Chapter One, Two, and Three: Extraordinary Measures

After bidding farewell to Madame Jiang, Yang Yaozong left the Red Dust Tavern as evening approached. The lanterns along the shops and brothels lining both sides of the street were already lit and hung high. With some time still before his meeting with the covert inspector, Yang Yaozong began to stroll leisurely through the streets.

“Jade Exquisite?” Yang Yaozong muttered softly as he noticed a small shop by that name.

Approaching the shop, he was surprised to see A Yi inside, still disguised as a man. However, she seemed to be in a heated argument with the elderly shopkeeper, who appeared to be the owner.

Yang Yaozong stepped inside and stood aside, pretending to browse the jade pendants. He overheard the shopkeeper say, “You barbarian, though you are young, I won’t argue with you. Take your jade pendant and leave immediately! Don’t cause trouble here! If you persist in making a fuss, I will call the authorities and see how the magistrate rules!”

A Yi retorted angrily, “You! That jade pendant is mine. I only showed it to you, and you want to claim it as your own! How deceitful of you, a mere shopkeeper! Call the authorities if you dare; I am not afraid of you!”

Noticing Yang Yaozong, the old man quickly beckoned to him, “Young master, please come help me settle this matter. This barbarian is truly unreasonable!”

A Yi glanced at Yang Yaozong, her eyes flashing with excitement, but she soon snorted, turned away, and glared coldly at the shopkeeper as if she did not know Yang Yaozong. “You are all people of the Great Zhou. You’re bound to side with your own, not with justice.”

Yang Yaozong found her words amusing and thought to himself that the girl knew quite a lot—siding with kin over justice.

The shopkeeper hurriedly said, “Hmph! This young master is clearly a gentleman! How could he side as you say?” He then pulled Yang Yaozong to the counter where A Yi stood, pointing at the many jade pendants on display. “This barbarian came into my shop and picked out many jade pendants. I treated him with great hospitality and finally recommended this particular pendant. Young master, take a look. This pendant is the treasure of my shop, made from top-grade Hetian jade. Such quality is rare even throughout the Great Zhou. Moreover, it is carved with a vase and two quails, symbolizing peace and smooth fortune. I only asked ten thousand taels of silver for it, but it is worth every bit, even more than that.”

Yang Yaozong noticed the many pendants on the counter between A Yi and the old man. He guessed that A Yi must have come here to select a jade pendant.

Taking the pendant from the shopkeeper, Yang Yaozong examined it carefully and nodded. “Indeed, it is worth more than its price. Very accurate description.”

Hearing Yang Yaozong’s deliberate praise of the pendant’s value, A Yi knew he was subtly referring to her earlier misuse of an idiom in Jining Prefecture. She snorted, turned her back to him, and faced the shopkeeper with a cold demeanor as if they were strangers.

The shopkeeper, seeing that Yang Yaozong was clearly taking his side, felt a surge of satisfaction. He smiled more warmly, his wrinkles folding together as he praised, “Young master, your judgment today will surely convince this little barbarian to be silent and obedient.”

Yang Yaozong maintained his smile as he looked at the old man.

The shopkeeper continued, “Not only does this barbarian find my pendant expensive, he even took out his own pendant to compare with mine.” He pointed to a red jade pendant in front of A Yi. “Look at his pendant. Though it is well-made, it cannot compare to mine.”

A Yi turned in anger to glare at the shopkeeper. “You shopkeeper, you speak nonsense! At your age, you still have such shamelessness!” She pointed at the Hetian jade pendant in Yang Yaozong’s hand. “This pendant is mine. I came here to select a jade pendant.” Then pointing to the red pendant in front of her, she added, “I wanted this one. But you took advantage of me not being a Great Zhou citizen and demanded five thousand taels of silver. I found it outrageous and was about to leave, but you accused me of causing trouble. So I showed you my pendant to prove your pendant isn’t worth five thousand taels. If you’d asked five hundred, I might have bought it without argument. I want you to know it’s not that I can’t afford your pendant. I just think your business practices are dishonest and deceptive! And you even want to take my pendant and claim yours!”

