Guan Fei stood still for a moment in front of the massive building and watched opulently dressed people gathering in like moths to a flame. She knew her target will also be here anytime soon. But she paid no heed to the crowd. She was sure she wouldn't be able to spot him now. But that didn't matter as she had another way to approach him because she literary knew everything about the plot. She was confident enough to put what she planned through the whole week of seclusion into action .
After observing a bit Guan Fei started walking again. 10 minutes later she was seen standing in a narrow alley. One side of the alley was a high wall and other side was a thick grove of willows. The alley looked lonely and dim under shadows. She didn't wasted much time and directly stepped towards a certain spot of the wall. She squatted down by the wall and pushed away the knee high bushes aside revealing a hole that was big enough for a grown man to crawl through it easily.
''As expected!''
She hummed soundlessly and nimbly crawled through the hole, as if she wasn't the one who boasted to A-Lin that an outstanding young master like her would never crawl though such a petty hole. Other side of the hole was also covered with a hedge of thick shrubs. In fact that secret entrance was perfectly hidden in the wilderness. Guan Fei came out of the bushes and patted off the dirt from her not-so-clean robes carefully observing her surrounding. She discovered that she was standing in a shabby, little courtyard alone.
This was the path which Yang Bingchun entered this very place once a week. To be precise, she knew that this was the headquarters of eastern kingdom's spy network in the capital. At the same time this was the most popular and the most expensive brothel of the capital. While the famous scholars, high officials and wealthy lords entered this place from main gate, all the shady business was done through this hidden courtyard.
One may wonder why there isn't a single guard in this undercover place but she clearly knew that wasn't a coincident. It was just the owner of this place was very much skilled in hiding the abnormality in normality. It was rumored many years ago a beauty lived in this wing killed her self one night and her wandering soul have seen still living there. So nobody dares to come close this gloomy and haunted courtyard even in daytime.
But Guan Fei had given this place more importance in her novel than being a residence for a ghost of an unknown prostitute. There situated the meeting hall of eastern spies as well as a secret doorway that led inside the room of owner of the brothel which was exactly where she wanted to enter. It took only a split second for Guan Fei to pass the weeded compound and swiftly disappear through the tattered, sliding door.
She carefully stepped on the dusty wooden floor even if the cotton soles of her boots made no sound at all. Just as described in rumors, the hall looked truly abandoned. She felt suffocated when inhaling the stagnant air with stirred dust. Before long her head was covered with countless cobwebs as she proceeded staggering blindly. Although it was still the dusk the interior of the building was very dark. Once in a while she would bump into either a broken furniture or a ragged vail.
It was indeed a place that triggered fear. Although she who used to live by her self didn't fear darkness, still felt bit uneasy. She found it more hilarious as she was the one who created that ghost story in the first place. However she sped up her search, starting to regret of her decision to not to bring any light source because she feared someone would see the light.
After searching for some time her fingers touched a tall wooden frame and she subconsciously breathed sigh of relief. She quickly shoved it aside and snuck in. The tunnel was pitch black dark but Guan Fei had her courage flying high as half of her mission has succeeded. What's remained was to eavesdrop accurately and return home safely. Then she could inform the conspiracy with evident beforehand and protect the crown princess's life as well as hers.
It was not like she had no regrets about not writing this part in detail. If she had done so, she wouldn't need to come this journey. But as her plot only kept up with her main lead Guan Fei's life' she had many unknown things in Guan Feng's life. She didn't know whether it was due to the butterfly effect of her transmigration, she detected few minor plot changes too. So she could only patiently await to grab this moment as it was the one and only chance to protect her life.
Suddenly her outstretched hands banged in a barrier. She understood that this was the other end of the tunnel. She knew she was next to the study of keeper of Dong Feng, Madam Chun. And of course she had that other identity of a eastern spy. Today the real murder of crown princess is scheduled to meet her to plot about their scheme. Guan Fei leaned forward and glued her ear to the wall.
But what she heard from the room more resembled a huge turmoil rather than a serious plotting. She heard a loud wailing of a woman.
''I don't know any thing. I don't know...''
''Shut up!''
The women's tantrum was cut off.