Chapter 27 Otter Sacrifice Fish - He's Not Cheng Xi
The people standing in the hall were all dressed in dark blue robes, just like the followers who had marched in a grand procession down the street before.
However, Su Heng in the center was different from before. He had removed his gold jewelry and changed his clothes, now dressed in all black.
The fabric, visible from afar, was clearly of extraordinary quality, resembling raven feathers or flowing mist, which further accentuated the man's jade-like face and imposing presence, giving him an extreme sense of oppression.
The room was completely silent, as if no one dared to utter a sound if the person didn't speak.
Su Heng picked up the cup in front of him, but did not drink from it; he only swirled it gently.
He gazed at the liquid in the glass and smiled faintly, "Now that you've arrived, why not show yourself?"
"Sir? What sir?"
Her?
Jiang Geyun hesitated for a moment, unsure whether she should show up.
Before she could make a decision, the brown-clad accountant noticed her first. He stepped from behind the counter to stand in front of her in the shadows and whispered, "The princess is not here. We earnestly hope for your assistance, sir."
It seems that "adult" really is what she's being addressed as.
Although she didn't know what had happened, the atmosphere was so heavy that she felt the Crown Prince was there to interrogate her for no reason...
It must be related to the Xuandujian, and further, it may be related to the seizure of the power of Zhengyi?
Since that's the case, she decided—
She was already prepared to do hard labor for Xuan Dujian, so what else could she do?
Jiang Geyun remained calm as she followed the accountant into the main hall.
Each person dressed in dark blue had an extremely cold and solemn expression, like several sharpened knives displayed in the hall, their cold light gleaming, making the air almost freeze.
There were clearly so many people in the hall, yet it was so quiet; it was truly astonishing.
With a soft "thud," Su Heng put down the tea set in his hands, crossed his arms naturally, and looked at Jiang Geyun with a deep smile.
After an unbearable silence, he asked, "Is my elder sister not here?"
I don't know who to ask this question to.
However, his gaze remained firmly fixed on Jiang Geyun.
The accountant, quite self-aware, bowed respectfully and said in a steady voice, "Why does Your Highness ask such a question? Yinguang Tower is my own property. How would I know where the Princess is?"
That's not a good thing to say.
“Why is the shopkeeper giving such an irrelevant answer?” Su Heng smiled, staring intently at Jiang Geyun, and said, “My elder sister often comes here to relax, but I have been searching for her everywhere and have not been able to find her, hence this question.”
He grasped the problem.
From this perspective, the accountant has lost this round.
Jiang Geyun lowered her head, avoiding Su Heng's gaze, and pondered in her heart.
The accountant remained composed, bowed again, and said, "This humble subject has misunderstood, Your Highness. As for the princess's whereabouts, Lord Jiang knows better than this humble subject. Her Highness came to Yinguang Tower with Lord Jiang."
Huh? Who?
You didn't mention that just now?
Jiang Geyun felt a lump in her throat. After a moment, she looked up at Su Heng.
Seeing her look up, Su Heng smiled at her.
In an instant, the lobby seemed to brighten considerably.
This person had an exceptionally handsome face, as if bathed in the light of heaven, with a golden and jade-like appearance that was truly captivating. Jiang Geyun, upon seeing him, wanted to lower her head again.
She forced herself to look at him.
Su Heng's gaze swept over her neck, lightly tapping her waist, before he suddenly asked, "This gentleman looks unfamiliar. Why is there no jade token from the Xuandu Supervisor?"
Haha, there's nothing strange about it. Actually, she just started working today and hasn't even had a chance to get her employee badge yet, Your Highness...
Suppressing her inner complaints, Jiang Geyun had no choice but to bite the bullet and answer, "The princess does not wish to make a fuss and ordered me to come here in ordinary clothes."
In the end, he didn't become an official, but instead started doing manual labor.
Su Heng then asked, "Is that so? May I ask which department within the Xuandu Bureau you serve, sir?"
