The Ten-Thousand-Year Cold Jade

The following afternoon, Bamboo Forest Manor was still awash in a festival mood, riding high on its overwhelming victory in the duel against Hwa Family Manor. Inside the study of Manor Lord Heo Il-bi, however, an inexplicable tension hung in the air.

Heo Il-bi studied Ouyang Qiangang, seated across from him, with a complicated look tinged with awe. This meeting had been arranged at Qiangang's own request.

"You said you have something important to tell me?"

"Yes, Uncle."

"These days, when you say something is important, my heart starts pounding before you've even opened your mouth. All right, go ahead."

"Uncle, the Dragon-Nurturing Pill is a treasure capable of setting both the Ouyang Clan and the Heo family atop unshakable footing. But under the current method, production is only possible while I am present."

Sensing that Qiangang was at last about to touch upon the secret of the pill's manufacture, Heo Il-bi leaned in to listen. He had been consumed by curiosity all this while, yet had never once been able to ask. However much he was the business partner bankrolling the elixir's production — and the boy's uncle besides — demanding to be told a manufacturing secret was simply not proper merchant's honor.

"Manufacturing the Dragon-Nurturing Pill requires a certain special capability," Qiangang went on. "Until now, the martial arts I have mastered have served in its place, and they will continue to for some time yet. But production by such means is not sustainable."

"Hmm... because the method becomes impossible without you?"

"That's right."

"Then we'll need a way to keep production going even in your absence."

"I've already found one."

Heo Il-bi's eyes went wide. "Already?"

"Yes."

Nodding, Qiangang continued. "To bring that method to fruition, we will need one rare treasure."

"What is it?"

"The Ten-Thousand-Year Cold Jade."

A deep furrow carved itself between Heo Il-bi's brows. "The Ten-Thousand-Year Cold Jade?"

"Yes."

"With that thing, the pill can be produced even while you're away?"

"Yes."

"I trust you, but... do you have any idea how difficult that jade is to obtain? So many people doubt it even exists that the doubters far outnumber the believers. Even I have spent a lifetime hearing tell of such a thing without ever once laying eyes on it."

"I'm well aware of how hard it is to come by. Even so, it must be found. There is no other choice if we are to secure the long-term sustainability of the pill's production."

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

"Hmmmm..."

"Before long, I will have to leave this place and return to the main clan. If by then no method exists to manufacture the pill in my absence, production will have no choice but to cease."

Qiangang continued in a level tone. "It is my intention to have the Dragon-Nurturing Pill produced at both houses — the Ouyang main clan and Bamboo ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Forest Manor. To build a sustainable foundation from which both families can share in its enormous profits, the Ten-Thousand-Year Cold Jade is ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠an absolute necessity. Uncle — I ask you to find it."

Heo Il-bi swallowed hard. A shiver ran through him as he grasped that Qiangang's plan reached far beyond the mere making of money — that the boy was looking all the way to the shared prosperity and future of both families.

This child... he's been looking past curing his own illness and raising up his family. He's been drawing the future of our Bamboo Forest Manor into the picture as well.

He brought his hand down hard on the armrest of his chair. "Very well. This Ten-Thousand-Year Cold Jade of yours — this uncle will mobilize every ounce of influence he possesses, if that is what it takes, and find it without fail. You simply concern yourself with preparing the next stage of the plan."

Qiangang rose and bowed deeply. "I am deeply grateful for your ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠kindness, Uncle."

It was late in the afternoon, several days after Heo Il-bi had set his entire information network in motion. With a somewhat flushed face, he summoned Qiangang to his study.

"Gang, my boy — I've obtained a lead on the Ten-Thousand-Year Cold Jade."

Qiangang's eyes widened in an instant. "Truly? A clue to something so rare, this quickly..."

"Hahaha. I called in every connection I have. It was no easy feat." Heo Il-bi went on, "But the lead came from a most unexpected quarter."

"An unexpected quarter?"

"A woman called the Heavenly Fragrance Fairy."

"Who is the Heavenly Fragrance Fairy?"

"She is the mistress of the most splendid and secretive establishment in all of Nanchang — the Heavenly Fragrance Pavilion. People call it the finest pleasure house in Jiangxi."

Qiangang frowned faintly and tilted his head. "The mistress of a pleasure house, holding a clue to the Ten-Thousand-Year Cold Jade... that is rather hard to believe."

Heo Il-bi nodded as if he understood the doubt perfectly. "That place is no ordinary pleasure house. Instead of courtesans selling their bodies, it deals in artistry peerless under heaven and the rarest of wines. And wherever people gather, information gathers with them. It would be nothing strange for its mistress to know a thing or two about the Cold Jade."

"Ah... I suppose that's possible." Qiangang pressed further. "Did you inquire there yourself, Uncle?"

Heo Il-bi shook his head with a wry smile. "No. There was no need. They came looking for me first."

Surprise surfaced on Qiangang's face. "I beg your pardon? You mean they already knew we were searching for the Ten-Thousand-Year Cold Jade?"

"That's right. I had no choice but to admit that the Pavilion's intelligence network runs a step ahead of this uncle's connections."

Clicking his tongue, Heo Il-bi continued. "This morning, a woman came to see me bearing a message from the Heavenly Fragrance Fairy."

"Was the message about the Cold Jade?"

"It was. But there was a condition attached to their sharing what they know — and the one bound by that condition was not me." Heo Il-bi looked Qiangang squarely in the eye. "The Heavenly Fragrance Fairy... Gang, my boy, she wants to meet you. She says that if you grant her a single request — her condition — she will gladly hand over everything she knows of the jade's whereabouts."

