Chapter 2782: The Capital (Part 138)

Zhao Liangjian spat out the tobacco residue and cleared his throat with another gob of phlegm. Ever since the Emperor had banned tobacco, he'd been forced to abandon his dry tobacco habit. But for men like him who worked outside, late nights were unavoidable, and they needed something to keep alert. Fortunately, Third Sister had plenty of exotic goods from Nanyang. Without dry tobacco, there was still snuff and chewing tobacco.

Snuff made you sneeze when inhaled, which could expose your position to a target. So chewing tobacco, with its stronger kick and no sneezing, had become his new favorite.

He and several partners had been taking turns squatting here at Wanggong Factory for days now, and everything had seemed normal. But today, they spotted an anomaly.

Originally, two sedan chairs had gone out to offer incense, but only one had returned in the afternoon. The other came rushing back just as dusk was falling. Judging from the unusually hurried steps of the sedan chair bearers and the panicked expressions that the accompanying servants and maids couldn't quite conceal, something had obviously gone wrong.

Zhao Liangjian immediately noticed that the bearers' footsteps were too light, the sedan chair seeming to float—they were carrying an empty chair.

When it had departed before noon, someone had definitely been inside. So where was she now?

Except for visiting relatives or returning to their maiden homes, female relatives of great households would never stay overnight elsewhere. Both You Rong and Yui were outsiders with no relatives to speak of in the Capital.

Who was the person who hadn't returned? Though the surveillance team couldn't see inside the sedan chair, they had already identified which servants and maids accompanied each of the two "Madams" whenever they went out. Generally speaking, while male servants might rotate, servant women were close personal attendants who wouldn't be swapped easily.

The one following this sedan chair was You Rong's maid.

So You Rong had run away.

Zhao Liangjian murmured a few words to the man beside him, then rose and rushed back to He Lian Sheng.

"I already know about this matter," Third Sister said calmly.

Ever since learning that the abductor was Pan Cheng'an and that he was conducting his illicit business at Ganlu Nunnery, Third Sister had assigned someone to watch the place. Of course, this was against the rules—she had neither an employer's commission nor any mission requirement. However, out of sympathy, she was unwilling to stand by and watch You Rong fall into hell.

But since it was an off-the-books operation, Liao Sanliang didn't feel comfortable devoting too many resources to it. She'd only sent a teenage errand boy to keep watch nearby.

Like other bodyguard agencies, He Lian Sheng took in many dependents of bodyguards who'd died in the line of duty. People's natural aptitudes varied; not everyone was cut out for a bodyguard's work. Those who couldn't handle it did odd jobs for a living instead.

Fortunately, staking out a fixed location required no special talent—just the ability to endure loneliness and boredom.

"Little Dezi came back more than a shichen ago saying something happened at Ganlu Nunnery," Liao Sanliang said. "The nuns there are running around like ants on a hot pan..."

"So..."

"You Rong has been gone for at least a shichen. The specific situation is still unclear." Liao Sanliang continued, "I've sent people to make inquiries at various bodyguard agencies. You Rong is no ordinary woman. Having been abducted on her watch, Wu Yan will inevitably bear responsibility. She'll most likely try to find her."

Reporting to the authorities would be useless in this matter; only the bodyguard agencies could take effective action.

"Then it doesn't matter." Zhao Liangjian breathed a sigh of relief.

"You'd better continue watching the Zhou residence. You Rong's escape will inevitably alarm the Wang family. Perhaps some big fish will be drawn out from all this."

"Understood!"

A few days later, He Lian Sheng transmitted the latest situation to the Zhangjiawan Headquarters by radio through the communicator stationed at the agency.

You Rong's escape was confirmed. After she fled, Wu Yan had secretly approached the bodyguard agencies to request a search. He Lian Sheng hadn't taken the case but had already coordinated with the relevant agencies to be notified as soon as any news surfaced.

Xu Ke held the report in his hands. The matter of someone seducing a woman from the Zhou residence into eloping held no particular value in itself. But today's report was significant.

In the days following the incident, many people had entered and left the Zhou residence. Surveillance personnel discovered that one teenager among them was highly suspicious. Not only did he travel frequently between the Wang residence and the Zhou residence, but he also displayed remarkably strong anti-tracking and counter-surveillance awareness.

It was a pity they had neither a camera nor a sketch artist to record the suspicious person's appearance in real time. Otherwise, they could have Liu Sha identify him.

Still, someone who could enter and leave the Zhou residence so freely was very likely one of Shi Weng's men. Nine chances out of ten, Liu Sha had seen him.

Xu Ke went to the room where Liu Sha was being held. Liu Sha's body had roughly recovered, but he remained very weak.

"Liu Sha, among Shi Weng's subordinates, is there a teenager of fourteen or fifteen years old?"

"Yes."

"Oh? What does he look like?"

Liu Sha didn't answer but countered with his own question: "How do you know such a person exists?"

"He's been observed entering and leaving the Zhou residence at Wanggong Factory frequently in recent days."

"That little fledgling!" Liu Sha cursed under his breath.

"You know him?"

"Naturally I know him," Liu Sha said. "The only one who's fifteen or sixteen and can enter and leave the Zhou residence freely is my apprentice."

"Your apprentice?"

"Yes. His formal name is Xu Yong."

"How did you come to have such an apprentice?"

