After the ghost-hunting master descended the mountain, his fame spread throughout the capital.

Xie Jinchen's fingers, which were resting on his knees, twitched almost imperceptibly for a moment before returning to their original position.

The discussion outside continues:

"Indeed! His achievements overshadowed the emperor; I heard he died a horrible death... his remains might not even be intact..."

"Don't talk nonsense! How dare you discuss such matters? Be careful what you say, or your whole family will suffer!"

"Sigh, this world... tsk tsk, yesterday he was a Duke, today he's... Oh well, let's have some tea."

Inside the carriage, the air seemed to freeze.

Xie Jinchen's eyes darkened. After a moment, he bent his index finger and tapped three times on the carriage wall:

"No need to stop, speed up and go straight into the city."

"yes!"

The guards outside the carriage urged their horses on with whips.

As the carriage entered Qingzhou City, the noise from the outside world not only did not subside, but surged in like a tidal wave, flooding the carriage.

Along the streets, in teahouses, restaurants, and even where roadside vendors gathered, wherever people congregated, they were all whispering and discussing amongst themselves.

The murmurs even drowned out the usual hawking and shouting.

Under the old locust tree at the city gate, several vegetable farmers carrying baskets of produce were so busy with their business that they squatted on the ground in a circle, their faces filled with excitement.

A middle-aged vegetable farmer with a weathered face slapped his thigh forcefully, "Have you heard? Duke Xie... was surrounded and killed by His Majesty's men outside the city, riddled with arrows!"

His voice trembled, "Back then, my hometown suffered a famine, and the fields were littered with corpses of the starved. It was the Duke who opened the granaries and distributed grain to relieve the disaster, saving the lives of everyone in our village! Such a good man, how... how could he end up like this!"

A peddler selling needles and thread nearby also came over, stopping his half-finished shoe sole sewing, his face full of indignation, and interjected:

"More than that! I heard from merchants from the south that yesterday, just as dawn was breaking, right outside the city at the edge of that old forest ten miles from the city, they saw with their own eyes a huge group of men in black, a dark mass, surrounding the Duke's horse. Swords were flashing, shouts of killing were deafening, and they even heard someone shouting that they were ordered to kill! The scene... was horrific!"

"Absolutely true!" another dark-skinned man dressed as a porter chimed in. "I was hiding in the nearby woods at the time, and I heard it all clearly!"

"Those men in black not only killed people, but also interrogated me about...the whereabouts of the late emperor's edict! Besides the one in charge, who else would be so fixated on the late emperor's edict? Isn't this a clear case of 'the rabbit is killed after the hunt, the bow is put away after the birds are gone'?"

"More than that," the vegetable farmer who spoke first looked around, and as more and more people gathered, he seemed to grow bolder:

"I heard that the city's soldiers were searching everywhere for assassins today, causing quite a commotion... I bet they were looking for the late emperor's edict on the Duke's person... Sigh!"

The old woman carrying a bamboo basket beside her listened, wiping away tears, her lips trembling as she murmured:

"What a tragedy, what a tragedy! The Xie family has been loyal for generations, and the Duke has guarded the northern border for decades, braving wind and snow, driving those barbarians so that they dare not show their faces, so that we can live in peace... How can the Emperor, the Emperor, not tolerate such a loyal minister!"

The old woman's words, choked with sobs, expressed the unspoken anger of many onlookers, eliciting a chorus of suppressed agreement and sighs from the surrounding crowd.

The whispers were like countless fine needles, densely piercing the carriage.

Xie Jinchen opened his eyes, which had been closed for rest, and said, "Go directly to the governor's mansion."

"Yes!" The guard outside the carriage curtain replied in a deep voice.

The carriage came to a steady stop in front of the imposing gate of the Qingzhou Prefectural Governor's Mansion.

The plaque reading "Qingzhou Prefectural Governor's Residence" hangs high above the gate, and the stone lions stand majestically, guarding the place with strict discipline, as if it were a completely different world from the chaos and noise of the streets.

