From street beggar to high-ranking official

The sixth nine-day period in winter is also known as Lunar New Year's Eve.

As the old year draws to a close, the signs of spring begin to emerge.

In the depths of winter, with only one day left until the New Year, Chengdu has transformed from a period of continuous drizzle into a light snowfall, blanketing the streets and rooftops in white, a scene of renewal.

Those who could live in the city could afford to put up couplets and set off firecrackers. Most of the minor officials and bureaucrats on duty in the city took leave, and for a time there was a festive atmosphere for the New Year. However, the Tea and Horse Bureau, the Prince Consort's Mansion, and the Prefect's Yamen were still crowded with people, and the number of beggars and vendors on the streets did not decrease.

It has been almost two weeks since Prefect Wen placed the prince consort under house arrest.

The Tea and Horse Bureau was thoroughly investigated. An old man attempted to escape but was surrounded by the government soldiers and died at the hands of Eunuch Qian.

That was also the first time Lu Li had seen the Imperial Censor Qian make a move. Qian Gonggong's movements were extremely ghostly. The old man who was throwing abacus beads at people couldn't even touch the hem of Qian Gonggong's clothes. After the old man had used up all the beads in his abacus, in the blink of an eye, Qian Gonggong gently took off the old man's head.

The headless corpse gushed blood high enough to reach three zhang (approximately 10 meters). Even after losing its head, the corpse continued to move. It failed to catch the eunuch Zhao, who had fled in an instant, and only managed to grab one of the guards in the last few breaths, snapping off his head. The blood stained the blue bricks of the Tea and Horse Bureau's office.

Lu Li couldn't tell what rank of martial artist Qian Gonggong was, nor could he discern Qian Gonggong's background. The old man was surrounded and unable to escape, and after exhausting his true energy, he was killed by Qian Gonggong with a single blow.

Eunuch Qian only made one move throughout the entire process, casually tossing the head into the hands of his godson named Xiao Yuzi, and said, "Go investigate."

So a group of eunuchs prepared to take the old man's head to the prefectural government office to retrieve the yellow register and compare his identity document with the records.

Amidst the crowd, Lu Li asked, seemingly out of kindness, "Has Little Tiger's injury healed?"

Two weeks ago, Xiao Huzi followed Lu Li and tried to ambush him at the post station. He was beaten up but not seriously injured. However, the beating broke Xiao Huzi's spirit and made him shrink back whenever he faced Lu Li.

Eunuch Qian remained unmoved, and the other godsons would not stand up for him. If they continued to provoke Lu, they would simply consider it as one of them dying from a fever due to serious injury.

"Little Lu is so thoughtful," Little Tiger said in a low voice, then shrank into the crowd until he became inconspicuous.

Lu Li sneered, his ashen eyes then glancing at the other of Qian Gonggong's godsons.

After the injury that day, all the trouble and probing from these guys disappeared. It's possible that this was Qian Gonggong's doing, whether openly or secretly. However, this made things much easier for Lu Li.

Unless Eunuch Qian had to go out on important business, Lu Li could practice his skills, contact the Zhou family, and collect some silver at his leisure.

Putting everything else aside, although the "Hidden Sleep and Metamorphosis in the Cold Abyss" technique for feigning death hasn't made much progress, according to Steward Zhang, it can achieve a similar effect with the help of secret medicine.

The secret medicine is a white pill with two layers. The outer layer stops the flow of the heart, making the person no different from a corpse. The inner layer is a potent medicine that can revive even someone who is about to die.

This secret medicine is extremely potent. If taken separately, it will result in only two ways to die. However, by combining the two potent medicines according to the principles of monarch, minister, assistant, and guide, the two doses of this medicine can become a secret medicine for feigning death.

Lu Li naturally took three coins, thinking he might need them someday.

The eunuchs were all talking at once. One group thought that if the prince consort was arrested, they might be able to take the opportunity to enter his mansion and steal some gold and silver. Another group thought that the prince consort might be fine in the future, but if they provoked him today, he might suffer in the future.

As they chatted, the conversation drifted to that dead old abacus.

