“You’re not Wan’er anymore—Wan’er could never have said what you just did.”
Yang Wan looked at Yang Lun, catching a flash of desolation in his eyes.
She quickly lowered her head, almost unable to bear looking at him, choosing not to respond. Instead, she turned to the gate and called out loudly, “Don’t take the front alley—go through the back of Inner Street to Chang’he Lane, then straight to the Clear Wave Inn.”
By then, the Embroidered Uniform Guard had reached the alley entrance. Yang Lun turned to look, then said to Yang Wan, “Go first, I’ll hold them off there.”
“Alright.”
Yang Wan helped Zhou Muyi up, “If you can’t hold them off, let it be. Keeping yourself safe is the way to help Deng Ying.”
Yang Lun said, “Enough, still as long-winded as ever.”
With that, he turned and ran toward the alley entrance.
Yang Wan led Zhou Muyi and the others back through East Public Street. The Clear Wave Inn’s manager hurriedly opened the back courtyard door to let them in.
Zhou Muyi stumbled into the back courtyard and immediately saw Qin Wende sitting at a table eating noodles. Zhou pointed at Yang Wan and angrily berated her: “Shameless woman, deceiving us…”
Qin Wende put down his chopsticks and slapped him, “Who are you cursing!”
Yang Wan glanced down at Zhou Muyi, who had been knocked to the ground by Qin Wende and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, “Enough, don’t hit him. If he’s hurt, I have nothing here to treat him with.”
Qin Wende said, “Madam, why did you have us come here? The Superintendent is in trouble at the palace, and people from both the inner and outer depots are in chaos.”
Yang Wan secretly clenched her fingers, “Seal the Clear Wave Inn.”
“What?”
Qin Wende looked around in disbelief, “Seal it?”
“Yes. Put up the Eastern Depot’s seals.”
Zhou Muyi said, “You brought us here just to hand us over to the Eastern Depot?”
Yang Wan turned around, “Can you shut up! If I wanted to hand you over to the Eastern Depot, why would I bring you to the Clear Wave Inn? I could have had the depot guards lock you all up and take you away right in front of Minister Bai’s gate!”
A young student pulled at Zhou Muyi’s sleeve, “Master Zhou, please stop talking…”
Zhou Muyi finally fell silent. Only then did Yang Wan release her hands from her waist and address the students in the hall: “I don’t usually speak like this. I’m agitated and anxious now, so please bear with me. When this is over and you’re all on your bright paths forward, I’ll properly apologize to you.”
After speaking, she took a breath and looked up at Qin Wende, “The Northern Command will come sooner or later. No matter what, we need to protect these students for at least today and tomorrow.”
Qin Wende cursed, “Why should we! They’ve humiliated the Superintendent so badly, killing them wouldn’t be enough to quell my anger.”
“Qin Wende!”
Yang Wan cut him off, “This is your Superintendent’s wish.”
“I know, damn it!”
Qin Wende wiped his face and rushed up to Zhou Muyi and the others, pointing and cursing, “When our Superintendent returns, you’d better kowtow at his gate, or I’ll push your heads into the mud one by one.”
He picked up the knife from the table and said to those around him, “Come on, let’s go seal the inn!”
Outside, dusk was falling.
Both the front and back doors of the Clear Wave Inn were locked and sealed with the depot’s notices.
The students were utterly exhausted, hungry, and cold, no longer able to maintain their spirits, sitting and lying around the study hall.
Zhou Muyi and several students who had been caned now had high fevers, huddled in corners shivering.
Yang Wan was cooking noodles in the inner courtyard when the manager brought out medicine and squatted down to tend the fire for her.
Yang Wan watched the boiling noodle soup and asked the manager, “Have they quieted down?”
The manager sighed, “They’re all tired and hungry, too exhausted to make trouble.”
Yang Wan nodded and took a deep breath, “Give me the bowls.”
The manager handed her the porcelain bowls and added, “The Northern Command is searching everywhere. Owner, how long can you hide these students?”
Yang Wan ladled noodles, “We must keep them safe for at least today and tomorrow.”
“And after tomorrow?”
Yang Wan pressed her lips together, “After tomorrow, if His Majesty issues no clear edict about these students, then I’ve lost.”
“Owner…”
Yang Wan lowered her head, “There’s something I need to give you.”
“Please tell me.”
Yang Wan put down the chopsticks and took out her notebook from her clothes, handing it to the manager. The manager took it and flipped through it, asking in confusion, “This is…”
Yang Wan said, “It doesn’t matter if you can’t understand the writing. I want you to keep it safe for me. If anything happens to me, take it and leave the capital. You can take all the gold and silver from the Clear Wave Inn—I only ask that you preserve this notebook.”
The manager said, “Owner, it pains us to hear you talk like this.”
Yang Wan smiled slightly, “This is just my worst-case preparation. I haven’t finished writing everything in it, and I want to continue writing. Besides, I might not lose. Don’t think too much about it—just keep it safe for now.”
“Yes.”
Yang Wan smiled and nodded, bending down to continue preparing the noodles.
The evening wind after sunset swept through the inner courtyard, scattering sparks from the stove. Yang Wan picked up the noodle bowls and walked toward the main hall.