Chapter 192: The Past of Shen Ping

Shen Yanliu's expression was gloomy. He sat in the grand armchair, his fingers lightly tapping the armrest, and said, "Next year is the year of the political assessment. If that major case involving Xu Ruhu cannot be closed, I fear it will be to my disadvantage."

"Although this case involves a great deal, after several months of searching, there are no leads. If we continue to investigate, I fear it will be difficult to reach a result." Tang Wanhong weighed his words and said cautiously, "Master, I fully agree with your idea of having your subordinate go to the Prefecture City to pull strings and close this case."

Shen Yanliu pondered and said, "Prefecture Master Chu, the Surveillance Commissioner of Yuanyang Prefecture who oversees criminal matters, is quite fond of antiques, especially calligraphy and paintings. Wanhong, you must be careful and meticulous on this trip to help me bring this matter to fruition."

"Rest assured, Master," Tang Wanhong said. "I asked Mr. Duan to take a look at it precisely to ensure there is no error with this painting. As long as there is no problem with the painting, we can be certain of this matter."

Shen Yanliu nodded and cast an appreciative look at Tang Wanhong.

This Tang Wanhong had always been Shen Yanliu's confidant. Since Shen Yanliu took office, all accounts had gone through Guyue Studio, and many connections in official circles, when it was inconvenient for him to show his face, were handled by Tang Wanhong on his behalf. This man was deep in thought and well-versed in the pitfalls of officialdom, handling matters very reliably.

Duan Rong was squatting in front of a stall at the entrance of Guyue Studio when he suddenly withdrew his Divine Sense.

He stood up and began to stroll along Antique Street.

From the information he had overheard from Shen Yanliu and Tang Wanhong, the case of Xu Ruhu and Xie Lei truly had no progress.

This was consistent with the conclusion he had deduced from Yang Zhen.

Precisely because of this, Shen Yanliu had let Tang Wanhong go and pull strings with the Surveillance Commissioner of Yuanyang Prefecture, offering the Ten Thousand Gullies Pine Wind Painting to cater to his preferences.

Duan Rong pondered as he walked; to him, this counted as good news. Once the case was closed, even if Xie Daohan wanted to continue the pursuit due to his feelings for Xie Lei, the resources he could mobilize would be greatly reduced.

Duan Rong was in a great mood for a moment and walked with light steps to a miscellaneous book stall, preparing to pick out some books to enrich his knowledge.

Having gone on two escort missions to Ruyang Prefecture, Duan Rong's knowledge had greatly increased. He had heard the escorts of the Second Escort Team chatter about many rumors in the pugilistic world, and what they talked about most was the Filthy Blood Sect.

Therefore, Duan Rong specifically picked out a few more books about the Filthy Blood Sect, preparing to go back and read them carefully.

Duan Rong returned to Liu Lu and resumed his crazy cultivation mode. Every day before sleeping, he would light an oil lamp and read some miscellaneous books for a while; this was the only joy in his dull cultivation life.

Tang Wanhong went to Yuanyang Prefecture and returned in a few days; the matter had been handled quite smoothly.

The next day, Shen Yanliu discussed closing the case with Xie Daohan and Fan Yuanhai. Xie Daohan was naturally unwilling, but as the saying goes, a higher official crushes those below him; Shen Yanliu's attitude was firm, and he could do nothing.

Fan Yuanhai had already wasted several months in Xiangu County. Regarding this case, his heart had long since died; he was overjoyed that Shen Yanliu mentioned closing it.

Therefore, Shen Yanliu and Fan Yuanhai submitted a joint memorial.

Shen Yanliu had already written the memorial in advance. Fan Yuanhai felt it was very appropriate after reading it, so he signed his name directly at the end of the memorial.

Two copies of this memorial were made; one was submitted to the Surveillance Commissioner Office of Yuanyang Prefecture, and one was submitted to the Sect.

