Chapter 370

Gao Wanli returned with a group of subordinates.

At the gate, Lang Xiao Ba blocked them again.

Although you are Deputy Head of Discipline, is it necessary to bring so many "servants" into the yamen?

Gao Wanli's morning good mood nearly vanished because of this sycophant.

Mr. Lu quietly restrained Gao Wanli: "Young Lady, let him boast a little longer—there'll be time for them to cry!"

Gao Wanli realized this was true, so she took only Mr. Lu and Mr. Jiang inside.

Gao Wanli's duty room was far from Xu Yuan's.

She went to her own duty room first, had Mr. Jiang write a memorial, and harshly accused Xu Yuan of "negligence in duty" and "incompetence," causing frequent tragedies outside Zhancheng and heavy civilian casualties.

She didn't write it herself because her handwriting was ugly and utterly unacceptable.

Then, she carried the memorial and, with two subordinates, passed repeatedly by Xu Yuan's duty room.

She waited for the incident to erupt, then would immediately send the memorial out.

On the first pass, she saw a Mountain-Carrier Captain from Nancheng's patrol duty room rush in to report and enter.

Gao Wanli couldn't help smiling.

Afterwards, personnel from the other three duty rooms kept arriving.

Gao Wanli believed Xu Yuan must now be overwhelmed, frantic and cursing.

So she stood outside, tilting her head and straining her ears to listen.

But the duty room was utterly silent.

Gao Wanli wondered: How can he stay so calm?

After a while, the door opened and Xu Yuan stepped out, followed by Jia Yi and Mao Dabin.

The three ignored the sneaking Gao Wanli and walked out together.

Gao Wanli's eyes darted, and she sneered: Pretending calm? Trying to suppress such a major case?

You dream!

Gao Wanli immediately ordered her men to follow.

Outside the yamen gate, Xu Yuan and the others mounted their horses; Gao Wanli chased after them: "Where are you going?"

Xu Yuan replied coldly: "My duties require no report to you."

Gao Wanli's eyes darted again: "I am also an officer of Zhancheng Office—if anything happens, I should be informed."

"Since you admit you are an officer of Zhancheng Office, I assign you a task: guard the yamen!"

With that, Xu Yuan kicked his horse's flanks, and the three rode off swiftly.

Gao Wanli smiled triumphantly: He won't let me follow—there must be something wrong.

She gestured, and Mr. Lu and Mr. Jiang immediately followed her, chasing after Xu Yuan.

The three crept furtively, deliberately keeping far behind, blending into the crowd on the street.

They saw Xu Yuan meet Fu Jingyu and Di Youzhi at the Nancheng Gate, then leave the city together, before they slowly followed out.

Gao Wanli knew Xu Yuan's first stop would be Dongzha Village—she wasn't worried about losing him.

She estimated his speed and arrived at the village fifteen minutes after him.

From afar, Gao Wanli suddenly frowned.

She smelled no blood.

And around the village, farmers were diligently tending their crops.

A group of children ran past the old well at the village entrance, laughing and holding windmills.

There was not a trace of the recent "demon-cannibalism" tragedy.

Gao Wanli's first thought: "Could we have fallen for an illusion?"

Mr. Lu shook his head: "No."

Gao Wanli and the two entered the village; on the way they met several villagers who, seeing their official robes, quickly stepped aside, afraid of offending the officials.

"Three more officials have come."

Gao Wanli whipped her horsewhip, coiling it around a villager's neck and yanking him before her horse; she asked sternly: "What happened in the village last night?"

The man, choked by the whip, turned beet red from lack of breath.

Gao Wanli jerked her hand, releasing the whip: "Speak quickly! If you hide even a fraction, I'll cut off your head!"

The villager fell to his knees in terror: "Last night, a demon entered the village…"

"Then why is the village so peaceful?"

"I—I don't know. Everyone says the demon meant to eat Cao Da's family, but heavenly fire rained down and turned it to ash…"

"Nonsense!" Gao Wanli's whip lashed down over his head and face.

The poor villager screamed in agony, his body instantly crisscrossed with bloody welts.

"I'm not lying—the previous officials who came are all at Cao Da's place…"

Gao Wanli barked: "Lead the way."

The villager dared not protest, filled with grievance, led them to the place, then ran off as fast as he could.

Xu Yuan was pretending to inspect the demon's ashes with his men.

Seeing Gao Wanli arrive, he showed surprise: "High Official Gao… you're defying orders!"

Gao Wanli no longer cared; she dismounted and charged forward several steps.

A normal person would have reached in three steps, but her legs were short—she needed five.

Ordinary people couldn't tell the difference, but she'd spent years in the Purification Office—she could instantly distinguish demon ashes from ordinary plant ash.

Gao Wanli rushed into the house—Cao Da's entire family of five was intact.

Gao Wanli frowned tightly and stepped out to ask, "No one died in the village?"

"Not a single one," Xu Yuan said with relief. "Some righteous hero from who knows where exterminated this evil spirit and saved the entire village. Had it not been for this, everyone in my Zhancheng Office, from top to bottom, would have been unable to escape a reprimand from our superiors."

"Truly, not a single one died?"

Xu Yuan said, "If my lord does not believe it, you may take the household register and check house by house."

Di Youzhi snorted coldly and said in a sarcastic tone, "Subordinate feels that... with no one dead, my lord is very disappointed?"

Gao Wanli glared at Di Youzhi with a sinister look.

How could a rogue like Di Youzhi be intimidated by her? He glared back without showing the slightest weakness.

Gao Wanli went to inspect the ashes again, frowning several times.

Xu Yuan said, "Last night, the evil spirit did not attack only Dongzha Village..."

Gao Wanli suddenly raised her head.

Dongzha Village was lucky; a great cultivator passing by saved them in the middle of the night, but if the people in the other villages had all died, Xu Yuan's responsibility would still be inescapable.

The folded memorial in his arms was hard, and it would soon have its use!

But Xu Yuan continued, "When this official received the news this morning, I was truly startled. So many villages outside Zhancheng, and yet a strange case occurred in all of them on the same night!

Fortunately, Heaven blessed us, and not a single one died..."

"What did you say!?" Gao Wanli asked in a voice that broke with shock, "Not a single one died?"

"Yes!" Xu Yuan, looking as if he had narrowly escaped death and was still terrified, said with relief, "Every evil spirit that attacked the villages was exterminated by a righteous hero in the shadows!"

Gao Wanli stood there blankly for a long while, unable to come to her senses.

Seven villages, scattered around Zhancheng!

How could it be such a coincidence that every village was saved at night by a "righteous hero"?

Gao Wanli could not help but curse in her heart: Is Xu Gou's luck this good?!

Suddenly, she thought of another possibility: Could the so-called righteous hero be the same person... What kind of strength would that require?!

Thinking of strength, Gao Wanli could not help but associate it with Xu Yuan!

In all of Zhancheng, his level was the highest.

Fifth Grade could completely accomplish this.

(End of this chapter)