Chapter Four: An Unreliable Partner

Imperial Court.

Magpies chirped joyfully, their calls filled with exuberance.

Chao Lu stifled a yawn, stretching his long legs across the soft mink fur. The brazier in the room had already been lit, filling the space with warmth and comfort, and he found drowsiness creeping over him.

Lin Suyun closed the door behind her, then turned to ask Chao Lu, “Are you truly sending Jin’er to serve as the Scorpion Tail for Lu Zhou?”

Chao Lu frowned. “What else should I do?”

“Jin’er has never left us since she was a child. Now you want her to go off and do something so dangerous? I just can’t be at ease with it. Besides, why must she go in the first place…” Lin Suyun’s eyes brimmed with worry and confusion.

At first, she had thought Chao Jin’er was simply restless and looking for something to do, but upon reflection, she sensed something amiss—it was clear the problem lay with Lu Zhou.

“Don’t worry, isn’t Qu Qiniang going as well?”

Chao Lu shook his head and, gazing at Lin Suyun’s back, suddenly noticed how graceful her figure seemed today.

Lin Suyun didn’t know what to say.

A woman’s intuition told her that her daughter might be going for Lu Zhou’s sake.

Ever since Jin’er had made it onto the Azure Cloud Ranking, she had worried about her daughter’s temperament.

One day Jin’er would strike this person, the next day someone else. At this rate, how would she ever find a proper companion?

But today, seeing Jin’er’s unusual attitude toward Lu Zhou, Lin Suyun felt as if the precious cabbage she had raised for years was about to be taken by a pig.

“Do you think our daughter has feelings for Lu Zhou?” Lin Suyun murmured.

“What did you say?” Chao Lu’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he forced his gaze from Lin Suyun’s soft waist, silently cursing Lu Zhou—just how much tonic had that scoundrel put in his wine? Why was the effect so strong?

“I’m saying, our daughter and Lu Zhou…”

“If the two of them end up together, that would be a relief. With our daughter’s temper, always striking people at the slightest provocation, I’ve already grown a few white hairs from worry.”

“Is that how a father should talk?”

“Just a few days ago, weren’t you fretting over whether our daughter would ever get married? Women—your moods change faster than flipping a page.”

“You can sleep alone tonight.”

Frustrated, Lin Suyun stood up, opened the door, and walked out.

Chao Lu froze for a moment. Had he said something wrong?

And now, with you gone, what am I supposed to do…

…

The rear courtyard of Spring Blossom Pavilion belonged to Madam Qu Qiniang.

Qu Qiniang was the woman Lu Zhou had seen upon entering—everyone at Spring Blossom Pavilion called her Sister Qi.

Now, Qu Qiniang led Lu Zhou and Chao Jin’er into a room in the back courtyard. The chamber was adorned with pink tassels, and one whiff of the powder on the dressing table was enough to know it was premium stock from Cloud Fragrance Studio.

A subtle smile played at Qu Qiniang’s lips as she regarded the man and woman before her.

The man sat with an upright back, thick brows, large eyes, thin lips pressed into a line, and a straight nose that accentuated the angularity of his face.

The woman she knew well—Chao Jin’er, ranked seventh on the Azure Cloud Ranking, daughter of Commander Chao. Hard not to recognize her.

Yet she was surprised to find that Chao Jin’er was to serve as Scorpion Tail.

More precisely, the one before her—Lu Zhou—was Scorpion Head, and Chao Jin’er his Scorpion Tail.

“Let me confirm one last time—are you sure you want to activate this intelligence node?” Qu Qiniang asked.

She addressed Lu Zhou, as only the Scorpion Head had the authority to initiate a Scorpion Nest.

Lu Zhou composed himself and replied, “I was certain at first, but now, seeing the Scorpion Tail, I’m no longer so sure.”

Chao Jin’er was momentarily stunned.

Her usually cool face flushed faintly, perhaps from anger.

Qu Qiniang laughed. “Shouldn’t you, as Scorpion Head, be the one feeling the pressure?”

Chao Jin’er, ranked seventh on the Azure Cloud Ranking, clearly possessed far greater strength than Lu Zhou.

As the intelligence arm of the Imperial Guards, their duties included gathering intelligence and occasionally carrying out special missions—tasks where strength often determined success.

