The moon rises above the treetops.
In the neighborhoods near the imperial city, large numbers of people could be seen gathered, inquiring about what had just happened inside the palace walls.
A carriage bearing the character 'Chen' drove through the streets, driven by the attendant Xiao Si.
Ye Xingge sat in the carriage, with two vermilion lacquered wooden boxes in front of him, while Chen Xiaobao held a teacup in both hands, his demeanor like that of a young eunuch.
"Father, take a rest. Official business is handled by Prime Minister Chancellor Li and the others; it's not our concern..."
Ye Xingge was lost in thought, but after hearing those words, he suddenly felt a bit like ' Ye Zhongxian ', and picked up his teacup and placed it on the table:
"It was nothing, nothing to mention. Just call me sir."
Chen Xiaobao was almost beaten to death just now. If Ye Xingge hadn't arrived in time, there would have been no follow-up reward. He waved his hands repeatedly.
"How can I say that the debt of saving my life is insignificant? Are you free tonight, godfather? I'm hosting a banquet at the Myriad Phenomena Tower, and I've invited the most beautiful courtesans from all the famous brothels..."
Godfather...
Ye Xingge thought to himself, "Isn't this still a eunuch?"
"Let's get down to business. How did you spot the assassin just now?"
Upon hearing this, Chen Xiaobao immediately straightened his back:
"Even my godfather suspects me?"
"Hey!"
Ye Xingge himself was a member of the Mountains and Rivers Association, so why would he suspect Chen Xiaobao? He was just curious about what methods the informant used to handle things so flawlessly.
After Emperor of Yan left, Ruan Jinyu and the people from the Ministry of Punishments questioned him.
But Chen Xiaobao was quite stubborn, insisting that he had discovered it himself.
The censor responsible for monitoring the guests' words and actions, the scion of a prominent family sitting nearby, and the minor official who relayed the message could all corroborate that Chen Xiaobao turned around and saw it, so there was indeed no problem.
Seeing that Chen Xiaobao couldn't answer, and knowing he couldn't possibly try to find a high-ranking informant in the Mountains and Rivers Association, Ye Xingge casually said:
"It was just curiosity. I owe it to you this time. If you hadn't been so observant, I wouldn't have gotten the chance to protect you, and people would have laughed at me for calling me 'godfather'."
Chen Xiaobao could only respond to this:
"Then I'll take the liberty of addressing you as Lord Ye. What kind of girls does Lord Ye like? I'll bring them all to you. Have you heard of 'Night Battle in All Directions'?"
"Um?"
Ye Xingge and asked in confusion:
"I know, the Night Battle in Eight Directions, Hidden Blade Stance,' there's a story behind it?"
Chen Xiaobao said mysteriously:
"I've never seen it myself, but I've heard of it. It's about eight courtesans forming a circle, with Lord Ye standing in the middle, holding a large spear..."
?
Ye Xingge thought it best to save this for later and play with it at home, waving his hand and saying:
"That's too extravagant; it's not appropriate in these turbulent years."
Chen Xiaobao invited him several more times, but seeing that Ye Grand Duke Jupiter wasn't interested in beautiful women, he had no choice but to give up and instead picked up the vermilion lacquered wooden box:
"Then you must accept this, Lord Ye. My martial arts skills are mediocre, and I have no use for the sword-nurturing material. Consider it my way of thanking you for saving my life..."
This time, it clearly hit the nail on the head.
The Mountains and Rivers Pouch has too big an appetite; it's only two feet six inches long now and can't hold a normal sword.
Ye Xingge was rewarded with 150 pieces of fabric today, and with Chen Xiaobao's, his size can be expanded to 4.6 feet, enough to hold the Green Dust Bow.
But if you accept a bribe, you're indebted to them. If they want to kill Chen Xiaobao later, it won't be easy to do so.
"This is too valuable. I will deliver the fifty pieces of fabric to Young Master Chen within seven days, at market price."
"What are you saying, Lord Ye? How could I possibly accept your money for saving my life? If you truly value it, then in the future, if Commander Ruan unfortunately passes away, simply vote for me in the selection of the Grand Commander of the Inspection Bureau..."
"Um?"
Ye Xingge thought this was a good idea.
And just as the two were secretly exchanging pleasantries, they heard the sound of horses' hooves coming from the street outside:
Tap tap tap, tap tap tap...
Chen Xiaobao frowned and immediately pushed open the car window to look outside.
The carriage had just left the imperial city and was located near Vermilion Bird Avenue.
Dozens of mounted warriors galloped past from the direction of the imperial city. The riders were all dressed in brocade robes with qilin patterns, round hats on their heads, and official swords at their waists, making them look quite magnificent.
Ye Xingge asked, "Are these people from the Ceremonial Phoenix Bureau?"
The Ceremonial Phoenix Bureau were the imperial guards under Murong Xie. On the surface, they were the Emperor of Yan's trusted advisors, but in reality, they were his eyes and ears.
