Beside the Jianyuan Hall, there was a terrace. On the terrace stood a man in white, shaking a folding fan in one hand and stroking a goatee with the other. He had quite a scholarly air about him, though his eyes often gleamed coldly.
This was the chief surveillance demon of Jianyuan Mountain, known to all as the Great Surveillance Chief. He was in charge of mountain observation, scouting, and similar affairs.
After a junior surveillance chief whispered in his ear for a while, the Great Surveillance Chief in white waved his hand to signal him to withdraw, then turned and left himself, entering the Jianyuan Hall.
Inside the hall, two minor demons were helping Hong Teng adjust his wedding garments, commenting on them.
The Great Surveillance Chief who had arrived tilted his head to signal, and the two minor demons quickly withdrew. He then whispered in Hong Teng’s ear, “Among yesterday’s guests, the group who said they were going to open a Wu Family Gold Shop in Luan Province, some of them made contact with people from the Azure Sea Shipping Line. Reports from below say that on the surface it looked like a chance encounter in the morning, but from the manner of their conversation, they should be acquaintances.”
Hong Teng was silent for a moment, then asked, “What is the relationship between the two sides? Are they in the same group?”
Great Surveillance Chief: “Unclear.”
Hong Teng: “Find a Thousand-Li Messenger. Immediately send word to acquaintances in the capital, and have them help investigate whether there is a Wu family in the capital that specifically runs gold shops, whether these are the same people, and whether they have sent people to Luan Province to expand their gold shop business.”
The Great Surveillance Chief hesitated slightly and said, “Great King, having a Thousand-Li Messenger make a special trip to the capital just for this matter, the cost is one thing, but the fastest result would not come back until tomorrow. Forgive this subordinate for speaking frankly, whether they are genuine or fake, as long as they have presented genuine congratulatory gifts it will suffice. We can send them off later, and at worst simply not associate with them again afterward.”
Hong Teng thought for a while, feeling that he should let this fellow know some things, otherwise it would be difficult to get things done. He immediately beckoned, signaling him to lean his ear closer, and whispered softly, “The Third Master of Qianliu Mountain has arrived, bringing an important mission. We have been set up in this marriage affair…”
After a round of whispering, the Great Surveillance Chief listened with a face full of shock, his expression growing increasingly grave.
After informing him of the general reasons, Hong Teng poked his chest with his finger and said in a deep voice, “This time do not fear spending money. Go and handle it immediately. I will say it again, every eye and ear on this mountain must open their eyes wide and prick up their ears for me. Keep every single person firmly watched. Report all news, big or small, to me at any time. There must be no mistakes or omissions, otherwise your life and mine may not be preserved!”
“Yes!” The Great Surveillance Chief cupped his hands and accepted the order. He now knew the gravity of the situation and knew what to do. He dared not slacken in the slightest, and quickly went to make arrangements.
Outside the guest courtyard, You Lingluo strolled along the mountain path accompanied by two guards, leisurely admiring the mountain scenery. She stopped from time to time to bend down and examine the unknown bright wildflowers by the roadside.
At sunrise, Meng Wei appeared and quickly caught up, reaching You Lingluo’s side and saying in a low voice, “Sir, I have inquired. The people who previously made contact with Niu Youqing are from some Wu Family Gold Shop in the capital of Jin Kingdom. They say they are preparing to expand their gold shop business to this area.”
You Lingluo pondered for a while, then said slowly, “Among the notable gold shop businesses in the capital of Jin Kingdom, there is indeed a Wu family. I do not know if it is the same one. If it is, the Wu family stands on the opposite side of Ying Xiaotang. How dare they get involved with A Shiheng? If it is not, which other Wu family has the strength to leave the capital and come to Luan Province’s territory to snatch business?”
Meng Wei: “Perhaps it really was just a chance encounter with a few casual words.”
You Lingluo: “Regardless of whether it is or not, arrange for two people to keep watch.”
“Alright.” Meng Wei responded.
You Lingluo: “What is Niu Youqing doing?”
Meng Wei: “A few of them went together to have breakfast. Our people took the opportunity to inspect the wooden carrying poles the three of them brought. There was indeed something inside. Three swords were hidden, along with some miscellaneous things that we do not know what they are.”
You Lingluo was puzzled. “What do you mean by things you do not know what they are?”
Meng Wei: “We dared not break open the carrying poles, afraid we could not restore them to their original state and be discovered. We could only inspect through the wood. It felt like there were also stick-like things inside, but we do not know what they are.”
You Lingluo stroked his beard and said, “Keep a close watch.”
Jianyuan Mountain’s hospitality had distinctions of high and low, noble and base. Important guests like You Lingluo had high-end dining spots, and the host would also accompany them. As for Yu Qing and these attendants, they were simply provided with a collective dining area.
No one entertained them. Anyway, there was food when they came. After eating they could wipe their mouths and leave, and no one would care.
After the three senior brothers finished eating, Yu Qing gave a look and they all got up to leave together. Some of the labourers who came with them also stood up one after another.
On the way back to the courtyard, Yu Qing found a minor demon standing by the roadside responsible for directing guests and answering questions, and asked, “We have just arrived at Jianyuan Mountain. May we walk around and look around?”
The minor demon looked at their attire and was somewhat unwilling to deal with them in his heart. However, today was the Great King’s joyous day, and those above had also instructed that all who come are guests. So he forced out a slight smile and said, “Walking around and looking is fine, but you must not trespass. Buildings, gates, courtyards, caves, and places with guards must not be entered without permission. Looking at the mountains and waters is no problem.”
