[Two: Why are you making noise in the middle of the night instead of sleeping?]
Even through the Earth Book “screen,” one could sense the Flying Swallow Heroine’s dissatisfaction. She was probably sitting at a table, wearing a robe, somewhat lazily and irritably checking the message.
On the other side, Chu Yuan Zhen instinctively felt that Li Miao Zhen’s attitude was somewhat inappropriate. After all, the relationship between Three (Xu Ci Jiu) and Li Miao Zhen hadn’t reached the point where they could joke, scold, or criticize each other freely.
Moreover, Li Miao Zhen was staying at the Xu mansion. However, Li Miao Zhen had a strong jianghu temperament and was used to acting on impulse, inevitably lacking finesse in dealing with people.
[Four: Oh, Master Heng Yuan hasn’t responded…]
After waiting for a while longer, Six (Heng Yuan) still didn’t respond. Given Heng Yuan’s earlier message about people lying in ambush around the Health Hall, everyone immediately sensed something was wrong.
Xu Qi An transmitted: [Heng Yuan is in trouble. He’s involved in a major case. Emperor Yuan Jing has sent people to search for him, not just for revenge, but very likely to silence him.]
Involved in a major case, silencing, related to Emperor Yuan Jing?!
The Heaven and Earth Society members were shocked, not understanding why Three would make such a judgment and say such things.
Chu Yuan Zhen sent a message: [Three, what’s going on with Heng Yuan? Have you discovered something?]
He voiced the confusion of everyone in the Heaven and Earth Society. No one spoke; the impatient heroine, the little dark-skinned glutton, the high-ranking One, and the lurking Daoist Jin Lian were all waiting for Three to explain.
[Three: It’s hard to explain in a few words. The urgent matter now is to go to the Health Hall in the outer city and check the situation.]
[Two: Alright!]
Immediately, Xu Qi An put down the Earth Book, grabbed a robe to put on, and said, “I need to go out. You should come with me.”
Zhong Li nodded, got up from the small couch, wearing her embroidered shoes like slippers, and followed him out.
The sound of rain was everywhere, beating on the roof tiles, and dripping steadily from the eaves. When the lightning flashed, it looked like swaying pearl curtains; when the cold wind blew, it scattered like flying flowers and shattered jade.
A shallow layer of water had accumulated in the courtyard, with harsh raindrops slamming down, raising a misty spray.
Xu Qi An, facing the damp air, saw Li Miao Zhen standing quietly under the eaves on the other side of the courtyard, wearing her feathered Daoist robe.
Their eyes met, without any unnecessary words. Li Miao Zhen threw out her flying sword, hovering in the courtyard. The three of them leaped onto the sword.
The Holy Maiden of the Heavenly Sect made a hand seal, and the flying sword whooshed, breaking through the rain curtain and soaring into the clouds.
Flying over the capital was no problem for them as long as the Supervisor tacitly allowed it.
Soon, they flew over the inner city and reached the outer city. Li Miao Zhen pressed down with her toes, angling the sword tip downward towards the southern part of the city.
Li Miao Zhen didn’t recklessly descend but circled at a low altitude for a while, asking, “How is it?”
“Safe for now,” Xu Qi An replied.
He hadn’t detected any hostility yet. Either the people lying in ambush around were controlling themselves well, not looking up, or they had already left.
Li Miao Zhen analyzed seriously, “They might have hidden themselves. Maybe they’ve already set up a trap, waiting for us to arrive.”
Xu Qi An frowned, “We can’t rule out that possibility. Emperor Yuan Jing knows we’re Heng Yuan’s allies. We must be wary of the tactic of ‘surrounding the point to attack the relief.'”
“Surrounding the point to attack the relief?”
Li Miao Zhen exclaimed, “What a vivid description! As expected of you. Then you should take the lead. Your Vajra Invincibility is hard to break even for a fourth-rank expert’s ‘intent.'”
Xu Qi An nodded in agreement, “You can cover me from above.”
