Chapter 486: Eternal Curiosity

“Oh, Miss Dong Er from Mr. Dong’s family, you’re truly growing more beautiful.”

“Miss Dong Er, I used to hold you when you were little.”

“Miss Liangyu, you really should go out more often; your neighbors almost forget what you look like.”

In the streets and alleys, wrinkled old women chuckled, greasy big men with exposed bellies guffawed, and peddlers with shoulder poles grinned. All sorts of people and even demons continuously greeted Dong Liangyu.

Even a cat, arching its back on the windowsill, seemed to meow at her.

A large centipede rapidly scuttling up and down the tiled eaves also stopped seeking shade, seemingly eager and flustered by the commotion in the street.

Dong Liangyu maintained a dignified and polite demeanor throughout, but even with her seemingly perfect upbringing described in books, her smile in reality was a little forced.

Fan Wuzhe seemed to notice her discomfort. When the chatter subsided a bit, he whispered, “Is it a bit overwhelming? How about we head back to the library first?”

Dong Liangyu readily agreed, murmuring, “As you say, Cousin.”

There was a distinct tone of compliance.

Before she spoke those strange words to Shi Chun yesterday, her father had called her for a talk about her marriage to Fan Wuzhe.

That conversation was unlike previous ones; she ultimately couldn’t go against her father’s wishes.

Having read many books, she deeply believed in the principles of parental consent and matchmakers’ words for significant life events like marriage.

She also knew her father would never harm her and surely acted for her own good. As a mere mortal in this cultivation world, if she entrusted herself to the wrong person, her life would be restless, and her family would also suffer unrest.

She yearned for some of the beauty she envisioned and wanted to blossom, but she hadn’t found the courage to do so from Shi Chun.

Since it had never begun, she couldn’t speak of loss, yet her heart ached.

For now, she could only accept reality.

So, the two turned back, returning much faster than their stroll had been. Fan Wuzhe seemed quite considerate of his cousin.

After escorting Dong Liangyu to the library, Fan Wuzhe greeted Dong Liangying behind the counter, saying he was going out to buy a few things, and then he left.

As she returned to the scripture pavilion upstairs, Dong Liangyu caught sight of Shi Chun in her peripheral vision but deliberately avoided looking at him, quietly departing.

Since she had made her life’s choice, she didn’t want to do anything that would betray Fan Wuzhe. She would maintain her distance from Shi Chun, and conversations like last night’s would no longer happen. This was her upbringing, also known as her cultivation.

Fan Wuzhe, who was still on the street, suddenly turned into an empty alley. After observing his surroundings, he quickly pulled out a parent-child talisman and sent a message to someone unknown.

After receiving a reply, he quickly traversed the city, following the instructions in the message.

He rushed about, entering a residential area, and stopped at the back door of a desolate mansion. Just as he was surveying to confirm, the back door opened, and a burly man in black beckoned him in. He quickly entered.

The man in black closed the door, led him into a room, and told him to wait.

Not long after, a tall, barefoot man arrived, clad in a black cloak and wearing a bamboo hat—an odd getup. He had a full beard, fierce, leopard-like eyes, and an imposing presence.

To many in Dazhi City, this person was no stranger: he was Mei You, the Vice Supervisor of the Dazhi City Tax Bureau, in charge of the city’s taxes.

Fan Wuzhe seemed somewhat apprehensive upon seeing him and quickly bowed with cupped hands, greeting, “Greetings, Supervisor.”

Mei You didn’t bother to sit down, stopping beside him and saying in a deep voice, “What’s so urgent that you had to see me in person? Has something happened at the library?”

Fan Wuzhe hastily replied, “Some matters cannot be clearly explained without informing you in person, Supervisor. There’s no change yet, but I fear one might arise. I’m worried our relationship has been discovered.”

Mei You’s eyes gleamed coldly. “Explain.”

Fan Wuzhe: “When I was captured and tortured by you before, someone on the mountain saw me. Just now, while strolling with Dong Liangyu, I saw that person again. I don’t know if he recognized me, but when our eyes met, he suddenly turned to ask for a price at a nearby stall, seeming a bit unnatural. I’m worried he recognized me.”

Mei You shrugged it off. “If he’s someone from the mountain, it shouldn’t be a big problem. Don’t worry. Who is it?”

Fan Wuzhe: “I don’t know his name.”

Mei You: “What does he look like?”

Fan Wuzhe: “His appearance is very memorable; you wouldn’t forget him after one look. He’s a scrawny old man with shifty, rat-like eyes, a pointed chin, and hollow cheeks. He has two yellowish, upturned mustaches and a small tuft of hair on his chin.”

Mei You pondered for a moment, then suddenly asked the man in black beside him, “Is there anyone with this description on the mountain?”

At least one thing he was certain of: there was definitely no such person among the important figures on the mountain.

