Chapter 464

"Taiping Cao Gang..." Seeing Pei Ye muttered. He looked at the gorgeous great pavilion in front of him. Walking closer, he could almost smell the gurgling water inside.

Four tall and straight men in black stood in front of the heavy carved gate. When a carriage arrived, three people wearing swords stood on the edge without moving, and one person waiting for reception stepped forward to inquire.

"So, this Li Guan is just one of their hundreds of industries?" Seeing Pei Ye asked.

Xu Chuo said "Mm," and added, "But as far as the brothel business goes, it can also be considered their signboard."

"Since the Taiping Cao Gang has such a big name, have you always not known who is behind it?"

"Not clear. I know it is somewhat taken care of by the Southern Office, otherwise it couldn't control water transport, nor could it stand firmly in the Divine Capital. But how the lines inside are connected and which parties benefit from them, I can't see," Xu Chuo said calmly. "The Divine Capital is a complex body of water. Many times, it's not as simple as who is in a group with whom or who controls whom. Many people's interests are intertwined, and I don't have a full grasp of it either."

"Oh."

"More importantly, before you arrived in the Divine Capital, I hadn't taken action against the Yan Prince's Mansion."

Seeing Pei Ye was astonished. "... Didn't they all assassinate you?"

"Yes, but I have always been doing other equally important things."

"Then that's not 'not hitting back when beaten, not scolding back when cursed'?"

"..."

"I'm sorry."

"If one wants to take action, it's best to pull it out by the roots—haven't I already started now?"

"Pulling out the Yan Prince's Mansion in the Divine Capital?"

"Yes. If one wants to swing a fist to the north, one must first clear the Divine Capital," Xu Chuo said calmly. "A fist with thorns cannot be gripped tightly."

The four words "clear the Divine Capital" made Seeing Pei Ye stunned, and then he smiled. "Then I came at the right time."

"On the contrary, it is because you came that I decided to push this line."

"..."

"Before, we lacked a sword as suitable and sharp as you," Xu Chuo said earnestly. "Now we can start taking action."

"... Pavilion Master, I am only at the Sixth Life."

"It's enough in the Divine Capital."

"Good."

Xu Chuo paused on that side and said, "Give me a result on this Ding Yukang line."

"... A result?" Seeing Pei Ye was stunned. Isn't this clearly not finished investigating yet?

But Xu Chuo was waiting quietly on that side, so he frowned and calculated, "According to Ding Yukang's statement, the permanent staff of Li Guan is about one hundred. If the personnel allocation is similar to other brothels, there is probably a difference of sixty to one hundred people here."

Xu Chuo paused slightly. "Are there only sixty or seventy people?"

"... An adult man can eat about three or four catties a day."

"Oh, is that so."

Thus, the words stopped there. Seeing Pei Ye stroked the sword hilt slowly, looking quietly at the gate not far ahead. The two words "Li Guan" were gilded and overflowing with color.

It did the business of top courtesans and artists on the surface, but what kind of shady dealings were inside?

Seeing Pei Ye thought, he currently had two methods. One was to pretend to be a guest and take a look at the layout inside, but first, his identity probably wouldn't pass, and second, he didn't have much silver.

The second method was the one he was familiar with. When it got later, he would try to flip over the wall and sneak in to take a look. Regardless of whether he could find the root cause, he would always gain something.

Once this thought arose, he wanted to ask Xu Chuo to return the black cat. However, before he could open his mouth, after a long silence, the voice came from the opposite side first: "Are you getting used to living in the Sword-Practicing Academy?"

Seeing Pei Ye was stunned. "It's quite good. I'm in the same courtyard as Yang Zhenbing and Yan Feiqing, just right for exchanging sword paths."

"I told Qiu Jiji to take more care of you. If there is anything in the academy, you can look for him."

"... Good."

"You probably don't know, this Qiu Jiji is quite interesting," the woman on the opposite side seemed to have finally become leisurely, saying calmly, "He hangs a wine gourd on his waist every day, as if he is addicted to drinking, but in fact, it's filled with sweet wine like water, and he falls after drinking three taels, with no exceptions."

Seeing Pei Ye widened his eyes slightly.

"Yan Feiqing is also a blockhead," Xu Chuo added. "There is a top-notch way to get along with him. Do you know it?"

"... What?"

"Praise him for being good-looking."

Seeing Pei Ye widened his eyes.

"Just like stroking a cat's fur, it works every time," Xu Chuo said calmly.

Seeing Pei Ye really didn't expect that this jujube Daoist priest actually had such a worldly heart, and secretly noted it down in his heart.

He actually really wanted to hear the woman tell more gossip, but at this time, he looked at the sky and still seized the gap to interrupt: "Pavilion Master, let the little cat come over. Since this pavilion is decided, I will go in and explore tonight, so as not to have long nights and many dreams."

That side was stunned. "You want to go in?"

"Yes, grabbing the tail of this pavilion can be used to grab the Cao Gang, and even further up, the movements of the Yan Prince's Mansion will have clues," Seeing Pei Ye said. "I'm afraid that if time passes, it will startle the snake, and the clues will be gone."

"No need."

"Hm?"

"The coursework these two days should be very heavy. Besides, someone will go to watch the first Sword-Playing Meeting seven days later. Prepare well, no need to waste energy first."

"But here..."

"I have already sent someone here."

Seeing Pei Ye was stunned, but he didn't ask any further.

Because amidst the thunder-like roar, his head had already turned toward the end of the long street first.

Dense and heavy hoofbeats shook the street. The cold scales of iron light shone brightly under the candlelight. A full two hundred heavy cavalry, like a tide cast in iron, crossed through the main street of Pingkang Ward. Pedestrians gave way in astonishment, and the dancers on the lotus platform stopped their dancing in panic.

This tide flew toward Seeing Pei Ye extremely quickly, and then divided into three strands with precise order. Two strands surrounded this massive Li Guan like a reef, and the remaining strand rushed straight to the main gate without slowing down, following the silver-armored young general who was leading.

The four men in black were completely bewildered at this moment. Some pulled their swords subconsciously, and some went up to ask something, but the leader swept them aside with a wave of his silver halberd.

Then he leaped on his horse and held his halberd, smashing toward that heavy closed gate. The surging and domineering true Qi exploded like a rushing stream, destroying this gate like rotten wood. Eighty iron cavalry followed him and rushed in. Amidst the countless panic that arose, a cold low shout came from the gate: "The Longwu Army is handling a case! Li Guan is suspected of privately hiding military weapons. Now ordered to cooperate with the investigation; those who resist will be executed!"

And outside the gate, eleven riders still stood quietly. A steady black-armored general with his face covered held his spear horizontally, standing there steadily.

"... In this way, the clues really won't be able to escape." Seeing Pei Ye was quiet for a while, muttered a sentence, and sat down slowly on the stone steps by the street again.

He looked at the clamor and the disturbing firelight inside, and asked curiously, "Pavilion Master, what about Yang Zhenbing? Does Yang Zhenbing have any fun places?"

"Not familiar," Xu Chuo said. "What about you? You have also met many people along the way. I am quite curious, does Ming Qitian have any interesting places?"

Seeing Pei Ye was stunned. He remembered that the woman loved to drink pear soup, liked to carve swords, and would play cards by herself... There were indeed too many places unknown to outsiders, but these passed through his mind, and he smiled. "There is nothing much to say about Miss Ming. She is just very powerful and also very easy to deal with. Pavilion Master, let me tell you an interesting story about Zhu Gaoyang."