Han Yu thought about how to register the communication jade slip with Meng Jueyan before deciding that he’ll just send the jade slip to the Jade Plum Inn along with a letter. He’d then alert Meng Jueyan that a message was waiting for her and let her figure out the rest.
"Yeah, she should be capable enough to handle that," Han Yu reckoned, nodding to himself.
But going personally was out of the question. That would be risky.
He was sure the sect was monitoring him after the mission report. The contents were far too volatile. Between the hidden altar, the Magma Ancestor, and the Mist Eye Sect’s activities, Han Yu knew any higher-up worth their beard oil would be interested in keeping tabs on him.
Even if they didn’t explicitly restrict him from leaving the sect, he was certain they’d assign someone—or something—to track his movements the moment he stepped outside.
So far, he’d earned no extra attention precisely because he hadn’t given them a reason to focus on him. Twenty days spent in his courtyard, cultivating and sipping tea like a responsible little disciple.
He was certain that someone was monitoring him since occasionally a few more wisps of Eight Emotions Energy would drift over. He knew these were not from the elders since they had come from nearby.
And considering they were Eight Emotions Energy of Surprise, he was sure whoever was watching him was surprised that he could stay put all this time.
But the moment he left the gates?
"I’ll stick with the old reliable plan," Han Yu muttered to himself. "Rodents and peanuts."
With his mind made up, Han Yu headed for the Outer sect residential area, weaving his way through the foot traffic until he arrived at Li Mei’s personal courtyard. It was tucked away in a quieter area, half-hidden behind an overgrown flowering bush that hadn’t been trimmed in years. The girl had eccentric taste and a chronic aversion to maintenance—two qualities that had made them fast friends once upon a time.
Though most of it was her forcing the pill tests on him.
He knocked on the door out of habit, but as expected, there was no response.
"No surprise there," he murmured. "Probably off chasing bees with repelling spray again. Or poisoning a duck."
Still, he wasn’t worried. Han Yu had long been granted unrestricted entry to her place.
The scent of dried herbs, paint, and scorched leather wafted out to greet him like an oddly specific ghost. Making his way to the far corner, Han Yu knelt and lifted a loose floorboard, revealing the tiny hatch underneath.
A moment later, a soft squeak echoed upward.
The rat settlement was still thriving.
Rows of miniature tunnels and chambers had been burrowed expertly under the floor. Tiny wooden posts, a pebble-paved walkway, and even a makeshift drying line made from hair strands hung above the central tunnel. A few rats poked their heads out, blinking up at him curiously.
"Hey there, fellas," Han Yu greeted, crouching low. "I need a favor."
He scanned the crowd for a familiar twitching nose or lopsided ear, but saw no sign of Chitterfang—the most competent and least likely to eat the message by mistake.
"No one I know, huh..." he murmured.
Still, the rats seemed attentive enough. One particularly plump fellow gave a polite squeak and stood upright.
Han Yu smiled. "Tell Chitterfang to meet me in my courtyard later. I’ve got a package that needs some... discreet delivery."
He reached into his sleeve and pulled out a small cloth pouch, untying it to reveal a generous helping of roasted peanuts.
He placed the pouch beside the tunnel entrance with a flourish.
The rats instantly swarmed the pouch with joyous squeaks.
"Always a pleasure doing business," Han Yu said, lowering the floorboard carefully back into place.
Dusting off his knees, he stood and made his way out, closing the courtyard door behind him.
As he walked back toward his own courtyard, Han Yu felt oddly reassured. Between his growing Soul Qi, his new reward, and a communication line soon to be opened with Meng Jueyan, things were finally stabilizing—at least for now.
But he knew better than anyone how temporary calm could be.
The sect was still quiet.
And Han Yu had the sneaking suspicion that someone, somewhere, was just waiting for the next explosion.
Hopefully, this time, it wouldn’t involve chickens.
Han Yu waited until the evening before he finally heard a familiar chitter coming from the roof.
"There you are." Han Yu looked at the small head peeking out from a hole in the roof.
General Chitterfang peeked his head out, his familiar scar proudly displayed on his face.
The rat let out another squeak before jumping down from the roof and landing skillfully in Han Yu’s hands. He even did a flip in the air.
"Squeak squeak squeak." The rat squeaked as if communicating.
Han Yu had been with the rats long enough to understand what they were implying.
"I got a mission for you or those under you." Han Yu said before taking out a rather fat envelope. "I want you to put this letter in a box that is kept on the roof of the Jade Plum Inn at Dongxuan city." He stated.
The rat listened with attention and sniffed the fat envelop which clearly had more than just a letter inside.
Han Yu had written the instructions for Meng Jueyan within it along with the communication jade slip of course.
"I trust you know where it is?" Han Yu asked.
"Squeak!" Chitterfang squeaked in approval, while nodding his head.
"Good. This will be a regular mission for you. Have someone monitor that box and retrieve whenever something is placed in it. I’ll also tell you if something needs to be sent. And remember, all of this needs to be secret. I trust you guys can handle that?" Han Yu stated.
"Squeak!" Chitterfang squeaked again.