"Nothing at all," Shi replied. "But she is a well-known person. If anything had happened to her, there would be bound to be reports circulating in the capital. I heard nothing, so I presume she is all right."
Chen was embarrassed by their elaborate concern for his feelings. "I will go inside and rest for a while," he said, and walked to his room.
"Go and look after him," Luo Bing whispered to Xin Yan. The boy ran after his master.
After a short while, Chen thrust aside the curtain to his room and strode out again. "We must eat quickly, and get to Beijing as quickly as possible," he said.
A new note of determination in his voice surprised the heroes. Wen raised his thumb in agreement and dug into his food with increased gusto.
As they travelled on, Chen forced himself to smile and chat with the others, but his features became more haggard as the days went by. Before too long, they arrived in Beijing. Shi had rented a large residence in Twin Willows Lane. Priest Wu Chen, the Twin Knights, "Buddha" Zhao and "Pagoda" Yang were there waiting for them.
"Third Brother," Chen said to "Buddha" Zhao. "Please go with Xin Yan to see the Emperor"s chief bodyguard, Bai Zhen. Take the lute that the Emperor presented to me and the jade vase that Luo Bing stole and give them to him to pass on to the Emperor, to let him know that we are here."
Zhao and Xin Yan left and returned several hours later.
"We went to Bai Zhen"s home to look for him and he happened to be at home," Xin Yan reported. "We gave Zhao"s name card to one of his servants, and he rushed out to greet us. He dragged us inside and insisted on us drinking several cups of wine before letting us go. Extremely friendly."
Chen nodded.
Early the next morning, Bai Zhen paid them a visit. He chatted with "Buddha" Zhao for a while about the weather, then asked respectfully if he could see Chen.
"The Emperor has ordered me to take you to the Palace," he whispered to Chen when he appeared.
"Good," replied Chen. "Please wait here for a moment."
He went back inside to discuss things with the others. They all thought he should take strict precautions.
Several of the heroes accompanied him into the Forbidden City, while Wen and the rest stationed themselves outside the palace walls to await their return.
With Bai Zhen leading the way, Chen and the others walked through the palace gates, passed guards who respectfully bowed to them. They were overawed by the imposing atmosphere of the palace: its thick, sturdy walls, the heavy defences. They had walked for a good while when two eunuchs ran up to Bai Zhen.
"Master Bai," said one. "The Emperor is in the Precious Moon Pavilion, and orders you to take Master Chen there to see him."
Bai nodded, and turned to Chen. "We are now entering the forbidden area of the palace. Please ask everyone to leave their weapons here." Despite their uneasiness at this, the heroes had no alternative and did as he said, placing their swords on a nearby table.
Bai led them through halls and across courtyards and stopped in front of a large, richly-decorated pavilion.
"Announcing Chen Jialuo!" he called out. Chen straightened his cap and gown and followed the old eunuch into the pavilion while Priest Wu Chen and the others were forced to remain outside.
They climbed up the stairs to the fifth floor, and entered a room in which they found Qian Long, seated and smiling. Chen knelt down and kowtowed before him respectfully.
"You"ve come," said Qian Long. "Excellent. Please be seated." With a wave of his hand he dismissed the eunuchs. Chen remained standing where he was.
"Sit down and let us talk," Qian Long repeated. Only then did Chen thank him and take a seat.
"What do you think of this pavilion?"