The Shopkeeper

Creeak—

The sound of the door being pushed open rang out. Chen Wu, who had been fast asleep, opened his eyes and sat up abruptly, only to find Wang Zhenyi walking in carrying a food box.

"You're awake! Get up and eat!"

Chen Wu finally set his mind at ease. He got out of bed and sat at the table, just about to offer his thanks, when he noticed that besides the food box, Wang Zhenyi had also brought a newspaper.

It was that old acquaintance again—the Jincheng Industry Promotion Gazette.

However, after a cursory glance, Chen Wu didn't seem to find any updates for Legend of Dayu'er on the front page.

"This newspaper..."

"Your wanted poster is out!" Wang Zhenyi opened the food box, took out a steamed bun, and stuffed it into her mouth. "It's right on the front page. See for yourself."

Chen Wu picked up the paper and looked closely. The front-page headline was actually his own arrest warrant; Legend of Dayu'er had been pushed to the second page, which showed just how much importance the authorities placed on him.

It was just... looking at the abstract portrait on the paper, Chen Wu began to doubt himself.

"Is this portrait supposed to be me?"

"It is!"

"Really?"

"Yes! Hahahaha—" Wang Zhenyi couldn't help but burst into laughter, the filling of the bun in her hand spilling out.

Chen Wu couldn't help but feel awkward.

Seeing the bun filling about to fall onto the table, Wang Zhenyi hurriedly caught it, stuffed it into her mouth, and laughed: "Jincheng Prefecture is still too remote. There are no masters of fine-brush painting here, nor anyone proficient in Western portraiture. It's not bad considering it was drawn like this."

"If you want to find a wanted poster that actually looks like you, you'd have to go to Yue Province, Songjiang, or the Capital City."

"Then what is the use of this wanted poster?"

"An arrest warrant isn't meant to actually catch someone; it's meant to make people think the government is trying to catch someone. In official circles, posture is far more important than action," Wang Zhenyi said. "Usually, when the government catches people, they start with family and friends, encourage informants, or scout for news. At worst, they rely on local underworld thugs or professional gossips to report leads. Only when they are truly out of options do they issue these arrest warrants and hope for a stroke of luck."

Chen Wu understood immediately. In this era without high-tech surveillance, they could only rely on the suspect's interpersonal relationships to track them down; the more connections one had, the easier they were to find. Someone like Chen Wu, who had absolutely no interpersonal connections, was the government's biggest headache.

As long as Old Ma, Monk Zhongcheng, and the Wang Zhenyi before him didn't report him to the authorities, even if Zhang Iron Ruler racked his brains, he would have no way of finding him unless they bumped into each other face-to-face.

No, he had to add Old Jin to that list. His Sound Transmission Soul-Searching Technique could find him. The greatest anomaly in this world was the existence of martial arts.

Thinking of this, Chen Wu suddenly recalled some books he had read in the past and asked: "Do the yamen keep fortune tellers? Are they... accurate?"

In the books he had read before transmigrating, it was mentioned that ancient yamen sometimes kept official fortune tellers, and when they were truly at their wits' end, they would have the fortune tellers calculate the criminal's whereabouts. This world already had something as magical as martial arts; it was hard to guarantee that these fortune tellers didn't have some unique skills.

When Wang Zhenyi heard this question, she was blank for a moment, then suddenly realized what he meant.

"You're talking about the affairs of the former Ming Dynasty, right? The yamen of the former Ming did indeed have such people. But ever since Emperor Taizong established the dynasty and thoroughly verified the matter, he deemed it completely useless and abolished such things entirely."

Oh? The transmigrator predecessors had already confirmed it, so that was fine.

"You are quite familiar with the affairs of the yamen, Miss."

"My grandfather, Zhe Fu, was once the Prefect of Jiaying Prefecture. Of course I know a thing or two about how the yamen works."

"So you are from a family of officials. My apologies."

Wang Zhenyi glanced at Chen Wu: "You are from the Yongjiu School; there is no need to put on such an act here. Who doesn't know how your Yongjiu School views the government?"

