"So," Xiu Mei said as she leaned against the doorframe, "we officially have a business agreement. How exciting and dangerous at the same time."
"That is a fairly accurate description," I replied.
Xiu Mei pulled a small ceramic jar from her pocket. It was the size of my fist and sealed with red wax. She offered it to me with a casual gesture.
"Before you go, take this."
I accepted the jar with a certain degree of caution.
"What is it?"
"An ointment. Something I prepared a few days ago when I still had decent ingredients." Her golden eyes shined with professional interest. "Apply it to your back. Specifically the muscles of the lower back and shoulders. It should help strengthen the muscle fibers now that you are recovering."
I looked at the jar with renewed interest.
"Are there any side effects?"
"It is going to smell horrible for about an hour after you apply it. Other than that, none." Xiu Mei made a deliberate pause. "Well, it might also generate a bit of heat in the area. Nothing painful, just uncomfortable."
"How long should I use it?"
"Twice a day for a week. After that, the effects should be permanent. Your body will retain the improvements." She tilted her head slightly. "It is not going to cure you or restore your meridians, Kenji. But it can strengthen what you have left. Every small improvement counts when you are working with limitations."
"Thank you, Xiu Mei. I appreciate it."
"Do not thank me yet." Her expression became more serious. "I am also going to study your case in more depth. Permanently blocked meridians are something I do not see every day. I want to understand exactly what happened and if there is anything, anything at all, that might help."
Xiao Yue, who had remained silent while observing the exchange, spoke for the first time since we left the laboratory.
"Do you think you could find something?"
Xiu Mei shrugged.
"Honestly, I do not know. If there is anything that can help, I will find it." She looked directly at Xiao Yue. "Besides, he is my business partner now. Taking care of my partners is good for business."
Liling smiled from her position beside me.
"I like you, Xiu Mei. You are practical."
"It is the only way to survive in this world." Xiu Mei gave us a wave of dismissal. "Now get going before someone notices that three people are spending too much time in a supposedly abandoned building."
"See you soon," I said.
"Very soon. I have work to do." Her smile returned. "And you have a monopoly to break."
The door closed completely.
We stayed in the alley for a moment before beginning to walk back toward the East District. Liling slid naturally to my side and took my arm with both hands, intertwining it with hers.
"What are you doing?" I asked.
"Walking with you like a proper lady. Any problem with that?"
"Not exactly, but..."
"Then relax. Besides, it is safer if we look like a normal couple taking a stroll. Less suspicious than three people walking on high alert."
Xiao Yue walked slightly ahead of us, maintaining a respectful but vigilant distance. Liling began to speak in a light, casual tone.
"So, what did you think of Xiu Mei? And I want your honest opinion."
"She is competent, direct, and understands the value of strategic alliances. She is also clearly someone who has survived in difficult circumstances, which makes her adaptable."
"That is your professional evaluation. What about your personal evaluation?"
"Personal?"
"Yes, personal. As in: do you like her?"
I considered the question for a moment.
"Yes, I like her. It is refreshing to talk to someone who does not hide their intentions behind layers of social protocol."
Liling squeezed my arm slightly.
"I am glad to hear that. Because I think she is going to be important for what we are building."
The alley we were walking through was relatively quiet. Dilapidated buildings stood on both sides, with dim light filtering through some windows. The sun was already low on the horizon, tinting everything in shades of orange and red.
It was Xiao Yue who stopped first. Her posture changed subtly. She still looked relaxed to a casual observer, but her hands moved slightly away from her body. Liling released my arm immediately.
"What is happening?" I asked in a low voice.
"Company," Xiao Yue replied without turning around.
The shadows moved.
Four figures emerged from different directions with professional coordination. Two from the front, blocking our route; one from the left, coming out of a side alley; and another from the right, dropping down from a low roof. They all wore dark hoods that concealed their faces and simple robes without any distinctive markings.
A fifth figure appeared, walking slowly from behind. His pace was calm, almost casual. He stopped about ten meters away and spoke with a cultivated, controlled voice.
"Good afternoon, travelers. Excuse the interruption."
None of us responded. The man continued.
"It is interesting to see people of a certain... quality in these lower districts." His tone was polite, but there was an edge underneath. "The ladies especially. Despite your efforts to blend in, certain habits are difficult to hide. The posture. The way you move. The natural poise."
I decided to take control of the conversation before this escalated.
"We are simply visitors," I said with a neutral and respectful voice. "Servants of a commercial house running errands in the area."
The man tilted his head slightly.
"Servants? How curious." He pointed toward Xiao Yue and Liling. "Because the way those two ladies stand tall, the grace in every movement, the way they observe their surroundings with that particular confidence... All of that speaks of refined training. Years of instruction that only the nobility receives."
