Smashing the Vats

Inside the tea stall.

Xu Qingxiao walked slowly, his expression wary as he circulated his Haoran qi.

Righteous Haoran Qi was the best means of dealing with evil spirits. Blades and spears probably would not do much.

Although he knew that an opponent who resorted to poison could not be particularly powerful, Xu Qingxiao still stayed on full alert.

The tea stall was small inside, with only two tables. Most of the tables were set up outside.

Tools for brewing herbal tea stood around the room.

Nothing seemed particularly wrong.

Xu Qingxiao went farther inside to look around. Several large vats came into view, and as he circulated his Righteous Haoran Qi, he saw a faint green glow surrounding them.

Surveying his surroundings, Xu Qingxiao edged forward until he reached the vats and lifted their lids.

Herbal tea rippled inside each vat.

A layer of green light floated over all the tea, invisible to ordinary people. Only Confucian scholars with Righteous Haoran Qi could see it.

The herbal tea was poisoned long ago.

There are no evil spirits anywhere else.

This isn't where they'll strike.

It's farther ahead.

Xu Qingxiao considered this silently. Apart from the poisoned tea in the vats, there was nothing unusual inside the stall.

Moreover, this was not some sort of poison. It was probably a secret art connected to evil spirits.

Xu Qingxiao did not know what would happen to someone who drank the tea.

Still, he had gleaned a little information.

With that thought, Xu Qingxiao left the tea stall and nodded at the brothers, Yang Bao and Yang Hu, to reassure them.

Sure enough, the brothers breathed a sigh of relief when Xu Qingxiao emerged. Before they could ask anything, however, he went to the carriage, took out two waterskins, and returned inside to fill them with herbal tea.

After filling both waterskins, Xu Qingxiao came out again.

"Brother, wake him up."

Xu Qingxiao called out, and Yang Bao nodded, giving the old man a little shake.

The old man's eyes remained closed, and he still appeared unconscious.

But Xu Qingxiao could tell that he was playing dead.

"If he won't wake up, kill him and find somewhere to bury him. When we return to the prefectural office to claim credit, make sure you two save a share for me."

Xu Qingxiao said this with a smile.

His words left Yang Bao and Yang Hu somewhat dumbfounded. How could they dare do such a thing? It would have been a serious crime even before, let alone now.

But a moment later, the old man abruptly opened his eyes and knelt on the ground, wailing.

"Sirs, honored sirs, I've truly been wronged! I'm just an honest old tea seller."

"There must be some misunderstanding. If I poisoned anything, may I die a miserable death and my family line end with me! Sir, you must see the truth!"

The old man was genuinely panicked. How could he have known that giving away two bowls of herbal tea would lead to this? Had he known, he would never have offered them.

It was all his own fault for trying so hard to observe the social niceties.

"Shopkeeper, I know you didn't poison it. You don't have the nerve."

"I'll ask you a few questions. Answer them properly, and you might even receive a reward."

Xu Qingxiao walked over to the old man and patted his shoulder as he spoke.

"You see the truth, sir! You see the truth!"

Hearing Xu Qingxiao's words, the tea stall owner grew even more agitated.

"All right, calm down first and listen to me."

Xu Qingxiao's expression turned serious.

"When did you brew this herbal tea?"

"Who has been inside your stall?"

Xu Qingxiao asked the questions gravely. His calm interrogation made Yang Bao's and Yang Hu's eyes light up.

Anyone who did not know better would have thought Xu Qingxiao was a constable.

Then again, Xu Qingxiao had apparently been a yamen runner before, so it was understandable.

"Sir, there are three vats of herbal tea in the stall, all brewed three days ago. Normally, it takes one day to brew, one day to let it settle, and one day to cool."

"As for who's been here, sir, I've barely had any business since the notice went up the day before yesterday. There were lots of customers that day, but if you want to know who actually went inside, I... I... I really can't remember."

The old man spoke with a woeful expression.

He was not lying. Xu Qingxiao could tell, and his account was perfectly reasonable.

After all, how many people could remember what had happened three days ago? Those random passersby with extraordinary memories who kept appearing in television dramas were pure fiction.

Never mind a shopkeeper-grab any ordinary person and ask what they had been doing at a quarter to three in the afternoon three days ago. How many would remember?

Unless they had gone for a full-service package, there was no way they would remember.

Three days ago.

Xu Qingxiao pondered this, then soon continued his questioning.

"Then tell me, have you sold much herbal tea over the past two days?"

"Or rather, did anyone come here for tea before us?"

Xu Qingxiao continued asking.

The old man thought for a moment before answering.

"There were a few people yesterday, but not many. Fewer than ten. Today, it's only been you gentlemen."

The old man answered.

"Only us?"

Xu Qingxiao frowned slightly.

"What's wrong, Brother Qingxiao? Is there a problem?"

Seeing Xu Qingxiao frown, Yang Bao could not help asking.

"Nothing."

"All right, shopkeeper. Sorry for the trouble just now, but we had our reasons. Please bear with us. If anything good comes of this, the prefectural office will send someone with a reward for you."

Xu Qingxiao smiled and helped the old man up, then gave Yang Bao and Yang Hu a meaningful look. The two immediately put away their blades.

"It's fine, it's fine. I don't care about any reward. As long as the culprit is caught and brought to justice soon, that's good enough."

Feeling as though he had just survived a disaster, the old man hardly had any thoughts to spare for a reward.

"Brothers, sorry for the trouble, but please empty the tea out of those vats so nothing happens."

