Chapter 35: Li Zhi'an is Angry

Shu Tong's expression tightened. He raised his eyes to look at Li Zhi'an, only to see him with a cold, stern face and pitch-black eyes, his imposing manner aggressive as he strode forward like a dragon or tiger. Subconsciously, he took a step back.

With this retreat, his momentum weakened, and Shu Tong's expression grew grave.

Li Zhi'an had long commanded awe, but he was now a man of the Demon Suppression Pavilion and could not show fear, so he raised his voice and said, "Chief of Tongtian, this case originally belonged to the Demon Suppression Pavilion. Does the Chief have an official document stating it now falls under the jurisdiction of the Tongtian Division?"

Li Zhi'an didn't even glance at Shu Tong, walking with long strides to Cheng Xi's side.

Upon seeing this, Shu Tong's face turned even uglier. Just then, Jiang Boyu took out an official document and handed it to Shu Tong, "The informant has withdrawn the case from the Demon Suppression Pavilion and changed it to report to the Tongtian Division. Official Shu, human life is at stake; we cannot delay even for a moment. Furthermore, we all serve the Imperial Court and seek justice for the common people, so why quibble over which office handles it?"

Facing Jiang Boyu's grinning face, Shu Tong cursed him for being shameless in his heart. *Not quibbling? If you aren't quibbling, why did you come to snatch it? *

He lowered his head to look at the document, and after confirming it was correct, he raised his eyes to look at Jiang Boyu, "Official Jiang, I will report this matter to our Pavilion Master. We shall meet again!"

The smile on Jiang Boyu's face did not change in the slightest, and he said with a laugh, "Our Tongtian Division awaits the grand arrival of Pavilion Master Yan."

Shu Tong dared not confront Li Zhi'an directly, and his official rank was even lower than Jiang Boyu's. Lacking the confidence to face them, he had no choice but to leave with a dark face and long strides.

Cheng Xi watched from the side, finding it quite interesting, and looked at Jiang Boyu with a smile, "You two are now in direct opposition?"

Jiang Boyu scoffed, raised his eyebrows slightly, and said, "There are always some dogs who think that by putting on clothes they become human. They need to be taught a lesson."

Cheng Xi:...

Yan Yu was the Empress Dowager's own nephew; Jiang Boyu's words were truly not polite at all. It was clear that both sides were about to tear off their masks.

She looked at Li Zhi'an again. It had been a long time, and the baleful aura on this man seemed even thicker. She wondered what he had been doing during this time, "It has been a long time, Chief. The Cheng Family case has nothing to do with me. May I ask who the informant is?"

"Cheng Yunjian."

"So it was him." Cheng Xi nodded slightly, "Whatever you wish to ask, I will certainly tell you everything I know."

Li Zhi'an looked at Cheng Xi, "Won't you invite me to sit?"

Cheng Xi looked at the other party with a strange expression. Wasn't he here to investigate the case?

"Chief, please sit." As Cheng Xi spoke, she looked at Jiang Boyu. Jiang Boyu immediately said, "We still need to check the testimonies of the surrounding neighbors; we wouldn't dare trouble Eldest Miss Cheng."

Jiang Boyu immediately led his men out, and the courtyard instantly became quiet.

Cheng Xi muttered, "Official Jiang is quite busy; he didn't even have time to drink a cup of tea."

Hearing this, Li Zhi'an looked at Cheng Xi. Was she very close with Jiang Boyu?

Mulan served tea and then bowed and retreated. This was the Chief of the Tongtian Division—stern, awe-inspiring, and looking full of killing intent. She didn't even dare to take a second look.

"The day the Cheng Family held the funeral, you went?"

"Yes. I didn't want to go at first, but I felt it was a pity," Cheng Xi said slowly, "Does the Chief want to ask me what happened that day? Chief, have some tea, and I will tell you slowly."

Li Zhi'an picked up the teacup and took a sip. As the tea went down, he looked at the cup with some surprise. The tea leaves were unfurling at the bottom of the cup, but this tea carried a trace of Spirit Essence.

Not seen for a few days, and she has quite the ability; she's even drinking Spirit Tea now.

It was just that the spiritual charm contained in these tea leaves was still too little; it was still lacking for her recuperation.

Cheng Xi did not notice the surprise in Li Zhi'an's eyes; she was thinking about the events of that day, considering how to organize her words.

