Miss Wang Weina, even your cousin won't do!

Wei Yanwu was taken aback. He looked at his hands, then at the thriving bonsai tree, then at Lady Wenyue, and finally nodded.

"Alright, madam, please wait for me a moment."

"Let me help you wash," Madam Wenyue said with a smile. Wei Yanwu blushed and quickly shook his head.

"No, no, madam, I can do it myself. Please wait a moment, I'll be right back."

After saying that, Wei Yanwu walked towards the bathroom. But before he could even turn on the tap, a commotion came from the entrance hall. Wei Yanwu frowned, not remembering any appointment with anyone at this time, so he slowly turned on the tap, rinsed his hands, applied hand soap, and carefully dried them before heading towards the living room.

But when he entered the living room, he couldn't help but narrow his eyes. The guards of the city lord's mansion were lying haphazardly on the ground, their crossbows and clubs scattered everywhere. In the entrance hall, several guards were already in formation, looking at the red-robed man before them as if facing a formidable enemy.

Wei Yanwu casually picked up a fairly handy longsword from the ground, strolled towards the entrance, stopped the guard blocking his way, and said:

"Get out of the way."

The guard was startled by the sound and turned around, only to find that Wei Yanwu had appeared behind him without making a sound. If he hadn't spoken up, the guard might have been stabbed to death from behind by Wei Yanwu before he could even react.

"Commander Wei! When did you... No, never mind, please retreat to a safe position. We have already called for backup, and the Guard Bureau personnel will be there shortly. Your subordinates will do everything in their power to protect your safety."

"You don't need to worry about my safety."

Wei Yanwu patted him on the shoulder and gave him a friendly smile:

"Your mission is complete. You may leave."

"Can...."

"Step down," Wei Yanwu repeated.

The guard gritted his teeth and called out to his colleague:

"Let's retreat first and get close to the Security Bureau, quick!"

Once everyone had left, Wei Yanwu raised his longsword and pointed it at the red-robed man before him.

Xia Zhi, who was carrying two broadswords with silver rings, saw that Wei Yanwu had dismissed the guards, so he also held back his strength and was about to speak:

"Wei Yanwu, I've come to see you in person..."

Before he finished speaking, Wei Yanwu took a step forward, and his longsword shot out like a snake from its hole, aiming straight for Xia Zhi's vital point. Xia Zhi's pupils contracted, and she hurriedly raised her broadsword in her right hand to block in front of her chest. But Wei Yanwu lightly touched the ground with an extremely illogical posture, instantly brushing past Xia Zhi, and his longsword also stabbed towards Xia Zhi's right rear abdomen with a backstab.

This place is the most difficult to defend. Even a fully prepared martial artist would find it very difficult to defend perfectly when suddenly attacked here, because it is a position where the right hand is difficult to turn behind one's back, and the left hand is powerless and out of reach. Wei Yanwu's sword strike was clearly intended to leave some wounds on Xia Zhi.

But Xia Zhi, as expected of the patrol team leader, saw that he was at a disadvantage in the ordinary swordsmanship competition and was about to be injured. He immediately activated the Originium Arts. In an instant, the soil outside the entrance seemed to be summoned and struck the tip of Wei Yanwu's sword with a snap, slightly reducing the sharpness of the sword.

This very point caused Xia Zhi to go from being stabbed through the side to being slightly grazed by a sharp blade.

"Wei Yanwu, what are you doing?"

Xia Zhi clutched her side and said in a cold voice:

"By attacking an inspector, are you confirming that you intend to rebel?!"

Wei Yanwu sneered, looking at Xia Zhi with some disdain, and asked in return:

"They barged in like a whirlwind, injured my guards, and made a mess of my entrance hall. I thought the Inspector had come to fight me."

He casually twirled his sword and said calmly:

"In terms of swordsmanship and actual combat, I can say that I am second to none. I can perform the Crimson Sky Sword Technique with just my fingers. Using a sword on you is already a sign of respect."

"you!"

