Chapter 138: Doubt

Xu Zhi scolded, "What are you panicking about!"

The man ran to the center of the hall and cried out, "The town outside the west gate has been raided, and houses have been set on fire!"

Xu Zhi and everyone present were dumbfounded.

Yuan Tengfei stood up, pointed at the man below, and demanded fiercely, "Whose men did this? Step forward!"

The people below looked at each other in blank dismay, none of them having any idea what was going on.

Wang Zhong cursed, "How many times have I told you bastards? A rabbit doesn't eat the grass near its burrow, and no raiding is allowed around Qianjiang City! Which one of you bastards did this? Step out right now!"

The crowd remained bewildered, and no one stepped forward to take the blame.

Growing anxious, Wang Zhong heaved his weight-like bulk up and bellowed, "If you don't confess, I'll slaughter the lot of you!"

The people in the hall began to question one another, yet all vehemently denied that their subordinates had caused any trouble.

"Third Grand-uncle, it certainly wasn't us."

"Our men only stir up trouble along the coast; we never make a mess right here."

"Our own families and friends live right here, so how could we possibly rob ourselves?"

Monk Fayin stepped forward and said, "Wait, it might not be our men."

Xu Zhi asked doubtfully, "Are you suspecting that the pirates from Shrimp Island are doing this?"

Fayin shook his head. "The pirates have an agreement with us not to raid this area. I suspect it's the men of Long Chengen."

Yuan Tengfei nodded. "That is quite possible."

Soldiers and bandits are cut from the same cloth; when soldiers go to war and run out of grain, they plunder, and when they lust after women, they plunder as well. That was entirely normal.

Another man rushed in from outside and shouted, "Grand-uncle, the imperial court's men are plundering the villages and towns!"

Xu Zhi asked, "Are you certain?"

The man replied with absolute certainty, "Certain!"

Hearing this, an uproar broke out among the crowd!

"Even the imperial government's troops are pillaging? How is that any different from us?"

"Soldiers and bandits are all the same, no different from us at all."

"So impersonating imperial officials wasn't wrong either. Everyone's doing the same thing."

Xu Zhi was somewhat bewildered and asked Chen Zu, "What is going on here? The imperial envoy is robbing people too?"

Chen Zu was equally perplexed. "He... he actually mentioned earlier that soldiers entering the city might harass the commoners. I thought he was just joking, but I suppose it was true."

Xu Zhi turned to Fayin and asked, "What do you make of this?"

Fayin rubbed his bald head and muttered, "Well... this is also quite normal. Soldiers pillaging is a common occurrence."

"However, there are two possibilities here: first, Long Chengen lacks control over his troops and cannot keep them in check; second, Long Chengen is greedy for wealth and is using this opportunity to loot some valuables."

"Of course, it could also be a combination of both."

Xu Zhi pondered silently to himself and said, "We'll probe further tomorrow. If this fellow is greedy for wealth, things will be much easier to handle."

Yuan Tengfei and Wang Zhong shared the same view. Corrupt officials were the easiest to deal with; a bribe would suffice.

Chen Zu asked, "Third Grand-uncle, Long Chengen has asked me to recruit soldiers in the city tomorrow. Should we do it?"

Xu Zhi replied, "Since it's the imperial envoy's order, of course we must do it. Go ahead and recruit troops for him right in the city."

Understanding Xu Zhi's intention, Chen Zu immediately left to make arrangements.

...

Inside the city's market inn.

A man dressed in white with a wide-brimmed hat and a sword at his waist walked up to the second floor. The innkeeper hurried forward to greet him obsequiously, "Young master, this is the single room where those two guests stayed."

The man in white was none other than Bai Tingting. Having entered the city before the gates closed and hearing that furs could be sold here, she had made her way to this place.

Back in Shangjiang County, when she saw Long Chen disguised as a hunter, she had guessed that he would come to this very location.

Upon arriving, she inquired with the innkeeper and was told that Long Chen had already departed today.

When Bai Tingting asked where Long Chen had stayed, the innkeeper refused to say.

Insisting on having the exact room Long Chen had occupied the previous day, Bai Tingting was led by the innkeeper to a single room on the second floor.

