I am the Ruler of the Kingdom of Mysterious-Chapter 203 - 175: Quit Again
Sang Que slept until the next morning, sleeping very comfortably, feeling like she was soaking in a hot spring after exhaustion, her whole body relaxed and warm.
When Sang Que sat up from the bed, she found that the corpse spots on her body had completely disappeared, and she felt relaxed and full of energy.
"Has the Heart Lamp strengthened again?"
The feeling she had now was very similar to the feeling she had after dealing with the bandits on Purple Clouds Mountain. Could there be rumors about her in the town again?
Sang Que immediately lit the soul candle with her blood and quickly went to the Lower Nine Netherworld to take a look, shocked.
She just slept, and the outer flame of her Heart Lamp had grown significantly, making the inner flame much stronger too.
The strength of these outer flames of the Heart Lamp was equivalent to about one hundred points of a normal Heart Lamp. Now, the gap between her Heart Lamp and her level was only a little over a hundred points.
What happened?
This must be because a lot of roadside fans suddenly appeared, hearing about her reputation and thinking she was impressive.
Did Mom’s novel suddenly become a hit?
Definitely not!
The total population of Wangshan City is about thirty thousand, and about one hundred roadside fans could generate one point of incense power, and the Heart Lamp grew this much because of the roadside fans.
The incense power added currently would need about ten thousand roadside fans.
Sang Que got out of bed, not in a hurry to find out the reason. She washed up first, then went to the neighboring room to look at Xia Chan, who was sleeping soundly, and Xuan Yu, who was keeping watch and licking his paws on the beam.
Only then did she change into the black uniform of a Night Traveler, simply tied her hair with a hairband, slung her peach wood bow, arrow quiver, and Hundred Victory Saber on her back, and carried the cloth bag her mom sewed for her as she left.
When she went out to grab breakfast at the stall, Sang Que found out why her Heart Lamp suddenly strengthened.
Old Ma, who sold tofu pudding, and other stall owners nearby were very enthusiastic when they saw her, saying they usually saw her following Yu Da, thinking she was Yu Da’s apprentice. They didn’t expect she was a heroine, capturing the Evil Ghost from the gambling den all by herself.
They also said the whole town knows now that the Evil Suppression Bureau has an impressive female Night Traveler.
Sang Que left without eating breakfast, facing their compliments and flattery.
She didn’t know if she was unlucky or lucky. Being the only female Night Traveler in the Evil Suppression Bureau, the admiration was accurately directed at her, with only a small part going towards the identity of the Evil Suppression Bureau Night Traveler.
Merely half a day, and the news had spread throughout Wangshan City, known to everyone. Someone must be fueling the fire behind the scenes.
She’s definitely going to get scolded when she meets Cui Cheng today!
...
Evil Suppression Bureau, council chamber.
As soon as Sang Que reached the door, she was pulled aside by Yu Da, who came rushing out. Yu Da, full of worry, told her about the rumors.
"... This morning, many Day Traveling Envoys went to report to Captain Cui, saying you’re using the Night Traveler’s identity for personal gain, disregarding the rules of the Evil Suppression Bureau by spreading the inside stories of strange cases. When you go in to see Captain Cui, don’t stand up to him. Just let him talk, after all, he’s not your direct superior and won’t do anything to you."
Yu Da’s chubby face was covered in sweat from worry, showing genuine concern for Sang Que.
If he could see Cui Cheng instead of Sang Que, he surely would.
"Don’t worry, I know what I’m doing."
Sang Que gave Yu Da a glance. Yu Da grinned. Every time he reminded Sang Que before, she’d end up "flipping the table," and this time felt no different.
As soon as Sang Que walked in, Cui Cheng, already sitting at the head, waiting for her, angrily grabbed a teacup and smashed it at her feet.
The flying shards made Sang Que stop in her tracks and tilt her head to avoid getting her shoes splattered with tea.
"Are you treating the Evil Suppression Bureau’s rules as a joke?!" Cui Cheng yelled angrily. "If you’re so eager for fame, why not become an opera star?!"
Sang Que, with a blank expression, slowly raised her head to look at Cui Cheng, wondering how his brain could qualify him as the Day Travel Captain.
Oh right, he was transferred here to oversee after accumulating countless military merits on the Yunzhou border and losing an arm, making him unfit for combat.
"It wasn’t me," Sang Que quietly said.
