Chapter 505: Identifying the Fake

Sister Xing Zhi pretended not to hear and smiled at the man: "Sorry to trouble you, Mr. Qi."

The Daoist-robed man smiled and cupped his hands: "You're too polite. Since Xing Zishou Xing has an order, how can I refuse?"

Xie Chuantang handed over a thin scroll. The man bowed to receive it and left.

That was an official transfer document signed by the Jingzhao Prefecture. Doing this errand at the Xianren Terrace could earn a "second-class official salary supplement," and it was also counted as a case handled this month. Pei Ye found it very novel when he learned about it from Sister Xing Zhi just now.

"Otherwise, why would people come when you, Pei Shaoxia, call them? Constables also need to eat and support their families." Sister Xing Zhi said, "Some Yamen can't issue this kind of document, can only issue low-standard ones, so they can't invite people from the Xianren Terrace."

Pei Ye learned immediately: "Then I'll ask Magistrate Di to issue one for you when I go back."

Sister Xing Zhi smiled: "Pei Daxia is used to ordering people around by being their life-saver, so there's no need to get involved in these vulgar affairs."

Now that this portrait was in his hands, Pei Ye couldn't help but frown. Actually, speaking of it, after accepting his suggestion to add two hind limbs, it looked like a living creature. Whether it was a pig-mother dragon or a four-legged snake, it was a look after all. If it was according to the first draft of that man's intuition, he really couldn't think of any living thing that had a torso and tail but only two forelimbs.

But this thing was also very strange. At least the two kinds above both grew scales, but they were not slippery scales.

Since there was no clue, he could only take the portrait and walk and visit bit by bit. Analyzing the map of the Divine Jingcheng, several paths were drawn, and public servants were sent to search one by one.

After a toss, the sky was already dim. Next, the public servants had to search overnight. Pei Ye didn't want to participate in this kind of work that mostly had no results now. He leaned on the chair and thought for a while, but still couldn't find a clue, so he simply got up and said goodbye to the two, smiled and pointed to the wounds on his body, and left.

The sky was getting dark, but the dark clouds had scattered again. The warm orange sunlight dyed the air, and the Divine Jingcheng seemed to be always so lively at any time.

Perhaps this city was too big, and there were too many people. No matter how shocking the darkness was, it was just a wave, and it couldn't affect its colorful brilliance.

"Little cat, is 'tadpole turning into a toad' really not funny?" Pei Ye frowned and tilted his head.

"Funny."

Pei Ye smiled, unfolded his brows, looked up and sighed lightly: "Do you know, little cat, I actually feel that my way of touching 【Bare Heart Seeing Blade】 has hit the mark again."

He looked at the small black ball on his shoulder: "It's like when I learned 'Cicada Sparrow Sword.' Do you remember? At that time, no matter how I thought about it, I couldn't understand why 【Spreading Wings】 could accumulate a style of 【Clear Sound】 in actual combat. This move is clearly so clumsy. Once performed, the sword frame is like being frozen, and it can't deal with the enemy at all."

"Later, I realized it for a long time, learned not to stick to the shape of the move, received moves in the state of 【Spreading Wings】, and forced myself to be handy in the turning of power, thus stepping into the peak of the sword realm." Pei Ye recalled, "As a result, Li Piaoqing told me later that this move has a matching footwork."

"It is specially used to dodge the enemy's offensive while accumulating power in 【Spreading Wings】, but it was lost."

Pei Ye smiled: "Now this one, I think it is the same. Originally, it needed a set of underwater body techniques, but it forced 【Bare Heart Seeing Blade】 out of me."

He was curious: "Little cat, do you say I am destined to turn bad luck into good luck and walk through danger? Should I go to such perilous realms more often in the future?"

"Don't take me with you if you want to die."

Pei Ye rolled his eyes shallowly.

"You haven't told me in detail what you encountered. I see you don't seem to be injured at all, and you are even more energetic?"

"Yes, very nourishing."

"Ah?"

The black cat raised its eyes from his shoulder and was silent for a while: "The place where I was pulled in that day was very strange."

"Hmm?"

"I don't have its memory, but I don't seem to be unfamiliar with this kind of method." The black cat said in a low voice, "When I was inside, I felt that I hadn't moved away from you, it was just that there seemed to be a film separating us."

Pei Ye frowned and thought: "What about that big python? Is it real? I remember it appeared and disappeared, but no water was pushed away and surged back."

"Water Hui. The 'Records of Strange Tales' of the Southern Dynasty says that water Hui turns into a dragon in five hundred years, and a dragon turns into a dragon in a thousand years; then five hundred years to turn into a horned dragon, and a thousand years to turn into a responding dragon. It is talking about this kind of water spirit creature."

