Feeling the distrust directed towards him, Jiang Shiqin looked directly at the scowling man. "Sect Master, there is no need to worry about Qin's loyalty. Qin has received boundless grace from His Highness and is willing to serve him till death."
Upon these words, Sect Master Su's displeasure did not dissipate, but he did not continue to pursue the matter either.
"Where did the prince receive the information? Is he suspicious of any specific sect?"
"His Highness has stated that there are hidden connections between some of the officials under Prince Qing and Blazing Hawthorn's businesses, and has reason to belief that the sect is receiving Prince Qing's financial assistance in exchange for certain services. As for the source of the information, Qin does not know."
Almost imperceptibly, Sect Master Su's eyebrows loosened at the last sentence. "Your current direction of investigation?"
"Blazing Hawthorn Sect must have received information about our movements, and concealed anything that connected them to Prince Qing. The businesses under their name have been sold to uninformed parties, and their warehouses were emptied," Jiang Shiqin's eyes darkened when he recalled the reports from his lord's forces in the Distant Lands. "However, Qin has found a new lead. There are traces of similarities between the martial arts of the fifth inner disciple of Blazing Hawthorn Sect, Yu Wentian, and the Heart Devil Sect's, one of Prince Qing's supporters. Accordingly, between the age of eighteen and twenty-one, Yu Wentian was nowhere to be seen in the Distant Lands. Qin suspected that this Yu Wentian was associating with the Heart Devil Sect during this period."
He did not tell Sect Master Su why he was so incredibly familiar with the Heart Devil Sect's martial arts, to the point where he could recognize such elusive details.
Sect Master Su slightly nodded. "The financial crisis that Blazing Heart Sect has been facing for the past few years is known to many. If the previous Sect Master had not been so weak and allowed the elders to go on a rampage..." He sighed in regret. "These people are too single-minded and don't know how to properly manage a sect, wasting the mountain of treasures their forefathers had painstakingly gathered. Now that so many of their experts had left due to the dwindling resources, much of their martial arts was lost as well. This explained why they had deteriorated so much that their disciples were forced to learn martial arts from somewhere else." There was a hint of contempt in his voice.
Jiang Shiqin added. "There's also the possibility that Yu Wentian has received Heart Devil Sect's teachings when he was still an outer disciple, and these teachings were the reason why he was the only outer disciple to have succeeded in his promotion."
There was an angry look on Sect Master Su's face. "If that is so, the Heart Devil Sect has already sowed the seed of manipulation for at least 8 years. For better or worse, Blazing Hawthorn Sect is still one of the five great sects in the Distant Lands."
His line of sight refocused on Jiang Shiqin. "What resources can Thousand Blooming Sect provide for your investigation?"
Jiang Shiqin understood that his requests should naturally be within the boundaries of proprietary, as Sect Master Su was an ally and perhaps a sort-of advisor to the prince and not a subordinate.
"Currently, His Highness has entrusted his forces at the Distant Lands to me." He replied calmly without any sense of arrogance. "These people are combing the land for any mention of Yu Wentian's activities back then. Sect Master Su, if possible, Qin would like to ask for a favor."
Sect Master Su nodded.
Relief coursed through his veins. "There will be a banquet celebrating the success of the tournament three days later. Yu Wentian, with his 3rd placing, would certainly be there, if only for his sect's face. Qin would like to attend this banquet."
To a Sect Master, securing an additional invitation was as simple as flicking of his sleeves, even if another sect was the organizer of the event.
Su Dai would also be there, as a matter of fact, but delegating a different Thousand Blooming Lotus disciple to accompany Jiang Shiqin was an easy matter. In any case, this was work, not some romance game where the girl's father insisted on separating them even at the risk of his ally's well-being.
"Granted. Three days later, servants will be at the Autumn Pavillion to receive you." Sect Master Su paused. "If you can form good relations with people from other sects as well, it will be beneficial to your subsequent activities."
Jiang Shiqin bowed in recognition of the older man's well-intentioned advice. "Qin will try my best." He stood up and performed another bow, clearly sensing the other person's impending dismissal. "Thanking Sect Master Su for today."
With a signal from Sect Master Su, Jiang Shiqin left in a neat and elegant manner. Soon, there was only one person in the room, faint lines of worry creasing his skin as he thought about the brewing political storm.
-0-0-
Stepping onto the gray road, worn from thousands and thousands of footsteps through multiple years, Jiang Shiqin's serious demeanor disappeared instantly, replaced by a casual look and a faint smile that added some friendliness to his bearing.
Maneuvering through the constant flow of people, he sometimes stopped at a few unassuming accessory stores at the roadside and asked for a paper fan with beautiful scenery of lakes. Without any hint of abnormality, he bought three according to his taste and, seemingly satisfied, walked away in the direction of the Autumn Pavillion.
The shadows following him gazed at his retreating figure for a few more seconds, then noted down the stores with slight frowns and melted into the crowd.
That night, under the fluttering light of an oil lamp, Jiang Shiqin carefully separated the paper layers on top and at the bottom of one of the fans with a small knife and hovered these layers upside down over a lit candle. Upon reading the lines of text that gradually appeared under the intense heat, he smiled.
It was a smile as chilling as the icy wind over the depth of winter snow.