"If not you, then who? Now the whole town knows about the Gambling Ghost, and who benefits from the incense if not you?"
Sang Que was exasperated and weakly said, "Clearly, someone wants to shift everyone’s attention using my name, making people only discuss how I captured the Gambling Ghost while ignoring how the Gambling Ghost emerged."
"Pushing me into the limelight, turning the Evil Suppression Bureau’s external conflicts toward me as internal conflicts, delaying time and consuming the Bureau’s energy — such an obvious scheme, Captain Cui, can’t you see it?"
This kind of plot, Sang Que had seen many times in TV dramas.
Of course, she initially thought maybe Hua Qianmian was behind it, but the rumors only mentioned her. If Hua Qianmian wanted to use this to boost her incense, how could she not mention herself?
Moreover, the people who spread the rumor probably didn’t even know the details of the capture and only said Sang Que captured the Gambling Ghost alone.
None of this matched Hua Qianmian’s traits, so it wasn’t her.
Being the only female Night Traveler in the Evil Suppression Bureau was already a topic of interest, especially since there were only two female clerical staff before her.
Cui Cheng was stunned by Sang Que’s words and soon realized as well.
Hey, that was actually the case!
Because of the uproar over this incident, to suppress the subsequent impacts of the Gambling Ghost, everyone must quickly forget it. He couldn’t instruct his people to openly investigate those related to the Gambling Ghost; it would be best to remain silent for a while.
Moreover, those Day Traveling Envoys who reported to him this morning were sarcastic, subtly accusing Sang Que of using her position for personal gain — wasn’t this internal conflict?
This bunch of scoundrels, not focusing on investigating strange cases everywhere but always watching someone else’s incense benefits, are they that idle?
Knowing he was in the wrong, Cui Cheng’s eyes shifted slightly. Suddenly, he stiffened his neck and yelled at Sang Que even louder and more forcefully.
"You... why are you so loud? Is this how you talk to your superiors? Can you say you’re not at fault?"
She was loud?
"Yes, yes, yes, you’re discerning, incredibly intelligent; you must have seen it long ago and were just testing me. Right, right, right, it’s my fault, all my fault."
After Sang Que spoke, she unceremoniously rolled her eyes.
Cui Cheng: ......
Was this girl insulting him? Discerning and incredibly intelligent, wasn’t she implying he misjudged Wei Wu and didn’t spot such a simple scheme?
The "yes, yes, yes" and "right, right, right" — why did it feel sarcastically mocking him while denying it?
Sang Que didn’t want to argue with Cui Cheng and directly brought up the matter of the one thousand gold.
"What?!!"
Cui Cheng’s voice rose an octave, his eyes widened.
"One thousand gold? That scoundrel dares to ask for it, and you’re actually agreeing? Back in the day, my head was on the line fighting enemies at the frontier, but my annual salary was only five hundred gold. You used two years of my life-risking money to hire help just for a fourth-layer Evil Ghost? Why not just come to me instead?"
"I wanted to, but Wei Wu blocked it," Sang Que confessed directly.
Cui Cheng’s face flushed with anger. One thousand gold was enough for the dependents of his fallen comrades to last several years, yet it was going to a thick-skinned Thousand-faced Ghost...
Pressing his throbbing heart, Cui Cheng shamelessly declared, "I don’t have it, and I won’t give it! If she wants to sue, let her go to Shengjing! It’s your problem since you agreed; figure it out yourself!"
Seeing Cui Cheng acting shamelessly, Sang Que, overwhelmed by the Nine Netherworld’s corrosive power, couldn’t suppress her anger. The grievances and exhaustion since becoming a Night Traveler erupted altogether. She didn’t even consider using Wei Wu’s words and directly ripped off the token from her waist. 𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖
"Your people made a mistake. I worked hard to fix it, risking my life to capture the Gambling Ghost. In the end, I get scolded by you? Sorry, but I have no obligation to pay for the mistakes you’ve made. It’s my bad judgment that I couldn’t catch the blame you threw. This crappy job, I’m quitting!"
Bang!
Sang Que fiercely threw the copper token of the Night Traveler on the ground. With Cui Cheng’s shocked look, she turned and left.
Outside, Yu Da, who had been hanging onto a pillar, exclaimed "Oh no" with a face full of tears.
It’s over! Captain Cui drove away Captain He’s competent subordinate. When Captain He returns, the sky of the Evil Suppression Bureau might indeed collapse!
