Chapter 83: Back to Business

The warning formation stayed quiet for four days.

Lin Yuan considered that a success.

After the trouble surrounding the buried structure, Blackstone had settled into something close to normal. Caravans came and went along the trade road, the Travelers’ Market opened every morning, and the tavern was busy enough that Su Mei had started preparing ingredients before sunrise.

Even the Association investigators had become part of the scenery.

One visited the restricted site each morning, while the other usually returned later in the day to record measurements. Their equipment no longer attracted much attention. Most travelers had learned that following an investigator around Blackstone produced little more than dust and disappointment.

Lin Yuan preferred it that way.

That morning, he stood behind the counter checking Su Mei’s ledger while breakfast customers occupied half the dining room.

Room income remained steady. Food and wine were doing better than before the excavation had been discovered, partly because travelers were stopping after hearing rumors about Blackstone.

Those rumors had caused plenty of trouble, but they had also been surprisingly good for business.

Lin Yuan wasn’t sure how he felt about that.

Su Mei came downstairs and stopped beside the counter.

"Three rooms left for tonight. The other five are already reserved."

Lin Yuan looked up.

"Already?"

"One caravan booked four yesterday. A merchant took another this morning."

It wasn’t even noon.

The tavern now had eight usable guest rooms. When the extension had first been completed, that number had seemed generous. Lately, it felt smaller every week.

Lin Yuan closed the ledger.

He wasn’t ready for another construction project.

Master Han had barely been gone long enough for him to forget how expensive construction could become.

Before he could dwell on the matter, the tavern door opened.

Qiao Ren entered carrying a small cloth bag under one arm. He crossed the dining room without ordering anything and placed it on the counter.

Lin Yuan stared at the bag.

"What is that?"

"Your problem."

"That doesn’t answer the question."

Qiao Ren opened it.

Inside lay several pieces of cheap wooden jewelry, three folded paper charms, and something resembling an old bronze coin.

Lin Yuan picked up one of the wooden pieces.

There was nothing unusual about it. No spiritual fluctuation, no signs of age, and certainly nothing connecting it to the buried structure. Someone had scratched a crooked pattern across its surface in an obvious attempt to make it look ancient.

"How much?"

"Two spirit stones each."

Lin Yuan put it back.

"That’s ambitious."

"He sold one."

That made Lin Yuan look up.

Qiao Ren smiled.

"To a man who’s spent the last three days asking everyone whether the buried city has opened yet."

"There is no buried city."

"You know that."

"The Association doesn’t even know what the structure is."

Qiao Ren tied the bag shut.

"That has never stopped anyone from improving a story."

Lin Yuan had no answer to that.

Qiao Ren carried the bag away before he could decide whether the objects deserved to be returned to the merchant or thrown into a fire.

The rest of the morning passed without anything more serious than two customers arguing over the last portion of roasted meat.

By afternoon, one of the Association investigators arrived for tea.

Lin Yuan had stopped asking about every measurement. The readings had remained stable, with no new disturbances or signs of movement beneath the ground.

Today, however, the investigator brought actual news.

"Zhao Wei sent word from Green River City."

Lin Yuan paused while pouring tea.

"About the excavation?"

"Partly."

The investigator accepted his cup.

"The Association reviewed the first reports. The site will remain restricted, but there’s no reason to keep people stationed here continuously while the readings stay stable."

Lin Yuan glanced through the window toward the distant marker.

"There are only two of you left."

"Not for much longer. One of us will remain for several more days. After that, someone will return periodically unless the readings change."

That made sense. The Association couldn’t keep cultivators in Blackstone indefinitely because some buried stonework had been uncovered.

Still, their presence had discouraged more than curious travelers.

"The restricted marker stays?"

"Of course."

"And if someone interferes with the site?"

"Record when it happened and send word to Green River City. If the formation detects someone crossing the line, note that too."

Lin Yuan looked at him.

"That sounds slower than having two investigators standing beside it."

"It is."

At least the man was honest.

The investigator drank some tea before continuing.

"The Association is restricting the excavation, Owner Lin. It isn’t taking over responsibility for the rest of your territory."

Lin Yuan understood the distinction.

He simply didn’t have to like it.

Fortunately, he’d already spent thirty-eight spirit stones preparing for this possibility.

The warning formation couldn’t stop intruders by itself, but it could tell him when someone crossed a monitored boundary.

For now, that would have to be enough.

The investigator left before sunset.

Lin Yuan returned to the kitchen as the evening customers began arriving.

Dinner started earlier than usual. Two small caravans reached Blackstone within an hour of each other, and most of their cultivators chose to eat before unloading supplies.

Su Mei handled the tables while Xiao Lan carried dishes between the kitchen and dining room, sometimes with bowls balanced along both arms.

Lin Yuan was busy at the stove when a group of five caught his attention.

Four men and one woman sat near the wall.

