Young hero, stay put and don't be reckless.

Chapter 125 Martial Law

Only Jiang Xun, Tuoba Feng, and Ye Qingying remained on the street.

"Something feels off," Jiang Xun spoke first, scratching his head. "That Helian Jun actually smiled at me just now?"

"Why can't he smile at you?" Ye Qingying glanced at him. "What grudge do you have against him?"

Jiang Xun awkwardly touched his nose, offering no explanation, only vaguely saying, "I just felt that this guy was being unusually polite today, and his laughter made me feel uncomfortable."

Jiang Xun had only said this casually, but to his surprise, Tuoba Feng nodded and said, "You're right."

Jiang Xun immediately perked up, his eyes lighting up: "You think so too?"

Tuoba Feng said, "Helian Jun thinks highly of himself, but today he is being humble and trying to please others, which is not like him."

"See! I told you so!" Jiang Xun turned to look at Ye Qingying triumphantly, looking as if he had found gold.

Ye Qingying was too lazy to pay attention to his smug look, but after being reminded by him, she seemed to realize that something was wrong and frowned in thought.

"Is there a problem with tomorrow night's banquet?"

"It's hard to say," Tuoba Feng said in a deep voice. "I felt something was off ever since the Sword Ruins."

"Something's not right?" Ye Qingying asked.

"Everything is going too smoothly." Tuoba Feng paused, "much smoother than I expected."

Ye Qingying nodded: "Now that you mention it, I think I feel the same way."

Jiang Xun listened from the side, his eyes darting back and forth between the two of them. He suddenly realized that they were chatting quite naturally, unlike before when they were so distant.

He couldn't help but chuckle as he stared at Tuoba Feng, secretly nodding to himself: This kid has finally come to his senses; he's teachable.

Tuoba Feng felt a chill run down his spine from that lewd gaze. Remembering something, he coughed dryly and coldly said, "I have something to do, I'm leaving now. Anyway, everyone be careful tomorrow."

After saying that, he turned and left, walking so fast it was as if a ghost was chasing him.

Ye Qingying glanced at Jiang Xun with a puzzled look, but seemed to be used to his behavior, and simply said, "Okay. See you tomorrow."

Then he turned and left.

Jiang Xun stood on the empty street, watching the two walk away cleanly one after the other, and couldn't help but mutter, "This person really doesn't appreciate kindness—I went to great lengths to introduce you two, and they didn't even say thank you."

He sighed for a while, then shook his head and walked alone toward the west of the city.

Along the way, he noticed that there were many more patrolling guards in the alley, in twos and threes, with hurried steps, as if they were looking for someone, or as if they were guarding against someone.

Several guards saw him, their gazes lingered on him for a moment, then casually looked away.

He quickened his pace and returned to his house.

Pushing open the courtyard gate, the courtyard was very quiet—half of the leaves of the old locust tree had fallen, and a thin layer of dust had accumulated on the stone table.

He pushed open the door to the main room.

There was a person standing inside the room.

Shadow Seven.

Still dressed in gray, with a black cloth covering his face, he stood in the shadows, as if he had been standing there for a long time, or as if he had just arrived.

"Your subordinate greets the young master."

"You're welcome." Jiang Xun closed the door and sat down opposite him. "What's been going on in the city these past few days? I felt something was off as soon as I entered the city."

Ying Qi emerged from the shadows and stood ramrod straight: "Three days after you left, Helian Quan ordered martial law."

"Martial law?" Jiang Xun frowned. "Why?"

"I don't know," Ying Qi shook his head. "They say it's to maintain order and prevent spies from infiltrating. But martial law isn't anything new in Shuofeng City—this place is sandwiched between Dayong and Dahan, and neither side cares, so anyone can come. Helian Quan imposes martial law for a few days every now and then."

"Every now and then?" Jiang Xun keenly sensed something. "During martial law, was there anything unusual in the city?"

"Nothing unusual." Ying Qi paused, as if recalling something. "If there's anything unusual, it's that two groups of people arrived the afternoon before martial law was declared."

"Is there anything unusual about this?"

