IDWBE -Chapter 445 The Envoy

Chen Xinluo smiled and said, “Then I leave it to you, Young Master Ye. We are deeply grateful.”

Cao Xiaohuan and the others looked at Chen Xinluo’s obsequious face, and for a moment, it was as if they didn’t recognize him at all. In their memory, Chen Xinluo had always been serious and stern, never smiling, as if everyone owed him something.

And now, with that sly grin, he looked nothing but a flattering, petty man.
Especially Zhou Xun—her illusions about Chen Xinluo were shattered.
Was this really the same upright, respected Chen Xinluo she had admired?

Only those beside her, like Jiao Zhong and the others, were unbothered.

Anyone who left the He Mansion and managed to rise to some position—how many of them were truly good people? Almost all of them were ruthless, willing to chew people up and spit out the bones.

Back in the day, the He Mansion had two notorious figures—one of them being the seemingly “harmless” Chen Xinluo!

The depth of his malice was simply horrifying. Yet he could pacify a crying child effortlessly!

Even someone as arrogant as Lei Kaishan would scurry like a mouse before a cat when facing him. The other was Bao Kui, known as the “Smiling Tiger.”

Over a decade ago, he had gone south with Mei Jingzhi’s army, surviving the chaos of battle. Anyone who made it through such a storm of warriors couldn’t possibly be kind-hearted. Later, he became Commander of the He Mansion’s Guards—firm and respected, arguably the most prestigious in the history of He Mansion’s Guard Commanders.

Unlike himself, who had to maintain a stern face even to speak among the guards, and needed Hong Ying or Lord He to back him up if he wanted to teach someone a lesson. He was the least capable among the commanders.

Sometimes, when the guards pushed him to his limit, he truly wanted to quit. Go home, inherit the family fortune, and live as a rich man.

But then, he couldn’t bring himself to do it. We all have the same two eyes and one nose—why shouldn’t he succeed?

If he just gave in, people would look down on him even more.

In the end, he knew the problem was his soft heart.
He just couldn’t bring himself to be ruthless.

As Lord He often said, “Even simple human connections, if you can’t handle them, what future do you have?” He turned his head to see Cao Xiaohuan nearby and immediately felt deflated.

Cao Xiaohuan’s martial skills weren’t his equal yet, but she was about to reach ninth rank!
He certainly couldn’t dominate her by force.

She wasn’t a helpless weak woman who could just lie on the ground and let him do as he pleased. She could resist—and resistance made things meaningless.

“Ah,” Ye Qiu boldly glanced at Lin Yi, then helplessly waved at Chen Xinluo, saying, “All for the service of Lord He.”

How could there be any complaints!

“Looking at your attitude… are you still dissatisfied?”

Lin Yi shot him a glare.

Ye Chen of the Ye family was smart—he had even bought Ye Qiu a large mansion! And every month provided several thousand taels for expenses.

So until now, Lin Yi felt embarrassed calling it free board and lodging at the He Mansion.  Sometimes, in jealousy, he even tried to mooch meals from Ye Qiu. A man without a wife or children—what does he need so much silver for? Not like him! As the biggest BOSS in Liang, he had the weighty responsibility of maintaining the country’s peace and development, setting an example, and not wasting public funds.

Besides, now that he had treasures, raising children cost money, plus saving a dowry for his daughter—he couldn’t spend recklessly.

So sometimes, he had to do a little “robbing the rich to help the poor” business.
Otherwise, life would be unbearable.

“I dare not,” Ye Qiu said with a smile, “It is my honor to serve Lord He.”

Lin Yi waved and said, “Then quickly catch this murderer. The three-day deadline—how stands it?”

Hearing this, Chen Xinluo and Cao Xiaohuan exchanged glances with Ye Qiu, who was smiling confidently.

Ye Qiu declared loudly, “Reporting to Lord He: by tomorrow at noon, I will personally ensure the culprit is brought to justice!”

Chen Xinluo’s heart tightened. Did he hear wrong? How could Ye Qiu be so certain? What if the culprit had already escaped Ankang City? The world is vast—where would they even look?

Before he could ask further, Ye Qiu had already turned and left the He Mansion. Chen Xinluo apologized to Lord He, then hurried to follow with Cao Xiaohuan and the others.