After thinking for a moment, she described what she had heard and seen that day exactly as it was, without the slightest intention of covering for Cheng Zhouxing and his wife.

After listening, Li Zhi'an frowned deeply, "You mean that Cheng Laotaitai did not die a natural death, and it is possible it was murder?"

"I cannot be certain of that, but Xuan Cheng Zhenren said that if Cheng Laotaitai's resentment does not dissipate, she could turn into a Vicious Ghost. It stands to reason that she must have suffered something while alive and had an unfulfilled wish, which is why she refused to go to the Netherworld," Cheng Xi said, looking at Li Zhi'an, "I am not clear on the Cheng Family's private affairs. If the Chief wants to know, I fear you will have to ask Cheng Yunjian and his sister."

Cheng Xi spoke candidly, and Li Zhi'an was very curious. Now, when she mentioned the Cheng Family, it was as if she were speaking of strangers; there was neither hatred nor gloating.

"The Cheng siblings are already at the Tongtian Division," Li Zhi'an said.

"Cheng Fenglan is probably not easy to question; she leans toward Li Shi. However, Cheng Laotaitai was fond of her, otherwise, she wouldn't have agreed to Cheng Yunjian reporting the case. Cheng Yunjian is different from the rest of the Cheng Family—a good shoot from a bad bamboo. The Chief can question the siblings separately; Cheng Yunjian will tell the truth."

Cheng Xi thought to herself that if the original owner were still alive, she would definitely have helped the Cheng siblings; she was a soft-hearted and kind girl.

But she was not her, so she would neither kick them while they were down nor extend a helping hand.

Moreover, the Cheng siblings both had talent. As long as they were willing to endure hardship and humble themselves, they could still carve out a path in the future.

"What is your take on this matter?"

"Me?" Cheng Xi met Li Zhi'an's eyes. His pupils were extremely black, like a deep pool with no visible bottom. The smile on her face faded, "They hired a Daoist and used coffin nails; for the couple to want Cheng Laotaitai's soul to scatter, they must have done something wicked.

I am just curious now: who opened the coffin that was sealed with coffin nails? If the coffin isn't opened, Cheng Laotaitai's soul cannot come out.

Someone must have helped to release the Vicious Ghost. Chief, have you been to the graveyard to see? Was Cheng Laotaitai's coffin opened, or was it not?"

"The coffin was not opened, which is why I came to find you," Li Zhi'an said.

"Not opened?" Cheng Xi narrowed her eyes slightly, "That is interesting. If the coffin was not opened, then the one who killed the Cheng couple was not the Vicious Ghost that Cheng Laotaitai turned into?"

"The servants of Cheng Fu said that they did indeed hear Cheng Laotaitai's voice on the night of the incident."

Cheng Xi lowered her eyes slightly. If the coffin nails were not removed, yet Cheng Laotaitai's soul could leave the coffin to seek revenge, a forbidden art must have been used.

She hadn't expected that in this space-time, there would actually be someone who knew of forbidden arts that had long been sealed away.

Her expression remained unchanged as she raised her eyes to look at Li Zhi'an, "Chief, what exactly are you trying to say?"

"Cheng Xi, you are so clever; I fear you have already guessed that someone is targeting you."

"I am but a weak woman; I fear the Chief is overthinking it," Cheng Xi smiled.

Li Zhi'an stood up, "The Demon Suppression Pavilion came knocking so quickly; do you really think it's a routine investigation? Cheng Xi, the Demon Suppression Pavilion is in the hands of Yan Yu, and Yan Yu is a man of the Empress Dowager. You are a smart person; you should know why."

"Thank you for the reminder, Chief. I will be careful," Cheng Xi said earnestly.

Regardless of anything else, Li Zhi'an meant well, and a word of thanks was due.

Li Zhi'an had not expected Cheng Xi to be so lighthearted about "being careful," as if she didn't take it to heart at all.

Had he known she would be so indifferent, why would he have come in person?

"Cheng Xi, take care of yourself!"

Cheng Xi looked in surprise at Li Zhi'an's back as he flicked his sleeves and left. She truly did not understand what he was angry about.

A man's heart is like a needle at the bottom of the sea.

However, with the Demon Suppression Pavilion targeting her, this loss was not something she could just swallow.