Chapter 85: Suspicion

Watching Bai Yichun lead a group of militia away, Xia Xunyan stared at Pear Blossom for a long while. She said nothing, then turned and headed back to the school.

Zeng Guangjin carried his elderly mother back to their room, while the village chief and a few other elders also left.

Pear Blossom returned home and locked herself in her room.

Mrs. Xiong and Dagen, the married couple, stood at the door, looking at each other but not daring to speak. They sighed and walked away.

Pear Blossom’s face burned with pain as she recalled the vicious, snake-like gaze of the leader with the eagle claw. A trace of hostility flickered in her eyes. If it weren’t for these people, would her sister have had to flee for so many years? If they hadn’t pushed so relentlessly, would her sister have abandoned her and disappeared?

Bai, no matter how capable you are, I’ll make sure you can’t leave the borders of Yinzhou!

Since I was able to outsmart the first group, the same will happen to this one—if they come, they won’t leave!

At the same time, the heavy weight that had been hanging over her heart seemed to lift.

Today’s confrontation between the teacher and Bai not only cleared the Zeng family’s name but also spared the villagers. If the teacher hadn’t been there, everyone might have suffered greatly.

Her sister’s disappearance—there’s no doubt the teacher knew something!

And he must have been one of the planners.

She even felt a slight suspicion—was she being played by these two?

It wasn’t exactly a plot, but maybe because of the unknowing actions and genuine feelings she displayed, it was enough to confuse the clever Lord Bai.

Realizing this, a tinge of contradiction flashed through Pear Blossom’s mind. She knew her sister had the upper hand, which made her feel slightly relieved. However, the opponent couldn’t be underestimated, and she still had plenty of worries.

She felt a pang of melancholy. Indeed, she was too naive. She couldn’t be like the teacher, trusted by her sister, able to strategize and share her burdens. Only the powerful could be trusted. Her sister must have pushed her away repeatedly out of fear of involving her. Didn’t she also fear dragging the teacher down?

And there was a hint of resentment toward her sister. She resented that her sister left without a word, abandoning her, and even before that, the two of them had…

She truly was heartless.

But so what? She couldn’t bring herself to stay angry with her.

Her sister must care for her, or she wouldn’t have been willing to share such intimate moments. Her sister was already in her twenties, had kept her body so long, but still chose to give it to her. She couldn’t be that casual!

But once she finds her, she would certainly punish her properly!

Then again, since her sister had arranged everything for the Zeng family and the villagers, treating Fubao as her own and loving the child to the bone, how could she possibly neglect her?

At this thought, Pear Blossom suddenly sat up in bed.

She then realized, the reason she beat Mrs. Zeng into bed probably wasn’t justified!

Panicked, Pear Blossom wanted to confront Mrs. Zeng, but as she reached the door, she stopped.

Wasn’t Mrs. Zeng’s ordeal also part of her sister’s plan?

Her sister must have known how much she loved Fubao. She had Mrs. Zeng sell Fubao—did she really not consider how Pear Blossom would react upon discovering this?

No! Of course, she knew!

Compared to being tortured by the officers from the Zhenfu Division, Mrs. Zeng’s beating was probably much lighter.

Plus, the teacher had mediated, and they barely escaped.

Pear Blossom tried to calm herself, returned to bed, and opened the system to ask, “Has there been any information on my sister and Fubao in the past few days?”

The system coldly responded, “No information has been detected.”

Pear Blossom bit her lip in silence, her eyes growing colder.

After a long while, she said, “I’ve searched all over Jinyang County and still haven’t found any trace of them. They must have left the county. Tomorrow, I will head south to search for my sister.”

The system quickly replied, “Host, since the princess doesn’t want to meet you and has escaped the pursuit of the Zhenfu Division, she is likely safe. Why involve yourself in these troubles? We could go north to complete the mission instead.”

Pear Blossom replied, “No, I’m going to find my sister. The emperor is in the north, and my sister will definitely head south, so I must go south.”

The system continued to resist, but upon seeing her determined expression, it changed its tone. “Host, I believe the princess’s location is also constantly moving. It’s currently out of our detection range, which is why we haven’t located the princess or Fubao nearby. But it hasn’t even been ten days yet. I believe the princess hasn’t gone far. I suggest continuing to search the surrounding area and not heading south.”

Indeed, it still wouldn’t allow her to head south. Pear Blossom sneered inwardly. If the system’s detection range covered the entire world, she wouldn’t doubt that it would tell her the next moment that her sister was in the capital, urging her to go there.

Seeing that Pear Blossom remained silent, the system continued, “Host, regarding the recent matter in Baoxi Village, we successfully eradicated two hundred mountain bandits, removing a threat to the villagers, and rewarded you with twenty points. You haven’t assigned them yet, and you haven’t drawn from the lottery either.”

