Although the mask could not completely conceal Mo Wudu’s natural presence, once people saw the pig-head mask, they probably would not think too much about him.
Otherwise, if he continued walking around openly like this, who knew how many people’s dream lover he would become? Even in that brief amount of time earlier, he had already attracted quite a few gazes.
It was all the heavens’ fault. He had already been handsome enough before, but now his looks surpassed even the legendary Lord Xu.
Things were much better after putting on the mask.
Mo Wudu decided to gather some information first and see whether there was an opportunity to sneak into the royal palace. When it came to gathering information, a teahouse was usually the best place. Even the protagonist in the novel he had written often visited teahouses to gather intelligence.
So, going to a teahouse could hardly be wrong.
Mo Wudu stopped a passerby and asked for directions. Before long, he found the nearest teahouse.
The moment he entered, a faint fragrance of tea drifted toward him, permeating the entire establishment. The interior was bright, while the decorations were simple yet elegant. A series of square and round tables filled the main hall, each neatly arranged with tea sets and refreshments.
Various paintings and works of calligraphy adorned the walls, lending the teahouse an air of refinement and culture. The place was quite crowded, with people of all ages gathered around small tables, chatting about everything under the sun.
Mo Wudu found an empty seat and sat down, intending to listen for any useful information.
At a nearby table, someone said, “I heard Exquisite Fragrance Pavilion has been invited to perform at the royal palace. I wonder if it’s true.”
Another person replied, “Seems like it. The Great Xia Empire sent representatives here to discuss an alliance with us, so the royal family specifically invited performers from Exquisite Fragrance Pavilion to entertain the Great Xia envoys. Tsk, tsk. The royal family spends every day drowning in wine and pleasure inside the palace. Sooner or later, they’re finished. I don’t even know why Great Xia would bother forming an alliance with them.”
Someone hurriedly warned him, “Shh! You can’t say something like that here. If the wrong person overhears you, you’re finished.”
The man laughed and said, “Hahaha! I’m leaving the Great Flame Empire after today anyway, so what does it matter? I’ve been sick of those usurpers for a long time.”
…
After that, Mo Wudu listened to the man complain endlessly about the Great Flame Empire and soon lost interest.
However, Mo Wudu remembered that in his novel, the Great Flame Empire had indeed existed for only a very short period. In the grand flow of history, describing it as a fleeting existence would not be an exaggeration.
According to the original timeline, by the time Ning Qingxue came to retrieve her jade pendant, signs that the Great Flame Empire would be annexed by Great Xia had already begun to appear. After the protagonist accompanied Ning Qingxue to retrieve the pendant, the Great Flame Empire completely collapsed.
Therefore, Great Xia’s current proposal for an alliance was probably intended to bring the two nations closer together before eventually annexing the Great Flame Empire.
In Mo Wudu’s original setting, the Great Xia Empire was an extremely powerful Empire. Later in the novel, it would unify all six great dynasties and bring the entire region under a single rule.
Returning to the matter at hand, Mo Wudu thought about the information he had just overheard.
Exquisite Fragrance Pavilion had been invited to perform inside the royal palace.
Perhaps he could find a way to sneak in with them.
Mo Wudu left the teahouse and headed toward the so-called Exquisite Fragrance Pavilion to investigate.
First, he needed to make one thing perfectly clear. He was a respectable man. He was only going there to take a look…
Exquisite Fragrance Pavilion was located within the royal capital. Despite its elegant-sounding name, it was actually a brothel.
Of course, brothels did not exclusively deal in women who sold their bodies. There were also many women inside who performed music, dance, and other arts without offering anything beyond their performances.
Still, walking into a place like this while wearing a pig-head mask would attract far too much attention.
Therefore, Mo Wudu decided to sneak inside directly.
And once again, he had to make something perfectly clear. He was a respectable man. Sneaking inside definitely did not mean he intended to secretly watch anything inappropriate.
Besides, how could the affairs of a scholar possibly be called peeping?
It was called broadening one’s knowledge…
With Mo Wudu’s Golden Core Realm cultivation, slipping inside without anyone noticing was extremely easy. Exquisite Fragrance Pavilion was not the royal palace, after all. There were no other Golden Core Realm cultivators stationed here to guard the place.
Mo Wudu spread out his spiritual sense and quickly discovered an empty room.
He decided to hide there first and wait for someone to enter. Then he could…
Hehehe…
No, wait.
He had nearly exposed himself.
With a flash, Mo Wudu appeared directly inside the empty room.
The room looked surprisingly respectable, which was somewhat different from what he had imagined.
Could a room itself even be indecent?
Of course it could. For example, there might be certain strange objects inside, such as whips, candles…
Ahem.
If he continued, he really would expose himself.
Suddenly, footsteps approached from outside, interrupting Mo Wudu’s examination of the room.
He hurriedly hid behind a folding screen.
It was not that Mo Wudu did not want to hide beneath the bed. The bed simply was not very large and had been placed directly against the wall. Anyone entering through the door would have a clear view underneath it, making it impossible to hide there.
Soon, Mo Wudu heard the door open.
The footsteps entered the room and stopped.
Hidden behind the screen, Mo Wudu wondered, ‘Is the good part finally about to begin?’
However, none of the sounds Mo Wudu had imagined came from the room.
Instead, he heard a woman ask, “Miss, are you really going to assassinate Yan Li?”
Mo Wudu froze.
What the hell?
He had only come here to gather information. How had he accidentally stumbled upon something this serious?
There had never been anything in his novel about an assassin trying to kill Yan Li.
And to clarify, Yan Li was the current Emperor of the Great Flame Empire.
Mo Wudu remembered that Yan Li was still alive when Ning Qingxue later came to retrieve the jade pendant. In other words, this assassination attempt would most likely fail.
Another woman replied, “Xiaocui, how many times have I told you not to discuss things like this here? If someone else overhears us, we’ll be in serious trouble.”
Mo Wudu could only admit that this Miss was absolutely right to be cautious.
After all, wasn’t he precisely that “someone else”?
Xiaocui apologized, “I’m sorry, Miss. I’ll be careful next time. But… Miss, if you go to assassinate him, you probably won’t come back alive, right? Can’t you please reconsider?”
The woman answered firmly, “The Great Flame royal family is hopelessly corrupt. They spend every day indulging themselves in wine and pleasure. If this continues, the entire nation will be destroyed in their hands. I cannot allow the legacy our ancestors fought to establish to be ruined by them.”
Xiaocui anxiously asked, “But Miss, what if the assassination fails?”
The woman replied without hesitation, “So what if it fails? Even if I die, thousands upon thousands more like me will eventually stand up.”
Even Mo Wudu, hiding behind the folding screen, felt his blood surge when he heard those words.
Impressive.
Was this what people meant when they said a woman could be every bit as heroic as any man?
The young woman addressed as Miss was named Lin Wanqiu.
Both her father and grandfather had been high-ranking officials of the Great Dragon Empire. After the Great Dragon Empire fell, Yan Li naturally had no intention of continuing to employ loyal supporters of the former Empire.
Instead, he ordered the extermination of the entire families of those who remained loyal to the previous Empire. The women from those families, meanwhile, were sent to the Royal Entertainment Bureau.
Lin Wanqiu, however, was exceptionally beautiful and highly talented in the performing arts. The madam of Exquisite Fragrance Pavilion took a liking to her and managed to get her out of the Royal Entertainment Bureau.
Therefore, Lin Wanqiu’s desire to assassinate Yan Li was not merely about protecting the legacy established by her ancestors.
She also wanted revenge for her murdered family.