That wretched vixen has disguised herself as my wife!

"I told you that you need to go out and explore more to broaden your horizons, right? If I hadn't come out this time, I would have really believed what those old men said, thinking that all the sects except the Righteous Path Alliance were just quacks!"

That might not be wrong.

Jiang Jingming thought to himself, "After all, you've encountered the righteous alliance's mortal enemy, the Duyue Sect."

Lu Zhao didn't refute, but scratched his head and smiled apologetically.

He achieved fame at a young age and had a smooth career with almost no obstacles, which inevitably made him somewhat arrogant and impetuous.

Only now, thousands of miles from home, do I realize that a young man from a merchant family possesses such chillingly sharp swordsmanship, and that an ordinary bandit case could lead to the discovery of such a terrifying poison. Truly, a frog in a well is unaware of the vastness of the world.

The bandit preferred death to identifying the murderer, and in the end, the government exiled him to a quarry, where he would have to do hard labor for the rest of his life to atone for his sins.

The mission to investigate the bandit case was not completed this time, but a lot of new intelligence was obtained unintentionally, which should be enough to atone for the crime.

Furthermore, considering that Miss Xie returned safely, Commander Xie will likely not be too harsh on her.

Lu Zhao finished the mutton soup in the bowl and let out a long sigh.

Chapter Thirty-Nine: A Couple Fatal for Love

After finishing their last bowl of yokan noodles, the group led their horses all the way to the city gate.

Xie Yunqi had been complaining about being tired from walking, so he was the first to mount his horse with a very graceful movement.

She smiled and cracked her whip loudly in the sunlight, looking like a girl who grew up freely on the grasslands.

Fang Zhiyi can also ride a horse.

Lu Zhao specially bought her a fine local horse, though he was initially a little worried.

Although the horses of Yongzhou are strong, they are also notoriously wild and difficult to tame, making them hard for most girls to handle.

However, Fang Zhiyi simply walked up to it and gently patted the horse's neck.

The rather unruly horse obediently bent its front hooves and lay down on the ground, as if inviting her to mount it.

Lu Zhao and Jiang Jingming stood side by side, their eyes wide with shock.

What does this mean?

Jiang Jingming merely raised an eyebrow slightly, offering no comment.

Now that things have come to this, he wouldn't be surprised no matter what happens to Fang Zhiyi.

"Everyone, the roads in Yongzhou are difficult to travel. I'll lead the way. Just follow me and be careful not to fall behind!"

Lu Zhao rode his horse to the front and then turned back to give instructions.

Xie Yunqi and Fang Zhiyi walked behind him, while Jiang Jingming and A Qing stayed behind to cover their retreat.

Many caravans set off at this time, and when they saw Lu Zhao's dashing figure as he rode his horse with a whip, they all laughed, clapped, and cheered.

"Young hero, what a spirited young man! If we encounter bandits on the road, we'll all be counting on you!"

"What's the problem!"

Lu Zhao waved his hand, agreeing to everything.

So Miss Xie was very unhappy that someone had stolen her thunder.

"Hey! You've flattered the wrong person. You should come to me with this kind of thing!"

"Good, good, good! The heroine is in high spirits!"

The caravan members laughed heartily as they loaded the goods onto the camels.

No one could dislike such a beautiful young girl with bright eyes, white teeth, and youthful energy.

Fang Zhiyi lowered her head and stroked the crimson horse's mane, a faint smile playing on her lips.

In the distance, the vast desert sands raged, but she rode her horse quietly, making the whole world seem to quiet down.

The group argued and bickered for a while before finally setting off successfully.

Jiang Jingming gently reined in the horse, letting it move forward slowly.

Aqing fell half a position behind him, and the two of them gradually distanced themselves from the three people in front.

Just like in the corridor that morning, no one spoke.

"Aqing."

Jiang Jingming was the one who broke the silence first.

"Ah."

Aqing raised her eyes and looked at him quietly.

Jiang Jingming actually knew that she wasn't angry at all; he was just a little embarrassed because of what happened last night.

Therefore, he decided to get straight to the point and ask the question.

Where did you go last night?

"..."

Aqing remained silent for a long time. The midday sun shone on the two of them, making them feel hot.

Jiang Jingming had imagined many possibilities in his mind.

Could they be remnants of the gang that the person in charge had planted in the city? Or could they be servants from Master Fu's household seeking revenge?

However, what Aqing said first was:

"I went to find the owner of the merman show."

"?"

Jiang Jingming's fingers tightened around the horse's reins; this was a possibility he had never considered.

"why?"

“When you were talking to her during the performance yesterday, even though I couldn’t hear her voice, I could read her lips.”

Aqing blinked.

This is a required course for the Tianji Department, because they often need to maintain a certain distance to survey targets, and at that time, they can only judge what the other party is saying by reading their lip movements.

“That merman was fake, and I think the young master is somewhat concerned about it. So, I tracked them down to their camp under cover of night.”

