In Nanzhou (3)
Anyway, we began asking around about where the carriage had gone.
"A large cart pulled by three horses isn't all that common. Horses are pretty expensive, after all."
Three horses big enough to pull a cart could buy you a modest tiled house.
That made a horse-drawn cart a pretty eye-catching sight.
"The ones who ambushed it couldn't have missed it. And this is a residential area, so they must have disguised themselves as merchants."
"I think the same."
There were only certain paths wide enough for a cart, so we centered our inquiries on those routes.
Fortunately, the locals were kind enough to answer me politely.
"Come to think of it, I did see a group of merchants pass through here around that time."
"Do you happen to know which merchant group it was?"
"Let me see... yeah, they had the emblem of the O Merchant Group."
O Merchant Group.
It was the largest merchant group in all of Gansu Province.
That meant either it was a ruse, or they were the real culprits behind this mess.
But I leaned toward the former.
The O Merchant Group had no reason to pull something like this, and they weren't the type anyway.
Keep asking around, and we'd eventually pinpoint when they ditched the disguise.
"Just to double-check, are you sure?"
"Of course! I've lived here for decades. By the way, you're one handsome young man."
"Hahaha, thank you."
"You look just like Yoon-seok."
"Pardon?"
"My daughter-in-law's son. Actually, he takes after my boy more."
"Ah, you hungry? I just made some dumplings—want some?"
"Thank you."
After finishing our inquiries with various folks, we returned to the rendezvous point to find Palgap already back.
"Young master, did you get any leads?"
I nodded at Palgap's question.
"Looks like they headed that way."
"And people just spill the beans like that?"
"Yeah. Super friendly. Even shared these dumplings with me."
Palgap shook his head at the dumplings in my hand.
"The world really has gone rotten."
"Huh? These dumplings are rotten?"
"No, sir."
As we were tracking the cart's whereabouts, a man approached us.
"Are you the ones sent by the highest authority?"
The phrasing pointed to the Emperor, and the strong fragrance gave him away.
A eunuch from the Eastern Depot, no doubt.
Eunuchs only came from the palace inner servants, who always carried scent pouches to mask their... distinctive odor.
The smell wafting from him was exactly like the ones I'd caught from the palace eunuchs.
"Who might you be?"
"Ah, sorry if I startled you. I'm Cheong-gwan, with the Eastern Depot handling this region."
"So you're Eunuch Cheong-gwan."
"Yes. We'd reported the disappearance of the Gold Guard warriors to our superiors and were anxiously awaiting word. Then we heard you were asking about a carriage, so I hurried over."
"I see. Still, it's good we made contact sooner than expected."
"Indeed. And we've pinpointed the likely spot where the Gold Guard were taken."
"That's welcome news."
We followed him.
It saved us some effort, but something felt off.
Soon we reached a mountain bandit lair.
"That's the place."
We observed it from afar. Even the outer sentries numbered around ten.
The foul aura radiating from them marked them as black path scum.
"Do you know anything about the situation inside?"
"Not that far. But from what I've observed, children's cries keep coming from there. Looks like they've gathered the kidnapped kids."
"I see."
Master Bang nodded.
"Then the ones snatching kids must have nabbed the Gold Guard too."
"What should we do?"
"What else? Rescue them."
I piped up at that.
"But charging in blind seems risky—we don't know their full strength."
Master Bang nodded at my words.
"Fair point. We don't know the layout or conditions inside. So we need someone to spill the beans on that."
Master Bang laid out the plan.
"First, I'll lure some of those sentries over here. When I signal, you take them down."
"Got it."
"And you."
Master Bang addressed the Eastern Depot eunuch called Cheong-gwan.
"It could get dangerous, so stay out of harm's way."
"I'll be fine. I know some martial arts—I can protect myself."
"Heh, if we fail, we'll need someone to report back, won't we?"
"...True enough."
"So get to safety."
"Very well. But how do you plan to lure them...?"
"Ah, thought I'd grill some meat."
"Hm, effective enough. Good luck, then."
Cheong-gwan headed down the mountain, and Master Bang watched him go before turning to me.
"Whew, I'm starving. You hungry?"
I chuckled at Master Bang's question.
"Me too."
"Didn't you eat those dumplings earlier?"
"Didn't you have one yourself, Master?"
Master Bang chuckled back. He glanced around, pointed to a spot, and called to his attendant.
"Seok-baek. Light a charcoal fire."
"Yes, sir."
The attendant got right to it, and our guard vanished briefly before dragging back a deer.
Soon the dressed venison was sizzling on the grill over the coals.
Sizzle...
"You carry charcoal and a grill even in a situation like this?"
