Chapter 447: Disturbance

After Duan Rong left that district, he walked slowly along a main street, his head lowered as he pondered with a profound look in his eyes.

Although it was just barely dawn, there were already scattered pedestrians on the street, and the various steaming breakfast stalls were all wafting with fragrance.

Duan Rong passed by a stall and bought two more sesame flatbreads that were roasted to a fragrant crisp; he ate as he walked toward Yunlai Inn.

By the time he returned to Yunlai Inn, the sky was already bright.

Duan Rong stepped into the inn and saw the thin-faced Manager standing at the counter on the first floor, yawning; the candle that had been burning low on the counter had been cleaned away at some point.

Duan Rong walked slowly to the counter and said, "Manager, I won't be staying in that superior room today."

The Manager was slightly stunned and said, "Oh. Then let me settle the account for you, guest."

As the Manager spoke, he took out a greasy Abacus.

Duan Rong said, "No need to calculate. I haven't left anything in the room, just check me out directly. With the extra silver, please help me feed the horse of the carriage in the Back Courtyard for a few days; my Personal Attendant will come to lead it away in a few days."

"That's fine!" The Manager's face immediately beamed with joy. "Rest assured, guest. I will certainly feed that horse well."

After deducting the room fee from the silver Duan Rong had given last time, it was more than enough to feed it for months, let alone a few days.

After Duan Rong finished speaking, he turned and left the inn, walked through several blocks along the street, and then turned into a two-story teahouse with a not-insignificant scale.

He sat in this teahouse until the doors closed at nightfall before slowly walking out.

Including this teahouse, Duan Rong had already spent six full days of intensive public opinion monitoring work in three teahouses of different locations and different social strata.

After these six days, he felt he could basically perceive the trend of public opinion in Shenyun Prefecture.

That is to say, if he were to set a method for killing the Secretariat Director Li Shensi at this moment, he could basically judge how this matter would ferment within the public opinion field of Shenyun Prefecture and in what direction it would ferment once it really happened in reality.

Regarding many subtle points, he was already able to have a basic judgment.

And before this six-day public opinion monitoring work, he did not have this ability; previously, he could not accurately and delicately judge the fermentation trend of public opinion in Shenyun Prefecture regarding certain events. This kind of thing is actually closely related to many cultural beliefs and the various legends and stories circulating in this place. And regarding this area, Duan Rong had not previously understood it in detail.

Being able to basically grasp the fermentation trend of public opinion in Shenyun Prefecture meant the first stage of work had come to an end. Next, it was time to enter the second stage of work.

Duan Rong walked out of the teahouse, looked at the brightly lit street scene before him, his eyes flickering.

He walked to a roadside tavern, ordered a few dishes and a pot of yellow wine, and began to eat slowly.

After eating and drinking, he walked out; the night wind blew, rolling up the yellow leaves on the ground by the street, and the late autumn night wind still held a hint of chill...

Duan Rong walked along the street in the night.

At this time, there were few pedestrians on the street, and patrolling soldiers were walking lazily along the street carrying lanterns; Duan Rong saw them from afar and avoided them one by one.

Not long after, he arrived near Changle Street.

Changle Street was the most prosperous street in Shenyun Prefecture; those who could live on this Changle Street were mostly both rich and noble, and if you only had money, you really couldn't live here.

The soldier patrols here were also far more frequent than in other districts.

As soon as Duan Rong entered this district, he released his Divine Sense, and he had already achieved the Origin Qi Realm Fourth Layer; once he exerted his movement, it was no different from a ghost.

How could those soldiers discover him?

In the pitch-black night, Duan Rong's figure flickered and stopped in the shadow of a tree.

He stood in the tree shadow, looking at a residence not far away, while at the other end, a squad of soldiers had just turned away from a corner, carrying lanterns.

After the figures of that squad of patrolling soldiers completely disappeared, Duan Rong suddenly leaped, his whole body flying up in the night like a falcon; his toes tapped lightly on the wall of the residence, and his figure then shot in like a sharp Arrow, landing in the shadow of a Rockery beside a pond.

Duan Rong released his Divine Sense, enveloping the vast majority of the residence.

He quickly locked onto the person he was looking for, his figure flickering in the shadows of trees and veranda pillars like a ghost, crossing half the residence.

Duan Rong stood in the shadow of a veranda pillar, looking at a room not far away.

He saw two Guards standing at the door of that room, guarding there with swords in hand. And inside the room behind the two, laughter and the sound of dense drumbeats could be faintly heard.

Under Duan Rong's Divine Sense investigation, the scene inside the room was naturally clear at a glance.

"This kid! He really knows how to live." Duan Rong smiled slightly and said to himself in his heart.

His Divine Sense then gathered, penetrating the dantian of the two Guards guarding the room door. He saw that both were at the Inner Breath Realm Fourth Layer.

Duan Rong then flickered; the two Guards felt a black shadow flash before their eyes, and their napes were struck by a palm-blade almost simultaneously.

Duan Rong stood in the middle, spreading his hands, supporting the back of one unconscious Guard with each hand, and slowly laid the two on the ground.

