I was forced to cultivate immortality when I just wanted to lie down

Chapter 215 Hongmen Banquet

On Flower and Bird Street, Xu Qing had just arrived at the door of Master Feng's house when he saw that the gate of the mansion was wide open and the inside was a mess. There was not a single living person, not even a live chicken.

To prevent thieves from breaking in, Xu Qing closed the door and climbed over the wall out of Master Feng's house.

After leaving the flower and bird street, Xu Qing went straight to the brokerage firm, where this time a staff member greeted him.

"Where are you gentlemen in charge?"

"Manager Xu is late. The gentlemen were just taken away by the authorities around noon."

Not far from the brokerage firm was the Tai'an Escort Agency. Xu Qing turned the corner, and there were only some odd-job workers still inside.

Upon inquiry, it was discovered that the young master Xie Yunyan and more than a dozen well-known bodyguards in the martial arts world had been captured by the Jingzhao Division.

Xu Qing asked again where exactly they had been captured, but no one knew.

You know what a mess this is. The main culprit got away scot-free, but after the Tianjin gang was wiped out, a bunch of people who joined in the commotion were used as examples and interrogated.

The law doesn't punish the masses, so Xu Qing wasn't worried about the safety of these old acquaintances. The Tianjin gang used to be arrogant and domineering, and they had offended quite a few people. Back then, those who "kicked him when he was down" and "added fuel to the fire" weren't just Master Feng and his group.

However, just to be on the safe side, Xu Qing took off his cloth shoes and threw them on the ground.

The "shoe-throwing method" is most effective when the shoes have been worn for a long time and the smell is stronger. Xu Qing has been busy lately and hasn't changed his shoes for several days, so now is the perfect time to put them to use!
Avoiding crowds, Xu Qing walked as if on flat ground. When he encountered a high wall, he used his gecko-like wall-climbing skills to walk straight over it. When he encountered a pond or puddle, he jumped lightly, covering a distance of several meters in just one or two steps.

Meanwhile, on the vast Baisha River, several large cargo ships escorted a magnificent warship with its banners flying high, anchored on the river.

Inside the large ship, Liao Jinzhong, the eunuch, stood at the porthole, admiring the vast, misty scenery in the distance.

Behind Liao Jinzhong was a senior eunuch, around forty years old, wearing a nickel-blue robe embroidered with peacock patterns. Judging from his attire alone, he must have been at least a fourth-rank official.

"The supervisor summoned all these people for interrogation. Isn't he afraid of alerting the enemy?"

“Eunuch Xu, our family is different from ordinary people. Steward Feng is timid, and working for him has made you cautious and timid. But our family is different.”

Liao Jinzhong brushed aside a strand of white hair at his temple, squinted at the passing ships outside the window, and said, "Beijing and Tianjin are quite close, but the local customs and traditions are quite different here. I'm not familiar with this place. If I were to act like an ordinary person, hesitating before doing anything, how long would it take to get the information I want?"

"What does the Supervisor mean?"

Liao Jinzhong chuckled and said, "Since we're not familiar with Tianjin, let's find someone we know to come over. I don't believe that with so many of them, they wouldn't know a thing or two."

"Master, some of these people have connections with influential figures in the capital. If we offend them too much, it might be difficult to resolve the situation."

"What's there to be afraid of!" Liao Jinzhong glanced at Eunuch Xu, then tossed her cloak back behind her, strode back into the boat, sat in the head seat, and even her every move exuded a certain heroic spirit.

"This world still belongs to the Zhao family, and Tianjin still belongs to the Emperor. We act on behalf of Heaven; who dares to disobey us?"

After saying that, Liao Jinzhong snorted coldly and continued, "Eunuch Xu, you don't need to keep an eye on us. Just because Steward Feng is gone, does that mean our adopted son died in vain?"

Two eunuchs together can't make a man, but they care for their sons who aren't their own sons more than their own.

Upon hearing this, Eunuch Xu immediately smiled and said with a hint of flattery, "The Grand Eunuch has not forgotten the old agreement and has acted swiftly and decisively. Our young Xu is truly convinced from the bottom of his heart."

Over here, two flat-chested old ladies were talking when a group of red-clad imperial guards, armed with knives and swords, escorted dozens of people from the red horse boat, using portable planks to board the multi-storied ship.

