Chapter 179 – The Disappearance of Lu Xiaofeng! Turning the Tables!
"According to the intel from those old colleagues, that guy was still splurging wildly at Xianyu Pavilion just a few days ago—he even slept with their top courtesan."
"So why is it that the moment we arrive, he's vanished?"
Li Gexiao turned Xianyu Pavilion upside down, but found no trace of Lu Xiaofeng.
Unwilling to give up, he questioned the madam of the house, who informed him that Lu Xiaofeng had left with the constables a few days prior and hadn't been seen since.
"Constables from the yamen?"
Chu Yang shook his head in exasperation. "What law did that bastard break this time? Let me be clear—if he's thrown in prison, I'm not bailing him out. Let him reflect on his shameful behavior in there. Damn disgrace."
Li Gexiao nodded in agreement.
The madam, with her keen instinct for character, picked up on Chu Yang's noble aura. She thought to herself, If only I could win over such a refined gentleman.
She giggled softly and said, "Young Master, I believe you may be mistaken. That Lord Lu was invited by the constables—it seems they were asking for his help with something important."
"A slick-talking drunk like him? What help could he possibly offer?" Chu Yang scoffed in disdain.
"Don't say that, Young Master. That man's no slouch when it comes to solving cases. He's clever and sharp-witted—not a whit worse than the Four Great Constables of the Six Gates. It's not unusual for the yamen to seek his help," Li Gexiao said with a grin.
"So, we're supposed to make a trip to the yamen now?" Chu Yang waved his hand lazily. "You go ask around. I'll rest here for a bit."
"No problem. You take your ease—I'll be right back," Li Gexiao responded, then hurried off.
The madam promptly arranged a top-tier room for Chu Yang. He lay half-reclined on the bed, and after a while, a group of courtesans entered the room, instruments in hand, playing a melodious tune.
At the same time, Li Gexiao arrived at the Jinling Prefecture Yamen—and witnessed an eerie sight.
In broad daylight, the yamen gates were shut tight.
Puzzled, he stepped forward and knocked. After quite a while with no response, he had no choice but to beat the grievance drum. With a creak, the door opened just a sliver, and a cautious face peeked out from behind.
"Who are you? Why strike the grievance drum?"
"I'm here looking for someone. Since no one answered, I had to resort to the drum."
"Who are you looking for?"
"Lu Xiaofeng."
At the mention of the name, the person behind the door let out a shriek and ran toward the inner courtyard, shouting as he went, "Master! Someone's asking for Lord Lu!"
Li Gexiao felt a sinking sensation—something about all this felt very wrong.
Thud thud thud.
Footsteps pounded urgently.
Suddenly, the main gates flew open. A middle-aged man in official robes stood there, flanked by a squad of constables.
This man exuded a commanding presence; one look at Li Gexiao and he said gravely, "I am the magistrate of Jinling, surname Xu. May I ask your name, and what is your relation to Lord Lu?"
Li Gexiao replied, "Lu Xiaofeng is a friend of mine. Magistrate Xu, speak freely."
Magistrate Xu sighed. "To be frank, Lord Lu has been missing for several days. I've searched high and low, but there's not the faintest clue."
Li Gexiao frowned. "Missing? That guy comes and goes like the wind. Couldn't he have just left Jinling? Why assume he's missing?"
Magistrate Xu forced a bitter smile. "Because along with him, the Seventh Young Master of the Flower Clan, Hua Manlou, has also disappeared. Young Master Hua has yet to return, and the Flower Clan has been searching for him for days."
"Hua Manlou?" Li Gexiao muttered. "What's he doing mixed up with Lu Xiaofeng?"
Magistrate Xu seemed hesitant to explain.
Li Gexiao pulled a badge from his waist and handed it over. Magistrate Xu glanced at it, and his expression froze—as if struck by lightning. Beads of cold sweat rolled down his pallid face.
"The Embroidered Uniform Guard badge... My Lord, you're with the Embroidered Uniform Guard?" Magistrate Xu looked utterly crushed, as if he'd seen his family's doom flash before his eyes.
"Cut the nonsense. Just tell me why Lu Xiaofeng vanished," Li Gexiao said coldly.
"Lord Lu disappeared because he was helping me investigate a case."
"What case?"
"It's a long story. About a month ago, something strange started happening in Jinling."
"A number of people began suffering unexplained losses of vital essence—elders as old as eighty, children as young as three. Men and women alike."
"At first, I suspected demons or some great monster, so I urgently reported the matter to the Divine Marquis' Manor. But the constables they dispatched found nothing unusual and left empty-handed."
"No sooner had they left than the strange incidents resumed. Around that time, Lord Lu arrived. The martial world says he's a brilliant man, so I asked him to look into the case."
