Chapter 106: Seven-Day Pursuit

After sending away the Assistant Secretary of the Management Class of the Secret Service Factory, the Donggong fell into peace again.

Chu Danqing went to communicate with Wang Qi, the Crown Prince's Junior Preceptor, and was arranged to rest.

Wang Qi was aware that Chu Danqing had just arrived in the Capital today, was exhausted from the journey, and hadn't adapted yet, so he arranged it this way because he couldn't help much.

Chu Danqing had no objection to Wang Qi's arrangement.

After being settled, Chu Danqing chose to open the treasure chest dropped by the assassin.

【You opened: Treasure Chest (Excellent-tier), obtained: Red Copper Refined Iron Staff, Paradise Points × 2500】

【Red Copper Refined Iron Staff】

【Type: Equipment · Long Staff】

【Quality: Excellent】

【Durability: 100/100】

【Attack Power: 10~25】

【Red Copper Blazing Fire (Passive): Extra 10 points of fire damage when releasing staff-type energy release skills】

【Equipment Requirement: Strength 10 points, Constitution 8 points】

"Sigh, the strength is still weak." Chu Danqing sighed; not opening good things was normal.

It was very simple to judge top experts in this Trial World: whether they had mastery skills.

Besides these top experts, wanting to open basic skill books could only be done through accumulating treasure chests similar to bandit suppression, forming qualitative change through quantitative change.

The assassin was still quite far off; if the other party's Canghe Heart Art reached level 40, perhaps he could obtain Melee Mastery, and then there would be a chance to open basic skill books from the treasure chest after killing him.

"Another item to sell for money." Chu Danqing muttered and threw it into the storage space.

Actually, Chu Danqing thought about using it for Dabao, but Dabao had claws, and it wasn't convenient to grasp weapons.

And ordinary Excellent-tier equipment wasn't as good as Dabao's claws, unless it was an Excellent-tier quality similar to the Nine-Child Ghost Mother Diagram that was suitable.

"Fine, let's sleep." Chu Danqing offered incense and changed offerings for the Snake Soul shrine.

The connection between him and the Snake Soul was becoming tighter, and occasionally when sleeping, the Snake Soul could even enter his dreams.

Because of the connection between the two sides, the Snake Soul's favorability toward Chu Danqing was naturally the highest.

It was just a bit off-track, recognizing Chu Danqing as its father.

Fortunately, this wasn't bad news, but good news.

Being a father was better than being a grandson; Chu Danqing not only accepted it but also took meticulous care of it.

Since he raised it himself, being a father wasn't impossible.

Sleeping until he woke up naturally, he took out the Empty Valley Orchid, this five-colored flower, to practice for half an hour as usual, and then after the three-part offering, he went out leisurely.

The Donggong hadn't rested all night and had added many personnel transferred from outside the palace as a gesture of protection.

By noon, the Crown Prince finally rushed back and received Wang Qi, Chu Danqing, Xiong Zhigang, and others at the first opportunity.

The Crown Prince, who was already physically weak, was extremely haggard because he hadn't slept all night.

Someone brought ginseng tea, but the Crown Prince didn't even touch it, clearly having psychological trauma from the previous soothing tea.

"Your Highness, fortunately with the help of Chu Left Guard Commander, many clues have been found," Wang Qi said: "The assassin is named Zhang Cai, from the Canghe Association staff master background."

"He entered the Capital a month ago, and 100 taels of official silver were found in his home, and the serial number on the silver was found to be registered military pay."

"Zhang Cai was once a former subordinate who defended against the Sushen, and later one of the disbanded soldiers after the peace talks."

"But this military pay has been in arrears until now." Wang Qi introduced the important identity and continued: "According to the coroner's autopsy, there was a large amount of Five-Stone Powder in his abdomen."

"Taking too much caused his mind to collapse and act like a madman."

"It's just that it's temporarily unknown why he would assassinate Your Highness even if his mind was gone."