"With all due respect," I replied, maintaining a calm tone, "making assumptions about people's identities can lead to unnecessary misunderstandings."
"Oh, they are not assumptions." The man took a step forward. "I am quite good at reading people. It is part of my job."
"And what exactly is your job?"
There was a pause. The man reached for his chest and pulled out a small medallion. He held it up so we could see it clearly. It was bronze with an engraved symbol: a mortar and a stylized hand. The emblem of the Alchemists Guild.
"We are representatives of the Guild," the man said, putting the medallion away. "We are conducting a search in this area. We are looking for a certain... fugitive we need to locate."
"Fugitive?" I asked with genuine curiosity in my voice.
"A Kitsune. She stole valuable resources from the Guild a couple of years ago. We have reason to believe she is hiding in the Lower District."
"I am sorry to hear that," I said with calculated sympathy. "But I do not see how we can help you. As I said, we are only visitors."
The man looked at me directly.
"Then you will have no problem explaining what you were doing in these parts."
"We were looking for temporary shelter," I replied without losing a second. "The Lower District is not exactly safe for unprepared travelers."
"Shelter? Interesting." The man's voice hardened. "The thing is, a Kitsune fugitive with alchemy training would be manufacturing exactly this type of product. And you," he pointed to the jar in my hand, "are holding one."
Fine. Time to change tactics.
"That does not prove we are accomplices to anyone." I held up the jar. "We bought this at a market this morning from a street vendor whose name I do not remember."
"You bought a professional quality medicinal ointment from an anonymous street vendor?"
"That is correct. Is there some law against that?"
The man studied me for a long moment.
"You are quite eloquent for a simple servant."
"I read a lot in my spare time."
This guy was persistent. And he clearly was not stupid. I decided to go on the offensive.
"Allow me to understand the situation. You are looking for a fugitive. You have suspicions that she operates in this area. But instead of investigating properly, you are harassing random travelers based on conjectures." I made a deliberate pause. "It does not seem like a very effective method to me."
The man smiled without humor.
"You are not random travelers. You are three people of evident superior quality pretending to be common servants, walking through the Lower District at sunset, holding alchemical products that match the profile of our fugitive." His voice grew hard. "That is not chance. That is enough circumstantial evidence to justify a formal interrogation."
"Formal interrogation?" Liling spoke for the first time. "Does the Alchemists Guild have the authority to detain and interrogate nobles in the Golden Carp City?"
There it was. Liling had just implicitly confirmed they were not servants. The leader caught the implication immediately. His posture changed subtly.
"So you are nobles. Thank you for the confirmation, young lady."
Liling did not respond, but her expression hardened. The man continued with renewed confidence.
"And to answer your question: the Guild has agreements with the other clans to recover stolen property and apprehend fugitives who have committed crimes against our interests. We have limited authority to investigate and detain suspects when there is probable cause."
"Probable cause?" I asked. "Because we bought an ointment?"
"Because you are protecting a criminal. Or at least you have information about her whereabouts."
"We are not protecting anyone."
"Then you will have no problem accompanying us for a brief interrogation. A few questions. If your answers are satisfactory, we will let you go."
I looked the man directly in the eye.
"And if we refuse to accompany you voluntarily?"
The leader extended his arms slightly.
"Then we would have to insist in a less polite manner."
The four subordinates moved subtly closer. My mind was working on multiple levels simultaneously.
Worst case scenario: they take us in for interrogation. The Guild discovers our connection with Xiu Mei. She is captured. Our business deal dies before it begins. Possible implications for the Silver Cloud Clan if it is discovered that Xiao Yue was involved.
Best case scenario: I convince them we are innocent. They let us go. But that would require convincing explanations that I do not have.
Intermediate scenario: we escape. But then the Guild definitely knows we are involved. They intensify the search. They eventually find Xiu Mei.
None of the options were good.
The leader took a step forward.
"Enough talk. You have had the opportunity to cooperate voluntarily. Now I insist formally: accompany us for an interrogation or face a forced detention."
Liling moved subtly, positioning herself between the leader and me. Xiao Yue did the same from her position in front. The leader noticed the movement and smiled.
"Physical resistance would only confirm my suspicion that you are hiding something. Do you really want to escalate this to violence?"
"We do not want to escalate anything," Xiao Yue said with a cold voice. "You are the ones who are threatening forced detention without solid evidence."
"I have enough evidence for a preliminary interrogation. That is all I need legally."
I looked around, evaluating the situation. Five trained men. Strategic positions. Outlets blocked. If this turned physical, it was going to be ugly.
"Last chance," the leader said. "Come voluntarily or we take you by force."