Rao Mingyue quietly slipped out of Yuzhu Alley and arrived on the main street of Changping Square.
As a recently rising opera performer, many people had seen Rao Mingyue.
Therefore, before heading out to the streets, Rao Mingyue deliberately changed his appearance to ensure no one could recognize him.
As soon as he stepped onto the main street, Rao Mingyue sensed the unusual atmosphere.
Many members of the Four Seas Gang were openly inspecting passersby, especially questioning middle-aged and older men in great detail.
Rao Mingyue felt a thud in his heart but kept a calm facade, pretending nothing was amiss as he walked toward the edge of the square.
"What’s your business?"
"Just going out to buy something."
"Take off your hat for a look."
Rao Mingyue obediently took off his hat.
The gang member glanced at him and saw a handsome young man, with no resemblance whatsoever to the middle-aged man in the portrait, so he waved his hand.
"Go on, go on."
"Thank you, sir!" Rao Mingyue respectfully called, then quickened his pace and hurried off the main street.
Once outside Changping Square, Rao Mingyue quickly hired a donkey cart.
"To the East Market!"
Besides more than a hundred various squares and markets, Yan Capital City also has two separate major markets, located at the east and west ends of the city, known as the East and West Markets.
The place is lined with shops selling all sorts of commodities, and because of the frequent comings and goings, it’s hard for anyone to notice you.
The medicine bought for Mo Xu previously was purchased from the East Market.
The cart driver acknowledged the instruction and headed to the East Market.
Traveling from Changping Square to the East Market required passing through four or five other squares. By the time they reached the East Market’s entrance, the sun had just risen, marking the start of a bustling day.
Rao Mingyue paid for the ride, instructed the driver to wait there, and then entered the East Market.
He first headed to a familiar pharmacy and handed a list to the assistant.
The list was written by Mo Xu, with mostly common medicines, and only a few were urgently needed by Mo Xu.
This was to avoid drawing attention.
After all, Mo Xu couldn’t guarantee that none of these pharmacies had connections with the Four Seas Gang. If they did, their purchases could easily expose their whereabouts.
Fortunately, the expected situation didn’t occur, and Rao Mingyue successfully obtained the required medicines before happily returning to the cart.
"Let’s go, back to Changping Square!"
"Alright, hold on tight."
Despite being a donkey cart, it wasn’t slow at all and quickly reached the entrance of Changping Square.
However, Rao Mingyue didn’t notice that once the cart stopped, the driver exchanged a look with several Four Seas Gang members at the entrance.
These members understood the signal immediately; one went to report back, while a few others, disguised as pedestrians, discreetly surrounded the cart.
Rao Mingyue was completely unaware of this.
He disembarked the cart joyfully, paid the fare, gave an extra tip, and then walked toward Changping Square.
The gang members disguised as pedestrians quickly followed, keeping their distance behind him.
At the same time, in a teahouse not far from the square gate, a young man leaned near the window, his gaze quickly locking onto Rao Mingyue.
"Have you confirmed his identity?"
"Yes, Hall Master. We’ve verified this person is named Rao Mingyue, an opera performer from Yuzhu Alley, stage name Yue, and is part of the Four Happiness Opera Troupe."
"An opera performer?" The man frowned. "Have we not checked these people before?"
"Well... we only did a cursory check back then, as most of the customers to Yuzhu Alley are high officials and nobles. We dared not disturb them overly."
"Hmph!" The man coldly snorted, "You’re all useless. If I hadn’t instructed you to mobilize the drivers around to see if anyone slipped away to buy suspicious items, you might still not have found this Rao Mingyue."
"Yes, Hall Master, you are wise!"
The man waved his hand, stopping his subordinate from continuing to flatter him, then stared at Rao Mingyue’s back, saying softly.
"Since when have theatricals become so loyal? To risk sheltering a criminal, is someone directing them from behind?"
"This... is not yet known."
"Don’t alert the enemy yet. Deploy people to follow him back, then surround his residence. Don’t let that kid escape again, or my aunt won’t forgive you."
"Understood!"
Their hearts skipped a beat as they bowed in agreement.
This man is Sheng Lianhua’s nephew, Bai Zonglin.
Despite Sheng Lianhua being the vice gang leader of the Four Seas Gang and the master of Rouge Sea, she has no children, and thus treats Bai Zonglin like her own son, granting his every request.
Bai Zonglin indeed lives up to expectations. After joining the Four Seas Gang, he quickly rose to become a Hall Master. He is astute, with some strategic insight, and has a good talent in martial arts, currently a Fourth Realm Martial Artist, almost entering the Half-Step Fifth Realm.
For this, Sheng Lianhua has been willing to make significant efforts, even offering benefits to capture Mo Xu, all in hopes of establishing a connection with the Beyond the World sect, allowing Bai Zonglin to join them.
Now, everything is in place, and Bai Zonglin followed down the stairs toward Yuzhu Alley.
Bai Zonglin is indeed adept at handling his subordinates. Although ordering them to gather at Yuzhu Alley, on the surface, nothing seemed amiss.
Only a few observant individuals could detect a hint of anomaly.
For instance, Zhao Ya.
At this moment, he’s standing on the rooftop of a brothel.
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