The light fell through the broken roofs and walls, illuminating the once former building. The walls are now obsidian colored from all the scorch marks left after the fire. The dust had since long settled among the rumbled that made it hard for anything to move. Three people still tried as they pushed away the rubble to gain access to the building.

Wang Yu Jían inspected the walls while touching the broken parts of the building with a distant look on his face. “These were broken from the inside.”

“Yeah, not something would see from an attack from the outside, “ Shu Qiang said eagerly and Yecao Cao rolled his eyes.

“Obviously, and it’s too much scorch marks for a simple explosion. Not to mentioned…” Yecao Cao stroked the floor and lifted the fingers to his nose. “Liejiú.”

Fire spirit was a strong alcoholic liquid used in food, drink, to clean wounds and if you must, a way to easily start a fire as it is flammable. It was quite popular in Tiandi for its many uses and is quite cheap.

“I thought so. I still smell the Liejiú,” Wang Yu muttered.

Liejiú would not be used by any professional to start a fire as it often left that strong, piercing smell even after the fire is put out. Any with at least basic knowledge would know that Liejiú could easily be distinguished and would use other substances with similar effects instead such as Lieyou, fire oil. Though expensive, it rarely leaves any traces.

“It’s the same signs as the other storages. Residue of Liejiú,” Yecao Cao said and Shu Qiang grimaced as he had in earlier buildings suggested that the storage was used to hold Liejiú but they have gone to visit four of the burned storages and all of them had the same signs of arson. This was no accident.

“Who could have done this?” Shu Qiang asked. “The vans.”

“So simple. Why do you always turn your suspicion towards the Vans when this feels more like an inside job,” Yecao Cao huffed and got a glare from the discontent Shu Qiang.

“I am not as sure… Whoever did this could not have set this up easily. To escape with all the goods and then put the place on fire,” The Wang watched the street. “Someone must have seen something.”

“Then why hasn’t anyone said so,” Shu Qiang muttered.

“Fear, maybe they just don’t care. These were all government storages and was not open to the public. Most went to the army and left no impact on the civilians. Why stir up troubles when they have nothing to gain?” Yecao Cao shrugged.

“To be good citizens!” Shu Qiang said with a wronged expression and Yecao Cao chuckled.

“I think you overestimate the Shu family’s popularity. You are rather infamous for so-called secretly raise taxes to gain more wealth or to steal supplies from the army.”

“That was a long time ago!”

“That was two years ago.”

Wang Yu Jían rubbed his temples as he heard the two youths bicker like old ladies. “Quiet, you two. Ling Qiang, you cannot expect the people to respect you when you haven’t earned it back yet. Xiao Cao, do not blame the entirety of the Shu family for the act of a few.”

Yecao Cao grimaced as the Wang called him by the nickname given to him by his family. He still disliked the Shu family though. They were caught and bribed the Emperor so that he would not punish a large portion of the family. The two brothers of the current governor were still executed though as they were the ones that have committed the crimes but that did not make the act of bribery go away.

Whatever his thoughts about the Shu family is, he still needed information. Yecao Cao looked over at the two men. Shu Qiang was out of the question. Wang Yu Jían looked handsome enough but those clothes… That left only him. Yecao Cao looked down upon his soft belly and let out a groan. Let’s hope his charm was enough.

He went over to a female merchant selling sweets. Her eyes darted over his body and lingered on his face that was plastered with a charming and bright smile which she returned unconsciously.

“What is the foo- I mean Zhiji doing?” Shu Qiang muttered but the Wang merely hushed him and waited patiently. Laughter echoed from the stand and the woman was blushing, leaning in to whisper things to Yecao Cao who bought a bunch of her candy before leaving with one last wink. Yecao Cao returned to the two with a mouth filled with candy and satisfied eyes.

“What was that for? Aren’t you full already?” Shu Qiang said with a face filled with disdain.

“What did you find out?” said Wang Yu Jían which left Shu Qiang speechless.

“She had not seen anyone but had heard rumors. Apparently, a group of wandering merchants came into town a couple of days before the attack but according to the merchant they never bought or sold anything. They just wandered around talking to people. Rumor has it that they were seen sneaking around the storages before the attack and were gone afterward,” Yecao Cao said before taking another bite on the candy with a delighted expression.

The Wang turned briskly to Shu Qiang who winced at his piercing gaze,”Why haven’t you informed me about this?”

Shu Qiang cursed Yecao Cao in his heart while answering the Wang with a sullen expression,” We thought that it was of no consequence. Why suspect wandering merchants?”

Yecao Cao let out a loud snort,” But you did suspect the Vans? Wandering merchants are often used as spies. This is common knowledge. They could have been paid off by another city to bring havoc to Dongzhou.”

The Wang pursed his lips as he perused Shu Qiang who avoided his gaze. “They paid the Shu family did they not.”