Liao Jinzhong sat upright in the cabin, holding the documents presented by the official in charge of seals.

The document, consisting of only two pages, detailed information about brokerage firms, escort agencies, and shipping companies in Linjiang County, as well as major market lords and local bullies.

The stories inside are a jumbled mess, including but not limited to: Xie Yunyan, the young master of the Tai'an Escort Agency, whose father was murdered in a revenge killing; Xie Yunyan using his charm to seduce the enemy's concubine, poisoning the enemy's house, killing the enemy, and then being forced to return to Tianjin; there are also the private matters of the brokers' owners, such as where they live, how many villas they own, and how many concubines they keep; and the fact that the young wife of Feng Erye, the head of the flower and bird market who has connections in both Beijing and Tianjin, is actually his adopted daughter from a few years ago.
There were also cases of ship captains buying 'idle' warships at low prices from the Tianjin Naval Base and converting them for commercial use.

Liao Jinzhong's eyes twitched the whole way.

How could such a small county like Linjiang have so many talented people?
And that's not even counting the recent incident involving two officials surnamed Wu who concealed their identities and reported to the imperial court.

"People say a good place is a place with outstanding people and beautiful scenery, but this place in Tianjin," Liao Jinzhong said, "is not only eerie, but also just eerie."

"It's not a good place to stay. Once we've finished our business, it's best to return to the capital as soon as possible."

Beside him, Zheng Chunbao, Liao Jinzhong's confidant and the head of the Mirror Bureau, asked with concern, "Has the Chief Supervisor discovered anything?"

Liao Jinzhong shook his head: "I just feel that this place seems to clash with our family's horoscope. A few days ago, that young man surnamed Shang almost ruined my plans. Ever since then, I've been feeling uneasy. Today, this feeling has become even stronger."

"Your intuition is usually accurate. If you are truly uneasy, then let Xiao Bao stay here and watch over things. You should return to the capital to oversee things first."

"If I had to say, Xiao Bao understands our family's thoughts best."

As he spoke, Liao Jinzhong reached out and took Zheng Chunbao's hand, patting it gently, his appreciation evident in his words.

Zheng Chunbao immediately knelt on one knee, like a lamb kneeling to suckle, staring at Liao Jinzhong with eager eyes. To avoid offending him, he glanced at him and then quickly lowered his head.

"Serving the Chief Supervisor is Xiao Bao's greatest blessing. In Xiao Bao's heart, anything the Chief Supervisor assigns is of paramount importance."

"Stop talking nonsense! Slap him!"

Without the slightest hesitation, Zheng Chunbao raised his hand and slapped himself, then slapped himself a second time, then a third time.
He won't stop unless the supervisor tells him to.

However, just as Zheng Chunbao was about to deliver the third slap, Liao Jinzhong raised his hand to stop him: "This is the last time. From now on, you must learn well from us and not end up like Xiao Wu, who didn't even understand how he died."

"Thank you for your guidance, Master. I will always keep it in mind and never forget it!"

Upon hearing Liao Jinzhong group him together with his former godson Lou Xiaowu, Zheng Chunbao was overjoyed, completely disregarding his swollen cheeks.

When Master Feng and the others boarded the ship, they happened to hear a slapping sound coming from the cabin. They looked at each other, completely unaware of what had happened.

Before long, a eunuch with swollen cheeks and handprints on them came out of the cabin. The eunuch had one face in front of people and another behind their backs. Now that he was in front of people, he immediately looked down on them. Xie Yunyan couldn't help but laugh, and Zheng Chunbao took him into the cabin as an example.

Once inside the cabin, before Xie Yunyan could even take in his surroundings, he saw an old eunuch smiling and beckoning to him from in front of the octagonal table.

Young Master Xie chuckled lightly and sat down leisurely across the table.

However, the old eunuch then slowly began to recount how he seduced the women of his enemies and how he used their beauty to poison them.

Xie Yunyan's smile faded, and Liao Jinzhong spoke again: "Young Master, you don't want the family business passed down from your ancestors to be ruined in your hands, do you?"

"What on earth do you want to do?"

