[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-nothing-is-taboo":3,"chapter-nothing-is-taboo-nothing-is-taboo-chapter-52":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Nothing Is Taboo",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2310437,4514,"Chapter 52: Yin Soldiers Have Yin Soldiers","nothing-is-taboo-chapter-52",52,"\u003Cp>“Really not here?” Song Lu asked skeptically.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lin Wan opened the door: “If you don’t believe me, search yourselves. I want to know where that boy went too—if you find him, I’ll thank you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lin Wan could guess what Xu Yuan had gone to do, but he certainly wouldn’t tell the two Quhui Office captains.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Song Lu, head down, reached for his sword hilt to force his way in—but his senior pulled him back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They had no official warrant; they couldn’t just barge in and search—that violated protocol.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The two could only slink out of the alley, Fu Jingyu feeling a growing unease: “Yesterday, Old Chen sent men to arrest him, and today he’s vanished before dawn…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Song Lu immediately slapped his sword scabbard and declared: “He’s fleeing to avoid punishment!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fu Jingyu glanced at his junior—she was still quite adorable, though her brains could develop later.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’m worried he’s gone to see Master Chen.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Song Lu was startled: “He’s that bold?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What has that boy done in Qihetai Town that wasn’t audacious?” Fu Jingyu quickened his pace: “Let’s return and ask Yan Lao to divine it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan put on that silk-and-satin outfit again and slipped into Wangjing Fang.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he passed the entrance of Chunxiang Pavilion, he instinctively stretched his neck—only to find the pavilion had hung a sign that day: closed for the day, all girls given leave.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Saw nothing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan wanted to criticize, but had no material to work with.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then he made his way to the back gate of a large mansion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In Qian’s fragmented memories, he’d exited through this very gate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan’s gaze grew colder.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After rising that morning, Master Chen checked the almanac and saw “Prohibited from bedding”—he couldn’t help but feel disappointed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tonight, several major households in the county were hosting him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He’d assumed it would be at Chunxiang Pavilion; now it seemed not.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Master Chen could ignore the County Magistrate—the Magistrate served one term and left. But the local gentry, like his own Chen family, were rooted here for millennia.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Chen family had moved here a century ago; the highest-ranking member so far was Master Chen himself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As for retired scholars returning home and still frequenting brothels… could that be called “taking concubines”? It was clearly a refined literary gathering!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I’m here to mentor my fellow townsfolk’s younger generation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This is the prevailing custom throughout the Great Ming—who dares to criticize?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After breakfast, Master Chen gave an order and went to the back garden.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Since returning home, when not attending social events, he always “read” in the back garden.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In Master Chen’s mind, once he arrived in the garden, Qian should have come to report the results of last night’s mission.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But after drinking two cups of tea in the “Xuchun Pavilion,” and still seeing no sign of Qian, Master Chen’s face darkened: “Qian’s in trouble!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because he trusted Qian too much, Master Chen hadn’t arranged any backup or cleanup team for last night’s operation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Qian was always reliable—tasks entrusted to him were always completed flawlessly. And as a Seventh-Stream Divine Cultivator, what trouble could he possibly encounter in a small place like Shanhe County?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet trouble had struck.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Master Chen immediately realized: “Could the River Work Alley truly be unusual?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He thought for a moment, then called to the page standing outside: “Go fetch Master Ji.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The page obeyed and left; Master Chen then opened the cabinet beside him, revealing a locked iron box.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He opened it, took out a bronze bell, and rang it softly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Moments later, a towering old man with snow-white hair and a baby-pink complexion strode in, eyes gleaming, posture commanding—he bowed: “Master.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Master Chen smiled faintly: “For the next few days, work harder—stay by my side, never leave.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Master Ji’s eyes gleamed brighter: “Master, is someone coming to cause trouble? Has someone from the Northern Capital…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Master Chen waved a hand gently: “Master Ji, no need to ask.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Master Ji bowed his head and stepped aside, his tone brimming with unshakable confidence: “Master, rest assured.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Master Chen gave a slight nod.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After securing his personal protection and waiting a while longer, a servant in a yese robe hurried in: “Master, what’s happened?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Qian’s in trouble—find out why!” Master Chen’s face was grim.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Understood.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Xing Guolong.” Master Chen called him back: “We underestimated them. Qiao Ziaang’s belongings might truly be in their hands.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Master, rest easy—I’ll search carefully,” Xing Guolong pledged.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan didn’t linger at the mansion’s back gate; after one glance, he left the alley.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The alley was deep, but only one household lived inside.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Outside the alley stood a teahouse, just opened; Xu Yuan entered, took a seat by the window, ordered tea and a dish of roasted peanuts, pretending to listen to storytelling, while his full attention remained fixed on the alley entrance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Soon, a middle-aged man in a yese robe hurried into the alley.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan paid, stood, and left.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He deliberately waited a while, estimating the man had entered through the back gate, then walked into the alley.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then Xu Yuan put on the redwood-and-brass earpiece and pressed against the wall, listening closely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A servant guarded the back gate; deeper inside the garden, faint footsteps echoed—judging by the sound, several fierce dogs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan thought for a moment, then spat out an external elixir, murmuring: “Lucky.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This elixir contained a condensed “Tiger Soul.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was one of the yin soldiers from Qian’s bottles and jars.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Qian had an obsessive, relentless drive in the field of Divine Cultivation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He’d captured this Tiger Soul from somewhere, and before dying, the tiger had imprisoned six Chang ghosts!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That likely sparked Qian’s interest—he killed them and forged them into yin soldiers—yin soldiers within yin soldiers!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan tossed the Tiger Soul Elixir through the wall; a peculiar aura spread, and Xu Yuan, listening through the earpiece, heard the dogs all flee, tails tucked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Without this Tiger Soul Elixir, Xu Yuan would’ve had no preparation—and dealing with those dogs would’ve been difficult.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan took out the beast-tendon rope, glanced at the courtyard wall—over three meters high—then stuck two talismans to his legs. He flung the rope over the wall, pulled tight, and kicked off hard—his body shot over the wall with a whoosh.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Inside the courtyard, Xu Yuan immediately crouched low, scanning around, then gestured—his Tiger Soul Elixir flew back to him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan moved like a lynx, light and agile, reaching a tree over forty meters away.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But he dared not advance further.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan climbed the tree, tied himself securely to the trunk with the beast-tendon rope, then put on the earpiece again and began eavesdropping on the entire back garden.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Snatches of conversation drifted into his ears.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Master Chen gave brief orders; Xu Yuan only caught him mentioning he might have taken something belonging to Qiao Ziaang.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Immediately after, Xu Yuan heard the footsteps of the man in the yese robe leaving.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan removed the earpiece and froze, lying motionless on the tree.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The man exited the back gate; Xu Yuan waited a while longer, then slipped out quietly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan had no intention of following the man.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The man sent Qian last night—a Seventh-Stream cultivator. Now that Qian was dead, he’d sent this man to handle the matter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That meant this man’s strength must exceed Qian’s.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Following him would be suicide.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Requesting monthly votes!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>More tonight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1238,"2026-06-20T12:07:23.516Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","6b56dcd4fbb18838095f1f1210bec555e569081ae7cea0ea6905b1d3e8d88a53","nothing-is-taboo-chapter-53","nothing-is-taboo-chapter-51",413,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fnothing-is-taboo-cover.jpg"]