When Zhongsun Mou took the mirror and turned it over and over to inspect it, the fluid from the egg had smeared onto his hands, marking him as the snail-toad's target.
Naturally, so had He Lingchuan, but the moment he left the pagoda, he had promptly washed both his hands and the mirror thoroughly before vanishing in his skiff.
Which went to show: washing one's hands diligently afterward was of the utmost importance.
As an extra safeguard, He Lingchuan had already made contact with Mai Xuewen yesterday.
He had produced the snail-toad egg right in front of Mai Xuewen's puppet, and in doing so, both sides confirmed one thing:
He Lingchuan confirmed that Mai Xuewen and the snail-toad were still in Baishaqu.
While Mai Xuewen confirmed that He Lingchuan knew full well what would happen if the snail-toad egg were crushed, for this special envoy had certainly interrogated Wan Song.
Thus, if the snail-toad stirred this morning, Mai Xuewen would almost certainly guess who had summoned it.
Under his deliberate control, the snail-toad would not devour the wrong person.
One could say that from the moment the two met last night, Zhongsun Mou's fate had essentially been sealed.
He Lingchuan was more than happy to trade that one man's life to seize back the initiative in this case. After spending so much time by He Chunhua's side, he had long understood a fundamental truth:
Evidence meant for others to see had to be fair, honorable, and able to withstand scrutiny.
Yet the process and means of obtaining that evidence did not necessarily have to be.
As for venting a little personal spite by killing Zhongsun Mou, he naturally would never admit to that.
Eldest Young Master He was broad-minded and magnanimous; how could he possibly hold such petty grudges?
The only complication here was that he might fall under suspicion as well. After all, Zhongsun Mou's death worked in his favor.
Yet He Lingchuan possessed an alibi—and his witnesses even included Fan Sheng, deputy commander of the Tongxin Guard.
That was the strongest possible human testimony.
Furthermore, luring Fan Sheng to the Lotus Palace had served a second purpose: to draw away a powerhouse whose combat prowess was off the charts, thereby increasing the snail-toad's chances of success.
Otherwise, with Fan Sheng present, could the snail-toad have escaped so smoothly? He Lingchuan could not say for sure, but having Fan Sheng away from the scene was always a good thing.
After all, the snail-toad had suffered serious blasts at He Lingchuan's hands not long ago; only a few days had passed, and its injuries were most likely far from healed.
Hence, the greatest difficulty of this plan lay with Fan Sheng.
He Lingchuan had to survive Fan Sheng's axe first; otherwise, everything that followed would come to naught.
For that brief clash of a dozen-odd breaths, he had truly racked his brains, simulating it over and over for two days and two nights.
Fan Sheng possessed immense martial prowess, reinforced by origin power. The key to He Lingchuan's battle this time was to avoid facing him head-on as much as possible.
Those three spiders earlier had been Bloodfang Guardians summoned using the blood essence bestowed by Zhu Erniang, combining attack, defense, and healing.
In that environment, they were perfect cannon-fodder meat shields, drawing Fan Sheng's attention and pinning him down.
What was more, He Lingchuan had quietly learned from Xiang Yan that Fan Sheng was apparently not much of a swimmer. Two years ago, when a woman fell into the water, Fan Sheng had dived in to rescue her, but upon reaching the shore, he had spent ages coughing up water, half-drowned.
Thus, the Lotus Palace was indeed an excellent location to face Fan Sheng.
He was confident that the moment Fan Sheng leaped down from Chaohu Pagoda to pursue him, the man had never calculated so far ahead.
He Lingchuan had even prepared several contingency plans and held a few backup moves in reserve. Yet Fan Sheng had not deployed a single magic artifact from start to finish. Once bound by the spiderwebs, he could not use one even if he wanted to. Whom could he blame for that?
Roughly two quarters of an hour later, there came a knock at the door.
"Carriages are lining up at the back gate of the Cen residence, and crates are being piled up," Commander Lu said, cutting straight to the chase upon arrival. "Cen Boqing is trying to flee!"
"Can't you stop him?"
"I've already sent men to surround the place, but Cen Boqing led over a dozen guards charging through on horseback, drawing sabers and brandishing whips. My men don't dare make a move."
