"The mission assigned from above is roughly as follows. The specific time and method of withdrawal will be arranged by you."
A moment later, the Seventh Prince finally finished speaking.
He took out a bamboo slip with a detailed mission plan and handed it to Xian'er Jiu, then walked to the chair on the flower boat and sat down, habitually pouring himself a cup of tea.
Xian'er Jiu took the bamboo slip, her expression grave.
She hadn't expected that the Prince would require them to evacuate the imperial city within three days. Not only people, but also some of the Zhi Tian Pavilion's assets, books, and even half a piece of paper or a carriage, were to be left behind, as these could easily be used as evidence by the court.
Clearly, the matter of the Zhi Tian Pavilion had reached a critical point. Some force was closing in from the shadows, and their Prince had sensed the danger.
"I understand. Give me some time."
After a moment of contemplation, the courtesan of Bi Hai Chao Sheng Pavilion calmly picked up a brush, dipped it in ink, and quickly wrote something on a piece of paper in front of her.
Soon, the black ink filled all the blank spaces, followed by a second, then a third page... until all thirty-odd pages were used up. Only then did Xian'er Jiu slowly stop writing.
By this time, half an hour had passed.
Xian'er Jiu was a little tired, her body covered in sweat, her cheeks flushed, and her chest heaving slightly.
This was her representing the Zhi Tian Pavilion in a confrontation with the imperial court, so not a single detail could be overlooked. Half an hour of high-speed mental activity had left her breathless and feeling weak.
"Time is short, so I don't have time for formal bamboo slips," Xian'er Jiu said, her breath uneven, handing the thirty-odd blank pages to the Seventh Prince. "These pages detail the evacuation time, location, and method for each branch."
"I have also arranged how to handle classified materials and some daily-use equipment and tools, including the categories of items to be destroyed. Remember to have them check thoroughly and leave nothing out."
The Seventh Prince's gaunt face showed no emotion. He took the thick stack of white papers, looked at the clear and orderly instructions written on them, and his expression suddenly became solemn.
"A full thirty-seven pages of plans, covering everything from beginning to end, inside and out, meticulously arranged down to the smallest detail, with contingency plans for every batch of evacuation!"
The Seventh Prince gasped, put away the papers in his hand, and couldn't help but gaze at Xian'er Jiu with admiration.
"I never understood before why the Pavilion Master chose you to be in charge of the Zhi Tian Pavilion in the imperial city. Now I do."
Xian'er Jiu remained silent, her expression still calm.
The Zhi Tian Pavilion had many branches in the martial world, each with a deputy pavilion master, or principal, who held great power.
The principal of the imperial city branch of the Zhi Tian Pavilion held even more authority than those in other branches. Although there were no detailed regulations within the pavilion, whenever the imperial city branch formulated a plan requiring cooperation from other branches, the other branches would default to obeying Xian'er Jiu's commands, even their own deputy pavilion masters.
This was because the imperial city branch was simply too powerful.
It was easy to imagine that an organization like the Zhi Tian Pavilion, which relied on selling secrets of the military and the court, not only remained unsuppressed by the imperial court but also established a branch under the Emperor's nose. What a brazen act that was. And what astonishing ability must the head of this branch possess to manipulate the entire court at will?
Xian'er Jiu's expression was calm, and calmness represented pride in her mind. She didn't consider this to be anything special.
But the Seventh Prince thought differently. Before this, he had never understood why the Pavilion Master would entrust such an important position to a young junior, instead of some powerful elder.
Seeing the Seventh Prince hesitate to speak, a hint of disgust flashed in Xian'er Jiu's eyes. She spoke directly, "Your Highness, please quickly send word. There's no time to waste here!"
Hearing this, the Seventh Prince's slightly dark, gaunt face broke into a surprised smile. He looked at Xian'er Jiu and said softly, "Your flower boat is on the lake, am I supposed to swim back?"
The courtesan heard this, lifted the curtain, and looked at the receding shore. She frowned, annoyed, as she truly did not want to spend another moment with him.
"There's a small boat behind you. Row that one out."
The Seventh Prince ignored Xian'er Jiu and paced to her back, inhaling her refreshing fragrance, his eyes hazy as he smiled. "Can't I just stay here and do something pleasant with you, and then wait for the flower boat to dock?"
"My little courtesan."
His hot breath brushed against Xian'er Jiu's neck. The Seventh Prince's hands trembled as he put them around her soft waist, as if embracing a soft, fragrant kitten.
Xu Mu, who had been hiding in the shadows using his shadow abilities, felt his heart skip a beat.
"No way, I'm still a child!"
Xu Mu swallowed again, a little nervous. He didn't know if he should watch what was about to happen or close his eyes.
But seeing Xian'er Jiu's lack of movement and the Seventh Prince's increasingly bold actions, until his entire body was pressed against hers.
"See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil. Amitabha..." Xu Mu swallowed hard, his breathing faltering slightly.
Meanwhile, Xian'er Jiu, who was standing by the flower boat window, her face ashen with the intention of throwing the Seventh Prince into the lake to feed the fish, seemed to sense Xu Mu's movement on the bed at that moment. She immediately turned around coldly, "Who!"
