Book 5: Chapter 31: Late At Night
Book 5: Chapter 31: Late At Night
Because he already learned the lesson of Ten Fingers Ridge, Lin Xi first carefully sized up the surroundings of this decorated pleasure boat. Only when he saw that there were no signs of anyone else hiding, did he carefully examine the embroidered clothed youngster and the man in the black raincoat on the ground.”
The embroidered clothed youngster’s face was quite handsome, his body not having much ornaments, giving off a rather fresh and clean feeling.
On his silver silk clothes were two carps swimming among lotus leaves, woven out of five-colored embroidered silk, looking quite full of life.
However, the first impression Lin Xi received when he saw this handsome young man was that he didn’t like him.
He never judged one purely based on their appearances, the dislike he felt inside was because even though this youngster’s appearance was handsome and refined, no flaws to be found, when he saw the man in the black raincoat before him, the calmness and indifference gave Lin Xi an extremely cold feeling.
Perhaps because he was scared that he would lose even more blood if he pulled it out, the man in the black raincoat didn’t pull it out, out the transparent arrow was still in his body. However, he already stopped breathing.
This arrow that Lin Xi fired wasn’t fatal for a cultivator. However, because he didn’t want to land in Lin Xi’s hands, after holding his breath and remaining underwater for a long time, this grave cultivator instead squandered the last bit of his life force.
Did he want to make a report, or did he want this embroidered clothed young man to get revenge for him?
…
Lin Xi’s expression was a bit overcast as he sized up this embroidered clothes youngster. Meanwhile, this youngster was also sizing up Lin Xi and Second Grandpa Zhang.
Without waiting for Lin Xi to speak, this embroidered clothed youngster’s eyebrows jumped slightly, calmly asking, “Who are you? What do you want to do after coming onto my decorated pleasure boat?”
Lin Xi’s brows also jumped. He pointed at this black raincoat man’s corpse, and then looked at this embroidered clothed youngster’s indifferent eyes, saying, “You had them assassinate me, yet you are still asking who I am?”
The embroidered clothed youngster gave Lin Xi a look. He suddenly laughed, saying, “I believe you all might be mistaken. I do not know this person.”
“Of course you can speak like this, but your expression is too calm, so it instead seems too fake.”
Lin Xi looked at this embroidered clothed youngster, slowly saying, “Breath River has so many river bays, why did he have to give up on me and instead left for the distance, arriving here? There are so many decorated pleasure boats, why did he have to come to this one? He went through all that struggle so that he could tell you what kind of person I am, to let you see this arrow clearly. However, after doing all of this, I fear that he never expected that his loyalty and death didn’t even earn a trace of grief or sympathy from you.”
Every word Lin Xi spoke was extremely forceful, like swords aimed at the heart. However, this embroidered clothed youngster instead calmly smiled, saying, “You are saying that my expression is too calm… it might also be because of some other reasons.”
“Then what other reason could it be?” Lin Xi gave Second Grandpa Zhang next to him a look, and then looked at the black raincoat corpse on the ground, saying with a sneer, “Could it be that someone else wanted to frame you?”
The embroidered clothed youngster revealed a sweet-tempered smile, but his expression instead became serious, saying coldly, “From start until now, after entering my ship, you still haven’t told me who you all are. Even if there were other reasons, why do I need to tell you two?”
Lin Xi didn’t get angry. He discovered that ever since he left Deerwood Town, seeing himself as a tourist, many people in his eyes became like actors in a play.
He didn’t say anything, only producing the Enforcer medal, letting this embroidered clothed youngster see it clearly.
“Turns out it was an Enforcer investigating a case.” The embroidered clothed youngster laughed. He pointed at the black raincoat man’s corpse on the ground, saying, “Then this is the criminal you all are pursuing?”
Lin Xi didn’t reply, only looking at this embroidered clothed youngster and asking, “What is your name, what do you do?”
The embroidered clothed youngster looked at Lin Xi, shaking his head, revealing an expression of mockery. “This Swallow Descent Town’s enforcer is Sir Zhao. I don’t care where you are serving as an Enforcer, or even if you really are an Enforcer, you still don’t have the right to come to Swallow Descent Town and question my background, right?”