After all, the other man was an official of Lingxu City. If any mishap occurred during a confrontation, no common soldier of Chiyan Kingdom would dare bear the responsibility.
While He Lingchuan was pondering this, a rustling flutter sounded at the windowsill.
The two turned around to see a goshawk landing. Its beak was agape as it panted heavily; evidently, it had flown at breakneck speed just now.
"He's here! He's here!" it told He Lingchuan. "He's crossed the center of the avenue. Go receive him at once!"
"He arrived just in time! Why bother receiving him!" The weight lifted from He Lingchuan's heart at last, and he laughed heartily. "Tell him to go straight to the back gate of the Cen residence and meet me there!"
"..." The goshawk couldn't help rolling its eyes. Let alone catching its breath, it hadn't even had a drop of water to drink, and now it had to rush off again to deliver a message.
The soldiers brought by Commander Lu had surrounded the Cen residence until not even water could seep through.
Cen Boqing was leading his men in the front to clear a path. The Chiyan soldiers did not dare strike, leaving them no choice but to form a human wall to block them.
The guards and servants of the Cen residence shoved frantically, landing underhanded blows whenever they found an opening, and were finally on the verge of squeezing through the human wall.
As long as he left Baishaqu, no one would be able to hold him accountable afterward.
Cen Boqing sneered inwardly, already scheming how to settle scores with these people once he returned to Lingxu City. The man named He certainly could not be spared, nor could the tactless Commander Lu or the double-dealing Magistrate Tian.
Right at that moment, over a hundred riders burst from the street corner, galloping down the avenue straight toward the Cen residence.
They shouted and clamored as they charged, acting as though no one else existed.
Commoners who failed to dodge in time were knocked aside by invisible blasts of qi; the unlucky ones slammed face-first into walls.
Even the wealthy young masters from the families of high officials in Lingxu City rarely put on such an ostentatious, arrogant display in Baishaqu.
The one riding at the very front laughed heartily, his voice carrying far ahead before he even arrived:
"Cen Boqing, where do you think you're going!"
Cen Boqing caught sight of him, and in his sheer shock, his heart sank directly to the bottom.
Fu Shanyue, the newly elevated Crown Prince of Chiyan Kingdom!
Shouldn't he be rallying support in the Chiyan royal capital? Why had he suddenly appeared in Baishaqu?
Yet this question lasted only a fleeting moment. The instant he saw He Xiao galloping right alongside Fu Shanyue, he understood everything.
Disaster.
Fu Shanyue reined in his mount, and the beast reared up on its hind legs.
"You've owed me a round of drinks since last year. Now that I've come knocking to claim it, are you trying to welch on your debt?"
Cen Boqing said with a darkened face, "I have urgent business requiring my return to Lingxu City. Why don't you come with me to drink at Baiyuxuan?" Baiyuxuan was a renowned grand restaurant in Lingxu City.
"What urgent business is so pressing that you can't even stay through the Lotus Fragrance Festival and must rush back overnight?" Fu Shanyue asked with a smile, though a cold glint flashed in his eyes. "Could it be that you're rushing to destroy evidence and silence witnesses?"
"Mind your words, Your Highness!" Cen Boqing barked. "These subordinates of yours have done everything to sling mud at me, yet they haven't produced a shred of hard evidence."
"Can't produce hard evidence?" That was precisely the phrase Fu Shanyue had been waiting for. "Men, bring him up!"
His men immediately shoved a man forward. He had a square face, thick eyebrows, and appeared to be in his early thirties.
Bound securely with ropes, he was covered in bruises and swollen around the face, clearly having suffered quite a beating, his expression somewhat timid and cowering.
"Who is this?" Cen Boqing did not recognize him.
Commander Lu gave the man a shove. "He asked you a question. Speak!"
"This... this humble one..."
Commander Lu delivered a backhanded slap to his forehead. "Louder! Didn't you eat lunch?"
"Yes, yes... This humble one is named Pang Denian. I have served under Wu Kai at the Cen residence for seven years." The man kept his head down, not daring to look at Cen Boqing, and shouted at the top of his lungs, "Ten days ago, Wu Kai ordered this humble one to take a concocted confession to the county prison to collude with Fu Songhua, forcing him to confess that he was the mastermind behind the courier case!"
