Hengqing Prison stammered, "How does the adult know?"

Heng Yuan's Buddhist name was told to him by Xu Erlang. On that day, Xu Erlang was asked to go to the health preservation hall to find number six, but number six had already left. When Xu Erlang told Xu Qian, he said, "The officials told me that Master Heng Yuan had left and there was news about his younger brother."

"Never mind how I know, answer my question now." Xu Qian's expression was serious, not giving any face to this non-violent and uncooperative monk.

Although if it was a one-on-one fight, this Qinglong Temple prison supervisor might be able to pin him to the ground.

But Xu Qian had brothers and the support of the court.

Hengqing Prison hesitated slightly and said, "Heng Yuan is a martial monk in the temple, with a impulsive personality and a violent temper. He often accidentally injures his fellow monks and is punished by the abbot. He was expelled from Qinglong Temple last year."

Number six was indeed a monk from Qinglong Temple, a martial monk? No wonder he was as burly as Lu Zhishen... Number six said that his younger brother was kidnapped by human traffickers... Could the younger brother that number six was looking for be Heng Hui?

But Heng Hui eloped with Princess Pingyang... However, Heng Hui stole a Buddhist artifact from Qinglong Temple, which appeared in the hands of the captain of the Jinwuwei, Zhou Chixiong. Did this mean that the monk Heng Hui had encountered an accident?

Or maybe he was involved in the Sangpo case. If it was the latter, what was his goal? Also, where did Princess Pingyang go?

This trip to Qinglong Temple yielded more than he expected.

...

Although rushing for time and traveling at full speed, it was already over an hour when they returned to the Nightwatcher's yamen.

Xu Qian let his team rest for a while, and he himself closed the door and started to sort and summarize the case.

Then he took out the fragment of the earth book and entered the information: [Three: Is there still no news about number six?]

No one responded.

After a long time, Taoist Master Jin Lian jumped out to comfort him: [Nine: Still no news.]

Xu Qian keenly realized that number six might have discovered something or was in an extremely dangerous situation, otherwise he would not have been silent for so long.

[Three: Taoist Master Jin Lian, have you not located the fragment of the earth book yet?]

[Nine: It must have been blocked by some secret method.]

[Two: Why does the baldy always run into trouble?]

Number two interrupted.

[Nine: He has been investigating the case of his younger brother's disappearance. Perhaps he has encountered retaliation from the forces behind Pingyuanbo.]

No, he found clues about his younger brother... But the result was the same. Anyway, number six was in big trouble.

[Four: If the fragment of the earth book falls into the hands of outsiders, we can only stop sending any messages like we did before.]

[Two: If it falls into the hands of the Dizong, all of us may face danger.]

At this point, the members of the Tian Di Hui felt anxious and psychological pressure.Not only was he worried about the safety of Number Six, but also the message exchange mode that the Tian Di Hui had worked hard to create would cease to exist without the use of the Earth Books for communication.

In the worst case scenario, if the Earth Books fell into the hands of the Di Zong, ordinary members of the Di Zong would not be afraid. But what if the Di Zong leader personally retrieved the Earth Books?

Number One and Number Three were fine, hiding in the capital with the Di Zong leader having some concerns, but others were in danger.

[Two: Oh, by the way, can you ask Number Three for help?]

[Four: Hmm, if Number Three can use the relationship with Yunlu Academy to secretly assist Taoist Master Jin Lian, then the difficulty of finding Number Six will greatly decrease.]

Unconsciously, the Tian Di Hui members relied on Number Three more than the constantly screen-peeping Number One.

Whenever something happened in the capital of the Great Feng, Number Three came to mind unconsciously.

...Why do I feel like I've become a tool?

The identity and current situation of Number Six were the first-hand information I just received. If it is spread now, there is a high risk of exposing the identity. I need to create a time difference... Hmm, unless all the Tian Di Hui members know about the identity of Number Six.

[Three: Do you know the identity of Number Six, other than the information that he is a Buddhist disciple?]

[Two: No, Number Six claimed to be a wandering Buddhist disciple and plans to stay in the capital for a while.]

Number Six is pretending to be an outsider... Hmm, this monk's brain is stronger than Lu Zhishen's!

Xu Qi'an knew what to do and typed: [You don't need to worry about this matter. I will contact Taoist Master Jin Lian. I know more about Number Six's situation than anyone else. Taoist Master, can you come to my residence tonight? I have something to discuss with you.]

"!!!"

Seeing Number Three's message, for some reason, everyone in the Tian Di Hui felt a chill in their hearts, as if there was a thorn on their back.

Number Three actually found out about Number Six's identity, and from the tone of his words, he seemed to have some understanding of his recent situation? They only had a brief encounter... Indeed, the scholars of Yunlu Academy were all very capable. Number Two thought with trepidation.

Number Three is quite interesting. He joined the Tian Di Hui the latest, but his skills, abilities, and sensitivity were amazing. Looking forward to meeting him when he returns to the capital. When the time comes, I'll learn from him... Number Four sincerely admired.

[Five: Wow, then don't investigate my identity, or I'll be angry.]

Number Five spoke his mind directly.

[One: Number Three, do you have more accurate information about the Sangbo case?]

[Three: I haven't been paying attention to the Sangbo case these days.]

Seeing this, Number One went silent.

After arranging a meeting time with Taoist Master Jin Lian, Xu Qi'an left the side hall and went straight to Haohui Tower to meet with Wei Yuan.In the spacious and bright tea room, Wei Yuan sat alone at the table, playing chess, left hand against right hand, like he was performing a lonely monologue.