"Okay, and then what?"

Jiang Jingming suddenly felt like laughing.

It was for this reason.

Ah Qing really is like a silly little sparrow, quietly doing such things, as if she were working hard to bring someone a pine cone.

"When I found them, the boss was drinking with the dancers he had hired. He was terrified when he saw me."

Ah Qing spoke as she recalled the events.

Jiang Jingming thought to himself that there weren't many people who wouldn't be scared after you put on that iron mask.

“I told the dancers to leave, saying I wanted to see the merman, and the boss took me to a pool near their camp.”

"The mermaid was lying by the pool. When she saw him, she was very happy, but she couldn't speak, only making incoherent noises. Then she saw me and the knife in my hand, and she was so frightened that she dived to the bottom of the water."

"The boss thought I was after the merman, so he knelt down and kowtowed. I thought he was afraid of losing this cash cow, but he kowtowed until his head was covered in blood, and he just begged me not to hurt her. Sell her somewhere else or take her home to raise, as long as you don't hurt her."

At this point, Aqing couldn't help but show a puzzled expression.

Upon hearing this, Jiang Jingming could only sigh softly.

Human nature is truly complex; it can be deception or exploitation.

When faced with a life-or-death situation, he would even risk his own life to beg for her safety.

"The mermaid was initially afraid and hid, but upon hearing the commotion, she quietly surfaced. Seeing that he was injured and bleeding, she shouted at me loudly, swung her fish tail, and struggled to climb ashore to block his way."

Ah Qing spoke slowly, her voice gradually softening.

"What a... ill-fated couple."

Jiang Jingming sighed.

After a long pause, he couldn't help but ask again:

"Ah Qing, things have come to this, you didn't actually lay a hand on him, did you?"

Aqing shook her head.

“I understand what the young master means, so I never intended to kill him in the first place. I just wanted to threaten him so that he would stop mistreating that merman.”

"That's good."

Jiang Jingming breathed a sigh of relief.

Ah Qing has always been a straightforward person; she would never do something twice if she could solve it with one stroke. I never expected her to be so meticulous.

"I made up an excuse and let them go."

"What excuse?"

"I asked the shopkeeper where he got these merfolk created by secret techniques. He hesitated for a long time until I drew my knife again, and then he answered honestly."

Aqing's tone was calm, but her words were very vivid.

Jiang Jingming could already imagine the two of them huddled together, shivering.

He said that he bought the fake mermaid from Cangzhou, and it cost more than ten times more than a real mermaid because it was good-looking, and only such a performance would attract viewers.

“Even in Cangzhou, it’s not easy to buy one like this. The reason he was able to afford it was because she was sick and about to die at the time.”

“The seller thought she was definitely not going to survive, that she was a defective product, and had been leaving her in the cellar to fend for herself, which is why he sold her to him so cheaply. He took her back and took good care of her for a while, and she gradually came back to life.”

"..."

No wonder.

Jiang Jingming thought of Fang Zhiyi's words.

Merfolk are devoted creatures; once they fall in love with someone, they will never change.

In those dark, hopeless days of waiting for death, if someone suddenly appears like a savior, you will naturally fall in love with him, even if he is a businessman who is only after you.

Chapter Forty: The Ghost Doctor

"In Cangzhou, these fake mermaids are called 'big fish' and are only sold on the black market. As for this secret technique for modifying mermaids, it is said that it was created by a doctor known as the Ghost Doctor and only gradually spread later."

"Ghost doctor?"

Jiang Jingming frowned slightly; he had never heard of this person.

This indicates that there are no records of this person in the library of the Xiquan Sword Sect.

Either he acted in an extremely secretive manner, or the library deliberately did not keep any records about him.

It seems to be the latter, because people who act discreetly are unlikely to reveal the secret techniques they have researched.

"Yes."

Aqing nodded in confirmation.

She had never heard of this person before. Logically, Shen Zhuo should know him, but he had never mentioned him.

"He actually managed to develop a bizarre technique that could combine humans and merfolk; no wonder he's called the Ghost Doctor."

As Jiang Jingming sighed, he wrapped the horse reins around his wrist.

Just then, he suddenly remembered the person Fang Zhiyi had mentioned last night.

That person, whose medical skills are unparalleled but whose conditions for saving lives are extremely demanding, sounds quite fitting for the title of "Ghost Doctor."

Fang Zhiyi was able to see through the merman so easily; could it be that she learned her medical skills from this ghost doctor?

That makes sense, I suppose.

However, if you were to ask her, you probably wouldn't get a single truthful answer.

The five men, riding lightly on horseback, had already left the caravans with camels far behind.

Behind us are the hoofprints left by horses treading through the yellow sand. Looking into the distance, we can see a continuous range of snow-capped mountains at the horizon, like a desolate and magnificent knife mark, beneath which lies a verdant grassland.