"In addition, the person who cast the refined iron staff for him was also found, it was Wu's Blacksmith in the Capital, and everyone up

The Crown Prince rubbed his temples, feeling exceptionally exhausted.

"As for the mastermind behind the scenes, are there any clues?" The Crown Prince knew that Zhang Zui was merely a discarded pawn; this information was all out in the open—it couldn't be fake, but it was useless.

He naturally had suspects in mind: Noble Consort Zheng and Prince Fu.

After hearing this, Chu Danqing was surprised; as expected of the pinnacle of power, they had dug up the assassin completely in a single night.

Relying on him to turn the tide? If he were to investigate all this, it wouldn't be finished in three or five days.

After the Crown Prince finished asking, an attendant presented a confession that had been very tightly concealed.

The content was extremely confidential, and not many people present knew about it; it was obtained through Wang Qi's personal interrogation.

The Crown Prince opened it and read it word by word, but no joy or anger could be seen on his face.

"Left Guard Commander Chu, Grand Coordinator Xiong, you two take a look." After the Crown Prince covered it back up, he had someone present it to Chu Danqing.

Chu Danqing was not one to shy away; he picked it up and read it.

He quickly scanned through it and handed it to Xiong Zhigang; the general content all pointed in one direction.

That was that the calming tea the Crown Prince drank every day had been laced with chronic poison, and the masterminds were Noble Consort Zheng and Prince Fu.

Judging from the current clues, the people behind the assassination case were very likely these two, who could no longer wait.

"What do you think?" the Crown Prince asked.

Chu Danqing pondered slightly, then said: "The drunkard's heart is not in the cup, but in the mountains and rivers."

This matter was not easy to state clearly; he always felt the mastermind was not these two, and thus he spoke vaguely.

The Crown Prince nodded and immediately said: "I entrust this matter to you to investigate. Can you ascertain the truth within seven days?"

【Side Quest: Pursue the true culprit of the Tingji case within seven days】

【Trial Difficulty: B-Rank (Warrior)】

【Trial Reward: Paradise Points × 5000, Attribute Points +3】

【Trial Failure: Paradise Points -10000】

The Dimension Paradise provided a mission prompt, and it was even B-Rank, a level higher than the trial mission itself.

After thinking for a moment, Chu Danqing immediately accepted it.

"Your Highness, rest assured, I will definitely ascertain the truth within seven days!" Chu Danqing said immediately.

The Crown Prince was very satisfied with Chu Danqing's attitude.

"Do your best, that is enough." The Crown Prince offered a word of comfort; he valued the truth, but not excessively so.

The suspects were nothing more than two factions: the Investigative Factory and the Qiutan Sect.

The former represented the Emperor, while the latter represented Noble Consort Zheng and Prince Fu.

It would be best if he could find out, but if not, it didn't matter; he was going to retaliate against them regardless.

Previously, their infighting was merely within the imperial court, but now that they actually wanted his life, how could the Crown Prince sit still?

"Go down, I am weary." The Crown Prince could no longer hold on.

He left under the escort of the Crown Prince's Grand Guardian, whose strength was not inferior to the Iron Palm Flying Dragon Yuan Chong; he was also a supreme master.

He was a military official in the court and did not live in the Donggong on a daily basis, but rather in the military camp.

The crowd soon dispersed, while Chu Danqing followed Wang Qi and Xiong Zhigang.

"Lord Chu, set your mind at ease. You don't need to worry about this matter; your subordinates in the Zhangyu Guard are full of talent, so it won't be difficult to find the truth within seven days." Wang Qi replied, his tone slightly weary.

At his age, he certainly couldn't handle being busy all night.

Chu Danqing looked suspicious; he had thought this Zhangyu Guard Left Guard Commander position was just a nominal title, but it actually held real power.

"Where is it?" Chu Danqing asked; if you don't know, just ask.

