WCPR 38

Chapter 38

 Nothing Ventured, Nothing Gained

In truth, Jiu Que had no idea what kind of place “Wuyou Cave” was.
But judging from the faces of those around her, she could tell—it wasn’t somewhere good.
Even Chunyu Shuang’s eyes subconsciously flicked toward a nearby sewer drain.

Catching Jiu Que’s puzzled look, Chunyu Shuang sighed softly and began explaining what she knew.

For three dynasties in a row, the imperial court had chosen to establish the capital in Yong’an. After many years of reconstruction, the city had become quite suitable for a large population to live in.
However, as previously mentioned, in order to supply the entire city with water, the previous dynasty had diverted a great river.

The waterways that crisscrossed the capital, together with the drainage systems used in daily life, had formed a vast underground world beneath the whole of Yong’an.

No matter how brilliant and prosperous things looked aboveground, wherever there is sunlight, there is shadow.
Some of the people who couldn’t register their citizenship, vagrants unable to make a living and left to sink into despair—more still were criminals and lawbreakers.

Because of the labyrinthine layout of that underground world, even when the imperial court wanted to suppress them, it was nearly impossible to carry out any large-scale raids in that pitch-black maze.
Generation after generation, the filth accumulated, turning the underworld into a breeding ground for crime.

By now, no one could even count how many people lived beneath Yong’an.
Perhaps, hidden in obscure, unnoticeable corners, they secretly watched those who lived above, under the sun.

Kidnappers, prostitutes, vagrants, criminals…
What kind of world would such people form?

The common citizens of Yong’an feared and dreaded Wuyou Cave more than anything.

After all, those underground people didn’t dare offend nobles or officials—but taking action against ordinary folk like them was all too easy.
Now that several children had gone missing and even been found dead under bridge tunnels, Chunyu Shuang had already begun to suspect Wuyou Cave’s involvement.
And, unfortunately, her hunch had proven correct.

But hold on—if Jiu Que didn’t even know about Wuyou Cave before, why had she been so sure just now that it was their doing?

Jiu Que slowly opened her palm.
There lay a small slip of paper, upon which the three characters “Wuyou Cave” were written.

“I just felt a gust of wind pass by,” she said, “and when I came to, this slip of paper was already in my hand. I don’t know which mysterious stranger gave me this hint.”

Folding the paper neatly and tucking it back into her robe, Jiu Que approached the scar-faced man, her eyes resting on the finely crafted coin pouch at his waist.

“I know,” she said softly. “You’ve cooperated this far because your conscience hasn’t yet died out—or perhaps the blood in your veins hasn’t completely gone cold.
We won’t make things hard for you. We only hope you can give us a clue.

Look at yourself—you seem like a man who’s already built a family. Put yourself in another’s shoes: if it were your wife or daughter who’d been taken, wouldn’t you hope someone would help you?”

The man’s teeth ground audibly.

Since he had ties to Wuyou Cave, he naturally knew how brutal their methods were.
Helping others today might mean his own wife and daughter would be targeted tomorrow—an agonizing choice for any man.

At that moment, Qi Zheng’s brows twitched slightly.

“After today,” Qi Zheng said, “you may enter my household as a guard. Your family can live with you as well. You may not become rich, but you’ll have peace and stability.”

“My lord…!”

The man’s shock quickly turned to joy.
When the soldiers had been searching earlier, he hadn’t made much effort to hide—because he had seen Lord Weiyuan Bo himself.

He had indeed been hoping for a reward from those in power, but never had he dreamed that his idolized general would personally notice him—and even take him in.

Don’t think that becoming a guard in a noble household was an insult; for most people, that was a chance to ascend to the heavens.

The scar-faced man was no different.
He could hardly contain his excitement, but soon realized that all this depended on whether he could actually help the noble lord.
And judging from the situation, the lord must have appeared because someone from his own family had been kidnapped by Wuyou Cave.

“I know one of their hideouts,” he said at last, voice low.
“It’s where they temporarily keep the women and children they abduct. It’s not far from here—I can take you there.
But we’ll have to move quietly. The moment they sense anything wrong, they’ll flee—or worse, kill their captives.”

Qi Zheng barely hesitated.
He took two personal guards along with Jiu Que and the others and followed the man to a small courtyard tucked away in a narrow alley.
From the outside, it looked like any ordinary home.

True to his background in espionage, Qi Zheng first tossed a small stone into the yard, then had one of his guards throw in a stray cat.

Inside, they soon heard cautious, shuffling footsteps.
When the people within saw it was only a cat, they breathed out in relief—until another series of sharp, piercing meows echoed from outside the gate, irritating them to no end.

“Damn cat’s in heat! Get rid of it! If it brings the patrols here, the boss’ll have our heads!”

Crack!

A sneaky figure quietly opened the gate.
Two glowing eyes blinked up at him from the ground—it was that cat, startled, and it lashed out, scratching his shin.

“Damn beast! Stop right there! I’ll skin you and drink with your blood tonight!”

The first man stormed off after the cat, while his companion, seeing him shouting like that, stomped his foot anxiously and hurried after him.

The courtyard fell silent.

Qi Zheng moved first.
Despite his tall, muscular frame, he vaulted the wall as lightly as a falling leaf, landing soundlessly inside.

Moments later, he signaled for Jiu Que and the others to follow.

It was Jiu Que’s first time witnessing something this thrilling.
She couldn’t help but feel excited—Chunyu Shuang even had trouble keeping up with her eager pace.

But as soon as they entered, they saw a man lying unconscious on the ground.
Even fainted, his face was vicious, and brown stains—blood, Jiu Que’s instincts told her—spattered his clothes.

What drew their attention more, however, was the grim look on Qi Zheng’s face.

Following his gaze, they entered a shabby woodshed—where five or six trembling young girls huddled together, eyes wide with terror.
Jiu Que’s breath caught in her throat.

Those bastards!
Some of the girls looked barely eleven or twelve years old—still children!
Dressed only in their undergarments in the biting spring chill, they were freezing, starving, and too frightened even to breathe loudly.

Suppressing her rising anger, Jiu Que’s mind raced.

They could, of course, rescue these girls right now—but once the two men who’d run off returned and discovered the captives gone, they’d be alarmed.
And if that happened, this rare lead might vanish completely.

Yet to leave these poor children here—Jiu Que couldn’t bring herself to agree to that.

Taking a deep breath, she made her decision.

There’s a saying: If you don’t enter the tiger’s den, how can you catch its cub?

Right now, that saying fit perfectly.