The Snow Emperor and the Little Plum

Chapter 12

Yecao Cao stretched his sore limps with a yawn that made his toes curl. He has no idea how long he has waited on this damn ship for the trap to spring. Though it was a magnificent ship, the quarters were just as uncomfortable as all the other ships. The crew had made it quite a spectacle to watch Yecao Cao sleeping-while-standing technique that came into good use as he wanted to avoid the nasty beds in this ship.

Maybe he has become too spoiled by the nice bed in the Palace of Heavenly Grace. He missed those fine silken cloths and the nice tea. Turns out that Dongzhou's tea was mediocre at best.

"Young Zhiji, I come with offerings," Shue said as he entered into Yecao Cao's view with plenty of fruits. Yecao Cao was not shy and took shamelessly several of them to put in his mouth. Shue chuckled at the sight. "I think you have become our most valued customer."

"If you still have to think about it then I haven't eaten enough," Yecao Cao said and savored the sweet taste of the fruit. "Has anything happened in the city?"

"My... colleagues say they have spotted several wandering merchants entering the town but no obvious incidents can be reported," Shue said and looked out over the colorful city with a grim expression.

"Afraid that nothing will happen? It would make it hard for you to get that degree."

"Very astute of you, Zhiji. Yes, that is my fear."

"I have laid out several very profitable baits. One of them will most likely be too tempting to avoid."

Shue suddenly frowned and peered at Yecao Cao. "That is curious. The Wang only mentioned the newly arrived supplies as bait. Are there others?"

"I might have laid out some of my own baits to lure the thieves out," Yecao Cao admitted.

"Something the Wang doesn't know?"

"No, I doubt that he would have agreed."

"Will this strike back at us?"

"Not if you deny knowing about it."

"Knowing about what?"

Yecao Cao laughed at Shue's innocent face but he understood his reluctance to be a part of this. It was a gamble Yecao Cao did not like to take but he wanted this to work. Yecao Cao might be lazy but he has never failed a job. Even if this one was a tad bigger than his previous ones.

"Well, in the best case scenario they will go after the Wang's bait. I'm just not as sure about the thieves being willing to take that risk for mere supplies. Not so soon after their first heist. Putting something more prized in front of them on the other hand..."

"But the more value, the higher the risk."

"Sure, I'm only taking a gamble on their courage being high after a successful heist. Arrogance is common after such a feat and ambition is hard to control." Yecao Cao smiled at Shue. "Though I guess it all comes down to how clever their leader is. We still have no information about these thieves. They seem organized but..."

"They might still just be a common rabble who had a struck of fortune," said Shue.

"Exactly."

"Let's pray for the success of-"

A deafening explosion at the far end of the city echoed through the streets all the way down to the harbor. Yecao Cao's eyes narrowed as he watched the city slowly rising into chaos. The explosion had been far off from the harbor...

Shue's eyes turned to the sea but frowned as he saw no mist like last time.

"You are looking in the wrong direction," Yecao Cao said and pointed at the harbor which was filled with mist. It did not take long before the ship was filled with thick fog making it hard to even see the person beside you.