Chapter 598: Meeting an Old Friend Again

"Old Dan, are you very familiar with Spirit Void City?" "Familiar. I've been in Spirit Void City for more than twenty years, and in my early years, I worked as a manager for two or three families above." Old Dan pointed his finger at the sky, "Later, I did business, worked as an assistant, and a helper. Although Spirit Void City is big, I am very familiar with it from inside to outside."

"Hmm..." He Lingchuan had too many urgent matters on hand now and had no leisure to listen to stories of the past. This Old Dan was not long-winded and was a person with discernment. "Then let me ask you, among the retired officials of Spirit Void City, is there anyone with the compound surname Zaifu?"

"Zaifu?" Old Dan blinked twice, "Yes, the Lord Zaifu you are talking about should be Lord Zaifu Kua, who reached the position of Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works. When I was a manager in the first household, he lived half a street away, considered a diagonal neighbor."

"Ministry of Works?"

Old Dan knew He Lingchuan was not familiar with the official system of Spirit Void, so he explained: "The Ministry of Works is in charge of the construction of palaces, the creation of various imperial fine instruments, and the production of palace silks and satins, etc. And Lord Zaifu is good at supervising the construction of palaces and temples. When the floating islands and Ruin Mountain were undergoing massive construction back then, he participated in all of them."

No wonder Xiang Yan could get to know him; they were indeed old partners who worked together.

He Lingchuan nodded: "Is Lord Zaifu well now?"

"Retired for less than two years, physically healthy and energetic, often active everywhere." Old Dan said quickly, "The Zaifu family still has a constant stream of visitors."

"A retired old official, why are so many people still looking for him?" People leaving and tea cooling was the norm.

"Lord Zaifu has been an official for decades, and he was in the Ministry of Works for twelve or thirteen years. Think about what kind of position that is; so many treasure merchants in Beijia, so many lake and river transport merchants, so many building material merchants, hehe, whose to use and whose not to use, except for the Emperor's personal appointment, isn't it all decided by the Ministry of Works? Lord Zaifu is well-versed in this way, has broad friendships, and after retirement, he still has many old acquaintances and can speak in front of many high officials."

He Lingchuan laughed: "An old official oil-slick, huh."

Old Dan also laughed along: "You can say that."

"Lord Zaifu living so comfortably is good, right?"

Old Dan continued: "Next month is his sixty-fifth birthday, and the Lord has already received an invitation from his family."

"Next month?" He Lingchuan raised an eyebrow, "Can you get his birth date?"

Old Dan thought for a moment and nodded: "I heard that Lord Zaifu found someone to divine early on, saying he had a great disaster at sixty-four. Seeing that sixty-five is approaching, he wants to hold a banquet to celebrate that he has survived this year."

He paused and said: "On the floating islands, families often hold banquets, and they can celebrate for any reason. If you happen to go to eat at every family, you can eat for a month and a half without repeating."

"A few meals, even if they are delicacies from mountains and seas, are small money for them."

Old Dan shook his head: "Actually, welcoming and sending off, human feelings are the most expensive. That expense is like flowing water; without a golden mountain or silver mine, you can't support it. Many officials can't support this kind of spending after retirement and have to withdraw from the floating islands and live in the lower city."

That meant falling from the clouds into the mortal world.

"For commoners, the lower city is also expensive, but it can't be compared with the floating islands."

He Lingchuan remembered General Golden Horn's Dun Garden. He didn't know what price such a garden that occupied a mountain and was vast and luxurious would be on the floating islands.

Oh right, money alone couldn't get you up there; he almost forgot.

"Let's pull away; is Zaifu Kua in the upper city or the lower city?"

"Upper city, Heavenly Phase Island." Old Dan added, "Retired officials like to gather on Heavenly Phase Island if they don't go to the lower city."

"Will he come to the lower city?"

"Occasionally." Old Dan thought for a moment, "He is a person who likes pomp."

He Lingchuan nodded: "Then help me inquire if he will come to the lower city recently."

"Yes."

At this moment, a servant delivered breakfast outside the courtyard.

The gatekeeper wanted to reach out to take it, but the servant shrank back and said loudly: "The Eldest Young Master ordered me to send it in."

Since Pan Shan Zhai belonged to He Lingchuan, the servants here all called him Eldest Young Master.

The gatekeeper glared: "I've been here since early morning; when did the Eldest Young Master order you?"

"Last night." The voice was even louder.

"..."

He Lingchuan heard the argument outside and yawned: "Both come in, don't argue!"

Both the gatekeeper and the servant came in, and the latter also placed the tray on the table: "Eat while it's hot."

This sounded more like an exhortation than flattery.

Not to mention the gatekeeper's disbelief, Old Dan looked sideways, and He Lingchuan also looked at him twice.

Staring at the three pairs of eyes, the servant said again: "Haven't seen you for half a month; after eating, let's have a good chat."

He Lingchuan looked at him with a gaze that gradually became solemn: "Who are you?"

"I warned you, if you cherish your life, don't come to Spirit Void City." The servant sighed, "You didn't listen to me."

His expression was stiff, his actions were dull, like a marionette, and even his speech seemed involuntary.

He Lingchuan said to the other two after knowing who the person in front of him was: "You two withdraw."

Old Dan whispered: "Eldest Young Master, you?"

"I'm very safe." He Lingchuan waved his hand, "Go down."

Both retreated quickly, not forgetting to close the door.

He Lingchuan looked at the tray on the table.

