Chapter 1223

Following Yu Wan Li's arrangement, Hu Xiaotian entered the Justice Ministry prison under the guise of a doctor, and the first person he saw was naturally Tong Jincheng, whose clothes were ragged and body covered in scars; it was clear he had been tortured severely. Upon hearing someone enter, he strained to open his eyes, which were swollen almost shut.

Hu Xiaotian set down his medicine box, put on an act and said, "I have been specially commissioned by the Justice Ministry to come treat your injuries." Out of the corner of his eye, he saw two jailers guarding the door, not leaving an inch.

Tong Jincheng said, "I can endure these external wounds!"

Hu Xiaotian secretly admired him as a tough man, opened his medicine box, which contained the specially prepared Golden Trauma Medicine he had brought; these Golden Trauma Medicines were sent to him by Liu Yucheng of the Shen Nong Society, and their efficacy was miraculous. He said aloud, "A true hero doesn't suffer immediate loss; stubbornness brings you no benefit." Then, using voice transmission, he said, "Shopkeeper Tong, listen carefully: I have been commissioned by Prince Yan Xue Shengjing to deal with the Treasure Gathering Establishment."

Upon hearing this, Tong Jincheng's heart jolted; he strained to open his eyes, but the person before him was a completely unfamiliar face, leaving him half-believing, half-doubting.

While applying medicine to his wounds, Hu Xiaotian said, "I'm speaking to you via voice transmission; they can't hear it, so you just need to nod or shake your head."

Tong Jincheng remained silent, feeling that the medicine applied to his wounds was remarkably effective; as soon as it was applied, a wave of coolness spread through him, and the pain vanished instantly.

Hu Xiaotian said, "Ma Qingyun originally had me go to the Sea God Temple to contact the priest there, but when I arrived, the priest had already been arrested, so I had to come to you—do you know where Huo Xiaoru is?"

Upon hearing this, Tong Jincheng had no doubt about his identity; taking advantage of the jailers' inattention, he grabbed Hu Xiaotian's palm and secretly wrote three characters on it, shaping his mouth as he wrote, and Hu Xiaotian immediately understood that he had written "Yan Xi Hall." After treating his wounds, Hu Xiaotian packed up his medicine box and said softly, "Rest assured, I will find a way to rescue you all."

Tong Jincheng then said, "Doctor, my chest doesn't hurt at all; please take a look."

Knowing he had more to say, Hu Xiaotian handed him his palm, and Tong Jincheng wrote again: "Main gate, ledger!"

Hu Xiaotian startled; the "main gate" Tong Jincheng referred to was naturally that of the Treasure Gathering Establishment. Could he mean the ledger is hidden inside the gate? He asked via voice transmission, "Are you saying the ledger is in the gate?"

Tong Jincheng nodded.

Hu Xiaotian lifted his medicine box, rose, and said, "Take care of yourself!"

Tong Jincheng shouted, "Injustice! Injustice!" His cry caused all the surrounding prisoners to join in.

Hu Xiaotian left his cell, and the jailers took him to the women's prison where Ling Saniang was detained. Unlike the pitch-dark darkness of Tong Jincheng's side, Ling Saniang's cell, while not luxurious, was clean and tidy; the white bedding on the small wooden bed was spotless. Ling Saniang sat quietly on the bed, her attire still bright. Were it not for the shackles on her hands and feet, it would be hard to tell she was a serious criminal.

Seeing Hu Xiaotian enter, Ling Saniang's eyes filled with wariness as she coldly asked, "Where did this doctor come from? Can you treat illness?"

Hu Xiaotian smiled and said, "So-so. As long as it's not some baffling ailment, I can usually cure it at a touch."

"Tch!" Ling Saniang snorted disdainfully: "Just a wandering doctor, huh?"

Hu Xiaotian said via voice transmission, "Greetings, second-in-command; I have been specially commissioned by the chief to come and visit."

Ling Saniang was also startled by his words; she first glanced toward the outside jailers, seeing they noticed nothing, then realized he was using voice transmission—a skill mastered only by experts—and she, too, understood it, responding likewise via voice transmission: "How have I never seen you before?"

Hu Xiaotian laughed, "As the second-in-command stationed at Look-Over-Sea City, you've probably even forgotten what Python Flood Island looks like now."

Ling Saniang glared at him and said, "How could I forget?" Then she raised her voice: "Please check my leg; it hurts badly."

Hu Xiaotian pretended to examine her leg, pinching it slightly, and whispered, "Lu Qingyuan and Luo Thousand Blessings joined forces with the Falling Cherry Palace to plot against the island lord; the third-in-command was killed, and the island lord only managed to turn defeat into victory thanks to the help of Dakang's Hu Xiaotian—you, second-in-command, probably don't know about this, do you?"

Ling Saniang was startled; since the incident on Python Flood Island occurred at the same time she was arrested, she knew almost nothing about what had happened there. Hearing the news, she panicked inwardly and whispered, "How is my elder brother? Is he alright?" From her expression, Hu Xiaotian vaguely guessed she might have an affair with the island lord, Yan Tianlu, and he secretly smiled, comforting her: "Don't worry, the island lord is fine; he'll be here in a couple of days to try to rescue you."

Upon hearing this, Ling Saniang grew even more panicked: "No, you must warn him—he absolutely must not come to Bohai State; that turtle-grandson Yan Dongsheng has done all this just to harm him. If he comes here and his identity is exposed, wouldn't that be extremely dangerous?" Overwrought with worry, her feelings for Yan Tianlu were plain to see.