Pei Ye widened his eyes: "Is it so magical?"

"Written randomly."

"Oh."

"There are no such natural spiritual Mystic creatures in the human world anymore, at least far earlier than the era of the author." The black cat said, "But I met a male and a female."

It looked at the sky quietly. The little cat had been relatively silent for two days. The sight this time seemed to have touched many of its thoughts.

"It's okay, what we are checking now is them." Pei Ye patted it, "Sooner or later, the truth will come out."

During the conversation, Pei Ye stopped. In front of him was the plaque of Taishan Medical Building.

After entering the door and handing in his name, someone led him up to that familiar medical pavilion.

Pushing the door, there was indeed only one girl in simple and clean clothes in the quiet room, who was standing among a table of medicinal materials and instruments, not knowing what she was tinkering with.

It was always overly quiet here, and the faint medicinal fragrance brewed into an atmosphere, making people feel relaxed as soon as they entered.

Qu Xin turned her head and glanced at him: "Asked you to come over the day before yesterday, why did you miss two days."

Pei Ye didn't speak, took off his upper garment, laid out a piece of cloth for surgery, and lay on the bed obediently.

Then he raised his head. Qu Xin looked at him covered in wounds, and he looked at the silent Qu Xin.

"You really make me happy." Qu Xin said in a flat voice, turned around to wash her hands, and began to prepare knives and medicines.

The girl's medical skills never needed to be worried about. Broken bones, external injuries, internal injuries, and any other strange states, it seemed that as long as it happened on the human body, there was nothing she couldn't handle.

After applying medicine to him, Pei Ye looked at the wounds neatly and cleanly stitched with fine threads, some new and some old, and actually had a strange good look.

"Qu Xin," Pei Ye suddenly raised his eyes and called, "Do you have that kind of medicine to remove scars? Several places left marks from the wounds stitched up in Shaolong last time."

"Yes, I used it for you every time."

Pei Ye lifted the thin quilt and pointed: "Then look at this diagonal one on the chest, so obvious."

Qu Xin glanced: "Oh, I left this one on purpose."

"?"

"You will feel more masculine this way."

"I will... when did I express this meaning to you—" Pei Ye stared, "When did I express this meaning to you?"

"Well, I think so." Qu Xin admitted, stopping the work in her hands, "Why, don't you like it?"

"... Qu Xin."

"Hmm."

"I am not your toy."

"..."

Although every time he came, this little medicine monarch had to do something unexpected to him, she was indeed the person Pei Ye trusted most when he was carrying heavy injuries. However, this life-saver was also about to leave soon, and the date was set for the morning after tomorrow.

Pei Ye, who was still thinking about sending things to Bowang, naturally wouldn't miss this opportunity. Although he had entrusted many things to the girl, the more he thought, the more he felt he needed to buy, especially the most important thing, he also wanted to send some silver back.

But the fifty-tael silver note he borrowed from Qi Zhaohua that day had to be exchanged at a silver shop.

Perhaps it was because his small movements were caught, Qu Xin didn't ask for his medical fees this time. Pei Ye rarely raised his eyebrows and exhaled in front of her, and walked out of the medical building with his head held high.

He actually still didn't know why Qu Xin wanted to make "decorations" on his body, and suddenly became inexplicably vigilant about whether this girl had started to have a good impression of him. The black cat replied with "Maybe she just sees you without clothes more often."

It was late, so Pei Ye and the little cat returned to the Sword Academy for the time being.

Most of the time, the youth's brain was still thinking about the scale monsters privately transported by Nan Nan Jin Feng. However, he didn't get much from asking Qu Xin just now, and the news from the Jingzhao Prefecture also said that no traces of it walking on land were found, which inevitably made him even more distressed.

Pei Ye was still thinking about going ashore. This thing disappeared from the water area for no reason, and it was highly likely that it was hiding on land. This inference was naturally no problem. But how could there be no traces left when landing and walking on the shore? Could it be that it also grew a pair of wings?

Pei Ye couldn't figure it out more and more, so he had to hope that the Jingzhao Prefecture could produce some new results tomorrow.

In the Sword Academy, the two academy friends were still living a life that seemed to never change. In the eyes of the two, this was just another ordinary night when the youth returned with heavy injuries.

After greeting and returning to the room, it was dawn after a sleep.

Early the next morning, Pei Ye took out his small bag. He would put these things under the bedding before going out. Although the two didn't steal his things, this was a habit he had developed.

The fifty taels borrowed from Qi Zhaohua were in here. Pei Ye scanned it casually and carried it out. When he stepped out of the academy gate, he indeed received a message from the Jingzhao Prefecture.

