Futile Devices Scans

The heart beneath his palm was beating rapidly, thudding so hard that he could feel it against his own pulse. That violent rhythm did not lie—this “hostage” was far less composed than he appeared.

The stranger who had fallen from the roof did not respond, already calculating rapidly how to escape. In the front courtyard, the old servant answered in a trembling voice and hurried to open the gate. From the rear courtyard, the two could clearly hear the officers questioning him: “The Imperial City Guard is investigating a case. Who is the master of this household? How many people live here? Did you see any suspicious person enter just now?”

The old servant hastily replied, “Officer, my master holds the post of Court Attendant of the Western Secretariat and is the Second Young Master of the Wei family of the Duke Who Stabilizes the Nation’s household. He is taking his leave at home today. The gates have remained shut for the past half day. No one has come to visit, and none of the household servants have gone out.”

The Imperial City Guard officer clearly had not expected someone of such standing to be living in this secluded little courtyard. He paused before asking, “Would that be Lord Wei Fu?”

The old servant replied, “Indeed.”

The guard’s tone and manner immediately softened. “We pursued a wanted criminal to this area but do not know which household he entered. We are searching from house to house. We ask Lord Wei to come forward so that we may make some routine inquiries.”

The young man in black listened intently to the sounds outside while taking the opportunity to look Wei Fu up and down. Clearly, he had not expected that a random grab would net him such a large fish. His gaze resembled that of someone wandering through a marketplace, pondering whether his catch would be better stewed or braised.

Wei Fu, entirely lacking the awareness expected of a hostage, leaned closer and whispered, “This is bad. Originally, I could have claimed you were my friend, but that one sentence has blocked off that route. Now the place outside is full of Imperial City Guard officers. What do we do? Let me make one thing clear first: if they see you climbing out of my house, I’m going to be implicated.”

They were standing far too close. Wei Fu was practically speaking against his ear, his cool breath carrying a faint bitter scent as it brushed the hair at his temple. It was not unpleasant, but the young man was unaccustomed to such closeness and instinctively leaned back, putting a little distance between them.

“I could still take you hostage, Young Master Wei.” The young man in black lowered his voice threateningly. “What if I seize you and force them to let me leave?”

“Mm, that depends on what sort of case you’re involved in.” Wei Fu actually considered the matter seriously for a while before replying without the slightest concern, “If it’s a major crime, that definitely won’t work. Someone as insignificant as me could hardly outweigh a wanted criminal of the imperial court. But if the crime is too minor, that won’t do either. If you kidnapped me over three radishes and two heads of garlic, I’d lose all face if word got out.”

The young man in black gave him a strange look. Wei Fu caught it immediately. “What?”

How could someone whose heart was practically leaping out of his throat still force himself to stay calm and casually crack jokes? Were all officials in Xiling this good at putting on an act?

“Nothing.” While the two of them had been talking about everything under the sun, the approaching footsteps had drawn steadily closer to the rear courtyard. The young man in black clicked his tongue softly. “Then what brilliant plan does Young Master Wei have?”

“Hide first. It’s too late to run now.” Wei Fu glanced toward the open bookcase inside the room. “I’ll go deal with the Imperial City Guard out front.”

There was no time left to weigh his options. The young man in black turned his wrist and withdrew the dagger from Wei Fu’s neck, braced one hand against the windowsill, and slipped lightly into the room. Wei Fu went over and closed the bookcase doors for him, then casually smoothed his wrinkled collar and front lapels before pushing open the front door of the study and stepping out first, feigning confusion. “What is all this commotion outside? What happened?”

The old servant, Wei Rong, hurried over and explained quietly beside him. The courtyard was small, and within the span of a few sentences, Wei Fu had already reached the front yard. The Imperial City Guard officer in charge saw a tall, elegant young man approaching, slender and graceful as a jade tree, and immediately knew this must be the master of the residence. He hurried forward to greet him respectfully. “This lowly official is Chen Duanwen, Commandant of the Imperial City Guard. We are currently pursuing an important fugitive and had no intention of disturbing Lord Wei. Please forgive our intrusion.”

Wei Fu smiled. “Not at all. The Imperial City Guard patrols the city and guards against thieves. This is Commandant Chen’s duty, so how could it be called an intrusion? This residence was personally purchased by my father and mother twenty years ago. The two of them are currently away traveling and asked me to come by from time to time to look after the place. If you wish to enter and conduct a search, please do as you see fit. I only ask that your men be a little careful, as the things in this house are quite old.”

Since Wei Fu was willing to cooperate, Chen Duanwen naturally agreed readily to such a minor request and instructed his men to proceed with care, while inwardly letting out a sigh of relief.