The man in black said, “Though there are many people on the mountain, someone with such distinct features is easy to inquire about. I’ll ask around later. Once I find him, I’ll sound him out and greet him; there shouldn’t be any trouble.”

Mei You nodded slightly, then turned to Fan Wuzhe. “Did you hear that? There’s no need to scare yourself; nothing will happen. You go back to the library first and focus on your own matters. I’ll handle everything else here for you.”

Hearing their words, Fan Wuzhe visibly relaxed. He immediately cupped his hands in farewell and departed.

Once he left and the mansion was clear of outsiders, Mei You told the man in black, who had returned from seeing him off, “Find the person he described as quickly as possible. Silence whoever needs to be silenced. We don’t have much time left, and there’s no room for error.”

“Yes,” the man in black acknowledged, and departed.

Having come down from the mountain, Mei You was not in a hurry to leave. He brewed tea on the spot and savored it, half-closing his eyes in a state between sleep and wakefulness, contemplating the flavors of life.

It must be said, Huang Yingying’s appearance was quite distinctive. The man in black returned in less than half an hour, rushing back to lean close to Mei You, who was pouring tea. “Supervisor,” he whispered, “I’ve found him. I checked the entry and exit logs for that day and found he’s not from the mountain. He’s the live-in son-in-law from ‘Bai’s Rice Shop,’ that old man Huang Yingying. He happened to be delivering rice up the mountain when Fan Wuzhe was being tortured, so he must have seen it. Besides him, I can’t think of anyone else on the mountain with that appearance.”

“It’s him…” Mei You, holding the teapot, mused, recalling who it was. Then he said grimly, “Regardless of whether he recognized Fan Wuzhe, the matter of Fan Wuzhe’s capture absolutely cannot reach Dong Wenshu. Once he knows, he will surely realize what’s going on. Even if things succeed then, given Dong Wenshu’s personality, we’ll face serious trouble.”

Setting down the teapot, he emphasized, “This matter cannot fail. Find that Huang fellow quickly. He only saw Fan Wuzhe recently, so even if he recognized him, the news wouldn’t have spread far in a short time. Arrest him and interrogate him immediately to confirm if any information has leaked. You must pry open his mouth, and anyone who knows must be silenced. Remember, secret arrest, don’t make a big commotion.”

“Understood,” the man in black said, taking his leave once more.

In the boundless grasslands outside the city, Huang Yingying, stepping on the ‘heart-wrapping grass,’ bounced and leaped around, looking left and right when airborne.

He circled a large area, searching for a very long time, until his distant gaze spotted a patch of rustling grass. He immediately flew towards it.

From the air, he saw a group of scattered slender-scaled steeds grazing. After landing and seeing no herdsmen, he immediately craned his neck and shouted, “Xiao Gao, Xiao Gao, where are you?”

He waited for a while, but there was no response. He then shouted again, “Xiao Gao, Xiao Gao, I’ve come to repay my debt! Do you want it? If not, I’m leaving!”

As he finished speaking, a figure shot out from the grass on one side, bounced on a blade of grass, and glided towards him. It was indeed Wu Jinliang.

As if the sun had risen from the west, Wu Jinliang looked him up and down. To actually come voluntarily to repay a debt? He had to wonder if it was an imposter.

It must be him. Wu Jinliang directly held out his hand. “Where’s the money? Hand it over.”

Huang Yingying slapped his hand away, then slyly grinned and extended his own hand, saying, “Give me the IOU, and another hundred gold, and I’ll tell you a secret.”

Wu Jinliang slowly raised an eyebrow, then turned and walked away, his parting word a single “Scram!”

Huang Yingying quickly changed his tune. “Alright, alright, we’re old friends. Let’s make it cheaper, fifty gold.”

Wu Jinliang still ignored him, swinging onto a slender-scaled steed, ready to ride off.

Huang Yingying hastily shouted again, “The Second Miss from the library is getting married, didn’t you know?”

“Huh…” Wu Jinliang froze, looking at him, and reprimanded, “What nonsense are you talking about?”

He, who frequently visited the library, how could he not know if Dong Liangyu was getting married?

However, he did grow suspicious. This sly old man wouldn’t travel all this way just to play such a trick on him.

Seeing that he had paused his departure, Huang Yingying immediately knew he had him. The other party was indeed interested. He turned and walked away, waving a hand over his shoulder, “Believe it or not, I don’t care.”

Wu Jinliang just stared, annoyed. Stopping halfway made the conversation pointless. Seeing the old man genuinely about to disappear into the depths of the grass, he finally conceded and shouted, “Even if she gets married, it’s none of my business. How can that count towards my debt?”

Huang Yingying didn’t bother with him, walking faster and faster until his figure disappeared into the depths of the grass.

