Informing

Seeing an Imperial Guard soldier greet Su Mo proactively sent waves of shock through Yao Shitou!

Everything made sense now.

Why he dared to punch the Magistrate's Clerk's brother-in-law and shatter his shoulder.

Why he dared to stroll through the East Market while being wanted by the entire city!

This Su Lengzi actually had connections with the Imperial Guard!

And judging by the soldier's tone.

Su Lengzi... no... Su Mo's connection was directly to a sixth-rank Imperial Guard Centurion!

In the vast Changping County, who dared to touch him?

If you offended the Imperial Guard, even if they couldn't do anything to you immediately.

They would keep a close eye on you, and eventually, they could send you to the execution ground!

Never doubt the capabilities and methods of the Imperial Guard!

Oh my god!

Fortunately, he had bet three hundred coins on Chen Gan.

Otherwise, if he had seen Su Mo and rushed to report him to the yamen, wouldn't he have offended him to death?

Su Mo chuckled inwardly at Yao Shitou's reaction!

Previously, he kept calling him "Su Lengzi" and "you kid."

Now, he immediately changed his tune to "Brother Su"!

He really had to learn this ability to change his tune with the wind!

The Imperial Guard's tiger skin was useful!

Of course, he wouldn't tell Yao Shitou that he had given Lin Moyin something, and the soldier suspected he had a relationship with Lin Moyin, which was why he was deliberately trying to curry favor with him.

He looked directly at Yao Shitou and said seriously, "Brother Yao, you can't just say things like that!"

"I'm not familiar with the Imperial Guard; I've only met them once!"

"And I have absolutely no relationship with Captain Lin, not even half a cent!"

"I'll believe you when pigs fly!" Yao Shitou cursed inwardly. "He even called out the name of the Centurion's boss and said there was no relationship!"

"This Su Lengzi is hiding things really damn deeply!"

There were two types of Imperial Guards.

One was the Ming Guard, and the other was the Dark Guard!

The Ming Guard was self-explanatory, like Gao Xin, who openly wore Imperial Guard attire.

The Dark Guard was much more secretive.

No one knew their true identities except their direct superiors!

These Dark Guards were distributed in every corner of the Great Wu Dynasty!

Street vendors, courtesans in brothels, stewards, and servants, all could be Dark Guard agents!

This Su Lengzi was ninety-nine percent likely one of them!

Yao Shitou believed he had figured out Su Mo's identity.

He naturally didn't dare to say it directly.

Who knew if Su Lengzi would silence him?

He quickly laughed, "So that's how it is!"

"Brother Su's connections are indeed formidable, even the Imperial Guard can deal with him!"

"Big Wart Ma was blind to provoke Brother Su; I'm afraid he won't have a good outcome!"

Su Mo waved his hand, "Brother Yao is wrong again!"

"The country has laws, and families have rules. If I really committed a crime, even knowing people in the Imperial Guard wouldn't help!"

"Of course..."

He changed the subject, "Zhou Meng that scoundrel was bullying an honest woman in the street; I was acting in self-defense."

"The County Magistrate knows the truth and certainly won't punish me."

He paused and then specifically added, "The three patrols are directly under the County Magistrate's leadership. Don't tell the County Magistrate about this matter, lest it create a bad impression and people think the County Magistrate is showing favoritism."

Yao Shitou nodded his head like a pecking chicken!

Su Mo smiled again, "I have some things to take care of."

"Thank you for your advice today, Brother Yao. I'll treat you to drinks in the future!"

Yao Shitou quickly said, "Brother, please go ahead with your business. Don't worry about me!"

After Su Mo left.

Yao Shitou's eyes instantly lit up like light bulbs.

What a joke!

Not to tell the county magistrate?

If the county magistrate doesn't say anything, and I don't say anything, who will know it was me who squealed?

Even a lowly runner has aspirations, alright!

Below, my great-grandmother must have used all her strength to let me encounter such a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!

If I don't seize it.

How can I face my great-grandmother after I die!

Yao Shitou couldn't be bothered to patrol the East Market anymore.

