Chapter 818

A shrewd person should choose the latter, because even if He Lingchuan manages to become a special envoy of Rongshan, he ultimately has no foundation here in the Yuan Nation; conversely, He Chunhua is already the most important and influential figure in the Yuan capital. It's obvious which master has better prospects, isn't it?

People's hearts are easily changed, and He Lingchuan truly doesn't blame him for planning his own future, but...

He Lingchuan stared at him, his voice suddenly turning sharp: "But I want to ask you, did you kill Sun Hongye?"

Dan Youjun was startled, shaking his head like a rattle-drum: "No, no, I've never done such a thing!"

He Lingchuan scrutinized his expression carefully: "Explain the ins and outs clearly, and I might spare your life."

He didn't need to say "otherwise," because Qiu Hu was standing right behind Dan Youjun, his killing intent like a tiger's.

The hair on Dan Youjun's back stood on end, his right hand clenched into a fist, desperately suppressing the urge to draw his blade.

This was a stress response triggered by fear.

Where on earth did the Young Master find such a murderous monster?

"I'll say it, I'll say it!" He swallowed hard, "My relationship with Sun Hongye was passable, and I had borrowed money from him, but I paid it back quickly. About a month ago, Master He suddenly ordered me to monitor Sun Hongye's movements, saying his behavior was abnormal and that I should report to him in a timely manner."

"I couldn't disobey a superior's order, so I had to comply. In the days that followed, I discovered that Sun Hongye did indeed seem to be probing for something. I tried to sound him out, but he refused to say a word."

Dan Youjun paused.

"And then?" He Lingchuan could see he had more to say.

"Later, I followed him to a restaurant in the Yuan capital and discovered he was meeting with Lady Zhu, and he handed a book to her." Dan Youjun swallowed his saliva, "I reported this to Master He, and he ordered me to retrieve that book."

"The title of the book?"

"《Annotations on the Yao Flower Collection》."

He Lingchuan realized: "So, the book thief who snuck into Zhu Xiuer's house was you?"

Dan Youjun looked sheepish.

"And then?"

"Master He and I both flipped through the book, but we didn't find anything unusual inside. Master He originally kept it in the study, but then you, Young Master, suddenly returned, so Master He gave the book to me and told me to hide it well."

As soon as he finished speaking, He Lingchuan reached out to him: "The book, hand it over!"

Two breaths later, that half-new, half-old *Annotations on the Yao Flower Collection* was in He Lingchuan's hands.

So the book had been taken by Dan Youjun; no wonder he had tried to inspect Steward Wu's dream but couldn't get anything out of him.

"And then?" He Lingchuan asked while flipping through the book, "What did you do to Sun Hongye?"

"I didn't do anything!" Dan Youjun was ready to swear to the heavens, "Sun Hongye resigned from Master He's service, and Master He told me to see him off."

He Lingchuan frowned: "See him off?"

"It was just a simple farewell, no killing!" Dan Youjun coughed, "I saw him out the east gate of the Yuan capital, but I was uneasy, so I followed him secretly for two days. I found that he really did head east without ever looking back, just staying at inns, eating, and traveling; he didn't exchange idle words with anyone else."

"Then I came back... and the moment I entered the mansion, I saw you, Young Master."

He Lingchuan looked at him with a half-smile: "Uneasy? Was following him secretly your idea, or my old man's?"

"I, it was my own decision." Dan Youjun said in a low voice, "People come and go in the mansion; Master He didn't care at all."

He Lingchuan understood in his heart that his old man must have considered the option of killing him to silence him.

A few months ago, if Sun Hongye had been so sneaky under his command, He Chunhua probably would have silenced him without hesitation, because what he feared most was others discovering his private offerings to the gods.

That was why the He family had suffered such a disaster.

However, times had changed; the He Chunhua of today was already a powerful figure in the Yuan capital, a star of hope with distinguished merits. Would the Yuan King still dare to prosecute him for offering to the gods?

I'm afraid even if he knew, he would pretend not to.

A charge that once felt as heavy as a mountain was now nothing to be exposed. It was like a paper hat worn on the head; a strong puff of air could blow it away.

He Chunhua had his reliance, and he couldn't be bothered with what Sun Hongye was doing; if he wanted to leave, he let him go.

"Go on down." He Lingchuan waved his hand at Dan Youjun, "Work hard under my old man from now on."

Dan Youjun swallowed a mouthful of bitterness, knowing that once these words were spoken, the bond between master and servant was severed.

He had betrayed He Lingchuan first; the fact that the other party didn't punish him was already magnanimous.

He knelt down and said to He Lingchuan: "This lowly one has failed you, Young Master. I wish you a boundless future and a smooth journey ahead!"

He Lingchuan didn't even look at him, picking up the *Annotations on the Yao Flower Collection* and opening it.

Dan Youjun turned and left. When he passed by Qiu Hu, he glanced at him again, seeing the man staring at him with nothing but disdain in his eyes.

He walked outside the garden archway and looked back, suddenly feeling a bit of regret.

Logically speaking, following He Chunhua was the most rational and intelligent choice. But for some reason, at this moment, he felt a pang of regret in his heart, as if he had brushed past some important opportunity.

After Dan Youjun retreated gloomily, He Lingchuan took a note out of his bosom; this was what Sun Hongye had asked He Yue to pass on to his older brother before leaving.

What followed was easy; He Lingchuan had already done it once while investigating the Elixir of Immortality case, which was to follow the numbers above to check the pages and lines in the *Annotations on the Yao Flower Collection*. In a flash, Sun Hongye's riddle was solved: The Young Master's biological mother was buried in the mountain behind Bai Ta Temple.

Just these twelve characters left He Lingchuan stunned for a long while.

"Ah, what?" The Soul-Capturing Mirror was astonished, "So this Lady Ying isn't your biological mother? Oh my, this is truly, truly..."

It originally wanted to say "interesting," but realized that wasn't right and might get it beaten. "Following you is truly never boring."

Every few days there's something fresh, either heart-stopping or inconceivable.

Its previous few masters didn't have lives nearly as colorful.

He Lingchuan couldn't be bothered to pay it any mind.

He had thought the secret Sun Hongye had quietly uncovered was He Chunhua's private offerings to the gods.

But it turned out to be...

He rested his chin on his hand, lost in thought.

When he first arrived in this world, he felt the atmosphere of the He family was very strange. He Chunhua's attitude toward his eldest son was twisted, while Lady Ying was very cold toward He Lingchuan.

The original body was only sixteen when he fell off the cliff, thinking his mother just disliked his playboy ways.

But as an outsider, he saw something was wrong at a glance.

The look in Lady Ying's eyes when she looked at her second son, He Yue, was the maternal love a mother should have; when she looked at He Lingchuan, it was pure disgust.

It wasn't anger at his lack of ambition, but rather that no matter how she looked at him, he was an eyesore.

It wasn't until later, when He Lingchuan gradually became successful and sacrificed himself to cover the retreat by the side of County Magistrate Lake, that his relationship with Lady Ying greatly improved. The look this mother gave him finally had some warmth.

He had occasionally muttered to himself, was the original body not her biological son? A prophecy fulfilled indeed.

He had an impression of the place name "Bai Ta Temple."

It was a temple located west of Heishuicheng, dedicated to the mountains and marshes of the west, and its incense was quite popular.

Anyway, he was going to Heishuicheng; why not stop by and take a look?

(End of chapter)