"—Boom!"
A terrifying soul force erupted, enveloping Xu Mu and simultaneously blasting the Seventh Prince away. "You're awake?!"
Xu Mu, with a lewd grin, offered no resistance, as if still lost in the dream Xian'er Jiu had woven for him. His shadow abilities also quietly slipped under the bed.
"What are you doing!" the Seventh Prince shouted from the ground, clutching his chest, his face pale and furious. "You've injured this prince!"
"Shut up!"
Xian'er Jiu roared with murderous intent. Her expression solemn, she slowly walked towards Xu Mu. She used her abilities to examine him carefully and found that her soul force was still within his sea of consciousness. Only then did she breathe a sigh of relief.
"Was it my imagination?"
Xian'er Jiu pursed her lips, staring at Xu Mu with unease. She always felt that this drunkard carried an inexplicable danger that made her powerful soul energy somewhat fearful. Why was this?
She couldn't figure it out. The Seventh Prince had also gotten up by now. He walked to Xian'er Jiu's side, his face grim as he glared at her. He wanted to get angry, but ultimately said nothing.
Because he knew he was far from Xian'er Jiu's match. With her talent and strength, she could easily rank in the top ten of the Profound Ranking, and might not even be weaker than Li Zao of Meihua Valley. Killing him would be as easy as killing a chicken!
Xian'er Jiu coldly stared at the Seventh Prince. She also wanted to kill this Seventh Prince who had tried to take advantage of her without reason, but she clearly couldn't do that.
"I apologize, I was too sensitive."
"You can stay here, but please be quiet. I don't like too much noise," Xian'er Jiu said, sitting on the bed.
The Seventh Prince looked at her with a dark expression, then glanced at Xu Mu, who was sleeping soundly on the bed with a flushed face. He was uncharacteristically jealous.
Counting this time, it was his sixth visit to this flower boat, but let alone sleeping on that bed, he had never even lifted the curtain.
Yes, every time, he and Xian'er Jiu would talk through a curtain, conveying confidential information that could only be spoken, with very little physical contact, let alone a night of passion.
In contrast, although Xu Mu had only experienced an illusion, the next day he would still treat what happened in his dream as reality. This made him somewhat jealous, as he had nothing!
"What do you plan to do with this fellow?" the Seventh Prince asked, his face dark, looking at Xu Mu and slowly taking out a dagger.
"Don't forget, this fellow was knocked out by you. What if he wakes up and notices something is wrong..."
"He won't," Xian'er Jiu frowned, stopping the Seventh Prince and saying coldly, "He is completely controlled by my abilities, deep within his sea of consciousness. Even if the elders of his sect came, they wouldn't detect anything unusual."
"This is a special period. It's best not to kill people who are not involved, so as not to cause trouble for the Pavilion Master."
The Seventh Prince's gaunt face twitched violently. Then he slowly closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and turned away in anger.
On the vast expanse of the lake, the crisp sound of a dragonfly touching water rang out, gradually fading into the distance, until the ripples on the water surface completely disappeared, and the sound of stepping on water also slowly vanished.
The Seventh Prince had walked away, treading on water.
Although his strength was weak, it was compared to peerless prodigies like Zhou Yuan and Zhou Wuji. Such a trivial matter as walking on water was certainly within his capabilities, so he didn't need a boat.
Xian'er Jiu stood by the window, quietly listening until the lake returned to its calm state, then she turned around and walked towards Xu Mu on the bed.
Looking at this drunkard immersed in his own illusion with a lewd smile, a hint of disgust appeared on Xian'er Jiu's peerless face.
She bent down, intending to move Xu Mu from the bed, but found she couldn't budge him no matter how hard she tried.
"So heavy?"
Xian'er Jiu looked at Xu Mu with surprise. She had moved men as fat as pigs before, but they felt as light as clouds in the sky compared to Xu Mu. It was as if he were as heavy as a stone lion placed at the entrance of a wealthy family's residence.
"I don't believe it!"
Xian'er Jiu took a deep breath and tried again to pull Xu Mu off the bed. Her slender arms bulged slightly, and her contorted face showed her exertion. She was clearly using all her strength.
But even so, Xu Mu's body only shifted slightly on the bed. He was lying on her soft, pink quilt, and it seemed like he had drooled on it.
"This fellow!"
Xian'er Jiu was completely enraged. She rolled up her sheer sleeves, grabbed Xu Mu's right arm with one hand, and firmly clasped his right wrist with the other. Then she turned around, forcefully using her hips to push against Xu Mu, and instantly lifted him onto her back.
"He's not that heavy after all."
The young woman easily carried Xu Mu on her back, thinking proudly.
But the next second, she felt something was not right. Xu Mu was not heavy, so why had he been so difficult to move on the bed just now?
"This is the first time I've been carried by a woman."
Xu Mu opened his eyes, a terrifying bolt of lightning in his palm pressed against Xian'er Jiu's lower back. Then he said with a smile, "If you don't want to die, you'd better not move."