Chen Xiaobao replied, "Yes, the one leading them is Tian Guangyi, a trusted aide of Murong Xie. What major incident has occurred?"
Ye Xingge frowned and said, "Didn't we just assassinate the emperor? Have you forgotten?"
"Oh!"
Chen Xiaobao slapped his forehead, but after thinking for a moment, he still said:
"We still haven't found anything. The Ceremonial Phoenix Bureau was fully armed, and they looked like they were on a mission. Have they found the mastermind behind this?"
Ye Xingge sized up the group of soldiers; they were indeed fully armed. A hint of doubt crossed his mind. He thought for a moment, then stood up and said:
"Young Master Chen, please return to the yamen first. I'll go check on things."
"Huh?"
Chen Xiaobao's expression changed slightly upon hearing this, and he quickly stopped him:
"Lord Ye, you mustn't meddle in the affairs of the Ceremonial Phoenix Bureau; these are all the Emperor's trusted confidants..."
"I understand the stakes."
After saying that, Ye Xingge left the carriage and disappeared without a trace.
Whew~
Chen Xiaobao peeked in a couple of times, intending to join the fun, but he really didn't dare get involved in the affairs of the Ceremonial Phoenix Bureau, so he hurriedly left...
The silver moon hangs high in the sky.
The streets were brightly lit, and many pedestrians and officials' carriages could be seen.
Ye Xingge landed on the rooftop by the street, waiting for the Chen family's carriage to drive away. His gaze fell on the departing troop of the Ceremonial Phoenix Bureau, and he called out softly:
" Yu'er?"
Great Beauty response followed, but the mature woman's voice carried a hint of coldness and arrogance, like an iceberg mother-in-law speaking to her rebellious son:
"I'm busy with important business, you can go back now, bye."
Then nothing happened.
Ye Xingge frowned, finding the Great Beauty Luo quite aloof. After a moment's thought, he took out the jade pendant and contacted the Great Beauty Luo:
[Has something happened in the city?]
After the assassin incident, he and Chen Xiaobao lingered for a long time after the guests had left.
The Great Beauty Luo, Lady of Anyang, and the Baby Bunny left the palace first with the female guests.
As he thought hard about Guagua, a reply came quickly:
[Didn't you just assassinate the driver? Forgot?]
[Uh, I saw the people from the Ceremonial Phoenix Bureau leave. What's going on?]
After a moment of silence, presumably to inquire further, the Great Beauty Luo replied:
[I don't know. The affairs of the Ceremonial Phoenix Bureau are none of our business. Come back soon.]
Ye Xingge knew that Heaven-Observing Pavilion, while Ceremonial Phoenix Bureau was responsible for monitoring confidential matters involving court officials. He was genuinely puzzled as to what had happened, and after some thought, replied:
Okay, I'll be back as soon as I'm done.
Then he put away the plaque and secretly followed the Ceremonial Phoenix Bureau's procession towards the outer city.
The city was ablaze with lights, and pedestrians thronged the streets and alleys like ants.
More than thirty mounted guards searched the streets and alleys after arriving at the outer city on horseback.
Ye Xingge silently hid in the shadows, observing the movements of this group of people.
But soon, he found that the gun was aimed at his head again!
This group of people wandered aimlessly around the outer city, eventually ending up near Azure Dragon Ward.
His family's Wujian Inn, is located on the main street.
Hey?
Upon seeing this, Ye Xingge frowned, worried that something had happened at home. He immediately took a detour through the shadows and arrived outside the inn.
The three-story inn stood in the middle of the main street, its beams and roof ridges spotless. However, Magistrate Shen, Constable Wang, and others had not returned, and the inn was almost deserted, with only two lanterns hanging outside the door, swaying precariously.
Ye Xingge entered the gate, he saw a waiter dozing off in the empty lobby.
The waiter was newly hired, named Laifu, Ye Xingge had met twice before.
" Laifu, haven't your dad and the others come back yet?"
"Hey? Young Master!"
When Laifu applied for the job, he was unaware of the inn's background. But after discovering that the inn's young master was none other than Ye Grand Duke Jupiter, who was causing a bloodbath outside, he didn't dare to even ask to resign.
Seeing the young master return, Laifu worried that the young master might tear him apart in a fit of anger, so he quickly got up:
"He's not back yet; he's probably still in the west of the city watching the excitement."
Ye Xingge nodded slightly, then glanced around:
"Did any special guests arrive today?"
Laifu hesitated, then hesitated again, and finally gave a very subtle response:
"Today is the emperor's birthday, everyone's gone to see the festivities, no one's staying at the inn."
"Oh..."
Ye Xingge was pondering whether the inn had already gone out of business when he noticed Laifu shivering and asked him with concern:
Are you cold?
Laifu saw the young master frown, his blood ran cold!
However, to avoid displeasing the young master, Laifu still smiled innocently and said:
"It's late and nobody's around, it's a bit... Young Master, would you like some tea? I'll go get some water..."
