Chapter 73: Not Belonging to This Era (Combined)

By rights, Jiang Jinshi should also be a member under County Magistrate Liu, but he clearly differs from the others.

First, Jiang Jinshi's relationship with County Magistrate Liu is merely cooperative; this allows the magistrate to sever it promptly if an accident occurs.

Second, the few people's income relies on the enterprises they manage, and most of their main revenue must be handed over to County Magistrate Liu.

Meanwhile, Yangguangzhai helps with dirty work, and the wealth gained from banditry does not need to be turned over.

Overall, Jiang Jinshi's status is above those few, so he was placed in a more forward position.

With a command from County Magistrate Liu, the grand birthday banquet also opened its curtains.

Xiao Hu in the outer courtyard was sitting with a few servants, and as soon as the dishes arrived he began to eat heartily without hesitation.

The person beside Xiao Hu asked casually, "Brother, what background does your master have?"

I don't know!

Then what's your name, brother?

I don't know!

I just want to make friends with you, brother; there's no need to keep me at arm's length like this.

I don't know!

You… you you, forget it, I won't argue with a fool.

I don't know!

Even while answering, Xiao Hu didn't stop moving his hands, looking like a starving ghost reborn.

Actually he doesn't want to bother with these people, but since the elder brother told him to say 'I don't know,' he just does.

In the inner courtyard, music and dance were peaceful; everyone approached to offer a toast to County Magistrate Liu, and Jiang Jinshi also watched with interest as a beauty played the zither.

A figure rushed in panic, drawing sideways glances from everyone.

County Magistrate Liu, whose interest was running high, was interrupted by this person; his flushed face bore obvious anger.

"Please calm your anger, sir; I came late today because I was seeking this peerless treasure for you." The speaker was the restaurant's proprietor.

County Magistrate Liu suppressed his anger in front of others; after all, this was his own man, but the chill in his eyes let the other stewards grasp the deeper meaning.

"Tsk tsk, if you're late just sneak in!" Old Xiao really is something.

"So reckless, Old Xiao's position might be at its end!"

"From the gambling house to the restaurant, now it seems he'll have to go from the restaurant to doing odd jobs."

The few people's gossip was heard clearly by Jiang Jinshi, who nonchalantly raised his cup and took a sip.

"Step back!"

Obviously County Magistrate Liu also didn't believe Old Xiao would have any rare treasure for him; he just wanted the other not to embarrass himself here.

"Sir, this treasure is once-in-a-century; only you are worthy of such a gem!"

Old Xiao certainly wouldn't obediently step back; he deliberately came late, planning to use this gift to outshine all treasures and become County Magistrate Liu's top subordinate in one fell swoop.

Seeing Old Xiao say this again, County Magistrate Liu's inner anger eased somewhat, on the condition that the brocade box holds a genuine treasure; if it's a worthless trinket, Old Xiao might have to stake his life to settle the matter.

Seeing everyone's gaze focused on him, Old Xiao felt rather pleased; this was exactly the effect he wanted, so he slowly opened the brocade box in his arms.

At the instant the brocade box opened, Jiang Jinshi merely glanced at it, and the next moment he spat out a mouthful of wine.

"Pfft! Cough cough… cough!"

Seeing everyone look at him, Jiang Jinshi hurriedly waved his hands.

"Sorry! This wine is a bit spicy, everyone… continue!"

Taking the handkerchief offered by a servant, Jiang Jinshi lowered his head to wipe, not letting others see his shocked expression.

He definitely didn't missee; that thing…

is something that absolutely should not appear in this era!

A plastic water bottle, moreover a certain HaHa brand—this thing couldn't be produced in this era.

Those present paid no heed to Jiang Jinshi, all focusing their gazes on this peerless treasure.

County Magistrate Liu gently lifted the water bottle from the brocade box, lightly stroking its pattern, carefully feeling this unique treasure.

Those qualified to sit in the inner courtyard all had keen eyes; they could see the treasure's extraordinariness, but without close contact its value was hard to judge.

Thus everyone stood up and gathered behind County Magistrate Liu to examine it closely.

The more they examined it, the more astonished they became, for it was a material they had never seen before.

It's a pity the pattern is really too simple; otherwise its value would surely have doubled.

But now, to put a price on this treasure, nobody has the gall; after all, rarity breeds value, and its worth is hard to measure.

Now County Magistrate Liu truly isn't angry; this treasure is surely today's biggest gain.

Seeing County Magistrate Liu so pleased, Old Xiao silently thought it was secured, and gave a provocative glance to the several stewards.

The several stewards dared not speak further, especially the gambling house steward, who looked listless; having struggled to climb up these past few days, he now seemed destined to go back down.

"Congratulations, County Magistrate Liu, on obtaining this precious gem!"

