42 Law Enforcement

"Identity mark." A Black Armored Soldier walked over to Feng Ruoxue and spoke sternly.

Feng Ruoxue's little hand moved, but she took nothing out.

"Sir, I accidentally lost my identity mark. Could you make an exception?" Feng Ruoxue said with a forced smile.

Chen Cheng was in the tea house at the moment, and Feng Ruoxue did not want to expose her identity.

Moreover, Feng Ruoxue's identity mark belonged to the Izumo Empire. It would be easy for others to recognize where she came from. Although Yanling County nominally belonged to the Izumo Empire, its people did not think much of outsiders.

They had no concept of an Izumo Emperor. Since birth, they had been protected by the Chen Family, and they were more willing to regard Chen Ye and Chen Yuan as the emperors here.

Hearing Feng Ruoxue's excuse, the Black Armored Soldier showed a hint of displeasure.

People like them did not want to encounter uncooperative individuals while enforcing the law. If everyone worked with them, their jobs would be much easier.

"Lost?" The Black Armored Soldier's tone became impatient.

"Then I'm sorry, but you'll have to come with us." As he spoke, the Black Armored Soldier reached out to seize Feng Ruoxue.

Seeing this, Han Jingya hurriedly stepped in front of Feng Ruoxue. "Brother, Young Master Feng Xu is a friend of mine. Could you let him off this once for my sake? Oh, right, what's your name? I know Commander Gao Zhuang of the City Guard. Help me out this time, and I'll put in a good word for you with Commander Gao later."

Feng Ruoxue played the qin beautifully, and her appearance in men's clothing was exceptionally handsome, which made Han Jingya quite fond of her.

"Miss Han, there's really nothing I can do. We have to investigate people of unknown origin like this thoroughly," the Black Armor Guard said helplessly.

Han Jingya was highly skilled at playing the qin and was also beautiful, so she was fairly well-known in Anyang City.

Commander Gao Zhuang, whom she had mentioned, served in the City Guard. He possessed the cultivation of a Da Dou Shi and held considerable authority.

The City Guard would generally show some respect to someone as well-connected as Han Jingya. When something came up, they would often turn a blind eye and let it pass.

But today was different. Chen Cheng was sitting right behind them, and they had no desire to be charged with dereliction of duty by him.

"You—" Seeing how unyielding the Black Armored Soldier was, Han Jingya glared at him furiously.

"Don't let me find out your name, or you'll regret it," Han Jingya threatened angrily.

Normally, with a City Guard commander backing her, Han Jingya had plenty of influence in her social circle. Today, she had wanted to protect this handsome young man she had taken a liking to, Feng Ruoxue, but she had not expected the Black Armor Guard to refuse to give her any face.

Han Jingya cared greatly about saving face. Losing face before someone she liked had already made her resent this City Guard soldier.

The City Guard soldier's face twisted bitterly, but he had no way to voice the bitterness in his heart.

Han Jingya was being unreasonable, but there was nothing the Black Armor Guard could do about it. Offending Han Jingya was no great matter, but if Chen Cheng discovered that he had falsified his duties, that would be a serious problem.

"Miss Han, it's not that we refuse to give you face. There are regulations in place. It is our duty, so please stop making trouble without reason."

At that moment, the Black Armor Commander noticed the dispute and felt a headache coming on. He walked over and spoke righteously.

Anyone without an identity mark had to be taken back to the holding station for investigation. If nothing was wrong, they would naturally be released without charge. But if their identity turned out to be questionable, then there would be no helping them.

Han Jingya's unreasonable behavior had made their work more difficult, yet they had no choice but to proceed.

The person backing Han Jingya had some status, but in the eyes of the truly powerful, he was nothing. With Chen Cheng present today, if he decided to hold them accountable and charge them with incompetence, who knew how many members of the City Guard would be implicated.

Offending Han Jingya or her superior, Gao Zhuang, today might cause them some minor trouble at work in the future, but it would not be a major issue.

The Black Armor Commander held a minor post after all, and his words carried more force than those of the Black Armored Soldier from before. Feeling the faint pressure emanating from him, Han Jingya's little face turned pale.

No matter how great her reputation was, she was only a young girl without the strength to truss a chicken. Facing a true Dou Shi, she found it difficult to endure.

Noticing Han Jingya's pale face, Feng Ruoxue felt even more favorably toward her.

We only just met, yet she was willing to stand up for me. She truly is kind-hearted. But I absolutely cannot drag an innocent person into this.

Besides, given my identity, nothing will happen even if they take me away. But Han Jingya is different. From what she said, although she has a commander backing her, no matter what status he has, it is utterly powerless before a colossal force like the Chen Family. If she offends these soldiers because of me, she won't have an easy time of it.

Feng Ruoxue thought to herself as she pulled Han Jingya back.

Feng Ruoxue already possessed Dou Zhi Li Rank 8, so she was quite strong. Pulling Han Jingya back required little effort.

Feeling the force on her arm, Han Jingya lost her balance and fell backward, landing right against Feng Ruoxue.

