Cen Boqing spun around abruptly, his earlier composure gone. “Fu... Crown Prince, my old servant has done nothing wrong. He’s only been framed. Under what charge do you mean to throw him in prison?”

“If he’s under suspicion, then he has to be brought in for questioning,” Fushan Yue replied at an unhurried pace. “That’s standard procedure. Ask any commoner in Baishajue if they understand that.”

County Magistrate Tian cast a look, and the constables stepped forward.

How could the Cen household possibly allow that? Their guards drew weapons with a series of sharp shings and faced the constables.

Commander Lu waved a hand, and several hundred soldiers likewise drew swords and blades.

In less than ten minutes, the front of the Cen Residence had become a scene of naked hostility once again. The gathered onlookers retreated two full steps in unison, all afraid of being caught in the spillover.

Fushan Yue straightened in the saddle and said in a sinister voice, “Cen Boqing, do you really intend to defy the law and resist the ban right in front of me?”

The instant his temper rose, an invisible baleful aura spread in all directions. The little roadside trees, the grass growing in cracks, even the carefully planted fresh flowers in the flowerbeds outside the Cen Residence’s walls, all withered, drooped, and shriveled.

The horses under everyone present gave uneasy snorts and pawed the ground.

He Lingchuan also soothed the bighorn cliff ram beneath him, thinking to himself that Fushan Yue’s cultivation had advanced again in a very short span of time.

It looks like he really didn’t waste that imperial nectar from the Three-Heart Plain.

In a standoff like this, the side at a disadvantage would certainly not be Fushan Yue or the Chiyan authorities. One glance at Fushan Yue’s calm, unbothered expression made that obvious enough.

Cen Boqing, by contrast, had begun to sweat at the brow, and his gaze shifted restlessly. He drew a deep breath, then suddenly said, “Wu Kai isn’t here.”

“Oh?” Fushan Yue’s eyes sharpened. “Then where did he go?”

“I sent him back to Lingxu City. He had already left ahead of me.” Cen Boqing kept his face steady. “By now, he should already be out of the city. You won’t catch him.”

“You were trying to run too, yet he managed to leave before you?” Fushan Yue sounded deeply surprised. “Why don’t I believe that?”

He glanced at He Lingchuan, who shook his head.

Naturally, not a single word out of Cen Boqing’s mouth could be trusted.

“Believe it or not, that’s up to you.” Cen Boqing said coolly, “I can swear to Heaven that he truly isn’t here. If he is, then may I die with nine lightning bolts piercing my heart.”

“Pierced or not, what do I care?” Fushan Yue flicked his whip. A vow? As if he believed that crap. He trusted only his own eyes. “Get in there and search the place! Commander Lu, if anyone dares resist, kill them on the spot!”

“Yes!” With the Crown Prince backing him, Commander Lu was delighted. With a broad wave of his hand, the common soldiers of the State of Chiyan puffed out their chests and charged straight into the Cen Residence.

If the Cen household’s guards dared to block them, spear and blade met them directly.

These were all people from Lingxu City. Normally, common soldiers had to bow and scrape when they saw them and take the long way around. When had they ever had a chance to throw their weight around like this?

At that thought, the soldiers thrust and struck all the more fiercely. 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

The Cen household guards had intended to resist, only to find that every one of them was being “challenged” by four or five men at once. Two fists could not beat ten hands. In no time at all, they were beaten black and blue.

Seeing that the situation was turning into a bloody clash, and that it was his own side losing badly, Cen Boqing said through a face dark as iron, “Stop. Let them search!”

The last few words were squeezed out through clenched teeth, thick with venom.

The Cen Residence was large, but it could not withstand five hundred soldiers rampaging through it like wolves and tigers.

And these common soldiers were rough as hell. Searching for someone was one thing, but somehow furniture got overturned by accident, flowers trampled by accident, jars and vases knocked over by accident...

The crowd gathered outside, hearing crash after crash from behind the high walls, and all wore looks of astonishment. A few especially eager busybodies climbed trees on the spot and craned their necks to peek inside.

