Investigation
After thinking it over, Han Weishu decided that she should report the matter to the authorities.
Her father is such an unreliable person. Who knows what he'll weigh the pros and cons of if you talk to him and then just ignore the matter?
Watching the spirit ship disappear into the horizon, Han Weishu told Qiuqiu to follow, and then she turned back to find the nearest government office to report the problem.
But as she ran along the road, it suddenly occurred to her that not all government offices were willing to get involved.
She could only sigh inwardly. It seemed she would have to find out the reputation of the local government before speaking to them...
Meanwhile, in Xiushui Village...
On this day, Tong Shuzheng and Xue Chengfeng visited Lingxian Sect again.
Lin Xiao and Liu Yunan received them.
The two of them came on official business.
After the two passed through the Heart-Questioning Road, Lin Xiao led them to the sect's main hall.
Then Tong Shuzheng took out a document.
This document is a formal alliance agreement signed between the imperial court and the sect.
Although this kind of alliance agreement does not have the same legal force as the Heavenly Mandate Oath, it is still a formal and public document. Signing this agreement would officially declare the alliance between the Lingxian Sect and the imperial court, as well as the external attitudes of both parties.
Tong Shuzheng respectfully handed the document to Lin Xiao with both hands:
"Sect Master Lin, if your sect is willing to form an alliance with the imperial court, this document must be signed with the seal of your sect leader."
Upon hearing this, Lin Xiao remained silent for a moment.
Liu Yunan glanced at Lin Xiao without making a sound.
Where did they get their sect leader's seal?
Lin Xiao immediately called upon the system in his mind:
"Master, an emergency is at hand! The Sect Leader's Seal is needed!"
system:...
[Ding--Host request detected. Since the host has not unlocked the Sect Master's Seal quest and completed it to obtain the reward, the host can spend 500 Spirit Stone to exchange for a one-minute usage right of the Sect Master's Seal. Would the host like to exchange?]
What?
Five hundred Spirit Stone?
Lin Xiao felt a pang of sympathy.
And it can only be used for one minute.
So instead of exchanging it immediately, he took the document that Tong Shuzheng handed him and carefully read it word by word several times. After confirming that there were no hidden problems between the lines, he gritted his teeth and said to the system:
"Exchange!"
No sooner had he finished speaking than five hundred of his Spirit Stone were deducted from his account.
[Exchange successful. One minute countdown begins. Please use it as soon as possible.]
The next moment, a square, jade-like object appeared in his private treasury.
Lin Xiao didn't even have time to examine it carefully before he hurriedly took out the sect leader's seal from his private treasury. Just as he was about to stamp it on the document, he suddenly realized that there was no ink.
Fortunately, Xue Chengfeng, who was standing nearby, had the foresight to pull out a box of inkpads from his pocket, which solved his immediate problem.
With the sect leader's seal affixed, the document was stamped with four ancient, bright red characters: 'Sect Leader of the Lingxian Sect Sect'.
After the documents were signed, Tong Shuzheng and Xue Chengfeng took their leave.
"Thank you for your cooperation, Sect Master Lin. As spring has just begun and there are many matters to attend to in the prefectural city, we will not trouble you any further."
Lin Xiao, who had originally planned to invite Lin Xiao to stay for a meal, knew that the government office must be busy lately, so he didn't stay any longer.
The two men had no idea that something new awaited them when they returned to the government office.
Because the mountain stronghold was located on the edge of Hufang Province, Han Weishu headed straight for Hufang Province.
Fearing encountering inactive or even troublesome officials, she spent two days inquiring about the reputation of the local government among the people.
It was at this moment that Qiuqiu used the power of the contract to tell her that the spirit ship that had kidnapped the people had reached its destination.
Through the images shared with her by Qiuqiu, she discovered that the people who kidnapped them had not taken them into any sect, but rather to a deserted place within the territory of the neighboring country Huanyou Nation.
Tong Jialiang and his group were then driven into a mine shaft and never came out again.
Qiuqiu secretly went inside and found that everyone there was assigned to mining.
However, this ore was not Spirit Stone, but something that Han Weishu did not recognize—a very beautiful seven-colored stone.
Seeing that everyone seemed to be out of immediate danger, she secretly breathed a sigh of relief, but did not slow down her pace.
In any case, these people will never come back unless they seek help themselves.
When she learned that the magistrate of Liaoju Prefecture, the current capital of Hufang Province, had a good reputation, she immediately went Liaoju Prefecture.
Tong Shuzheng, who had just sent the document signed with the Lingxian Sect back to the capital, was greeted by Han Weishu, who had rushed over day and night.
In the yamen room of Liaoju Prefecture.
"Greetings, Lord Tong."
Upon seeing Tong Shuzheng emerge, Han Weishu was the first to bow.
Tong Shuzheng quickly raised his hand to return the greeting:
"You're too kind, Immortal. The Immortal from the Clear River Sect has come to inform you of something important. May I ask what it is?"
That's right. Although Han Weishu didn't ask her father for help, in order to avoid unnecessary procedures, she directly took out her Clear River Sect identity token when she came to the government office, and even changed into her sect uniform beforehand.
Hearing that the prefect was asking about business right away, Han Weishu didn't beat around the bush and told him directly what she had seen and heard, but she kept Qiuqiu's matter a secret, saying that she had gone to track her down herself.
Tong Shuzheng, who was unaware of her abilities, naturally had no doubts about this.
After listening, he frowned and then said to Han Weishu:
"This matter is of great importance and cannot be decided by Non-Self alone. Please wait a moment, Immortal, while I go to report to the imperial court."
However, considering that even with expedited service, it would still take at least half a month to send the letter, and then another month would pass before the court could reply.
Han Weishu, who was only at the Qi Refining First Layer, didn't have any good solutions to this.
After thinking for a moment, Tong Shuzheng first sent his advisor Xue Chengfeng, to investigate and confirm whether the matter was true.
After all, these matters are only Han Weishu's side of the story so far.
As the prefect of a prefecture, he had to verify the facts before he could deal with the matter.
Xue Chengfeng immediately led a group of constables to the county government office in the area where the mountain stronghold was located to investigate the matter.
Although these mountain people do not have household registration, they often need to go out to exchange goods with the outside world, so most of the villagers and officials in the surrounding area know about their village and its approximate location.
Because these mountain people did have a lot of arable land, the county government turned a blind eye to them and didn't interfere much.
This could be considered a dereliction of duty on their part, but the mountain people were grateful.
Because of this, although they do not have household registration, they also do not need to pay taxes.
So this can be considered an unspoken understanding between the two sides.
However, it's ultimately not something that can be done openly and honestly.
Therefore, when Xue Chengfeng led a group of constables from the prefectural city to inquire about these mountain people, the local county government was quite uneasy.