Legendary Son-in-Law: The Man with Poison Talismans

Prince An ignored the look and said in a calm tone, "Just say it to the Commander of the Landing Commander. There's no need to hide anything."

Huo Lie's smile paused for a moment, then returned. He cupped his hands in greeting and said with a forced smile, "It's like this, Bichon has come to visit my old acquaintance. He wants to purchase a large quantity of blessing oil and hopes that you all can lend a hand."

Prince An and Lu Yuan exchanged a glance.

Then Prince An picked up his teacup and asked unhurriedly, "Are you from the Bichjiang family?"

Huo Lie smiled: "Your Highness has keen insight, that's right."

He stepped aside to make way, and the Jiang family member behind him stepped forward, bowed, and said respectfully, "I, Jiang, greet Your Highness. May Your Highness live a thousand years."

Prince An ignored the question, put down his teacup, glanced at the man, and said, "What business do you have with me, people from the Jiang family? Tell me."

The man then spoke about the Jiang family's predicament, saying that they were being harassed and extorted by a son-in-law named Lin Mu. Lin Mu first tricked them out of their teleportation ring through a gambling match, and then took the opportunity to extort a large amount of gold coins, blessing oil, and special repair water. He also injured the family's members, forcing the Jiang family to scramble for supplies.

When Lin Mu was mentioned, the language became increasingly harsh: "A son-in-law, of humble origins, relying on His Majesty's favor, acts arrogantly and domineeringly. If it weren't for His Majesty's name, how could a man who married into the family have the right to be so arrogant in Bichon City? As a son-in-law, he is already considered lowly, yet he doesn't know how to restrain himself, bullying powerful families, it's simply..."

Prince An listened with a blank expression, but the fingers holding the teacup tightened slightly before relaxing.

He didn't interrupt the man or reply; he just listened, his expression gradually fading.

Huo Lie noticed the change in Prince An's expression and interjected at the right moment: "Your Highness, please don't mind. The Jiang family has indeed suffered too much loss this time, so it's inevitable that he would speak with some emotion."

The man from the Jiang family also came to his senses. This was not a place where he could speak so recklessly. He quickly apologized and took out a Judgment from behind his back, presenting it with both hands: "This is a Judgment with an attack power of 45 that was just forged by Lord Tuohuo of the Jiang family in Shabak. The people of the Jiang family are new to this place and unfamiliar with the people. We earnestly request that Your Highness and Lord Lu help us raise supplies."

Prince An glanced down at the Judgment Staff. It was thicker than the ordinary staff and gleamed with a faint golden light under the candlelight. It was indeed no ordinary item. It seemed that the forging technology in Shabak had improved again.

Prince An understood the Jiang family's behavior. Although the Jiang family seemed to be somewhat familiar with Huo Lie, they had just arrived in Mengzhong and were unfamiliar with the place. It was only natural for them to want to build good relations with the local officials and local strongmen.

He didn't accept the judgment, but simply nodded, his tone becoming somewhat indifferent: "Since you've come to Mengzhong, you're a guest. I won't accept the gifts; Lord Lu will arrange the procurement."

He picked up his teacup, took a sip, and turned to say, "Lord Lu, just follow the rules when it comes to purchasing. There's no need for special treatment or making things difficult for us."

Lu Yuan nodded, closed the booklet, and didn't ask anything more.

Huo Lie smiled and smoothed things over, and the atmosphere in the hall eased again, as if the unpleasant conversation had never happened.

……

Two days later, Prince An and Lu Yuan met again to check the Jiang family's purchasing situation. After all, this was an order personally given by His Majesty, and they could not be careless.

Prince An sat behind his desk, picked up his teacup, took a sip, and asked, "How are the purchases going for the Beech Jiang family?"

Lu Yuan opened the booklet, his gaze sweeping over a line in the accounts: "Your Highness, the news from Bichon basically matches the actual purchases made by the Jiang family. Under the coordination of the Mengzhong Jinwu Guard, the Jiang family has successively purchased over 20,000 bottles of blessing oil. However..."

He paused, then closed the booklet. "The price of blessing oil in Mengzhong has already tripled due to this round of purchases, and a few merchants have begun hoarding it. If this continues, even the old shops in Tucheng might run out of stock."

Prince An paused slightly in his teacup, then put it down without asking any further questions, simply nodding.

Lu Yuan also reported to Bich as usual, saying that the Jiang family's procurement was proceeding normally.

The next day, perhaps because the Jiang family didn't have enough funds, or perhaps because they didn't want to be taken advantage of, they stopped buying large quantities of blessing oil and only bought a few here and there. But they still seemed to be working hard to repay Lin Mu's debt.

At the same time, some rumors began to circulate among the people.

It is said that Your Majesty was quite diligent in the early years of your reign, but in the end you are a woman, and now you are persecuting a powerful family that has stood in Bichon for thousands of years for the sake of a son-in-law.