"Congratulations, congratulations!"

County Magistrate Liu's face glowed red; earlier it was from drinking, now it's from excitement.

County Magistrate Liu excitedly kept patting Old Xiao's shoulder.

"Good! Good! Very good!"

But his gaze inadvertently swept over Jiang Jinshi; despite so many of them not recognizing the treasure's origin, he reacted the instant he opened the brocade box.

Is it that he knows this object, or is the object itself somehow related to him?

County Magistrate Liu decided to wait for an opportunity to probe Jiang Jinshi.

Jiang Jinshi isn't clear about what County Magistrate Liu is thinking; right now he is conducting a brainstorm.

What exactly does the appearance of this plastic bottle signify?

Since I can time-travel, it's also possible that others have done so.

Assuming this person also time-traveled, did he build a factory to produce this water?

Jiang Jinshi immediately dismissed that idea; with the capability and equipment to build a factory, casually doing something else would be more profitable than this.

Or perhaps he was holding a water bottle when he time-traveled, and the bottle came along?

Such an anachronistic product—whether it was produced in modern times and brought here, or made here—already invites many speculations just considering the time aspect.

Or perhaps…

Jiang Jinshi's conjectures kept coming; one could say the appearance of this object completely disrupted his train of thought, making it impossible for him to think calmly.

But he could be certain: the original owner of this bottle must have been a time traveler.

Furthermore…

And it's not far from me!

Jiangcheng is neither big nor small; for someone of Lao Xiao's status to be able to come into contact with this bottle shows that this item certainly wasn't brought in from outside.

So, as long as we find a way to pry Lao Xiao's mouth open, the truth will naturally come to light!

Thinking this through, Jiang Jinshi temporarily restrained his restless heart, watching the smug Lao Xiao thoughtfully.

The banquet continued with music and dance, but Jiang Jinshi had no heart to watch; even if someone came to toast him, his interest was low.

This scene also fell into the eyes of County Magistrate Liu, who became even more certain that Jiang Jinshi knew the origin of this object.

As time passed, the banquet gradually drew to a close; County Magistrate Liu could no longer drink, his whole body swaying, barely able to stand.

Seeing that it was getting late, Jiang Jinshi was about to rise and take his leave when a figure darted out from the corner of the inner courtyard, clutching a dagger.

This person had a resolute expression, the dagger gleaming with a cold light, and lunged straight at County Magistrate Liu.

Everyone present except Jiang Jinshi had not yet reacted when the dagger, moving at extreme speed, approached County Magistrate Liu's neck.

"An assassin!"

Everyone panicked, and the reacting Lao Huo shouted toward the sky, but the guards were scattered throughout the manor maintaining order; even the nearest guard couldn't reach in time to save County Magistrate Liu.

The dagger's tip, filled with endless killing intent, kept enlarging in County Magistrate Liu's eyes; for a moment, fear overwhelmed his entire body.

Just as the dagger was about to slash County Magistrate Liu's neck, it suddenly halted before his throat.

Jiang Jinshi seized the assailant's arm, preventing any forward movement.

County Magistrate Liu's trembling feet could not move an inch, and cold sweat soaked his entire back.

The man exerted all his strength but still couldn't pull his arm free; he therefore released the dagger in his right hand, swiftly caught the falling dagger with his left, and stabbed toward County Magistrate Liu.

Even in this situation, the assailant did not give up on assassinating County Magistrate Liu, showing the deep bloody feud between them.

Jiang Jinshi's reaction was not slow either; he kicked County Magistrate Liu's bulky belly, sending him out of the danger zone.

All of this happened in the blink of an eye; County Magistrate Liu was kicked to the ground and rolled twice before stopping.

At this moment the guards arrived, forming a circle around County Magistrate Liu to protect him.

County Magistrate Liu now struggled to sit up on the ground, gasping heavily; the feeling of having survived a disaster made him immensely relieved.

Thanks to Jiang Jinshi's timely intervention, otherwise I would likely have already met my end.

As for that kick aimed at me, it was entirely to save me; next time such a situation occurs, I could actually kick him farther away.

No, no, no, he would absolutely not allow this to happen again!

"All of you, attack! Help my brother take down this assassin!"

At this moment the man also knew today's operation had failed, but this bare-handed opponent before him was remarkably tough, fighting him to a standstill.

He immediately felt like retreating, seeing that everyone around were County Magistrate Liu's men, making it seem he couldn't escape.

Jiang Jinshiyi, while letting water loose, shouted loudly, "Don't come over, protect County Magistrate Liu well, and prevent the assassin and his accomplices!"

Hearing this, County Magistrate Liu hurriedly summoned everyone to surround him again, not daring to give orders lightly, only able to cheer from the side.

"Brother Jiang, be careful not to get hurt!"