He scurried back towards the yamen, a streak of motion.

As he ran, he pondered, wondering if the gambling den had closed yet. If not, he'd bet another five hundred coins, making it a full tael of silver!

Too bad, he could only bet one tael at most.

But one shouldn't be too greedy.

Everyone knew this money came from Chen Gan's pocket!

Yao Shitou hurried back to seize the opportunity.

Outside the city, the illegal salt dealer Chen Bao had returned to Eagle Ravine Dock.

First, he explained Su Mo's return to the city, then he arranged for the worried Madam Qian and Widow Qin to settle down.

Before he could even take a sip of tea, he saw Chen Hu run in, face full of panic.

Chen Bao's eyelids twitched, and he asked in a deep voice, "What's all the panic about?"

"Don't tell me that brat got caught?"

Chen Hu took several deep breaths, calming down slightly, before lowering his voice and saying, "He wasn't caught!"

Chen Bao frowned, "He wasn't caught, so why the long face?"

Chen Hu lowered his voice even further, "I secretly followed him into the city. Brother, where do you guess he went?"

Chen Bao grunted, "Spit it out, don't play coy!"

Chen Hu quickly said, "He actually went to the Imperial Guard post!"

Chen Bao jumped up with a yelp, "What?!! He... where did he go?"

Chen Hu raised his voice, "The Imperial Guard post!"

Chen Bao was stunned for a long time before managing to blurt out a few words, "That brat... what was Su Mo doing at the Imperial Guard post?"

Chen Hu gave a wry smile, "I don't know either!"

"I wouldn't dare get close to look, what if the Imperial Guard spotted me, that would be terrible!"

He swallowed, "All I know is that when he approached the Imperial Guard post, he was stopped by the guard on duty."

"It looked like he took something out and handed it to the guard."

"Then the guard let him go!"

He paused, then added, "I didn't dare follow any further."

"Figuring that since this brat has connections with the Imperial Guard, he definitely wouldn't be in trouble, so I came back immediately to tell you this news."

As he spoke, he seemed to remember something and quickly added, "Brother, we need to treat Madam Qian and the others well, especially Madam Qin... the mother and daughter!"

"Absolutely don't offend them!"

Chen Bao's expression turned grim!

In the end, he was just a local strongman.

Relying on his not-weak martial arts skills, plus the hundreds of fierce fighters in Eagle Ravine Dock, he had made a name for himself within a hundred-mile radius of West Mountain and earned a living.

But in the eyes of the authorities, in the eyes of the Imperial Guard, what was a mere illegal salt dealer?

Chen Hu saw his brother lost in thought and not speaking, and couldn't help but ask, "Brother, what's wrong?"

Chen Bao took a deep breath and suddenly asked, "Where is that girl, Qianyu, right now?"

Chen Hu was taken aback, "When we just got back to the stronghold, I saw her heading towards Huilong Pool with her sword."

"I'm afraid she's gone to practice her swordplay by the waterfall again."

Chen Bao snorted, "Always reading those messy Wuxia novels!"

"She really thinks practicing swordplay under a waterfall will make her improve by leaps and bounds!"

Chen Hu said foolishly, "Just let her be. We don't expect her to fight on the front lines anyway!"

In the eyes of these two fighting men, true martial arts were honed in the heat of battle.

How could one's power increase dramatically after a few days of practice by a waterfall?

Chen Bao said with a dark expression, "Almost twenty years old, and she spends all day practicing with swords and sabers. What kind of behavior is that? Who would dare to marry her in the future!"

"We need to find something for her to do!"

"Go and call her back. Have her take good care of Madam Qin and the others!"

Chen Hu wasn't stupid and immediately chuckled, "I'll go right now!"

He knew what his elder brother was planning.

If they could use that kid Su Mo to get in touch with the Imperial Guard.

Eagle Ravine Dock wouldn't just be dominant for a hundred miles; it would likely have a place within a thousand-mile radius.

How much smuggled salt could they sell!

He, Chen Bao, would definitely become the biggest smuggler of illicit salt in Changping County!