Nothing about their clothing stood out. Their robes were practical rather than expensive, and the dust on their boots looked genuine. They had arrived alongside the second caravan, although they didn’t appear to belong to it.

Lin Yuan treated them like any other customers.

Food came first.

The oldest-looking man waited until Lin Yuan placed a jug of water on the table before speaking.

"We heard the Association found something north of here."

"Buried stonework," Lin Yuan replied.

"That all?"

"That’s what they confirmed."

The man nodded and poured himself some water.

He didn’t look disappointed.

Most treasure hunters did.

Another man broke apart a steamed bun.

"People say there were Qi disturbances."

"There were."

"Strong?"

"Strong enough for the Association to investigate."

That seemed to satisfy him.

The woman sitting nearest the wall had barely touched her food. Her attention shifted toward the tavern entrance.

"Those stone posts outside belong to the Association too?"

"No. They’re mine."

"For the boundary?"

"Yes."

She gave a small nod.

Lin Yuan collected the empty serving tray and returned to the kitchen.

Travelers asked about the excavation almost every day. This group, however, seemed more interested in the Association’s activities and Blackstone’s defenses than whatever treasure might be buried underground.

He kept cooking.

There wasn’t much else to do with a few unusual questions.

An hour later, Qiao Ren entered for dinner.

He ordered noodles, noticed the five travelers near the wall, and looked away almost immediately.

Lin Yuan caught the movement.

Qiao Ren finished eating before approaching the counter.

"Busy night."

"Very."

He placed his payment on the counter and adjusted his sleeve.

"One of those five came to my shop before dinner."

Lin Yuan glanced toward the table.

"Did he buy anything?"

"No. Mostly asked questions."

"About what?"

"Whether merchants here keep stock overnight. How often caravans stay in Blackstone. Whether the market closes completely after dark."

Qiao Ren paused.

"And whether anyone watches the road."

Lin Yuan set down the cloth he’d been using to wipe the counter.

"Did he say why he wanted to know?"

"No."

"Anything about the excavation?"

"Not once."

Now that was interesting.

A merchant considering business in Blackstone might ask about storage and caravan traffic. But wanting to know who watched the road at night was a different matter.

"What did you tell him?"

"Very little."

"Good."

Qiao Ren followed his gaze toward the five travelers.

"You expecting trouble?"

"No."

Lin Yuan hoped the answer would remain true.

Qiao Ren left a few minutes later.

The five travelers stayed until most of the dinner crowd had cleared out. They paid without complaint, caused no arguments, and made no attempt to approach the restricted site.

Two booked rooms upstairs.

Their three companions returned to the caravan camp outside.

Lin Yuan watched them leave before turning back to his work.

Later that night, after the dining room had been cleaned, he checked the main receiving plate behind the counter.

No warning had sounded from either the western boundary or the restricted site.

Xiao Lan noticed him standing there.

"Something wrong?"

"No."

She looked at the plate.

"It didn’t ring."

"I noticed."

"Then what are you checking?"

Lin Yuan stepped away from the wall.

"Making sure."

Xiao Lan accepted that and returned to stacking bowls.

Once the last customer went upstairs, Lin Yuan locked the tavern door and stepped outside.

Lanterns still burned near two caravan camps. Blackstone was rarely completely silent anymore.

Ironhoof Beasts shifted beside wagons, travelers spoke quietly around low fires, and somewhere near the market, a loose piece of wood knocked against a wall whenever the wind picked up.

Lin Yuan stopped beneath the empty entrance frame.

He was still waiting for the signmaker’s new price before deciding whether to place the order.

Beyond the courtyard, seven stone posts marked the western boundary.

One was visible from where he stood.

Nothing moved around it.

Good.

He returned inside.

Su Mei found the stones the next morning.

She had gone toward the western road to check a delivery when she noticed a small line of rocks several steps outside the boundary.

Lin Yuan crouched beside them.

Five ordinary stones, each roughly the size of his palm.

There were no formation marks, no spiritual fluctuations, and nothing valuable about them.

Su Mei stood nearby.

"Children?"

"There aren’t many children in Blackstone."

"A bored traveler, then?"

"Could be."

Lin Yuan looked toward the nearest boundary post.

The stones formed a straight line pointing directly toward it.

Whoever had arranged them hadn’t crossed the monitored boundary, which explained why the warning formation hadn’t sounded.

Lin Yuan stood and brushed the dust from his hands.

Through the open tavern doorway, he could see the five travelers gathered for breakfast. The oldest man was laughing at something one of his companions had said.

Five ordinary rocks weren’t enough to accuse anyone of anything.

Even so, their alignment toward the boundary post was difficult to dismiss as an accident.

Lin Yuan left them where they were.

Back behind the counter, he checked the receiving plate again.

Still quiet.

For some reason, that bothered him more than if it had rung.