Chapter Ninety-Seven: Delicate Revelations

“My lord, you might as well make the journey yourself. In that way, you will show the other side due respect, and they will be all the more willing to give their all. If it is left merely to your servant to host them, they may well feel that they are not being taken seriously.”

Seeing his chance, the head constable at once put forward the true purpose of his visit.

County Magistrate Wang considered this, then said, “Very well. I shall receive him in person. So long as the true culprit can be found, everything else is easy to discuss.”

In this way, not only could he demonstrate the utmost regard, but he might also probe the other man’s likes and dislikes and cater to them accordingly. Whether it was gold and silver or rare treasures, so long as the man was not all talk and truly could avenge his son, then there was room for discussion.

“My lord is wise,” the constable said at once ingratiatingly.

It was done.

The constable’s long-suspended heart finally settled back into his chest.

...

Following the constable’s guidance, County Magistrate Wang, together with Wang Shaocai’s body, spent the better part of half a day before finally reaching Lannuo Temple.

“You are the magistrate of Guobei County?” Yan Chixia examined him carefully. Broad of shoulder and thick of waist—clearly, he had skimmed off no small amount of public funds. If he were not made to cough some of it up, would it not be a wasted trip for him to come all this way?

“Indeed. Daoist, you truly have the bearing of an immortal. I have long admired you, long admired you indeed.”

County Magistrate Wang looked at the rough, hulking man before him, then glanced at the constable. The latter guiltily averted his eyes.

Wang Magistrate cursed him inwardly. I’ll settle accounts with you when I return.

He found it difficult to associate the man before him with the words “immortal grace” in any way.

Still, he did not allow outward appearance to cloud his judgment, nor did he slight the other man because of it.

As the saying went: one cannot judge a book by its cover, nor measure the sea with a bushel.

Who knew what astonishing abilities might lurk beneath such a countenance?

County Magistrate Wang then turned his gaze to Yi An standing nearby. This man was indeed dignified in appearance, handsome beyond compare, with the air of a modest gentleman. If the constable were to describe him as having the bearing of an immortal, that would have seemed far more credible than saying it of Yan Chixia.

Yet none of these thoughts showed on County Magistrate Wang’s face. He remained smiling and genial, his expression warm and kindly.

“Easy enough, easy enough. Has your son been brought?”

Yan Chixia said with a smile that did not reach his eyes.

“He has. Would the Daoist please step outside and take a look?”

A glint flashed deep in County Magistrate Wang’s eyes. Whether the man truly had skill or not would be easy enough to tell. If the result that followed did not satisfy him, then he would have to forgive no one. He could not abide even a grain of sand in his eyes.

“As expected, his vital essence is already scattered. This was the work of a demonic evil,” Yan Chixia said after casting only a distant glance at Wang Shaocai, and he immediately reached his conclusion.

“My poor son, in the flower of his youth, yet brought to such a tragic end. Heaven is unjust, heaven is unjust!”

Moved by the sight before him, County Magistrate Wang was roused once more by the sorrow in his heart. Tears and snot streamed down his face alike, full of bitterness and grief.

The head constable remained silent. Yan Chixia and Yi An merely watched on quietly, and felt nothing much about it.

Before one knows the truth, one must never jump to conclusions.

Sometimes even what the eyes see is not necessarily real.

Much less words from only one side.

After a long while, perhaps realizing his own excess, County Magistrate Wang gave a mournful smile and said, “Please forgive my lapse.”

Yan Chixia waved a hand. “A human reaction. Nothing to be concerned about.”

“Daoist, since it has been determined that this matter was the doing of demonic evil, how might we exorcise it?”

“Of course, I would never let the Daoist toil in vain. Whatever you need, please say so. This office will do all in its power to satisfy you.”

County Magistrate Wang was already impatient to see the true culprit torn to pieces.

Since the conclusion had been reached, it was time to bargain.

So long as the price proposed was reasonable, and not some outrageous lion’s demand, he would not be stingy.

Finding the true culprit and avenging his son was the urgent matter at hand.

“Ha-ha, this poor Daoist is a man beyond the world and naturally holds no regard for such yellow-and-white things. To slay demons and defend the Way is merely my duty. However…” Yan Chixia chuckled, deliberately trailing off.

“Daoist, please speak plainly.”

County Magistrate Wang frowned, a bad feeling rising in his heart. If the other man wanted money, he would actually be easier to deal with. But if he wanted neither wealth nor rare treasures, then that was rather abnormal.

In any case, he did not believe there was anyone in this world who truly desired nothing.

What he feared most was that the man before him might be scheming for something enormous.

Yan Chixia waved a hand and shook his head. “Destroying demonic evil is no easy matter. Everything must wait until I have investigated before any conclusion can be reached.”

“Then I shall await the Daoist’s good news.”

County Magistrate Wang was momentarily stunned, then quickly composed himself.

He did not know what game the man was playing. Since the man wished to investigate, then let him investigate.

If he truly was a man of no greed and no desire, then all the better.

In any case, the man’s true face would one day be revealed. There was no need to rush.

County Magistrate Wang did not return to the yamen. Instead, he set up camp on the spot and waited for news at Lannuo Temple.

Meanwhile, Yan Chixia and Yi An set out in search of clues.

“That County Magistrate Wang came right to your doorstep, and you still did not skin him. Surely you have some better idea in mind?” Yi An asked, his expression doubtful.

He already had a rough understanding of Yan Chixia’s plan.

Only, what Yan Chixia had done earlier made him somewhat unable to see through it.

In an instant, Yi An’s thoughts turned over. He did not think Yan Chixia had given up; rather, there must be some other reason.

Once they were out of earshot, Yi An could no longer help asking the question in his heart.

“Haha. Though I never learned my master’s art of reading faces, when it comes to judging people, I dare say I have acquired a bit of skill.”

“That County Magistrate Wang may not be a great villain, but he has surely bullied the common folk and extorted their hard-earned wealth many times over.”

“Heaven’s justice is clear; retribution never misses.”

“In the unseen order of things, there is always a reckoning.”

“If I merely made him pay a little price, would that not be too cheap a punishment?”

“What I want is for him to spit back out everything he has swallowed over these years.”

Yan Chixia’s gaze burned as he spoke in a deep voice.

To him, corrupt officials and venal functionaries were no less hateful than those who treated human lives like grass and slaughtered without mercy.

No matter how detestable a murderer might be, how many could he kill by his own hand alone?

But those corrupt officials and venal functionaries? They raked in the people’s blood and sweat, drove countless families from their homes, reduced them to wanderers, left them ragged and hungry, and made their lives a misery.

They threatened an entire region and touched the fate of untold numbers of common people. Compared with such men, how could murderers be the more hateful of the two?

“Brother Yan is truly brilliant,” Yi An said with sincere admiration.

He even began to suspect that men like Yan Chixia and Li Zihe, though rough in outward appearance, all possessed hearts of exquisite subtlety and penetration.

Before a quarter hour had passed, the two of them had already arrived at the scene of the incident—the place where Wang Shaocai had been found.