Xia Zhi's face darkened. Wei Yanwu was blatantly mocking his martial prowess, but after just one exchange, Xia Zhi already knew he was no match for Wei Yanwu. Using Originium Arts in a martial arts duel, yet still failing to avoid injury, meant he had already lost to Wei Yanwu by a significant margin.

Seeing that he did not answer, Wei Yanwu sheathed his sword. He then spoke:

"Well then, Your Excellency Inspector, now that you've revealed your identity, I can no longer treat you as some nameless swordsman who doesn't know the rules and hastily barged into the residence of Governor Wei Yanwu of Longmen. Tell me, what is your purpose in barging into the residence of the current Emperor of Great Yan's elder brother and even drawing your sword against him?"

"I...."

Xia Zhi was about to speak when she suddenly hesitated. Looking at Wei Yanwu's confident smile, she knew she wouldn't get any information out of him.

He had already prepared his explanation. He knew he would only return empty-handed this time.

"Since you won't say it, then it's my turn to say it."

Wei Yanwu suddenly spoke in a stern voice.

"Xia Zhi, the current head of the Third Inspection Team of the Dali Temple of the Great Yan Dynasty, trespassed into the residence of Wei Yanwu, the Governor-General of Longmen, drew his sword against Wei Yanwu, spoke rudely to him, and even threatened to harm himself, falsely accusing me, the loyal Wei Yanwu, of attacking Dali Temple officials and plotting a rebellion. Is that correct?"

Xia Zhi's eyes widened, and she realized just how foolish she had come all this way.

A face-to-face confrontation? That's just wishful thinking. If Wei Yanwu dared to do it, how could he not have prepared an excuse and a reason? He's not some villain from a cliché novel who would spill everything to the protagonist in crisis just before the plan is about to succeed, talking himself to death.

Wei Yanwu is a shrewd politician. He would never put himself in danger. Even if Xia Zhi reveals the news of Jingzhe, he will probably continue to pass the buck and evade the issue with various excuses.

He would never reveal himself until the very last step.

He got carried away and fell into the trap!

Seeing that Xia Zhi's momentum had weakened by half, Wei Yanwu shrugged and tossed his sword aside. He said:

"Since you have no objection, I will report this to His Majesty the True Dragon."

"Wait a minute."

A calm and dignified female voice stopped Wei Yanwu, who was about to turn and leave. Lady Wenyue emerged from the side corridor, giving Xia Zhi a cold glance before turning to Wei Yanwu and saying:

"It's all a misunderstanding. Xiaoxue from the Inspection Department just called."

"Oh?" Wei Yanwu narrowed his eyes in confusion. "What did you say?"

"They say the Inspector General caught a bout of madness due to the change in environment. Inspector Jingzhe has already been taken to the Imperial Guard for having a fit of madness in the street. She saw Captain Xiazhi suddenly leave the hotel in a huff and, fearing trouble, she called us to report it. You weren't here just now, so I answered the phone. The call log and recording are on file; you can check them. I also asked Jiu about it; Jingzhe's story is indeed true."

Wei Yanwu was silent for a moment, then suddenly laughed and shook his head:

“Since it was the lady who said it, I certainly believe it. So Lord Xia Zhi has gone mad. I, Wei Yanwu, have truly failed to entertain you properly. Please forgive me. In that case, to avoid infection, let’s send Lord Xia Zhi to the Imperial Guard Bureau to rest for the time being.”

Wei Yanwu turned his head, a smile on his face, but his eyes were icy cold as he asked:

"What do you think, Lord Xia Zhi?"

That look in his eyes seemed to say, "You've been given a second chance at life."

Xia Zhi breathed a long sigh of relief. He never expected that Xiao Xue, whom he had the least faith in, would save his life at the crucial moment.

Speechless, Xia Zhi could only switch between an angry and extremely sad expression, nodding and shaking her head at the same time.

........

Ten minutes later, Lungmen Guard Bureau.

Jingzhe was lying on the desk, waiting for the people from the Supervision Department to come and sign the papers so they could lead her out.

