Chapter 245

At noon, the group boarded the carriages and left the Taichang Temple government office.

As the landlord's wife, Zhao Ling had originally hoped to use her status to give Xie Jinhuan a boost, preventing Lu Yan from taking advantage of the home-field advantage to make things difficult, but she ended up playing no role from start to finish, and could only sigh at this moment:

"Although Chen Chi's name is not prominent among the various Zhang Sects, he handles affairs quite fairly, living up to the reputation of the leader of the Righteous Path in Northern Zhou."

The fair-skinned, beautiful Da Duoduo sat by the window with Xie Jinhuan, helping to massage his shoulders and pound his back:

"It must be thanks to Young Master Xie's solid reputation; if anyone else said Lu Yan had connections with the Demon Dao, no one would believe it; but since Young Master Xie says it, I reckon even Lu Yan himself would have to secretly ponder it..."

"True."

Zhao Ling leaned sideways on the small couch with her legs bent, propping her cheek with her hand, and asked curiously:

"Does Lu Yan really have connections with the Demon Dao?"

Xie Jinhuan was actually pondering this matter too, and shook his head in response:

"So many perfectly timed coincidences have occurred consecutively at Lishan; ninety-nine percent of the time, someone is pulling strings behind the scenes, but judging by Lu Yan's reaction, which is full of concern for his family heirlooms, he doesn't seem to have any connection with the Demon Dao; I reckon he was tricked by some method by a mastermind with hands reaching the sky."

Zhao Ling nodded slightly and sighed softly:

"My father sent me here to see how the top-level situation in Northern Zhou is and whether Empress Dowager Guo will send troops. Currently, it seems Northern Zhou is secretly more chaotic than Great Qian; Empress Dowager Guo is overwhelmed by the chaos of the Evil Path and the factional struggles within the imperial court, so she definitely won't be able to use troops for three or five years, nor can she afford to lose. You are investigating the Demon Dao in Northern Zhou, but don't try too hard; just make a show of it. If you really uproot the evil demons and remove the rebellious ministers in the court, and Empress Dowager Guo is free to act, the pressure will fall on us..."

Zhao Ling's words were quite reasonable; after all, what does it matter to Great Qian whether Northern Zhou is chaotic or not?

Now that Great Qian's internal situation is not yet stable, it would be happy if Empress Dowager Guo suffered a major disaster, giving the new monarch more time to adapt.

But Xie Jinhuan was walking on two boats, with flesh on both his palm and the back of his hand; Empress Dowager Guo attacking the Southern Court would definitely be inappropriate, but not helping to share the burden would be even more inappropriate, so he thought for a moment and said:

"Hmm... The internal contradictions in Northern Zhou stem from its three hundred years of establishment, where aristocratic families monopolized the channels for advancement, leaving the common people with no hope, and all of them have lost their awe for the Xiao family of Northern Zhou. If the situation cannot be controlled, Empress Dowager Guo is likely to take a risky move, using external conflict to shift internal contradictions, so letting the northern situation continue to deteriorate is also not an option."

Zhao Ling thought carefully and asked:

"So you mean we should wholeheartedly help Empress Dowager Guo solve her problems? To subdue the external, one must first pacify the internal; if you really help her stabilize the interior..."

"Ah."

Xie Jinhuan waved his hand: "I am merely a martial artist; at most, I can catch a few demon bandits. How could I have the ability to change the deeply entrenched situation in Northern Zhou? These matters must be handled step by step; let's solve the Lishan incident first."

Zhao Ling nodded, no longer interfering with Xie Jinhuan's own judgment, and changed the subject:

"By the way, tomorrow Northern Zhou will hold a sacrifice to Heaven and Earth at the Altar of Heaven and Earth, inviting envoys from various countries to observe. It is a display of Northern Zhou's historical heritage, but envoys from the Western Regions and Mobei will all be there. Your eyesight is extraordinary; tomorrow, come with me and see if you can read their expressions and figure out what attitude these borderland small nations currently hold."

"Alright..."

As the two chatted idly, the carriage convoy had not gone far before the sound of horse hooves came from the street behind.

Clip-clop, clip-clop...

Then the call of a lively girl came from outside:

"Young Master Xie? Young Master Xie?"

Seeing this, Zhao Ling glanced out the carriage window and saw that the person coming was the braided little girl who had been sitting in the conference hall just now, and she couldn't help but raise an eyebrow:

"Is this another beauty you just flirted with? She seems quite bold."