It seemed the Yongjiu School's philosophy of "the group of dragons has no leader" was known to everyone!

As she spoke, Wang Zhenyi said sternly: "The theory of 'the group of dragons has no leader' is a sound principle, but the Yongjiu School has gone astray. Relying solely on assassinating high-ranking officials and wealthy merchants cannot shake the Web that covers the world."

No, I was just saying it casually; why are you getting so serious? I haven't even figured out what this "group of dragons has no leader" actually means yet.

"Judging by what you said, Miss, you seem to have a deep understanding of my Yongjiu School."

"It's only because you lot make too much big news; it's impossible not to know."

"Haha." Chen Wu was speechless and could only offer a dry laugh, picking up a bun to eat.

"Iron Ruler Silver Fox" Zhang Zhihe was also eating a bun. He held a paper bag of carrot and mutton-filled buns, staring at the lobby of the West Wind Inn while he ate.

For the past two days, Chief Inspector Zhang had been utterly exhausted.

First, Wu Chengyi had suddenly escaped from prison, causing the Chief Inspector to fly into a rage. But before he could recapture Wu Chengyi, another bolt from the blue struck: Qiao Weisheng had been assassinated in broad daylight, and news of his death arrived the very next day.

At this critical juncture, just before his transfer to the Capital City, two major blunders had occurred. Zhang Iron Ruler couldn't help but suspect that he was having a run of bad luck. He had gone to the White Pagoda Temple early this morning to burn incense and pray for the Buddha's protection before coming to watch the West Wind Inn himself.

The scouts he had arranged to watch the West Wind Inn reported that in the middle of last night, someone dressed in night-traveling clothes had climbed over the wall to leave the inn and climbed back over to return. There was clearly something fishy going on. However, the West Wind Inn was thriving with a massive flow of people, so they didn't know who had come or gone.

This was the only lead left. If Chen Wu never appeared again, Zhang Iron Ruler would have no choice but to give up.

Thinking that Chen Wu was also a master who had cultivated the Condensed Spirit realm, Zhang Iron Ruler felt an even greater headache. Even if he found Chen Wu, he would have to plan carefully to capture such a figure.

Why was he so unlucky!

Just as Zhang Iron Ruler was lamenting in his heart, an unexpected figure suddenly appeared. It was none other than the retired General Shui Ziyi, whose reputation in Jincheng Prefecture was growing by the day.

General Shui was seen wearing a woolen cloak, his posture straight. He walked slowly into the lobby of the West Wind Inn and sat down at an empty table.

Shopkeeper Ma saw him and hurried over to greet him, serving a pot of tea and four plates of refreshments with careful attention. His movements were as nimble as if he were seeing his own father.

This Shopkeeper Ma certainly knew how to do business. Zhang Iron Ruler nodded secretly.

It was just a bit strange!

Although West Wind Inn did decent business, it catered to the common folk; a person of such extravagance as General Shui would generally not come here for leisure.

Despite his inner doubts, Iron Ruler Silver Fox did not believe General Shui would have any connection to the assassins of the Golden Wind and Drizzle Tower. He simply assumed the General had grown tired of the expensive tea and snacks at Liaowanghe Tower, or was bored of its refined music, and wanted a change of pace.

Someone in the inn seemed to have recognized General Shui, and suddenly, people began whispering and glancing toward his table. A few of the bolder patrons stood up, offered a salute, and came forward to pay their respects.

General Shui did not have his servants block them. He welcomed these people from all walks of life, smiling and exchanging a few words with each, appearing as if he were truly just here for a simple outing.

What a display of being a man of the people!

Though Zhang Iron Ruler felt suspicious, he looked left and right and could find nothing amiss. Still, he called over the scout who was tailing the target with him and gave a few instructions.

With Zhang Iron Ruler's years of experience, one had to stick a needle into any suspicious spot; if you happened to strike gold, the profit would be immense.

