"It went smoothly," Li Jiang nodded. "That Gao Fei was quite sensible; as soon as I ntioned your situation, he assured he would help you smooth things over."
"Really?" Li Xiaoming was overjoyed. "The weight on my mind can finally be lifted; this day... it has really driven to despair..."
"Now you realize you're anxious? What were you doing earlier?" Li Jiang huffed.
"If I had to do it over, I would do the sa thing," Li Xiaoming showed no sign of repentance. "If you were in my shoes, you would do the sa, nobody can resist that kind of temptation." After saying this, Li Xiaoming added, "And it wasn't just any ordinary temptation."
"Enough, stop talking about these useless things," Li Jiang waved his hand impatiently. "Even if you want to embezzle those Spirit Stones, don't be so direct. You could have been a bit more subtle."
"I admit that," Li Xiaoming nodded. "When I killed those people, I really didn't consider the consequences enough, which left with a huge hidden danger. In fact, I could have dragged them down with , bribed them, and then I wouldn't have to worry about them turning in."
"The ancients said: think thrice before you act! No matter what you do, you must think ahead and consider carefully, never act on impulse," Li Jiang said. "Look at , I have been stable and error-free in my dealings over the years."
"I will strive to correct myself in the future," Li Xiaoming pledged earnestly. "I won't cause any more trouble."
...
The next day, Gao Fei led two guards out of the City Lord's Mansion.
They traveled by day and rested at night; after several days, Gao Fei and his n arrived in a remote area.
"Guard Commander, there is a rest stop ahead where we can take a break," a guard said.
"Alright," Gao Fei nodded in agreent.
Thus, Gao Fei and the two guards arrived at the rest stop, which was just a small lodging house ant for resting, not very large, with few rooms, and rather unclean, with a thick layer of dust on the roof and dirt on the ground.
"Is anyone there?" a guard yelled loudly.
"Coming, coming," a hunchbacked old man ca out from a room. "Where are you folks from?"
"We're from Chaotic Wind City," Gao Fei answered.
"Please co inside, officers, I will arrange rooms for you to rest," the old man said.
"Thank you."
Soon after, the rooms were ready.
"Old sir, co over and sit," Gao Fei beckoned the old man at the door. "I have so questions for you."
"What is it?" the old man walked in, full of curiosity.
"How long have you been at this rest stop?"
"Decades now; I've been here since I was young. Now that I'm old, I don't want to move elsewhere. I just get by," he replied.
"Do you know Li Xiaoming?"
"Yes, I know him. He used to be a Centurion, actually in charge of this area, but later he was transferred."
"What do you think of Li Xiaoming?"
"Uh... It's a bit difficult to say..."
"What's so hard about it? Just speak the truth, there's nothing to worry about."
"The Centurion was decent enough; he also took care of ," the old man said of Li Xiaoming. As the saying goes, the older one gets, the wiser one becos. Not revealing more than necessary before figuring out Gao Fei and his staff, the old man definitely wouldn't speak carelessly.
Seeing that the old man was unwilling to say more, Gao Fei did not press further but changed the subject: "Li Xiaoming was a Centurion, so he must have had quite a number of n under him, right?"
"Hmm, quite a few, easily a couple hundred people," the old man answered rather promptly this ti. "But now there are fewer..." As he spoke, the old man realized he had misspoken and quickly shut his mouth.
Gao Fei raised an eyebrow, "Why are there fewer people?"
"Um... not fewer... well, you see, I have sothing urgent I must attend to, so I'll take my leave..." The old man turned to leave, but Gao Fei grabbed him.
"The conversation isn't finished yet, why the rush to leave?" Gao Fei said with a smile. "Co, sit down, let's continue our chat."
"I really have urgent matters." The old man's face bore a mournful expression. "Very urgent matters."
"No matter how urgent, it must be postponed," Gao Fei said seriously, his smile gone. "Your task today is to keep company and chat. That's an order." Gao Fei was the Guard Commander, while the old man was just a minor official in charge of the relay station; their statuses were worlds apart.
The old man's mouth twitched a few tis before he sat down again.
"Let's pick up where we left off," Gao Fei said expressionlessly, looking at the old man. "You just ntioned that there are fewer people now? How so?"
"I... I was just talking nonsense before..."
"Old man!" Gao Fei's face darkened. "At your age, how can you still tell lies?"
"I..."
"I too have a temper, and if you really anger , the consequences will be very grave."
"I really don't know anything," the old man almost cried out in his haste. What had he done to deserve crossing paths with such an aggressive person?
Gao Fei leaned back and then said slowly, "Tell everything you know, don't hide a single word."
"..." Under Gao Fei's penetrating gaze, the old man had no choice but to tell the truth. "Just a month ago, ten Decurions disappeared and haven't been found..."
Gao Fei narrowed his eyes, "How did they disappear?"
"I don't know," the old man said. "I'm also puzzled..."
"Could they have been killed?" Gao Fei abruptly asked.
"Ah?" The old man jumped, startled. "That... that's impossible... Those Decurions were very skilled, who could kill them?"
"Li Xiaoming," Gao Fei curled his lip. "Li Xiaoming would have the ability to kill them."
"Uh..." The old man's face turned pale, and he stuttered apprehensively, "Don't talk nonsense... You can't talk nonsense about such things..."
"Let tell you the truth," Gao Fei said. "I have co to the borderland specifically to investigate the disappearance of those Decurions. Soone ran to Chaotic Wind City and accused Li Xiaoming of being the murderer, claiming he killed the Decurions. Li Xiaoming denied it, so the City Lord sent to investigate the matter."
"Ah... You were sent by the City Lord..."
"Old man, if you know any insider information, you must tell . I will reward you for your service."
"What insider information could I possibly know?" the old man said with a bitter smile. "I live each day as it cos, barely scraping by, not paying attention to what's going on outside."
"Alright, you can leave now." Gao Fei waved his hand, signaling the old man to depart.
The old man hunched over and shuffled away, trembling. If it were possible, he would never want to see Gao Fei again for the rest of his life.
"Disappeared?" Gao Fei touched his smooth chin. "A collective disappearance... Can it really be such a coincidence? There must be unknown secrets hidden here... Where should I start my investigation?" Gao Fei racked his brains, contemplating deeply.
The two guards who had co with Gao Fei stood quietly to the side, waiting for his orders.
The two guards were nad Chen San and Liu Qing, both of Golden Core Realm Cultivation. They respected Gao Fei very much, truly respected from the bottom of their hearts, or to be precise, they admired him. In short, they would execute Gao Fei's orders without the slightest hesitation.
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