Yuanyang Brothel.
Passing through the front hall, filled with the singing of orioles and dancing of swallows, a exquisite garden stood before him. Some of the snow on the treetops had not been cleared, instead adorning the garden with its unique scenery.
Deeper within the garden, some exquisite small courtyards and wooden buildings were constructed. This was the quietest part of Yuanyang Brothel, and only special VIPs could reach this place. In the small building along the eastern wall, Lu Chuan had laid out a large table of delicious dishes, awaiting Chun Qiong's arrival.
The black-clothed man with the sword on his back still stood in the corner of the room; rather than a person, he was more like a stone.
Lu Chuan did not wait long before Chun Qiong knocked on the door. As he entered, Lu Chuan, sitting at the table, bowed to him and said:
"Magistrate, it is an honor to have you. Lu Chuan offers his greetings."
Looking at the overly dramatic Lu Chuan, Chun Qiong's face was indifferent as he said lightly:
"Here, it is just the two of us. Why bother with these elaborate formalities?"
Lu Chuan smiled upon hearing this, saying:
"Elaborate formalities?"
"For hundreds of years, Qi has governed the world with culture, writing its annals with Confucianism... Magistrate, you must not say such things again next time. If it reaches Langan Pavilion, the opportunity you worked so hard to obtain will likely be wasted."
Chun Qiong narrowed his eyes, staring coldly at Lu Chuan, saying no more. He sat opposite Lu Chuan, poured himself a cup of wine, and drank it in one gulp.
"What exactly happened the night before last?"
Lu Chuan said:
"I have already informed the guard sent by the Magistrate of the specific situation, but... some things are better said in person."
"That day, I gave Liu Jinshi a bottle of gut-wrenching poison, thinking he would end things gracefully. There should have been no issues, but unexpectedly, he caused such a huge commotion..."
Before Lu Chuan could finish speaking, Chun Qiong interrupted him, his voice carrying the coldness of kicking someone when they are down:
"There are many ways to kill Liu Jinshi without leaving a trace. You could have waited until he finished his affairs with me, then acted after Liu Jinshi left the county town. The snow came early this year; just one snowfall would erase all traces. But you insisted on rushing it and didn't do it cleanly. Now I have to clean up this mess for you... Lu Chuan, do you know who we are working for right now?"
"Do you know how big a problem your mistake could cause?"
"Do you know what fate awaits us if we displease That Lord?"
Facing Chun Qiong's reprimand, Lu Chuan's originally smiling expression gradually cooled, and he retorted in a dangerous voice:
"Then do you know that White Dragon Guard appeared outside the county, and every single one of them is a top-tier expert?"
"Ku Hai County is desolate; compared to the richness of other places, calling it desolate is no exaggeration. Guess why the White Dragon Guard would come here?"
Chun Qiong's expression changed slightly.
Lu Chuan continued:
"If I let Liu Jinshi leave the city, do you want me to snatch him from the hands of the White Dragon Guard?"
At the mention of the White Dragon Guard, Chun Qiong's fingers, holding the wine cup, trembled slightly. He gently rubbed the smooth bottom of the cup and said:
"So, has That Lord of Panlong Palace already discovered something?"
Lu Chuan narrowed his eyes, calmer than Chun Qiong:
"Whether he has discovered something is not important at all. What's important is that he cannot have evidence."
"Otherwise, why would I go to such lengths to get a bottle of poison and shift the blame to Wangchuan?"
"Don't I know that killing Liu Jinshi with one strike would be more satisfying?"
"It's just that I didn't expect Liu Jinshi to be so ruthless, even sacrificing his wife and children just to bite back at us!"
Listening to Lu Chuan's gloomy narration, Chun Qiong suddenly looked up sharply, shocked, and said:
"Wait, are you saying... that night, Liu Jinshi letting his wife and children escape under the cover of night was...?"
Lu Chuan said coldly:
"Do you think Liu Jinshi is truly a fool?"
"Would he not know that Wangchuan's people were watching and guarding him?"
"He merely used his wife and children as bait. If you ask me, even a tiger won't eat its cubs, but a person can go to such lengths; it's truly ruthless."
"I actually had a contingency plan. That night, I had already instructed Wangchuan's people to be careful of Liu Jinshi creating a diversion and secretly escaping, but unexpectedly, an accident still occurred later..."
Chun Qiong understood what had happened earlier, knowing that an expert from outside the county had launched a massacre against the Wangchuan assassins near Liu Jinshi's mansion.
"Could it be the White Dragon Guard?"
Lu Chuan shook his head.
"The White Dragon Guard hid very well; in fact, they didn't expose themselves. The reason I knew they had arrived was because I have special informants."
"Those guys are all outside the county; they haven't come in. As long as I don't reveal the information, Wangchuan's people will never discover them."
Chun Qiong fell silent for a moment.
The assassins from Wangchuan who came this time were mostly from the Lin Zi Banner, Fire Banner, and Mountain Banner. Those who could infiltrate the Lin Zi Banner would certainly not have low martial arts cultivation. They all had their own resounding reputations in the Jianghu of the Four Kingdoms. Among the assassins guarding Liu Jinshi earlier, there was one from the Lin Zi Banner.
This person's surname was Li, given name Shan, ranked forty-seventh in the Lin Zi Banner. He had been in the business for seven years and killed four hundred and thirty-three people.
The night before last, he made a move in front of Liu Jinshi's mansion, and after one move, his weapon was broken, the broken blade piercing his throat, causing instant death.
Chun Qiong's understanding of Wangchuan was not as thorough as Lu Chuan's, but because they had communicated beforehand, he knew that some Wangchuan experts would come to Ku Hai County.
"In such a godforsaken place, even if there really is an expert, they must be a recluse. It's unlikely they have a private grudge with Wangchuan, and even less likely that they would engage in a huge fight."
Lu Chuan stated his thoughts, then changed the subject:
"However, I heard that the top spot on Wangchuan's 'Heavenly Character' bounty list recently changed. Someone offered one hundred thousand taels of gold to buy a person's life."
"And that person... just happens to be in Ku Hai County."
Chun Qiong picked up his chopsticks, selected a piece of emerald Phoenix tail, and slowly put it into his mouth.
"One hundred thousand gold for a life?"
Lu Chuan gently rubbed the emerald jade ring on his knuckle and smiled:
"Hard to understand, right?"
"I don't know whose handiwork it is, but what I know so far is that person has arrived in Ku Hai County."
"She has many injuries, is eight feet tall, and is a woman. As for other clues... I'm not clear either, and I don't know if Wangchuan's people are deliberately concealing it, or if they genuinely don't know."
Chun Qiong stared at the smile on Lu Chuan's face, his eyes flickering uncertainly:
"Are you suspecting that the person who broke into the county town the night before last is the one with Wangchuan's top 'Heavenly Character' bounty?"
Lu Chuan:
"Precisely."
"I, for one, have no interest in one hundred thousand gold, but I am very curious. I truly want to know the secret behind this one hundred thousand gold."
"What do you say, Magistrate?"
"Lend a hand?"
PS: I'm home. Normal updates will resume tomorrow.