Xu Qingxiao spoke.

"All right."

The two nodded and entered the tea stall without another word.

Crash! Crash!

Two crashing sounds rang out as the vats were smashed. Xu Qingxiao froze for a moment. Did they have to be so direct? They could have just poured the tea out.

Soon, Yang Bao and Yang Hu came out, smiles still on their faces.

"Brother Qingxiao, is there anything else we need to do?"

The two asked Xu Qingxiao.

With a somewhat rueful smile, Xu Qingxiao took a little loose silver from his money pouch and set it before the old man. "Shopkeeper, this is a small token. Please take it."

As he placed the silver on the table, the old man hurriedly waved his hands. "Oh, no, no! Those vats were hardly worth anything. There's no need, no need."

The old man seemed overwhelmed and apprehensive.

Xu Qingxiao did not accept the loose silver the old man tried to return. Instead, he looked at Yang Bao and Yang Hu.

"Brothers, it's getting late. Let's go."

At his words, the two nodded, and they all returned to the carriage.

Under the old man's gaze, they gradually disappeared into the distance.

A quarter of an hour later.

On the official road.

Chen Xinghe's voice rang out.

"Qingxiao, the next time you encounter something like this, don't act rashly and risk yourself. You may know a little martial arts, but that's only enough to deal with petty thieves. If you encounter evil spirits or demons, you'll likely struggle."

"Not to boast, but your senior brother is about to enter the ranks. If any Demonic Evils really appeared, they'd be the ones afraid of me. Make sure you remember that next time, understand?"

Chen Xinghe's words rebuked Xu Qingxiao for his recklessness, but also carried concern and guidance.

"Thank you for your guidance, Senior Brother. I did lose my composure a little back there."

Xu Qingxiao spoke with a faint, rueful smile.

Zhou Ling had forbidden him from mentioning that he had entered the ranks, so Xu Qingxiao had never spoken of his rank in the Confucian Dao. As a result, Chen Xinghe thought he was merely an ordinary scholar.

But Xu Qingxiao made no attempt to prove anything. He knew the other man was concerned for him.

Meanwhile, Yang Bao and Yang Hu could no longer hold back their questions.

"Brother Qingxiao, how did you know the tea was poisoned?"

"Exactly. We looked for ages and couldn't see a thing. How could you tell?"

They were curious. They had been enjoying their tea when Xu Qingxiao suddenly announced that something was wrong with it, giving them such a fright that they were still shaken.

"Oh, I learned a little medicine when I was younger, so I know a bit about poisons. Herbal tea has cooling properties and tastes sweet, but it should smell bitter from the herbs. When I smelled it just now, I noticed it was rather pungent. Since I was already on my guard, I concluded that something was wrong with it."

Xu Qingxiao casually made up an explanation.

He could hardly tell them that he had entered the ranks and could therefore see it, could he?

At his words, Yang Bao and Yang Hu looked impressed, and even Chen Xinghe nodded.

It was not that they actually understood him. It simply sounded impressive, and Xu Qingxiao spoke so earnestly that they could not help believing him.

"The poisoned tea proves that this scoundrel wants to rob and murder people. But judging by what the old man said, the poison probably doesn't take effect immediately. There's a delay."

"In other words, the fellow is probably waiting somewhere for us to take the bait. Brother Qingxiao, how about we lure the snake out of its hole? We'll pretend we've been poisoned, draw them out, and capture the scoundrel alive."

Yang Bao was quick-witted enough to infer several possibilities from what they had learned, and he wanted to seize this chance to lure the snake out of its hole.

"No."

Xu Qingxiao immediately shook his head, flatly rejecting Yang Bao's idea.

"We aren't particularly strong. Although we've entered the ranks, our opponent is hidden while we're out in the open. If they're weaker than us, that's one thing. But if they're simply being cautious, we'll be the ones to suffer."

"There's no need to take the risk. You two only need to report this, and the prefectural office will naturally send people to investigate. We may not receive the main credit, but providing a lead is still a worthy contribution."

Xu Qingxiao analyzed the situation with utter seriousness.

Yes, luring the snake out of its hole and catching the criminal would be a meritorious deed.

But the question was, did they have the strength?

What if their judgment was wrong?

They only had one life. They had to be cautious. Wanting credit was all well and good, but they needed to be alive to claim it.

Xu Qingxiao's words brought Yang Bao and Yang Hu to their senses.

"You've thought this through, Brother Qingxiao. I was being rash."

Yang Bao nodded, looking somewhat ashamed.

"It's fine. It's a small matter. We'll keep traveling as normal, neither too fast nor too slow. You two should behave as you usually do. Laugh when you want to laugh, speak loudly when you want to speak loudly. Just carry on as normal."

Xu Qingxiao did not think he was particularly clever. He was merely a little more cautious.

"All right."

The two nodded.

"Oh, right, one more thing. I've filled these waterskins with the tainted tea. Hand them over when we reach the prefectural office, and make sure we get back the money for those smashed vats. Public affairs are public affairs, and private affairs are private affairs."

"But whatever happens, ordinary people shouldn't foot the bill for officials doing their work."

Xu Qingxiao spoke calmly.

At these words, Chen Xinghe inside the carriage froze for a moment, as did Yang Bao and Yang Hu outside.

But no one spoke.

Yang Bao simply took out some loose silver and returned it to Xu Qingxiao.

"That was a good reminder, Brother Qingxiao."

Yang Bao thanked him from the heart, and his admiration for Xu Qingxiao grew immensely.