"Do you think our young master doesn't know what we're planning to do?" Liao Jinzhong, who was over fifty years old and looked Xie Yunyan up and down, making Xie Yunyan feel uneasy.

"Father-in-law, please don't joke with me. Besides escorting goods, I have no other skills!" "That's not entirely true." Liao Jinzhong's smile faded, and he suddenly asked, "The person who wiped out the Tianjin Gang and killed the Celestial Master's Ancestral Child should be familiar to you, young master, right?"

Xie Yunyan frowned and said, "The Jinmen Gang ruined my business, and I have a grudge against them, but I don't know the people who destroyed Jinmen. Perhaps the people in the government know more about this than I do. Besides, when my brothers and I arrived, the Jinmen Gang only had its leader left, and even that leader himself didn't know which enemy had destroyed his business."

Liao Jinzhong used both soft and hard tactics, but Xie Yunyan's answers were watertight.

After escorting Young Master Xie out of the cabin, Liao Jinzhong asked Eunuch Xu, who had arrived late, "In your opinion, is what he said true?"

“It doesn’t seem like a lie. I just asked the other镖师 (bodyguards/escorts) at the Tai’an镖行 (escort agency), and their accounts were all consistent with what I’ve heard.”

Liao Jinzhong waved his hand, and soon the brokers had all been questioned.

Next up was Boss Kong from the Tianjin shipping company. He was even more shrewd. As soon as he got on the boat, before Eunuch Liao could even speak, he handed over a stack of silver notes.

“Father-in-law, I am a rough man and may not be meticulous in my work. Please be understanding.”

"Of course, of course." Not one to hit a smiling face, Liao Jinzhong's attitude towards Boss Kong was noticeably better than towards the previous ones: "Boss Kong, let me ask you, back in the Tianjin gang..."

Kong Laoda explained in detail: "I paid special attention to this matter at the time. The person who destroyed the Tianjin Gang was no ordinary person. Even in the martial arts world, he would be an unparalleled master. But I heard from the survivors on the ship that this person knew evil magic and seemed to be a sorcerer!"

When Liao Jinzhong heard Kong Laoda mention the paper doll rumor again, his mind stirred slightly.

Just as Feng Dehai said, it's impossible for two unknown masters to emerge from the same place. If they do, it's most likely the work of the same person.

It should be noted that when Lou Xiaowu died, his body was taken away by the paper figure, leaving not even a hair behind.

"This person is so cautious that once he makes a move, he will definitely destroy the evidence. If that's the case, it won't be an easy task to find him."

Once again arriving late, Eunuch Xu spoke up: "Reporting to the Chief Supervisor, there is still Master Feng from the Flower and Bird Market outside. His real name is Feng Junbao. He was originally from the capital, but his family was later afflicted by evil spirits, so he abandoned his family business and fled to another place to seek refuge. Later, with the guidance of a shaman, he raised a rooster and became a shaman. After that, he settled in Tianjin."

"This Master Feng travels between Beijing and Tianjin all year round, and he is said to be the most well-informed about shamans. If the Grand Supervisor puts some effort into getting information from him, he might be able to find out something."

"A horse-riding immortal?"

"They're just crazy old women and men who raise little ghosts and snakes. Anyone who wants to live a long life wouldn't learn this kind of life-shortening method."

"So these are the kinds of low-class things."

“Your Excellency should not underestimate them. These people are eccentric, and even the little chickens and snakes they carry seem to have some significance. In my humble opinion, we should ask someone capable from the department to come forward and question them.”

Liao Jinzhong scoffed upon hearing this, "My family entered the palace at the age of seven. After only two months of learning etiquette, we were spotted by the Minister of the Imperial Household Department and began to practice martial arts. Now we have reached the Grandmaster level, and it is not impossible for us to break through to the Celestial level in a few years."

"Do you think our family would be afraid of some underhanded or shady methods?"

Despite what was said, when Master Feng entered, there were still several strangely dressed people in front of Liao Jinzhong.

A middle-aged Taoist priest holding a precious mirror was looking at him back and forth.

A strange person wearing pheasant feathers on his head, silver and gold ornaments wrapped around his body, and dressed in bright red and green clothes.

Another type is the robes of a military officer in the imperial court, with the words "Catch the Demon" engraved on his waist knife.