Afterward, he seized the opportunity and darted into the room like a ghost.

The moment he darted into the room, a young girl with a graceful figure, wearing a layer of red light gauze, was twisting her waist and beating a small drum at her waist.

Zhu Peng sat before a low table, the buttons of his upper garment already undone, exposing his sturdy chest; his eyes were fixed on the twisting waist of the girl and those looming key parts, the wine cup in his hand held in mid-air, not having been brought to his mouth for a long time.

Just as the girl twisted to the door of the room, a ghost shadow suddenly flashed, and the girl fainted to the ground.

A sturdy man with a full face of thick whiskers was already standing there.

Zhu Peng was startled, jumped up grabbing the long sword at his side, and without a word, slashed at the man, shouting like a thunderclap in mid-air: "Where did this thief come from?!"

Duan Rong flicked his finger lightly empty-handed, and the long sword in Zhu Peng's hand seemed to be struck by great force, turning backward, nearly slipping from his grasp.

Zhu Peng retreated two steps to steady himself, looking at the newcomer with astonishment; this person's realm was clearly far above his own.

Duan Rong glanced at Zhu Peng and said, "Don't be so jumpy."

"Hey! Zhu Peng! This dish is not bad!" Duan Rong had already moved to the low table, grabbed a pork knuckle, took a bite, and said, "If I had known you were eating, I wouldn't have eaten at the tavern just now."

As soon as Zhu Peng heard that voice, it was incomparably familiar; he walked to the low table in a daze, looked the man over carefully, and then exclaimed, "Duan Rong! Why do you look like this?!"

Although Duan Rong had a face full of thick whiskers, his brows and eyes had not changed much; as soon as Zhu Peng heard his voice and tone, and then looked at that appearance, he recognized him immediately.

Duan Rong immediately made a shushing gesture at him with his greasy mouth and said, "Keep your voice down. I'm here on a secret mission; you deal with those two Guards at the door and that woman, then we'll talk."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Peng immediately tidied his clothes.

As he fastened his buttons, he muttered, "Can't you just come properly when you come? You darted in like that just now, you almost scared me into impotence."

Duan Rong laughed upon hearing this and cursed, "Get lost! If you're no good yourself, don't pin it on me."

Zhu Peng said, "You tell me, was the way you came polite?"

Zhu Peng had indeed been quite frightened just now and was still somewhat shaken. "I thought someone was coming to assassinate me!"

Duan Rong laughed and said, "Desperate times call for desperate measures! I told you, I'm here on a secret mission, how could I come properly?"

Zhu Peng's eyes flickered as he asked, "What secret mission?"

Duan Rong was gnawing on a pork knuckle; he suddenly paused and glanced at Zhu Peng.

When they were discussing matters at Yunfu Peak, Zhu He had told him that once he reached Shenyun Prefecture, he could seek help from Zhu Zhengfu and the others, and that Zhu He would send them a secret letter.

Because he was most familiar with Zhu Peng, he had come to find Zhu Peng first.

He had assumed Zhu Peng knew! It seemed he did not. This lad really wasn't part of the core of the Zhu family!

Duan Rong said, "You deal with those two Guards and that woman first, then we'll talk. My strike was very light; don't let them wake up in a while."

"Alright! Then wait for me a moment!"

Zhu Peng first picked up the woman and ran straight to his concubine's room.

His concubine was there with a maid, doing needlework and chatting.

Seeing Zhu Peng suddenly burst in, she was startled, and upon seeing him carrying a woman who was nearly naked, her willow-leaf brows stood on end.

Zhu Peng acted as if he hadn't seen her and instructed, "She's been knocked unconscious. There shouldn't be any major issues; you help take care of her. If she wakes up later, send her back to Yanyue Pavilion in a small sedan chair."

After Zhu Peng finished speaking, he ignored his concubine's reaction and rushed out. By the time the concubine chased him out the door, Zhu Peng had already disappeared into the pitch-black night.

The concubine turned back in anger, twisting her handkerchief, and looking at the woman with the hot figure on the chair, she spat and cursed, "What do you take me for? A whore from Yanyue Pavilion, and you put her in my room too?!"

The elderly maid to the side looked at the woman, her eyes flickering, and said, "Mistress, since you have entered the Zhu family, you rely on him. That he is willing to entrust such unspeakable matters to you, Mistress, actually doesn't necessarily mean he looks down on you. In this servant's view, he is actually drawing closer to you."

In this maid's view, the woman wearing only a layer of light gauze had clearly been knocked unconscious by Zhu Peng. "It is common for men to be a bit dissolute when they are young. Mistress, if you can understand the bigger picture and handle the matter he entrusted to you well, he will surely trust and grow closer to you in the future."

The anger on the concubine's face gradually faded. She was a clever woman to begin with, and once guided, she immediately understood the crux of the matter. She sighed with a breath like orchids and said, "Put her on the bed."

The maid heard this, bowed, and a faint look of joy appeared on her face.

