Chapter 1026: Unexpected

Zu An's heart tightened. "What's wrong?"

If this item couldn't be obtained again, then Daji wouldn't be able to achieve a breakthrough.

Yu Yanluo explained, "Wuyang Jade typically grows within elemental stone veins and requires long-term nourishment from Fire Tree Silver Flowers nearby to form. Elemental stone veins are plentiful in our Yu family, but Fire Tree Silver Flowers are incredibly rare."

"Fire Tree Silver Flowers?" Zu An paused, having never heard that name before.

"They are plant-like fierce beasts, resembling both flowers and trees. Due to prolonged absorption of elemental energy within the veins, they have undergone various mutations. Even the weakest among them possesses strength comparable to a seventh-grade fierce beast," Yu Yanluo explained. "The crucial point is that they are extremely rare. Over the years, despite our family's extensive mining, we've only encountered them a few times, which is why I only have a few pieces of Wuyang Jade."

"In that case, I'll have my subordinates keep a close watch. If Fire Tree Silver Flowers are found, I'll inform you."

"Thank you, Madam." Zu An considered that a seventh-grade fierce beast posed no threat to him now. The difficulty, it seemed, lay solely in its rarity.

"Ah Zu, there's no need to be so polite," Yu Yanluo said, smiling subtly as she sat back down.

"There's one more question I'd like to ask, Madam," Zu An continued. "Have you ever heard of Purple Frost Divine Milk?"

Mi Li's soul was damaged and needed this to recover. He had previously learned that the Duke of Yunzhong had once presented a portion to the Emperor, and as the Duke's wife, she might know something.

To his disappointment, Yu Yanluo shook her head. "Purple Frost Divine Milk was presented to the Emperor by the previous Duke of Yunzhong. I don't know the specifics. If Yan You were still here, perhaps he would know the inside story, but unfortunately..."

She didn't finish her sentence, a flicker of sadness crossing her face.

Zu An was somewhat puzzled. Was her current expression genuine or merely an act?

If it was an act, that would be truly terrifying.

"Please rest assured, Madam. We will help search for the Duke's whereabouts," Zu An comforted her.

Yu Yanluo sighed. "He's been missing for so long without a word. How could I not know what happened? You don't need to offer such deliberate comfort."

"It seems you and the Duke had a very good relationship?" Zu An asked tentatively, looking at her.

Yu Yanluo shook her head slightly. "My relationship with him was hardly good; we were merely closer than strangers. But after being married for so many years, naturally, I wouldn't want to see him come to harm."

Zu An was perplexed. He hadn't expected her to openly admit this. Normally, wouldn't one feign a harmonious relationship to avoid suspicion?

Dismissing these thoughts, he continued, "By the way, is Gong Pan loyal to you, Madam?"

"They are all former staff from the Duke's manor. When things went wrong, they had nowhere to go, and I felt it my duty to take them in. I wouldn't force them to stay if they wished to leave, so there's no question of loyalty or disloyalty. I'm not the type to strictly control my subordinates; their thoughts are their own business," Yu Yanluo replied ambiguously, a hint of suspicion quickly appearing between her brows. "Why do you suddenly ask? Is something wrong with him?"

Not wanting to tip his hand, Zu An smiled and said, "Not really. It's just that although Yunzhong Commandery seems calm now, I sense an underlying instability, and I'm concerned for your safety, Madam, which is why I asked."

"You are quite concerned about me," Yu Yanluo said with a charming smile, making the entire winter seem to brighten as if bathed in sunshine.

The two chatted casually for a while longer. Remembering the purpose of his visit, Zu An stood up to take his leave.

Yu Yanluo was somewhat taken aback. Whenever men finally got to see her, they all tried to stay longer and chat more. Yet, this man was different; he always excused himself just when she was enjoying the conversation.

"Is this a tactic to play hard to get?" Yu Yanluo frowned slightly, but seeing his clear, innocent eyes, she couldn't help but laugh at herself. She realized she had become overly sensitive from years of harassment by men.

Given her nature, she naturally wouldn't insist on him staying to chat further, so she had Xingnu escort him out.

Not far from the room, Zu An cupped his hands to Xingnu. "Sister Xingnu, I'd like to meet General Gong Pan. Would that be convenient?"

Xingnu giggled, shaking with mirth. "You certainly have a sweet tongue, no wonder Madam likes you so much. Please wait here, I'll send someone to invite General Gong over."