Without looking up, Wei Yuan smiled and said, "I've been playing chess for half my life. At first, I lost many battles, but gradually improved and defeated many skilled players. Now, I can't find anyone who can challenge me."

"You tied with the prison warden in your last game," Xu Qi'an thought to himself.

"But outside the chessboard, there are many enemies that give me a headache." Wei Yuan placed down his chess piece and rubbed his forehead, "What's the matter?"

"I want to report on the progress of the case to Lord Wei," Xu Qi'an paused before continuing, "Last night, the magistrate of Taikang County was silenced in jail, and the government is keeping it secret."

"The magistrate's death was strange. There was no poison, no wounds, and it seemed like a natural death."

Wei Yuan's expression suddenly froze, and after a few seconds, his eyes flickered, "What do you think?"

"After reviewing the information, I found that only the Yin gods of the Daoist sect and the God of Witchcraft in the Northeast could have done this." Xu Qi'an took a deep breath, "The Sangpo case involves the demon race and the God of Witchcraft in the Northeast. I've racked my brain and can't think of anyone besides that person in the court who could collude with these two forces."

Bang! Wei Yuan slammed his palm on the chessboard, causing the pieces to shake. He stared at Xu Qi'an with sharp eyes, "Once you leave here, you cannot tell anyone about this."

Xu Qi'an quickly lowered his head and explained, "But I can't investigate any further..."

"Leave." Wei Yuan said coldly.

"Yes!" Xu Qi'an left the tea room.

Listening to the sound of footsteps gradually fading away, Wei Yuan calmly collected the chess pieces and cleaned the tea tray. He changed into a blue gown and walked to the staircase, instructing the duty officer, "Prepare the carriage. I'm going to the palace."

...

Xu Qi'an regretted not having a cigarette in his hand. He could only sit dryly and listen to Lv Qing and three other officers discussing the case, while his mind wandered.

"The Northern King is far away on the border. I can't go there to investigate, and even if I could, I wouldn't dare without a decree from the emperor. A gold medal alone won't be enough to investigate that god."

"Being on the border...hmm, it's a perfect alibi."

"But there's no such thing as a perfect crime in the world. If you do something, you will leave clues. The key is whether I can catch these clues...hmm, the Northern King is not in the capital, but he needs a spokesperson, and that spokesperson must be someone in the court."

He couldn't investigate the Northern King's lead for now because Wei Yuan refused to help him. If Wei Yuan could get a decree, then everything would be fine.

Fortunately, there is more than one den for a cunning rabbit, and wise men have more than one way to deal with things.Today's visit to the Qinglong Temple was not in vain. The monk Heng Hui from the temple is a breakthrough point. But to continue investigating, they need to find a way to locate Number Six. This is why Xu Qi'an wants to meet Taoist Master Jin Lian tonight.

"Knock, knock..."

The knocking interrupted Lv Qing and the three other Nightwatchers' discussion, causing them to frown and look towards the door. The silent Zhu Guangxiao stood by the door and said, "Ning Yan, Princess Chang invites you."

Lv Qing and the others turned to look at Xu Qi'an.

Search "pawread dot com" for the original.

Why does Huai Qing want to see me... does she miss me? Didn't we just meet yesterday? It seems like an eternity has passed!

Xu Qi'an envisioned the beautiful and cold princess, as well as her towering figure that could be placed on a table.

Although she appeared cold like a fairy on the outside, her figure was that of a seductive witch.

...

In the Imperial Garden.

The corners of the pavilion were draped with curtains to block the cold wind, and the charcoal fire brought warmth to the air. Emperor Yuan Jing, dressed in Daoist robes, and Wei Yuan, in a green robe, were playing chess. One was the emperor but rarely wore dragon robes, while the other was the powerful eunuch overseeing the Nightwatchers and always wore a green robe.

Compared to the two unique old men, the young prince stood respectfully by Emperor Yuan Jing's side, dressed meticulously.

"Yesterday, the national teacher refined a furnace of golden pills. I will have someone send you one later," said Emperor Yuan Jing, picking up a chess piece and looking at it for a long time before slyly taking three black pieces. He joked, "One golden pill for three chess pieces. That's not too much, right?"

Wei Yuan nodded, "Not too much."

After a few more moves, Wei Yuan smiled and took six white pieces from Emperor Yuan Jing, saying, "Your Majesty's camp is a bit chaotic. Let me clean it up for you."

Emperor Yuan Jing remained expressionless and said plainly, "Over these years, the one I've relied on the most is you, Wei Yuan. I often wonder, if you hadn't entered the palace and instead pursued the imperial examination, the empire would have had one more tailor, and I wouldn't have to worry about these trivial matters."

Wei Yuan's expression froze for a moment before quickly returning to normal. He smiled and said, "But now I am serving Your Majesty."

The prince furrowed his brows and stared at the chessboard in silence.

It wasn't that the chess game between the emperor and Wei Yuan was particularly exciting, but rather the conversation between them. It was like seeing something through a haze, only vaguely understood.

The two men sitting in the pavilion, one who had devoted himself to cultivating for twenty years and still managed to control the court, and the other who, as a eunuch, commanded the Nightwatchers and made countless scholars feel inferior with his literary and military skills. Their conversation had to be savored carefully.

As the prince was lost in thought, Emperor Yuan Jing asked, "How is the investigation into the Sangpo case going? The files submitted by the county yamen and the Ministry of Justice were a mess. I remember that the Nightwatcher in charge of the case was that criminal, Tongluo, surnamed Xu, right?"