Outside Omens

"I don't know if they'll interfere with us that much, my dear. At least not until we find the girl." He offered a smile, neatly side-stepping an abandoned bamboo basket, half-destroyed. "There should be a hotel up ahead, if my map's correct. Shall we stay there? Not too luxurious, but we're not here for massages and the like, after all. Now where did I put - ah, there we go. Here's some yuan, I've got the larger bills hidden in my jacket pocket. You'd better have some of your own, actually, here..."