That wretched vixen has disguised herself as my wife!

The person in charge bowed deeply, behaving obsequiously.

"This matter is indeed my dereliction of duty. This merchant surnamed Fu has been donating silver and goods to the government for many years and is known in the city as the great philanthropist Fu. I never imagined that he would do such a heinous thing behind the scenes..."

"I think it's only you corrupt officials who think he's a great philanthropist!"

Xie Yunqi pulled the shopkeeper and the waiter out from behind the counter.

"Don't you two think this guy surnamed Fu is a great philanthropist?"

The shopkeeper and the waiter exchanged a nervous glance, silently weighing whether the young lady or the manager was more dangerous to deal with.

After receiving a sharp look from Xie Yunqi, the shopkeeper steeled himself and closed his eyes.

"Although Master Fu is generous, he treats ordinary people like dirt. Taking lives is commonplace for him; he often breaks people's legs and then lets his vicious dogs devour them..."

Upon hearing this, even Lu Zhao's expression turned ugly.

He was indeed a law-abiding and rigid person, but he couldn't stand seeing such scum surviving in the world.

"If that's the case, killing him with one sword would be too lenient for him."

Xie Yunqi took a deep breath, but sheathed his sword.

“Once he is sober, I will personally interrogate him, explaining everything he did, and make him bear the consequences of his evil deeds.”

"If Miss Xie says so, I know I have failed in my duty and dare not say more."

The person in charge hung his head and sighed.

"I have just examined his injuries. He has internal injuries, but they are not fatal. He can be put on trial tomorrow."

"Hmph hmph hmph..."

Xie Yunqi mentally reviewed the instruments of the ten most cruel tortures and chuckled coldly.

Lu Zhao looked at her and sighed helplessly.

"However, Miss, please don't forget that we have other important matters to attend to on this trip."

"Hey!"

Xie Yunqi seemed to have finally remembered this important matter. He poked the person in charge standing to the side with his sword sheath, which startled him so much that he trembled all over.

"Are you aware that all the bandits around your Shulan City have been wiped out?"

"All dead? All of them?"

The person in charge was stunned.

As a hub of trade routes, the area around Shulan City has been plagued by bandits for over a century.

Relying on their familiarity with the terrain and their cunning, the city's government initially tried to manage the situation, but ultimately failed.

As a result, the bandits around them became increasingly arrogant, and the caravan suffered greatly, but they could only swallow their anger.

The head of the bandit leader that was hung at the city gate a few days ago is said by the people to be the result of government intervention.

The person in charge knew that this was not the case, but he had no clue, so he could only assume that it was some kind-hearted person who did things anonymously.

That would be fine if it were just that, but all of it?

There were at least several hundred bandits who lingered on the trade route, and they were all dead?

"Not only were they all dead, but they died in a horrific way. We went to the scene on our way here, and there were heads and limbs scattered all over the place."

Lu Zhao said in a low voice, his face grim.

"..."

Jiang Jingming raised an eyebrow and glanced at A Qing.

Aqing noticed his gaze and silently turned her eyes downstairs, but she was looking at Master Fu lying on the ground.

"He's dying."

"Is that so?"

Although he knew she was changing the subject, Jiang Jingming was still somewhat surprised.

"Ah."

"Was he hit by the girl's wild punches?"

"Do not."

Aqing shook her head, her brows furrowing slightly, as if she didn't quite understand.

"It doesn't look like he was beaten."

Hearing her say that, Jiang Jingming also frowned.

Just moments ago, Master Fu was able to call for help, but now he lay stiffly like a dead dog, with only the slight rise and fall of his body indicating that he was still breathing.

Jiang Jingming's gaze darkened as he noticed that the fingers under the man's sleeve were twitching intermittently, appearing congested and red.

The three people downstairs didn't notice his strange behavior and continued their discussion.

"Although the deaths of the bandits were not a pity, the large number of casualties still attracted the attention of the higher-ups."

Lu Zhao gripped the hilt of his sword, barely suppressing the urge to sigh.

Although it was a major case, it paled in comparison to the Tingpu Villa massacre.

Compared to the whereabouts of those demons from the Crossing Moon Sect, what is the death of the bandits?

Most of his brothers went there to investigate, but he was unlucky enough to take this young lady on a long journey to Yongzhou.

Along the way, he teased cats and dogs, causing quite a bit of trouble.

For example, she got angry and sank the ferry because some rich young men on the ferry whistled at her, leaving them to drift in the cold night clinging to the deck.

"It's truly appalling. It's a pity we've lived in the city for so long and didn't know such a big thing had happened."

