Chapter 3
"First, he was already stingy and didn't want others to see his wealth.
Second, if he did this, he must have had a purpose, such as hiding something or not wanting others to discover something."
Lu Wuxie analyzed the two possible reasons for Zhao Jun's actions.
After hearing this, Zhong Li quickly dismissed the first possibility. Based on Zhao Jun's past assistance to his first three wives, he was not a particularly stingy person. Therefore, the only conclusion was that Zhao Jun wanted to hide something, but what could it be? Could it be related to the two numbers in that letter?
She couldn't figure it out for the moment, so Zhong Li continued to look through the Xuan paper in her hand.
The third piece of paper was about Liao Chen.
Zhong Li browsed quickly. Before becoming a monk, Liao Chen's name was Sun Meng. More than twenty years ago, he was a subordinate of Ge Meng, skilled in some medical techniques and considered a mediocre doctor among Ge Meng's subordinates, with very little contribution in the army.
In the eighth year of An He, he followed Ge Meng to attack Beidi and was one of the few survivors. After returning, having seen through the battlefield and the slaughter, he became a monk at Lingshan Temple to atone for his sins and became the abbot of Lingshan Temple a few years later.
After reading this, Zhong Li continued to flip forward, only to find that the last piece of paper was blank. She knew this was all the information about Liao Chen.
"How is it?" Lu Wuxie knew she had finished reading and looked at her.
Zhong Li lowered her eyes and read it again, saying, "Master Liao Chen seems to have no problems. Did I overthink it?"
Lu Wuxie shrugged upon hearing this.
Suddenly, Zhong Li's gaze fell upon the year An He eight.
She seemed to have understood something and said, "My lord, if I were to make a bold guess, do you think the 'eight' in that letter might refer to the eighth year of An He?"
Lu Wuxie's previously casual eyes became sharp. He took the Xuan paper from Zhong Li's hand and looked at it for a long time, then stood up and took a small wooden whistle from his embrace, blowing it towards the sky.
As the rhythmic sound spread throughout the surroundings, after about the time it takes to brew a cup of tea, a snow-white pigeon landed on his outstretched arm.
"Carrier pigeon?" Zhong Li raised an eyebrow and asked curiously. In the Nanyue Kingdom, raising carrier pigeons was exceptionally expensive. She wasn't doubting Lu Wuxie's abilities, but she was surprised about who he was signaling.
Lu Wuxie took the Xuan paper about Liao Chen's background from Zhong Li's hand, tore off the part about the eighth year of An He, placed it in the location for secret messages on the pigeon's leg, and quickly released it.
Following his actions, Zhong Li watched the departing white pigeon and asked, "Where is this pigeon flying to?"
Lu Wuxie lowered his gaze, looking at the woman beside him, and said faintly, "Feiyuan Pavilion."
"Feiyuan Pavilion?"
As the two continued on their way, Zhong Li walked beside Lu Wuxie and couldn't help but ask, "From what I understand, Feiyuan Pavilion is a minor thief sect. When did it start investigating information?"
Lu Wuxie clasped his hands behind his back and said as they walked, "That is the common misunderstanding of Feiyuan Pavilion. Feiyuan Pavilion was originally established for collecting information. Perhaps because the disciples of the sect were all nimble as nimble as gentlemen on the roof for the sake of intelligence, they were gossiped about."
Is that really so?
Zhong Li narrowed her eyes in thought. She glanced at Lu Wuxie's composed expression and remembered that he had investigated the information about Zhao Jun and Liao Chen in just one night, which strengthened her trust.
Even so, if Feiyuan Pavilion truly survived by selling information, then regarding the connection between her foster father and Ge Meng's jade pendant, and the reason for her foster father's death, could she also...
"Feiyuan Pavilion's fees are very high," Lu Wuxie said casually, as if he had seen through the woman beside him's thoughts. "Small pieces of information require a hundred taels, and some major pieces of information can cost more than a thousand taels of gold. Are you sure you can afford it?"
Zhong Li, who had been lost in her own thoughts, was jolted back by Lu Wuxie's words, and all her thoughts vanished.
Yes, she had no money. Even the clothes she was wearing were due to someone else's generosity.
She didn't fear hard work to earn money, but in this society, for a woman to make a name for herself, she needed a long drawn-out plan, and she clearly didn't have that much time.
Lu Wuxie glanced at the woman beside him. Normally, she would have responded with a cold face upon hearing this, perhaps even retorted with a few words, or at the very least, secretly rolled her eyes at him. But at this moment...
He didn't know when she had let down her guard around him.
He saw her display a slightly melancholic look, the kind of girlish vulnerability that unintentionally revealed itself, making his heart tremble slightly.
Lu Wuxie's dark eyes were deep. As he pondered what to say, Zhong Li, beside him, spoke first in a lowered voice, "We're here."
He looked up and saw that the small house in the depths of the dense forest was now right before them.
The house was not large, and its appearance resembled that of a commoner's woodshed, or perhaps slightly newer than a woodshed. The only noteworthy and attractive features were the flowers and plants grown around the house, and the colorful butterflies fluttering among them.
"Master Liao Chen should be here," he said, judging that there were no other forks in the road.
Then, Lu Wuxie lifted the hem of his robe and was about to step through the flowers and plants surrounding the house to investigate when his sleeve was suddenly pulled tight. When he came to his senses, Zhong Li was staring intently at the front with a stern face.
He frowned, somewhat bewildered, and turned to look in the direction she was staring.
He saw several butterflies dancing in front of him. Their colors were incredibly vibrant, and their wings seemed to have spots, making them particularly beautiful.
"What..." Lu Wuxie's lips curled up, not understanding, but in the next moment, Zhong Li's words made his smile freeze.
"My lord, don't move, those butterflies are poisonous!" Zhong Li said, quickly taking off her outer garment, shaping it into a net, grabbing Lu Wuxie forcefully, and flinging the net open.
At the same time, she tightened her grip on Lu Wuxie's arm and pulled him towards the house.
In a flash, as the net flew out, those butterflies were caught. However, the situation inside the house that followed stunned both of them.
The entire large room was filled with butterflies, especially in front of the bed where butterflies had gathered to form a human shape, as if a person were lying on the bed.
Damn it.
Zhong Li thought this, and she turned to escape the house, but caught sight of several butterflies disturbed by the net falling into the flower bushes. The area outside the house was already surrounded by many colorful butterflies.
"Come here!" Just as she was distracted and didn't know what to do, Lu Wuxie pulled off his outer garment, grabbed her by the waist, and pulled her into his embrace, shielding her with his chest.
In an instant, Zhong Li felt her body lighten as if she were being lifted by her waist. She heard the sound of wind rushing past her ears, and when she came to her senses, she had already rushed out of the back door of the woodshed, and the two of them rolled out of the flower bushes like balls.
"Don't look!"
She looked up, wanting to investigate, when Lu Wuxie's voice came from above her. At the same time, her head was pushed back down.
Zhong Li heard the resonating sound of flapping wings in her ears. Lu Wuxie's body was like an indestructible fortress, blocking all dangers.
An unknown amount of time passed.
When the vibrations outside gradually subsided, she looked up, wanting to get out for some air, but accidentally bumped into Lu Wuxie, who had also hidden his head and was looking down to avoid the colorful butterflies.
Her small nose brushed against the man's nose, which was slightly glistening with a bit of heat from his quick use of Qinggong.
Her expression froze, and for a moment, she was lost in thought.