Chapter 1103: Horrifying Discovery
Sang Hong’s eyes lit up and he asked, “What solution?”
Zu An didn’t directly respond to what he was saying and instead asked, “Respected uncle, what do you think of what Madam Yu said? That Jian Taiding wasn’t the main culprit, but rather that Uncle Ming was the main instigator?”
Sang Hong remained silent for a moment, then said, “From what I’ve seen, Jian Taiding was arrogant and despotic. He hid the truth from the masses in Cloudcenter Commandery. There’s no way he was forced to do anything. I believe the reason why Madam Yu said what she said was because she was worried that Jian Taiding’s faction would do something desperate in alarm. She said those things to convince the masses.”
Zu An sighed in admiration. Sang Hong was a crafty old fox in politics after all. He had immediately seen through the most important points.
He said seriously, “Indeed, that’s what I think too. But even if they can avoid capital punishment, they won’t escape punishment. Madam Yu and… ahem, and Cloudcenter Duke will definitely deal with Jian Taiding’s surviving faction members. Even if they don’t carry out a great purge, they’ll replace some vital positions. For example, as far as I know, the Yu clan’s elder Yu Xuanqing was extremely close to Jian Taiding. He definitely played a huge part in the smuggling deal with the fiend races.
“And from what I’ve seen in my short time in the Yu clan, Yu Yanluo probably doesn’t know about these matters, or perhaps turned a blind eye to everything. She’s definitely not the main culprit. As such, Yu Yanluo will probably go against a double-crosser like that too.
“Judging from the current situation, it wouldn’t be too realistic to deal with Yu Yanluo either. However, if we act against Yu Xuanqing, someone who’s in the top three positions of the Yu clan, it should also weaken the Yu clan to some extent. Once we return to the capital, that result will be satisfactory for his majesty. What does respected uncle think?”
Sang Hong was immensely pleased when he heard Zu An’s analysis. He replied, “Ah Zu, I really have a whole new level of respect for you! Even though I knew you were quite intelligent before, I never expected your insight in the field of politics to also be so sharp. You actually carved a new path through this tough situation! We have a way out of this predicament now.”
Yu Xuanqing wasn’t only the third-ranked figure of Cloudcenter’s Yu clan; he was also an important figure in Cloudcenter Commandery’s court. His official post was only below Magistrate Zuo Su and Vice Magistrate Xu Yu. He was in charge of important matters like promotion.
If such a person were overthrown, it would definitely deal a huge blow to the Yu clan. At the same time, it would affect King Qi’s influence. At the very least, it would be more than enough to take care of his majesty’s assignment for them.
“Respected uncle overpraises me.” Zu An waved his hands humbly, but he sighed inwardly. It wasn’t that he had sharp and vicious insight in the field, but rather that he had the intelligence from both the Imperial Envoy and Yu Yanluo’s side. By working together with the two sides, he had been able to figure out a solution more easily than others.
The people of this world weren’t stupid. If they had his level of information, most of them would come to rational and proper conclusions. But unfortunately, not everyone had access to a complete set of information. They were often misled by one-sided perspectives instead.
Sang Hong discussed some more details with Zu An, then rushed out excitedly. Zu An wondered if he should take the chance to seek out Big Manman. She must have been extremely worried for some time.
Suddenly, a figure snuck in. Once he entered, he even secretly checked if anyone tailed him. Only then did he lock the door again.
When he saw that it was Pei You, Zu An scolded him playfully. “What the hell are you doing? Why are you acting all sneaky like this?”
Pei You carefully moved over to Zu An’s side and said in a hushed tone, “I won’t hide anything from you since we’re bros, but I think I’m being haunted by a ghost…”
Zu An was speechless. Pei You opened his mouth several times, but he didn’t know how to really describe it. “I think I’ve been haunted by a female ghost…”
“A female ghost?” Zu An suddenly realized something. Don’t tell me…
Once he began to talk about it, it became easier for Pei You to talk about the rest. “Yeah, I think I’ve been dreaming or something, but I always hear a sweet girl talking to me. Whenever I reply enthusiastically, I find out that it’s just a dream.”
“Are you just hearing things?” Zu An’s expression was somewhat unnatural as he replied.
