Cohabitation with Sword Spirit-Chapter 317 - 54: Put Yourself in Others’ Shoes

Wang Jiu is truly worthy of the title of team leader. In moments when everyone else was at a loss, he used his extraordinary observation and exceptional intelligence to open a brand-new gateway of light in the midst of a dark confusion. A few team members, who prided themselves on their intelligence-gathering skills, could only hang their heads in regretful tears when faced with the flyer in Wang Jiu’s hands.

"It’s absolutely unbelievable that he could find a clue this way..."

"I feel like a complete fool for painstakingly investigating all over the place..."

After a round of regretful self-reflection, the topic returned to the main track.

"So, the next question is, how do we exploit Shen Jinghai’s weakness?" Shen Ying quickly regained her spirits and eagerly began discussing the next step, "Should we directly write a letter to threaten him?"

Li Wanqing immediately objected, "That’s unwise. Sending a letter recklessly would be like alerting the enemy. He is the Deputy City Lord, trusted deeply by Shen Ruoshi, a figure of immense power. If necessary, he could easily use his power to crush the Golden Jade Matchmaker and destroy all evidence. And by that time, what would we have besides Wang Jiu’s words? So, we should at least have substantial evidence before considering threatening him, just like Wang Jiu did when threatening Shen Yueying, leaving her no choice but to comply."

Pausing for a moment, Li Wanqing noticed that all eyes were on her, and she continued.

"First, we should target the Golden Jade Matchmaker. Shen Jinghai has been a loyal customer for many years. His client records alone are a valuable clue. From these records, we can easily uncover the type of matchmaking partners he’s requested over the years, thereby understanding his aesthetic preferences, and so on..."

Li Chaolu was puzzled, "What use is understanding his aesthetic preferences?"

Li Wanqing explained, "If he has a perverse preference for childlike figures, we would have material to threaten him with."

Li Xinyu suddenly spoke, "Is it appropriate to make such a threat? What if he retaliates by saying the Patriarch of the Cyan Cloud Li Family not only married a childlike figure but also had children with her? What would we do then?"

Li Wanqing paused silently, "That is indeed a problem."

Shen Qingming angrily retorted, "Lu Xin is just short, do you look down on short people?!"

Li Wanqing comforted her, "We’re merely discussing societal beauty standards, not expressing personal opinions. Sister Xin is gorgeous and beloved by all, okay?"

"..." Shen Qingming snorted coldly, turning her head away, no longer participating in the discussion.

The others mostly supported Li Wanqing’s view, "Indeed, we should investigate the Golden Jade Matchmaker first. Putting aside other things, the fact that Shen Jinghai has been a loyal customer there for so many years must mean there’s something worth investigating."

"But the next question is, how do we investigate the Golden Jade Matchmaker?" Li Wanqing said as she turned her gaze to Wang Jiu, "How did you eavesdrop on the conversations between Shen Jinghai and the staff at the Golden Jade Matchmaker without being detected by them?"

Wang Jiu replied, "I used the Shifting Shadow Technique to swap places with the decorative sword on the wall in the VIP reception room."

"...That’s so straightforward and brutish. Can you employ the same tactic to investigate the archives of the Golden Jade Matchmaker?"

Wang Jiu considered for a moment and shook his head, "Impossible, the protection around the archives is extremely tight. While I can bypass it, it’s hard to do so undetected. Unless you can provide me with fourteen Cyan Dragon Scale Seals, I could swiftly construct a Hidden Wind Platform to erase the traces."

The knowledgeable Li Wanqing browsed her portable encyclopedia on the spot, finally locating the entry for the Cyan Dragon Scale Seal on page 1886. Seeing the line "Primordial Relic, Extinct," she could only chuckle softly, "No way."

"In that case, there’s nothing we can do." Wang Jiu turned to Shen Ying, "Or perhaps we could have her undergo my special training. By referring to the Shen Family’s method for training core disciples, she could dramatically enhance her Void Clarity Body in about a year, enough to bypass the Golden Jade Matchmaker’s archive surveillance."

"We don’t have a year!?"

"If urgent, we’d have to resort to an unorthodox method. During wartime, the Shen Family had a method for rapid success, achieving divine skill cultivation in as fast as seven days, but with a mortality rate of over 95%..."

"Forget it, let’s think of another way." Li Wanqing sighed helplessly, momentarily without any better ideas.

At this moment, Shen Qingming suddenly suggested, "Perhaps we could ask another Deputy City Lord for help?"

Li Wanqing was taken aback by the suggestion, then looked at her, hesitated to speak.

Shen Qingming asked, "Are you...thinking I’m being whimsical or that I’m the fool who sometimes gets things right?"

"I was about to praise your cleverness, and now you’ve left me speechless." Li Wanqing chuckled. "But, seeking Shen Yueying’s help...is indeed a good idea. These two Deputy City Lords have never gotten along. If there’s a chance to catch Shen Jinghai’s slip-up, she wouldn’t miss it."

——

Li Wanqing’s conclusion was spot on. Upon learning of Shen Jinghai’s hidden secret, Shen Yueying decisively agreed to fully support the group’s work.