By the time those five hundred men had finished storming through the residence, quite a few gilded mortise pieces had gone missing, some beautiful ornaments from the artificial rock garden had vanished without a trace, and even two roast geese in the kitchen that had not yet finished cooking had somehow disappeared.

It seemed even two jars of pickled vegetables were missing...

In short, Commander Lu reported loudly, “Your Highness, we searched every corner of the Cen Residence and did not find Wu Kai!”

Fushan Yue nodded, then finally turned to Cen Boqing and said, “Looks like Wu Kai really did grease the soles of his feet and slip away. In that case, Lord Cen, please return home. I’ll come by later to drink with you.”

Cen Boqing flicked his sleeve, not even looking at him, and strode back into the residence.

The Cen Family’s carriages and horses also went back one after another, slowly making their way into the residence. Commander Lu still left men surrounding the estate, three layers inside and out, so tightly that not even water could seep through.

The signal this sent was practically the same as the Crown Prince pointing straight at Cen Boqing’s nose and cursing, murderer. No one could possibly mistake it.

The surrounding crowd was no longer satisfied with whispering and pointing. Adults laughed, children shouted, and peddlers selling melon seeds, flatbread, and candied hawthorn all came rushing over to join the fun.

“This is flat-out not giving the Cen Family any face at all.”

“The Crown Prince is still the Crown Prince. He doesn’t indulge these bastards.”

“And the Crown Prince’s special envoy is impressive too. He actually dragged the Cen household out into the open!”

“This should’ve happened long ago. They’ve been swaggering around for years, and nobody could touch them! I heard once the Cen household’s dog bit someone, and the person who got bitten still had to go apologize to the dog... Hey! Get me a sesame flatbread!”

There were worried voices too:

“Can this really work? Won’t there be trouble afterward?”

“If there is, it’s none of your business. The Crown Prince is here.”

Fushan Yue acted as if no one else existed. He first ordered Commander Lu to conduct an urgent citywide search for Wu Kai, then clapped He Lingchuan on the shoulder.

“Find somewhere nearby. Let’s talk.”

At once, seven local officials stepped forward, all competing to invite the Crown Prince to stay at their own residences.

“Your homes are all too busy with people coming and going.” Fushan Yue turned his head and casually pointed at the largest inn sign on the street. “I’ll stay there.”

No one dared object.

* * *

About fifteen minutes later, the Tongyun Inn had been cleared of all guests and became the Crown Prince’s temporary residence.

From this moment onward, the Crown Prince had reserved the entire place. Idlers were not to approach.

Fushan Yue’s guest courtyard was at least twice the size of He Lingchuan’s former room. Heavy troops stood guard both inside and outside the inn.

Compared to Fushan Yue’s current display, Zhongsun Mou’s earlier style barely counted for anything.

He Lingchuan could only roll up his bedding and move over as well. Before checking out, he handed the washbasin containing the half-section of broken lotus root to one of the inn servants and told him to take it to County Magistrate Tian to claim a reward, saying that the water spirit may still be savable.

Moved by Heaven’s love of life, and also grateful that it had given Fan Sheng such a thorough working-over, He Lingchuan had tossed a little spirit medicine into the basin. Whether it could survive after that would depend on the lotus demon’s own fate.

Jiao Yu entered Tongyun Inn together with He Lingchuan, then promptly sat down by the door.

When an attendant came to serve tea, Fushan Yue waved him off. “Tea? What tea? Bring wine.”

He grabbed two cups and personally filled one to the brim for He Lingchuan. “Come, this cup is to toast you...”

“For solving the case?”

“No, to toast you for helping me vent my anger.” Fushan Yue slapped the table and laughed. “Zhongsun Mou was always trying to oppose me. This time he died well, died a worthy death!”

Is that really how that phrase[1] is supposed to be used? He Lingchuan took a sip of wine. “This place faces the street. Aren’t you afraid word will get out and people will say you’re abusing public office for private revenge?”

“And what if they do?” Fushan Yue let out a cold snort. “Back when Fushan Ji was still around, everyone assumed that he would be the one to inherit the throne in the end. People like Zhongsun Mou treated me with contempt and disrespect in Lingxu City. Did they ever imagine the disaster that would come for them today? They need a lesson. Otherwise, those idiots, relying on family background and old ties, will never learn fear!”