“Then please follow us back to East Port Town.” Lin Xi walked up, picking up the black raincoat man’s corpse with a single hand. He looked at the embroidered clothed youngster and said seriously, “Since you are talking about Yunqin law with me, then you should also know that when arresting a vicious individual, those involved can be brought back to the Enforcer Office to be questioned.
The embroidered clothed youngster laughed. “Then does this mean that you are sure this case is related to me?”
Lin Xi calmly looked at this embroidered clothed youngster, saying, “If you wish to speak further nonsense and defy the law, I will immediately tie you up and bring you back.”
“You want to tie me up? Good, very good, I will follow you back to East Port Town.” The embroidered clothed youngster was so angry he instead laughed. His eyes narrowed slightly. With his head held high, he walked past Lin Xi and Second Grandpa Zhang, walking towards the front of the boat.
“Our boat is in the back.”
While looking at this embroidered clothed youngster who walked towards the head of the boat in a high and mighty manner, Lin Xi said this.
This embroidered clothed youngster’s expression became sluggish, face immediately becoming the color of pig liver.
…
“Even if you are a cultivator, so what?”
When he turned around and walked towards the back of the ship, under Lin Xi’s attentive gaze, he jumped down to the small boat Second Grandpa Zhang fastened with the bamboo pole. The embroidered clothed youngster’s face already returned to normal, when he looked at Lin XI, he sneered, his smile carrying extremely complicated emotions. His smile was filled with a bit of pity, a bit deeply moved, as if he felt extremely sorry for Lin Xi, he said, “No matter how formidable you are, you are still only an Enforcer. An Enforcer must have proof before a case can be judged. I previously heard that a youngster who didn’t understand propriety became East Port Town’s enforcer, and his luck is extremely bad, encountering a homicide case immediately after arriving, forced to solve it in seven days… after seven days, I’ll still be on this river, but it might be hard for this Enforcer to keep his position.”
Lin Xi didn’t pay this embroidered clothed young man any attention, only pulling out the Dendrite Iron Arrow, starting to carefully examine this man’s corpse.
This man’s body didn’t have anything on him. When the examination was complete and he stood up, he looked at this cultivator’s face that was white like paper. With a shake of his head, he said, “You were originally a heroic individual, but you ended up being used by a petty person.”
“You don’t need to use words to purposely provoke me.” The embroidered clothed young man heard Lin Xi’s words, his eyes narrowing slightly as he said, “The more you want to see me angry, the more I won’t let things go as you wish. As for why, you’ll naturally know once you reach East Port Town.”
From when Second Grandpa Zhang entered that decorated pleasure boat until now when he controlled the boat, he didn’t say a word.
Right now, he instead nodded towards Lin Xi, saying, “His blood and qi aren’t concentrated, shouldn’t be a cultivator.”
Lin Xi also nodded. “He looks calm on the surface, but his legs even trembled when he jumped from that boat, of course he’s not a cultivator.”
When he heard Lin Xi say this, the embroidered clothed young man’s face went rigid, wishing to get angry, but he forcibly endured it.
Right at this time, Second Grandpa Zhang turned around slightly, looking at this embroidered clothed young man and seriously saying, “I am not an Enforcer… so I don’t need any proof. Since you wish to frame us today, I can guarantee with my life that even if Sir Lin Xi cannot hold the position as Enforcer anymore after seven days, I definitely won’t let you have it easy.”
“Dragon King Zhang, I know you are also a cultivator.” The embroidered clothed young man became a bit sluggish, but then, he instead sneered again. He looked at Second Grandpa Zhang and said, “However, in this Deereast City, the number of people who can hurt you is still not few. Don’t tell me you forgot where your injury came from?”
Second Grandpa Zhang gave this embroidered clothed young man a look, and then didn’t say anything else, only using the bamboo pole to stir the river waters, expertly controlling this boat.
Lin Xi sat down at the front of the boat, washing his face a bit with the river water, making himself a bit more awake. He frowned, after thinking for a bit, he said to Second Grandpa Zhang, “I need to make a trip to Thriving Prosperity’s large ship first, so I must trouble mister to first watch over this person, stop for a bit in the water, wait for me to come back out.”
“Alright, I’ll bring you over.”
Second Grandpa Zhang became quiet for a moment, and then said, “However, you need to act a bit quickly, I also need to deal with some matters first.”