In short, apart from some mountain scenery and the places where they ate and stayed, they were not allowed to enter any other places.
For Yu Qing, confirming that he could move around in the mountains and waters was already enough.
He thanked the other party for clearing up his confusion, turned to leave, and then discovered that group of labourers was still following beside them. He called out, “You do not need to keep following us. You also heard, if you want to walk around and look, then go walk around and look. It is rare to come here once, do not miss the opportunity.”
After throwing down these words, he signalled his two senior brothers to hurry, and the three first returned to the courtyard where they were staying. They went into their own room, closed the door, and directly slid the bolt shut.
Seeing his appearance, they knew something was up. Nan Zhu’s throat had not yet recovered, and he asked in a somewhat hoarse low voice, “What is it?”
Yu Qing also said in a low voice, “I estimate that this place is only about fifteen li from the ancient tomb. Even walking the mountain road, one and a half hours would be enough. Anyway, there is nothing to do now, so we might as well go and investigate now.”
Nan Zhu was slightly startled, “Are you serious? Just going straight to the ancient tomb in broad daylight like this?”
Yu Qing pressed down with both hands, “No need to be nervous. Apart from us…”
Before he finished speaking, there came a loud banging on the door from outside, and someone shouted, “Chief, what are you doing? Open the door.”
Yu Qing turned back and shouted loudly, “All of you wait outside for me. The three of us chiefs are discussing matters.”
The people outside shouted again, “What matters need to avoid us? If there is any good thing you do not bring us along, we will not agree.”
Immediately several people followed in clamouring, “Right, we will not agree.”
Yu Qing cursed on the spot, “Discuss your grandfather. Stop making noise, wait outside for a while, it will be done soon.” Then he ignored the clamouring outside and signalled his two senior brothers to continue their own discussion.
The outside noise did not stop. Nan Zhu was somewhat worried, “Let me go explain first.”
Yu Qing waved his hand to stop him, “Do not mind them. If they have the ability to break the door open, let them make noise. It is just right to prevent eavesdroppers.” Then he leaned close to the two and continued the previous topic, “There is nothing to worry about. Going during the day is fine too. Only we know what we came here for this time. When we go out for a stroll, in the eyes of others we are just sightseeing. Besides, climbing mountains and crossing ridges to run that far at night, do you think that looks normal? On the contrary, it would be suspicious.”
The somewhat apprehensive Nan Zhu and Mu Aotie thought about it and agreed, feeling that their worry was indeed somewhat unnecessary.
But Nan Zhu still had to cautiously say, “The information provided by the Watchtower did not say where the entrance to the ancient tomb is. That mountain is so big.”
Yu Qing: “That is why we need to go and find it. The Ministry of Works excavated on a large scale back then, so there must be very obvious traces. Once we go, we will definitely find it.”
Nan Zhu did not have his spirit of being full of courage when inspired. Facing this kind of adventure, he mostly offered cautious, experienced advice. “The information provided by the Watchtower said that evil spirits run rampant inside, and both the Sinan Prefecture and the demon realm paid a huge price. For us to just barge in like this, why do I feel a bit foolish?”
Yu Qing: “There are evil spirits, but they have already been largely cleared out by the Sinan Prefecture and the demon realm. Even if there are some left, there should not be many. Furthermore, according to the accounts of survivors, the strength of those evil spirits was actually not that impressive. Back then, they completely relied on numbers, on strangeness, and on being impossible to guard against to cause huge losses to the outside world.”
The door was being banged on loudly and incessantly by the shouting people outside. Amid the noise, Mu Aotie suddenly spoke, “Do you think the three of us, without understanding the situation, can be stronger than the Sinan Prefecture who entered before? That place is an underground labyrinth. If we trespass in and encounter evil spirits again, I am afraid it will be very difficult to escape.”
He and Nan Zhu did not understand why, before even beginning to scout the situation, he was eager to take action. How could one do things this way? Even he felt uneasy in his heart, thinking it was quite unreliable.
Yu Qing did not waste words. He went to get his carrying pole, found the fitting seam, and with a forceful pull it split open like a peanut, revealing the sword embedded inside, as well as a bundle of incense wrapped in oil paper. He turned back and waved that bundle of incense before his two senior brothers, “Rest assured, I will not gamble with my own life. Without some certainty, I would not have come here. This is our guarantee for entering the tomb this time. What the Sinan Prefecture cannot detect does not mean this sect leader cannot!”
On this point, he was really not boasting. As long as he had a stick of incense in hand, any movement within the ancient tomb’s underground palace could not escape his eyes. If the situation was truly wrong, he also had confidence in discovering it early and running away.
This special ability was his reliance for coming here, but unfortunately it was not easy to tell his two senior brothers openly.
Nan Zhu and Mu Aotie looked at each other. They certainly knew what was in that bundle of oil paper. The three of them bought it together, so how could they not know? It was just ordinary incense. What kind of guarantee could that be? Back then they had wondered what it was bought for. This fellow only said it would be useful for entering the tomb. Now it seemed it really had some great use.
Yu Qing tied the sword at his waist, stuffed that bundle of incense into his sleeve, and urged the two who were still hesitating, “What are you dawdling for? Waiting for them to break down the door? Hurry, get your things and let’s go.”
Nan Zhu pointed at his sword and said, “I say, you are a labourer. Are you just going to walk out with a sword hanging at your waist like this?”
Yu Qing: “Who says labourers cannot carry swords? It is more normal than each person carrying a big log while sightseeing. Come on, hurry up. I will handle everything.”