"No, it is Jiang Xian, the Constable in charge of this case."

Xie Jinhuan looked outside and found Shen Cang was also there; he guessed Shen Cang was looking for him, the 'consultant', to discuss matters, so he immediately took his leave and got off the carriage.

By the roadside.

Jiang Xian was still wearing a green Constable robe, but she had added a Fengyi Blade at her waist, signifying her status as a close guard of the Empress. Because Empress Dowager Guo had promised that if she solved Xie Jinhuan's case, she could become a right-hand man, her enthusiasm was very high; at this moment, she stood on tiptoe looking at the carriage in the center of the envoy convoy, waiting for Xie Jinhuan to come out.

Shen Cang had not been notified by the higher-ups yesterday; suddenly being appointed as the lead official today to investigate the origins of the Lishan conflict, he felt very surprised in his heart, and the pressure was like a mountain.

After all, 'the Demon Dao set a trap' was Xie Jinhuan's one-sided speculation, with no clues or evidence to prove it.

What Shen Cang had to do was, within one month, and without any direction, dig out the person who set the trap.

But to be able to set a trap for Xie Jinhuan and drive Lu Yan and Li Huaichuan to act as blades, what kind of sky-reaching skills must that person possess?

This isn't asking Bengbo'er Ba to remove Tang Seng and his disciples...

Shen Cang naturally did not have this strength, but since the higher-ups designated him to investigate, he could not refuse, so he could only place all his hopes on Xie Jinhuan and Jiang Xiao Biao.

After waiting for a moment and seeing Xie Jinhuan approach, Shen Cang hurriedly stepped forward and went straight to the point:

"I, Shen, also feel that Young Master Xie was tricked by demon bandits, but currently there is no direction to start; I don't know how Young Master Xie plans to investigate?"

Xie Jinhuan actually couldn't figure out who these people were who set the trap for him, so he thought for a moment:

"These people have hands reaching the sky and left no evidence; to investigate, we can only start with the demon bandits who left marks in the mine tunnel. The characters left by that group of demon bandits might be fake, but the fact that they were absorbing essence and spirit all over the place a few days ago is real, and such things have happened frequently in recent years..." Shen Cang frowned and said: "These people call themselves the 'Chiwu Sect', and they have indeed committed crimes frequently in recent years, but various yamens have searched for years and only found a connection to a noble in Jingcheng, and all clues point to... sigh... this must be a frame-up by demon bandits; currently, the government office has made no progress."

Xie Jinhuan had already heard from Her Majesty the Empress Dowager yesterday; the government office didn't have no progress, but rather all clues pointed to Empress Dowager Guo and even the Guo clan, so the government office investigated with trepidation, fearing both that they wouldn't find anything and that they might find something terrible.

Empress Dowager Guo knew this was someone spreading rumors to confuse the public and framing her, but Northern Zhou had too many traitors, and she couldn't be sure who was driving this group.

Xie Jinhuan knew Empress Dowager Guo could not have any connection with the Chiwu Sect; since it was a frame-up, it was impossible not to leave even a trace; he originally wanted to say to investigate first, but Jiang Xian, standing beside him, pointed directly to the key point:

"Young Master Xie said at the Taichang Temple that Elder Lu might have been used by the Demon Dao; if we just clarify how Elder Lu got to Lizhou, couldn't we follow the vine to dig out the mastermind behind the scenes?"

Xie Jinhuan shook his head: "It's not that simple. Lu Yan was likely induced without his knowledge; unless he actively realizes the problem and confesses truthfully, it will be very difficult for us to investigate why he appeared in Lizhou that day; we can only start from other places."

Shen Cang also nodded: "Yes, if it were an ordinary person, we could still use some dark methods, secretly put a sack over him, tie him up, and torture him to force a confession, but Elder Lu is different; putting aside his status and official rank, just his cultivation level is something we can't touch; let's start investigating the Chiwu Sect first."

Jiang Xian blinked her big eyes, her eyeballs turning slightly, not knowing what she was thinking, and didn't speak again.

Seeing that both of them were anxious to solve this matter, and as the main person involved, he couldn't just think about going back to enjoy himself, so he followed the two of them to the Criminal and Arrest Department to first examine the detailed Juan Sect files on the Chiwu Sect's activities in recent years...