“Of course they did. The Shu family always takes bribes when it’s given to them,” Yecao Cao replied. “I can only assume that the costs can easily be reimbursed by selling all the things in the storages. Of course, those belong to the government, not the Shu family.”

Shu Qiang was visibly sweating as he had no excuse for the actions of the Shu family and could only curse his father’s greed. Wang Yu Jían sighed as he watched the young man avoiding his gaze in shame. “No matter, right now we need to find the so-called merchants.”

“True, I doubt that they have gotten far. Carrying all those goods in one go would look suspicious. They most likely had a base close to where they store the goods. They then sell the stolen goods in portions to disperse of any suspicion,” Yecao Cao said and looked down the harbor with a pondering glance. “Most likely by the sea… They had at least one ship to their disposal. It would make it easy to move the goods.”

Wang Yu Jían nodded and glanced at Shu Qiang. “Do you know of any caves by the sea or the like? Somewhere they can easily hide a ship.”

Shu Qiang winced before looking eagerly at the Wang who had given him an opening to correct his family’s mistake. “There are some dangerous cliffs to the east of the city. They are called the Deadly Peaks. Few people go there as it has become the grave of many foolish enough to try. If the thieves knew of a way to navigate the cliffs then…”

“No one would notice,” Wang Yu Jían said biting his lip. “But can we navigate them?”

“We don’t have to,” Yecao Cao said casually and devoured the last candy with a satisfied sigh. “We just have to lure them out.”

Wang Yu Jían smirked, “You are as devious as your brother. Yes, we might be able to tempt them to come back to the city but we might need some help to pull it off.”

“I’ll talk to the Vans. Their ship should be able to handle any attacks from the sea,” said Yecao Cao.

“Why would the Vans want to help us?” Shu Qiang snorted.

“Because we will allow them to enter the city without oversight if they do.”

“That should interest them. I will send word to my nephew. He could send an official document with the allowance for the Vans to pass through the city as allies.”

They all returned to the Shu estate to plan for their trap and lay out the fitting bait for this kind of fish.

*****

Di Xúe read the letter from his uncle with a frown. This trap did not sound like something his uncle would come up with. His uncle’s plans come from long traditional military strategies. This scheme was a bit shameless. Like that of a common swindler. Almost like…

“Is everything going well in Dongzhou?” Lin Hai asked while trying not to put his worries on display. Something he utterly failed to do as he was fidgeting as a madman while trying to sneak peeks at the letter.

“Xiao Mei is doing well,” Di Xúe replied bluntly. “Though, I fear Donzhou might be out of sweets after his visit.”

“Then what do they need of us?”

“My approval. They want an official decree that allows the Vanian merchants to travel in Dongzhou without oversight,” Di Xúe explained while he reached for his pen. “Make the court write such a decree and have it send to my office.”

“Of course,” Lin Hai said with a bow. “Though, I am surprised that they aren’t already allowed to do so.”

“So am I. Especially since I made it abundantly clear to the court that I want to garner a good relationship with all foreigners to strengthen our economy.”

“Is it the Shu family again?”

“Yes, and according to Yecao Cao’s letter, it apparently was their fault the attack even happened. They took a bribe from the thieves who posed as wandering merchants which allowed them to enter the city without being documented.”

“Yecao Cao’s letter?”

“Yes, I got two of them. One is from my uncle who avoided mentioning that detail and one from Xiao Mei who couldn’t stop talking about it.”

“Well, I have heard rumors that one of the family, a Shu Qiang was considered to be Xiao Mei’s rival during his time in the Ministry of Ceremonies. So he might harbor ill will towards them.”

Di Xúe snorted when he heard Lin Hai’s words. No wonder the little plum had few good words to tell about the Shu family. Though Di Xúe was more bothered by the absence of this information in his uncle’s report. He will have to take it up with him upon his return.

He had hoped that after the last incident with the Shu family they would settle down but they are still pulling their little scams in the shadows hoping no one will notice their greed. It will be a bother if it continues and that family needs to be put in their place.

“Has the face of the mastermind showed itself yet?” asked Lin Hai.

“No, unfortunately. It seems that they did not take the bait.”

“Then it cannot be your uncle.”

“It still can. If he figured out what I wanted then he might just have avoided it to ensure that he was not considered a suspect.”

“Why are you so adamant of his guilt? He has done nothing but support you since you arose to the throne.”

“That is just it. Why? He is far more popular than I am. If he wanted the throne he could very well take it without me being able to stop him. But he has not. Why?”

“Have you ever considered that not all men want to become an Emperor,” Lin Hai said and Di Xúe snorted. That has not even crossed his mind. All men were ambitious and greedy. The seat of the Emperor was a desire for everyone that laid eyes on it. That he knew from experience. Well, all except the little plum who seemed unusually immune to its charm. But that was because of foolishness. His uncle was not foolish. He could not be compared to the simple mind of the plum.

“Two dragons cannot rest in the same lair,” Di Xúe muttered.