"Spending his workdays matchmaking at the Golden Jade Matchmaker, and for many years, I always suspected that this person was no good! Brazenly claiming to be the right-hand man of the City Lord, someone who has always been upright, how could he have such a long-time matchmaking right-hand man!? Very well, I never expected you to obtain such valuable information so quickly, you truly live up to the reputation of the insidious, cunning, and shameless Li Family. What’s your next step, and what support do you need?"

Li Wanqing thought for a moment, "We need access to the archives of the Golden Jade Matchmaker to find his client records. However, as a large and renowned institution in Shen City, its internal security is extremely tight..."

"Of course it’s tight, Shen Jinghai has been a Golden Coins VIP there for five years, so he’s certainly ensured that his secrets remain undisclosed, and he likely leveraged his power numerous times to enhance their security measures. Sneaking in quietly would be extremely difficult. Besides, the Golden Jade Matchmaker has operated for years, and its connections in Shen City are substantial, with Peak-level Rain Cover Realm guards at their headquarters, impervious to threats of force. Nonetheless, since it still operates in Shen City, it ultimately must adhere to rules... Here’s what I’ll do, I’ll grant you a temporary identity. Use it wisely, and whether you uncover useful information will be up to your abilities."

After speaking, Shen Yueying took out a small golden seal from the pocket of her maid apron, stamped a few blank forms, and handed them to Li Wanqing.

"Fill in the blank content yourself, and then you are the Shen City Industrial and Commercial Comprehensive Management Inspectors, with the authority to conduct thorough inspections of all business institutions within Shen City. I don’t need to teach you how to do it, do I? But let me remind you, if you make any mistakes..."

Li Wanqing took the forms with a smile and said, "Understood, all consequences are assumed by us. But rest assured, the Li Family, always scheming and unscrupulous, won’t make mistakes in this kind of matter."

"Hmph, I hope so." Shen Yueying finished speaking, adjusted her maid’s hairstyle, and was about to turn and leave. Yet, before leaving, she couldn’t resist advising again, "Remember, let me know immediately when you get a result!"

"Got it."

"Also, if you want to contact me in the future, you can just write a letter on this paper, don’t make me pretend to be a maid under the guise of the book club!"

Li Wanqing seriously said, "But, you really look beautiful in the maid outfit."

"Stop flirting with me!"

——

"So, we are now the Shen City Industrial and Commercial Comprehensive Management Inspectors?"

In Shen City’s Shen Garden, a group of people gathered in the reception hall.

Li Chaolu filled in the blank forms, while curiously asking, "What’s the use of this position?"

The local indigenous of Shen City seriously explained, "It means you can tyrannize the villagers and exploit the common people. We can freely check the confidential documents, account books, and files of those businesses, and if necessary, we can even order them to shut down directly. It’s not an exaggeration to say that you have overwhelming power."

Li Chaolu curiously asked, "With such power, won’t we encounter any problems?"

"Of course we will. If you go too far, you’ll provoke public anger, and there have been cases where a passing righteous hero has executed inspectors directly," Shen Ying casually remarked, "In the past ten years, there must have been ten or eight inspectors killed out of righteous indignation, and the most formidable one nearly reached the Mountain-Overturning Realm. He had magical treasures and weaponry, thought himself invincible, and looked down on any passing heroes. At the time, he broke a few good-natured heroes..."

"And then?"

"Then he happened to meet Lord City Lord returning from a meeting in Heaven-Reaching City, who slapped him flat."

"...Evil indeed begets evil."

"Since then, the sordid deeds on this post have greatly decreased. Maybe some minor perks remain, but no one dares to go overboard. Hmm, we are just investigating the customer data of ’Golden Matrimonial Fate,’ perhaps they will cooperate."

——

As it turned out, the staff at ’Golden Matrimonial Fate’ still maintained professional conduct.

"Sorry, the personal data of our clients is absolutely private, we cannot disclose it to you."

Facing the group disguised as inspectors, ’Golden Matrimonial Fate’s’ steward, Mr. Sen, maintained a sincere and solemn expression, bowing his head, saying, "If it’s our business information, you may examine it at your leisure. We operate legally, with integrity as our foundation, and have nothing shady, but client data is different; it’s not ours but authorized to us to assist in matchmaking, aside from that, we have no right to arbitrarily access it."

Faced with such dignified and reasonable rejection, the newly appointed temporary inspectors found themselves quite stumped.

Could they really ignore reasoning and force their way into the archive room? If it came to that, not mentioning the numerous masters at ’Golden Matrimonial Fate’ headquarters, Shen Yueying might be the first to jump out and clean up the mess.

In a dilemma, Li Xinyu suddenly laughed coldly several times, saying, "Our investigation focuses precisely on your improper access to customer data at ’Golden Matrimonial Fate.’ We have received reliable information, alleging that some staff have been accessing female customers’ photo data for indecent acts! So now, we demand to investigate your access records, to see if every access was as clear and straightforward as you claim."

Once spoken, the steward’s face turned deathly pale.

A moment later, he bowed his head and softened his voice.

"Please follow me..."

——

Soon afterward, in the archive room, Li Chaolu still found it hard to believe.

"Fatty, how... how did you know that someone exploited work convenience to... do those things with female clients’ data?"

Li Xinyu chuckled, "Because if it were me, I’d definitely do that too!"