The shopkeeper, seeing Yang Yaozong attentively listening to the young barbarian, quickly interrupted, “You barbarian speak nonsense! Let alone you, how could you barbarians have such fine jade? And the exquisite carvings—how could they be your work? At your young age, you spout such lies shamelessly. Truly ridiculous!”

A Yi furrowed her brows deeply, her sapphire-like eyes narrowing as she fixed a piercing gaze on the old man.

The shopkeeper, seeing her expression, felt an unexplainable fear and involuntarily took two steps back.

Yang Yaozong, observing A Yi’s brief display of authority, grew even more curious about her identity.

He picked up the red circular jade pendant in front of A Yi, examining it. Though its quality couldn’t match the Hetian jade, the material was still fine. It was carved into two carp with intertwined tails and mouths connected. After finishing his inspection, he looked up at A Yi.

A Yi shyly whispered, “A cliff a thousand zhang deep, a pool a thousand chi deep. A bond of hearts, unafraid of death. I originally intended to buy this pendant as a gift for the one with whom I share life and death.”

Yang Yaozong gazed at her, pursing his lips with a slight smile. He thought to himself, so this pendant was meant for him. He waved the Hetian jade pendant in one hand and said, “You both say this jade pendant is yours.” Then waving the circular jade pendant in his other hand, he added, “Yet you both say this pendant isn’t yours. Isn’t that right?”

The shopkeeper quickly nodded and said, “Yes, yes, that Hetian jade pendant is mine.”

Yang Yaozong held the Hetian jade pendant and asked the shopkeeper, “Does this pendant have any identifying marks?”

The shopkeeper pondered briefly and whispered, “Such a precious pendant—how could I bear to mark it?”

Yang Yaozong looked toward A Yi.

She said, “This pendant is my ‘Ana.’ It’s a keepsake my mother gave me before she died. I cherish it deeply and fear damaging it, so I always keep it close and rarely wear it outside. That’s why there are no marks on it, not even a scratch.”

The shopkeeper puffed out his chest and loudly declared, “Hmph, this pendant is the treasure of my shop. I cherish it as well, so naturally it has no scratches.”

Yang Yaozong brought the Hetian jade pendant close to his nose and sniffed carefully. The scent matched the faint yet rich grassy fragrance on A Yi herself.

The shopkeeper didn’t understand why Yang Yaozong behaved this way, but A Yi understood his intent. She blushed deeply, her heart pounding wildly.

Perhaps because A Yi was Yang Yaozong’s friend, he had assumed from the start that she wouldn’t lie. Even if she did, he intended to side with kin over justice. Compared to the old man, it was clear that A Yi was the closer friend. At this moment, Yang Yaozong was certain that the Hetian jade pendant was a personal item of A Yi’s, and that the old man, seeing its value, wanted to bully A Yi as a barbarian and seize the pendant.

Yang Yaozong had made up his mind, but lacking clear evidence against such a greedy man, he could only resort to drastic measures.

“You both claim this Hetian jade pendant is yours. Tell me, if I were to damage it, whose heart would ache more?” Without waiting for their response, Yang Yaozong tossed the pendant to the ground, drew a dagger from his calf, and swung it down swiftly and fiercely at the jade.

A Yi screamed at the top of her lungs, “No!” She rushed forward in two strides and pushed Yang Yaozong aside. Unfortunately, the pendant was already shattered into pieces by his strike.

Her face drained of color, A Yi knelt on the ground, tears streaming from her eyes, whispering, “Ana… Ana…” She took out a handkerchief and carefully wrapped all the fragments, not looking at the fallen Yang Yaozong. Then she stood, cast an angry glare at the shopkeeper, and, bypassing Yang Yaozong, walked out of the shop.

The shopkeeper, intimidated by A Yi’s glare, shrank back several steps. Seeing the young barbarian already gone and Yang Yaozong rising to dust off his clothes, he felt suffocated with anger. He cursed inwardly, thinking Yang Yaozong appeared to be a shrewd man and had expected him to help seize the barbarian’s pendant on behalf of the Great Zhou. Instead, he turned out to be a fool, destroying such a precious pendant. The more he looked at Yang Yaozong, the angrier he grew. Pointing at him, he spat, “You! Get out of here at once! Don’t let me see you again!”