Although Wei Fu ranked only one grade above him, in reality, the gulf between their statuses was enormous. One came from an illustrious family and entered the palace more frequently than he returned home; the other had been born into a hereditary military household and was someone the emperor barely even knew existed. Unless Chen Duanwen felt his official career had been progressing far too smoothly, he would never be foolish enough to offend Wei Fu.

Strictly speaking, the legitimate Eldest Young Master of the Wei family was Wei Xiu, the eldest grandson who would one day inherit the title. Yet in Fengdu, whenever anyone mentioned “a young master of the Wei family of the Duke Who Stabilizes the Nation,” the first person who usually came to mind was the Second Young Master, Wei Fu.

Young Master Wei could be considered something of a legendary figure. His father, Wei Huaijun, was the second son of Wei Ying, the Duke Who Stabilizes the Nation. From an early age, he had set himself an extraordinary ambition—to become a great wandering hero who repaid kindness and vengeance as he pleased, roaming freely beneath Heaven with a sword in hand and a horse beneath him.

The Duke Who Stabilizes the Nation’s household was an illustrious noble clan. It had produced civil officials, military generals, empresses and consorts, and even men who had entered religious life—but never a wastrel. When the Duke heard this dreadful news, he was so furious that he nearly grabbed a weapon and broke his unfilial son’s legs. Wei Huaijun, however, felt deeply wronged. In his opinion, being a “great hero” was a perfectly respectable and proper profession, entirely different from being a “prodigal son.” His family simply failed to understand his ambitions. Unable to make the Duke understand, he packed his belongings one night and ran away from home, leaving behind a letter declaring that he intended to travel all the way to Dongyu and apprentice himself to the renowned martial sect, Linghua Sect.

Wei Ying could do nothing about him and had no choice but to pretend he had never had such a son. Yet several years later, Wei Huaijun suddenly returned to Fengdu without warning. By then, he already had a wife and child beside him—his wife was a strikingly beautiful but mysterious woman from the jianghu, while his son was a little mute boy who could not speak.

The Wei couple remained in Fengdu with the child for some time, but for reasons unknown, they eventually sent him back to the Duke Who Stabilizes the Nation’s household while the two of them once again disappeared into the distance without a trace.

Their whereabouts remained a mystery for years. Even the Duke’s household had no clear idea what they were doing. The child, however, grew up intelligent and spirited, exceptional in both appearance and ability, and possessed a memory so remarkable that he never forgot anything he had seen. Aside from his inability to speak, there was nothing else to fault. Wei Ying thought Wei Fu considerably more sensible than his mule-headed father and carefully raised the boy to adulthood. He expected no great accomplishments from him. With the wealth and status of the Duke Who Stabilizes the Nation behind him, even if Wei Fu remained mute, he could still spend his entire life as an idle young gentleman of wealth and privilege.

Unexpectedly, when Wei Fu turned fifteen, something seemed to have affected him for reasons no one understood, and he abruptly regained the ability to speak. After practicing for several months, he soon became indistinguishable from an ordinary person. This regrettably flawed piece, after only a little polishing, shed its blemish and became a perfectly refined and gentle young nobleman.

Yet even that was not the entirety of his legendary life. During the reign of the late Emperor Jinyuan, an epidemic swept through the palace, and infants died one after another. With no other recourse, Emperor Jinyuan sent several young princes to be raised in the households of trusted ministers. The Fourth Prince, Mu Heng, was entrusted to the Duke Who Stabilizes the Nation’s household. Wei Fu happened to be the same age as the Fourth Prince, so the two naturally became close playmates. Their friendship deepened with each passing day, and Wei Fu earned Mu Heng’s profound trust.

Three years ago, Mu Heng succeeded to the throne. Immediately after his accession, he transferred Wei Fu—who had been quietly compiling books in the Lantai—into the central administration and appointed him Court Attendant of the Western Secretariat, responsible for drafting imperial edicts, receiving memorials, and conveying imperial proclamations and messages. The position of Court Attendant was fifth rank, yet it was an exceptionally prestigious and influential office at the emperor’s side. On a smaller scale, it meant attending directly before the throne and having immediate access to the sovereign; on a larger scale, it involved participating in major affairs of state and overseeing important government business. In other words, Mu Heng was grooming him to become a future chancellor.

Compared with a life of smooth sailing, one filled with twists, turns, and a touch of mystery always gave people far more to talk about. Chen Duanwen had long heard of Wei Fu’s reputation. Now that he was meeting him face-to-face for the first time, he could not help feeling curious and stole occasional glances at him while standing nearby. Wei Fu failed to notice and casually asked, as though it had only just occurred to him, “What sort of major case has mobilized the Imperial City Guard? Searching all over the city like this—could it be some notorious bandit?”