Ye Xingge wanted to say no, but before she could speak, Laifu ran to the backyard.
"This kid's still shy."
Ye Xingge shook his head and smiled, carefully scanning his surroundings. He didn't find anything wrong with the lobby, but in order to eliminate any potential problems, he still went upstairs and checked each room one by one.
The inns in the capital were quite large, with more than forty rooms on the second and third floors combined.
However, for some reason, it was almost never inhabited.
Ye Xingge quickly scanned the building to the third floor, thinking there was no one upstairs, but unexpectedly he saw a large eagle perched outside a door, tilting its head and looking at him.
The eagle's feathers were snow-white with many black feathers. Its eyes were orange-yellow like amber, and its feet were covered with white feathers, but its claws were like black jade, looking like sharp blades that could cut someone open with a single stroke.
The beak is the same, but the eyes reveal a kind of innocent charm, like "We are both birds in the same boat, why should we need to know each other before we met?"
He even carried a small black cloak, making him look like a gatekeeper.
Luhua chicken...
It weighs seven or eight pounds...
Upon seeing the large eagle, Ye Xingge immediately thought of the female knight-errant that Uncle Wang had mentioned yesterday. Seeing that the bird posed no threat, he walked closer to examine it.
"Coo coo?"
Fat Snow thought for a moment, then turned her head to look ahead, pretending not to recognize him.
Ye Xingge crouched down and tilted his head to look at it, but the eagle turned its back to the wall, leaving him with a rather desolate back view.
"Hey?"
Ye Xingge thought to himself that this was probably a spirit pet.
The person who can bring such a bird along must be no ordinary person.
What if some notorious bandit was staying at his inn, and was discovered by the Ceremonial Phoenix Bureau )...?
Ye Xingge looked at the door again and found that the room seemed to be cold; he could feel the chill even through the crack in the door.
Ye Xingge pressed his hand against the door, sensing the temperature difference. He knew something was wrong and looked at the large bird guarding the door.
Is your master home?
Fat Snow nodded.
Ye Xingge knocked on the door upon seeing this:
"Sir?"
There was no response from inside the room.
Ye Xingge frowned slightly, then looked at the large bird:
"May I go in?"
"Gurgle..."
Fat Snow tilted her head, feigning thought, but did not stop her.
Seeing this, Ye Xingge opened the door a crack and looked inside.
The inn had just been renovated and opened; the rooms were spotless, with square tables and small couches, and the floors were immaculate.
The third floor serves as a suite, divided into a living room and a bedroom, separated by a curtain.
There was nothing outside at the moment, but despite it being the height of summer in May, a chill permeated the air.
Ye Xingge peeked through the crack in the door, feeling as if he had opened a refrigerator. Looking inside, he could see the curtains swaying slightly, and a woman in a plain white dress sitting cross-legged on the bed.
The woman's hair was not tied up; her long, jet-black hair cascaded over her shoulders and back, moving without wind, giving her an ethereal air.
Her snow-white robes were devoid of any embellishments, except for a gold silk pouch embroidered with a flying swallow hanging from the side of her belt.
Although her clothes revealed a mature, fleshy figure and her hips were quite full, her upright sitting posture and the gesture of placing her hands on her knees in a mudra made her seem more like a celestial being, without a trace of worldly desire.
The woman's face was even more striking, her complexion as white as snow, her lips a pale, ascetic red, her spirited phoenix eyes closed, and a delicate silver brow pendant adorning her forehead. Her overall appearance was ethereal, elegant, and aloof, like... well...
A celibate female sword immortal who has cultivated diligently for countless years?
Just by looking at her temperament, Ye Xingge felt that this woman was no ordinary person, and judging from the aura she exuded, she was at least a top-tier Second Rank- class talent.
There are only 110 people above Second Rank, of whom only a quarter are women. Ye Xingge counts them all like wives!
But I didn't immediately recognize who this person was...
Ye Xingge scanned the woman's entire body and quickly spotted the gold silk pouch at her waist.
Although the pouch is white and matches the skirt well, its design is exactly the same as his Mountains and Rivers Pouch, only the patterns are different.
Mountains and Rivers Pouch?
Upon seeing this object, Ye Xingge immediately understood who was inside!
There are only twenty-eight Mountains and Rivers Pouch, all of which are in the hands of ancient and powerful families. Even the First Rank- ranking soldiers in the world would find it extremely difficult to obtain one.
The fact that the opponent is carrying a famous soldier means they must be on the Gold List. The fact that they possess such an aura and a spirit pet almost clearly indicates that they are First Rank old demon.
Among the First Rank, there are only two female demons:
The fourth in the world, the current leader of the Daoist School, and the master of the Great Beauty Luo, the Perfected Jiuhua Liu Yi!
The seventh-ranked figure in the world, the leader of the Southern Jianghu, his first ambition Mountains and Rivers Association, Cloud and Rain Tower!
It doesn't matter who it is specifically.
Anyway, with the lights off, she's still my mother-in-law, it's all the same...