The Prodigal Son

Qin Yu did not make things difficult for those people.

After searching the houses on both sides of the street without success, Qin Yu quickly led his men back to the governor's mansion.

Inside the carriage, the two assassins were already dead.

Nan Que'er gagged the two men with a cloth to prevent their black blood from contaminating the carriage.

"Are you trying to make those who want to assassinate me think you can actually save at least one person, thus throwing them into disarray?"

Qin Yu asked Nan Que'er with a smile.

"Um!"

Nan Que'er nodded gently, "Since they had poison in their mouths, they must be afraid that if they were caught, they wouldn't be able to withstand the torture and would reveal who was behind them! As long as their people think that even one of them is still alive, they will definitely have sleepless nights! They might even be plotting to get rid of them!"

"clever!"

Qin Yu gently pinched Nan Que'er's nose and said with a chuckle, "However, I can roughly guess who wants to assassinate me!"

"You guessed it?"

Nan Que'er's eyes widened in astonishment. "How did you guess?"

"These are two experts at the eighth realm!"

Qin Yu smirked. "Think about it, of those who want me dead, how many would actually send two eighth-realm experts to assassinate me?"

First, we can basically rule out the eight major salt merchants other than historians.

Two experts at the eighth level, and they're also assassins; you can't just hire them with money.

Secondly, the governors of the various prefectures are also worthy of suspicion.

But to be honest, although the governors of each state have power, very few of them could command the loyalty of two experts at the eighth level to the death.

Eight Realms Death Squad!

Is it better to serve those truly powerful officials in the capital than to risk one's life for a mere prefect?

Of course, such assassins could be trained from a young age, but that's not very likely.

Without a certain family background, it would be difficult to cultivate such a loyal follower!

If any of these governors came from wealthy or influential families, or had powerful backers, then they should be viewed with suspicion.

But if we exclude them, we are basically left with only the Shi family, Bei Qi, and Yu Jing.

Of course, it's also possible that it was the state of Yan or Chu, but the probability is definitely smaller.

The Northern Qi had previously sent a ninth-realm expert to assassinate him, but the attempt failed. The possibility of them sending two eighth-realm experts to assassinate him again is not very high.

If Bei Qi is going to send assassins, they should be at least at the ninth realm!

Therefore, considering all factors, the most suspicious individuals are the historians and Yu Jing.

And then there's the real culprit who murdered Madam Sun and her daughter!

However, this remains a mystery, and he has not found a suitable suspect at all.

After listening to Qin Yu's analysis, Nan Que'er suddenly understood.

"So, who do you think is more likely to succeed between them?"

Nan Que'er lowered her eyes, her gaze sharp and cold.

"They're about the same! But if I had to choose the bigger one, I think Yu Jing has a slightly better chance!"

Qin Yu smiled and said, "In Yu Jing's view, the downfall of the Min Kingdom is entirely my fault. If he were to send someone to assassinate me here, the court would first suspect the major salt merchants and the governors! Even if they suspect him, once the assassin is dead, the court will have no evidence!"

The possibility of it being a historian is also quite high.

However, he hasn't made a move against the Shi family yet, so the Shi family shouldn't be in such a hurry to assassinate him, right?

After much thought, I still think Yu Jing is a little bit more likely.

"So what do you plan to do?"

Nan Que'er inquired.

Qin Yu smirked and said with a wicked grin, "Whether it's Yu Jing or not doesn't matter! What matters is whether it's related to the Shi family."

Regardless of whether it's Yu Jing or not, once he's finished with things here, he'll bring Zhou Jishan, who's always by Yu Jing's side, over to practice martial arts!

Yu Jing is still useful now.

He certainly couldn't kill Yu Jing directly.

But Zhou Jishan...

Ha ha!

If a war to destroy Yan is launched this year, I will most likely lead my troops into battle.

Before going to war with the Yan Kingdom, let's get a power bank to boost our strength!

Ideally, it should be upgraded to the ninth realm!

These two eighth-level experts would have been perfect "power banks," but unfortunately, they committed suicide by poisoning themselves.

Since that's the case, then we have no choice but to find Zhou Jishan.