“Young Master Ye,” Chen Xinluo carefully stayed close, puzzled. “I don’t understand—may I ask why you are so confident that you can catch this culprit?”

“Are you doubting me?”

Ye Qiu stopped. Everyone looked on in surprise as he glared coldly at Chen Xinluo.

Chen Xinluo lowered his head, expressionless. “I dare not; I’m merely puzzled.”

“What’s so hard to guess?”

Suddenly, a voice cut in from above. Chen Xinluo felt it familiar. When he looked up, Fang Pi leapt down from the wall, followed by Zhou Jingye and Shan Sanguan.

Fang Pi, seeing everyone’s eyes on him, was secretly pleased—until he caught Chen Xinluo’s cold gaze and quickly saluted, “Reporting, Master Chen.”

Chen Xinluo coldly said, “Speak quickly. I don’t have time to waste on idle chatter.”

“Yes,” Fang Pi hurriedly explained, “Last night during roll call, two Palace Guards went missing. We activated our emergency plan and found their bodies in a dilapidated temple. To avoid alerting the culprit, we left the bodies untouched. Then we discovered several dozen more. If the Palace Guards hadn’t noticed such a disturbance, what use would we even be?”

Chen Xinluo nodded. “Good. If your Palace Guards can’t detect such events, they’re useless.”

Fang Pi chuckled, “Our best men suspected the method was the Star-Absorbing Technique, but something felt off, so they immediately sent two corpses to the stables. When Young Master Ye intervened, he immediately deduced the situation.”

“So Young Master Ye had already anticipated it.”

Chen Xinluo wasn’t surprised.

Fang Pi continued, “Young Master Ye explained that although the culprit practiced the Star-Absorbing Technique using cruel methods, it’s neither Huiyuan Gong nor Lion’s Roar Gong—it’s not a technique of Sanhe’s martial arts at all.”

Zhou Xun asked, “What does that mean?”

“Don’t understand?”

Fang Pi, confident, said, “Most Sanhe soldiers practice Huiyuan Gong, which emphasizes Yin and Yang. The Star-Absorbing Technique, when powered by Huiyuan Gong, works well. For monks practicing Lion’s Roar Gong, it also works, but the base is foreign.”

“What kind of inner power did the culprit use to activate the Star-Absorbing Technique?”

Zhou Xun asked.

“Thankfully, Young Master Ye handled that,” Fang Pi said proudly. “He personally fought the culprit before, otherwise we wouldn’t have known.”

“Oh? They fought?”

Everyone was astonished.

Anyone who fought Ye Qiu, a Grandmaster, must also be at least a Grandmaster. And this Grandmaster had likely never learned Huiyuan Gong or Lion’s Roar Gong.

Immediately, their minds flashed to Jizhao Temple, Chunshan City, and even the recently arrived Tugu Temple Dharma King.

“Tugu Temple?”

Finally, Zhou Xun spoke.

Fang Pi laughed, “Yes. Only our Sanhe experts or foreign masters could absorb dozens of people’s inner power without self-explosion. Among them, the most suspicious is Tugu Temple’s Ding Lun.”

“Ding Lun?”

Many had already guessed and were unsurprised.

Cao Xiaohuan, disliking Fang Pi’s arrogance, still asked patiently, “Then how do we find Ding Lun?”

Remember, even monks of his caliber were never caught by others. And now, what could they do? After all, Ye Qiu had once been Ding Lun’s defeated opponent!

Just then, her chest ached sharply. Suppressing the blood in her throat, she bowed to Ye Qiu. “Young Master Ye, please forgive me. I meant no offense.”

Questioning Ye Qiu publicly had already earned her a scolding—he was remarkably tolerant.

“Hmph,” Ye Qiu said calmly, “You think I came, and the monk would just stand by?”

“Ahmitabha.”

With a Buddhist chant, the monk appeared at the alley. Everyone, surprised, trudged through the snow outside the city.

Before dawn, the city cleaners cleared the snow, making it easier to ride or walk inside. But outside, the snow buried the horses’ legs.

Chen Xinluo instructed that only fifth-rank or higher experts continue north with the monk, leaving the horses behind.

“Master Jihai left no footprints.”