After analyzing for a while, they smiled at each other.
At this moment, they heard Zhong Li say softly, “There’s no ambush below, no martial artists…”
Xu Qi An and Li Miao Zhen’s expressions froze.
They had almost forgotten that Zhong Li was a sorcerer, skilled in the art of reading auras. Sigh, it’s all because of the weakness she usually displays, which left too deep an impression on me… Xu Qi An thought.
Li Miao Zhen thought the same. She stopped circling and descended through the rain curtain. The street was uneven, and long neglected, with low houses on both sides looking desolate and dilapidated in the rain.
The Health Hall’s main gate was tightly closed.
Xu Qi An squinted, scanning the surroundings. He was about to say “no signs of battle” when he heard Zhong Li and Li Miao Zhen say in unison, “Someone has died.”
His heart sank.
The three of them leaped over the wall, entering the Health Hall.
The weed-filled courtyard was pitch black, with raindrops pattering down. From the hall on the east side, a dim yellow light shone through the window.
The three approached and saw a crude wooden bed inside the hall with a corpse covered by a white cloth, the body thin.
Xu Qi An could tell at a glance it wasn’t Heng Yuan, but this didn’t relieve his mood.
An old clerk sat beside the corpse, his head lowered dejectedly, his aged face deeply furrowed, filled with sorrow and helplessness.
Xu Qi An had been to the Health Hall many times and recognized him. This old clerk surnamed Li was also a lonely elder, but in good health, assigned to work at the Health Hall.
“Old Li, what happened?”
Xu Qi An deliberately made loud footsteps to attract Old Li’s attention, but he was still startled, his body visibly shaking as if he had just experienced a fright.
“Constable Xu…” Seeing Xu Qi An, the old clerk’s cloudy eyes lit up with hope.
He suddenly became excited, standing up shakily, saying excitedly, “How did Constable Xu come here?”
Xu Qi An held his hand and repeated, “What happened?”
Hearing this, the old clerk became excited again and said, “In the afternoon, some neighbors came to tell us that there were people outside looking for Master Heng Yuan, even carrying his portrait.
“So I asked Master Heng Yuan to go out and hide for a while. By dusk, a group of mysterious people broke into the Health Hall. They didn’t catch Master Heng Yuan, so they asked me some questions about him and then left.
“Who knew, after dark, they came back again. They forcibly brought the elderly and children from the Health Hall to the entrance, threatening that if Master Heng Yuan didn’t return, they would kill one person every quarter of an hour…”
The old clerk’s tears flowed freely as he reached this point: “Old Zhang was unlucky. He had his throat cut by those people. He suffered terribly when he died, struggling on the ground, blood spraying everywhere.
“Later, Master Heng Yuan came back. They took him and left. I don’t know where they went or whether Master Heng Yuan is dead or alive now…”
Li Miao Zhen’s face had turned ashen.
“Did you see what those people looked like?” Xu Qi An asked.
“They were wearing black robes and masks. I couldn’t see their faces,” the old clerk lamented.
Prince Huai’s secret agents!
Xu Qi An and Li Miao Zhen exchanged a glance. Because they had anticipated this, they weren’t surprised, but rather angry.
Undoubtedly, if Heng Yuan hadn’t appeared, everyone in the Health Hall would have been killed.
“We all underestimated the ruthlessness of Prince Huai’s secret agents,” Xu Qi An said in a low voice.
A group of cold-blooded beasts.
No matter what, human life shouldn’t be treated as worthless, to be killed at will. And it was a lonely old man at that.
“I want to kill them all,” Li Miao Zhen gritted out between her teeth. “My master used to say, those who don’t respect life don’t deserve to have their own lives respected.”
Xu Qi An was silent for a moment, then asked, “Are the others alright? Um, the child in the back courtyard…”
The old clerk nodded, “They’re all a bit shocked, but otherwise fine. They’ll be better after a good sleep.”