Who told him to be Yu Jing's man, and also a ninth-realm expert?

He and Yu Jing were destined to be enemies!

As for the Shi family, if it is found that they are involved in this matter, he doesn't care whether the Shi family has a get-out-of-jail-free card!

Nan Que'er thought for a moment, then pursed her lips and said, "When we get to the governor's mansion, I'll have one of them get up and walk around a bit to see if we can lure the snake out of its hole! It would be even better if we could find the mastermind directly!"

"Want to take a few steps?"

Qin Yu looked surprised. "You can make a dead person walk a few steps?"

What, is she even better at fooling people than Uncle Benshan?

"Of course!"

Nan Que'er proudly raised her head, "Within three hours of their death, I can use my natal Gu to control their corpses to walk a short distance..."

This is a secret technique of their tribe, also known as the corpse refining technique, which is widely circulated in the southern borderlands.

However, this corpse refining technique wasn't as outrageous as the rumors circulating in the Southern Frontier.

With her current strength, she can only barely control the corpse to move about three zhang (approximately 10 meters).

The longer someone has been dead, the shorter the distance they can control their body to walk.

"That's enough!"

Qin Yu's smile deepened. "Let alone three zhang, even controlling them to move just one zhang would be enough to make those behind them panic!"

"That's what I think too."

Nan Que'er smiled brightly, "The problem now is how to let more people see it with their own eyes! Only then will it have a chance to reach the ears of those behind them!"

"That's easy!"

Qin Yu lifted the carriage curtain and instructed Di Rong, "Immediately send someone to notify all officials in Jiangning Prefecture to rush to the governor's mansion as quickly as possible!"

"yes!"

Di Rong accepted the order and immediately dispatched a team of golden-armored imperial guards to deliver it.

Afterwards, Qin Yu deliberately slowed down the journey, even stopping midway, and had Nan Que'er pretend to go to the pharmacy to get some medicine, giving the officials more time to reach the governor's mansion.

It took them about an hour to return to the governor's mansion.

Assassins, hundreds of officials of all ranks had gathered at the gate of the governor's mansion.

These people had already heard about Qin Yu's assassination attempt in the street.

They didn't know why Qin Yu had summoned them, but even a fool could guess it wasn't anything good.

The thought that Qin Yu might take his anger out on them because of the stabbing incident in the street made many people feel uneasy.

Seeing so many officials standing trembling at the entrance of the governor's mansion, many ordinary people also stood at a distance to watch the spectacle.

The carriage stopped at the entrance of the governor's mansion, and a group of golden-armored imperial guards quickly stepped forward to clear the way.

Qin Yu dragged a corpse, bound hand and foot and gagged, off the carriage and pushed it towards Qin Xiong. "Take it back and interrogate it thoroughly!"

"yes!"

Qin Xiong obeyed the order and immediately drew his sword and held it to the corpse's neck.

Under Nan Que'er's control, the corpse slowly walked forward and entered the governor's mansion in full view of everyone.

Bang!

Qin Xiong kicked the corpse and roared, "What are you dawdling for? Take him away!"

Upon receiving Qin Xiong's order, the two guards quickly supported the corpse from both sides and disappeared from everyone's sight.

Only then did Qin Yu stand at the entrance of the governor's mansion, his cold gaze sweeping over the assembled officials. "You've all been disappointed! Your assassin failed. I'll soon be able to pry his mouth open!"

Upon hearing Qin Yu's words, the crowd erupted in a commotion.

"Sir, this really has nothing to do with us!"

"Yes, sir! We wouldn't dare send anyone to assassinate you even if we had a hundred lives!"

"Sir, it must be someone from somewhere else causing trouble!"

"Please, Your Excellency, see the truth..."

Everyone started talking at once, hurriedly trying to distance themselves from the situation.

This is something you absolutely cannot afford to get involved in!

Given Qin Yu's current status, assassinating Qin Yu is almost the same crime as assassinating the Crown Prince!

"Everyone knows who sent them!"

Qin Yu raised his hand to stop the crowd, "If it's one or more of you, I'll give you some time to hurry back and prepare coffins for your entire families!"