“I don’t know either. I can even almost make out the girl’s appearance… Even though it’s not clear, the feeling she gives off is that she really is pretty. I’m sure that not even Yu Yanluo can compare to her…” Pei You had a stupid infatuated look on his face, as if he were recalling something wonderful.
Zu An thought to himself, Daji is indeed extremely beautiful, but saying that Yu Yanluo can’t compare to her might be a bit too much. The two are clearly on the same level.
Pei You grabbed his arm and said, “What’s even harder to forget is that the girl’s voice is just too beautiful! How can someone have such a beautiful voice in this world? Her personality is definitely gentle and sweet…” He subconsciously rubbed something with his hand as he spoke.
Zu An shivered and pulled his arm away, replying, “Didn’t you already say you thought you were dreaming? Don’t think about all of that rubbish.”
Pei You scowled and replied, “That’s why I’m wondering if I was possessed by a female ghost! After all, I’ve never met her in person, and there’s no way her voice can be that pretty.”
Zu An forcefully endured his urge to laugh. How will he react if he finds out that the ‘sweet girl’ was actually me?
Even though he really wanted to see Pei You break down, he still decided against it in the end. After all, that would also decide his own social suicide. He coughed twice and quickly changed the topic. “Maybe you’ve been too tired recently and you’re starting to hallucinate. Like hell there are female ghosts in this world.”
“Maybe,” Pei You replied. He still felt a bit dejected.
Zu An said with a chuckle, “I heard you’ve been visiting Jasper Lane quite frequently recently; you’ve probably been working at it quite hard. How can you still have the mental room to think about any sweet female ghost?”
Pei You grumbled, “Remember that Ms. Pink I really liked the last time we went to Jasper Lane together? I was helping her out with her business pretty often. I tried to see her several times after that, but then I heard that she had already left Jasper Lane. It was really a pity, so I had to look for other girls in Jasper Lane. However, none of them were quite as good as Pink.”
Zu An had planned to just enjoy the story at first, but then his smile gradually froze. He asked seriously, “That Pink you’re talking about isn’t there anymore? What do you mean?”
“That she’s not there anymore, of course,” Pei You said. “She seemed to have ransomed herself and said she was going to return home. The brothel keeper was grumbling about how she had no conscience, that she had actually hidden so many private funds. Hmph, in my opinion, that brothel keeper is just greedy and doesn’t want to let a moneymaker like her go.”
“F*ck!” Zu An suddenly got up. He finally realized what he had forgotten about. He suddenly felt a chill.
When he saw how Zu An was acting, Pei You became nervous as well, asking, “What’s wrong?”
“Let’s head to Jasper Lane for now. I’ll fill you in along the way.” Zu An took the lead and rushed out.
“Stop scaring me like that! What’s going on?” Pei You asked as he quickly followed along. Why did it seem as if his random visits to Jasper Lane had actually created some huge problem?
Zu An sorted out his thoughts while saying, “Why were we able to find out that Zuo Su and Jian Taiding were the ringleaders of the smuggling deal with the fiend races so quickly?”
“Because we found the proof Chen Zhou left behind,” Pei You subconsciously replied.
“Did he give us the proof?” Zu An asked.
“Of course not. He previously had it stored in the Zhenyuan Merchant Group.” Pei You was stunned. “Don’t tell me you think the Zhenyuan Merchant Group secretly gave us the wrong item?”
Zu An shook his head and said, “No. I have connections with the higher-ups of the Zhenyuan Merchant Group. They seemed to not have even been aware of this book’s existence, just treating it as something an ordinary guest stored with them. There are so many guests that enter and exit the Zhenyuan Merchant Group. If Chen Zhou deliberately concealed his identity, then it would be difficult for their staff to know.”
“Who could it be, if not Zhenyuan Merchant Group…” Pei You’s expression suddenly changed halfway through his sentence. “Are you suspecting Pink? That’s impossible!”
“How is it impossible?” Zu An replied coldly. “So far, everything we’ve investigated has been informed by her. If there’s something wrong with her, doesn’t that mean our entire investigation was flawed? The fact that she suddenly vanished is probably because she has a guilty conscience.
“I should’ve guessed that a long time ago! The secret passage where Cloudcenter Duke disappeared led to Jasper Lane. Pink was in Jasper Lane. How could this world have such a great coincidence?!”