brother Gao, Du Xiuyuan has a point. Forcibly taking civilian women is not acceptable; we should condemn such atrocities. However, if the woman is a spy, that's a different matter. But without evidence, you can't accuse someone just because they're beautiful. That doesn't hold up; we must persuade through virtue."

"Prove that she's a spy?" Gao Qiu chuckled sinisterly. "Do we even need proof? In the chaos of war, would a decent family allow their daughter to show her face in such dangerous territory? Only a female spy would have the audacity and the need. Look at her charming appearance; one glance from her is as powerful as a thousand troops. If she's not a spy, then where's the justice in this world?"

"Ah, is that so?" Lin Wanrong nodded slightly. "That seems somewhat reasonable. However, our army is disciplined; without evidence, we can't make baseless accusations."

Seeing that Brother Lin seemed unmoved, Gao Qiu hurriedly grabbed him, making exaggerated gestures. "Brother Lin, wartime is different. So many things have happened tonight; even the Marshal almost met with an accident. And that female spy just happens to appear in the city at this time. How coincidental can it be? It's better to be safe than sorry! Even if she's not a spy, we can't let a pure and innocent young woman suffer in a war zone. To watch a beautiful flower wither—that would be a great sin! Brother Lin, you are so elegant and dashing, how could you bear to commit such cruelty? This is not your style!"

"Fine, being too soft-hearted has always been my greatest weakness," General Lin sighed deeply. "I'll go take a look with you. If she really is a spy, then we'll bring her back to my tent for a thorough interrogation! But if she's a virtuous woman from the nomadic tribes, then we should let her leave immediately. The cannon fire is indiscriminate; if it ruins her face, imagine how distraught her parents would be! If she can't find her family in the meantime, I'll have no choice but to temporarily take her in, based on humanitarian principles—Hey, Brother Gao, why are you glaring at me? You doubt my integrity? It's only a temporary arrangement, not taking her in as a concubine."

Gao Qiu winked and chuckled deviously as he cupped his hands in a fist, "If that's the case, then on behalf of that Turkic woman, I thank General Lin for your great kindness. Ah, I've never met someone as upright as you, General Lin, in my entire life. She must be very fortunate to have run into you."

Both men burst into disreputable laughter. Gao Qiu then led the way, with Lin Wanrong following closely, accompanied by his personal troops to capture the female spy.

The situation in Xingqing was fraught, the city was sparsely populated. After tonight's assassination attempt on Li Tai, the army was conducting searches everywhere, and the city was far from its usual peaceful state.

Near the northern city gate, Gao Qiu stopped by a small alley and looked around cautiously before whispering, "Brother Lin, we're here. The Turkic female spy is hiding in the civilian house up ahead."

Lin Wanrong looked forward into the dark, narrow street where it was difficult to even see the road. The walls on either side were broken or toppled, long fallen into decay. About fifty to sixty yards away, in a courtyard enclosed by mud walls, a faint light flickered. It was a spacious courtyard, with several wagons parked in the center and stacks of goods piled on the side. Horses were heard sneezing occasionally. This was the merchant convoy he had spotted when they entered the city earlier in the day, so "Yueya'er" must be hiding here.

Du Xiuyuan, who had been lurking nearby with his men, quickly approached upon seeing Lin Wanrong arrive, "General Lin, you're finally here."

Lin Wanrong nodded gravely, "Brother Du, you've worked hard. I was dealing with military affairs in camp when Brother Gao came to report. He said there's something suspicious here, possibly harboring important spies from the nomadic tribes that pose a serious threat to the Marshal. I came to check it out myself. What's the situation inside? How many nomads are there, any armed with powerful bows or crossbows? Don't worry, I've already mobilized a hundred archers and five cannons from our Divine Machine Unit, along with three thousand infantry to assist you. They're on their way and will arrive shortly."

Mentioning both archers and cannons, Lin Wanrong’s account made the situation seem extremely dire. Du Xiuyuan listened in astonishment and shot a glance at Gao, who had exaggerated the military intelligence. Unable to defend himself, Gao Qiu could only chuckle awkwardly a couple of times as an apology.

"Reporting to the General, the people living in this courtyard are the merchant convoy we saw when we entered the city. There are ten camels and five wagons in total. Since we didn't want to tip them off, we're not sure about the total number of people inside. But based on my estimate, there shouldn’t be more than thirty. Most of them appear to be from our Empire and don’t seem to carry any weapons. We have yet to identify any obvious spy traits. Whether or not they are spies sent by the nomads still needs verification."