Qiangang's brow creased slightly. "...You mean me?"

"Yes, you and no one else. That is the part that puzzled even me. I cannot begin to fathom what that woman knows of you, or what she could possibly want. It may well prove a dangerous proposition. That is why I meant to give this offer further thought..."

Before Heo Il-bi could finish, Qiangang opened his mouth without a moment's hesitation. "I will go, Uncle."

Startled by the instant reply, Heo Il-bi's eyes widened a touch. "Gang, I wasn't finished speaking. This is not a decision to make rashly. That woman is no ordinary person."

"There is no reason to hesitate."

Qiangang's voice was calm, but within it lay a will like tempered steel. "With a clue to the Ten-Thousand-Year Cold Jade right before my eyes, I must go even if the proposal amounts to walking straight into a tiger's den. The proper order of things is to meet her and hear the condition with my own ears."

Faced with such resolve, Heo Il-bi could dissuade him no further and simply nodded. The sickly nephew before him had, somewhere along the way, grown into a vessel so vast that he himself could scarcely take its measure.

By the time Qiangang set out from Bamboo Forest Manor with Hwang Nodae, the sun was sinking behind the western hills, and lanterns were beginning to bloom one by one along the streets of Nanchang. Their destination, of course, was the Heavenly Fragrance Pavilion.

The pavilion did not stand in Nanchang's busiest commercial quarter, but in the deepest reaches of a quiet district lined with the mansions of high officials and merchant magnates. As the carriage bearing the two men drew near, the bustling clamor of the streets faded away as though by magic. Before long, it rolled to a stop before a great gate, from which a wall of daunting, measureless height stretched away into the distance.

Above the massive gate of black ebony hung a plaque reading 'Heavenly Fragrance Pavilion,' inscribed in a graceful, flowing hand. Keeping watch over the entrance were two young women arrayed in refined silk martial dress, swords at their waists. Their clear eyes and disciplined bearing made it plain that this was no mere house of amusement.

When Hwang Nodae stepped forward and announced Qiangang's identity, the gates swung open, soft and soundless.

The moment he passed through them, Qiangang felt as though he had stepped into another world entirely. The darkness and din of the outside were shut away completely, and hundreds of softly glowing lanterns bathed the whole of the garden in a dreamlike light. The air itself was an exquisite blend of rare, nameless blossoms and the finest ambergris incense, calming to the depths of the mind — and from somewhere far off drifted the clear, elegant notes of a zither, lending the scene the mystique of a glimpse into an immortal's banquet.

Before them spread a broad artificial pond, nine cloud bridges arcing across its surface. And beyond the water, crowning the highest point of the grounds as if to flaunt its grandeur, rose a majestic five-storied hall, ringed by towers great and small. In sheer scale and aesthetic refinement both, it soared far beyond anything a common pleasure house could claim. Its guests were uniformly wealthy merchants and renowned names of the murim, and the women who entertained them were no ordinary courtesans but gifted beauties versed in poetry, calligraphy, and painting. In truth, the place was less a house of pleasure than a secret salon for Jiangxi Province's upper crust — a nexus where information gathered.

Qiangang's gaze deepened. I'll have to chide myself for approaching this place with the prejudice that it was just another pleasure house. He had a gut feeling that his decision to come here might prove far more consequential than he had imagined.

Escorted by an attendant, he and Hwang Nodae made their way to the deepest reaches of the pavilion's rear garden. When they arrived at a modest hall beside the moonlit pond, a woman was waiting for them.

A veil of translucent white silk covered her face from just below the eyes. Yet from her jade-white forehead, her painterly brows, and eyes as deep and clear as a still lake, it took no great effort to guess that she was a beauty rare enough to topple kingdoms. And the figure swathed in flowing palace silks was flawless in its own right.

The face Akasha rendered in his mind's eye was so breathtaking that even Qiangang — whose eye had been spoiled by long familiarity with Heo Cho-ryeong, the finest beauty in Nanchang — felt his heart drop for an instant.

"You do me honor with this visit, Young Master Ouyang. I am Cheon-hyang, mistress of this establishment."

"Ouyang Qiangang."

He found himself slightly burdened by the fact that the Heavenly Fragrance Fairy had come out to greet him in person. It meant that whatever she intended to ask of him would be no light favor.

"This way, please."

The interior of the hall she led him into was filled with a deep, mellow fragrance that settled the heart. She seated Qiangang across from her, then personally poured clear amber tea into his cup. After taking a sip of her own, she spoke first.

"Allow me to congratulate you on Bamboo Forest Manor's victory, Young Master. I hear your contribution was decisive in their triumph over Hwa Family Manor."

Qiangang's eyes wavered, if only faintly. She seemed to know a great deal indeed.

"You flatter me. I merely lent my uncle some small assistance."

"How modest you are." With a faint smile, the Heavenly Fragrance Fairy set down her teacup. "I confess it never occurred to me that a man afflicted with the Nine Yin Severed Meridians known as Heavenly Punishment could ever come to master the martial arts."

Qiangang's gaze hardened. "I take it you did not summon me here merely to show off how much you know about me?"

The Fairy bowed her head without pretense. "My apologies, if that displeased you."

"It is nothing of the sort. I was merely surprised."

The Heavenly Fragrance Fairy looked him straight in the eye. "You must be wondering why I asked to meet you."

"Frankly, I am."