Investigating the Case

The struggle lasted for only the briefest of moments.

A father's responsibility outweighed his loyalty to Great Qin.

He abruptly cupped his fists and knelt on one knee: "Understood! From this day forth, I, Wang Wu, shall be at your command, benefactor!"

"As long as you can save my daughter, this life of mine is your shield! Even if it means mountains of blades, seas of fire, or the Nine Springs of the underworld, I shall not utter a word of dissent!"

"As long as it is within my authority, I will ensure your safety!"

"Very good." Chen Jin nodded and reached out to help him up. "Remember your promise."

He walked to the window and pushed it open a crack.

Outside, the sky remained a leaden gray, and the cold rain beat against the eaves with tireless persistence.

Yet, beneath this suffocating firmament, Chen Jin felt a sense of "freedom" he had never known before.

The invisible shackles had finally loosened.

Wang Wu, this umbrella of protection, might not be large, but he was enough to allow Chen Jin to pry open a space for himself within the cracks of the rules.

Seven days remained.

Xu Fu's fleet would arrive in Langya.

Time was not abundant; it was, in fact, pressing.

But for a Yanfu Walker who no longer needed to pretend, no longer needed to act with trepidation, and now possessed an "insider" familiar with local rules...

Seven days was enough for him to stir up a storm.

The otherworldly adventure of the "outlaw" Chen Jin had officially begun.

Chen Jin slipped into the shadows of the alley with Nuonuo, his gaze sweeping over the towering gray walls of the County Magistrate Mansion.

The rain was cold against his face, yet he felt a flicker of excitement.

That steward's face, and that beast that dared to bite him—they would have to pay a price.

More importantly, why did the Shark Person princess choose to perform her ritual here? He had to investigate further.

"Let's go, Nuonuo, we're going to 'investigate a case,'" he whispered.

The little girl looked up, her gray, hazy eyes reflecting the rain, and she nodded as if she understood.

Taking advantage of the late hour and the thickening rain, Chen Jin vaulted over the courtyard wall as silently as a falling leaf. Nuonuo's figure flickered, and she appeared in a corner inside the wall without a sound.

[Impermanence Step]

The moment he landed, he heard a muffled growl from the kennel nearby—it was the Ink Jade Qilin Dog.

It had clearly caught Chen Jin's scent, pacing anxiously in its cage and emitting low, threatening whines from its throat.

"Woof!" It finally couldn't help but bark.

"What are you making such a racket for! Keep it up and you won't get any meat tomorrow!" A maid's impatient scolding came from the backyard, clearly assuming the beast was merely disgruntled from being locked away.

Chen Jin grinned silently. Good.

He took Nuonuo's cold little hand and moved through the corridors like a ghost, infiltrating the magistrate's inner residence.

The study was the primary target.

Pushing open the door, a scent of aged ink and sandalwood rushed to meet them.

The room was furnished with extravagant luxury.

[Wolf-Hair Purple Bamboo Brush], valuable item, crafted by Qin artisans, sharp and resilient tip, polished purple bamboo shaft. Can be exchanged for 120 Yanfu Points.

[Gilded Chi-Dragon Pattern Bronze Ink Dropper], valuable item, exquisite craftsmanship, dragon head serves as the spout. Can be exchanged for 350 Yanfu Points.

[Green Jade Cloud Pattern Brush Rest], valuable item, warm and lustrous jade, fluid carving. Can be exchanged for 280 Yanfu Points.

[Gold and Silver Inlaid Tiger-Shaped Paperweight], valuable item, fierce and vivid, inlaid with gold and silver wire. Can be exchanged for 400 Yanfu Points.

[Painted Pottery Figurines], valuable item, a set of four, maidservant figures, fluid drapery, vibrant paint. Can be exchanged for 600 Yanfu Points.

The bedroom was even more astonishing. The vanity was left open, its jewelry and treasures practically overflowing.

[Millennium Red Coral Necklace], valuable item, rounded beads, lustrous sheen, eighteen in total. Can be exchanged for 500 Yanfu Points.

[Gold-Inlaid Jade Chi-Dragon Pendant], valuable item, superior quality jade, fine gold-work. Can be exchanged for 300 Yanfu Points.

[Openwork Coiled-Dragon Pattern White Jade Disc], valuable item, flawless white jade, masterfully carved. Can be exchanged for 640 Yanfu Points.

Chen Jin showed no mercy; wherever he passed, it was like a gale sweeping away fallen leaves.

The twenty-cubic-meter space of his personal mark was instantly filled to the brim.

"Tsk, small scale," he muttered to himself. "Ren Tu, exchange everything!"

"You have exchanged valuable items, receiving a total of 3190 Yanfu Points."

"Your current Yanfu Points total 12990."

The harvest was bountiful, yet it still paled in comparison to the Shark Silk that the Shark Person princess had tossed away like pocket change.

More importantly, he had ransacked every hidden compartment, chest, and basket, but found not a single scrap of paper or token related to Cen Qing or the Shark People.

It seems she only borrowed this place for a moment and left no trail behind, Chen Jin realized, lingering no longer.

"Nuonuo, let's go."

Nuonuo, who had been curiously touching an empty curio cabinet, appeared instantly by his side at the sound of his voice with a "whoosh."

The two figures, one large and one small, merged silently into the evening drizzle just as they had arrived.

Not long after, the county magistrate dragged his weary body back to his mansion.

He pushed open the door to his study as he always did, habitually reaching out to grab the jade ornament on the shelf.

His hand grasped nothing but air.

He froze, blinking his eyes, thinking the dim light had played a trick on him.

He looked around in confusion—the bookshelves were bare, the desk was clean as new, and only years of dust remained on the curio cabinet...

He stumbled back a step, slammed the door shut with a bang, stood under the veranda rubbing his eyes vigorously, took a deep breath, and pushed the door open once more.

It remained completely empty.

He staggered into the bedroom; the vanity case was wide open and equally hollow, not even leaving him a single copper hairpin.

"Ah—!!!"

A shrill, miserable howl tore through the tranquility of the magistrate's backyard, startling a flock of crows into flight.

"My things! My treasures!! I've been robbed! Someone come quickly!! It's all gone! It's all gone!!!"

The cry was so wretched it would bring tears to anyone who heard it.

Chen Jin left the County Magistrate Mansion with Nuonuo, walking along streets gradually soaked in twilight.

The drizzle had not ceased, and the stone-paved road was covered in shallow puddles reflecting the leaden sky, appearing exceptionally desolate.

He did not deliberately look around, but the instincts honed from years of being a Walker caused every nerve ending in his body to tighten silently—like a bow drawn to its limit, a subtle sense of discord was quietly seeping in from all directions.

On both sides of the street, a few scattered vendors were still keeping their stalls open to shelter from the rain.

Several customers in coarse cloth clothes were picking through items at the stalls, picking one up to look at it, then touching another, their eyes drifting, never actually making a purchase.

Further away, patrol squads of guards scattered throughout the area happened to pass by the street corners from four directions simultaneously, their steps uniform and synchronized, their armor emitting a dull, rhythmic clanking amidst the sound of the rain.

Just then, a guard who looked somewhat familiar walked toward him with a smile, raising a hand in greeting: "Heifu? Off duty early today? Did the sun rise in the west? Captain Wang actually let you slip away early?"

Chen Jin suppressed the alarm bells in his heart, forced a perfunctory smile onto his face that matched Heifu's usual demeanor, and replied vaguely: "Yeah, feeling a bit under the weather, heading back early."