On the other hand, besides Feng Erye and his eldest uncle, all that remained were Ji Ruinian, who had been unjustly brought along, and his own little fairy, Xiao Liuxian.

The little white snake in Ji Ruinian's sleeve flicked its tongue anxiously, while his uncle, whose bloodline was pure Yang, stood on end in the cage, looking like he was reacting to the fact that the Yang energy in this place was too weak and the Yin energy was too strong.

Liao Jinzhong waved his hand, and immediately the ship's cooks and servants brought over delicacies. Liao Gonggong seemed to treat Master Feng and his companion as less than human beings. He smiled and looked at the Taoist priest from the Heavenly Master's Mansion, saying, "Master Heyi, there are countless merchants coming and going from this riverside port, from all over the country. You can find all kinds of food here. The people living here are more accustomed to enjoying life than we are living in the palace."

"Look at the lychee, the leaves are still green, and so are the fragrant fruit and loquat. What kind of fish is this again?"

"Replying to Your Excellency, it is shad and tiger paw fish. In previous years, the amount of fish sent as tribute to the palace was limited, so it is quite rare."

Li He, standing to the side, remained unmoved, keeping his eyes downcast until Liao Jinzhong finished speaking. Only then did he speak, saying, "In my early years, I traveled the world and have tasted all these things. I have even seen and heard about the things from Nancuo and Beiyan. There is no need for you to yield, sir."

Liao Jinzhong was not surprised by the question. Instead, he asked with a smile, "Has the Taoist priest ever eaten snake liver and phoenix marrow at a royal banquet?"

No, not at all.

Liao Jinzhong's smile widened, and he shifted his focus, seizing the opportunity to say, "This snake liver and phoenix marrow is made from a male snake from Yishan and a freshly killed male pheasant. There's no male pheasant on this boat today, but there is a rooster. As for the male snake..."

Ji Ruinian hurriedly rolled up his sleeves. Seeing his good brother like this, Feng Erye followed suit and stuffed the birdcage that his uncle kept under his robe.

"."

Liao Jinzhong waved his hand, and Zheng Chunbao led his men like bandits passing through, taking the uncle, along with the valuable gold cage and the stiff, tongue-out little white snake pretending to be dead, to the kitchen.

After doing all this, Liao Jinzhong ordered his men to escort the two men to the dining table and make them sit down.

“Father-in-law, I’ve always treated my uncle like my own son. You can’t do this. If you really want to eat chicken, I’ll have someone find the best one right away.”

On the side, Ji Ruinian reasoned with him, saying that what Eunuch Liao did was wrong. To put it bluntly, it was a violation of the law; to put it mildly, it damaged the face of the court and was extremely impolite; and to put it in a neutral way, it was also immoral.

Faced with the two men's earnest pleas, Liao Jinzhong calmly said, "We don't necessarily have to eat the snake liver and phoenix marrow today, but before that, I need to ask you something."

Liao Jinzhong was asking about Lou Xiaowu, Long Engui, and the murder of the Celestial Master's Mansion's spiritual child.

Upon hearing this, Li Heyi, who came from the Celestial Master's Mansion, couldn't help but become alert.

"Feng Junbao, you say you raise the white chicken like your own son and want to see it live, but doesn't our godson deserve to live too?"

Master Feng was sweating profusely. He had always been a coward since childhood, otherwise he would not have abandoned his family and fled to another place to escape his enemies. Now, after hearing Liao Jinzhong's words, Master Feng wanted to be more assertive and even risk his life to plead for his uncle.

But when he thought about how he had just started a family and his wife was pregnant, he dared not offend the old eunuch in front of him.

Ji Ruinian was a man of principle. Seeing that Liao Jinzhong was unmoved, he began to argue his case.

"Chief Supervisor Liao, the matter you asked about is unknown to me and Second Master. We, as shamans, only handle minor matters within our capabilities. How could the two of us possibly be capable of committing such a major case, which only the most vicious and ruthless could do?"

It was getting dark.

Inside the ship, the local Tianjin gangsters and the out-of-towners from Beijing were locked in a tug-of-war, while not far outside the ship, a water monster dressed in a dark blue robe had somehow gotten close.

　Two chapters tomorrow, plus a bonus chapter for those who vote with monthly tickets.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)