TGCFNM -Chapter 500 First Victory

The next day in the capital, news suddenly spread that someone had launched a night raid on the Wan residence.

However, there were no casualties at the Wan residence, and the person who carried out the raid was not there to kill anyone—they were delivering evidence.

Because of this, the newly appointed Prefect Chu even made a special trip to the prefecture office to investigate a few things, and then immediately went to Lord Lu’s residence.

Lord Lu considered the matter highly unusual, so he went straight to the palace to report it to the emperor.

Soon after, an imperial edict was issued, posting all available information about Bai Zhuoxing, Gui Wushuang, and the various gu insects.

From that point on, everyone knew what gu insects were and who was raising them.

Taking advantage of the situation, Chu Ling reopened the previously interrupted Flower House case, emphasizing that the beauty gu within the courtesans was the real culprit behind their deaths. At this point, the suicide of Xuanyuan Hong due to guilt was brought up again, suggesting that the Xuanyuan family might not be entirely innocent.

Additionally, because the gu insects had caused the death of Empress Hexiao, the Xuanyuan family’s collusion with the Flower House also involved gu insects. As a result, the Empress Dowager had to avoid any conflict of interest and no longer presided over the case.

Chu Ling’s first battle was a complete victory.

Wan Residence

Chu Ling stretched her sore, stiff neck and looked up at the beams of the room. “Even Tianxia Zhi can’t find Gui Wushuang?”

“Just like he vanished into thin air,” Wan Sanjin shrugged. “Maybe he really is hiding in the palace, personally protected by the Empress Dowager.”

Chu Ling sat up straighter and looked at Wan Sanjin. “I think what you just said is true.”

Su He quietly added, “Then it probably is true.”

Yuan Luo sighed. How are we supposed to find him now?

At that moment, Uncle Hong walked into the front hall carrying an invitation. Seeing the solemn expressions on everyone’s faces, he asked curiously, “Why the long faces? Didn’t you just accomplish something big?”

Chu Ling turned her head, eyes falling on the invitation in Uncle Hong’s hand. “Uncle Hong, what’s this?”

“An invitation,” Uncle Hong said, handing it over with a strange look. “Young Master wants you to attend without fail.”

Chu Ling opened it and glanced at it, her expression puzzled. “A viewing party?”

Wan Sanjin froze. “A viewing party? Where?”

“It says it’s in the outskirts of the capital. Someone will come to fetch you,” Chu Ling said, then looked at Uncle Hong.

What did this invitation actually mean?

Wan Sanjin spoke up, a bit strangely. “They call it a viewing party, but it’s really just a way to secretly trade some mysterious goods.”

Chu Ling understood why Wan Sanjin looked so odd, and she herself felt something was off—especially since Young Master Wan insisted they attend.

Uncle Hong looked at them. “You can all go, but remember to wear masks and hide your identities.”

Chu Ling thought for a moment, then nodded, clutching the invitation.

That night, Chu Ling, Wan Sanjin, and Yuan Luo dressed in black and wore Zhu Yuanbao masks. They left through the Wan residence’s back gate and climbed into a carriage.

The carriage was driven by Wan Xing’s usual coachman. One reason was that he knew the route well, and another was that he was familiar with the Wan family, making the journey safer.

Inside the carriage, Yuan Luo removed his mask and examined the items by the carriage’s oil lamp, but he still couldn’t tell where the goods had come from.

Wan Sanjin poked Chu Ling. “I brought plenty of silver today.”

Chu Ling nodded. “I’ve brought enough poison today.”

Yuan Luo suddenly looked up at Chu Ling. “Sir, why are you bringing poison? Aren’t we just going to take a look?”

Wan Sanjin shook his head. “You don’t understand, Yuan Luo. This is called being prepared. Besides, this poison was specially concocted by Su He—it won’t kill anyone.”

Yuan Luo frowned. “What does it matter whether it kills someone or not? Shouldn’t the problem be that you’re bringing poison in the first place?”

Chu Ling looked at him and explained, “Since Young Master Wan insists that we must go, it means there will definitely be something at the appraisal gathering that I need. If we can take it smoothly, that’s even better. If not, we’ll just have to poison them.”

Wan Sanjin added, “Anyway, none of the people inside have clean backgrounds.”

Yuan Luo slowly put on his mask and fell completely silent.

Amid Yuan Luo’s silence, the carriage moved smoothly out of the capital. They rode at full speed until midway, when someone met them and they changed direction, continuing at a brisk pace.

Yuan Luo’s ears twitched as he glanced at Chu Ling and Wan Sanjin. “Quite a few of them have decent martial skills.”

Chu Ling patted his pocket. Good thing I brought poison.

Yuan Luo felt a headache coming on. He wasn’t sure if the rules in the capital were the same as in their Jianghu. If they poisoned people on such a large scale, wouldn’t they be hunted down? Or is it that Chu Ling has an official post, so he’s not afraid of being pursued?

Wan Sanjin carefully lifted a corner of the curtain and looked outside. A carriage was passing right in front of him, and he recognized the driver immediately.

He quickly lowered the curtain, looked at Chu Ling, and whispered, “Fu.”

Chu Ling was momentarily stunned. What is Fu Qingyu doing here?

Wan Sanjin adjusted his mask and said to Yuan Luo, “We’ll follow behind you when the time comes.”

Yuan Luo nodded in agreement.

Soon, the carriage stopped. Yuan Luo got out first, followed by Chu Ling and Wan Sanjin. Once they arrived, the driver went to rest on his own. A man wearing a strange old-man mask reached out to Yuan Luo.

Yuan Luo tilted his chin back slightly. Wan Sanjin immediately handed over the invitation. The man checked it and then took it, giving Yuan Luo a jade token in exchange.

Yuan Luo clipped the token to his waist and followed the man forward. Once they passed through a door, they found themselves in a downward tunnel.

Chu Ling casually observed the surroundings, memorized them, and followed the man down the tunnel.

After a while, the man left them, signaling that they could move freely, and walked away.

Yuan Luo lowered his voice. “I’ve memorized everything.”

He had memorized the route. If the master gets chased after poisoning someone, he would do his best to lead the two of them to safety.

Wan Sanjin nodded slightly. After checking the nearby area, he grabbed someone’s hand and, on high alert, moved toward a “stall.”

An old man was guarding the stall, which displayed a palm-sized golden Maitreya Buddha. The craftsmanship was exquisite, and the price was reasonable. Wan Sanjin began bargaining.

Chu Ling noticed sensitively that the faint gazes that had been watching them disappeared once Wan Sanjin started haggling.

Bai Su whispered, “Once you buy this, you can wander around freely. I’ll watch from beside you.”

Chu Ling signaled that Wan Sanjin had nearly settled, and Wan Sanjin “reluctantly” took it.

The old man guarding the stall beamed, his mood improving. “Young master, I still have some fine items. Would you like to take a look?”

Wan Sanjin thought it wasn’t necessary; he didn’t bring much money.

But when the old man produced a pair of cups, Wan Sanjin froze. These look exactly like the phoenix-wing cups his elder brother had described!

“Top-grade phoenix-wing cups, only eighteen thousand taels! Barter is possible,” the old man said with a squinting smile, introducing them.