Chapter 206 (1/2)

Chapter 206: Mission

When Jun Huang went back to Nan Xun's manor, Nan Xun was waiting for her. He had been busy training his soldiers these days. The writing was on the wall that a war would break out between Eastern Wu and Northern Qi. He had to prepare the army for the looming threat. He and Jun Huang rarely had time to even talk.

”You're finally back,” Nan Xun said without preamble. ”There's something I have to tell you.”

Jun Huang looked around for any unwanted eyes before following Nan Xun to the study. ”What is it?”

Nan Xun didn't keep anything from her. ”I've been busy these days, but what you're going to do is difficult. I wanted to help, so I had some of my men investigate the spies as well. Today, they came back with some news. Those men from Eastern Wu is staying in a brothel next to the biggest brothel in the imperial city. The two are almost equal in their popularity.”

Jun Huang was surprised. She always considered Nan Xun to be a lone wolf in the imperial city, but it turned out that he had his influence still. He had provided her with important information. That got her thinking. ”Were you the one who sent the evidence against Sir Shangguan to the third prince?”

Nan Xun pulled his lips into a smile and patted Jun Huang's shoulder. ”Sir Shangguan is history. You don't have to waste your time worrying about him. Focus on what's at hand now. The rest you can ignore. Alright?”

Nan Xun didn't want to go into details. Jun Huang nodded without a word. It was still early. Since Jun Huang knew already the exact location of the spies' hideout, she had to go have a look before they left.

After bidding Nan Xun farewell, she went straight to Prince Chen Manor. Qi Chen had ordered the team he a.s.signed to Jun Huang to stay in the manor. He didn't want anyone to notice what they were going to do. It was also easier to keep an eye on everyone this way. Jun Huang had to go to the manor to talk to the team.

Qi Chen didn't trust her completely. Some of the team members acted as informants for Qi Chen. On the surface, they were here to help Jun Huang, but Jun Huang knew better. She knew that Qi Chen was still suspicious of her.

The team members were surprised to see Jun Huang return. A man with tanned skin took a step forward and asked, ”Is there anything else the gentleman would like to say?”

Jun Huang nodded and led them into a room. She told them about what Nan Xun had found. When asked, Jun Huang claimed to have discovered the clues on accident. She didn't tell them that it was Nan Xun who gave her the information.

”That's their operation base,” said a man. ”We should go investigate now.”

Another man shook his head. That would be unwise. ”It's broad daylight. If we go near the brothel, we risk alerting them. Besides, even though the emperor favors the prince, he's going to grow suspicious if he knew that the prince has command over a private army. Alerting the enemies is one thing. Making the emperor suspicious is far more serious a problem.”

Jun Huang silently praised the man for his sharp mind. Originally she was going to take them to the brothel now. She could kill two birds with one stone by doing that. She didn't expect there to be a smart man in the team. She had underestimated them.

Jun Huang hummed. If she supported the man who wanted to investigate now, that might be used against her later on. ”I find the brothel suspicious, but I can't be sure it's the place. It'd be unwise to take action now. We should depart at night.”

”The gentleman is right,” the young man who had been silently standing by the wall piped up. ”What we should do now is to find out about Eastern Wu's plan. We shouldn't waste our time arguing. I'll go talk to the others. We should go investigate tonight.”

Jun Huang nodded at the young man politely. She didn't recognize the face. ”I'll go with you tonight,” she said after taking a deep breath. ”You should take a rest to prepare for the mission.”

She walked away, leaving the men in the room staring among one another in shock.

They knew that this would be a dangerous mission. They thought Jun Huang would let them do the dirty work, but instead, Jun Huang was going with them. In their eyes, Jun Huang was a simple scholar. Perhaps she was only paying lip service. They would wait and see if she came to the brothel in evening.

They were surprised when Jun Huang showed up. Jun Huang, of course, noticed their reaction, but she didn't comment on that. ”The enemies we're facing are not easy to deal with,” she said with a smile. ”This time, we'll focus on investigating. We don't need everyone to go inside the brothel. The ones who do will disguise as regular customers. Does any of you have something to say?”

They shook their head, staring dumbly at Jun Huang. She was dressed in a turquoise robe with her hair held up with a white jade cap. She looked both graceful and carefree. The foldable fan she held was a perfect accessory to symbolize her status.

They had heard that there was a handsome gentleman in Qi Chen's manor. Now they knew the praises were no exaggeration. Even a group of crude men like them were captivated.

Jun Huang turned a blind eye to their obvious stares. Whatever they thought of her appearance didn't matter to her. ”It's getting late. Let's go.”