Du Xiuyuan briefly described the situation inside the compound. Lin Wanrong nodded approvingly, "Well done, Brother Du. If there really are only around thirty people inside, it seems there's no need to deploy the Divine Machine Unit."

"With a courtyard of this size, how many people could it possibly hide?" Du Xiuyuan made a fist and saluted, "Even if the courtyard is filled with spies, I have enough confidence to handle it. There's no need to call for additional forces, General. Rest assured."

"Very well, we won't deploy the Divine Machine Unit or the Infantry," Lin Wanrong chuckled, "Let's proceed as originally planned. The assassination attempt on the Marshal tonight has had a significant impact on our army. Therefore, we must carefully interrogate every foreigner in the city, especially the good-looking ones."

Du Xiuyuan acknowledged the order and led his soldiers to surround the compound. Gao Qiu, leading the charge, pounded on the compound's large gate, yelling, "Open up! Open up! The official army is here to search the premises!"

The clattering of swords and spears from the soldiers startled the mules and horses inside the courtyard, causing a commotion. After a moment's wait, a trembling voice emanated from a crack in the door, "Sirs, we are a merchant caravan from Longxi, here to do business beyond the Great Wall—" �

"Enough talk!" Gao Qiu, growing impatient, kicked open the door before the voice could finish. Hundreds of soldiers flooded in like a torrential river. The flickering firelight glinted off their shiny steel blades, frightening the merchant who opened the door into sitting abruptly on the ground.

Hearing the noises in the courtyard, the merchants from Great Hua who were resting inside had already gotten dressed. The sight of Gao Qiu and Du Xiuyuan leading an imposing group of armed men made their faces turn pale, and their bodies tremble like sieves. Among these Great Hua merchants were a few Turks who, though disheveled, appeared much calmer. Seeing the panicked and trembling Great Hua merchants, a look of contempt flashed across their eyes.

With a swish, Gao Qiu unsheathed his sword and roared, "Official army inspection! Those with clothes, put them on; those without, put on a sack! Listen to my command: men on the left, women on the right, and mules in the middle—"

His face was dark and his eyes were like burning coals; he looked menacing. Not just the Great Hua merchants, but even the Turkic merchants dared not meet his gaze. "What great energy, Brother Gao!" Even Du Xiuyuan couldn't help but praise him.

Gao Qiu chuckled proudly but then seemed a bit perplexed. There were plenty of people standing to the left of the mules, but not a single soul on the right.

"Eh?" Gao Qiu was instantly annoyed, waving his steel blade, "Where are the people? Is this all? Where are the women, no, the spies? Where are the good-looking spies?"

The merchant who had opened the door appeared to be around forty years old and seemed to be the leader of the merchant caravan. Seeing this official wildly swinging a blade as if ready to kill, he swallowed his fear and said respectfully, "Sir, spies? That's a grave misunderstanding! We are all legitimate merchants from Longxi. Look, I even have the official documents from Longxi to prove it."

Du Xiuyuan took the document and skimmed through it, nodding, "You say you're merchants from Longxi, what about them—"

He glanced at the few Turkic men and snorted coldly. The lead merchant quickly said, "Sir, you misunderstand. These men are friendly traders from the steppes and also anti-war activists within the Turkic tribes. See, we even have approval from Longxi Prefecture!"

He took a letter stamped with an official seal from his robe to hand it over. Gao Qiu's eyes widened; he snatched the letter, threw it on the ground, and stomped on it a few times. "Approval? What use is approval? I don't even acknowledge imperial decrees. Tell me, are these the only Turkic friendly traders and anti-war activists you speak of?"

The leader nodded, "At the moment, yes, these are the only ones."

"No women?"

The leader hesitated for a moment before answering, "No."

Lin Wanrong stood behind Gao Qiu and Du Xiuyuan, observing with a cold gaze. He noticed that when Gao Qiu asked questions, the eyes of the Turkic men flickered and repeatedly shifted towards the curtain inside the room. The curtain swayed slightly, as if hiding something.

"No?!" Gao Qiu was about to lose his temper, his blade raised, when Lin Wanrong pulled him back, smiling, "Brother Gao, haven't you forgotten? We discussed winning people over with virtue!"

Virtue at this time? Gao Qiu was sweating profusely. Lin Wanrong pointed towards the curtain and cheerfully called out, "Hey, is anyone in there?"

The expressions on the faces of the Turkic merchants gradually turned serious, their fists tightly clenched.

Realizing what Lin Wanrong was indicating, Gao Qiu chuckled and whispered, "Brother, they are Turkic and won't understand our Great Hua language. We should speak in Turkic. Hey, old man, how do you say 'is anyone in there?' in Turkic?"