There would certainly be grief and sorrow later, but no one had ever cared about the feelings of these widowed and orphaned people anyway.
“We’ll stay here tonight. You’re getting on in years, go back and rest first,” Xu Qi An said, escorting the old clerk back to his room.
Returning to the east hall, Zhong Li and Li Miao Zhen were standing inside, neither speaking, the atmosphere somewhat dead.
The current situation was very bad.
Heng Yuan had been taken away by Prince Huai’s secret agents, and his fate was almost certainly sealed.
The Earth Sect’s treasured Earth Book fragment had fallen into Emperor Yuan Jing’s hands, and Emperor Yuan Jing was in cahoots with the Earth Sect’s demon cultivators…
They might even extract information about the Heaven and Earth Society’s internal members from Heng Yuan. Of course, Heng Yuan wouldn’t confess willingly, but the Earth Sect had ways to make him talk, such as killing him and summoning his soul.
Once Xu Qi An’s identity as the Earth Book fragment holder was exposed, the Earth Sect’s leader would realize that the mysterious powerful figure who appeared in Chu Prefecture was Xu Qi An.
Emperor Yuan Jing would likely also guess that the sealed object related to Buddhism under Sang Po was in Xu Qi An’s possession.
In an instant, the pressure came surging in.
Xu Qi An wiped his face and said in a deep voice, “Miao Zhen, tell them that Heng Yuan has been taken away, his fate unknown. The Earth Book fragment has also fallen into Emperor Yuan Jing’s hands.”
Li Miao Zhen nodded, took out her Earth Book fragment, and informed the Heaven and Earth Society members of the situation.
[Four: Things have indeed developed in the worst possible way.]
Chu Yuan Zhen sighed as he transmitted.
[Five: So what do we do now?]
Even the not-so-clever Li Na sensed the thorny situation.
No one answered her. They didn’t even know if Heng Yuan was alive or dead, and their opponent was the emperor.
In the Chu Prefecture massacre case, their opponent was also the emperor, but their “allies” included the civil and military officials, the Supervisor, and Zhao Shou from the Cloud Deer Academy.
The situation was different. At that time, they could be said to be riding the tide of the greater situation. Emperor Yuan Jing was going against the tide, so he lost.
This time, there was only the Heaven and Earth Society.
Amid the depressing silence, Daoist Jin Lian suddenly transmitted: [This poor Daoist has sensed that Heng Yuan’s Earth Book fragment is nearby you.]
Xu Qi An’s eyes suddenly lit up.
Daoist Jin Lian didn’t specify who “you” referred to, but Xu Qi An knew it meant them.
Right, I was confused and underestimated Master Heng Yuan. Since he decided to exchange himself for the lives of the people at the Health Hall, he certainly wouldn’t carry the Earth Book fragment with him… Xu Qi An quickly turned to the Holy Maiden of the Heavenly Sect:
“Miao Zhen!”
Li Miao Zhen opened the fragrance pouch at her waist, releasing streams of blue smoke that wafted out gracefully, radiating from the Health Hall as the core, searching for the Earth Book fragment.
After the time it takes to burn an incense stick, a stream of blue smoke returns wrapped around a mirror, gently placing it on the table. The blue smoke floated in front of Li Miao Zhen, twisting as if asking for praise.
“I’ll give you double the yin energy tomorrow.”
Li Miao Zhen made the promise, then opened her fragrance pouch and let out a silent shriek.
In an instant, streams of blue smoke, responding to the summons, surged back and entered the fragrance pouch.
“Heng Yuan threw the Earth Book fragment into a patch of weeds by the roadside, not far from the Health Hall,” the Holy Maiden of the Heavenly Sect said, transmitting this information to the other fragment holders.
Daoist Jin Lian transmitted: [Very good. Everyone, this poor Daoist thinks we should have a proper discussion now.]
[One: I was just thinking the same.]
One replied quickly, obviously having been following the developments closely.
