Chapter 1596: Isn't It a Bit Late?

The current Yao Kingdom had a very heavy atmosphere of resentment among the people. He Lingchuan didn't explain much, just smiled: "After all, this is still the Flash Gold Plain. When times are good, people are gentle and orderly; when times are bad, they reveal their true colors." During their meal, servants naturally went to clear out empty rooms for the distinguished guests to stay.

He Lingchuan was well-connected and hospitable; Yongquan Manor had guests staying over every three days. At the moment, there were five foreign merchants and three nobles invited to stay in the manor. Merchants came and went, often socializing with each other. The palace guards led by Zhao Song had long since become numb and were too lazy to ask.

These commercial activities were too complicated. They only received that little salary and just wanted to do their own job well, which was to monitor He Lingchuan.

After the meal, the Yangshan people took Peng and Mao to rest, and He Lingchuan also returned to his study, sprawling on the couch.

He sprawled into a standard "big" shape, but his eyes were wide open.

The mirror asked him: "Hey, what are you thinking about?"

If He Lingchuan pulled an all-nighter, he would usually take a half-hour nap in the study the next morning to replenish his energy. After all, his work every day was very strenuous, requiring both brainpower and physical strength.

"I'm thinking about what Bai Ziqi actually came to Tian Shui City for."

The mirror didn't understand: "Didn't those two say he was driven here by Lingshan?"

Bai Ziqi himself said he came to investigate the Great Emperor of the Nine Netherworlds, while Peng Yukui said he was driven here by Lingshan. The latter's words could indeed explain why Bai Ziqi suddenly headed south from the Thousand Star Mausoleum to Tian Shui City, but He Lingchuan felt that Bai Ziqi's visit might have a deeper purpose.

"This should be a reason—one of them." He Lingchuan slowly closed his eyes, "But after Bai Ziqi arrived in Tian Shui City, he turned around and went to Mangzhou, not being scared off by the pursuit of Peng Yukui and others at all."

People who lack a sense of security wouldn't rashly leave their sanctuary.

The mirror asked strangely: "He is in the Yao Kingdom, so he will receive the double protection of the Yao Kingdom's army and Miao Zhantian's shrine. His strength relative to Lingshan's pursuers is rising while theirs is falling, so what does he have to fear?"

Wasn't this what the master himself said earlier?

He Lingchuan reached out to press his Jingming acupoints, saying: "Look at Bai Ziqi's behavior. As soon as he arrived in Tian Shui City, he went straight to Miao Zhantian's main shrine, not even notifying the Yao court that he had arrived. It was only after the Yao King learned of it that he invited him into the palace. Bai Ziqi's temper is straightforward, but he should know this doesn't conform to normal diplomatic etiquette."

"Oh, you mean he was very anxious at the time and couldn't care about etiquette."

"What is in the main shrine? He wouldn't be looking for Chief Envoy Liang to drink tea. And after he entered the Yao Kingdom, Lingshan's pursuers didn't show up again, and Bai Ziqi wasn't chased in a sorry state." He Lingchuan was also clearing his thoughts, "So, the reason he was anxious to enter the shrine, could it be that he wanted to pay respects to Miao Zhantian as soon as possible?"

"Oh, now that you mention it, it's really possible!" The mirror shouted, "If Bai Ziqi finds True Person Qianhuan's cave dwelling, how could he have the confidence to dig it out? That's an ancient Great Immortal! Entering rashly might be ominous."

It chuckled: "To deal with an ancient Great Immortal, shouldn't one dispatch an ancient Heavenly God?"

"So, he was rushing to bring in reinforcements and find external help?" He Lingchuan stretched, "But after he came, he didn't have any other actions, instead turning to Mangzhou to continue investigating the Great Emperor of the Nine Netherworlds."

Originally, he was going to dig out True Person Qianhuan's cave, but after Bai Ziqi arrived in Tian Shui City, he slowed down his actions, even turning to Mangzhou to continue investigating the Great Emperor of the Nine Netherworlds.

From hurried to leisurely, the change was quite big.

"This change mostly happened during his meeting with Miao Zhantian."

The mirror asked strangely: "Could it be that Miao Zhantian told him not to be impatient?"

This was originally a tease, but He Lingchuan snapped his fingers: "Hit the nail on the head!"

"Eh? I guessed right?" The mirror was pleased with itself.

"Qingyang and the shrine are about to have a big move, have you forgotten?" He Lingchuan said leisurely, "Time is getting tighter and tighter. I believe their preliminary work has been laid out, which is called an arrow on the bowstring that must be fired. Miao Zhantian is also in the know; perhaps it wants to solve the current big event before dealing with True Person Qianhuan. After all, True Person Qianhuan has been in seclusion for more than 150 years, so he shouldn't mind waiting a few more days."

He let out a long breath: "Then this is good news for us, great news!"

"Oh..." Good where? "Then, then just let Bai Ziqi investigate Xiaotao Manor? What if he really finds something, what should we do?"

The mirror still remembered what Bai Ziqi said before leaving, about having a good chat with He Xiao after returning, which was clearly a naked threat!

"The things we did at Xiaotao Manor were cleaned up quite cleanly, and several months have passed since then. Even if Bai Ziqi goes to the scene, the clues he can obtain are limited." He Lingchuan cleaned it up himself, so he naturally had confidence, "But conversely, even if he doesn't find any useful clues there, he can still find trouble for me after returning."

