Chapter 1605: Deceived

Zu An smiled after a brief moment of surprise. "Sure, how about now?"

As he spoke, he made a move to start undressing.

"Pfft, you pervert..." As expected, Tang Tian'er couldn't take it anymore. She spat lightly, her face flushed, and hopped far away from him.

Seeing Zu An burst into laughter, she couldn't help but say teasingly, "Why are you such a rogue?"

"I didn't realize you were just joking, Sister Tian'er." Of course, Zu An wasn't actually going to undress; he was merely testing her.

They were both cunning old foxes; there was no point in playing games.

Tang Tian'er snorted, not wanting to dwell on the topic. "Oh, by the way, I haven't seen you in ages. I heard you went to the Demon Clan?"

"Sister Tian'er, your information is quite accurate." Zu An was a little surprised.

"Of course, you know what I do." Tang Tian'er sounded a bit proud. She then pestered him with questions about the Demon Clan.

Zu An smiled as he recounted his experiences and observations in the Demon Clan. Although he omitted some sensitive information, she was still filled with continuous exclamations of surprise.

"Oh, I really want to go visit the Demon Clan with Brother Zu. I've always been interested in that place, but I'd never dare go alone. I've heard there are many man-eating demons there..." Tang Tian'er adopted the guise of a frail little white rabbit.

Zu An completely ignored her act. "You frequently do business with the Fox Merchant Guild. Are you really telling me you've never been to the Demon Clan? Who are you trying to fool?"

"Oh, Brother Zu saw right through me." Tang Tian'er showed no embarrassment at all.

Zu An knew this was just her personality, combined with her professional habits, and he didn't take it to heart.

After they chatted for a while about everyday things, Zu An didn't forget his original purpose. He feigned casualness as he brought up, "You're always at the Carefree Pavilion; do you happen to know the Seventh Gold Medallion of Yi Commandery?"

A flicker of surprise crossed Tang Tian'er's eyes. She then pursed her lips and chuckled, "You've truly saddened me. I thought you came specifically to see me, but it turns out you're just here to ask about something."

Zu An looked wronged. "If you don't believe me, go check. I just arrived in Yi Commandery today and rushed straight here to see you. If I wasn't specifically looking for you, why would I be in such a hurry? Just now, the young girls in your pavilion were giving me flirtatious glances, but I didn't even pay them any mind. Wasn't it all just to see you?"

"At least you have some conscience," Tang Tian'er finally said. "How did you get involved with the Seventh Gold Medallion?"

Zu An replied, "We serve in the same imperial court; there are naturally some connections, more or less."

Tang Tian'er then answered, "Yes, I certainly know the Seventh Gold Medallion. After all, the Carefree Pavilion operates in a grey area, and the Seventh Gold Medallion is the imperial court's intelligence chief in Yi Commandery. So it's inevitable that we deal with each other. Someone like me, a courtesan, would naturally be sent to win him over."

"It's just that the Seventh Gold Medallion is impervious to charm. He has no interest in women, nor in gold and treasures. He's truly a headache to deal with."

"Women?" Zu An frowned slightly upon hearing this. He couldn't help but glance at her. It had to be said, her looks were stunning, and more importantly, she was exceptionally sweet, making people unconsciously want to get closer to her.

"Oh, are you jealous?" Tang Tian'er leaned closer to him. "Don't worry, you've seen my methods before. I have all sorts of sedatives to trick people. Who could possibly take advantage of this young lady?"

Zu An still couldn't help but remind her, "As the saying goes, 'one who often walks by the river is bound to get their shoes wet.' If you ever encounter a true master, you'll end up losing more than you gain."

"After all these years, I've only ever stumbled once, and that was with you," Tang Tian'er snorted. "I learned from last time and modified the sedative's formula. Next time, even a dragon will fall for it."

Zu An: "..."

This woman was truly adept at concocting such drugs.

"But you're so concerned about me, which makes me quite happy." Tang Tian'er's smile grew even brighter.

Seeing her sweet smile, which had less of its usual artificiality and more genuine warmth, Zu An was somewhat dazed. However, this woman's acting skills were always excellent, and she always spoke in half-truths, making it difficult to distinguish between sincerity and pretense.

"Around the sixth of last month, did you happen to see the Seventh Gold Medallion?" Zu An asked, striking while the iron was hot.

