Chapter 19: A Lucky Coincidence, the Trouble Was Diverted

Chapter 19: Chapter 19: A Lucky Coincidence, the Trouble Was Diverted

The old and the young who discovered Yun Tianhe’s body were clearly father and daughter. The man was in his thirties, dark-skinned, and wearing thin linen clothes. The little girl looked to be under ten, her hair tied in two horn-like braids. Her dirty little face was filled with terror as she clung tightly to her father’s arm.

Fang Xu did not know these two; they were likely villagers from other villages under the jurisdiction of Fenglin Town.

"Where did you two find the body?" Yun Wan asked coldly.

The man looked nervous, not daring to speak.

SHING!

Seeing this, Huang Dechuan, who was beside them, drew a Broadsword directly from the waist of a Si Ji and held it against the man’s neck. "Miss Yun is asking you a question. Speak up!" he shouted sternly.

Terrified, the man fell to his knees with a THUD. The little girl was so frightened she immediately burst into tears with a WAAH.

"Don’t kill my daddy! Don’t kill my daddy!

"We found that uncle in Gourd Valley."

Yun Wan pondered the name of Gourd Valley. Frowning slightly, she looked at the man and asked again, "Why did you hesitate just now?"

The man hurriedly kowtowed. "I wouldn’t dare hide anything from you, Miss. Gourd Valley is a medicinal field enclosed by the Wu Family. When I went into the mountain to gather firewood, I accidentally discovered a secret passage. I sneaked in to pick some medicinal herbs to sell for money..."

As a Noble Family of Fenglin Town, the Wu Family’s backing influence could even extend to Huangzhou Prefecture. Enclosing a piece of land in Tilan Mountain to use as a medicinal field was naturally not unusual. The father and daughter before her had used a secret passage to sneak into Gourd Valley and steal medicinal herbs. If the Wu Family found out, their lives would likely be forfeit. That was why they didn’t dare reveal where they had found the body.

"When you saw the body, did you encounter anyone else or pick up anything else?" Yun Wan spoke again, though her tone had softened slightly.

The man recalled for a moment and shook his head. "No. When I saw that... that lord, he must have just breathed his last.

"I figured that since I had come across him, I couldn’t just watch his corpse get devoured by the mountain’s fierce beasts, so I carried him on my back to the town’s Yizhuang."

As a Martial Master of the Ninth Realm, Yun Wan could clearly sense the subtle changes in the man’s expression and knew he wasn’t lying. Waving her hand at Huang Dechuan to signal him to put away his Broadsword, Yun Wan said flatly, "Inform the Wu Family not to make things difficult for this father and daughter."

The man had a kind heart and had prevented her second uncle’s body from being eaten by wild beasts, so she had to give him some benefit in the end.

"Alright, escort them back."

Since the people who found the body hadn’t taken anything from her second uncle, only one possibility remained.

"Have you found the person guarding the Yizhuang?" Yun Wan looked at Huang Dechuan and asked.

"Well..." Huang Dechuan’s expression changed slightly. Meeting Yun Wan’s gaze, he slowly took out a crystal-clear purple jade from his sleeve and tremblingly offered it to her. "Li Tieniu... he died on the way to Qinghe County.

"This was found in his mouth."

Looking at the purple Jade Ornament in Huang Dechuan’s hand, Yun Wan immediately recognized it as her second uncle’s.

"Dead? How did he die?"

Bracing himself, Huang Dechuan replied, "There were signs that his body had been searched. He must have encountered highwaymen."

Hearing this, Yun Wan furrowed her elegant brows. She wondered if the item had fallen into the hands of those detestable bandits. This made things somewhat difficult. She lowered her head in silent thought, and the people in the courtyard didn’t even dare to breathe too loudly.

"Let’s go." After a long while, Yun Wan flicked her sleeve and slowly walked out of the courtyard. Seeing this, Wang Erhu hurriedly cupped his hands slightly toward Wang Family, then hurried to catch up with Yun Wan’s footsteps and left.

Huang Dechuan and the others also left one after another, leaving only Fang Xu and Wang Family in the courtyard.