Chu Yuan Zhen then transmitted: [Three, you discovered this matter. Shouldn’t you tell us the specifics now?]
Xu Qi An considered his words for a moment, then used his finger as a pen to transmit: [Do you remember when Master Heng Yuan broke into Marquis Ping Yuan’s mansion and killed him? I was the one who saved him then.]
This happened last year, before the Sang Po case, and everyone naturally remembered.
[Four: Is Emperor Yuan Jing’s action against Heng Yuan this time related to that incident?]
Li Miao Zhen raised her head in surprise, glancing at Xu Qi An.
[Three: I learned from a secret source that the Tooth organization controlled by Marquis Ping Yuan was loyal to Emperor Yuan Jing.]
[One: Impossible!]
One directly refuted his words, the three short characters conveying a resolute attitude.
[Four: This… Although I dislike Emperor Yuan Jing, I don’t think he would be the mastermind behind the Tooth organization and human trafficking. There’s no need for him to do so.]
What kind of person is the emperor?
He’s at the pinnacle of power in the entire court. Who has more power than him? No one. The Supervisor is stronger, but in terms of authority, one must admit that the emperor holds the greatest power.
Not to mention common people, even nobles and aristocrats can have their lives controlled by the emperor.
Would the august Son of Heaven need to traffic humans?
I know this is hard to believe, it’s like saying Jack Ma needs to steal electric bicycles to maintain a decent life… Xu Qi An inwardly complained.
He continued transmitting: [Brother Chu, you’re a scholar, but your thinking still isn’t sharp enough. Emperor Yuan Jing must have a reason for doing this.]
[Nine: What reason?]
This time it was Daoist Jin Lian who asked first, seemingly quite curious.
[Three: I don’t know the specific inside story, but I know that the Tooth organization regularly sends a batch of living people into the palace. How long this process has been going on, I can’t confirm for now, but it’s been many, many years.]
He didn’t pause, continuing to transmit:
[Marquis Ping Yuan thought he had leverage over Emperor Yuan Jing, his ambition grew, and he wanted to gain more power and status. He cooperated with the Liang party and killed Princess Ping Yang.
[In this case, Emperor Yuan Jing knew everything but chose to cover for Marquis Ping Yuan. Until Marquis Ping Yuan became unrestrained and caught Wei Yuan’s attention. To prevent the matter from being exposed, Emperor Yuan Jing thought of a way. He used the Princess Ping Yang case to kill Marquis Ping Yuan to silence him.]
Li Miao Zhen suddenly raised her head, her beautiful eyes wide open, the extremely shocked expression on her face indicating that she had guessed what came next.
[One: You mean Heng Yuan became a tool in His Majesty’s hands to kill Marquis Ping Yuan.]
Except for Li Na, the members of the Heaven and Earth Society had above-average intelligence.
Of course, Li Na’s combat power was also above average, the little tyrant of the Southern Frontier, with strength to uproot mountains and spirit to cover the world.
[Four: So, Prince Huai’s secret agents targeting Heng Yuan this time is Emperor Yuan Jing’s attempt to silence him? No, that’s not right. If he wanted to silence him, he would have done so long ago. Why wait until now?]
[Three: No, you’re wrong. Even silencing someone requires the right timing and necessity. Think about it, who is Heng Yuan? Just a warrior monk from the Azure Dragon Temple. In Princess Ping Yang’s case, he was merely a pawn, insignificant. Is there a need to silence a pawn who doesn’t know the inside story?]
[Four: But now, Emperor Yuan Jing feels it’s necessary to silence him.] Chu Yuan Zhen transmitted.
[Three: Correct. What reason made Emperor Yuan Jing decide to silence him now? Think about what Master Heng Yuan has done recently.]
Stopping the palace guards, guarding the lotus seed in Jian Prefecture!
The Heaven and Earth Society members were startled.
[Three: Master Heng Yuan has gotten too close to you all, too close to my elder brother. Who is my elder brother? He’s Wei Yuan’s confidant, there’s no case he can’t solve.