In the memorial, the description of the case was: Xie Lei, as a Constable, was lured by profit by Xu Ruhu and committed theft while on duty, abducting Xu Ruhu. Later, because of an uneven split of the spoils, the two killed each other in the cellar of Xie Lei's house and both died.

The official reply from the Surveillance Commissioner Office arrived at Xiangu County a few days later, acknowledging the investigation results of this case.

The Sect's reply arrived in Fan Yuanhai's hands two days later, and he was assigned other tasks.

The next morning, just as the sky was beginning to brighten, Fan Yuanhai left Xiangu County in low spirits, having wasted several months with no achievements. Although the Sect's reply did not reprimand him, the tasks assigned to him had become miscellaneous chores, which already indicated the attitude of the Sect's higher-ups.

If he could not find a way to turn the situation around, his hope of being promoted to an Inner Sect Disciple would likely be gone.

The case of Xu Ruhu and Xie Lei, a major case that even the Sect's higher-ups had paid attention to, finally ended in nothing after several months, following Fan Yuanhai's dejected departure and the sealing of the case files in Xiangu County.

On the very morning that Fan Yuanhai left in low spirits, at the entrance of the Death Row, several yamen runners suddenly carried out a stinking corpse and threw it against the wall of the alley at the prison entrance.

Corpses from Death Row were usually left there for two days for the families of the deceased to claim; if no one claimed them after two days, they would be cremated and buried.

However, the stinking corpse, having been thrown onto the ground by the wall, actually let out a muffled groan amidst the rising dust, and its shoulders twitched significantly; it was clearly not yet dead.

Just then, a limping figure walked over from the alley entrance, squatted down, turned the stinking corpse over, and called out, "Brother Shen, Brother Shen..."

A flash of gravity crossed Xiao Zongting's eyes; Shen Ping's condition was even worse than he had imagined.

He saw that on his blood-stained face, his eyes were tightly shut, his lips were pale, his breathing was as faint as nothing, and he was covered in rotting flesh; in the damp environment of the prison and the scorching weather, many places were already stinking.

Xiao Zongting sighed, shook his head, carried Shen Ping on his shoulders, and staggered away from the alley.

Xiao Zongting and Shen Ping were already old acquaintances.

In that battle more than ten years ago, Xiao Zongting and the Old Shopkeeper of Yuanshun Escort Agency were besieged. Xiao Zongting lost all his martial arts, but the fact that he was able to survive in the end was still thanks to Shen Ping.

Therefore, Xiao Zongting had always felt that he owed Shen Ping a life.

This time, Shen Ping was thrown into Death Row because of his involvement in the Xu Ruhu and Xie Lei case, and the one who came to inform Xiao Zongting of this was Hu Huanhuan of Huaying Pavilion.

This Hu Huanhuan had had a past relationship with Shen Ping when she was young.

There was a period when she was in poor health, and Shen Ping helped her recuperate. Through their interactions, the two developed feelings. But for some reason, the two ultimately could not stay together and went their separate ways.

After receiving the news, Xiao Zongting sought out acquaintances in the Ya Men and inquired in many ways.

But at the time, the ones in charge of the case were Xie Daohan and Fan Yuanhai, and no one in the Ya Men dared to intervene.

Xiao Zongting had no choice but to bribe a jailer in Death Row, which allowed him to learn some news about Shen Ping inside Death Row in a timely manner.

Xiao Zongting had originally thought that Shen Ping would die in prison; he did not expect that he would receive news from that old jailer on this day, saying that Shen Ping was to be released.

Therefore, Xiao Zongting had been waiting here since the morning.

Duan Rong was standing in the courtyard of Liu Lu, practicing the Hunyuan Stance.

Duan Rong had been motionless for several hours, covered in sweat, with heat steaming off him...

On the top of Duan Rong's right foot, the little hedgehog was lying there, fast asleep.

After several months of being together, the little hedgehog had become very familiar with Duan Rong's scent, and even Duan Rong's aura could give it a sense of security...

But just at this moment, at the courtyard gate of Liu Lu, there was a sudden, urgent knocking sound.

(End of this chapter)