Someone Stole It

Although he had spent one hundred gold, the information he gathered about Peach Blossom was of little real value.

"What is certain now is that Peach Blossom and the others have left the gambling den, which counts as good news."

"But if they didn't return to the small house in East City, where else could they have gone?"

Lin Fei suddenly recalled that Peach Blossom had once visited the grand estate in South City, and that Xinghua's father worked there.

Could they have gone there?

Thinking of this possibility, the weight in Lin Fei's heart lifted slightly.

"I'll check the grand estate first. Perhaps Peach Blossom was worried I wouldn't return in time and feared the gambling den thugs would come to the East City house to collect debts, so she went to the South City estate to lay low."

Lin Fei hurried to the South City estate, but by the time he arrived, the sky had already turned dark.

After a round of knocking, the gatekeeper finally opened the door.

"Who is it, knocking so late..."

"Master!"

Upon recognizing Lin Fei, the gatekeeper hurriedly bowed.

"I ask you, has Lady Peach Blossom been here?"

"She has."

Lin Fei felt a surge of joy, thinking his guess had been correct.

"Where is she now?"

"Five days ago, the Lady did come here to drop off Xinghua's father, but she left again shortly after."

"What?"

His initial joy instantly dissolved into worry.

Lin Fei's mood grew even heavier.

"Master, shall I notify Steward Bai?"

"Tell Steward Bai to bring Old Sun here—Xinghua's father. I have questions for him."

"Yes, Master."

Lin Fei went to the main hall to wait. After a long while, Bai Yansong arrived with Old Sun in tow.

"Master, I have brought him."

Old Sun stole a glance at Lin Fei before lowering his head again, looking visibly guilty.

"Old Sun, I ask you: where is Peach Blossom?"

"Isn't Peach Blossom back home?"

Old Sun looked puzzled, clearly confused as to why Lin Fei would ask such a thing.

"Five days ago, Peach Blossom went to the gambling den to redeem you. She hasn't returned home since."

"Ah?"

Old Sun looked up, his face full of shock.

"Then what about my daughter, Xinghua? Hasn't she returned home either?"

"I am the one asking the questions here. How dare you ask me?"

Seeing Old Sun's reaction, Lin Fei realized he likely knew nothing; the trip had been a waste of time.

"If it weren't for you, a degenerate gambler, racking up debts and bringing the gambling den thugs to my East City residence, Peach Blossom wouldn't have gone missing."

Lin Fei wanted nothing more than to beat the gambler to death, but he had to keep him alive until he found out Peach Blossom's whereabouts.

"Steward Bai, lock him up."

"Without my orders, no one is to see him, and no one is to let him out."

Old Sun was so terrified he kowtowed repeatedly, begging for mercy.

"Peach Blossom's husband... you can't do this! I beg you!"

"Someone, drag him away!"

Bai Yansong called over two guards, who forcibly hauled Old Sun away.

Seeing Lin Fei's grim expression, Bai Yansong asked hesitantly, "Master, if the Lady hasn't returned home, it is highly likely she met with some accident."

Lin Fei glared at him, causing Bai Yansong to hunch his back even lower.

"What do you mean by that?"

"Master, I mean that when the Lady left, it was still daytime, and there must have been many people on the road. If she had met with an accident, someone surely would have seen it."

Seeing that Lin Fei seemed to be listening, Bai Yansong continued, "You could follow the route she must have taken and ask those who spend their days on the streets."

"For instance, the street vendors who set up stalls year-round, or the beggars along the way—perhaps one of them saw something."

Lin Fei was awakened by Bai Yansong's words; the people with the most reliable information in Nanli City were undoubtedly those who made their living on the streets.

They spent most of their time outdoors, so if any major event occurred on the streets, it would certainly catch their attention.

"Steward Bai, thank you for the reminder."

"I dare not take credit. As long as I can be of help to Master, it is my duty. It is late now; Master should get a good night's rest and wait until tomorrow to make inquiries."

Lin Fei had no heart for rest, but he knew that trying to gather information at this hour might not yield any results.

It would be better to wait until daybreak and investigate along the route Peach Blossom took back to the East City; only then would he have a chance to find an eyewitness.

After dismissing Bai Yansong, Lin Fei headed toward the secret chamber he had discovered earlier.

Outside the room housing the secret chamber, guards were stationed, unaware that all the gold, silver, and jewelry inside had already been moved.

Lin Fei looked at the Millennium Cold Jade Bed; it was the only item of value left in the chamber.

He had wanted to move it last time, but he couldn't budge it at all.

Now that his body had been strengthened by the Body Strengthening Pill, his power had greatly increased, so he decided to try again.

"If this truly is a Millennium Cold Jade Bed, as the people at Duobao Pavilion claimed, even a cultivator would be tempted by it."

Lin Fei gripped both sides of the cold jade bed with his hands and immediately felt a biting chill drilling from his arms into his body.

"This thing is too heavy; it's impossible to move."

Lin Fei exerted all his strength, yet he couldn't move it, not even an inch.

In just a short while, a layer of frost covered his arms, and the blood in his limbs nearly ceased to circulate.

"The people at Duobao Pavilion said one could sit on this to cultivate. It seems only a master capable of refining qi can withstand this cold."

Lin Fei left the secret chamber. Worried about Peach Blossom and unable to sleep, he began practicing the Xingyi Five Elements Fist he had just learned alone in the courtyard.

Over and over again, Lin Fei did not stop to rest.

Because the moment he stopped, his mind would begin to wander.

That night, he lost count of how many times he practiced the Five Elements Fist, and he only stopped when he was truly exhausted.

He lay down on the ground in the courtyard and fell asleep.

If Bai Yansong hadn't woken him, Lin Fei didn't know how long he would have slept.

"Master, why are you sleeping here? Although it isn't cold at night in Nanli City, sleeping on the ground is bound to be bad for your health."

"I'm fine."

"Master, let me help you to your room to rest."

"No need, arrange a carriage for me."

Lin Fei didn't bother to wash up or eat; he boarded a carriage and made inquiries all along the route back to the small house in the East City.

While passing through a street, Lin Fei spotted a group of young beggars.

The oldest among them were only ten or so, while the youngest were five or six.

They were all disheveled and dressed in rags, begging everywhere they went, only to be constantly chased away.

Lin Fei stepped off the carriage and called them over.

"I have a gold coin here. I want to ask you something; whoever knows the answer will receive it as a reward."

The eyes of the young beggars lit up. If they hadn't seen the servants following Lin Fei, they would have tried to snatch it.

"Sir, what do you want to ask?"

"Five days ago, did you see anything unusual?"

The young beggars looked at each other and began to chatter, but they only spoke of trivial matters.

Lin Fei prompted them: "Did you see a pregnant woman passing by here in a carriage?"

A young girl raised her hand, her voice timid.

"I... I think I saw it..."

"What did you see?"

Lin Fei grabbed the young girl's shoulders in excitement, but fearing he might scare her, he quickly forced a smile.

"Tell Uncle, what did you see?"

"I saw a carriage being robbed. There seemed to be two big sisters inside, and they were shouting for help at the time."

The young girl took a watch from her bosom and handed it to Lin Fei.

"This fell out of the carriage, so I hid it."

"This is the watch I gave to Peach Blossom."

Watches were unique in Nanli City, and Lin Fei had only ever given one to Peach Blossom.

"Little sister, do you know who robbed those two big sisters?"