The Xianren Terrace and the Jingzhao Prefecture were indeed not just eating and doing nothing. The scale and intensity of the search were definitely not comparable to gangs. After one night, Xie Chuantang had already told him that the case "has made some progress and can be viewed together."

Pei Ye was not too anxious either. He took a slight detour and happened to pass by a "Fu Gui Money Shop."

The plaque with flying dragons and phoenixes, the gate with people coming and going. Pei Ye walked in with his bag curiously, not knowing where to go for a while.

This was indeed the first time he had stepped into such a place. To be honest, it felt quite good. People in brocade clothes came and went, making Pei Ye himself have an illusion of "quite a lot of family assets."

"Guest, may your wealth be abundant!" A shopkeeper greeted with a smile, "What can I do for you, guest?"

"Shopkeeper, hello. I want to exchange a fifty-tael silver note." Pei Ye opened his bag.

"Hmm." The shopkeeper raised his head, "Easy to say, guest, please this way. I don't know whose it is?"

Pei Ye was at a loss: "What?"

The shopkeeper smiled: "Xinglong, Dongjin, Bafang... or our Fu Gui. Many families have issued silver notes, but if you exchange cash here with tickets from other families, you have to discount it by 95%, and some have to discount it by 85%."

Pei Ye was stunned. Qi Zhaohua didn't mention this when giving him the silver note, only saying that it could be exchanged anywhere.

"Of course," the shopkeeper added with a smile, "there is also the 'Jie Hui' issued by the household department, which is connected to the nine states. We are willing to exchange it with 102% cash."

It was fine to exchange it fully, why add silver?

Pei Ye couldn't help but be curious, but the gentle smile lines of the shopkeeper seemed to hide a world that the youth could never guess.

"'Jie Hui' mostly comes from the blue and purple families. We often call it salary money, and it is not easy to see." The shopkeeper smiled, walked behind the counter, and pointed with a smile, "Guest, look, this is our bank note. Green lines and ancient seals, the world's mountains and rivers drawn by Master Changsun Yue... recognized at a glance."

"Hmm, it's indeed beautiful." Pei Ye looked at it and went to touch the silver note from the bag. The shopkeeper ordered people to transfer silver behind the counter, "But mine is not this one."

The youth placed his silver note on the table and pushed it over gently.

"You take a look. If it's from another family, I won't exchange it." He was thinking about the two-tael discount.

"Okay." The shopkeeper smiled and took it, but immediately raised his eyebrows lightly, put it on the table again, and looked at it from right to left.

Pei Ye looked at his expression and had already felt relieved, staring at the small door behind that took out silver, while thinking about whether to return fifty taels or fifty-one taels to Qi Jushi when returning the money.

At this time, the shopkeeper raised his head and looked at him, not speaking for a while. Pei Ye smiled: "This one of mine is 'Jie Hui,' right? I know, it's a friend of mine who is an official..."

"This one of yours is fake."

"..."

"..."

"What did you say?" Pei Ye's tone had never been as cold as it was now.

The shopkeeper pushed the silver note back to him and said seriously: "Guest, the silver notes of each family are different, but there are no handwritten ones."

Pei Ye lowered his eyes. Other places on this silver note were printed, but the "October 20th issue" in a small line at the bottom made him freeze in place.

—"Er" (two), he also always wrote one short horizontal stroke less before, and liked to add a slash to "Yi."

Cao River Office.

Today, the public servants were increasingly busy, because the big ship that exploded in the core of Yang Family Ferry had been salvaged and organized, and some key items had been transported over.

A shocking fine iron vat was sent into the office. Sister Xing Zhi and Xie Chuantang were surrounding it, checking it bit by bit.

It was at this time that the door was pushed open silently, and the youth's familiar tall figure walked in, rarely not greeting anyone.

Sister Xing Zhi was still leaning over to extract traces from it. Xie Chuantang saw this figure and nodded: "You're here. This big vat you mentioned has been transported back, and we are finding a key point."

A very gratifying progress. After a day and night of hard work, all parties had made progress.

Xie Chuantang handed him something: "Look, this is the lock of those shackles. Xing Zishou Xing said that this thing is embedded with spiritual patterns, which has the effect of imprisoning and losing strength. This is also the only object in this vat that was not damaged by violence."

Xie Chuantang looked at him seriously. It was undeniable that there was some expectation in it. This youngest youth was now like a pillar.

"... Chuantang."

"Hmm?" Xie Chuantang was stunned, already prepared to be ordered.

"No... that, Divine Constable," Pei Ye held her arm tightly, "... I want to report a case." ===== CHAPTER 506 =====