The news circulated among taverns, shops, and guilds, as if someone had deliberately delivered it to the ears of everyone who was supposed to hear it.

Some say the Empress favors her son-in-law, and families with even a little influence in Bichon City are suppressed to the point of being unable to hold their heads high; some say Lin Mu was originally a good-for-nothing, and only dared to act tyrannically in Bichon because of the Empress's support; some say the Jiang family was raided and exiled, and their property was confiscated, all because they offended a son-in-law who had married into the family.

A group of awakened individuals were resting and drinking tea at a tea stall outside Tucheng.

One of them lowered his voice and said, "I heard that Lin Mu is only in his early twenties. I don't even know if he has learned healing magic yet. He relies entirely on his handsome face and his talent in that area. He got in touch with His Majesty and now he can walk around Bichon City with impunity."

Chapter 222 Change of Throne

Someone nearby chimed in, "When a woman is in charge, things are ultimately messy. If Prince An were in charge, how could a son-in-law be allowed to boss people around in court?"

Another man put down his wine cup, his voice even lower: "I've also heard that His Majesty issued three secret decrees regarding the Jiang family's affairs. Anyone who dares to utter a single word against Lin Mu in court will be immediately dismissed and investigated. Tell me, if this man isn't His Majesty's favorite, how could he have such power?"

Someone, getting excited, slammed their hand on the table and exclaimed, "That's right! If it weren't for Prince An overseeing Mengzhong, the entire Mafa Empire would probably have been destroyed by a son-in-law!"

"Shh... Keep your voice down!" The person next to him quickly pulled him aside and glanced around.

The tea stall fell silent for a moment. Some people lowered their heads to drink soup, some pretended to look at the street corner in the distance, and some picked up their bowls to cover half of their faces, but secretly glanced around.

These words spread faster than the wind. Within three days, the taverns, shops, guild strongholds, and even the casual chatter at tea stalls outside the city had all adopted similar rhetoric.

Some say Lin Mu cheated in the ring to win against Jiang Yanzhou, while others say the Jiang family was framed and their property was confiscated.

With embellishments and retellings, the details became increasingly authentic and vivid, as if everyone had witnessed it firsthand.

These words spread particularly quickly among the major guilds and powerful families in Mengzhong. Some echoed them, some sneered, and some remained silent after listening.

It has to be said that Mengzhong, being far from Bichon, has become much more unruly, with people daring to say anything.

A few days later, the public's admiration for Prince An rose even higher.

Upon hearing these words, Gu Changfeng went to the study and mentioned it to Prince An: "Father, there are rumors circulating in the city recently that people are not very respectful to His Majesty, but they are praising you highly."

Prince An was reading an old letter at his desk. Hearing this, he didn't look up and said in a flat tone, "What good is a high reputation? Don't listen to the rumors. Your father only wants to see you learn your skills well and inherit my throne in the future."

He put down the letter, paused, and then said, "I hope Qingyi finds a good husband. The Lin Mu she likes is indeed quite good, but unfortunately he's a live-in son-in-law and not good enough for Qingyi."

Gu Changfeng listened to his father's words in silence for a while, then asked, "What about Huo Yan, the son of Lord Huo?"

Prince An did not answer immediately after hearing this. Instead, he thought for a moment, recalling what Huo Lie had said to him alone that day. He shook his head and said in a light tone, "The Huo family is ambitious and not a good match for us. Let's talk about it later."

He paused, then added, "By the way, go down and curb the unhealthy social atmosphere. People dare to say anything; it wouldn't be good if that got back to His Majesty."

Gu Changfeng bowed his head to accept the order and left the study. As the door closed gently behind him, a glint of light flashed beneath his lowered eyelashes—a bright light, but Prince An did not see it.

-

A few days later, Mengzhong also sensed the changes in the world after the tree demon fell to the ground.

The clouds on the horizon began to grow murky, and the wind blowing across the sand carried an indescribable heaviness, making even the air seem heavier than usual.

The people in Tucheng looked up at the sky, unable to pinpoint what was wrong, only feeling a weight pressing on their hearts.

Rumors among the people intensified. Some said it was a celestial warning, an impending calamity, an unrest in the world, and the sun and moon hanging upside down. Others said it was someone who had defied the laws of nature and was suffering the consequences.

At a tea stall not far from the southwest corner of Tucheng, a man in an old short jacket put his bowl on the table and said in a low voice, "Tell me, if all the people from Bai Ri Men flock to Mengzhong, will our Tucheng be able to hold them all? There are only a few wells and a few grain shops. Who will starve to death first?"

An old man with a headscarf next to him chimed in: "Starving to death is one thing, but what's truly worrisome is having nowhere to live. With so many people, even the open spaces outside the earthen city will be occupied by people setting up sheds, and when the sandstorm comes, those sheds will be torn down."