He Lingchuan frowned. “The courier case is already a rotten mess. Why was Zhongsun Mou so determined to protect Cen Boqing?”

“The real reason died with him, probably. But if I had to guess, it likely has something to do with his great-grandfather.” Fushan Yue stroked his chin. “His great-grandfather is over two hundred years old. He retired ages ago. A few years back, I heard he fell gravely ill twice and almost didn’t make it, but later, for some reason, he slowly recovered and is still alive even now.”

He did not need to finish the thought. He Lingchuan already understood. “You think his great-grandfather used an elixir of youth?”

“What else would prolong his years and preserve his life?” Merfolk already lived longer than humans to begin with. With an elixir of youth, someone over two hundred could still extend his life a while longer. “That old man has enormous connections in Lingxu City and has dealings with all sorts of officials. Even now, he’s still the Zhongsun Family’s main pillar. Would it be so strange if he managed to get his hands on an elixir of youth?”

“My guess is that Cen Boqing used that matter to threaten Zhongsun Mou and force him to take Fu Songhua back as the scapegoat to close the case. That way, the truth about Cen Boqing killing monsters for beads and secretly refining elixirs of youth would sink back underwater again.”

If someone consumed a treasure like the elixir of youth without an imperial bestowal, then it must have come through an illegal channel.

“The Cen household had already prepared all the evidence needed to frame someone.”

“Exactly. If you hadn’t suddenly stuck yourself into the middle of it, then, given the usual habits of this bunch of Chiyan officials, their little trick should have gone through perfectly smoothly.” Fushan Yue raised his cup again. “Come, a toast to you.”

He Lingchuan accepted without pretension. “Before arriving in Baishajue, before he’d even met Cen Boqing, Zhongsun Mou had already inserted himself into the courier case. Why?”

“What else can I say? Because the man was cheap.” Fushan Yue gave a mocking laugh. “He must’ve heard the case was assigned to me, so he hurried over to snatch it away just to show me up. And what happened in the end? In the end, he grabbed a fistful of shit he couldn’t get rid of. At the end, he must have regretted it to death.”

At that, he drank three cups in a row.

“The Touring Commissioner has been abducted, and his whereabouts are unknown. I’ve already sent a flying report to Lingxu City.” Fushan Yue knew this was not the sort of matter that could be delayed. “This is a major affair. Lingxu City will definitely send people over to investigate thoroughly.”

“If the son-in-law is under investigation, the Minister of Finance in Lingxu City can’t just sit there with no reaction, can he?”

“He isn’t just decoration. You were right to call me here.” Things had already progressed beyond what a so-called Crown Prince’s special envoy could handle. “Over the next few days, we need to move fast. Whoever should be arrested gets arrested. Whoever should be interrogated gets interrogated.”

“Couldn’t you delay reporting to Lingxu City by a few more days and buy us some time?”

“Absolutely not!” Fushan Yue clicked his tongue. “Cen Boqing has probably already sent people to Lingxu City to call for help too. The earlier we report this, the better. Otherwise, we’ll be on the passive side. Besides, who knows when Lingxu City will actually send someone over? I’d guess it won’t be that soon.”

“Why?”

“They’ll spend several days wrangling over who to appoint as special envoy, arguing back and forth, won’t they?” Fushan Yue smiled. “And once the envoy sets out from Lingxu City to Baishajue, that’ll take several more days too.”

Thinking of Fushan Yue’s background, He Lingchuan believed he understood these kinds of matters very clearly.

At this point, however, Fushan Yue’s smile vanished. “I asked several of the guards by the lake earlier. After Zhongsun Mou was swallowed by the snail toad, they still saw Wu Kai leaving the scene together with Cen Boqing. In other words, Wu Kai was definitely still there at that time. Yet less than three hours later, Cen Boqing claimed he had already sent Wu Kai off to Lingxu City, and that he’d left ahead of him.”

1. The dying a worthy death part is usually meant for righteous deaths. ☜