The guard stepped forward and said in a deep voice to the soldiers guarding the gate, "The heir of the Duke of Xie's mansion has come to Qingzhou to suppress bandits by imperial decree and has come to pay his respects to Governor Cui."

Upon hearing this, the guards glanced at the token faintly visible at the waist of the leader of the secret guards, then immediately bowed respectfully.

"So it's the young master! The governor had instructed that if the young master comes, there's no need to announce his arrival; just invite him in."

As he spoke, he stepped aside to make way, and another soldier jogged forward to lead the way, his posture respectful.

Xie Jinchen nodded slightly, took Jiang Dusheng's hand, and followed the soldier into the governor's mansion.

Just as they passed through the screen wall in the front yard and were about to head towards the main hall, a person happened to emerge from the moon gate on the side.

This man was about thirty years old, dressed in a blue casual robe. He was tall and slender, with a refined and scholarly appearance. He was none other than Cui Yan, the governor of Qingzhou.

He was walking hurriedly, as if he was about to go out, but when he caught sight of Xie Jinchen, he stopped abruptly, and a familiar smile instantly appeared on his face.

"Ah Chen." Cui Yan smiled and took a few steps forward, his tone as affectionate as ever, "I was counting down the days until you arrived, and I was just about to send someone to greet you..."

He hadn't finished speaking.

Xie Jinchen's figure suddenly swayed and moved without warning.

He suddenly let go of Jiang Dusheng's hand, and like a cheetah that had been lying in wait, he instantly closed in on Cui Yan's side.

There were no idle pleasantries, no questions asked about the reasons, and not even a chance for Cui Yan to finish his polite remark.

A powerful punch, carrying a fierce aura and a whistling sound, struck Cui Yan directly in the face.

Before the punch even landed, the fierce wind from the punch already made Cui Yan's hair fly wildly.

All of this happened too fast, too abruptly.

The soldier leading the way stood frozen in place.

Cui Yan's pupils shrank sharply. He had obviously not expected Xie Jinchen to use such a ruthless killing move upon meeting him. However, he was born into a military family and had been experienced in officialdom for a long time, so he reacted very quickly.

He leaned back sharply, simultaneously bending his left arm to block.

"Bang!"

Although Cui Yan barely managed to block the punch, the murderous aura contained in Xie Jinchen's fist was not to be trifled with.

He was so shaken that he staggered back three or four steps, and his left arm felt sore and numb.

Xie Jinchen struck first, showing no mercy.

He swept his right leg across Cui Yan's lower body.

In a hasty movement, Cui Yan twisted his body and leaped up, simultaneously striking Xie Jinchen's vulnerable ribs with his right palm, attempting to force him to defend.

The two exchanged blows quickly, seven or eight moves in the courtyard.

A strong wind whipped up fallen leaves from the ground.

As soon as Xie Jinchen made his move, Jiang Dusheng had already nimbly retreated to the side corridor, found a stone bench, and sat down leisurely, resting his chin on his hand and lazily watching the fight in the arena.

Soon, the outcome was decided.

Xie Jinchen feinted, causing Cui Yan to dodge to the side, then reached out with his five fingers like hooks, aiming for Cui Yan's throat.

Cui Yan couldn't avoid it and could only try to turn his head away. However, Xie Jinchen's fingertips grazed his neck, leaving several red marks. At the same time, Xie Jinchen tripped him, causing him to lose his balance.

Xie Jinchen did not kill him. Just as Cui Yan was about to fall, he changed his grip to a push, and struck Cui Yan on the shoulder with his palm.

Cui Yan staggered back several steps until his back hit a pillar, barely managing to regain his balance.

He raised his hand and wiped the cut on the corner of his lip with his fingertip. Far from being annoyed, he smiled again, though the smile carried a hint of bitterness and understanding.

"Ah Chen, after all these years, why are you so angry? You really intend to kill me the moment we meet?"