A young man at the next table looked up, as if he had been holding back for a long time but finally couldn't help but ask, "Then what do we do? We can't just close the city gates and not let them in, can we?"

The man from before snorted, "Whether to close the gate or not is a matter for the higher-ups. But if Mengzhong has too many mouths to feed and grain prices double, how will you survive?"

A moment of silence fell over the tea stall; no one spoke. Some people lowered their heads to drink their tea, while others stared blankly at the pale yellow tea in their bowls, seemingly lost in thought.

The wind blew in from the street corner, stirring the cloth banners and the old papers pressed down on the corners of the tables, then stopped.

The old man with the turban said one last thing: "Anyway, life won't be any better than it is now. We all know that."

No one argued with him. No one responded.

That statement is already heavy enough; nothing more needs to be added.

The tea stall fell silent again, with only the occasional rustling of the wind through the cloth banner and the distant voices coming from the earthen wall, all mixed together and indistinct.

After a while, the young man put down his bowl, stood up, dusted off his trousers, as if he had already pulled himself out of his thoughts, and walked towards the other end of the street.

He took a few steps, then stopped, without turning back, and muttered as if to himself, "But that's still a human life..."

……

While the people were confused and various rumors were flying around, neither the Prince An's Mansion nor the Imperial Guard stepped forward to clarify what had happened.

The rumors circulated for two more days, but no one denied them or offered any explanation. It was like a stone thrown into water, leaving no ripples.

On the third day, however, a major incident occurred at both Prince An's residence and the Imperial Guard.

Prince An and Lu Yuan, the commander of the Jinwu Guard, who was allied with the Prince An, suddenly disappeared.

Without any notice or explanation, the two seemed to have vanished from the earthen city into thin air; even the servants in the mansion couldn't say when they finally left.

When the news spread, some said he had been secretly summoned to Bichon, some said he was going to inspect the defenses outside the pass, and some whispered that something must have happened, but no one had any evidence.

On the morning of the third day, an even more unexpected message was posted on notice boards throughout Tucheng.

Crown Prince Gu Changfeng succeeded to the throne and temporarily served as the commander of the Mengzhong Jinwu Guard.

It was written so quickly, as if it had been prepared long ago and was just waiting to be posted on the day Prince An and Lu Yuan disappeared.

Before the people could recover from this news, another piece of news came crashing down: a month later, Princess Gu Qingyi would marry Huo Yan, the son of Huo Lie, the lord of Shabak City.

The wedding date is set for the ninth day of next month, and the betrothal gifts have already been delivered to Prince An's residence.

Meanwhile, checkpoints have been added at the two passes leading from Mengzhong to Bichon and Snake Valley, with strict checks on people coming and going. Entry and exit are much slower than usual, and the queues are getting longer and longer.

The earthen city of Mengzhong still stands silently in the wind and sand, but the earthen city that Lin Mu is about to arrive at is a different one.

Chapter 223 The Perspective of Divine Beasts

Back to Lin Mu's side.

After Lin Mu passed the checkpoint, it was getting dark. He couldn't help but sigh, thinking how fast his maggot-like chariot was. It had traversed the entire Serpent Valley in just one day. If he had been on horseback, he probably would have only just passed the village and wouldn't have even covered half the distance.

Ahead lay a dark forest, shielding the city from the heat and dust of the desert, standing like a silent barrier in the twilight.

The dense branches intertwine, as if trying to swallow the road whole.

Intermittent wolf howls echoed through the woods, sounding as if they were drifting from a great distance.

It was dark, there were many trees, and the car was going too fast, making it difficult to control. If it crashed into a tree, it would be no laughing matter.

He took out a talisman from his storage bag and lit it. The orange-red flame illuminated a small patch of ground in front of him. Then he released his horse, mounted it, and slowly rode towards the distant forest.

It was darker inside the woods than outside; the torchlight could only illuminate a few steps ahead. The tree trunks on either side cast long shadows in the firelight, as if something might emerge from the darkness at any moment.

He didn't walk too fast, but slowly made his way along a barely noticeable forest path toward the cliffs to the northeast.

The horses' hooves trod on the soft, decaying leaves, making little noise, except for the occasional cracking sound of snapping dead branches, which stood out clearly in the quiet.

He rode for a while, and when he was almost near the cliff, he reined in his horse, dismounted, and put the horse into his brocade pouch.

Then he closed his eyes, and with a thought, "whoosh," the skeleton teleported from Bichon and landed beside him, the flames in its two eye sockets flickering as it stood quietly.

Lin Mu had the skeleton stand guard nearby, then found a sheltered cliff face, pitched his tent, gathered some dry branches, and flew over several amulets to start a fire in front of the tent.

The firelight danced below the cliff, pushing back the surrounding darkness slightly.