Master Zhang coveted Su Qing for her beauty and was growing impatient. He wasn't the least bit concerned that she knew the innkeeper, Pana, or that it might arouse suspicion. His group had done this sort of thing many times before and had ways of dispelling any doubts. Otherwise, they wouldn't have been able to build such a massive following in the area over the years.
Su Qing waited quietly in her room, planning to investigate Master Zhang's place in the dead of night.
However, before Su Qing could set out, someone arrived.
A bamboo tube snaked quietly through the crack under the door. A stream of pale white smoke drifted out from it. Hidden in the darkness, Su Qing squinted at the tube. A vine near her hand silently extended, absorbing all the smoke that had been blown into the room. Afterward, the vine swayed as if drunk, but a moment later, it stiffened again. The leaves at its tip pointed directly at the door, as if glaring.