The commotion here at the Cen residence was so immense that it had long drawn crowds of passersby and residents. With Pang Denian's shout, the onlookers erupted in an instant buzz of excitement.
Was that true? Could it really be?
Because both the Lingxu City Inspector and the Crown Prince's special envoy were investigating cases in Baishaqu, the eastern imperial eagle courier case had long been the talk of the town, spawning countless versions of conspiracy theories.
And now the Crown Prince had arrived in person, while a servant of the Cen residence pointed the finger at his own master as the mastermind?
Oho, all the big shots were gathered. Now that was a massive, juicy scandal!
Pang Denian continued shouting, "When the Crown Prince's special envoy came to investigate the case..."
Furious to the point of laughing, Cen Boqing retorted, "Spouting slander! When has my household ever had such filth!"
Commander Lu jabbed Pang Denian with an elbow, and the man immediately cried out again, "I bribed the jailer, Pi Linhai, with fifteen taels of silver, and he let me inside! Later, when the Crown Prince's special envoy came to investigate, Pi Linhai vanished!"
Fu Shanyue cast a sidelong glance at Cen Boqing. "Once the bribed jailer died, you thought this trail had gone cold, and Wu Kai sent Pang Denian off to the Hou Family Estate southwest of Baishaqu to lie low."
Cen Boqing said coldly, "You drag out some random peasant and dare slander me like this? Ask around Baishaqu! Who could ever claim this man has any connection to my household!"
"Where is Wu Kai, then? Bring him out to confront him," Fu Shanyue said with a smile. "Four years ago, in the dead of winter, his grandson fell into the water. Pang Denian jumped into the hole in the ice to pull his grandson out, and Wu Kai gave him two small gold bars afterward. That tale spread through Pang Denian's hometown of Baixiang long ago. You can ask any household there and they'll know it."
Cen Boqing kept a stiff, impassive face. "I have never heard of such a thing. What rumors the people of Baixiang choose to spread is beyond my control."
He Lingchuan suddenly spoke up. "Where on earth is Wu Kai?"
He swept his gaze over the scene of confrontation, finding no sign of Wu Kai. This man was Cen Boqing's confidant, always at his side. How could he be missing at such a crucial moment?
Moreover, whenever Fu Shanyue brought up Wu Kai, Cen Boqing either talked around the subject or avoided answering altogether.
Cen Boqing sneered. "A mere elderly servant, nothing more. There is no need for Your Highness to trouble yourself over him."
Fu Shanyue cleared his throat. "Now that Lord Zhongsun has also been abducted, the two cases have merged into one major, critical, high-priority case! This Crown Prince shall personally oversee the investigation to ensure the truth comes to light. I trust Lord Cen will cooperate fully. Men! Help Lord Cen carry his bedding and luggage back inside his residence!"
He was firmly refusing to let Cen Boqing leave. In the span of their conversation, troop after troop of fully armed soldiers had rushed over, encircling the Cen residence three layers deep.
Magistrate Tian arrived as well. When Fu Shanyue crooked a finger, he hurried forward, nodding repeatedly as he listened to instructions.
With the Crown Prince present, what reservations could the soldiers and officers possibly have left? They stepped forward to lead away the carriages and haul the crates, a world apart from their earlier hesitation.
Those who had suffered bumps and bruises while forming the human wall earlier even took the opportunity to surreptitiously stomp on their opponents' feet a couple of times to vent their anger.
Anyone could see that the Crown Prince was dead set on taking down the Cen family this time.
His face ashen, Cen Boqing flicked his sleeves to return to the residence. In the end, he had been one step too slow and failed to escape Baishaqu.
Commander Lu, Magistrate Tian, and the others had feared the fallout and could not stop him, but Fu Shanyue was different. This fellow was a notorious wild card who cared for neither gods nor emperors; if anyone dared stand in his way, he would beat them down first and ask questions later.
At that moment, Magistrate Tian stepped forward half a pace, coughed lightly, and said, "Apprehend Wu Kai and take him into custody to await trial."
Chapter 512