Wu Jinliang gnashed his teeth. Fine, he conceded first. He kicked the sides of a slender-scaled steed and rode after Huang Yingying. He caught up quickly, dismounted, letting the steed run off, and landed beside Huang Yingying. He scoffed, “If this doesn’t cover the debt or isn’t worth fifty gold, you’ll see how I deal with you.”

As he spoke, he pulled out the IOU and the counted fifty gold coins, thrusting them in front of Huang Yingying.

Upon seeing the amber gold, Huang Yingying’s expression immediately broke. His eyes lit up at the sight of money, and with a beaming smile, he quickly snatched them. After checking the IOU to ensure it was fine, he immediately destroyed it. He then counted the amber gold, confirmed it was all there, and quickly stuffed it into his money pouch, chuckling, “Xiao Gao, I knew from the start you were a romantic soul; I was right! So, about the Second Miss from the library getting married, you really didn’t know?”

Wu Jinliang frowned. “Where did you hear that?”

“What do you mean, ‘where did I hear it’? I saw it with my own eyes! It’s already common knowledge in the city…” Huang Yingying rattled off everything he had seen.

Wu Jinliang was truly impressed by this fellow; his old habit of sticking his nose into every commotion simply wouldn’t change. After listening, he hesitated, “Who is that man?”

Huang Yingying, looking pleased, shook his head. “I’m not sure. I heard people calling him ‘Cousin.’”

“Cousin?” Wu Jinliang mumbled. After thinking, he glared coldly. “You charged me hundreds of amber gold for just *that*?”

“Don’t be so quick to judge. If you truly have feelings for that Second Miss, these few hundred amber gold will definitely be worth it,” Huang Yingying said, glancing around. He then lowered his voice. “Her cousin is problematic. I don’t know if the marriage is real, but there’s a nine-out-of-ten chance he has other intentions.”

Wu Jinliang frowned. “Stop being so mysterious; get to the point.”

Huang Yingying: “Xiao Gao, don’t look down on me. In Dazhi City, some things, I might truly be the only one who can get a clue about. Let me start with something distant. All businesses, big and small, in Dazhi City have to pay taxes. My rice shop is no exception. The exception is that my rice shop never pays in cash; we use spirit rice to offset the taxes, since the people on the mountain in the city also eat spirit rice. It can just be deducted directly from the rice price.

“Every time I deliver rice to the tax bureau, I personally escort it. Once, after delivering rice and about to descend the mountain, I saw two tax bureau officials, beaten and bruised, also coming down. I got curious then, so I quietly followed them to see what was going on.

“It turned out they went to a tavern in the city, closed the door, and drank in silence. I was curious, so I couldn’t help but crouch by the wall and eavesdrop. I heard them complaining, and only then did I learn they had been disciplined by Vice Supervisor Mei You for their incompetence.”

Wu Jinliang eyed him suspiciously. “Does this have something to do with the library?”

Huang Yingying: “Don’t rush, listen to this old man slowly. Why did Vice Supervisor Mei discipline them? You guessed it right, it’s related to the library. Vice Supervisor Mei took a liking to the plot of land where ‘Chao Yue Guan’ is located. You know that location—it’s one of the best areas in Dazhi City, and it’s a large compound with several courtyards. How much do you think that’s worth?”

Wu Jinliang estimated, “Probably tens of millions at least, right? Did the Vice Supervisor get greedy?”

Huang Yingying quietly explained, “Not exactly greed. It’s not about the money. From what I heard, some important figure wanted to pick a place to settle in Dazhi City and took a liking to the library’s plot, thinking it would be a good place to build a residence. Then, someone unknown boldly took on this task, but it turned out to be an empty boast. The reason is simple: Dong Wenshu refused to sell, claiming it was an ancestral home.

“Vice Supervisor Mei was probably just an errand runner in this matter. He tried persuasion for a long time, not only offering a high price but also willing to secure another plot in the city to rebuild the scripture pavilion. However, Dong Wenshu is famously stubborn. Since he decided not to sell for any amount of money, it wasn’t something that could be bought with money.

“So the tax bureau tried to find an entry point through the library’s taxes, but Dong Wenshu’s conduct, like his integrity, was impeccable; people couldn’t find a single decent fault. Those two tax officials were beaten because they were ineffective in this matter, which angered Mei You.

“I understand why Mei You didn’t dare to use force. The city lord knows about that library. Occasionally, the city lord would even visit, browse for books, and chat with Dong Wenshu. In other words, Dong Wenshu is one of the few merchants in the city who can directly speak to the city lord. Although he has no official title, he’s someone who can enter the city lord’s mansion directly.”

Wu Jinliang listened intently, also somewhat surprised. He hadn’t expected such a story hidden behind the library.

“Then, about a month ago, I went to the tax bureau again to deliver rice, and I heard someone wailing in agony, being tortured. I couldn’t resist my curiosity at the time, so I quietly crept over and peeked. Guess who I saw?”