Wang Qi's footsteps stopped: "You don't know?"

"Ah? Should I know?" Chu Danqing was also confused; he had only been here for one day, and no one had shown him around yet, so how could he possibly know?

"Lord Chu comes from a humble background and hasn't seen much of the world, so he truly doesn't know." Xiong Zhigang helped smooth things over.

A wry expression appeared on Wang Qi's face; the merit of saving the Emperor was indeed high.

One was a wandering sorcerer who knew nothing, and the other was a big fool with incomplete mental faculties, yet these two had become the Left and Right Guard Commanders of the Zhangyu Guard.

Having saved him twice, directly and indirectly, it was actually reasonable.

"Then I will trouble you, Grand Coordinator Xiong, to show Lord Chu the ropes. This old man's body can barely hold on anymore." Wang Qi chuckled and let Xiong Zhigang take Chu Danqing to understand the situation.

Xiong Zhigang had actually not slept all night either, but he was strong and sturdy, so it didn't affect him much.

"Lord Chu's official uniform and the Donghua Token have already been sent to Lord Chu's office. Grand Coordinator Xiong, you can take Lord Chu to collect them together."

"As for Lord Wu's, it will take some time, so it can only be delayed for a bit. The Great Returning Treasure Pill has already been sent over first." After saying this, Wang Qi left directly.

He left the Donggong, boarded his sedan, and returned to his residence without the slightest delay.

Seeing this, Xiong Zhigang could only comply.

He took Chu Danqing to the office, chatting with him along the way.

"I am about to resume my post as the Peace and Order Grand Coordinator; I must leave the capital to guard the borders within three days at most." Xiong Zhigang opened with the main point, then added: "I recommended Mr. Chu, originally thinking of letting you become a guest of the Donggong."

"I never thought I would still underestimate Mr. Chu. In just one day, you have gained the deep trust of His Highness the Crown Prince; I, on the other hand, haven't been able to help at all."

Chu Danqing responded: "If not for your recommendation, Grand Coordinator Xiong, I wouldn't even have been able to enter the gate, let alone all this."

"By the way, do you have any leads on the military supplies and the river embankment destruction?" Chu Danqing asked again.

"His Highness the Crown Prince was assassinated, so I haven't mentioned it yet; I can only wait until tomorrow." Xiong Zhigang wanted to speak, but the timing was not appropriate.

If it could truly be confirmed, then once the two major crimes of assassinating the Crown Prince and selling military supplies were exposed, the Qiutan Sect would surely perish.

For either one alone, there would be room for maneuver, as Emperor Taichang did not want the court to be too turbulent, and thus would only execute the primary culprits.

But with these two matters linked together, it was hard not to think of treason.

The people of the Qiutan Sect could marry and have descendants, unlike the eunuchs in the Investigative Factory who needed to rely on imperial power.

"However, Mr. Chu, if you have the heart, you can investigate through the Zhangyu Guard; perhaps you might have some gains." Xiong Zhigang continued; he was leaving the capital and truly couldn't spare the effort.

The movements of the Sushen people were becoming increasingly frequent, and he could not delay too long.

"The Zhangyu Guard, are they really that powerful?" Chu Danqing asked suspiciously.

"This is His Highness the Crown Prince's private army; when he ascends the throne in the future, they will be the Imperial Yulin Guard." Xiong Zhigang explained to Chu Danqing: "Wherever the Zhangyu Guard goes, it is as if His Highness the Crown Prince has arrived in person."

"Therefore, Mr. Chu, you must still be cautious in your words and actions; your words and actions are the will of the Crown Prince."

Chu Danqing did not expect the Crown Prince to be so willing to invest heavily, and then he thought of one thing: "His Highness the Crown Prince also told me to act as I see fit."

Xiong Zhigang's pupils constricted, and he paused, as if deliberating.

After about ten seconds, he finally spoke: "Then make a scene, make this matter as big as possible!"

(End of chapter)