The innkeeper opened the door and lit an oil lamp. As Bai Tingting stepped inside, she was hit by a wave of heavy body odor and quickly covered her nose in disgust.

"You are so particular about cleanliness, young master. With so many guests coming and going here, the sweat odor can be a bit strong."

Bai Tingting complained, "You call this 'a bit strong'?"

The innkeeper chuckled and said, "Young master, this is indeed the room where that elder brother stayed. If you mind it, we can switch you to another room."

Bai Tingting waved her hand. "Get out, and bring me some food."

The innkeeper asked, "What would the hero like to eat?"

Bai Tingting replied, "Half a catty of beef and a catty of wine."

The innkeeper acknowledged, "Right away!"

With the innkeeper gone, Bai Tingting closed the door, feeling that the room smelled even worse. She immediately rolled up the bedding and tossed it onto the floor.

In the adjacent room, a pale-faced man sat rigidly, opposite a lean-bodied man. The two of them quietly listened to the movements coming from Bai Tingting's room.

The lean man whispered, "General, that innkeeper tricked us."

The pale-faced man was none other than Wuming. Though he wore no mask, his face had been disguised with cosmetics.

They had arrived in the city a day later than Long Chen, found this very inn, and also asked the innkeeper for the room where Long Chen had stayed, whereupon the innkeeper had assigned them this adjacent single room.

Listening to the noises next door, Wuming was left utterly speechless.

If one were to call the innkeeper stupid, he knew how to deceive people.

If one were to call the innkeeper smart, he certainly shouldn't have let Bai Tingting stay right next door, nor should he have let Wuming overhear what was said.

Wuming sniffed the air, walked over to the bed, gave it a sniff, and said, "This room of ours is the genuine one."

The lean man asked, "Why?"

Wuming answered, "Because there is the scent of a woman's rouge."

Since Long Chen was traveling with Zhang Qian, this room had to be the authentic one.

The lean man remarked, "So, Bai Tingting has been fooled."

Downstairs earlier, they had recognized Bai Tingting at a glance, especially Wuming, who knew her far too well.

Ignoring Bai Tingting, Wuming lowered his voice to discuss matters concerning Long Chen.

"Long Chen is currently attending a banquet at the prefectural governor's residence. Tell our brothers to get ready and await my command at any moment to finish him off, thereby eliminating a major confidant and threat for the Great General."

The lean man asked, "Are we going to strike inside the city? There are pirate minions everywhere here."

Wuming replied, "It's precisely because there are so many pirates that it's ideal. After killing Long Chengen, we will pin the blame on the pirates, sparing the Great General from any entanglement."

The lean man nodded. "What the General says is wise. When shall we make our move?"

Wuming spoke with great caution, "We must not rush. To ensure a successful strike on the first attempt, we must prepare thoroughly."

Back at the plaza in Nv'er City, Jing Tianlie had landed a punch on Long Chen, yet the result had only been an injured arm, leaving Wuming uncertain of Long Chen's cultivation level.

Therefore, despite being a martial emperor realm expert, he acted with extreme caution and did not dare to be the least bit careless.

"Honored guest, your beef and wine have arrived."

The innkeeper knocked on the adjacent door. Bai Tingting opened it, took the wine and meat, and began to eat alone in her room.

Downstairs came another round of welcoming cries: "Oh, esteemed guests, are you staying at the inn?"

A guest replied, "Give us two single rooms, connecting ones."

The innkeeper happily responded, "No problem, please follow me!"

With the sound of heavy footsteps ascending the stairs, several guests moved into the rooms on the other side of Wuming's quarters.

The lean man wanted to peer through the door crack, but Wuming immediately shook his head, signaling him not to pry. He sensed that the footsteps outside were unusual.

The two men pretended to go to bed and ceased talking.

Next door, a middle-aged man dressed in blue cloth garments had entered his room. His attire was unpretentious yet impeccably clean, and he was followed by a refined-looking young man with an elegant demeanor.

Once the man was seated inside, the refined young man quietly approached the wall, pressed his ear against the wooden partition, and listened intently to the movements.