…
Their boat moved along the water, entering East Port Town’s harbor.
When he saw the two Thriving Prosperity ships whose lights still hadn’t gone out, Lin Xi turned around and bowed towards the pole holding Second Grandpa Zhang, saying, “I will share a drink with mister when it is a bit later.”
Second Grandpa Zhang nodded his head, returning the greeting, but his expression instead became a bit grave.
Lin Xi’s eyes stopped over the thick mooring rope of Thriving Prosperity’s large ship, looking at the ship body that was as tall as a building. He didn’t stop at all, placing the Daybreak Longsword in his hands in the small boat as well. While carrying the black raincoat man’s corpse in hand, he jumped up.
His free left hand grabbed the mooring rope, and then his body continuously leapt up. With a dong sound, he landed heavily on the bow of the ship.
“I am Lin Xi, I wish to meet Manager Song Chengpeng.”
When a dozen or so crew members quickly arrived, his voice already ran through this large ship. There were immediately even more lights lit.
Right now, news of the new Enforcer being attacked by the riverfront small building had long spread, the riverfront small building still having several corpses resting on the terrace. This was why the Enforcer Office’s bailiffs and some officials were already gathered at that river bank, but no one knew where Lin Xi was right now… Because of the things that already happened tonight, Lin Xi’s voice naturally carried a type of intimidating and imposing force.
Moreover, in his hands was the corpse of a black raincoat clothed man.
Song Chengpeng clearly hadn’t slept yet. Following a wave of rushed footsteps, he appeared from another ship under the escort of a group of people. He quickly arrived in front of Lin Xi through a sampan.
“Enforcer Lin, appearing on my Thriving Glory ship so late at night, what are you trying to do?!” Businessmen hated inauspicious things the most. Right now, when he saw Lin Xi bring a corpse on board, the face of this manager of two Thriving Prosperity ships immediately became a bit green, saying this with a sunken voice while suppressing his anger.
Lin Xi calmly looked at the extremely ugly expressioned Song Chengpeng, saying, “Just now, I just made your Thriving Prosperity ships remain in our port, yet today, I immediately faced an assassination, you tell me if this is a bit too much of a coincidence? Moreover, these assassins that were sent after me should all be soldiers who had remained in the army for quite some time, perhaps in this entire Breath River, only Thriving Prosperity can employ these soldiers. Now that I have come here, shouldn’t you all give me some type of explanation?”
Towards Thriving Prosperity, this was originally already an unexpected calamity, but now, the other party suddenly brought a corpse on deck, even criticized them in such a rude and unreasonable manner, so the ordinarily rather well-tempered Song Chengpeng immediately became so angry his entire body trembled, unable to hold back any more. He reached out a rather bloated finger, pointing at Lin Xi and saying with a furious shaking voice, “You… you are simply b*llshitting!”
When these words sounded, not only did the people on these two Thriving Prosperity ships become stunned, even Song Chengpeng himself went rigid. He never expected he could curse out like this. However, when had Thriving Prosperity ever been bullied by an official to this degree? When he thought about how he already cursed out, this manager decided he might as well throw caution to the wind, no longer holding himself back. “A newcomer brat who still stinks of your mother’s milk, what do you know? The amount of salt I’ve eaten is more than the amount of rice you’ve eaten, you actually dare speak like this in front of me, speak utter b*llshit continuously…”
“It is precisely because I do not know much that I must ask Manager Song to explain everything clearly. Apart from you all, who else can employ these soldiers?” However, Lin Xi didn’t become upset at all, only calmly looking at Song Chengpeng and saying, “Otherwise, not only will I keep your ships in the port, today, anyone who I suspect even slightly, feeling like their bodies are similar to the assassins’, I will drag them all with me to the Enforcer Office.”
“You…” Song Chengpeng also couldn’t swear anymore. He looked at Lin Xi for a long time, and then he felt anger and resentment again. However, he helplessly clenched his teeth, saying fiercely, “Offending our Thriving Prosperity like this, isn’t it just forcing us to help you investigate this case? … Fine, I can only tell you one thing right now. That floating corpse, someone saw him visit Clear River Town’s Enforcer Office to report a case. If you still want to use other methods to force us… then it can only be either the fish dies or the net splits.”