...Is there a telephone connection?
Zhengyi, Zhengyi, are you there?
The Xuandu Bureau is extremely mysterious. Even though the original owner was a native, she had no relevant information in her memory. There was no way she could make up something about it!
While Jiang Geyun was feeling sleepy and her head was throbbing, and her eyes were starting to feel dry, her mind was very active, with one thought after another coming to mind.
Despite her extremely weakened mental state, Jiang Geyun calmly met Su Heng's gaze. No matter what she was thinking, she still appeared composed and steady.
Although she didn't look anywhere else, Jiang Geyun could feel the accountant beside her eager to pass on a message, and she became even more nervous because of it.
Really, don't rush.
She's really good at connecting.
[System,] Jiang Geyun smiled at Su Heng and said, [Speak.]
[The Investigation Bureau, the Suppression Bureau, the Prophecy Bureau—choose one, host! Even the current main villain can't grasp the situation within the Xuan Du Bureau.]
Since Su Heng was involved, the system was much more excited than Jiang Geyun. It was waiting for Jiang Geyun to ask so it could urge her to work harder on the strategy.
For example: [Since you're already here, host, why don't you check Su Heng's favorability rating towards you? Look, host, you're really good-looking, your impression score should be pretty high, right?]
After a laugh, Jiang Geyun calmly replied, "This humble official comes from the Department of Suppressing Strange Things."
Su Heng clapped his hands, "Just as I thought. It's normal that I haven't met you, sir, since the people from the Zhenyi Division are often out on missions. Since it's the Zhenyi Division, things will be much easier."
What's wrong?
What's easy to do?
How is it so easy to handle?
Even though Jiang Geyun had experienced many crises before, the situation she was facing was one of the most urgent.
The system was still focused on "host" and "favorability," but Jiang Geyun had no interest in anything else. Her palms were sweating, and the stings made the wound on her left hand itch slightly.
Jiang Geyun wasn't naturally prone to sweating, but ever since she transmigrated into the book, she'd been so frightened by this group of people that she'd break out in a cold sweat every now and then, even if she didn't sweat physically, her heart would often tremble with fear.
The sweat stung her wound, and she instinctively pulled out her left hand, which was wrapped tightly behind her back. She clasped her hands together for a while, using the pain from pressing to calm herself down.
When Su Heng saw her hand wrapped in white cloth, his eyes darkened. His already obsidian-like black pupils now resembled cold stars washed in a deep pool.
With his sharp edge softened slightly, Su Heng explained before Jiang Geyun could reply: "The Tu Lan delegation met with misfortune. Apart from the accompanying military advisor, all 143 members were killed, and the Tu Lan heir is missing."
Jiang Geyun was shocked and exclaimed, "Such a thing has happened!"
She was actually...very shocked.
Because of her past experiences, she almost blurted out, "I didn't do it."
One hundred and forty-three people, and it's an embassy; a conspiracy of this scale feels like something I can't afford to get involved in.
Jiang Geyun, feigning surprise, turned to look at the brown-clad accountant beside her. The accountant seemed not to have expected her to look at him, and after a moment of shock, he too was filled with astonishment.
For a moment, Jiang Geyun was filled with doubts.
Shock usually only appears for a moment when you hear the news. If it lasts too long or appears too late, it is very likely that you are faking it.
Judging from the accountant's reaction, either he didn't care about the lives of these 143 people, or he had expected this "accident".
If the accountant had anticipated this, then Zhengyi would not have been unaware of it.
Thinking about it this way, why did Zhengyi assign Jiang Geyun the task of making the Mirage Compass for the mission?
To be honest, she didn't even know what a mirage compass was.
An ominous premonition gripped her heart, causing Jiang Geyun's eyelids to twitch. She sighed inwardly, wondering what kind of suffering she was about to endure.
After so many things happening in a row, I thought I could finally get a good night's sleep tonight.