"He quickly found a lead. The source of the illness was the banknotes from Datong Bank."
"Those notes contained a bizarre demonic energy that drained people's vitality."
"The case even alarmed the Flower Clan, who hold stakes in Datong Bank. Seventh Young Master Hua Manlou came to investigate himself. If they couldn't prove their innocence, the entire clan could be branded as colluding with demons—resulting in extermination by clan law!"
After hearing the full story, Li Gexiao said, "So Lu Xiaofeng and Hua Manlou teamed up to investigate the demonic influence behind the case, but before they got to the bottom of it, they both vanished?"
Magistrate Xu nodded grimly. If they never turned up again, he'd face charges of dereliction—and likely fall under the Flower Clan's wrath.
Li Gexiao asked, "Do you know where they were last seen?"
Magistrate Xu shook his head. "I don't, but the manager of Datong Bank, Qian Laoda, might know."
Seeing how little Magistrate Xu actually knew, Li Gexiao left with a parting remark: "Act wisely."
The moment the words Embroidered Uniform Guard left his ears, Magistrate Xu slumped to the ground, all strength drained from his limbs.
Back at Xianyu Pavilion, the madam led Li Gexiao to Chu Yang's room. He hesitated at the door. What if the prince is in the middle of something? Interrupting now might be fatal…
A moment later, Chu Yang's voice came from inside.
"If you've got something to say, get in here already. Where's Lu Xiaofeng? Why didn't he come back with you?"
Li Gexiao pushed the door open. Chu Yang was lying alone on the bed, while several courtesans quietly packed up their instruments and discreetly slipped out.
"I thought Your Highness was otherwise occupied." Li Gexiao gave a mischievous smile.
"Occupied my ass. Courtesans here perform, not sell. You think I'm like that four-eyebrowed rascal—pouncing on anything that moves?" Chu Yang shot back with a sneer.
"Ahem… Your Highness, I've got bad news." Li Gexiao's tone turned serious. "It looks like Lu Xiaofeng's gotten himself into real trouble."
Chu Yang responded nonchalantly, "When is that guy not in trouble?"
"This time might be different." Li Gexiao shook his head and recounted everything that had happened in Jinling.
Chu Yang shot to his feet. "Then what are we waiting for? Let's go see this Qian Laoda. I've got a feeling that guy's hiding something."
"If we're too late, that four-eyebrowed rascal might really be a goner."
In the original storyline, the manager of Datong Bank, Qian Laoda, was a notorious turncoat. Now that demons were involved, things were clearly spiraling out of control—Chu Yang feared there might be even greater dangers ahead.
The two rushed to Datong Bank. After a short wait, a servant led them into the main hall to meet Qian Laoda.
The man was rotund, decked in gaudy jewels, radiating nouveau riche energy. His footsteps were unsteady, his face sickly pale, and he showed clear signs of severe vitality loss.
Li Gexiao initially assumed he was just another victim, but remembering Chu Yang's suspicion, he quickly sensed something was off.
Chu Yang gave a faint smile, as though amused by some hidden discovery.
Qian Laoda had clearly been informed that Li Gexiao was with the Embroidered Uniform Guard, so he treated them with the utmost deference, answering every question thoroughly.
After all, no one dared impersonate an Embroidered Uniform Guard—doing so meant instant death or worse.
Qian Laoda explained in detail his dealings with Lu Xiaofeng, mentioning a particularly strange place.
"Lord Lu had made good progress tracing the demonic energy tied to the banknotes. He found that it originated from a place called the Tower of Euphoria."
"That tower is shrouded in mystery. No one knows its exact location. Ordinary people can't find a way in. So Lord Lu asked a friend for help."
"That friend was Sikong Zhaixing, the so-called King of Thieves. He's a master of the unconventional. He took Lord Lu and Young Master Hua with him, and they all vanished. Whether they ever reached the tower, I can't say."
"I, like you, haven't heard a word from them since."
Li Gexiao frowned. "Did he tell you how to get to this Tower of Euphoria?"
Qian Laoda replied, "Outside the city lies a mass grave. There are many coffins there. Just climb into any one of them and wait till midnight—someone will carry you to the tower."
Li Gexiao's investigative instinct flared. The more Qian Laoda talked, the more suspicious he became. For someone who knew so much, why hadn't he told the magistrate? Magistrate Xu knew practically nothing.
Li Gexiao stared Qian Laoda down, making the man increasingly nervous—he couldn't even meet his gaze.
"Well then, we won't trouble you any further…"
Li Gexiao cupped his hands in farewell, but Chu Yang pressed a hand on his shoulder to stop him.
"The sun's already set. Why don't we stay at Datong Bank for a bit longer? Manager Qian, would you be so kind as to take us to the mass grave yourself?"