Jiang Jinshi did not respond, pretending to be strained while exchanging blows with his opponent.

The attentive man soon noticed the clue: this person seemed to be pulling his punches while fighting him, and moreover refused anyone's help.

Could it be that he intentionally let me go?

Thus the man tentatively shifted the battlefield toward the wall, and Jiang Jinshi immediately followed without the slightest hesitation.

In an instant their gazes met, and the man immediately understood its meaning.

To an outsider, it appeared that Jiang Jinshi had gained the upper hand, continuously pressing his bare-handed opponent toward the corner.

This pleased County Magistrate Liu greatly; he immediately shouted at Jiang Jinshi, "Good brother, capture him alive—I want to see who in all of Jiangcheng dares to move against Liu Changqing!"

Those in the outer courtyard, hearing the commotion, also rushed toward the inner courtyard to watch the spectacle, but the guards blocked them all.

After all, letting so many people in would further jeopardize County Magistrate Liu's safety.

The two fought their way to the wall corner; the man suddenly turned, took two steps, kicked off the courtyard wall, and using the upward momentum grabbed the top of the wall with his right hand, then simultaneously exerted force with his waist to easily vault over the wall.

The whole movement was smooth and practiced—clearly a habitual offender—so when he scaled the wall, Jiang Jinshi couldn't just stand idle.

First, while chasing, he pretended to fall two steps behind; then, when the opponent prepared to scale the wall, he threw a straight punch, but it only hit the courtyard wall.

After Jiang Jinshi "reacted", the opponent had already disappeared from sight.

County Magistrate Liu anxiously shouted: "Hurry and chase him! Don't let him get away!"

Jiang Jinshi, heedless of his bloody, split knuckles, stepped forward with a solemn face and said: "County Magistrate Liu, I believe the urgent priority is to ferret out any accomplices among the crowd, to guard against the enemy's ploy of luring the tiger away from the mountain."

County Magistrate Liu now trusted Jiang Jinshi greatly, and immediately halted the guards who were about to rush out to pursue the assassin.

Jiang Jinshi then immediately voiced his suspicion: "The assassin had clearly infiltrated the manor long ago, and today being County Magistrate Liu's birthday banquet is precisely the time when all sorts of people mingle, making it easy to strike."

Before Jiang Jinshi finished speaking, Lao Huo hurriedly interjected: "But we only let people in after verifying their identities!"

He had to clear his name; according to what Jiang Jinshi said, he could easily be mistaken by County Magistrate Liu as an accomplice to the assassin, and Liu's gaze toward him now was already off.

Jiang Jinshi also had no intention of letting Lao Huo take the blame: "Steward Huo is right—they were admitted only after checking the invitations, but…"

Each invitation can bring one person into the mansion, so I said this person must have accomplices.

County Magistrate Liu's eyes lit up: "Block the doors for me, don't let a single person escape—I must drag this scum out and tear him apart to relieve my anger."

Jiang Jinshi nodded: "The person who brought this assassin in must be the mastermind behind the plot to kill County Magistrate Liu."

County Magistrate Liu leaned toward Jiang Jinshi, feeling safer, "Brother, why do you still call me County Magistrate? Today, brother, I owe you a lot!"

"Brother Liu, I estimate that assassin is a professional; ordinary people don't have such skill and speed." Jiang Jinshi is also thick-skinned; give him a pole and he'll immediately climb up.

Those words indeed sparked County Magistrate Liu's thoughts; after a moment he tentatively asked, "Brother, you mean... Wind and Moon Pavilion?"

"Just a guess, but the possibility is high!" Jiang Jinshi deliberately said that; although he currently doesn't know which faction the man is from, he only needs to first muddy the waters.

Now County Magistrate Liu fell silent; an organization like Wind and Moon Pavilion is not something he can handle. He now needs to consider how to survive under Wind and Moon Pavilion's assassination, or to capture the mastermind behind it, in order to possibly end the assassination.

After a series of investigations, no suspects were found at all, which made County Magistrate Liu fly into a rage, blaming everything on Lao Huo.

As for how County Magistrate Liu would later deal with Lao Huo, Jiang Jinshi didn't care; he leisurely took Xiao Hu out of the city.

At this moment it was already the time when the city gates were closed, but upon hearing that Jiang Jinshi wanted to return to the mountain stronghold, County Magistrate Liu immediately had someone arrange to open the gate and send him out.

Walking along the dark official road, Jiang Jinshi suddenly said, "You've been following me this long and still won't show yourself? Could it be you want to follow me back to the mountain stronghold?"

The next moment Xiao Hu turned his horse's head, his sturdy body blocking the way.

From behind a tree a black shadow slowly emerged, speaking in a cold voice, as if devoid of any emotion.

"Why did you save that dog official?"