The points for the Baoxi Village matter had already been credited that evening. However, Pear Blossom was so focused on finding Dong Yun that she hadn’t paid attention to this and hadn’t allocated the points.

Pear Blossom responded with an “Oh,” and assigned 10 points to intelligence, 5 to physique, and the remaining 5 were fixed to reputation.

She knew she needed to grow stronger and improve her physical condition, but given the increasingly cunning and sinister enemies, she had no choice but to prioritize intelligence. Only intelligence could help her discern the truth and find clues in complex situations.

The system reported, “After allocation, the points are as follows: Intelligence 61, Physique 43, Reputation 49, Seeking Pleasure 11, total 164. Please continue to work hard, Host! Now, you may draw from the lottery.”

Pear Blossom wasn’t very interested, but following the principle of “if there’s a deal, take it,” she pressed the lottery button.

With a chime, a small box appeared. She picked it up and looked at it, “Charm Perfume? What is this?”

The system excitedly explained, “Host, this is a perfume that increases charm! Just spray it on yourself and have someone you wish to gain favor with smell it. It will instantly raise that person’s favorability toward you by 80% for a short period! It’s highly efficient!”

However, Pear Blossom replied coolly, “Do you think this is the right time to tell me this?”

The system responded, “I don’t know whether it’s appropriate or not, but I am a system, and I exist for the purpose of achieving my goals. If I cannot complete my goals, I will be erased.”

Pear Blossom retorted, “If you’re erased for failing to complete your goal, I won’t survive if I can’t find my sister. You depend on me to achieve your goals. If I can’t survive, who will help you complete them?”

The system was left speechless by this logic but still replied, “No offense to the Host, but I have an internal task program. I must follow the logic of this program.”

Pear Blossom’s expression darkened, and she stopped responding.

After returning that day, she no longer rushed out impatiently. She stayed at home for the night. Her mother, Mrs. Xiong, was worried about her, so during dinner, she killed a fat chicken, giving her both drumsticks without mentioning Dong Yun or Fubao, and instead talked about trivial matters happening in the village.

She mentioned that since the watchtower was set up, a few groups of refugees had come to the village. The first few had been chased off, but later, three or four groups with more people sneaked into the village at night. The dogs discovered them, and the patrolling villagers quickly rang a bell to gather people, capturing them. They were now locked up and would be put to work in the fields when spring came. Once the work was done, they would be handed over to the authorities.

“I heard that in the neighboring village, a family of five had their throats slit in the middle of the night. By the time they were found, their bodies were cold, and all the food and money had been stolen.”

“Luckily, we set up patrols and a watchtower. Otherwise, it could have been our people who died,” Mrs. Xiong said, covering her chest, still frightened.

Pear Blossom listened to these events, her expression softening slightly. But when she heard about the dog, her sadness returned.

After Dong Yun left, the large black dog she had raised was sent to join the patrol team. Every night, it would patrol the village. According to her mother, it was the large black dog that had first discovered the refugees.

Thinking of the black dog made Pear Blossom think of Dong Yun and Fubao.

But to avoid worrying her parents, she suppressed her sadness and pretended to continue eating as if nothing was wrong.

After dinner, while it was still not completely dark, she took some leftover food from home, cooked some dumplings, and brought them to the village entrance for the dog to eat.

Previously, when she had been visiting Dong Yun’s house daily, the black dog had become very familiar with her. Now, it wagged its tail and came up to her, licking her hand.

The two young men standing guard eyed the dumplings in her bowl and couldn’t help but swallow. However, they didn’t dare say anything. After all, they had previously received silver from her, and the dog was Dong Yun’s, so now that she was searching for people day and night, they dared not speak out.

Moreover, the dog’s nose and ears were far more sensitive than humans. It had discovered the refugees sneaking into the village, and it wasn’t too much to reward it with a few chickens.

After spending some time with the dog, Pear Blossom returned home.

The next morning, she left the village on horseback. The system reminded her that some people were lurking around Daliushu Village, monitoring the villagers’ every move.

Pear Blossom sneered. How could she not know who these people were?

To her surprise, after walking a mile, two people had followed her from a distance.

The people from the Town’s Pacification Office were indeed highly trained. Their disguise and tracking skills were excellent. Without the system, Pear Blossom wouldn’t have even noticed she was being followed.

She didn’t make any rash moves and continued as usual, stopping at every passerby or household along the way to ask if they had seen a green-curtained carriage or a young woman with a beautiful face. Some people said she had gone east, while others shook their heads, saying they hadn’t seen her.

Pear Blossom continued walking east and asking, but after two or three days of no results, she didn’t get discouraged and changed direction to continue her search.

The two guards who had been following her were the first to give up. On the fourth day, they failed to keep up and returned to report to Bai Yichun: “My lord, this young girl doesn’t seem to know anything, nor do we know where she gets the strength from. She’s been searching for people non-stop every day, and even when the horses were tired, she didn’t stop to rest.”

