Side story: Feather and Poison (4)

The day after the sixth section, as some servants "normally" moved about the area where the servants and laborers lived in the lower levels of the palace, a large amount of fragmented information was collected and organized.

The trusted confidant in charge of this matter returned with a large amount of intelligence at noon and reported it to Xialike and Chloe.

"Scholar Samus has not left the palace for the past hundred days."

"This means that the Feather Race, as experimental subjects, are being kept in the palace," Chloe said.

The blood she came into contact with yesterday was quite fresh, so it couldn't have been from anywhere else.

"During this period, large quantities of alchemical potions were frequently delivered to the lakeside hut where Samus resided."

The trusted aide continued his report, taking a piece of paper from his pocket and presenting it with both hands.

"This is a record of the ingredients that have been sent there recently, provided by the logistics department."

97

Chloe glanced at it sideways, her pupils contracting.

The record sheet clearly showed a significant amount of brown rice.

Brown rice retains the germ and bran of the grain, making it more nutritious than refined rice. However, it has a coarse and hard texture, making it difficult to swallow and less conducive to human digestion and absorption.

However, this problem does not exist for Feather Race esophagus and stomach structures are different.

Brown rice, in particular, contains some of the natural lipids necessary for physiological functions, making it the most suitable staple food for the Feather Race.

"It seems that Samus is indeed imprisoning the Feather Race," Xialike sighed softly, "And conducting some shady experiment under Lorenzo's orders."

If it could be exposed to the light, it would never have been hidden in the palace.

Chloe's fingers involuntarily tightened a little.

The Feather Race is located in the Arctic Circle and has no substantial economic, political, or military ties with the Star Empire in the Southern Hemisphere.

Logically, such an intersection should not exist.

"There are also a large number of guards protecting the lakeside villa," Meiwu'er said.

Although bodyguards can conceal their movements, they cannot go without eating. Moreover, these people have extremely high daily energy expenditure, so they eat a lot and eat well.

These subtle details could not escape the notice of the low-level servants who had long been responsible for logistics.

After a few deliveries, you'll naturally have a clear idea of where the goods are sent, how many times they've been delivered, and their specifications.

Some experienced individuals could even roughly guess which commander's team was on duty based on their dietary preferences and standards.

Meiwu'er was already familiar with many aspects of the secret guard system. Based on this record, he concluded. "Judging from the meal service standards, it was a complete squadron of forty men."

Chloe sighed with emotion.

"You've really infiltrated the lower levels of the palace quite effectively."

"It's just that we're a bit more informed," Xialike said with a wry smile. "There's nothing we can do; it's all for our own safety."

His current situation allows him no room for hesitation.

He must never be the last to know if there is any disturbance in the palace.

Chloe was silent for a moment, then said softly, "Thank you, that's enough for now."

She looked up, her expression becoming much more serious.

"His Majesty summoned Samus and even granted him exclusive access to a small building within the palace; there must be more to this than meets the eye."

"If we continue to reach out, we could easily get ourselves into trouble."

Despite being the crown prince, Xialike's position was extremely awkward.

On the one hand, Lorenzo is only fifty years old this year. Considering the lifespan of Legendary powerhouses, he has at least another hundred years in power, and it is far from time for the transfer of power.

On the other hand, Xialike's biological mother, Casimir, was the granddaughter of Grand Duke Flint, Lorenzo's political rival.

His background destined him to be caught in the middle from the very beginning.

Xialike raised his hand, signaling his trusted aide to step back and continue gathering intelligence.

That's one way of saying it.

He turned to Chloe and looked at her intently.

But will you just give up?

"Of course not," Chloe admitted readily.

Xialike couldn't help but shake his head slightly.

So, please stop with the formalities.

"Let's get to the bottom of this first, while ensuring our own safety!"

****

As evening fell, the halfling Newman returned to his dwelling, carrying a paper bag.

The paper bag contained a pancake he had bought on the street.

The new city expansion project he recently undertook is progressing smoothly, which has made his workload much lighter, and he's in a good mood.

As he approached the door of his rented room, he saw the figure of a girl crouching by the door.

"Miss Dafulin," Newman greeted her.

The girl immediately stood up. Although she was only fourteen years old, she was considerably taller Newman when she stood up.

"Master Newman."

Dafulin bowed to him.

"I've encountered some more problems and would like to ask you for advice."

"Are you available now?"

"Of course it's convenient, no need to be so polite," Newman replied with a smile, taking out his keys to open the door. "Come in!"

He activated the magic lamp on the wall, and the warm yellow light illuminated the small room.

Then Newman raised the large pancake in his hand, tore it in half along with the paper bag, and handed the larger portion to Dafulin.

"You probably haven't had dinner yet, have you?" Newman said. "If you don't mind, have this first."

"Ah, but if I eat it, Master, your dinner will be ruined!"

"I can't finish it," Newman interrupted her, raising his hand. "I only wanted to buy half a piece, but the vendor absolutely refused to sell them separately."

"Thank you, Master. Then I won't stand on ceremony."