Lu Zhou, as Scorpion Head, had mediocre cultivation, yet dismissed the seventh-ranked Scorpion Tail. It was rather amusing to Qu Qiniang.

Lu Zhou shook his head. “It’s not her strength I doubt—it’s that she’s too conspicuous. In the entire city of Shen Prefecture, few could fail to recognize her. With such a Scorpion Tail, we’d hardly need to step outside before everyone knew this was an Imperial Guard stronghold.”

He understood the perils of undercover work better than anyone—one misstep could mean total ruin. Carrying such a ticking time bomb made him uneasy.

Expressionless, Chao Jin’er glanced at Lu Zhou, then produced a small object, pressed it to her face, and in an instant, transformed into a plain-looking woman.

“Is this satisfactory, Brother Lu?”

Clearly, she had come prepared.

Lu Zhou shook his head. “Still not quite enough.”

Chao Jin’er frowned slightly. “What else concerns you?”

Lu Zhou sighed. “You’re still calling me Brother Lu—how can I relax? Also, if your figure were a little plumper, it would be even better.”

Chao Jin’er exhaled gently, and after a long moment replied, “Understood. I’ll make the adjustment.”

Qu Qiniang saw the two had reached an understanding. Both bore the Imperial Guards’ seal and had answered all the secret passcodes correctly. With Chao Jin’er’s identity so clear, her addressing Lu Zhou as Brother Lu left no room for doubt.

In other words, the Spring Blossom Pavilion’s intelligence node was now officially operational.

“Alright, allow me to introduce myself. I’m Qu Qiniang, the keeper of this Scorpion Nest.”

“You two should also introduce yourselves and share your backgrounds. The more you understand each other, the greater your chances of survival in future missions.”

“Chao Jin’er, Scorpion Tail, ninth rank in the Void Returning stage.”

“Lu Zhou, Scorpion Head, third rank in the Origin Returning stage.”

The path of cultivation was arduous and long. After refining qi, building foundation, and forming the golden core, came Origin Returning—the stage Lu Zhou had reached.

Beyond Origin Returning lay three higher realms: Spirit Transformation, Dao Condensation, and Void Returning, each divided into nine ranks.

Chao Jin’er now stood at ninth rank Void Returning, just a step away from the Tribulation stage.

Qu Qiniang had little interest in their cultivation. She was merely the keeper; their missions were not her concern.

“From today, you are partners. You are no longer Chao Jin’er—you are now Qu Jin’er, my distant niece. I’ll give you the relevant documents. You are no longer Lu Zhou—you are now Lu Chuan, the new accounts manager I just hired.”

As a professional keeper, Qu Qiniang had already prepared their Scorpion identities.

Lu Zhou’s lips twitched involuntarily.

So, all this time, he’d thought he was applying to be the CEO of an assassin’s guild, but in reality, he was only the accountant for a bathhouse—and stuck with an unreliable partner…

Everyone at Spring Blossom Pavilion soon knew that a new, handsome accounts manager had arrived.

The young ladies were instantly energized.

Spring Blossom and Autumn Chrysanthemum loved to gather around the accounts manager for tea and chatter.

Winter Plum and Summer Lotus would casually discuss poetry and art with him.

Only Qu Qiniang’s distant niece always wore a frosty expression, as if all the girls in Spring Blossom Pavilion owed her a few strings of coins.

Amidst a sea of flowers, not a leaf clings.

Heaven knows, Lu Zhou was only trying to elicit information from these ladies.

For example—

The Headmaster of Mount Huang Academy and the top disciple of Clear Breeze Academy came to blows over the courtesan.

Chief Huang of the Golden Lion Escort Agency only managed to last three minutes.

The Venerable Withered Leaf of Diamond Temple recited Buddhist scripture to a girl all night, moving her to tears.

Upon reading these reports, Chao Jin’er nearly broke down. Did this really count as intelligence?

Yet Qu Qiniang seemed quite pleased with Lu Zhou’s performance.

“You think all this is useless?” Lu Zhou seemed to notice her doubts.

“Isn’t it?” Chao Jin’er scoffed.

“If you say so, then it is.” Lu Zhou thought better than to reason with someone so inexperienced in the ways of the world.

Those who understand need not be told; those who do not will not understand, even if you explain.

“I have another question.” Chao Jin’er looked at him, the corner of her mouth curving slightly.

“Accountant Lu, do you still remember Xia Yuhua by Daming Lake?”