"!!"
The moment Inspector Wang heard that, he realized that Jia Zheng had misunderstood his unintentional actions today.
After all, if he suddenly asked about another family's female relatives, it was only natural for the other person to assume he had ulterior motives.
"No! No! No!"
"You've misunderstood!"
He hurriedly waved his hands, an apologetic smile spreading across his face as he quickly explained:
"Master Jia, you've misunderstood!"
"That wasn't my intention at all! Not at all!"
"I only... only happened to hear someone mention it and grew curious, so I asked. I meant nothing by it."
He didn't know how to explain. As an inspector with the Heavenly Court's Immortal Selection Bureau, it wasn't entirely proper for him to approach a candidate's elder and fish for information, so all he could do was speak vaguely.
But that only made him seem more suspicious.
"..."
Although Jia Zheng saw that the man denied it while clearly still wanting to ask about the matter, he did find it a little odd. Still, the other man was an official of the Immortal Selection Bureau, and perhaps this really was related to official business. After a moment's thought, he nodded and answered frankly:
"Yes!"
"There is indeed a young woman surnamed Lin in my household. She's my niece."
Seeing Inspector Wang look astonished, and as though he knew something more, he simply continued.
"Inspector Wang, are you familiar with..."
"Lin Ruhai, the Censor who is currently inspecting the salt administration in Jiangnan and overseeing the Jianghuai spiritual veins?"
At that, Inspector Wang promptly nodded with a solemn expression, his tone touched with respect:
"Of course!"
"Lord Lin Ruhai was personally selected by His Majesty as the third-place laureate in the previous imperial examination. He's a disciple of the Heavenly Emperor, and his knowledge