Crossword Genius

No lady’s deputies (6)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

agents

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'deputies' is the definition.

'no lady's' is the wordplay.
I cannot really understand how this works, but
'no' could be 'n' (common abbreviation) and 'n' is found in the answer.
'lady' could be 'ag' and 'ag' is found within the answer.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for agents that I've seen before include "They act for actors" , "travelling salesmen" , "Sales reps" , "They operate on behalf of others" , "Instruments" .)

I've seen this clue in the Evening Standard.
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