“It isn’t really a major case. We simply happened to stumble across it.” Chen Duanwen explained, “Earlier, while this lowly official was leading a patrol through the streets, we suddenly heard someone calling for help inside Tongshi Pharmacy. When we went in to investigate, we found the shopkeeper, Xu Shifu, lying on the ground with a stab wound in his back. He was already dead.”

“And you happened to catch the murderer at the scene?”

“Well… he may not necessarily be the murderer.” Chen Duanwen scratched his head, sounding somewhat uncertain. “This lowly official brought men into the pharmacy to inspect the body. One of my men suddenly got a stomachache and asked to use their privy. But as soon as he reached the rear courtyard, he ran into a suspicious figure. He shouted, and when that person saw the situation turning against him, he climbed over the wall and fled. We pursued him all the way here, but lost sight of him in this alley. That’s why we’ve been searching from house to house. Even if that person isn’t the murderer, he certainly isn’t innocent… Did this lowly official say something wrong?”

“Ah, no.” Wei Fu reined in the expression that had become rather too obvious and smiled faintly. “I simply think that foolish thief is remarkably unlucky.”

Chen Duanwen found the remark inexplicable but could hardly show it on his face, so he could only laugh awkwardly. Fortunately, several Imperial City Guard officers returned to the front courtyard a short while later after finishing their search. All reported finding nothing unusual—except for one recent recruit, who spoke with blunt, guileless directness. “This subordinate found several broken roof tiles on the ground in the rear courtyard just now, and there’s a section missing from the roof. May I ask, my lord, whether you happened to see how they fell?”

Wei Fu did not answer immediately. Instead, he first cast Chen Duanwen a smiling glance. Every hair on Chen Duanwen’s body practically stood three feet on end. He wanted nothing more than to roll up his sleeves, charge over, and swat this clueless greenhorn away.

“Th-this… Lord Wei…”

Wei Fu raised a hand to indicate that it was no trouble and answered mildly, “There are often stray cats wandering around the nearby alleys. The tiles must have been knocked loose when one of them slipped on the roof. This house has stood empty for quite some time, and the roof hasn’t been renovated in years. After all that exposure to wind and sun, it’s inevitable that some places have rotted and loosened. I’m afraid the state of the place has made a poor impression on all of you.”

A powerful court official who could get practically anything he wanted had no reason whatsoever to harbor a completely unrelated suspect. The young guard silently saluted and returned to formation. Chen Duanwen had endured quite enough nerve-racking questioning and wanted only to bring this unfortunate assignment to an end. Seeing that no one else had anything to report, he cupped his hands toward Wei Fu. “Lord Wei, we have disturbed you greatly today. Please forgive us. This lowly official will take his leave.”

“You are too courteous, Commandant Chen.” Wei Fu inclined himself slightly in return before turning to instruct, “Uncle Wei, see Commandant Chen out for me.”

Wei Rong hurried forward to escort the Imperial City Guard officers from the residence. Wei Fu strolled back to the study in the rear courtyard. Seeing that the room remained reasonably tidy and the furnishings were still in their proper places, he casually closed the door and called toward the tightly shut bookcase: “The Imperial City Guard has left. You can come out now.”

The room was completely silent. The bookcase doors remained closed, and no one answered.

Wei Fu suddenly froze. He immediately strode over and pulled the bookcase open, only to find it completely empty. There was no one inside.

He released his grip in a daze, looked left and right, then turned in a circle on the spot like a little dog that had somehow lost its tail. Only then did he finally realize that the stranger had already left. Somewhat dejected, he stared at the thin layer of dust inside the bookcase, his perpetually upturned, smiling lips unconsciously pressing into a flat line.

He already knows I fled from the scene of a murder, and he’s still this unwary?

The young man in black leapt down from the shadows among the rafters and landed silently behind him. Reaching out, he lightly tapped Wei Fu on the shoulder.

Wei Fu whipped around in alarm. The young man in black calmly leaned backward, effortlessly avoiding the sweep of Wei Fu’s flying hair, and happily admired the terrified expression on his face—as though all three souls and seven spirits had ascended straight out of his body. “So who was it that slipped?”

Wei Fu: “……”

“You—honestly, you… I really…” He clutched his violently pounding heart and drew a deep breath. The young man in black, entirely unhurried, raised one finger to his lips. “Shh. Careful, or you’ll call them back.”

Wei Fu had nearly been frightened to death by him. Pressing a hand against his chest, he took a long time to recover before his heart finally descended from his throat and settled back into his chest. He let out a long breath and muttered resentfully: “I should have shouted for help and let the Imperial City Guard take you away.”

“Then why didn’t you?”

The young man in black had not missed the instant Wei Fu turned around. Shock and delight had burst simultaneously through his eyes like fireworks, beautiful enough to belong in a painting. He stepped closer and asked with amused curiosity: “You know me. Have we met before?”