The breakfast was very rich, a steamer of steaming glutinous rice siu mai, two potato shredded radish cakes fried to a fragrant smell, a large bowl of scallion oil noodles mixed with three shreds, and the smoked elbow flower and small stomach that He Lingchuan specifically ordered last night. The skin was red, bright, oily, and moist, and each slice was cut thin and fine; dipping it in special sauce and eating it directly or clamping it into potato cakes was a masterpiece.

Oh, and a large bowl of sweet rice wine.

However, knowing who the person in front of him was, how could he dare to move his mouth?

Damn it, what a waste of food! "You are so bold, daring to wander around in Spirit Void City." He sighed and sat down, "Mai Xuewen... oh, should I call you Xi Yunhe?"

The servant still had no expression, and no ups and downs could be heard from the tone: "The National Master of Qingyang said so, right?"

This was an admission. He Lingchuan crossed his legs: "Are you here to find trouble with me?"

Xi Yunhe showed this hand at Bai Sha Jue, controlling the mind of the inn waiter as his own puppet to speak for him, well, a mouthpiece.

But He Lingchuan knew that this kind of magic had a small drawback, such as Xi Yunhe himself not being able to be too far from the puppet.

Pan Shan Zhai was not a real mansion, but it was much bigger than the inn he stayed at in Bai Sha Jue. That is to say, Xi Yunhe might be active outside the wall of Pan Shan Zhai.

Of course, this guy dared to appear in front of him, and he was also fearless.

"Why do you say that?"

"The whole Spirit Void City is looking for you, and the Cloud Envoy Bai Ziqi wants to catch you personally. At such a time, you still run out and run to me?" He Lingchuan pulled a long face, "Are you trying to drag me into the water?"

"I didn't walk into your house personally, and I wasn't seen by your servants, so what are you afraid of?" Xi Yunhe's voice was a bit brisk, "Besides, his master is anxious to break the Elixir of Immortality case, so his focus is not on me, but on the mastermind behind the killing of Wu Kai and the Qingfu Temple."

"I helped him a bit with this action. He can't not know."

He Lingchuan said indifferently: "Help him? Does the Emperor really not know that someone is privately selling the Elixir of Immortality in Spirit Void City?"

Zhongsun Mou went to Qingfu Temple to buy the Elixir of Immortality under the introduction of Shi Kai.

He dared to buy it, and Zhongsun Chi, that old man, dared to eat it, not doubting that what he ate was other ghost things, which showed that "the Elixir of Immortality can be bought" had spread among the upper echelons of Spirit Void City.

Things that ministers know, will the Emperor be kept completely in the dark?

Not impossible, just...

"Does the Emperor really want to manage it?"

"That can only be asked to the Emperor." Xi Yunhe laughed, "How could I know the thoughts of that old man?"

If this matter wasn't poked to the table, if it wasn't poked under the eyes of the gods, would Beijia really put in great effort to seriously investigate it? He Lingchuan was an outsider and couldn't see it accurately.

"What exactly is the matter with you coming to me?"

"I warned you, it's best to stay away from this muddy water. The water in Spirit Void City is much deeper than in Bai Sha Jue; if you get stirred into the vortex, you will lose your life." Xi Yunhe chuckled, "You didn't listen to me, and now you have to be dragged into the water."

He Lingchuan changed to a comfortable posture: "Related to the Elixir of Immortality case?"

"Smart."

"You finally handed the clue to Spirit Void City." And used a particularly radical method, "As a result, it's all broken now; Wu Kai is dead, and although the actor who contacted him confessed, the superior he confessed is also dead; Qingfu Temple was also burned to the ground, and both people and temple became ash. If this continues, the Emperor might only be able to close the case with Cen Boqing."

"Yes, the real culprit cannot be allowed to go unpunished." Xi Yunhe took a step forward, "You hand over another clue to Bai Ziqi."

"Hey, I finally managed to extract myself from this matter, and I'm just here to watch the fun in Spirit Void City." He Lingchuan looked reluctant, "Why do I have to get involved again?"

"Aren't the Chi Yan Kingdom, Baoshu Kingdom, and these four or five vassal demon countries the victims? Doesn't Fu Shanyue hope that this case will be brought to light and the mastermind behind the scenes will be punished as they deserve?"

From this level, Chi Yan and other vassal demon kings were indeed looking forward to the truth being brought to light, using a righteous reason to stir up the imperial capital. Then, as the special envoy of Chi Yan, what reason did He Lingchuan have not to take this job?

He Lingchuan said lightly: "Then go tell Fu Shanyue."

Pressing him with duty? Hehe, he didn't have a "duty" in Chi Yan, so where did the duty come from? Morality was just air to him.

Want him to help? Then there must be something real.

Thinking of this, He Lingchuan's heart moved, why not...? "If Bai Ziqi can't catch the real culprit, and the case cools down, do you think the real culprit will let you go?" Xi Yunhe said indifferently, "At that time, the revenge will definitely come very fiercely."

"Whatever, I might not be in Spirit Void City by then." He Lingchuan touched his nose, "I'm just a nameless pawn; the world is big, where can't I go?"

"By then?" Xi Yunhe laughed, "Even among these old-brand nobles in Spirit Void City, there isn't a family that wants to offend the Green Palace, the Minister of Agriculture, the Zhongsun family, and the Tongxin Guard at the same time."

Thanks to TNT for the enthusiastic praise, we have another alliance leader.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 599 =====

(End of Chapter)