Meanwhile, Zhu Peng darted out of the concubine's courtyard and returned to the door from before. He crouched in front of the door, flipped his hand, and held a Porcelain Bottle.

He opened the stopper of the Porcelain Bottle and aimed the mouth of the bottle at the nostrils of the two fallen Guards; the pungent, sobering scent immediately woke the two Guards up.

As soon as the two woke up, they immediately crouched down nervously, half-kneeling with their blades drawn. Upon seeing Zhu Peng before them, they called out, "Sir, just now..."

Zhu Peng said, "No need to speak! I know! You two, one guard each end of the corridor; without my order, no one is allowed to approach!"

Hearing this, the two men's eyes flickered. They looked at each other before saying, "Yes!" and walked toward the two ends of the corridor.

Only after Zhu Peng had handled these things did he push the door open and enter, carefully turning to close the door behind him. By this time, Duan Rong was already gnawing on the pork knuckle and had finished half a small pot of yellow wine.

Zhu Peng walked over, sat down beside Duan Rong, grabbed the wine pot, and said, "Drink slowly, leave some for me."

Duan Rong said, "Find time to go see Zhu Zhengfu later."

Zhu Peng said, "Why look for him?"

Duan Rong said, "I want to see him."

"That's easy." Zhu Peng filled both his and Duan Rong's wine cups and said, "However, you must drink properly with me first. We haven't seen each other in over half a year. Brother Duan, do you know? In these past six months, Miss Xueyin has asked me about you several times!"

Duan Rong picked up the wine Zhu Peng had poured, his brows slightly furrowed, and said, "Miss Xueyin?! Which Miss Xueyin?"

Zhu Peng looked at Duan Rong with a strange expression and said, "Brother Duan, you really have no conscience! She often talks about you! You've actually already forgotten her!"

"She often talks about me?! No wonder I've been sneezing so much this past half year! By the way, who exactly are you talking about? Which Miss Xueyin?"

Zhu Peng said, "Miss Xueyin of Yanyue Pavilion! You forgot?! 'At dawn I start, adjusting the saddle-straps; a traveler, I grieve for my hometown. Cock-crow at the thatched inn under the moon; human tracks on the frost of the wooden bridge...'"

"Enough! Stop reciting poetry; I get a headache just hearing that stuff now." Duan Rong said, "I remember now, isn't that the one you gave two thousand taels of silver to after meeting her once, without even touching her hand?"

The wine in Zhu Peng's mouth nearly sprayed out, and he said, "Brother Duan, why do you make it sound like I'm a sucker?"

Duan Rong chuckled and said, "No! Miss Xueyin is very good. It's just that I'm a married man; how could I be thinking of other young ladies every day? Don't you agree?"

"That's true, Brother Duan, I do admire that about you." Zhu Peng said, "When Miss Xueyin asked about you, I told her you were cultivating within the Sect. Later she asked if you had any poems, and asked me to give them to her. Brother, since you're here this time, you should at least leave a poem for her."

Duan Rong said while biting the tendon of the pork knuckle, "I told you, I get a headache just seeing poetry now."

After Duan Rong finished speaking, he glanced at Zhu Peng, who was sitting there in silence, drinking by himself and looking somewhat sorrowful.

Duan Rong said, "Fine, I can leave one. But keep it with you first; give it to her in half a year."

"Great!" Zhu Peng was overjoyed and immediately brought over paper and a brush.

Duan Rong wiped his greasy mouth and hands with a towel and stood up.

He took the brush and stood there, looking at Zhu Peng, and asked, "Do you want me to leave one that is heroic and bold, or one that is lingering and sentimental?"

Zhu Peng pondered for a moment and said, "Let's go with one that is lingering and sentimental."

Duan Rong smiled slightly and said, "You lad, you really do like that sort of thing."

Duan Rong thought for a moment, then began to write on the paper. In an instant, he had written down a certain untitled poem by Li Shangyin.

Zhu Peng held the scroll and read it. Although his attainments in poetry were not high, he knew it was a good poem. He saw the lines: "Coming was an empty promise, leaving, no trace remains; the moon slants over the pavilion at the fifth watch bell. In dreams, I cry out, unable to call you back from afar; the letter is finished in haste, the ink not yet dark. The candle shines, half-shrouding the golden kingfisher; the musk scent drifts faintly through the embroidered hibiscus. Master Liu already hates the distance to Penglai; yet there are ten thousand layers of Penglai between us."

It was just that the meaning of this poem clearly implied they would never meet again.

After reading it, Zhu Peng felt a sense of loss in his heart. He could imagine that Qin Xueyin would surely be sorrowful upon seeing this poem.

Duan Rong said, "The poem is written, and the wine is drunk. It's time to get down to business, right!"

Zhu Peng was slightly stunned and said, "Oh, I'm going to Zhu Zhengfu's now. Brother Duan, you rest here for a while and wait for my news."

Duan Rong nodded and sat back down at the desk.

Zhu Peng collected the poem scroll, left the room, picked a horse from the stables, mounted it, and rode out of the prefecture, heading toward Zhu Zhengfu's residence.

(End of chapter)