Chapter 9: People from the County Have Arrived

Chapter 9: Chapter 9: People from the County Have Arrived

"You didn’t set the fire on purpose, Mrs. Wang," Fang Xu said, comforting the panic-stricken woman. "Even if the government finds out, at most, they will make you pay some money to repair the Yizhuang.

"Don’t forget, Erhu is a Government Soldier and a Martial Artist. As his family, the government won’t look too deeply into this."

These words calmed Mrs. Wang down quite a bit, but then she put on a bitter face. "But... repairing the Yizhuang will cost a lot of money, won’t it?

"I... I only have some jewelry and a few dozen taels of loose silver..."

After marrying Wang Ergou, Mrs. Wang lived a secluded life and rarely participated in any labor. She relied entirely on Wang Ergou for everything, big and small. With just over ten acres of barren land, the two barely had enough to eat.

The money she had saved was actually from the monthly stipend sent by Wang Erhu, who worked as a Government Soldier in Huangzhou Prefecture.

Wang Ergou would secretly stash away a portion of this stipend for himself, handing only the remainder to Mrs. Wang.

"Don’t worry, Mrs. Wang. Erhu should be able to settle this," Fang Xu consoled her again.

As a Government Soldier, it would be truly unreasonable if Wang Erhu couldn’t even handle such a minor issue.

"Right... right! There’s still Erhu..."

Mrs. Wang clenched her fists slightly, then looked at Fang Xu. "Even so, I should sell those pieces of jewelry as soon as possible and then turn myself in at the Government Office."

The laws of the Great Yu Dynasty did indeed stipulate that criminals who turned themselves in could receive a lighter sentence.

Mrs. Wang figured that since she had only caused the fire by accident and was turning herself in voluntarily, she would likely be fined less.

Fang Xu didn’t stop her, simply muttering in his heart, "I am sorry."

If Mrs. Wang took the blame for the major fire, she would at most lose some money. But if he was dragged into it, there would be a slightly higher risk of exposing the secret of the Divination God Treasure.

"Then you should hurry and go, Mrs. Wang. If you don’t have enough money, I still have some spare cash I can lend you for now," Fang Xu said.

Mrs. Wang bowed to him gratefully and hurriedly left the courtyard.

After seeing Mrs. Wang off, Fang Xu washed up briefly. He cleaned the Blood Food that Zhang Mingliang had sent over and placed a piece in the pot to stew.

So-called Blood Food was actually the flesh and blood of fierce beasts from the mountains. Compared to domestic livestock, the meat of these wild beasts contained much more vitality, offering greater benefits for cultivation.

While the Blood Food was stewing, Fang Xu finished tilling the small vegetable patch in the courtyard. He then brought over some vegetable seeds, scattered them, and watered the soil. After a bout of busywork, the aroma of the stewed meat wafted over.

Finishing the pot of stewed meat, he sat cross-legged on the bluestone in the courtyard and began guiding the Qi Blood Power in his body to start Refining Viscera.

Lu Zhiyuan had already guided him through the process yesterday. Furthermore, Fang Xu had accidentally entered the Realm of Inner Observation at the time, allowing him to clearly understand how to go about Refining Viscera.

Practicing alone for the first time, he was a bit rusty at the start. Gradually, however, Fang Xu became adept at controlling his own Qi Blood Power to temper his internal organs.

The internal organs were crucial to life and not as tough as one’s limbs. Thus, Refining Viscera was a slow and painstaking process that required gradual, meticulous refinement.

This cultivation session lasted straight until evening. When Fang Xu’s stomach began rumbling with hunger and he was about to get up to prepare some food, he realized a person was actually standing at the courtyard gate.

The man was around thirty years old, dressed in a black martial outfit and wielding a Golden Ring Saber. He wore a Pingjin Hat embedded with a black crystal in the center and leaned lazily against the doorframe.

Seeing Fang Xu stand up, he strode over.

"Inspector of the Small Flag of Qinghe County, Liao Yunfeng.

"Are you Fang Xu?"

Fang Xu sized him up and cupped his hands slightly. "That would be me."

Liao Yunfeng extended a hand to gesture. "Let’s go. My superior wants to see you."

"Is it about Wang Ergou’s death?" Fang Xu asked.

Liao Yunfeng nodded but didn’t say much else.

Fang Xu didn’t ask any further questions either. He followed the man out of the courtyard.

At the Fenglin Town Government Office, when Liao Yunfeng arrived with Fang Xu, the Town Mayor of Fenglin Town, Huang Dechuan, and the Steward with a mole on his lip were bowing and speaking obsequiously to a man in an azure official robe.

"Sir, Fang Xu has been brought here," Liao Yunfeng said, cupping his fists.

The middle-aged man in the azure official robe waved Huang Dechuan and the Steward aside. He stood up, slowly walked over to Fang Xu, and asked in a deep voice, "Are you Fang Xu?"

Fang Xu cupped his hands slightly. "Yes."

The middle-aged man continued, "I am Zheng Ming of the Prison Department, responsible for criminal investigations in Qinghe County. I have come to Fenglin Town to investigate Wang Ergou’s death.

"Tell me everything you know right now, without leaving out a single detail."

Fang Xu cupped his hands and detailed the events leading up to and following Wang Ergou’s death.

After hearing this, Zheng Ming looked at Fang Xu and frowned. "According to your account, you and Mrs. Wang were the only two who discovered Wang Ergou’s death?

"Tell me, what exactly did you find at the scene of the crime?"

Fang Xu briefly reiterated what he had seen at the scene. When he mentioned Wang Ergou’s bizarre plowing ox, the expression of Liao Yunfeng, the Inspector of the Small Flag standing nearby, shifted slightly. He quickly leaned in and whispered a few words into Zheng Ming’s ear.

After listening, Zheng Ming’s face grew unusually grave. He then turned to Liao Yunfeng and asked, "Are you certain?"

Liao Yunfeng cupped his hands. "I am certain, sir. This matter still requires..."

Zheng Ming raised a hand to cut him off. He swept his gaze across everyone present before asking Huang Dechuan, "Where is the corpse of that plowing ox now?"

Huang Dechuan froze for a moment, then hurriedly looked at the Steward beside him.

The Steward stammered, "S-sir... the human corpse was brought back, but the ox... this lowly one didn’t know it was of any use."

"Useless trash!"

Kicking the Steward to the ground, Huang Dechuan hurriedly wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and rushed up to Zheng Ming. "Sir, your subordinate will send people to transport the ox’s corpse back right away!"

Zheng Ming waved his hand dismissively and looked at Liao Yunfeng. "Take two men and go with Fang."

Liao Yunfeng cupped his hands in acknowledgment. He led two Inspector Officials and Fang Xu out of the Government Office.

By the time the four of them arrived at the scene, the sky had already darkened. Fortunately, it was early spring and not too hot. Since the location was at the foot of Tilan Mountain and no other wild beasts had approached, the corpse of the plowing ox was still there.

Liao Yunfeng approached the ox’s corpse and drew his Golden Ring Saber. He gently sliced open the shriveled hide, and seeing that not a single drop of blood flowed out, he furrowed his brows and returned the saber to its sheath. Afterward, he began carefully inspecting the surroundings.

"Fang, these two sets of footprints..."

"They belong to me and Mrs. Wang," Fang Xu quickly explained.

Liao Yunfeng used his keen eyesight to make a comparison and soon found a third set of footprints.

He crouched in front of the footprints to examine them for a moment before slowly reaching out his hand. An accompanying Inspector Official quickly handed him a piece of white paper and a bottle of potion. Liao Yunfeng sprinkled the potion evenly over the footprint and then placed the white paper on top.

A moment later, a clear footprint appeared on the white paper.

Fang Xu found it quite miraculous but didn’t dare ask any questions.

After collecting the footprint, Liao Yunfeng thoroughly searched the vicinity again. Finding no other traces, his expression grew somewhat solemn.

"Alright, bring the ox’s corpse back!"

After surveying the surroundings for a long time, Liao Yunfeng finally gave the order. He then led Fang Xu and the ox’s corpse back to Fenglin Town.