"Of course! Can't eat veggies, but meat's a must. Meat's my favorite. Meat!"
Hey, same here.
I plopped down in front of it.
"Exactly. Meat is truth, and a world without meat is a dark one."
"Hahaha! Right you are."
Once the meat was cooked enough, Master Bang fanned the smoke toward the bandit lair.
"What are you doing?"
"What? Luring those bastards over, nice and proper."
"Huh?"
"Sit. The good stuff's ready. Overcook it, and it'll burn—ruins the bait."
"Makes sense."
I sat and grabbed a piece.
"So the meat smell to draw them out... that was legit?"
"Yep."
"I figured you said it just to get rid of that eunuch."
Master Bang grinned at me.
"You caught on too, huh."
"Yeah. Something felt off."
Two things bugged me.
First, the kid's cries he'd supposedly heard.
His internal energy was third-rate at best.
No way he could pick up sounds from that lair, even straining his ears with qi.
Second, the black path's foul aura clinging to him.
"Suspicious as hell, yeah. But I clocked him the moment we hit that safehouse."
"Pardon?"
"The Emperor's letter had weird details. Three days out of contact, and even accounting for our travel time, not even a month had passed."
I nodded after mentally checking the dates.
"But the safehouse felt longer neglected. Dust was thicker than a month's worth."
You can gauge time from dust buildup? Impressive.
"So you're saying he sold out the Gold Guard's safehouse to the enemy?"
"My guess."
Bingo!
"But can meat smoke really lure them?"
"Plenty of those bandits up there. Ten sentries means even more inside."
"Right."
"I asked around earlier about carts heading in. Numbers were dropping."
Master Bang grinned.
"Even if it's all food, doesn't add up. Think they're eating well?"
"Probably not."
"This smell'll drive 'em nuts. But they won't rush—they've got brains."
"Huh?"
What the hell is he on about?
"They're desperate right now. Probably cut off from above. So they grabbed the Gold Guard to figure out why."
Master Bang chewed as he spoke.
"Wouldn't have thought of it without a traitor egging them on."
"Makes sense."
"Didn't burn the safehouse to buy time extracting info from higher-ups."
"Torch it, and a full probe kicks off fast."
"Exactly. And if we rescue even one Gold Guard, think that eunuch survives?"
"No chance."
"His idea, ultimately. Backfired on him."
We chatted over the venison as we tore into it.
Damn, this hits the spot.
Charcoal-grilled meat is the best.
After we'd eaten our fill, he said,
"Alright, time to move."
"Huh?"
"Where d'you think that eunuch went? Straight to the bandits to rat us out. They'll bring the Guard here. Perfect chance to free them."
"So the grilling...?"
"To lure 'em right here."
Then it clicked—the real point of the barbecue.
Bonus: full bellies.
* * *
Cheong-gwan had always loved money.
He volunteered to become a eunuch for the big payouts and entered the palace as an inner servant.
Eventually, he got a shot at the Eastern Depot.
They handled intel.
And intel meant cash.
But he avoided high-visibility spots, heading to remote Gansu Province instead.
That became his world.
He started selling secrets for profit.
Amassed a fortune, but trouble brewed.
Gold Guard warriors arrived to probe kidnappings up north in Gansu.
They uncovered his graft.
"You, who should serve as the Emperor's eyes and ears, chasing personal gain? I'll report this straight up!"
Big problem.
He'd lose his wealth—and his head.
But he wouldn't go quietly.
He decided to stab the Gold Guard in the back and raced to the suspected kidnapping bandit lair.
Sold them out.
The bandits ambushed and nabbed the warriors, trying to wring out info.
They didn't crack easy.
No matter. If they died under torture, problem solved clean.
His corruption would vanish with them.
'And I torched all my files on me.'
But then.
New snag.
People sniffing around the cart that hauled the Gold Guard to the lair.
Emperor's men, chasing their trail.
Disaster.
If they freed the Guard, his dirt would surface.
So he approached first.
They bought it—no suspicion—and even told him to stay safe during the op.
Opportunity.
He slipped off to the lair.
"What's up?"
They recognized his face—no hassle.
"Emergency. Where's the chief?"
"Inside."
"Urgent business."
He met the chief and spilled everything.
"So they're grilling meat to lure us out? Hahaha! Idiots."
The chief laughed, then ground his teeth.
"Smart play, though. Especially now."
Orders from above: snatch kids.
After a few runs, contact—and food supplies—dried up.
Panicking, the Gold Guard showed. Per the eunuch, they were linked.
So they grabbed and beat 'em.
Not talking yet, but soon.
Now these new players knew more.
"Time to return the favor."
The chief grinned.
"Boys. Grab your weapons."