"It was a matter of fate." He then recounted the events of arranging a daughter for Master Zhou years ago. "...I kept this child by my side."

"What sort of person is this Xu Yong?"

"Extremely smart and capable. Zhou Lezhi values him highly as well, saying that given time, he could inherit much of his legacy. It's just..."

"Just what?"

"His temperament is a bit stubborn." Liu Sha smiled. "For people in our line of work, being too stubborn isn't good..."

"Why does he frequent the Zhou residence?"

"He can be considered half a disciple of Mr. Zhou." Liu Sha smiled again. "This child values loyalty and affection. Ever since Master Zhou disappeared, he's been concerned about him and takes special care of Master Zhou's dependents—not to mention his younger sister is Zhou Juli."

"Does he currently follow Zhou Lezhi closely?" Xu Ke threw out this crucial question.

"Yes." Liu Sha gave an unhesitating affirmative.

If that was the case, tracking Xu Yong had a high probability of leading them to this mysterious Zhou Lezhi. At this thought, Xu Ke's nerves thrummed with excitement.

Once they caught this mysterious figure of unknown origin, the various strange phenomena surrounding the Shi Weng group would unravel easily.

By now, Xu Ke had lost interest in the Shi Weng group itself; their destructive potential couldn't shake the Senate's rule. Whether they survived or perished mattered little. But the person known as Zhou Lezhi had greatly stimulated the curiosity of both him and the Intelligence Bureau.

"Notify the Min Zhanlian team—tell them to focus their surveillance on this Xu Yong and maintain control of his movements! Do not arrest him. Identify all related persons around him!"

Xu Yong had a stalk of straw clenched between his teeth, turning it slowly as he watched the Liu Qi'er couple hanging from the roof beam, beaten nearly to death.

This was the backyard of the Zhou residence. Since the search had yielded no leads starting yesterday, the interrogation of household servants had begun here. From the gatekeeper to the scullery maids, every last one had been put through questioning. Family law and harsh torture were applied. Men and women alike wailed to the heavens, and every secret in the residence was turned inside out.

As the managers of the Zhou residence, the Liu Qi'er couple had naturally suffered the worst. Stripped naked and hung from the beam, they'd been beaten savagely through the night. Though the purpose was interrogation, there was also Xu Yong's need to vent his anger.

He had counseled them earnestly, not hesitating to risk being tracked by coming here multiple times to warn them about keeping "strict doors." Yet this Liu Qi'er had been bold enough to continue letting Granny Shi come calling.

Most infuriating of all, after discovering You Rong's disappearance, she hadn't reported to the Wang family that same day. Instead, she'd searched privately, only going to them the next morning...

Now You Rong had vanished. As for tracing Granny Shi, she too was nowhere to be found—the old crone had probably sensed trouble and hidden herself in advance.

Still, they had finally extracted some useful information from the maids and servants who had accompanied You Rong on her outing. Her general whereabouts were now roughly known.

"...Besides offering incense and visiting Master Qian's residence, has she been anywhere else?!"

"No... no more..." Liu Qi'er looked withered. "The places... Miss went... this lowly one... has told all..."

After an entire night of interrogation, everything that could be learned had been learned. The concubine at Master Qian's residence must have useful information, but he couldn't very well break into someone else's home to drag her out for questioning.

Of course, if he truly wanted to do this, it wasn't impossible—but he'd have to use connections within the Jinyiwei, and the matter would only escalate further. Young as he was, Xu Yong didn't dare be so reckless.

"If only Master were still here!" Xu Yong thought to himself. His heart was deeply unsettled.

Master's jianghu experience far surpassed his own. If he were here, there would be a backbone to rely on. As things stood, Xu Yong could only depend on himself.

He hadn't reported the search for You Rong to Mr. Le, because he knew exactly how the man would handle it: he wouldn't care.

But Xu Yong couldn't let this matter go. Caring for the Zhou residence had been entrusted to him by Mr. Le and Master Wang—though it was only meant as "assisting Wang Liang." Now that Wang Liang's whereabouts were unknown, he had to shoulder this responsibility himself.

For him, You Rong wasn't simply "Mr. Zhou's woman." Whether she could be found concerned his standing within the Shi Weng group.

Even if Master Wang and Mr. Le didn't blame him, he couldn't clear the hurdle in his own heart.

"Little Brother Xu! What should we do next?" Though he was just a teenager, his subordinates still addressed him respectfully as "Little Brother."

"Go to the streets and alleys around Master Qian's residence and make inquiries. In the past month, have there been any suspicious sedan chairs or mule carts stopping briefly to wait for someone? If so, roughly where did they go? Pay special attention to those parked near the back door or side entrance of the Qian residence."

"Yes!"

What to do next? He had no clear idea for the moment. He had done everything he should, but whether it was those sent out searching or those intercepting at the various city gates, not a scrap of news had come back.

When it came down to it, this pair of adulterous wretches had delayed everything! Concealing the truth and failing to report, they'd wasted an entire day. These past few days he'd rushed between the Wang family, the Zhou residence, and every suspicious location multiple times, yet found not a single clue! He'd had to resort to torture to extract anything useful...

Things having reached this point, he'd better report to Mr. Le. With the man's intelligence, perhaps he could come up with some ideas. After all, the hunt for You Rong's trail had already begun—the deed was done. Presumably, Mr. Le wouldn't object at this stage.

(End of Chapter)