—

On the other side, the Princess's residence.

Lin Wanyi was indeed a bit tired last night; after Xie Jinhuan left, she fell asleep in a daze again. She thought Zisu would come to wake her up, but Zisu was quite sensible; seeing Xie Jinhuan arrive, she very consciously didn't run over to disturb her aunt's rest.

As a result, Lin Wanyi slept until the sun was high in the sky; before she woke up naturally, she heard the door quietly open, and footsteps approaching from afar.

Creak~

Tap, tap, tap...

Lin Wanyi thought Zisu had come to call her for a meal, so she squinted her eyes and replied:

"You eat first; I'll get up right away..."

But the visitor did not respond. Instead, she sat by the bed, lifted the winter quilt down a bit to reveal the girl's face, and a gentle voice followed:

"Everyone in the Long Princess Manor is already up; only you are still sleeping soundly. Aren't you afraid outsiders will laugh at you?"

"?"

Lin Wanyi's drowsy expression froze. She opened her eyes to look, only to see a woman with large glasses wearing a deep blue dress sitting at the head of the bed. Her jet-black hair was tied up with a bow hairpin. Her demeanor was dignified yet warm, looking exactly like an older sister waking up her younger sister early in the morning...

"Master?"

Lin Wanyi was stunned. She quickly rolled over and sat up, only to realize she was still wearing that scandalous purple lace erotic battle outfit. Her face flushed red as she pulled the quilt up to cover herself:

"Master, why did you come over?"

Bu Yuehua, perhaps thinking the undergarment was quite pretty, even lifted the quilt to take a peek:

"I was bored alone, so I came to check on you."

As a Physician, Lin Wanyi could see that Bu Yuehua's complexion was not very good. She immediately took her wrist to take her pulse:

"I wanted to come find you yesterday. I even asked Xie Jinhuan, but Xie Jinhuan didn't know your identity and didn't say where exactly you were staying..."

Bu Yuehua blinked her eyes and asked:

"How did Xie Jinhuan introduce me?"

"?"

Although Lin Wanyi didn't have much experience in the Jianghu, spending every day with Ladies and Young Ladies in previous years had made her quite sensitive to matters of love between men and women.

Seeing her Master suddenly curious about Xie Jinhuan's opinion, Lin Wanyi couldn't help but blink her eyes. She pondered slightly in her heart and shook her head, saying:

"Master pretended to be a female knight of the Qingming Sword Manor. Xie Jinhuan didn't know your identity. With just a man and a woman traveling north and south, and even going through hardships together, he... he was just speaking the truth. He didn't hide anything from me..."

As she spoke, a trace of complexity flowed between her eyebrows.

?!

Seeing this expression, Bu Yuehua felt a slight tremor in her heart. Her first thought was that Xie Jinhuan had told everything, revealing to Wanyi that he had seen her with Xuezi.

She originally wanted to explain that it was a case of acting in an emergency, but as an old-school demoness, she still kept a guard up. Thinking for a moment, she first secretly observed Wanyi's expression:

"He and I just went to the Southern Border to seek treasure. On the way back, we met Lu Yan. There is nothing good to hide about that. As for not revealing my identity to him, that is a long story; you will know later. You wouldn't be thinking the wrong thing, would you?"

Lin Wanyi wasn't exactly thinking the wrong thing. Her Master had concealed her identity, adopting the persona of a single, beautiful female knight, and had spent day and night with Xie Jinhuan, going through hardships together for so long. How could nothing happen?

However, seeing her Master's expression, she didn't seem guilty. Lin Wanyi didn't want to bring up these topsy-turvy matters herself, so she simply said:

"How could I think the wrong thing? Xie Jinhuan didn't know your identity and lacked restraint, but could Master lack restraint? Matters between men and women, after all, require two hands to clap..."

"..."

Bu Yuehua felt that if they continued talking, she would expose herself before the licentious Daoist nun. She immediately shook her head to cut off the topic:

"You are not young anymore. Your thoughts should be on cultivation. Don't spend all day pondering these trivialities. It's getting late; get up early and eat something. I'll return first. If you need anything, come find me at Parrot Alley."

Seeing this, Lin Wanyi stopped talking nonsense. After watching her beloved Master depart with her graceful sway, she quickly started tidying up...

——

I originally wanted to post this for free, but I clicked the wrong button. There will be one or two more chapters this afternoon!

(End of this chapter)