She looked at Feng Ruoxue's face, disguised as that of a man, and felt puzzled. She could not understand why such a grown man made her feel this way.

"This has nothing to do with her. I'll go with you. Don't make things difficult for her anymore." Feng Ruoxue helped Han Jingya up, then looked directly at the Black Armored Soldier.

Feng Ruoxue's attention was entirely on the Black Armored Soldiers, so she did not notice Han Jingya's unusual reaction.

"You have some courage. Xue admires you. Take her away." Seeing Feng Ruoxue step forward and take responsibility, the Black Armor Commander felt a measure of admiration for her. But duty came first. With a wave of his hand, he immediately had a Black Armored Soldier step forward to escort Feng Ruoxue away.

Just as the Black Armored Soldier was about to grab Feng Ruoxue, Hong Luan hurried forward and shoved him.

"You can't arrest my Young Master! Let him go!" the maid shouted as she pushed him.

However, that Black Armor Soldier was also a Dou Zhe, while Hong Luan's cultivation was even lower than her princess's. Moreover, those who could become City Guard soldiers were all physically fit, and they remained extremely vigilant while enforcing the law in case of sudden incidents. How could Hong Luan possibly push him aside?

Instead, the Black Armored Soldier seized her in one motion.

"A servant loyal to her master. Take her too." The Black Armor Commander gave Hong Luan an approving glance.

Hong Luan struggled, but she was simply too weak. With the Black Armored Soldier wrenching her hands behind her back, she had no way to resist.

"You can't touch her! She is the prin—" Hong Luan grew anxious and was about to reveal Feng Ruoxue's identity.

"Hong Luan, don't speak nonsense." Feng Ruoxue hurriedly stopped her. At this moment, she still did not want to reveal her identity before Chen Cheng.

"Prin? Prin what?" Hearing Hong Luan's unfinished words, the Black Armored Soldier asked suspiciously. But Feng Ruoxue had stopped her from saying anything further.

With such a cover-up, the Black Armored Soldier suddenly felt that Feng Ruoxue's identity was far from simple.

Just as the Black Armored Soldier was about to press further, he heard a voice.

"Xue Ning."

Hearing the voice, the Black Armored Soldier looked around in confusion. He then noticed Chen Cheng looking his way, and when Chen Cheng saw the Black Armor Commander looking over, he beckoned to him.

Xue Ning was the Black Armored Soldier's name. Although he had no idea why Chen Cheng knew it, seeing his gesture, he immediately ran over to Chen Cheng with a fawning smile.

"Young Family Head, what are your orders?" the Black Armored Soldier asked, bending at the waist.

Before Chen Cheng, he showed none of the arrogance he displayed toward ordinary people.

"I know that person. Don't make things difficult for them. When you're halfway there, find an excuse to let them go. Also, don't let them realize I was the one who told you to release them," Chen Cheng said softly.

"Yes," the Black Armored Soldier hurriedly replied.

Anyang City had regulations requiring people of unknown identity to be taken back for interrogation.

However, the City Guard had no right to question Chen Cheng's instructions. They only needed to obey his orders, which carried far more weight than any regulation.

Afterward, the City Guard inspected everyone else, but found no more people of unknown origin. After taking their leave of Chen Cheng, they departed from the tea house.

And because of Chen Cheng's instructions, the Black Armor Guards did not dare behave rudely toward Feng Ruoxue.

They did not know the relationship between Feng Ruoxue and Chen Cheng. If the two were close, offending Feng Ruoxue would mean the end for all of them.

Watching Feng Ruoxue being taken away, Han Jingya felt deeply unwilling to accept it.

Don't worry, Young Master Feng. I'll definitely rescue you, Han Jingya thought.

After seeing Feng Ruoxue leave, Chen Cheng no longer had any interest in remaining there. Together with Yan Lingji and Red Serpent, he left the tea house.

What Chen Cheng did not know was that after the Black Armor Guards took Feng Ruoxue away, they encountered Chen Zihang on the road.

"Wait. Who is this?"

Chen Zihang stopped the group of Black Armor Guards.

Upon seeing Chen Zihang, the Black Armor Guards hurriedly bowed. "Greetings, Young Master Zihang."

After all, Chen Zihang had lived in Anyang City for twenty years. He was well known and often walked the streets, so far more people recognized him than recognized Chen Cheng.

"In reply to Young Master Zihang, this person's identity is unknown. This subordinate was about to take them back for interrogation," Xue Ning answered.

"Unknown identity?" Chen Zihang narrowed his eyes slightly, then said, "This person has some connection to me. Hand them over to me."

"This..." Hearing Chen Zihang's words, Xue Ning's expression turned troubled.

Chen Cheng said he knew her, and Chen Zihang also said he knew her. Xue Ning had no idea what he was supposed to do now.

Seeing Xue Ning's hesitation, Chen Zihang's expression cooled slightly.

He was used to being domineering. He did not like others refusing him, nor did he like explaining himself too much.