"This old man's identity in the Tea Horse Bureau is all fake. If you ask me, we should just ask the Prince Consort directly. If he's sincere, he'll tell us on his own," said Little Mustache, Qian Gonggong's godson.

"Sincerity?" Xiao Yuzi's godson scoffed, "How much sincerity does the prince consort have left? A serious case of treason can't be reduced with just the word 'sincerity.' Nowadays, even the food at the prince consort's residence is delivered by Prefect Wen. Unless Eunuch Qian nods, who will bother to ask?"

"We're not going there," Lu Li said again. "They're probably just vagrants and beggars. In my opinion, even if they have a household registration, it's probably not even here."

"It's hard to say. This old man has martial arts skills. Asking the local security escort agencies, martial arts schools, or sword sects might give us some clues," Xiao Yuzi said.

"Anyway, we're not going to interfere anymore. Let whoever wants to investigate do so." Lu Li simply washed his hands of the matter.

Amidst the bewildered glances of the other eunuchs, Lu Li headed directly towards the Prince Consort's residence.

He already knew the old man's background, after all, he couldn't have not asked when he contacted the Zhou family. When he arrived at the Prince Consort's mansion, Eunuch Qian was sitting on a bench in a nearby tavern with his eyes closed.

This tavern has long been requisitioned, so who would dare disobey the eunuch's orders?

He went directly to Eunuch Qian and bowed, saying, "Eunuch Qian, we have found out. He is a member of the local Beggars' Sect, a retired elder. As for his relatives, they are not in Chengdu Prefecture."

Upon hearing Lu Li's words, Eunuch Qian let out a shrill laugh: "Heh heh, it's all thanks to little Lu that he can find the person right after killing him."

Previously, Lu Li had told Eunuch Qian that the old strategist was not simple, so it was only natural that he would try to curry favor with him again today.

The remaining eunuchs who stayed by Qian Gonggong's side were filled with both jealousy and hatred.

"Didn't you hear me? You Beggars' Sect members!" Eunuch Qian's shrill voice rang out again. "The New Year is almost here, where are all these beggars coming from? Aren't they going home for the New Year?!"

The crowd suddenly realized what was happening and immediately ordered the prefectural officials to drive away the beggars from the street.

"Does Eunuch Qian mean that the prince consort wants to escape?" Lu Li sensed something was amiss.

"Perhaps it would be a good thing if the prince consort admitted his mistake sooner," Eunuch Qian said quietly. "I'm afraid even His Majesty didn't expect things to escalate to this point, but it was only a matter of time."

"What does Father-in-law mean?"

"These past few days, we've sent our other adopted sons to investigate the prefectures along the way. The Prince Consort's mansion is forcibly requisitioning commoners' carriages and horses to transport tea, and all the post stations and city gates along the way have tacitly allowed them to pass."

A chilling possibility flashed through Lu Li's mind, a possibility so terrifying that he couldn't help but ask, "Eunuch Qian, you said the people behind the Beggars' Sect..."

"I have no idea who else might be behind the Beggars' Sect," Eunuch Qian said, his tone unchanged. "If the Beggars' Sect dares to come, then it won't be just the Beggars' Sect that dares to come."

There were accomplices too!

Lu Li wanted to ask who else was there, but he noticed that Eunuch Qian's gaze was fixed on the Prince Consort's Mansion outside the tavern. At the entrance, Chengdu Prefecture soldiers were guarding the gate, prohibiting unauthorized personnel from entering or leaving.

"All the prefectures along the way tacitly approved it. Did Prefect Wen know about it? Did he participate? Perhaps he remained uninvolved, or perhaps he was complicit." Eunuch Qian added, "Wen Suzhi has been very cooperative these past few days. Who knows if this is truly a scheme?"

"Eunuch Qian, we must make plans as soon as possible," said Lu Li immediately.

"Regardless of whether Prefect Wen is sincere or not, we'll all assume he's helping the Prince Consort." After saying that, Eunuch Qian turned to Lu Li: "Young Lu, it's time to make a move on the Zhou family."