After everyone had gone, Wang Family’s legs suddenly gave out, and she slumped onto the ground. Seeing this, Fang Xu quickly helped her up.

"I was scared to death..." Wang Family patted her chest like a survivor of a disaster. "I was truly afraid that Miss Yun would have us all beheaded with a wave of her hand just now."

Fang Xu did not speak. He had just managed to calm his own racing heart. This feeling of having his life and death controlled by others was truly unpleasant!

Yun Wan had come to investigate the fire at the Yizhuang and had asked the father and daughter for details about finding the body. It was obvious she knew that the corpse wearing the Glowing Gold Embroidered Boots had been sent to the Yizhuang. Thinking of this, Fang Xu glanced at Wang Family with some gratitude. If she hadn’t imagined the cause of the fire and turned herself in at the Government Office on her own initiative, taking the blame for the blaze, this matter really wouldn’t have been easy to resolve.

At the same time, Fang Xu secretly thanked Li Tieniu, the guard of the Yizhuang. It was his greed that led him to take the Jade Ornament from the corpse to sell in Qinghe County Town, which misled Yun Wan into thinking that the Divination God Treasure had also been taken by Li Tieniu. Now that the trouble had been redirected toward those mountain bandits, the crisis was temporarily over.

Fang Xu felt that if the owner of the Glowing Gold Embroidered Boots had informed the Yun Family of the importance of the Divination God Treasure, the Yun Family would likely dispatch a large number of Martial Artists to wipe out the mountain bandits of Qinghe County. He could be considered to have indirectly secured a benefit for the common people of Qinghe County.

"Careful, Ms. Wang." After helping Wang Family onto the bed in the room, Fang Xu turned and was about to leave, but Wang Family suddenly stood up and hugged him from behind.

"Fang..."

Two soft mounds pressed tightly against Fang Xu’s back, and Wang Family buried her entire face against him. After experiencing such a fright, she was in dire need of some comfort. Fang Xu stood frozen in place, not daring to make a careless move.

After a long time, Wang Family released her arms. Lowering her head, she said softly, "Fang, you must hurry and break through to Martial Disciple. I... I will wait for you."

Hearing this, Fang Xu sighed slightly, then hurriedly cupped his hands and fled the temptation of this gentle embrace.

It was past noon by the time he left Wang Family’s courtyard.

Returning home, Fang Xu resumed stewing the Blood Food and began his daily cultivation. He did not dare to use the Divination God Treasure during the day. Especially now that Yun Wan knew about the corpse’s existence, he had to be even more careful.

On the streets of Fenglin Town, in front of the Zhang Family’s former Blood Food Shop.

Lu Zhiyuan was watching some craftsmen renovate the Blood Food Shop. Beside him, Li Yushan hurried over, leaned close to Lu Zhiyuan’s ear, and whispered, "Land Master, I’ve found out. The Wu Family is indeed preparing to intervene in the Blood Food business. They didn’t accept the invitation I sent."

Lu Zhiyuan chuckled. Stroking his chin, he pondered for a moment before saying, "No matter. I’d also like to see exactly who is backing the Wu Family."

"I’ll leave the shop’s renovations to you. Qingluo..." Calling out to the girl in red beside him, Lu Zhiyuan continued, "Accompany your father on a trip into the mountains."

"You’re going personally, Land Master..." Li Yushan was slightly startled upon hearing this. He had thought that Lu Zhiyuan releasing news of personally going into the mountains two days ago was just to attract some Martial Artists. He never expected him to actually plan on going himself.

"We open in ten days, so we must have something presentable to offer." Lu Zhiyuan smiled faintly and led Lu Qingluo toward Tilan Mountain.

"Right, don’t forget to send an invitation to that boy from the Fang Family as well," Lu Zhiyuan, having walked a few steps away, suddenly turned his head and shouted to Li Yushan.

Beside him, the red-clad Lu Qingluo pursed her lips slightly. "Father, is that boy really worth you sending him an invitation?"

Lu Zhiyuan gave a faint smile. "Qingluo, I’ve told you not to underestimate anyone. Don’t forget why we came to Fenglin Town."

Lu Qingluo’s expression shifted slightly. She quietly followed behind her father, not saying anything more.