Chapter 139: My son-in-law will laugh at Xiaodie to death

Without thinking twice, before Xiao Die could disturb Xiao Wan'er, Xie Tingyun and the others in Jiaxing Garden, Chen Yi quickly circled back to the wooden building from the back and headed straight for the side room.

At this moment, Xiaodie at the door did not run directly to Jiaxing Garden, but went to find Pei Guanli.

I figured I should wake her up so we could search together.

While Chen Yi found it slightly amusing, he also felt a touch of warmth in his heart.

This is probably what it feels like to be cared for and appreciated.

It's warm and thoughtful.

Thinking about it, Chen Yi opened the window and pretended to have just woken up, saying, "Xiao Die, what's all the noise about?"

Hearing the sound, Xiaodie, whose hair was disheveled, stopped running and turned around to look behind her:

"Uncle?"

She looked around but couldn't see Chen Yi hiding behind the lantern. A look of anxiety crossed her face, and tears welled in her eyes.

"Young master, where are you? Don't scare Xiaodie."

Chen Yi tapped on the windowsill helplessly, "Here, here."

Xiaodie looked up when she heard the sound, and only after she could see Chen Yi's blurry figure did she smile.

As she smiled, her lips trembled, and tears that had been welling up in her eyes began to flow.

"Son-in-law, where did you go just now?"

"Xiaodie thought, thought that you, young master..."

"You thought I, your son-in-law, had run away again, didn't you?"

Chen Yi chimed in, annoyed, "Where could I possibly run to in this pitch black?"

However, seeing Xiaodie wiping away tears, he could only smile and comfort her:

"Don't just stand there."

"If someone saw you with your hair all disheveled, your clothes in disarray, and you crying your eyes out, they'd think I'd done something to you."

Xiaodie raised her head with teary eyes, then looked down at herself.

Although she was wearing long sleeves, two buttons were not fastened properly, revealing a small patch of skin.

With just one glance, Xiaodie forgot all about crying, lowered her head, covered her chest, and ran back to the wooden house.

As she ran, she stammered, "Young master... Xiaodie, Xiaodie didn't mean it."

The voice was barely audible, with a slight sobbing tone.

If Chen Yi hadn't made some progress in his martial arts cultivation, he probably wouldn't have heard her say that.

"It's getting late, go back to your room and get some sleep."

Chen Yi gave a few instructions, shook his head, and turned to clean up the marks on his body.

At that moment, he glanced in the direction of Jiaxing Garden and saw Xie Tingyun, who had been sent by Tianshan, standing on the wall between Jiaxing Garden and Chunhe Garden, looking this way.

He paused for a moment, then calmly closed the window.

Sure enough, having a martial arts master nearby is inconvenient.

If they make even the slightest noise, the people over there will come to check the situation.

Fortunately, he returned in time tonight, otherwise he might have been exposed.

Just as Chen Yi was quietly changing clothes in his room, Xie Tingyun was already muttering as he returned to Jiaxing Garden.

Startled awake as well, Shen Huatang looked in the direction of Chunhe Garden and asked:

"Senior sister, what's wrong with the young master?"

"It's nothing, the master and servant don't know what's wrong with them, they're just playing hide-and-seek in the house late at night."

"What?"

Shen Huatang was taken aback, and then blurted out the local dialect of Shuzhou.

Xie Tingyun ignored her, yawned, and walked towards the wooden building. "I'm leaving the rest of the night to you. I'm going to sleep."

"..."

As Shen Huatang watched her walk away, she was still puzzled.

Are the son-in-law and Xiaodie playing hide-and-seek?

It's so dark, how can we find anyone?

Fortunately, Chen Yi didn't hear the conversation between the two female disciples, otherwise he would have let them try.

He took off his black clothes, used the water in the basin to clean his wounds, and then put on a long robe.

He glanced at the bloodstained clothes, then temporarily put them away along with the folding gun, planning to bury them in the bamboo grove the next morning.

"I'll need to prepare a few more sets of night clothes from now on."

Chen Yi muttered to himself before opening the light screen to check his haul.

After he left Cui Qingwu and the other person, the opportunity had already arrived, but he was seriously injured at that time, so he went to Baicaotang without looking at it for long.

[Witness the Shu Prefecture Criminal Investigation Department searching for the "murderer" outside the Huixian Tower in the West Market. Reward: Embroidered Spring Blade Technique (Mystic Rank), Luck +38.]

[Comment: The man arrived, his voice was heard, and the scene was witnessed. He slew the "murderer," thwarted the hidden guards' plan, and caused the Chief Justice's mission to fail; his performance was commendable.]

"Shang Jia?"

Chen Yi pursed his lips; he finally understood the reason behind these comments.

This is not just about letting him sit back, watch the show, or listen in; it's about hoping he'll participate in it in any way he can.

It could be to cause destruction, to show off one's power, or to directly or indirectly promote something.

He couldn't possibly remain indifferent.

Otherwise, not only will the reward be reduced, but he will also be given a lazy or sluggish evaluation.