"Ah?"

"Have you forgotten how he treated me in Lingxu City? Did he have solid evidence at that time?"

"No, none." Bai Ziqi only had suspicions about He Lingchuan and had him pressed and arrested to be judged by Miao Zhantian.

This person seemed polite, but don't forget he was the Tiangong's Cloud Envoy; he didn't need to reason to do things!

"The same applies this time. It's just that the location has changed to Tian Shui City—and fortunately, this isn't Lingxu City. I have nearly a thousand guards by my side. If he wants to make a move on me, he must first pass the Yao King's hurdle." He Lingchuan said seriously, "This isn't his home field. If he asks the Yao King to arrest me, not to mention whether the Yao King would agree, it would be purely creating extra trouble at this juncture, likely disrupting Qingyang and Miao Zhantian's layout!"

"So—" he made a rough conclusion, "Whether Bai Ziqi finds key evidence or not, he shouldn't move me before the Emperor Flowing Pulp erupts."

"Wow, are you sure? If you guessed wrong, we'll be in big trouble."

He Lingchuan laughed: "Bai Ziqi already suspected me when he came to find me that day. You're only afraid of trouble now, isn't it a bit late?"

"Uh..." Was that day exceptionally dangerous? The mirror recalled now, and this master seemed to have been a little worried.

"Bai Ziqi already suspected me, so why didn't he arrest me directly?"

The mirror took it for granted: "That's naturally impossible. You have nearly a thousand guards by your side. If the Yao King doesn't nod, how can he arrest you just because he wants to?"

"If he didn't arrest me that day, it means he has reservations. Whether it's because of Miao Zhantian or the Yao King, this kind of reservation won't disappear just because he took a trip to Xiaotao Manor." He Lingchuan analyzed, "Before Miao Zhantian and Qingyang take action, if Bai Ziqi wants to move me, he must pass the Yao King's hurdle. I don't believe he can produce solid evidence—'correlation' cannot be used as evidence. I have such a massive project as the capital's eastern expansion in my hands; do you think the Yao King believes him?"

"... Cannot judge." The mirror put itself in his shoes and couldn't imagine whether the Yao King should believe him or not.

But there was one point: the role He Xiao played in the capital's eastern expansion construction was real, solid, and tangible. Once he was arrested, this project would definitely be greatly affected; and the inference Bai Ziqi produced was just an inference, still a certain distance from the truth.

At this time, the Yao King must be extremely unwilling to deal with He Lingchuan. He knew the situation and character of the team under him better than anyone. Once He Lingchuan was removed, who would take over such a massive project? "Even if the Yao King is forced by the pressure from Beijia and the Tiangong to deal with me, it would lead to a further deterioration of the relationship between the Yao court and the shrine. This is very unfavorable for Miao Zhantian's subsequent plans." He Lingchuan said, "Matters are divided into light and heavy, urgent and slow. Bai Ziqi is a divine envoy after all, and shouldn't dismantle Miao Zhantian's stage at this juncture. So, I am temporarily safe."

This "temporary" deadline was at most until Qingyang and Miao Zhantian took action; after that, Bai Ziqi would probably be able to do whatever he wanted without anyone being able to stop him.

"During the gap when Bai Ziqi is not in Tian Shui City, we must make good use of it and first figure out the strength of Peng Yukui and others." He Lingchuan blinked, "They can chase Bai Ziqi around, so they must be very tough. When necessary, they can become our effective help."

The mirror knew that the master was already calculating how to use them.

"Peng Yukui won't mind. He came to find you, which means he was prepared for mutual utilization."

"Not bad. We'd better solve another hidden danger."

The mirror just asked "Which hidden danger," when a branch outside rustled, and the Ghost Ape jumped onto the windowsill, baring its teeth at He Lingchuan.

He put away the barrier: "Come in."

The Ghost Ape entered through the window, carrying a small spider web pouch in its hand.

"Speaking of hidden dangers, the hidden danger has arrived." He Lingchuan asked with a smile, "Caught it?"

The Ghost Ape shook the pouch in its hand, didn't hand it over, and stared straight at him with monkey eyes.

He Lingchuan understood, got up, opened the drawer, took out a small bag of chocolate-filled beans, and handed it to it.

Only then did the Ghost Ape hand over the pouch and take the candy, still eyeing the drawer several times.

"Won't put them in the drawer next time."

Hearing He Lingchuan say this, the Ghost Ape reluctantly withdrew its gaze, peeled open the oil paper, and grabbed a handful of chocolate beans to eat.

Fragrant and sweet, both children and monkeys loved them. Recently, the chocolate powder shipped out of the Yao Kingdom by the Yangshan Chamber of Commerce had more than 20,000 jin made into various small candies, and this kind of chocolate bean was the new favorite in the market.

He Lingchuan looked at the pouch in his hand, where two beetles were lying quietly.

On their abdomens, both had a distinct red line.

The mirror said "Oh my": "Aren't these Tian Yun's insect puppets!"

The Ghost Ape had offered two insect puppets last time, but they were beaten to death by the bat demon, unlike these two... "Wait a minute, these two are still alive, right?"

He Lingchuan shook the pouch, and the two bugs flapped their wings and crawled a few times. Yes, full of life.

This was He Lingchuan's requirement: catch them alive. ===== CHAPTER 1597 =====

This was He Lingchuan's requirement: capture them alive.