Judging by this trend, I'm afraid I won't be able to sleep again. My head hurts so much.
Seeing that those present already knew the information they needed to know, Su Heng said, "This matter is of great importance. I came to find my elder sister so that the Xuandu Supervisor could assist me. In the past, such matters were handled by the Zhenyi Division."
Jiang Geyun bowed and said, "Your Highness's request is my duty, but this matter..."
She hesitated for a moment, wondering whether to ask the Xuandu Supervisor or Zhengyi... Although what she really wanted to say was: It's time to sleep now.
At Jiang Geyun's pause, Su Heng opportunely said, "It requires the Empress's approval, is that right?"
Jiang Geyun was unsure whether she should reply with "yes".
The main villain in the book is not the tyrannical type who is capricious and kills indiscriminately.
Even if someone is as ruthless and terrifying as a demon in secret, at least they aren't on the surface.
On the surface, he pretended to be upright, gentle and approachable, just like... well, just like Cheng Xi.
But Cheng Xi is much gentler, with a gentle appearance and a gentle temperament. Even though she is outstanding in appearance, she is easily overlooked and faded in a crowd.
Interacting with Cheng Xi was like retrieving a piece of warm jade from a crowd; he seemed never to get angry, which Jiang Geyun liked very much.
As for Su Heng, he could no longer be ignored by intentionally or unintentionally reducing his presence... He was simply too conspicuous.
Even though his voice was polite throughout, Jiang Geyun, who knew his background, still couldn't help feeling nervous.
She really didn't want to get involved in anything strange. She was busy doing manual labor and researching how to dismantle the system.
The villain's persona was very solid. Seeing that Jiang Geyun's attitude was different, he softened his voice and said, "My lord, there is no need to worry. This matter can be discussed at a later time. I will personally visit Xuandu Supervisor tomorrow."
Jiang Geyun was slightly surprised.
Su Heng came on strong, looking like he wouldn't give an inch, so why did he take a step back before she even said anything?
Is public image really that important? There aren't any members of the public around right now, are there?
There's no time to worry about that now; at least she got to sleep tonight.
[How thoughtful!] The system said, [Let's not delay, let's check the favorability rating!]
Jiang Geyun sighed inwardly, "[...Investigate.]"
The system is delighted. [Instruction received. The system will now begin data collection. The first query will take longer; please be patient.]
Su Heng stood up and casually waved to the people standing in the hall.
He said nothing, but the group of people in dark blue clothes immediately began to move in a specific order, leaving the Yinguang Tower one by one.
Su Heng looked at Jiang Geyun and said with a smile, "My lord, see you tomorrow."
Why should we meet again tomorrow? He's going to the Xuandu Commandery headquarters tomorrow; there are plenty of people who can handle this, right? Jiang Geyun thought to herself.
However, seeing everyone leave one by one, Jiang Geyun remembered the initial reason she went downstairs—the thing in her room that looked like a corpse.
Should we talk to the main villain about this before he leaves?
After all, the main villain has so many people with him, and he seems to be able to handle all kinds of unexpected events and is very safe. If anything really happens, Jiang Geyun can easily hand it over to him to deal with.
Almost all the people in the lobby have disappeared.
Su Heng, however, did not leave.
He stopped and looked back at Jiang Geyun.
Jiang Geyun gave a polite smile and remained silent.
She thought, forget it, he's not Cheng Xi, he can't possibly stand by her side no matter what.
What if the villain turns on her the moment he tells her about this, thinks she's highly suspicious, and arrests her?
Su Heng paused for a long time, but Jiang Geyun remained silent.
He gave Jiang Geyun a deep look, and the oppressive feeling that he had deliberately suppressed during their previous conversation suddenly reappeared, even intensifying.
Jiang Geyun was shocked.
She forced a smile and said, "Is there anything else Your Highness requires?"
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Author's Note: I arrived just in time, and I'm still grateful to every adult for reading every single day. [Loud-eared rabbit head]
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