Chapter 118: You Might Be a Bit Spoiled by Favor

The night deepened, and the carriages of kings, marquises, dukes, and ministers scattered from Tianjie into various parts of the inner city.

Xie Jinhuan swung onto his horse outside the palace gates, his gaze fixed on Li Gongpu and his entourage, who were hastily departing in their carriage.

Just now, while chatting idly with Hou Jiye and others, he used the Ghost Bride to make Li Gongpu zone out for a moment; he didn't know the content, but Li Gongpu must have seen signs that the Qian Emperor's days were numbered.

Since then, Li Gongpu has been somewhat distracted, looking as though he has indeed taken the bait.

Li Gongpu has realized the Qian Emperor is critically ill and must find a way to secure a future; his only path to survival is to win the favor of the new monarch, so he will certainly take action next.

If he can only seize concrete proof of Li Gongpu seducing the Crown Prince, making the Qian Emperor displeased, and then enlist Hou Jiye and others to kick the fallen man while he's down and settle old scores, Li Gongpu will find it hard to survive.

When the time comes for everyone to push Li Gongpu over once his wall has fallen, he must also find a way to bring out the 'Old Brush' and hint slightly, so Li Gongpu doesn't die in confusion.

After all, when killing someone, one must strike at the heart!

If Li Gongpu doesn't know he was being set up in the shadows or who killed him, then this revenge would be utterly meaningless.

This process might take several days; he has quite a few things on his plate currently and cannot watch Li Gongpu's movements from morning till night.

Fortunately, Li Gongpu is being hunted by everyone; merely watching his movements to see if he contacts the Crown Prince isn't too sensitive a task, and anyone trustworthy with sharp eyes could do it; the most suitable person in Jingcheng is none other than Feiji.

Uncle Fei is Father's childhood friend; he personally examined a corpse for him at age three, taught him martial arts for many years, and as a County Commandant, knows the ways of Jingcheng inside out; with his extraordinary eyesight that can tell a posture at a glance, it won't be hard to secretly monitor Li Fu's movements under the guise of hunting the 'Thief Saint'.

While pondering this in secret, the convoy turned back toward Zheng'an Street.

The Heir Apparent Zhao De, having secured funding, didn't even bother returning to Wang Fu; as soon as the gathering ended, he followed the Crown Prince's tail and disappeared who knows where.

Inside the carriage, Duoduo, with a child's face and huge breasts, took out a small drum, tapped it, and sang a little tune in a sweet, melodious voice:

Dong dong dong dong~

"In the spring breeze~ the hidden fragrance floats beneath the moon..."

Linghu Qingmo had been bullied throughout the banquet; now she adopted the demeanor of a cold, glamorous female knight who was 'unhappy', trying to trick Xie Jinhuan into revealing the safe word.

But Xie Jinhuan was not so easily fooled; he walked straight-backed by the carriage window, his demeanor stern and extraordinary, as if to say—Hit me then~ Hit me then...

Linghu Qingmo ground her teeth in secret but couldn't quite make a move, so she and Meiqiu, who was also pretending to be angry, turned their backs and ignored this lecherous fellow; once they returned to Wang Fu, she zipped off to the guest room and vanished without a trace.

Princess Changning hadn't had a chance to speak with Xie Jinhuan at the banquet, and it wasn't appropriate to call him into the carriage for a private chat in public; only now, walking along the corridor, did she turn to ask:

"Did you notice anything suspicious at the banquet today?"

Xie Jinhuan, walking beside her, pondered slightly:

"The war drum I just played was taught by my master; it can boost morale and incite emotions like 'warlike' and 'fearless'. Practitioners of the Demonic Dao theoretically couldn't hold back. However, my cultivation is still shallow; from start to finish, I only found one person somewhat suspicious, who might just be a lackey of a Mingshen Sect hidden agent."

"Oh?"

A trace of solemnity appeared on Princess Changning's cheeks; she leaned closer and asked in a low voice:

"Who?"

"Lie An Man Ye Shirong."

"..."

Princess Changning frowned, feeling the same as Xie Jinhuan that this person was somewhat unexpected:

"Ye Shirong was formerly a Jianghu wanderer; he was temporarily recruited during the Jian'an Incident, where he earned merit for following the dragon. Currently, he holds a post in the Yiluan Bureau. His official rank and title aren't high, but he associates closely with imperial relatives and often runs errands... If this person is a claw or fang of the Demonic Bandits, then the person behind him should be the hidden agent the Mingshen Sect planted within the imperial court."

Xie Jinhuan asked, "Who does Your Highness Princess think it is?"

Princess Changning fell silent for a moment, then spoke the truth:

"Judging by Ye Shirong's resume, the current Emperor is the most suspicious, but a Mingshen Sect hidden agent is unlikely to be the Emperor himself."

"Why?"

"The Mingshen Sect was founded by the remnants of the Wu Sect rebellion. According to analysis by experts from various sects, their objectives are roughly two."

Princess Changning sat down inside the room, asked Duoduo to brew tea, and explained seriously:

"First, to open the 'Corpse Ancestor Tomb'. The Corpse Ancestor is a Demonic Dao ghost cultivator who has already transformed into a demon; he can be reborn by borrowing a shell and is fundamentally unkillable. He can only be sealed in the Demon-Suppressing Tomb to exhaust his primordial energy through the passage of time."