As he was Madam Yu's distinguished guest and Gong Pan wasn't a sensitive figure like a female family member, there was naturally no reason to obstruct him.

After speaking, she led Zu An to a side hall to rest, then summoned a maid to find Gong Pan.

She then sat opposite him and started chatting. "How did you and Madam meet, Young Master? I've never seen you before."

"We met once in Brightmoon City," Zu An replied, a little surprised. This maid was clearly quite bold, her fiery gaze sweeping over him from head to toe as if appraising a duck.

"Brightmoon City, oh! Madam was in danger there and rescued by a young master. So that was you!" Xingnu patted her full chest. "No wonder Madam appreciates you so much. You should know she hardly receives any outside guests these days."

Zu An smiled. "Sister Xingnu, how many years have you been with Madam?"

"Oh, I'm hardly worthy of being called 'sister'," Xingnu said, though she still giggled, shaking with mirth. "I've been with Madam since I was little. It's been so long, I can't even remember."

Zu An thought to himself that she truly was Yu Yanluo's most trusted and loyal confidante.

At this point, Xingnu started asking him all sorts of questions:

"Are you married, Young Master?"

"Do you have a beloved?"

Zu An's expression was odd. "Why, are you planning to set me up?"

Xingnu shook her head with a smile. "Oh, never mind. A distinguished person like you isn't someone an ordinary woman could match. If Madam weren't married, I might introduce her to you, but unfortunately, that's impossible now."

Zu An was quite surprised. This maid was incredibly bold, daring to speak so casually about her own mistress in private.

However, this suggested that Yu Yanluo must be very lenient with her subordinates, allowing them to act this way.

As they chatted, Gong Pan arrived. Xingnu curtsied. "I won't disturb you two."

After saying this, she excused herself and left.

"So it's Young Master Zu. How may I help you this time?" Gong Pan said, cupping his hands in greeting.

Zu An returned the gesture. "Last time, I asked you about the whereabouts of the Duke of Yunzhong's guards, didn't I? I investigated and found that several of them died in the line of duty. So, I wanted to ask what cases they were investigating at the time, and also to look at their personal effects."

Fearing he might tip off someone, he didn't directly inquire about Shen Zhou alone but instead included him among six others.

The person behind this had gone to great lengths to create a fake corpse, so they clearly wouldn't expect him to find the target so quickly.

"Oh, was there something unusual about their deaths?" Gong Pan asked, curious.

"It's just a routine investigation," Zu An replied calmly. "As you know, our purpose in coming to Yunzhong Commandery is to appoint a new Duke, and before that, it's customary to investigate matters related to the previous Duke."

"I see," Gong Pan said, relieved. "Ah, those brothers met a terrible end..."

He then briefly recounted the cases those six individuals had investigated during their lives.

Zu An's main focus was Shen Zhou's case. It was said that he had been investigating a smuggling case involving the Zhenyuan Chamber of Commerce, but it was later found to be a misunderstanding: another group of smugglers had falsely bribed a warehouse manager under the Zhenyuan Chamber of Commerce...

The Zhenyuan Chamber of Commerce was one of the largest in Yunzhong Commandery, transporting goods from all over the country to sell there, while also collecting various specialties from the northwest of Yunzhong to dispatch nationwide.

Zu An thought to himself that Shen Zhou must have already reported to the capital back then. Investigating this Zhenyuan Chamber of Commerce was likely just a cover. He was more concerned about the man's personal effects.

"What about the personal effects of those soldiers? I heard that Lord Gong brought them back?" Zu An seized the opportunity, looking at him with a smile.

Gong Pan's expression flickered slightly, but he quickly replied, "By custom, the personal effects of brothers who die in the line of duty are collected and archived, especially since the cases haven't been solved yet."

Zu An frowned. "Are those items still kept in the Governor's manor?"

"Not at all. They are currently still in the Yu Estate. I haven't had a chance to hand them over yet," Gong Pan replied. "If Lord Zu wishes to see them, please follow me."

Noticing Zu An's suspicious expression, he explained, "To be honest, Lord Zu, I was hoping to find clues among them to avenge these deceased brothers. As you know, they were all the Duke's personal guards before. After the Duke's incident, they were reassigned to other departments to handle these tasks."

"Everyone knows they were the previous leader's people and wouldn't be favored by the new Governor, so no one would truly exert themselves to investigate their cases. That's why I thought I'd look into it myself."

"Oh?" Zu An was somewhat surprised. "And have you found anything, General Gong?"