“I… I don’t know what’s happening!” He had merely come by invitation to eat a bowl of lamb soup—how had he fallen into such a predicament?

“Is this man your guard?”

Qiao Tianxing was speechless but finally said: “I have diplomatic immunity. You cannot…”

Xu Wenlin said coldly: “I’m not charging you with any crime. I just want to invite you to the City Guard headquarters for a cup of tea!” He tilted his head slightly, and his guards moved forward to apprehend Qiao Tianxing, who shook his sleeves in anger: “I’ll walk myself. Don’t touch me!”

Xu Wenlin chuckled: “I hope Master Qiao won’t follow his guard’s example.”

What example—fleeing and then taking poison? Qiao Tianxing was determined to seek justice from the Yao King, so he didn’t directly confront Xu Wenlin. Instead, he turned and followed the guards.

Meanwhile, Xu Wenlin waved his hand: “Question everyone one by one. Don’t let anyone slip away!”

That night, Shun Dongfeng was in complete chaos. It wasn’t until dawn broke in the east that all the customers in the restaurant were finally checked.

Not only were the customers irritable and restless, but the City Guards were also overwhelmed. Those who could afford to dine here were either wealthy or noble. Now that they were all detained in the restaurant for questioning, many were naturally displeased and vented their anger on the City Guards.

Xu Wenlin even knew that among the diners was the honorable Crown Prince. However, after the murder, the Crown Prince had been surrounded by protection, making it impossible for others to speak with him.

As Xu Wenlin had expected, the morning court session inevitably brought up the matter concerning the Crown Prince’s safety. All court officials were now aware of the situation and argued heatedly. One faction insisted on detaining the Wei envoy and subjecting him to strict questioning, while the other opposed openly antagonizing Wei and demanded a thorough investigation of the truth.

The death of a guard captain had escalated into a major case. The Yao King had only two words for him and his office:

The truth.

After working nonstop for over a dozen hours—truly “handling thousands of affairs daily”—even Xu Wenlin, with his cultivation, was exhausted.

In the blink of an eye, evening arrived again. He had barely found time to sit down and sip some warm tea when his guard urgently reported:

“General, there’s been another murder!”

“Is the magistrate’s office not working today?” he asked with displeasure. “Why is a murder case under their jurisdiction being reported to me?”

“This person is also involved in Captain Ma’s case,” the guard replied quickly.

“General, Miss Yao is dead.”

Xu Wenlin’s hand paused, and he heavily dropped his teacup on the table.

Miss Yao had been found with her hands bound, dead in her chamber. The killer had not staged it as a suicide but had strangled her to death with a white silk cord.

Simple, and brutal, but the scene had been cleaned thoroughly, leaving no useful clues.

Apart from her neck and wrists, Miss Yao had no other injuries on her body.

Recalling his conversation with Miss Yao the previous night, Xu Wenlin’s temple throbbed even more.

Fortunately, he hadn’t disclosed any useful information. The killer probably couldn’t extract anything from Miss Yao.

When Yun Ya returned to the guest house, Feng Miaojun was devouring food ravenously, with a large bowl in front of her.

She had resumed her appearance as Hong Yun.

The bowl was steaming, filled with clear, fragrant lamb soup. Feng Miaojun tore yellow flatbread into small pieces and soaked them in the soup until soft. The hardened flatbread, having absorbed the aroma of the lamb soup, became tender and delicious—never enough to satisfy her hunger.

It seemed the guest house kitchen had indeed made lamb soup the previous night.

Yun Ya sat down at the table with a smile: “Young lady, you might want to mind your table manners.”

Feng Miaojun swallowed a mouthful of lamb meat forcefully: “If you had spent a whole night at Shun Dongfeng, only able to smell and see but not eat, you’d be this hungry too!”

Being able to see but not eat—she had been resentful all night.

With no one else around, Yun Ya smiled and got straight to the point: “Why did you kill Captain Ma? I only asked you to create trouble between him and the Wei envoy. You don’t know that to extract you from Xu Wenlin’s side, I had to sacrifice one of my subordinates.”

“The Wei guard who escaped?” Feng Miaojun immediately made the connection. “He fled and then committed suicide on your instructions?”

Yun Ya pursed his lips, not denying it.

She had seen that man’s corpse—his death was horrific, indicating the poison he took was exceptionally potent. Yet he had swallowed it without hesitation. Training such death soldiers required heart, effort, and money—ordinary guards couldn’t compare. That Yun Ya had such people under his command indicated he possessed at least a highly disciplined organization.

That man had died executing his mission, not because of her.

“When you assigned me this task, I realized you weren’t targeting Captain Ma, but the person behind him, right?” She avoided using the word “deal with” because Xu Wenlin wasn’t qualified to be considered Yun Ya’s opponent. “If the conflict wasn’t intense, how could it draw the attention of General Xu?” Although she still didn’t understand why Yun Ya had gone to Shun Dongfeng, with his involvement, the matter would certainly not remain small.

Yun Ya smiled enigmatically: “First time participating in an operation, and already unwilling to simply follow orders, hmm?”

Feng Miaojun replied earnestly: “For subordinates who blindly follow orders, you already have your death soldiers. I’m accustomed to adapting to circumstances.” If she didn’t demonstrate her value and unique qualities, those death soldiers would be her cautionary example.

“Miss Yao had a history with Xu Wenlin. You took too great a risk.”

“I know, otherwise you wouldn’t have had me impersonate her.” Feng Miaojun lowered her voice. “Precisely because Xu Wenlin was familiar with Miss Yao’s background, after last night’s incident, he didn’t suspect her.” Xu Wenlin favored mature women with charm. Although Miss Yao’s appearance couldn’t compare to Foster Mother Xu’s, her bold and spirited demeanor caught Xu Wenlin’s eye.

So the two had a relationship.

Yun Ya had originally arranged for someone else to impersonate Miss Yao. Later, when Feng Miaojun demonstrated her determination to join his side, he entrusted her with this task. The mission had considerable flexibility, only requiring “making the City Guards conflict with the Wei envoy, the more severe the better.”

This was the first test the State Preceptor Yun had given her. Feng Miaojun understood that on the answer sheet she submitted, he wasn’t just looking for a “pass.” She needed at least excellence to qualify to remain by his side. If her performance was mediocre this time, there would be no future opportunities. Therefore, she had done her homework thoroughly before taking action.

“But I asked Miss Yao—Xu Wenlin had been with her no more than three times, mostly at night, and he hadn’t sought her out for several months. Such a man, surrounded by beauties and not particularly close to Miss Yao, shouldn’t have seen through my disguise.” Theoretically, it’s impossible to impersonate someone well enough to fool their intimate associates—there’s a mysterious connection between close acquaintances, and even an inadvertent gesture could reveal one’s identity. But Xu Wenlin and Miss Yao had just a casual relationship—how close could they be?

Feng Miaojun had learned from Miss Yao herself that the true owner behind Shun Dongfeng was Grand Tutor Lu. This elderly gentleman, now eighty-nine years old, had once been the Yao King’s teacher and had long since retired to enjoy his remaining years.