"To prevent well-meaning people from breaking the seal and causing the Corpse Ancestor to rise from the ashes, the location of the Corpse Ancestor Tomb is known only to the Emperor and Lu Wu Zhen in Jingcheng; even Father my lord dares not inquire about this matter."

"If the Emperor were a Mingshen Sect hidden agent, given his status as ruler of a nation, he would have opened the Corpse Ancestor Tomb within twenty years."

Xie Jinhuan nodded slightly: "And the second?"

Princess Changning poured tea for Xie Jinhuan herself and continued:

"Second, practitioners of the Demonic Dao can only grow rapidly during chaotic times."

"In chaotic times, a single battle often kills tens of thousands, all of them strong and robust young men; this attraction to the Demonic Dao is no less than placing hundreds of charming, delicate beauties, ready to be picked, before a lecher."

"Moreover, in chaotic times, the imperial court's control over local areas declines, and orthodox sects are too busy rushing about to care for remote small states, prefectures, and counties; the risk of the Demonic Dao killing indiscriminately would be much lower."

"If the Emperor were a Mingshen Sect hidden agent, even if he didn't dig up the Corpse Ancestor Tomb, he would still lean towards grandiosity and relentless warfare in his governance."

"But as you know, the Emperor has governed for twenty years, basically focusing on internal rectification; although there have been friction with outsiders, no major war involving more than ten thousand troops has occurred."

"Furthermore, the imperial court has built hundreds of 'All-Directions Brightness Arrays' in various prefectures of Great Qian to detect demonic movements and assigned patrol zones to major sects; if any major negligence occurs, they must be rolled out and replaced by new people. Mount Zihui was even warned by the imperial court over the Huaijiang Bay incident."

"With such strict defense, even Demonic Dao cultivators of First Rank and above dare not show their heads in Great Qian; if the Emperor were a Demonic Dao practitioner, what would be the point of choking himself like this?"

After hearing the analysis, Xie Jinhuan felt it indeed made sense.

Although the Qian Emperor was somewhat extravagant, it was limited to his private life; overall, he couldn't even be called a tyrant or a foolish ruler, let alone a Demonic Dao Demon Lord.

"Then the person behind Ye Shirong is likely some high-ranking imperial relative; I will go check later to see if I can find any clues."

Having said this, Xie Jinhuan prepared to slay demons and monsters, and incidentally confiscate illegal gains.

Princess Changning believed in Xie Jinhuan's ability and didn't obstruct him; she thought for a moment, stood up, and took out a stack of silver notes:

"You brought honor to the nation today; even the Emperor has rewarded you, so how could this Princess shortchange you?"

Seeing this scene, Xie Jinhuan found it somewhat amusing; he originally wanted to ask if he should perform an exciting show, but suddenly found his limbs disobeying him; 'as if guided by ghosts and spirits', he stepped forward, hooked the landlady's chin, and said:

"What? Do you really take this Young Master for a male concubine?"

?!

Princess Changning had never seen such a bold and domineering guard; caught off guard, she was stunned, looked up at that 'charming, wild, and unrestrained' face, held back for a long time, and finally said:

"You... you might be a bit spoiled by favor, oh~!"

Uh...

Xie Jinhuan hooked his finger under Guotai Min'an's round face, his own heart equally bewildered, but he could hardly claim he was possessed by a ghost, so he could only steel his nerves and force a recovery:

"I am a person of the Righteous Path; slaying demons and exterminating evil is my duty. I do not seek such vulgar things. If the Princess Consort grants a share of the profits, I naturally must accept it, but this silver is a reward for no merit. If I were to keep it, would I not truly become a pretty face kept for mere amusement?"

Princess Changning understood the meaning—Xie Jinhuan felt that she was casually bestowing silver, looking down on him, a righteous knight...

"Your words do hold some truth, but why are you hooking this Princess Consort's chin?"

"Shouldn't it be this Princess Consort hooking your chin?"

Princess Changning, raised as a golden branch and jade leaf, above ten thousand people, had never experienced such a weak situation before; she was completely at a loss.

After a moment of thought, she regained her domineering, older-sister aura, grabbed the wrist of the one so bold as to be daring, stuffed the banknotes into Xie Jinhuan's collar, and deliberately patted his pectoral muscles:

"Presumptuous! ~ You found a clue regarding the hidden agent today, so this Princess Consort is rewarding you. If you do not like it, next time this Princess Consort will offer something else.

"If this Princess Consort wanted you to be a male pet, would I give you silver? If I let you stay here to serve in bed tonight, you must obediently remain; after serving, you must still thank this Princess Consort for her favor."

How could I not like silver? I was purely being held up by a floating ghost...

Xie Jinhuan felt he was 'eating soft rice with a hard attitude,' but he could not say that openly, so he simply said:

"That was my misunderstanding. Please forgive my offense, Your Highness. I have urgent matters to attend to, so I take my leave first."

"Go then~"

Xie Jinhuan vanished from the room like the wind.

Princess Changning was forced into a racing heartbeat; only after his figure disappeared at the door did she pat the fat-headed Kong Que:

"So bold... but actually quite interesting. No wonder Seeing Mo Mo couldn't hold out..."

(End of this chapter)