Conversely, depending on what he does, he will be given additional opportunities and rewards.

Just like the marriage of Li Huaigu and Yun Xiang, who were both of the same Xuan-level mid-grade, the reward of opportunity points was significantly different this time.

Chen Yi glanced at the novel "Brotherhood of Blades" in his mind and then temporarily put it aside.

He now has four martial arts styles: body, footwork, fist, and spear. It's not impossible for him to learn a sword technique as well, but it wouldn't significantly improve his skills.

It would be better to focus on improving one's cultivation level first.

If he were at the sixth rank tonight, even without using the Divine Intoxication, Cui Qingwu would still be no match for him.

However, the thought of Cui Qingwu couldn't help but pique his curiosity.

"I really can't think of any reason why she would become a hidden guard."

"Could it be that she, like Xiao Dongchen, also wants to become the head of the Cui family?"

"I wonder if Chen Yunfan is aware of this. I suppose... he's probably still in the dark."

Chen Yi shook his head, deciding not to think about it anymore.

Then he sat cross-legged on the bed, preparing to practice the Four Symbols Technique.

Just then, after midnight—

[Daily Intelligence - Low-Grade Yellow: At 1:00 AM, outside the Spring Rain Pavilion in the brothel alley, a courtesan fell into the water.]

A quick glance.

Chen Yi directly circulated his true essence and began cultivating along the Four Symbols Technique.

A low-grade Yellow rank isn't worth him running out to watch a play in the middle of the night.

Moreover, it's the brothel alley in the south of the city.

Besides, Xiaodie was still downstairs worrying about her disheveled appearance earlier.

You can still faintly hear her huddled in the blankets, scurrying about.

"What should we do? Won't the son-in-law laugh at Xiaodie to death?"

"Yeah, yeah..."

...

The courtyard of the Xiao family home is a quiet and peaceful residence.

Inside the quiet house, only lanterns with a red glow hung, illuminating the inner room.

The old patriarch of the Xiao family sat neatly dressed in a grand chair.

He leaned on a cane made of rosewood, his slightly cloudy eyes calmly gazing at the moonlight outside the hall.

In the dim light, you can see another figure dressed in black leaning against a pillar on one side.

There was a long silence.

The old man spoke up, saying, "What happened tonight was not the work of the Liu family."

The person in the shadows asked with slight surprise, "My lord, if it wasn't the Liu family who did it, then who else could it be?"

"Other powerful families and clans in Shu Prefecture? Most of them with this kind of strength are waiting for the Liu family's reaction."

"Even the Tang family has changed because of the accident three years ago. Tang Zixin now only guards the Provincial Surveillance Commission and no longer participates in other struggles."

"Or the Xie family?"

"But Xie Ying is in the same boat as the Xiao family. Whether he can hold onto his position as commander remains to be seen..."

Before he could finish speaking, the old man tapped the ground with his cane.

The sound vanished instantly.

The old man glanced at him and said, "No matter who it is, their goal is to stir up trouble between the Xiao and Liu families."

The man in black hesitated and asked, "Was Liu Jing's death also due to this?"

The old man paused for a moment, then said, "Whether it's important or not is no longer relevant."

"Liu Hong has already arranged for a councilor from the Provincial Administration Commission to go to the three towns to collect summer grain taxes, in order to show his position."

At this point, the old man coughed and continued, "His actions are quite reasonable."

"As a member of a collateral branch of the Liu family, he has to consider the attitude of the main family to some extent."

The man in black was aware of all this, and after thinking for a moment, he cautiously asked, "How does Your Excellency plan to deal with this? Do you need my help...?"

The old man understood what he meant and raised his hand to interrupt, saying, "It hasn't come to that point yet."

The man in black reluctantly shut his mouth.

He pondered for a moment.

The old man stood up, leaning on his cane, and instructed, "We must find a way to save face for the Liu family in this matter."

"Find someone unrelated to the Xiao family to take the blame temporarily."

The man in black seemed to breathe a sigh of relief and nodded in agreement.

"Also, have your men keep an eye out for anyone from the Cui family coming."

"At this critical juncture, Cui Qingwu's appearance in Shuzhou cannot possibly be solely for the sake of the Chen family's young master."

“Cui Mao is now the head of the Nine Ministers, the ‘Tianqing’, who is in charge of the Ministry of Personnel. He has retainers all over the world and is no ordinary person.”

"His thoughts and ideas often contain profound meanings, and cannot be taken lightly."

The man in black nodded. "I will immediately arrange for my guards to keep a close eye on her."

Just as he was about to leave, he paused and asked, "My lord, should I investigate the people who helped me tonight?"

The old man turned and walked towards a side room, waving his hand wearily: "It's good to check."

"Now that my Xiao family is in dire straits, it is not easy for people in Shu Prefecture to risk their lives to help us."

"After you find him, make a note of him for now. Once everything has calmed down, my Xiao family will reward you handsomely."

"Yes, my lord!"

(End of this chapter)