"Asking about other men when you're with me? How boring," Tang Tian'er grumbled, but still replied, "Yes, I did go to see him that day. It was to deliver this year's tribute money from the Carefree Pavilion. He can refuse to accept it, but we cannot fail to send it."

After speaking, she looked at him somewhat nervously. "You're also an imperial official. You wouldn't arrest me just for bribery, would you?"

Zu An was speechless. "Your little feet are still swinging back and forth. Do you look even remotely nervous?"

"Oh, you saw through me. My acting skills must be declining lately." Tang Tian'er looked a little distressed.

Zu An then asked, "Did you go to Blackwater Pond afterwards?"

"Blackwater Pond?" Tang Tian'er was startled. "That place is haunted. Why would I go there?"

"You didn't go?" Zu An was immediately stunned. What was going on?

"I'm incredibly busy all day. How would I have time to go to such a desolate place?" Tang Tian'er looked at him suspiciously. "Why are you asking, anyway?"

Zu An gazed intently into her eyes, unable to determine if her words were true or false. After a moment, he said, "I heard that on the day the Seventh Gold Medallion died, you were also seen at Blackwater Pond, and that you were the one who threw his body in."

Tang Tian'er's expression changed. "You're suspecting me."

Zu An remained silent. His mind raced, trying to figure out what was happening. The turtle spirit had said that a woman dumped the body and left a message: "It would have been better if he had been found earlier." Later, Xiao Jianren had investigated and found that the woman the Seventh Gold Medallion had interacted with before his death was indeed her. But why was she claiming she hadn't been to Blackwater Pond? Was she telling the truth, or was she deliberately saying this to clear herself of suspicion?

Seeing his silence, Tang Tian'er dropped her smile, her expression turning cold. "If you think I'm the murderer of the Seventh Gold Medallion, then arrest me and take me in."

Zu An shook his head. "Of course, I believe you. Even if you were the culprit, given our relationship, there's no way I would arrest you."

He wasn't like a detective with a moral obsession, such as Conan, who, no matter how sympathetic or forced the circumstances of the culprit were, would still bring them to justice.

Only then did Tang Tian'er break into a smile, her tears gone. "Brother Zu is the best! I knew I wasn't wrong about you."

Zu An stood up and said, "I need to go verify some things now. Please excuse me."

"Leaving so soon?" Tang Tian'er expressed her reluctance to see him go.

"Have you been in Yi Commandery this whole time?" Zu An asked.

"Not necessarily. Sometimes I'm here at the Carefree Pavilion for a guest appearance, and sometimes I have to go back to deal with matters for the Zhenhai Merchant Guild," Tang Tian'er then changed the topic. "But since you're in Yi Commandery, Brother Zu, I won't be returning to Yunzhong Commandery anytime soon. You can come find me anytime. My door will always be open for you."

Zu An directly ignored her last remark. Despite her young age, she exuded a seductive charm. No wonder she could be the most renowned courtesan in a place like the Carefree Pavilion, where all sorts of people mingled.

Watching him bid farewell and leave, the smile on Tang Tian'er's face slowly faded. As the candlelight flickered and shifted, her entire being became enveloped in shadows.

After leaving the Carefree Pavilion, Zu An headed directly towards Blackwater Pond in the city outskirts.

At night, the water of Blackwater Pond was like ink, eerily cold and dark.

Zu An called out in a cold voice, "Come out and see me!"

To his surprise, after calling out several times in a row, there was not the slightest stir from below.

Zu An's expression changed. He immediately jumped into the pond and sank all the way down, only to find that the cave dwelling at the bottom of the pond was already empty. The turtle spirit was nowhere to be seen.

He searched the cave for a while, but found no useful clues.

However, he eventually found a line of crookedly carved words on a stone platform: "You little brat, Grandpa Turtle is gone!"

Zu An's expression immediately became priceless. The turtle spirit had previously claimed with utmost sincerity that it had spent hundreds of years here slowly gathering incense power and wouldn't easily abandon it, lest it take another few centuries, which was why Zu An had believed it. He never would have thought that he had actually been deceived by this turtle spirit in the end!

It was only then that he realized that when he had first descended into Blackwater Pond to investigate, the greenish-gray hands from underground had directly gripped him. They showed no divine intent at all, completely feeling like vengeful spirits clinging to him. Clearly, it had many wronged souls under its control. What a pity that it was so good at sweet-talking; it even managed to deceive him.