[In the Chu Prefecture massacre case, Emperor Yuan Jing exposed many things. At this point, he discovered that Master Heng Yuan is mixed in with you all. He became worried, and cautious, and decided to silence him.
[As for the reason for silencing him, I guess that when Master Heng Yuan was investigating his junior brother Heng Hui’s whereabouts, he learned some important clues. He might not have realized their significance, but Emperor Yuan Jing fears he might reveal them.]
[One: What you say makes sense, but I still have two doubts. First, why would His Majesty secretly abduct citizens from the city? Second, the palace guards are strict, every coming and going is recorded, the palace factions are complex, there are spies from all sides, there’s the Supervisor, the National Teacher, Wei Yuan, various parties…
[It’s not possible for His Majesty to just send people in as he wishes, let alone a certain number of people.]
In other words, the transport channel doesn’t make sense… Xu Qi An frowned.
At this moment, Li Na transmitted: [That’s simple, just dig secret tunnels.]
This stupid girl hit the nail on the head…
The Earth Book chat group suddenly went silent.
If it’s secret tunnels, Marquis Ping Yuan must have known, but Marquis Ping Yuan is dead. Who else would know? The small leaders in the Tooth organization? If so, Wei Gong, ah Wei Gong, you’re too terrifying… Hmm, not necessarily. The secret tunnels must be extremely secret, how could Marquis Ping Yuan let his subordinates know… Xu Qi An pinched the bridge of his nose and transmitted:
[What we need to consider now is not Emperor Yuan Jing’s secret, but what to do about Master Heng Yuan?]
No one answered him because everyone felt it was unsolvable.
In the silent atmosphere, Daoist Jin Lian transmitted: [First, find out where he is. As for his safety, you don’t need to worry too much. Heng Yuan won’t die.]
What makes you so sure?
The members of the Earth Book chat group simultaneously questioned in their hearts.
[Nine: This involves a secret of Heng Yuan’s. Without his permission, I can’t reveal it. But I can tell you, it’s the reason I chose him as an Earth Book fragment holder.
[Of course, we still need to find him. Being safe now doesn’t mean he’ll always be safe.]
If that’s the case, then I don’t need to worry about my identity being exposed in the short term, and I don’t need to take my family and leave the capital… Xu Qi An breathed a sigh of relief. He transmitted:
[Let’s leave this to my elder brother to handle. The Night Watchers are responsible for patrolling the streets, they can check the entry and exit records of Prince Huai’s secret agents today.]
Daoist Jin Lian added: [Find a way to lure out Prince Huai’s secret agents, kill them outside the city, and have Miao Zhen summon their souls for questioning.]
After discussing a few more details, the Heaven and Earth Society ended this lengthy meeting.
…
After daybreak, Li Miao Zhen and Xu Qi An returned to the inner city. The latter went to the Night Watchers’ office, entrusting Song Ting Feng and Zhu Guang Xiao to check yesterday’s entry and exit records for the inner city and imperial city.
He also arranged to go to the brothel to listen to music tomorrow before leaving the Night Watchers’ office.
Xu Qi An rode his beloved little mare, clip-clopping back to the mansion, then left alone. After changing his clothes and appearance at the brothel, he left and, after several detours, arrived at the courtyard of the widow Mu Nan Chi.
He knocked for a long time with no response.
After knocking for a while longer, footsteps finally came from inside the courtyard.
“Creak!”
The courtyard gate opened, and the princess consort stood in the doorway, bare-faced, her hair messy, her eyes sleepy.
“Knocking so late, is there a lover in the courtyard?” Xu Qi An hummed.
The princess consort rolled her eyes at him.
Xu Qi An stepped into the courtyard and was suddenly attracted by a faint spiritual energy. He looked in surprise at the water vat in the courtyard.
The water in the vat was clear, with a thin layer of silt at the bottom. A small section of lotus root was half-buried in the silt, growing fine roots.
It had truly come to life.