The guests who came to chat caused no trouble, leaving after a few pleasantries without interrupting the General's tea. Just then, a blind man from outside entered, offering to sing a song for the General in exchange for a tip.

These blind performers accompanied their singing with a three-stringed lute, mostly for the entertainment of commoners, and were known as "Blind Strings." Since the name didn't sound very pleasant, they used homophones instead. In the Liang Prefecture region, they were called "Xiaoxian," while in the Hehuang region, they were known as "Xiaxian," and the term was also popular in Jincheng Prefecture.

General Shui was in a good mood and told the blind man to sing. The man tuned his lute and performed a song titled Rebellion of the Steamed Bun Crumbs.

"The nights are long and dreams are many, The dream was truly strange, I dreamt of a little story, It would make anyone laugh to hear it, I dreamt the steamed bun crumbs were starting a rebellion..."

The ditty was crude but the content was amusing. It told of a group of flour-based foods that successfully rebelled and established a Steamed Bun Crumb dynasty, only for another group of flour-based foods to feel slighted and rebel against the new regime. The cycle repeated, listing over forty types of local snacks in one breath, which brought a knowing smile to General Shui's face.

"The five grains are all the same, yet crafted in a thousand ways, High and low, they are not all the same.

Joy in the heart, This is but a joke about the rebellion of the steamed bun crumbs."

Before he knew it, the tune reached its end. After finishing, the blind man bowed to the General. The General was thoroughly entertained and casually tossed him a silver coin. The blind man took the coin, offered profuse thanks, and retreated.

Having heard enough, the General seemed satisfied. He stood up, gave Shopkeeper Ma, who had been serving him diligently, a silver dollar, signaled that there was no need for change, and strolled out of West Wind Inn.

The moment he returned to his carriage, the General opened his right hand. Resting there was a slip of paper. When the blind man had taken the silver coin, he had secretly pressed this note into his palm.

On the paper was a single line of small text: "Tomorrow at the hour of Shen, Liaowanghe Tower, Private Room A."

"Tomorrow at the hour of Shen, Liaowanghe Tower, Private Room A?"

Chen Wu opened the envelope sent by Monk Zhongcheng. Inside, aside from a fake beard for disguise, was this very note. Chen Wu understood that this was the time and place Old Ma had set for the meeting with the General.

"The inn has scouts; do not return. If there is anything, contact me via the waterwheel."

This was the second line on the note.

Creeak—

Just as Chen Wu was deep in thought, Wang Zhenyi pushed the door open once again. Chen Wu hurriedly hid the envelope and the Taoist robe that had come with Old Ma.

"Oh? Hiding something good?" Wang Zhenyi teased.

Chen Wu was about to explain, but Wang Zhenyi interrupted him again: "Forget it, let's eat first."

As she spoke, she placed the food box on the table and took out the chicken soup and steamed buns.

"I am leaving tomorrow." Chen Wu did not reach for the food, but said this instead.

Wang Zhenyi looked at Chen Wu, her hand holding a bun slowing down: "So soon?"

"Thank you for taking care of me these past few days."

Wang Zhenyi looked into Chen Wu's eyes, then suddenly turned her head away and began gnawing on the bun.

"If you're leaving, then leave. Why thank me?"

During this meal, the usually lively Wang Zhenyi did not say a word. After eating in silence, she picked up the food box and prepared to leave.

"Miss Wang!"

For some reason, seeing Wang Zhenyi's figure about to depart, Chen Wu suddenly called out. But when she turned back, he momentarily forgot what he wanted to say.

"The Three-Body Problem..." This thought suddenly surfaced in Chen Wu's mind, and he blurted it out, "The Three-Body Problem has no general solution."

"Pfft—" Wang Zhenyi laughed out loud, "How do you know that?"

Chen Wu adjusted his mood and smiled in response: "I just know, that's all."

I am a transmigrator, after all!

Regardless of how the process is proven, you have to admit the conclusion is correct!

"Fine, fine, fine. Get some rest!" Wang Zhenyi shook her head and left with the food box.