"The young master once instructed me to keep a close eye on Ma Zhong. These two groups of people were personally escorted by Ma Zhong."

Jiang Xun's heart skipped a beat, and he vaguely grasped something: "What's the background of these two caravans?"

"A group of merchants from the south, from Dayong, led by a man named Lü Le, have booked the Yuelai Inn in the city."

"What about the other group?"

"A caravan from the North," Shadow Seven said. "They've settled in the Lu residence in the east of the city."

"The Lu residence?" Jiang Xun's head was spinning. "Whose residence is that?"

"It's a man named Lu Zhong." Ying Qi glanced at Jiang Xun with some surprise, seemingly wondering how this young master wouldn't know. "There's another person who also lives in the Lu residence."

"Who?"

"Xiao Rui".

Jiang Xun was stunned for a moment.

Only then did he realize that Xiao Rui's residence in Shuofeng City was this Lu Mansion.

It seems that Xiao Rui has a close relationship with this Northern Border caravan, and it is even possible that the caravan originally belonged to the Xiao family.

Moreover, Ma Zhong was a local strongman in Shuofeng City and had close ties with the City Lord's Mansion.

Could these two caravans appearing at the same time also be related to the city lord's mansion?

Is the martial law in Shuofeng City just for these two caravans?

Jiang Xun's head was throbbing from thinking, and he felt like his brain was about to give out.

"There's one more thing," Yingqi interrupted his thoughts. "Just now, the owner of 'Yang's Ironware Shop' in the East Market was arrested by the City Lord's Mansion."

"Do you know why you're being arrested?"

"I don't know." Ying Qi shook her head. "It was Helian Jun who led the group there personally."

Jiang Xun's heart sank.

The timing was too coincidental—he had just returned from the Sword Ruins when Boss Yang was arrested.

Is this related to the information he released earlier in Kunwu Mountain?

There were only a few people present at the time, so who was colluding with the City Lord's Mansion?

He was silent for a while.

"Keep an eye on those people from Dayong," he said. "Find out where they came from and what they're doing in Shuofeng City."

Ying Qi looked at him, a hint of confusion in her eyes: "Young Master, we're here to investigate the treasure map. Why are you investigating these merchants?"

Jiang Xun didn't explain, but just looked up at him.

That gaze wasn't intense, yet it sent a chill down Ying Qi's spine.

He immediately realized his mistake and quickly knelt on one knee: "Your subordinate knows his mistake, please forgive me, young master."

"Just do as I say." Jiang Xun's tone was unreadable. "Also, help me investigate someone else."

He said a name.

Ying Qi was slightly surprised when he heard the name, but this time he did not show any objection: "Your subordinate obeys."

He rose respectfully, and in a flash, disappeared into the night, like a drop of ink merging into darkness.

Jiang Xun sat alone in the room and lit an oil lamp.

The flames flickered, casting swaying shadows on the wall, as if someone were speaking silently.

He suddenly laughed self-deprecatingly.

Shen San claimed to be the eldest grandson of the emperor of the Dasheng Dynasty, but this claim didn't seem to convince many.

Just after midnight, Jiang Xun changed into night clothes and climbed over the wall out of the house.

The moonlight, like water, washed the bluestone path, making it appear cold and white.

He clung to the wall like a silent shadow, making his way through several alleys towards the east of the city.

The large mansion in the east of the city was located in a quiet alley. Two lanterns hung at the entrance, their dim light illuminating the two large characters "Lu Mansion," which swayed slightly in the night breeze.

Outside the mansion, there were patrolling guards, in twos and threes, marching in orderly steps—they were from the city lord's mansion, and it was unclear whether they were there to protect Xiao Rui or to monitor him.

Jiang Xun waited for the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, then took advantage of the gap between the two groups of guards to go around to the back wall.

He listened intently for a moment, and only after confirming that there was no movement inside the courtyard did he quietly climb over the wall.

When landing, the toes touch the ground first, and the center of gravity pulls back, making almost no sound—this is the Northern Border Stealth Technique that Tuoba Feng taught him, and it's perfect for this situation.