He was referring to the lead merchant. The merchant rambled off a translation, making Gao Qiu dizzy. His hopeful eyes looked at Lin Wanrong, "Brother Lin, you're so smart, this Turkic phrase should be a piece of cake for you."

"It's just Turkic, simple!" Lin Wanrong laughed heartily, didn't even blink, and called out to the curtain in perfect Turkic, "Inside, anyone? Come out, do work!"

Gao Qiu was stunned for a moment, then broke into joy, "Brother Lin, you're so smart. This Turkic is so easy to understand; I got half of it."

After shouting in "Turkic," the curtain remained eerily silent, so silent you could hear a pin drop. Lin Wanrong grunted and switched back to Chinese, "I'll count to five. If you don't come out, I'll send men to storm in. Brother Gao, get ready—"

‘Count to five? Brother Lin is too merciful,’ Gao Qiu thought. Just as he was pondering this, Lin Wanrong shouted, "Five! Brothers, charge!"n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

‘So that's how he counts,’ Gao Qiu thought, sweating profusely. He was still in a daze when Du Xiuyuan had already rushed ahead of him. Dozens of soldiers stormed into the room; there was no clashing of swords or shouts, only deafening silence.

"What's going on?!" Lin Wanrong was somewhat surprised as he watched a disheartened Du Xiuyuan walk out.

Du Xiuyuan spoke softly, "General, there's no one inside."

No one? Lin Wanrong lifted the curtain and slowly stepped into the room. The space was an inner chamber enclosed by mud walls. The furnishings were simple—a clay platform sat in the center, upon which rested a small tea table. The room was neat and tidy, free of any trace of dust. Indeed, no one was here! But this was unmistakably the caravan where "Yueya'er" had been. How could this Turkic girl have simply vanished? Lin Wanrong's brow furrowed, unable to make sense of the situation.

A faint, elusive fragrance lingered in the air, as elusive as the mist of an early spring morning. He sniffed intently, and his face showed a look of astonishment. This scent was all too familiar—the renowned Lin family's perfume. Why would this jasmine scent appear here, beyond the Great Wall? Could it have been brought here by "Yueya'er"? If so, she must have spent some time in this room. Lin Wanrong shook his head, unsure whether to feel sad or delighted that the perfume of the Lin family had reached the Turks.

"General, what's this?" Du Xiuyuan led a search and suddenly found something next to the headrest on the clay platform. The object consisted of seven bamboo tubes, about the thickness of fingers, tightly bound together, differing in length and size. Each bamboo tube had a hole in it, and the locations of the holes differed from one another.

Lin Wanrong picked up the object, gently caressing it before bringing it to his lips. A soft blow produced a crisp, pleasing sound.

Du Xiuyuan marveled, "Ah, so it's a musical instrument. I've never seen something like this; I don't even know what it's called."

Lin Wanrong smiled, his hands navigating through a series of holes. He produced a few lingering flute notes—graceful, fluctuating, incredibly melodious.

"Eh, you know how to play the flute?" Gao Qiu walked in, surprised.

Lin Wanrong gritted his teeth and snorted, "Play the flute my ass. This thing is called a Yujia, a traditional musical instrument from the grasslands. Playing it is called 'Pingyu.' I can't handle something as difficult as playing the flute."

[TL: Yujia here can be literaly translated as Jade Flute.]

A subtle fragrance seemed to waft past his lips, along with a delicate sensation. He looked down and noticed faint remnants of rouge on the mouthpiece of the bamboo tubes, forming a shallow crescent moon.

‘So, this Yujia had been used by "Yueya'er"!’ Lin Wanrong chuckled; their lips had met in the form of a tune, almost like a kiss. He wondered if this was her first.

Disheartened at not having caught the beautiful spy, Gao Qiu angrily pulled the lead merchant into the room. "Where did the Turkic woman who came into town with you today go?"

The merchant had a sudden realization. "Ah, sir, you're talking about her."

Lin Wanrong leisurely asked, "What is her name?"

Judging by the attitudes of Du Xiuyuan and Gao Qiu towards Lin Wanrong, the merchant realized he was someone important. Not daring to be careless, he hurriedly said, "I don't know her name, sir. She was introduced to us by a Turkic merchant along the way. She was accompanied by a few others, and other than the occasional smile, she seldom spoke. They stayed here until evening and then parted ways with us. From what I gathered, it seemed the young lady was homesick and wanted to head back to the grasslands right away."

So, Yueya'er had left before the city was sealed off? Lin Wanrong gave a low sound of acknowledgment, his eyes fixated on the lip mark on the Yujia, momentarily lost in thought.

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