This whole thing was a misunderstanding. She wasn't crazy, and Wayne and the others weren't bad people; she just overthought things. She ended up getting herself into the Guard Bureau's mess, what a huge embarrassment. She wondered how Captain Xia Zhi would scold her when she got back.

Lost in thought, Jingzhe spotted a familiar figure out of the corner of her eye. Captain Xiazhi was walking into the Guard Bureau with several officers. Her eyes lit up; she no longer cared about the scolding and punishment she would face upon returning, only wanting to leave this depressing and painful place as quickly as possible. So she hurried forward to greet Xiazhi, saying joyfully:

"Captain Xia Zhi, you're finally here. You're here to help me sign, right?"

Summer Solstice paused, looked at Awakening of Insects, turned her face away with a complicated expression, and shook her head, saying:

"No."

Jingzhe: "Eh? So you've come here."

Xia Zhi's face twitched, and she could only reluctantly stick out her tongue, muttering:

"I've gone crazy too."

He stretched out his finger, pointing to the Awakening of Insects:

"I caught it from you."

Jingzhe slowly opened her mouth, stunned in place, and didn't react until Xiazhi was escorted away.

She pointed blankly at herself and muttered to herself:

"Captain Xia Zhi has gone mad. Did I infect her?"

"So I...I'm really insane?"

P.S.: I spent all day grinding Genshin Impact today, I'm exhausted. My neighbor's sister-in-law (the author of "Doctor, please promise me!") and I wiped out all the fallen warriors in the Inazuma map. Unfortunately, I still haven't collected enough materials for Thor's ascension.

This map is terrible, hard to navigate, and the monsters have so much health. It took me almost twice as long to clear this map as it did to clear Liyue. Luckily, miHoYo has some conscience; you can find over a hundred Thor's Berries just by walking around Kiyose Island, so I'm not short of that.

I'll try to reach level 90 with Thor tomorrow!

Chapter Fifty-Four, *Crack*, Wei Yanwu pulls at his egg.

Longmen, Wei Yanwu's residence.

The traces of the battle had been erased, and the entire entrance hall looked spotless and brand new. After leaving the Guard Bureau, Wayne had Theresa and Vina take Little Anso back to the Elizabeth Hotel, while he himself went to Wei Yanwu's residence.

He had to keep his promise and help Chen figure out the reason for the kidnapping, giving her an explanation.

As if he had anticipated Wayne's arrival, Wei Yanwu had sent someone to wait at the entrance and had prepared new slippers. When Wayne arrived at the main entrance of Wei Yanwu's residence, the waiting maid immediately stepped forward and led Wayne toward the tea room.

Before even entering the tea room, Wayne could hear the conversation coming from inside.

"How much longer do we have to wait? You know, Wei Yanwu, you can't get away with this."

"I don't mean to stall for time, but Lao Lin, the main person hasn't arrived yet, so don't worry."

It was the voice of the Rat King and Wei Yanwu.

Wayne frowned slightly, knowing that the person Wei Yanwu was referring to was most likely himself. He turned his head and deliberately spoke to the maid:

"You go first."

Then, he pushed open the door and went inside. As expected, inside, the Rat King sat opposite Wei Yanwu, leaning on his golden dragon-headed cane, his expression not very pleasant. Wei Yanwu, on the other hand, beamed with delight and stood up to greet him:

"Look, our main character has arrived."

“I can’t afford that.” Wayne shook his head, sat down on the remaining sofa, and said:

"It seems Mr. Wei and Mr. Lin have been waiting for me here for a long time? What happened that made them so eager to see me?"

“A Victorian…” The Rat King clearly recognized Wayne, and his face involuntarily darkened further. He looked at Wei Yanwu and questioned, “Wei Yanwu, what do you want to do? Don’t you know his identity?”

Wei Yanwu nodded: "I know, Wayne Bruce, Prince of Victoria. A legitimate member of the Aslan royal family, and I was the one who received him, how could I not know?"

"Then how dare you be here..."

The Rat King was halfway through his sentence when Wei Yanwu suddenly looked at Wayne and interrupted him, saying: