Chapter 45: This Scholar Looks Familiar

“Bought everything. Let’s go.”

Yan Shuyi touched her cheek, murmured softly, and walked dazedly toward the first floor of Qionghua Pavilion.

As she reached the three before her—Lu Qingqiu, Du Zhu, and Qian Yunxiao—she suddenly snapped back to awareness, scanning them, her sword intent surging instantly.

Lingjian Mountain’s sword path cultivates the sword heart; even without externalizing spiritual energy, the sharpness alone could make one tremble.

The three instantly held their breath, pupils narrowing.

They had seen the woman once yesterday on the White Jade Ascension Platform, remembering her chiefly as a beauty of heavenly grace with mysterious, noble origins.

Now, seeing her buy things for Ji You, they felt she resembled a lively, modest girl from a humble family.

But face-to-face now, they felt an oppressive pressure.

It had nothing to do with realm—it was a commanding presence from above.

Du Zhu and the other two’s first thought was: Who is this person?

Why, merely by turning, had her aura transformed completely, roaring without end?

Yet they did not know that if not for this little inspector taking a sudden whim to come play, their status would have made it impossible for them to ever meet her in this lifetime.

Fortunately for the three, the cold, sharp woman before them made no move—she simply turned and descended the stairs.

What they did not know was that the little inspector had just been about to draw her sword and poke them a few times, to show Ji You that she was indeed a woman of authority.

“Ji You, I want candied fruit.”

“...”

Ji You followed her downstairs, watching the little inspector walk ahead with hands clasped behind her back, her steps steady, utterly unlike her earlier demeanor.

But she hadn’t maintained her authority for long before she began skipping and prancing again, unable to help herself.

What a strange woman...

Ji You muttered under his breath, then suddenly noticed a scholar passing by, staring at him with an odd expression.

Ji the Bandit blinked, thinking: This man looks strangely familiar—but then dismissed it as irrelevant.

“Brother Ji, what are you doing here? I was just heading to Nishan to deliver a letter for you.”

“?”

Behind Xicheng’s Apricot Blossom Alley, near the corner adjacent to Chunhua Alley, stood a tiled house—this was Kuang Cheng’s residence after joining the Imperial Spirit Supervision.

The small room held barely enough space for a sleeping mat, besides a desk and scattered scrolls covering the floor.

Behind the tiled house lay a tiny courtyard, piled with fallen leaves, still untidy.

Ji You followed Kuang Cheng inside and sat before the desk, while Yan Shuyi, knowing they had matters to discuss, sat quietly in the courtyard sipping tea.

“I’ll be leaving Shengjing for a while to investigate the demonic seeds. My return date is uncertain—I came to inform you.”

Kuang Cheng glanced at him: “Really? But you didn’t seem to recognize me on the street.”

Ji You instantly grew serious: “That was merely a disguise.”

“So Brother Ji is this cautious—well, that makes sense...”

“By the way, why did you send me a letter?”

Kuang Cheng lowered his voice: “I mentioned before—the Imperial Spirit Supervision is investigating Wei Li’s embezzlement of tax revenues. We’ve made progress, and I’ve uncovered clues about the missing children from the Orphanage.”

Ji You looked at him: “Found the mastermind?”

“I led my colleagues to investigate the Yanxing Relay Station and discovered that a batch of infants was being sent to Xuan Yuan Immortal Mansion.”

Kuang Cheng clenched his fist involuntarily: “Xuan Yuan Immortal Mansion is the one most notorious for using humans to brew elixirs—we’ve seen it ourselves in Yuyang County. Brother Ji, once you become Patriarch, don’t let them off.”

Ji You thought of Qiu Ru, gripping his teacup: “Naturally not.”

“Also, among these clues, there’s one point I can’t make sense of.”

“?”

Kuang Cheng lowered his voice: “The child disappearances didn’t start at the orphanage—they’ve been happening since three years ago. Some infants were stolen right from their parents’ arms, moments after birth.”

“So far, I’ve documented 138 cases. Several government offices in Shengjing have records, with reports clustered in certain areas.”

“Most bizarrely, three imperial princes have gone missing in succession.”

“But when I checked the exit logs of Yanxing Relay Station, the number of transports didn’t match—half the children were never sent to Xuan Yuan Immortal Mansion.”

Ji You frowned slightly: “Besides Xuan Yuan Immortal Mansion, someone else is involved?”

Kuang Cheng pulled a slip of paper from his sleeve: “I found several locations tied to Yanxing Relay Station records—I think something’s off.”

Ji You unfolded the paper, his brow tightening.

Since joining the Imperial Spirit Supervision, Kuang Cheng had been assigned clerical duties, avoiding investigations—his days were quiet.

But like Ji You, he didn’t want to be idle—he felt he had to do something—so he began investigating the infant disappearances.

Why? It stemmed from the first time he delivered quilts to the orphanage and met that emaciated child.

The child’s name was Huwa—he asked for nothing, only knelt and banged his head on the ground, begging Kuang Cheng to help him find his only sister.

Before investigating, Kuang Cheng knew stealing infants was likely tied to immortal sects.

After all, in today’s world, commoners barely had enough to eat—who would steal hundreds of children?

Yet even so, Kuang Cheng felt he owed Huwa an answer.

Now, after digging, he’d indeed found traces of immortal sects—but he was powerless. That’s why he hoped Ji You could help.

But he never expected that when Ji You saw the names on the paper, a chill shot up his spine.

The paper held little—only three town names.

Qiling Town, Yuhe Town, Beisha Town.

Ji You fell silent for a long while, unconsciously clenching the paper: “Why did you pick these three places from the Yanxing Relay Station transport logs?”

“One of Yanxing’s cart teams visited these towns far too frequently. These are remote hamlets—even if they sourced goods from the capital, they wouldn’t need a delivery every month. And their travel schedule matches the timing of the disappearances perfectly.”

After speaking, Kuang Cheng looked at him, puzzled: “Do you know these places?”

Ji You crushed the paper into his palm: “No. Never seen them. But I’ll go check. I’ll notify you if I find anything.”

“Thank you, Brother Ji.”

“You’ve reached your limit with this investigation. Focus on your promotion. Don’t forget the entire Kuang family’s burden now rests on your shoulders.”

Kuang Cheng nodded: “Wei Li’s embezzlement case is nearly concluded. The Ministry of Revenue has replaced many officials. The Emperor is determined to push through new policies—he’s even changed the era name from Taiwu to Taiyuan. Now I have more power to serve the people.”

Ji You looked up: “The court isn’t safer than the martial world. Don’t stick your neck out. Don’t let others use you as a pawn. Remember what I told you before—court Wei Li’s granddaughter, or court a princess!”

Kuang Cheng turned to look at Yan Shuyi sitting in the courtyard: “Is that the Patriarch’s granddaughter?”

Yan Shuyi sat on the stone bench, eyes fixed on the single withered leaf hanging from the tree, expression sweet and docile.

Ji You followed his gaze, then smiled faintly: “No. Just a cute little girl.”

“...”

As the words faded, both men’s shoulders jolted.

For just then, some unseen force had shot out—suddenly, the lone withered leaf and its branch snapped clean off.

The little inspector, sipping tea on the stone bench, showed no expression—only her beautiful eyes slowly narrowed.

(End of Chapter)