For some reason, Hu Xiaotian felt a growing fondness for Ling Saniang; he smiled and said, "Second-in-command, rest assured—the island lord possesses great talent and strategy, his wisdom surpasses all; how could he lose to that turtle-grandson?" The term "turtle-grandson" really fits, though if Yan Dongsheng is a turtle-grandson, then Yan Tianlu, as his uncle, would practically be a turtle too, meaning Ling Saniang had essentially cursed the entire old Yan family.

Ling Saniang snapped, "You don't know squat! This time Yan Dongsheng has the backing of the Da Yong emperor, plus the Northern Swamp Old Monster from the Variegated Gate, whom he's hired as state preceptor, and now he's also allied with the Falling Cherry Palace—who among them is easy to provoke?"

Upon hearing "Variegated Gate," Hu Xiaotian's heart gave a start; he and the Variegated Gate had clashed more than once, and if they met this time, old and new grudges would likely combine. If everything Ling Saniang said were true, this affair would probably be troublesome. He raised his voice and asked, "Is it hurting here?" He added a bit of force with his hand, and Ling Saniang let out an exaggerated shriek, cursing, "You're going to kill me, using that much strength!"

The two jailers outside also peered inside.

Ling Saniang naturally knew Hu Xiaotian was doing this to cover their tracks; once the jailers turned their heads, she lowered her voice: "You must bring my words to him—my brothers are either dead or have fled; if you want the details, go to the Wind Record Blacksmith Shop and find Old Knife Wind; he's one of ours and should still be undiscovered."

Hu Xiaotian silently noted it, then asked, "How did the Treasure Gathering Establishment get dragged into this?"

Ling Saniang scoffed, "It's not just that Yan Dongsheng was made a pawn by the Da Yong emperor—with his meager guts, how could he dare move against the Treasure Gathering Establishment? It's the new Da Yong ruler who wants to eliminate Prince Yan, so he's stirring up trouble from Bohai State. Over the years, our Python Flood Island has owed much to Prince Yan's patronage; otherwise, Da Yong would likely have already sent troops to exterminate us." She glanced outward and added, "Prince Yan has more than one venture in Bohai State—the open one is the Treasure Gathering Establishment, the hidden one is Yan Xi Hall; I think Yan Dongsheng is about to make a move on Yan Xi Hall."

Recalling what Tong Jincheng had just told him, Hu Xiaotian felt it was likely correct that Huo Xiaoru was almost certainly in Yan Xi Hall; he said softly in farewell, "I'll go ahead first; once I see the chief, I'll relay all your words to him. Second-in-command, stay calm—we will definitely find a way to rescue you."

Ling Saniang shook her head and said, "Forget it; you just need to tell him that after I die, on each anniversary, go to the seaside and offer incense for me—I, Ling Saniang, ask for nothing else." Saying this, her eyes reddened. She took off an earring and handed it to Hu Xiaotian; though she said it was without proof, this would serve as Hu Xiaotian's token to gain others' trust.

Hu Xiaotian secretly sighed; although Ling Saniang was capable, she was still a woman, inevitably entangled in sentimental feelings—she was deeply devoted to Yan Tianlu, yet he wondered how Yan Tianlu felt about her.

Having left the Justice Ministry prison as night deepened, Hu Xiaotian felt today's harvest was not small; he was carrying his medicine box, about to head back, when he saw two warriors rushing toward him in a flurry. He inwardly cursed, "Oh no"—had he not yet left the Justice Ministry's jurisdiction, had his identity been carelessly exposed? He reminded himself to stay calm; when the two reached him, one asked, "Are you a doctor?"

Hu Xiaotian nodded; the man was overjoyed, grabbed his arm, and exclaimed, "Perfect—come with me quickly!"

Hu Xiaotian didn't know what had happened, but from the men's demeanor it seemed they hadn't uncovered his identity, and he saw no need to flee just yet; he followed them to a side courtyard, which was where the Justice Ministry prison held temporary interrogations of criminals. Having mingled in officialdom and lingered in the palace, he was well aware of the protocols there—best not to ask questions lightly.

One of the warriors said, "Sir Li slipped while stepping down the stairs; his right arm might be broken."

Hu Xiaotian feigned ignorance: "Which Sir Li?"

"Who else could it be? Naturally, it's our Justice Ministry's Sir Li."

Hu Xiaotian guessed it was almost certainly Justice Minister Li Changxing; upon arriving, he saw it was indeed him. Li Changxing had just finished interrogating a prisoner and was about to leave when he missed a step on the stairs, reached out to steady himself on the ground, and inadvertently injured his arm; he was now sitting in the room, painfully awaiting a doctor's arrival—no one expected the two warriors to summon a physician so quickly.

Hu Xiaotian understood what was going on and relaxed; it was merely a lucky bump-in-the-dark encounter, not someone seeing through his true identity. Fortunately, he had a medical background—otherwise, someone else might have been exposed.

Hu Xiaotian approached Li Changxing and said respectfully, "Sir Li, let me examine you."

Li Changxing nodded; Hu Xiaotian carefully supported his arm, rolled up his sleeve, and saw that Li Changxing's elbow was swollen badly. His preliminary diagnosis was no fracture, just a dislocation, so he relaxed and said, "Sir, it's only a dislocation—I'll now reduce it, but you'll need to endure the pain." (To be continued~^~)