Dafulin then accepted the cake, bowed very politely, and began to take small bites.

Watching this scene, Newman couldn't help but feel a surge of emotion.

Compared to that ruthless dragon that would suddenly barge in and ransack his house, this girl in front of him was a truly well-mannered and gentle young lady!

Newman and Dafulin met at the Supreme Knowledge Association.

At that time, Dafulin had just obtained her Apprentice scholar qualification.

Newman was invited to attend the ceremony and, as a pioneer, awarded the fledgling badges to the new group of young scholars.

At that time, Dafulin had not yet fully grown up and was about the same height as Newman.

Newman was very happy about this.

He was even happier to learn that the young girl was also studying engineering construction, and he chatted with her for a long time.

Since then, Dafulin has come to him from time to time to ask him questions.

Newman enjoyed it immensely and taught with exceptional dedication.

"Oh, right." Dafulin suddenly remembered something and took a file folder from her backpack. "This is from the Ancient Languages Research Association; I've accepted it on your behalf."

Newman wasn't home when the staff member came to deliver the items. But the staff member had seen Dafulin before and knew that she and Newman were very familiar with each other.

Newman took the file bag, glanced at it, and realized that it contained the commission he had issued.

But the handwriting on the cover made his eyes twitch.

It's Chloe!

Newman's heart clenched.

Although he had deliberately cut out the beginning and end of the document and tried to erase many key clues, it would be troublesome if Chloe was the one who handled it.

With that woman's abilities, she might be able to deduce from this tiny bit of information that this rubbing is actually a treasure room document left over from the Jincheng Dynasty.

Thinking of this, Newman quickly tore open the paper bag and reached in to search.

He soon discovered that, apart from the original manuscript, there was no translated manuscript at all.

He emptied the paper bag, held it up and shook it, and finally a piece of paper fell out.

It read, "This manuscript doesn't need to be translated. Even if I translated it into modern language for you, you still wouldn't understand it, given your level of knowledge of ancient texts."

Newman remained silent for a moment.

Then, in a fit of anger, he snapped.

He continued reading.

"Given that you recently took on a new city expansion project and happened to produce this rubbing, I reasonably speculate that you dug something up at the construction site and wanted to dispose of it discreetly."

Seeing this, Newman finally gave up and couldn't help but let out a long sigh.

That's exactly what he's afraid of!

With Chloe's expertise in archaeology, she is indeed a typical example of someone who can see the whole picture from a glimpse. Give her a few scraps of information, and she can fill in most of the gaps herself.

The note continued, "Don't worry, I've already gone to the site for you. That elegant and beautiful homeowner representative from a few days ago was me."

"The way you bowed and scraped to me at the scene was actually quite cute."

"And thank you for the ten gold coins as a bribe. As for the problem of water seepage in the building's foundation—I've already reported it!"

Newman stared at those lines of text, his eyelids twitching involuntarily.

He was absolutely certain that he would eventually fall for these smart women!

Bay Owl, Katharine, and now Chloe—

None of them are easy to deal with!

He gritted his teeth and continued reading.

"Next, the good news. Here's how to open the secret door to the treasure room—"

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door.

Tap, tap, tap.

Newman paused, his brow furrowing again.

He slightly released his senses, and the next moment, his expression turned strange.

The owner of the note was right outside the door, and the scholar Chloe was the one he was muttering to himself.

As expected, what was bound to happen couldn't be avoided.

However, Chloe has always had a good reputation in the industry. It's not unacceptable for her to receive 20% of the profits this time.

Newman got up to open the door.

Chloe wasn't the only one who came; she was followed by a man who looked like a guard.

"A pleasure to meet you, Master Newman," the guard introduced himself, "My name Meiwu'er."

Chloe, however, showed no politeness whatsoever to Newman.

She took off her gloves, kicked the half-man blocking the doorway with her leg, and then bent down and crawled inside.

At the doorway, Meiwu'er and Newman exchanged a glance, both showing a hint of helplessness on their faces.

"You're something else," Chloe said, turning around as soon as she entered, "You bypassed me and went through with this kind of secret commission."

She squinted.

"How do you think we should settle this score?"

In her daily life, Chloe is gentle and kind.

But for some reason, she couldn't help but become fierce whenever she was in front of Newman.

Zijin was absolutely right.

It's really funny to see this halfling looking so helpless after being messed with!

In the living room, Dafulin hurriedly stood up and bowed to Chloe.

"Good evening, Miss Dafulin." Chloe nodded to her, then quickly switched to a gentler tone. "I apologize for the abruptness, but Newman and I have some personal matters to discuss."

Knowing that she had something to discuss, Dafulin quickly packed up her notebook and several engineering books, bowed, and took her leave.

"Master Newman, I will come to seek your guidance another day."

"Wait a moment." Newman pulled a notebook from his bag and handed it to Dafulin. "Take this back and look at it first. Give it back to me next time you come."

"Thank you, Master." Dafulin quickly accepted the gift, thanked him sincerely, and then turned to leave.