"We're new to Jinling and don't want to get lost or miss the right time."
Chu Yang flashed a gentle smile.
Qian Laoda quickly nodded. "Of course, of course. My oversight entirely. Please, this way. Let's have a meal and rest first."
They were led to a guest room, and before long, Qian Laoda had a table full of exquisite food and drink brought in.
As always, Li Gexiao sampled it first to check for poison. Only after confirming it was safe did he let Chu Yang eat.
"No need to worry about poison. He's not an idiot. If we dropped dead here, how would he explain that to the magistrate?"
Li Gexiao didn't argue. Habitually cautious, he wasn't about to change overnight. Once the food was down, he asked curiously, "Your Highness, what exactly is wrong with Qian Laoda?"
Chu Yang replied, "He has demonic energy on him."
Li Gexiao was shocked. "Why didn't I sense anything?"
Chu Yang explained, "It's not on the surface—it seeps from his bones. Very faint. That's why you missed it."
Li Gexiao said gravely, "He's a demon?"
Chu Yang shook his head. "Strictly speaking, not yet. But he's on the verge of becoming one—just a step away."
Li Gexiao stood abruptly, drawing his blade in righteous fury. "A traitor to humanity like that—I'll cut him down myself!"
Chu Yang pressed him back down. "If you kill him, who'll take us to the Tower of Euphoria? And if we don't go there, who's going to save that four-eyebrowed bastard?"
Li Gexiao let out a long sigh, sheathed his blade, and sat down. He grabbed the wine jug and took a deep swig. Though the Divine Constabulary wasn't specialized in demon hunting, he still hoped he could slay more demons and monsters, doing some good for the country and its people.
Chu Yang tapped the table lightly with his fingers and said in a low voice, "The reason the Tower of Euphoria is so hard to find is probably because it's shielded by a naturally formed array. If it were a regular formation, brute force might do the trick. But the real problem is if it's an illusion array—we might not even be able to find the entrance."
"To find the Tower of Euphoria now, we have to enter the array using their method and break it from the inside."
Chu Yang reminded him, "When we get to the mass grave and lie down in the coffins, make sure that wolfdog follows us closely."
Li Gexiao nodded. "I get it. I've already had Xiaofeng wait outside the city."
Chu Yang paused. "Who's Xiaofeng?"
Li Gexiao scratched his head awkwardly. "That's the name I gave the big wolfdog. Xiaofeng sounds impressive, doesn't it? Doesn't it sound cool?"
Chu Yang shook his head without hesitation. "No. You'd be better off calling it Wangcai. A proper, decent dog should be named Wangcai."
"Wangcai…" Li Gexiao opened his mouth to object, but held back. He thought, How is that a better name than Xiaofeng? Besides, it's a wolf, not a dog…
"You don't think Wangcai sounds good?" Chu Yang narrowed his eyes at him.
"It sounds great!" Li Gexiao jolted upright. "To have the prince personally name it—that's Wangcai's blessing!"
Chu Yang said coldly, "You'd better not lose it. Or I'll stew it when I get back!"
…
Night fell. The moon was bright, and stars were sparse.
There came a knock at the door.
It was Boss Qian's voice from outside.
"Sirs, it's time to depart."
Depart?
Chu Yang and Li Gexiao exchanged a look.
"That bastard really has a way with words."
"Maybe he's just saying what he really feels inside?"
Chu Yang didn't mind and pushed the door open to step outside. Li Gexiao, on the other hand, let loose a barrage of curses at Boss Qian the moment he saw him.
"I have a clumsy tongue! I beg you sirs to forgive me!" Boss Qian dropped to his knees in panic and started kowtowing repeatedly, looking absolutely terrified of the Embroidered Guards.
A slight smirk tugged at the corner of Chu Yang's mouth.
This guy really could act.
It was likely that from the moment Chu Yang and Li Gexiao stepped into the money house, he'd been hoping they'd go to the Tower of Euphoria and never come back.
"Hurry up and take us there. Don't delay official business!"
Chu Yang casually hauled him up from the ground and secretly marked him with a spell.
Boss Qian nodded eagerly and led Chu Yang and Li Gexiao outside the money house, where a horse-drawn carriage was already waiting.
Under cover of night, the carriage rolled out.
Due to the recent string of strange incidents in Jinling City, the city gates were heavily guarded. No one was allowed to leave after curfew. But Boss Qian simply got off the carriage and said a few words to the gate guards, and they let them through without issue.
When Boss Qian climbed back into the carriage, Chu Yang was watching him with an amused expression.
Boss Qian smiled and said, "General Qi is currently leading the Qi family army on a campaign outside the city, so the gate is being temporarily overseen by the county magistrate."