Madam, you wouldn't want...

"Chen Fan, I found a destroyed secret passage in the bedroom. I don't know where it leads!"

Just then, Lu Xuenning's voice came from a room in the separate courtyard.

Chen Fan rushed over upon hearing this and found that Lu Xuenning had already lifted the bed board in the bedroom, revealing the filled-in secret passage.

"With our strength, it shouldn't take too long to dig it open again, right?" Chen Fan said.

"This should be Cao De and that woman's secret rendezvous. But do we still need to find out who this woman is?" Lu Xuenning asked, a little confused.

The evidence they had found in the separate courtyard was enough to confirm that Cao De was indeed colluding with the Demons and Devils. Although there was no direct evidence, this circumstantial evidence was sufficient.

As long as she reported this matter, Longyuan Prefecture would definitely send experts at the Divine Aperture realm to investigate everything. Their mission was already more than half complete.

"I'm not trying to find the woman Cao De was seeing. I'm curious how Cao De got to this courtyard. If he came through the main gate, or climbed over the wall like us, it's hard to guarantee he wouldn't be seen."

"So I suspect this secret passage might lead to two different places: one is the woman's hiding place, and the other is Cao De's hiding place."

"If we find evidence proving a connection between the end of this secret passage and Cao De, then we can completely nail Cao De. No matter how eloquent he is, he won't be able to retract his confession!" Chen Fan said meaningfully.

Actually, he was also quite curious about who the woman with Cao De was. He guessed that if they really found her, it would be a huge surprise.

"You make sense. I'll go find some tools right away. Let's start digging. The soil in this destroyed underground passage is loose. With our strength, we might be able to open it again before daylight!"

Lu Xuenning's eyes lit up. She found two shovels in the courtyard, and the two of them began to work.

By midnight, they reached a fork in the road. They each dug down one path. Around the fifth watch, Chen Fan broke through one of the passages.

Crash!

Chen Fan pushed hard, and with a click, he opened the exit sealed by wooden boards.

"Who?"

"Brother De, is that you?"

Someone exclaimed, startled from their sleep. Chen Fan's eyes lit up.

He looked up and confirmed he was under a bed in someone's bedroom. He crawled directly under the bed, then emerged. As he poked his head out, he saw a beautiful woman wearing a bellyband peeking down from the bed.

They locked eyes!

"Ah... Ooh ooh ooh!"

The beautiful woman was about to scream when Chen Fan reached out and covered her mouth forcefully.

"Madam, you wouldn't want your affair with Cao De to be known, would you?"

Chen Fan nimbly crawled out from under the bed, climbed onto the woman's bed, held her mouth, and whispered a threat in her ear.

The beautiful woman's eyes widened, and she nodded vigorously.

"I'll let go. Don't speak, or I'll snap your neck. Blink if you understand!" Chen Fan added.

The beautiful woman blinked frantically.

"Who are you?"

"Why did you come out of a secret passage?" the beautiful woman whispered.

"Madam, you don't seem to understand the current situation!"

"From now on, I ask, you answer. Dare to lie to me, and I'll twist your head off!" Chen Fan said fiercely.

"What is your identity, and what is your name?"

"Me? My name is Wang Menglu. I am the second wife of the County Magistrate." The beautiful woman replied.

"A concubine is a concubine. What do you mean 'second wife'!" Chen Fan pouted.

But he had certainly stumbled upon a shocking scandal today.

Ping'an County's Jinyiwei Centurion Cao De having an affair with the County Magistrate's favorite concubine – this news was truly explosive!

The Demons and Devils supported the County Magistrate as a puppet to contend with Cao De. Cao De sacrificed his honor to seduce the County Magistrate's favorite concubine to obtain intelligence.

"Why isn't the County Magistrate sleeping with you?" Chen Fan suddenly asked curiously.

"I'm on my period, so he went to find a maidservant in the manor."

"But if you want, I can offer other ways."

