Scholars Do Bad Things

March 19th, nightfall.

In the western part of the city, the lights of the Lin Mansion were like ghost lanterns, scattered high and low, sighing with the wind, illuminating the entire estate.

But there was no rain that night; the spring showers that had lasted for several days had unexpectedly taken a brief respite.

The servants of the Lin Mansion couldn't help but say, "Perhaps even Heaven cannot bear to see our Second Young Master die so young, so it's stopping the rain to send him off."

No one knew that a moonless night was precisely what made it convenient for Chen Xu's Mud Pill Dao Soldiers to travel.

His cultivation was still shallow, and for now, he could only imbue a single Puppet Dao Soldier. When releasing a Dao Soldier, it could not travel more than ten li away from him.

Ten li—a distance that was neither short nor long.

Ping'an Alley was actually more than ten li away from the Lin Mansion.

Chen Xu decided to strike first. He carefully considered Granny Lai's words and, recalling Lin Yuan's obsession with Lin Qi's death, surmised that Lin Yuan would not rest easy if Lin Qi died just like that.

If he were to go to the Lin family as promised tomorrow morning, who knew what the Lin family might do? Could there be a trap?

Chen Xu could, of course, break his promise and simply not go to offer condolences to Lin Qi.

But such evasion would not only damage his reputation but also fail to address the root cause.

In short, avoiding the issue a thousand times was not as good as taking the initiative!

Chen Xu decided to resolve the Lin family matter tonight. Tomorrow, he would return to his hometown to settle his elder brother's canal construction matter. After that, he could cultivate in peace and focus on the imperial examinations.

To go to a higher, farther stage and see the vastness of the world.

The fourth watch, the moonlight was hidden by clouds.

The cool spring night breeze blew gently, and Chen Xu walked alone into Shengyu Workshop, three streets away from the Lin family.

Shengyu Workshop, also known as the Sleepless Quarter.

In the small city of Jichuan, Shengyu Workshop was the most prosperous in the entire city.

It was also the only market in the city that did not require a curfew.

Taverns with flickering lights, music and entertainment, courtesans playing the pipa at night, dancers twirling their silk sleeves.

Gamblers in brightly lit private rooms gambled away fortunes, entering with high spirits and leaving dejected and disheartened.

The streets of Shengyu Workshop were lined with all sorts of stalls, selling mostly food and drinks, but also lamps, ring toss games, monkey shows, and more.

Chen Xu, walking into such a Shengyu Workshop, was truly inconspicuous, blending in more naturally than a drop of water merging into the ocean.

He wandered through Shengyu Workshop, occasionally watching dancers from the balconies, sometimes buying snacks from stalls to taste.

He also chatted casually with the stall vendors, listening to their tips on making snacks.

No one knew that in the dark night, a small figure in gray armor, carrying a long spear, hopped and skipped, vaulting over high walls of white plaster and green tiles, traversing flower-lined paths, and following some mysterious sense to a brightly lit mourning hall.

At this moment, the area outside the mourning hall was completely deserted.

No servants were on duty, nor were there any guards.

Only the scattered candlelight flickered, lit amidst the flowing, heavy white curtains.

The armored figure quietly approached the strangely empty mourning hall, agilely climbing to the window like a nimble monkey. It pressed its ear to the papered window, carefully listening for any movement inside.

Inside, it seemed deserted as well, with only an unsealed coffin.

Knock, knock, knock...

Suddenly, a faint, strange knocking sound came from within the coffin.

The armored figure remained still, only its ears twitching slightly.

The knocking sound inside the mourning hall was ethereal and chaotic, dong dong dong, du du du... After a few more sounds, the rustling of crickets and insects in the garden outside suddenly fell silent.

It was as if all the insects and bugs in the world had died at that moment because of the ethereal knocking!

Only the armored figure, soulless and lifeless, was unaffected.

"Sigh..."

After an unknown period of knocking, a faint sigh suddenly echoed from within the mourning hall.

The sigh sounded very young at first, but it carried a strange, precocious tone, and it was somewhat sharp.

After the sigh, a faint, young male voice said, "It's done. Now, let alone living people, even an insect outside would die. We can talk about whatever we need to."

"Thank you, Daoist Master Hu." Another young voice said. This voice was slightly deep, but Chen Xu, hearing it from afar in Shengyu Workshop, recognized it instantly as Lin Yuan's voice.

Lin Yuan asked, "Daoist Master Hu, can you truly not deduce the origin of the person who killed my brother?"

The ethereal voice of Daoist Master Hu said, "I told you, your brother died of natural causes, not murder. You refuse to believe me, so where am I supposed to deduce the killer's origin from?"

Lin Yuan said, "It's not that I don't want to believe Daoist Master Hu, it's just that my brother's death was too strange. Most importantly, he clearly said those two words before he died. I've already found out, and those two words must be... 'Kill Chen'!

He had a grudge against someone surnamed Chen. Daoist Master Hu, I'm not asking you to avenge me directly now.

Just do as we agreed: question Chen in this coffin and scare him into revealing the truth."

Daoist Master Hu sighed faintly, "But I'm a Fox Demon. If I guide him a little from inside the coffin, whoever comes, whether they are guilty or not, will likely admit to killing someone."

Lin Yuan remained silent. After a moment of quiet, Daoist Master Hu chuckled again, "Sigh, I understand what you mean. You scholars are truly interesting. You don't speak directly when you have something to say, and you don't seek revenge directly when you have a grudge. You have to make me, a monster, play the bad guy."

"But who am I to refuse when I owe your ancestors a debt? What choice do I have?"

This time, Lin Yuan spoke. He cupped his hands and bowed to Daoist Master Hu amidst the white mourning curtains filling the room. "Thank you, Daoist Master Hu. From tomorrow onward, the debt between you and the Lin family will be settled, and we will owe each other nothing."

"Hee..." The Fox Demon merely chuckled.

Its laughter was faint and ethereal, blowing open the mourning curtains of the spirit hall. It was like a shadow shimmering with light, vanishing into the tranquil night.

Thump, thump, thump--

The Fox Demon remained silent, but a rhythmic tapping began from within the coffin.

Lin Yuan, standing by the coffin, shivered all over. He gritted his teeth, telling himself he had done nothing wrong.

He then cupped his hands, bowed, and slowly backed away.

Only after retreating from the spirit hall did Lin Yuan turn and stride away from the place.

Lin Yuan was a scholar, but he had no official title. His aptitude was inferior to Lin Qi's. With no other choice, he had to take over the family's business affairs, pinning all his hopes of achieving an official title on Lin Qi.

Now that Lin Qi was dead, Lin Yuan's original plans were completely disrupted.

He harbored ten thousand resentments, and he would not rest until he found a target for his fury.

Lin Yuan walked through the long corridor and reached a small path beneath it, muttering a name as he chewed on it: "Chen..."

Suddenly, his knee ached inexplicably, and he stumbled forward.