The person in charge turned pale, as if he could picture the horrific scene unfolding before his eyes.

"How come you don't know anything?"

Xie Yunqi pursed his lips and turned to look at the shopkeeper and waiter who were huddled together.

"Shopkeeper, you're a businessman, have you seen any suspicious or unfamiliar people lately?"

The reason she came to the inn so quickly today was that she thought it would be easier to get information by being in a group.

Unexpectedly, as soon as I entered, I saw two suspects sitting on the second floor ordering food!

Thinking of this, Xie Yunqi raised his head again to look upstairs.

But no one was seen.

The spot where I was standing is now empty.

Xie Yunqi was startled when he suddenly heard a lazy voice behind him.

"Looking for me?"

She was startled and turned around.

A handsome young man in white leaned against a corner, a strange black knife hanging at his waist, and for a moment the light around him seemed to dim.

Lu Zhao gripped the hilt of his sword, alarm bells ringing in his mind.

When did this person appear so close? He didn't even notice.

However, Miss Xie did not think so.

Now that she had figured out the whole story, most of her hostility towards Jiang Jingming disappeared.

She blinked, seemingly a little embarrassed about her previous difficult behavior.

"My name is Xie Yunqi. What's your name?"

Her response was a sudden, approaching gust of wind emanating from a blade.

Before Lu Zhao could even utter a word of "be careful," he saw the bloody, mangled mess standing behind the two of them.

Mr. Fu.

His eyes were bloodshot, like those of a demon.

However, the black blade had already pierced his throat. Jiang Jingming held the knife in reverse, his eyes flashing like lightning.

Chapter Twenty-Two: Hehehe

Jiang Jingming and A Qing both realized the same thing just now.

That was Master Fu, who was on the verge of death, looking just like the wolves from the Canglang Gathering who had gone mad.

Still immersed in the grief of losing his friend, Jiang Jingming hadn't had time to consider the root cause of this tragedy.

If the wolves were just in their normal state, they would definitely be afraid of fire and pain, and would not have brought such a big crisis to the Hara tribe.

Even with their legs severed, the wolves that night did not relinquish their desire to attack flesh and blood. Their pupils turned a bloodshot red, and their muscles and bones were much tougher than usual.

Jiang Jingming initially speculated that it was caused by some kind of epidemic spreading within the tribe, but similar symptoms actually appeared on Master Fu.

Although this person is heartless and cruel, he is still a decent human being.

Therefore, "poisoning" seems to be a better explanation for this phenomenon than "epidemic".

In other words, someone poisoned the food.

......

Wu Jiu's blade plunged into Master Fu's throat, blood gushing out. He stared wide-eyed, gasping for breath.

"Ghost!!!"

The shopkeeper and the waiter screamed at the same time and turned to run away.

"Don't leave, go and put the bolt on."

Lu Zhao coldly drew his sword and pointed it at the door.

Such ghostly tales must never be spread, as they would cause public panic.

The timid head of the inspection department sheepishly withdrew his steps, which were about to run with the two.

Jiang Jingming exerted force with his wrist and tried to turn the knife handle.

Logically speaking, with Wu Jiu's sharpness, he could easily sever his throat, causing his head to roll off as well.

But the blade seemed to be stuck in a sticky swamp, unable to move at all.

"You're not dead yet?"

Xie Yunqi stood beside him, and seeing this terrible sight, his little face scrunched up in a grimace.

"What do you think, Miss?"

Jiang Jingming's tone was indifferent.

He abandoned his previous idea, gripped the hilt of the knife with both hands, kicked Master Fu in the chest, and forcefully pulled Wu Jiu out.

Bright red blood dripped down in twos and threes, steaming hot.

"What's going on? Has it come back to life?"

Lu Zhao stepped forward with his sword, shielding Xie Yunqi behind him.

He had originally intended to question the boy further about his background, but there were clearly more pressing matters to deal with.

Mr. Fu sat on the ground, a huge bloody hole pierced his throat, blood gushing out, yet he still kept his eyes open and slowly tried to stand up again.

Jiang Jingming casually swung the knife, shaking off the bloodstains.

"If I'm not mistaken, he'll die if his head is cut off."

"A zombie?"

Lu Zhao swallowed hard, thinking of the legends he had heard in his childhood.

The dead rose from their coffins and hopped about in a line in the street, their mouths full of fangs, thirsting for human blood, and impervious to swords and spears.

Such stories were very popular in the capital, meant to scare children and prevent them from running around at night.

"No! Zombies don't have blood."