Cao Xiaohuan compared the deep prints she left to the monk’s invisible steps and was astonished.

Zhou Xun pointed to Ye Qiu’s feet—barely a trace. Now the hierarchy was clear.

After about ten li, passing through a stone arch, they arrived at Baima Temple.

“Ahmitabha.”

The monk clasped hands before a tightly closed temple door.

Fang Pi kicked away snow, revealing a corpse on the ground.

Zhou Jingye gasped, “Head… it’s a monk from Baima Temple!”

Fang Pi, seeing Chen Xinluo look, shrugged. With Sanhe officials present, the Palace Guards wouldn’t intervene.

Chen Xinluo again looked at the silent monk. Seeing no objection, he shouted, “Men, surround the temple!”

“Yes!”

Over a hundred Sanhe men obeyed.

Someone tried to climb the wall but the wooden door collapsed with a crash.

Before them were dozens of bizarrely positioned corpses.

Cao Xiaohuan snorted, “Truly ruthless.”

The monk stepped inside, and Chen Xinluo followed, signaling everyone to encircle the temple.

Ye Qiu suddenly called out, “Ding Lun, come out. Even with wings, you won’t escape today.”

“Haha.”

A laugh echoed as snow slid off the roof.

In the courtyard stood a large man in tattered grey robes.

Everyone realized—it was Ding Lun, Dharma King of Tugu Temple!

Ding Lun said, “I heard that Liang has many great talents. I didn’t believe it… until seeing you two, I am impressed.”

Ye Qiu said calmly, “Since the Dharma King understands the situation, please follow me to meet Lord He. How you are dealt with is up to him.”

“You want to keep me?”

Ding Lun spoke to Ye Qiu but his gaze drifted to the half-closed-eyed monk.

Even speaking, he carried a Grandmaster’s aura. Fang Pi and the others stayed close behind the monk, not daring to retreat.

“Can you still run this time?”

Ye Qiu smiled.

Ding Lun’s eyes instinctively followed Ye Qiu’s gaze—toward a man and woman on the city wall.

The woman wore flowing white, the man held a bamboo staff—they were both Grandmasters.

He knew facing four Grandmasters at once, escape was impossible.

Turning back to Ye Qiu, he said, “It’s said that envoys aren’t harmed in war. I am an envoy from Nangu, yet this is how Liang treats visitors?”

Ye Qiu smiled, “You didn’t even submit your credentials to the Ministry of Rites. How are you an envoy? Since Mr. Ding realizes his mistake, we won’t press it. Come with us.”

Ding Lun, like the monk, clasped his hands. “Then please lead the way.”

Summer—Lin Yi hated the heat.
Winter—Lin Yi hated the cold.

Yet vaguely, he missed Sanhe’s winters.

Sitting in the artificial grotto, hugging the stove, he occasionally nudged the small yellow dog at his feet.

“Lord He,” Jiao Zhong refilled his tea cautiously. “Ding Lun of Nangu waits outside.”

“Ah,” Lin Yi sighed. “The monks of Baima Temple may not be all good, but they are still subjects of Liang. To harm them freely is a grave sin.”

He spoke without fear—he knew highly trained martial artists were practically clairaudient.

Jiao Zhong said solemnly, “All depends on your decision, Lord He.”

Lin Yi said, “Bring in Dharma King Ding Lun.”

Before Jiao Zhong could announce it, Ye Qiu and the monk had already brought Ding Lun to the grotto.

Lin Yi looked at Ding Lun; Ding Lun looked back. Eyes locked, no one spoke.

“Dharma King,” Lin Yi finally lost patience, yawning. “We have no past grievances, and no recent ties. You came all this way empty-handed. I won’t say much—but stealing our supreme techniques and killing my people—isn’t this beneath you?”

Ding Lun smiled. “Lord He is courteous. As an old Liang saying goes, great achievements require overlooking small matters. Why dwell on details?”

Lin Yi sighed. “I said not to worry about details, not to shamelessly kill. Dharma King Ding, I manage state affairs daily—I have no time for chatter. Speak plainly—what brings you to Liang?”

He didn’t believe the Tugu Temple monks would idle around bringing vultures out for fun.

Ding Lun stepped forward. Seeing no resistance from the monk, he sat before Lin Yi.