With eyes like silk, Wang Menglu gazed at Chen Fan, sticking out her tongue to lick her red lips.

Even though Chen Fan was covered in mud, she could see he was quite handsome in the moonlight. And when he had covered her mouth from behind and held her, she had felt the strength of his arms and the solidity of his chest.

If Chen Fan had any ill intentions towards her, she probably wouldn't refuse.

After all, she was just a weak little woman. If he insisted, she would have no choice but to yield!

"Thank you!"

"No need!"

Chen Fan knocked Wang Menglu unconscious with a chop to the head. He then laid her flat on the bed, casually squeezing her ample chest.

The feel was good, quite substantial.

No wonder the County Magistrate and Cao De were so enamored!

He returned the way he came. Just then, Lu Xuenning's secret tunnel was also dug through.

This was a rice shop on the street, now closed for the night. The entrance to the secret tunnel was in the back storeroom. It was across the street from the County Magistrate's mansion, but the straight-line distance wasn't far.

"Investigate the connection between this rice shop and Cao De. Then we can convict Cao De."

"But are you sure that sending evidence to Longyuan Prefecture is enough to bring down Cao De?"

Chen Fan asked, a hint of confusion in his voice.

It was true that Lu Xuenning was a ninth-rank Black-Robed Head Catcher newly appointed to Longyuan Prefecture, but the Government Office couldn't interfere with the Jinyiwei.

The Jinyiwei reported directly to His Majesty the Emperor of Great Zhou. They were a privileged department, responsible for overseeing aristocratic families and sects, and for slaying Demons and Devils and Monsters. They had imperial authorization to act first and report later!

Logically, even the Prefect of Longyuan Prefecture had no right to sentence Cao De, the Ping'an County Jinyiwei Centurion.

A Jinyiwei Xiaoqi Officer held a ninth-rank position, a Zongqi Officer held an eighth-rank, a Centurion held a seventh-rank, a Thousand-Household Officer held a sixth-rank, a Ten-Thousand-Household Officer held a fifth-rank, and a Commander held a fourth-rank. This was the standard promotion path.

Furthermore, as such a large and privileged department, the Jinyiwei naturally had other staff members who could concurrently hold positions like Deputy Centurion, Deputy Thousand-Household Officer, and Deputy Ten-Thousand-Household Officer.

Therefore, Cao De, a Jinyiwei Centurion, was of the same rank as the Ping'an County County Magistrate. However, despite the significant difference in rank compared to the fifth-rank Prefect, there was no subordinate relationship between them, so the Prefect couldn't convict him.

"I will report the situation here to the Prefect's office in Longyuan Prefecture. The Prefect will then negotiate with the Left Thousand-Household Officer of Longyuan Prefecture, and the Left Thousand-Household Officer can then convict Cao De."

Lu Xuenning was stunned for a moment, her eyes flickered, and then she gave a reasonable explanation.

"Are the Longyuan Prefecture Prefect and the Left Thousand-Household Officer on good terms?"

Chen Fan asked curiously.

"The Left Thousand-Household Officer has been stationed in Longyuan Prefecture for thirty years, while Prefects are reassigned every five years. The current Longyuan Prefecture Prefect and the Left Thousand-Household Officer aren't on particularly good terms."

"However, because the Jinyiwei and the Government Office often collaborate on cases, it's only natural that they show each other some respect."

Lu Xuenning chuckled awkwardly and explained.

"It's getting late. Hurry back and get some sleep. Leave the investigation of this rice shop to me."

Chen Fan felt that Lu Xuenning's words were a bit questionable, but he wasn't sure exactly why.

Mainly, his original self didn't understand the situation in Longyuan Prefecture, so he could only trust this sly fox Lu Xuenning for now!

"No problem, leave this small matter to me!"

Lu Xuenning nodded upon hearing this.

The two of them climbed over the wall and left the rice shop, each returning to their own homes.