Bai Yichun turned his back and thought for a moment, then said, “This girl has rebellious eyes, and when she looks at us, her hatred is clear. She’s obviously one of the princess’s people, she should have known the princess’s identity by now… though, judging by her behavior that day, she didn’t seem to know where the princess was.”

Although he initially thought the young girl was likely unaware, his suspicious nature made him feel the need to investigate further.

The two guards had been with him for many years and, of course, knew what kind of person their superior was. They said, “This girl is only in her teens. Normally, she wouldn’t be so mature as to deceive even you, my lord. Besides, she had been searching like this even before we arrived.”

“In that case, let’s stop following her for now and focus on keeping an eye on Daliushu Village. Someone must stay on guard at the nearby villages around Baihu Villa as well.” Bai Yichun thought for a while and then added, “However, I still find the situation in Baoxi Village suspicious. Even though bandits are reckless, they wouldn’t dare to attack people from the Zhenfu Division. Go get that little rascal and I’ll interrogate him thoroughly.”

The subordinates quickly complied.

A short while later, the man was brought in.

As soon as he saw Bai Yichun, he knelt down and repeatedly bowed, insisting that he knew nothing.

Bai Yichun couldn’t be bothered with useless words. He raised his chin, and one of the guards stepped forward with a sharp pair of scissors. He grabbed the little rascal’s thumb, seemingly effortlessly, and with a quick press, the thumb was severed.

The little rascal had never expected something so sudden. In agony, he cried out in excruciating pain, “I really don’t know anything! I’m just a refugee from the north. I’ve only been here a few days! Whatever the higher-ups plan, they never tell us. We just follow orders and rush in—”

Seeing the guard coming at him again with the scissors, the little rascal trembled like a leaf in the wind, his lips quivering. “Please, please! I really don’t know anything—”

But his pleas were useless. Soon, his second finger fell to the ground, bloodied.

“—God, please spare me! I only know there’s someone named Xiang Dalang! He’s been favored by the Fourth Leader recently. A few days ago, the Fourth Leader treated him especially well when they planned to rob Baoxi Village. He might be the one who suggested it! That’s all I know—please, I beg you—”

Bai Yichun raised his hand, signaling the guard to pause. “Xiang Dalang? Who is he?”

“—He’s the Fourth Leader’s trusted subordinate—” the little rascal trembled.

Bai Yichun thought for a moment and then asked, “Where does Xiang Dalang usually go for fun?”

The little rascal shivered, “…Xiang Dalang usually goes to the gambling den. That’s all I know.”

“Which gambling den?”

“To answer the lord, Xiang Dalang likes to go to the gambling den in Sitong Town…”

Bai Yichun exchanged a glance with a nearby guard, who immediately left to investigate.

Just then, a report came from the door: “My lord, something’s wrong. Li Xiancheng has been kidnapped—”

“What?” Bai Yichun stood up in disbelief. “Someone dared to kidnap a prisoner from the Northern Zhenfu Division!”

His shock turned into fury: “How dare they? Not even the emperor’s people are off-limits to them! Tell me, how was the prisoner taken?”

The county’s prison had a designated area for the Zhenfu Division, where Li Shubi was held, under the watch of two guards who took shifts.

The Zhenfu Division’s authority was widely recognized, and there had never been an escape or rescue attempt, especially since Li Shubi wasn’t an important figure. Therefore, no extra manpower had been added to the watch.

“According to the jailer, a guard came, claiming to have orders from you to take the prisoner. The jailers didn’t think much of it. But when it was time for the shift change, they discovered that the guard on duty had been killed.”

Bai Yichun’s anger flared, and he slammed the table. “Let’s go to the prison and check.”

When they arrived at the prison, they saw that the guard had a large wound in his neck.

Bai Yichun examined the scene closely and frowned. “This looks like the work of someone familiar, and there’s no sign of fear. It seems like they were unprepared. Could it have been one of our own?”

However, when all the guards were gathered and the jailer was asked to identify the attacker, the jailer denied it.

“The person wasn’t tall, but not as big and imposing as you gentlemen. He smelled nice, like a fragrance. The person was very pleasant, and I felt an inexplicable urge to be close to him,” the jailer said. The young guard was so charming that the jailer had simply trusted him without question.

But after a night had passed, that feeling disappeared, and the jailer felt regretful.

Bai Yichun’s usually sharp eyes now seemed slightly confused.

At that moment, another report came: “My lord, one of the guards we sent to keep an eye on the area around Baihu Villa has returned.”

Bai Yichun immediately called the guard over.

The guard said, “My lord, Li Shubi has been taken to Baihu Villa.”

Bai Yichun’s heart skipped a beat, and then he erupted in anger: “These mountain bandits are truly lawless. They’ve just killed twenty of my guards and a commanding officer, and now they have the audacity to kidnap a prisoner right under my nose! Do they think they can get away with this?”