Chapter 256: Prefecture City

Xu Le is Cheng Feng's brother-in-law; his older sister, Xu Miao, has already borne a daughter with Cheng Feng.

A few days ago, Cheng Feng dispatched Xu Le to Lianshan Prefecture City to scout the situation. The task was simple: take silver notes to purchase a residence and a shop, laying the foundation for the Hong Sect to Expand.

Members of Black Ear had already been arranged by Wang Hu to investigate the situation early on; now, it was just a matter of having the high-level members of the Hong Sect take the silver to implement it.

Xu Le felt somewhat helpless about this, but since his brother-in-law had spoken, he could only follow the arrangements. After all, his sister already had a child with Cheng Feng, and coupled with his brother-in-law's status in the Hong Sect, he had no choice but to obey.

Fortunately, considering that Xu Le might encounter danger while away and fearing it would be difficult to answer to Xu Miao, Cheng Feng sent Wu Feng, who had just broken through to the Bone Refining Realm, to accompany Xu Le. Wu Feng was at a point where he felt restless after a period of stillness and took this opportunity to go see the Prefecture City.

Xu Le and Wu Feng, carefully disguised as master and servant, harboring both longing for the future and anxiety toward the unknown, resolutely embarked on the long journey to Lianshan Prefecture City.

Xu Le had never left the county town in his life, and Wu Feng had not left it for a long time. Along the way, they crossed mountains and rivers, endured hardships and obstacles, and traveled covered in the dust of the road.

During the journey, they witnessed many tragic scenes—disaster victims everywhere and famine raging—which could not help but stir feelings of pity. However, all of this did not stop their forward progress.

During this trip, Xu Le and Wu Feng also encountered several attacks, but thanks to their superb martial arts, these threats were easily resolved. Even so, they remained vigilant and dared not slack off in the slightest.

The day they arrived at the Prefecture City, it was the height of spring; flowers were blooming all over the city, and people were coming and going, making it exceptionally lively. Looking at the scene before him, Xu Le felt both anticipation for the unknown and a bit of the nervousness of a newcomer.

He secretly warned himself that this trip was not only to complete the task entrusted by Cheng Feng but also to pave the way for the Hong Sect to gain a foothold in the Prefecture City; the responsibility was heavy.

After being influenced by the style of the Hong Sect, Xu Le had long since shed the vanity and impetuousness of his time in the Sishui Gang.

Looking at the place where he had once made a name for himself in his youth, Wu Feng also felt a bit emotional.

Following the plan, the two first contacted Black Ear members Zhao Si and Liu Luo to ask about the general situation in the Prefecture City.

Afterward, they headed to the Tooth Agency in the city, intending to select a suitable residence to serve as the Hong Sect's temporary stronghold in the Prefecture City.

The moment the Tooth Agency Shopkeeper saw their extraordinary bearing, especially the heavy stack of silver notes in Xu Le's hand, he was all smiles and led them through various courtyards.

After careful selection, they finally settled on a residence located in East City that was both convenient for transportation and relatively quiet.

Although the residence was not grand, it had a reasonable layout, and the courtyards were filled with well-spaced flowers and trees, making it quite elegant. Xu Le nodded with satisfaction, secretly calculating how to renovate this place to fit the style of the Hong Sect.

After settling into the residence, Xu Le did not rush to take other actions. Instead, he and Wu Feng contacted the first batch of Black Ear members to visit various places in the Prefecture City, learn about the local customs, and secretly observe the distribution of various forces.

They discovered that although the Prefecture City was prosperous, there were undercurrents; major gangs and noble families stood in great numbers, and the competition was fierce. Wanting to gain a foothold here was by no means an easy task.

One day, while Xu Le and Wu Feng were resting in a teahouse, they inadvertently heard several merchants at the next table discussing a major event that had recently occurred in the Prefecture City:

A well-known commercial firm had suddenly been attacked by an unknown force and suffered heavy losses, and the mastermind behind the scenes had yet to be identified.

This incident caused a great sensation in the Prefecture City, and people were filled with panic.

Upon hearing this, Xu Le's heart stirred. He realized that this might be a good opportunity for the Hong Sect to make a name for itself in the Prefecture City. Thus, he whispered to Wu Feng to discuss whether they should start by investigating it.

For a gang to gain a foothold, the main medicine is protection fees and the ability to resolve matters.

If there were results, they could spread the reputation of the Hong Sect; if there were no results, there would be no loss to the Hong Sect's reputation.

Xu Le still hoped for a good result; after all, Wu Feng was also a Bone Refining Stage expert, and his own background—his brother-in-law and the current Hong Sect's Wei Zhuang—would not be low in strength.

This could both establish the prestige of the Hong Sect and take this opportunity to get to know people of insight in the Prefecture City, paving the way for future development.

Wu Feng was, after all, someone who had seen the big picture and was not afraid, carefully considering the current situation. In the end, he did not directly reject Xu Le's proposal.

Wu Feng's eyes narrowed slightly, revealing a touch of depth and caution. He took a light sip of tea, and amidst the curling tea fragrance, he said slowly, "Brother Xu's words are very true; if this matter can truly be used by our Hong Sect, it is indeed a great opportunity. However, the waters in the Prefecture City are deep, and the various forces are intricate; we must be even more careful in our actions."

Xu Le nodded in agreement, his eyes flashing with determination: "That's right, I was considering exactly that. We must investigate in secret; we need to find the real culprit while avoiding being directly drawn into unnecessary disputes. I think we can start with the commoners around the commercial firm and hear if they have any clues or rumors."

With their discussion settled, they decided to act immediately. Leaving the teahouse, the sun was just right and the breeze was not dry, yet it seemed to carry a hint of unknown chill.

They passed through the bustling streets and arrived in front of the attacked commercial firm. They saw that the entrance was desolate; the former prosperity was gone, leaving only broken walls and ruins that silently told of that night's tragedy.

Xu Le and Wu Feng observed carefully around the commercial firm, occasionally talking to passersby, trying to capture useful information from their fragmented words.

After half a day of effort, although they did not directly find conclusive evidence, they unexpectedly learned a key clue—on the night of the incident, someone had seen a group of suspicious men in black appearing near the commercial firm.

As the sun set, the two returned to their temporary stronghold with their findings and began to carefully analyze this clue. Wu Feng pondered for a moment and suggested: "Since men in black appeared, this matter might be related to certain forces in the Prefecture City. We might as well ask the local toughs to see if anyone has had any abnormal movements recently."

Hearing this, Xu Le's eyes lit up: "Good idea! I'll go buy information right now to see if they know anything."

As the sun set, Xu Le left quietly, while Wu Feng remained in the newly purchased residence, continuing to organize the day's findings and preparing to continue the in-depth investigation tomorrow.

Although the two acted separately, they both understood in their hearts that this was not just an investigation into a case, but a key step for the Hong Sect to gain a foothold in the Prefecture City.

Golden Breath Pavilion—Xu Le looked at the sign before him; this was the place. The information Black Ear had gathered was just unverified because there wasn't enough silver.