Chapter 119 - Hiding in the Roof Tops (1/2)

Though Xue'er had been wounded by this man, she did not think it was serious enough for her to sleep it off. Still, she decided this place was worth staying a few more days. She would remain here for some time before she made her way back.

As she prepared to leave, she could not help but turn back to take a glance at that man whose eyes seemed to follow her. His gaze was rather empty, perhaps it was terrifying to children. But within that gaze, she saw traces of fear and despair within. He was right to be afraid after what he did. Though the punishment would not be coming directly from herself, but rather the one who had been lurking all around all this time, a person that never appeared before her, yet decided to share with her, a plum.

~

The dance stopped, the music slowed down. Another white mist appeared, and the dancers that were once on stage disappeared beneath the stage in that hidden contraption.

As the dancers disappeared from view, the crowd cheered. There were a few bold men dressed in brocades that attempted to pine for the woman, but their attempts at opening the contraption stopped, once the staff was in view. Such behavior was odd to Ah Yu, who knew that men of power would not fear the staff of a brothel in a small border town. Unless there was an even greater power behind them.

Very soon, there was a woman who came on stage. Though she was in her early thirties, paired with her youthful face that had not the slight trace of powder and silk flowers in her hair that was not adorned with any hairpins, she resembled an innocent looking girl one would find in the courtyard of a well to do family. It was a pity that this was not such a place. The woman had a way of evoking pity with every step and her gaze hooked the souls of all men.

With a smile, she welcomed the guests and thanked their respective selves for sparing their time to come over. She ȧssured them that food and drink would be readily served and that there was nothing to do but to enjoy. She clapped her hands twice, and in came some servants with trays of food going to the table. Once she gave the speech, she readily left.

Ah Yu, also took the opportunity in which servants were entering with trays to quietly slip through the back door. The back door led into the courtyard of the hundred flower hall was larger than expected, filled with fake mountains, and man-made lakes that froze over, the entire place resembled a winter wonderland, which made it easy to get lost while walking around. The rockery was an old gray plaster, and covered with snow, making it look like giant balls of snow rolled up by a giant. In the spring, it would be growing with green moss, making it look aged. As though it was a centuries-old scholar's mansion. The ancient architecture was of curved pathways and archways, seemingly leading into a maze. Perhaps this was where the banquets and poetry recitations were held.

It was due to this winding path that Ah Yu was certain that no one would be able to see her as she hid in the archways of the fake mountains. Before arriving, she had already memorized the layout of the entire Hundred Flower Hall, the place she went towards is the room of the head of the Hundred Flowers Hall, Madam Lu's living quarters.

She soundlessly pushes off the ground and lands on the roof stealthily, her footprints bȧrėly indenting on the layer of snow that blanketed the roof. The room was located above the first floor, in a discreet corner of the building. Such that Ah Yu's body could be easily be concealed by the protruding roof of the building. She pushes open one of the windows ever so slightly so that she could peer into the room and listen in on conversations without sounding any alarm bells.

There she concealed herself in the discreet corner of the roof, silently waiting, watching the room for any signs the owner of the room to return. She felt her body involuntarily tense up. Experiencing a sudden chill. The hairs on her body raised, her skin covered in goosebumps as her heart pounds furiously, in the drums that were within her ċhėst.