The faded sign above the storefront read ‘Polished Jade Goods’ and even though the shop hadn’t been in the capital as long as some of the other vendors it never the less had a sterling reputation.

Even some of the servants of the Imperial Palace could occasionally be glimpsed browsing its wares under their Master's orders.

The counter was operated by an elderly man, who was currently resting in a rocking chair lightly napping.

Roused by the appearance of two from the younger generation he cracked open a single eye, although their presences weren’t impressive, he could instantly tell their backgrounds were.

“Young Benefactors welcome to my humble store. This one is Lao Yushou, how can we be of service.”

The one browsing his array of hair ornaments paused and lowered the fan from their face.

The owner was a little startled to find it was a young man, not a woman and judging by how the other young man kept a respectful distance, clearly this was the master.

“I’ve come to see if I can acquire some whalebone and pearl beads. Much like the ones used in these.”

Ren Yao pointed to a couple of the more straightforward hair clips. An arrangement of small colourful orbs set out in a flower pattern and a metal frame with a whalebone clasp.

“Young Master has a good eye.”

“Indeed, we do have the base materials. If you’ll give me a moment to have them brought, you may choose at your leisure.”

With that, the older man gave a small ornate bell on the counter top a little shake.

The gentle jingle brought a middle-aged woman out from the back room. She blushed when she saw the customers. Lao Yushou relayed what he needed to her, and she left to fetch the selection.

She returned with several trays of the raw materials that were requested.

They harvested Whalebone itself from the mouths of the East sea Behemoths, and while it was rare, it was not impossible to acquire. Ren Yao looked over the selection in the first tray occasionally picking up a piece and checking it with both his spirit sense and inputting a little of his inner energy.

He settled on two or three pieces that had the best conductivity for his internal energy.

The next tray was a vast selection of beads of various sizes.

There weren’t just pearls in the tubs on the trays. There were also small gems, highly polished stones and glass beads. The centrepiece was even the neidan of a peak level Ferocious Beast.

It still had a thin yellow aura surrounding it, just showing how powerful it had been.

By polishing down larger ones they crafted some of the smaller beads, the dedication to one’s craft was outstanding, but these were not quite what Ren Yao needed.

After a quarter of an hour sifting through various sizes and discussing with Lao Yushou about what he was after, the Young Lord Ren left the shop with a small jade bottle full of truly tiny beads. They were the cast off from some of the larger stones, but with Senior Yushou’s cultivation, they were quickly rounded and made fit for purpose.

One-hundred and eight black pearl beads.

Of those, 12 were slightly larger, almost double the size of the rest. The remaining 96 tiny black orbs measured roughly one and a half millimetres in diameter.

Ren Yao was very pleased with the purchased as he smiled down at the three seven-inch-long whalebones and the small jade bottle of black pearl beads. There was no need to haggle over price this time.

The whole procession left quickly and headed further into the capital.

The sun was very high in the sky by now, even the lazy people of the Capital were up and about. Looking up at the cloudless sky, Da Qui could not help thinking to himself that it would be another swelteringly hot day as he stood stationary in front of one of the more elegant restaurants.

He had long since been sent on ahead of the Young Lord to secure a place to dine.

As one of the long-standing Black Tiger Guard, of course, something of this level was nothing, but as more sweat began to bead up and roll down his back and the smell of sumptuous food and aromatic wine drifted around him, he found his will power being slowly sapped.

Luckily just as his stomach growled, a line of black armoured guards appeared at the far end of the street. Da Qui snapped to attention to preserve his loyal image upon seeing this.

As they carried the palanquin to the entrance, the small figure of Xiao Wan nipped around and had Da Qui show him to the proprietor. They had almost 30 people; the space they would need to dine in would not be small.

They settled the palanquin in the rear of the inn, just off from the stables, and its passenger was shown in through of the side entrance.

Water Lily Inn, as soon as he read the signboard, he could feel his soul calmly.

Looking again, Ren Yao did indeed notice that the calligraphy used was very gentle and refined — obviously the work of an expert who had imparted some intent into the characters.

They followed behind the manager and headed straight to the third floor.

The 30 strong force of the Black Tiger guard followed their Young Master and his walking purse up before fanning out to survey the third floor. They were well trained and, after the previous incident, overly cautious.

Finding nothing amiss, they took up seats in the most strategic locations.

Their group now covered sixty per cent of the third-floor dining area.

The rest of the guests that had already arrived to dine there took up what remained, the sound of friendly banter and coquettish giggling lilted from those occupied booths.

“Bring some roast chicken, soup and some side dishes. As well as a few jugs of your best wine for these good brothers.”

Ren Yao indicated for them to sit as he casually ordered.