The other man had immediately exposed Jiang Yue and the others' origins. He hadn't outright called them rebels, but he'd implied that they had ties to them. By rights, Jiang Yue should have reacted strongly and become tense.
But Jiang Yue was unusually calm, showing no sign of panic. His composure rubbed off on Jiang Qiao and San Gou, too.
The two of them had been somewhat uneasy, but seeing how calmly Jiang Yue responded soon put their nerves at ease.
"Sir, you're joking. The only way the rebels would take an interest in a few Mushroom People is if they were blind." Jiang Yue replied with impeccable courtesy, all the while watching the other man closely.
He, too, found the man's reaction strange. Given his position as a high-ranking official, if he really suspected them of having ties to the rebels, shouldn't he have brought a large force to seal off the tavern? Shouldn't he have arrested them on the spot, then tortured them for answers?
As a senior official in Titan City-state, the man had more than enough power to do all that. Against a tavern owner with no connections—an insignificant Mushroom Person, at that—he could act without any scruples. No one would dare oppose him, and no one would come to their defense.
So why hadn't he done it?
That was what Jiang Yue was trying to figure out. Either the man was bluffing and had no solid evidence,
or he had no intention of investigating their identities or capturing the rebels at all.
Otherwise, given his status, even the slightest suspicion would be enough for him to do whatever he wanted under the pretext of hunting down rebels.
Of course, the man clearly didn't believe Jiang Yue. Still, he made no further move. Instead, he calmly