Misty Rain of the Old Times

Chapter 781 A Heart Full of Evil

Old Gao's guard came to report that there were results, but didn't give details. He was probably hesitant because Chen Xuan and the others were there. Although the guard knew a little about Chen Xuan and the others, he wasn't an official after all.

Seeing this, Chen Xuan, with chopsticks in his mouth, looked at Old Gao and asked, "Uncle, should we leave? Or would you like to proceed to the yamen?"

Old Gao smiled and said nonchalantly, "No need to avoid it, let's handle it at home. It's not exactly a glorious thing for students from the academy to be kidnapped by criminals, especially during a joint practical exchange between multiple academies. But we should move to the living room; everyone's almost finished eating. Let's go there and finish this quickly so we can have other things to do."

Now that he had encountered the case, Chen Xuan was curious about how officials handled it, as he had never seen it before, especially not a big shot like Lao Gao.

Normally, this was a small matter that Gao would not have needed to personally intervene; he could have simply instructed the officials below. However, since it concerned the academy, no matter was too small, and with Mr. Pei present, he had to give him some face.

Seeing that everyone had almost finished eating, Chen Xuan quickly said, "Alright, just a moment."

Then, as the little princess and the others had always done, Mr. Gao Pei, with a slight glare, devoured the soup and broth in a whirlwind, his chopsticks flashing as he swung them around. He then let out a satisfied burp and said enthusiastically, "Alright, let's go."

Looking at the dishes, so clean they looked like they'd been licked clean by a dog, Mr. Pei couldn't help but joke, "Little Chen, even though we're experiencing a drought right now, there's no shortage of water in Mo City. No need to save water for Master Gao; you don't even need to wash the dishes."

With a shy smile, Chen Xuan said embarrassedly, "I'm used to it; I don't like wasting a single grain of food."

Mr. Pei's smile faltered, and as if he had thought of something, he gently patted Chen Xuan's shoulder with a moved expression.

Old Gao knew what had happened before Chen Xuan went to his house, and he smiled and said, "Good boy, let's go, let's go to the living room first."

When they returned to the living room, there were already quite a few people there. Among them, four or five young men were easily identifiable as students of the academy, exuding a strong scholarly air and wearing the academy's uniform. However, they looked quite disheveled, with their clothes torn in many places and their exposed skin covered in bruises and scars.

In addition, there were about a dozen soldiers in armor, some of the cavalry that Chen Xuan and the others had seen at the city gate yesterday. Of course, they couldn't have brought their horses from Lao Gao's house. They were all at the mid-stage of the Heavenly Realm, with thick eyebrows and big eyes, and looked to be about fifty years old.

These soldiers showed signs of battle and had a faint smell of blood on them, indicating that they had clearly been given some basic treatment before arriving.

When he arrived, Chen Xuan glanced at the students, raised an eyebrow, and looked at Lao Gao and Mr. Pei. They also looked at the students, then met Chen Xuan's gaze with a strange look in their eyes.

Those students at least came back alive, but Chen Xuan and his group could tell at a glance that there was something fishy going on with them.

All this was because, in their disheveled state, they saw that Mr. Pei and Lao Gao looked ashamed, and their eyes darted around and avoided each other, as if they were feeling guilty about something. They were somewhat uneasy and at a loss.

These guys have something to hide. Chen Xuan and Mr. Gao Pei understood the meaning in each other's eyes.

Upon seeing Chen Xuan and his group, the leading cavalry commander immediately clasped his hands in a fist salute: "Reporting to Lord Gao, we have successfully completed our mission. The journey was uneventful, and we brought back all five kidnapped students without a single missing."

Nodding, Old Gao said with a warm smile, "Thank you for your hard work, General Wang. It's such a small matter that you've gone to all this trouble. I will report your achievements truthfully, and the court will surely bestow rewards upon you."

"You flatter me, sir. It is our duty," General Wang said, bowing once more.

Normally, they wouldn't have anything to do after that, but instead of leaving, they wanted to report on the specific details of their trip.

Nodding, Lao Gao smiled at the students who had been rescued and said, "It's good that you're back. You look like you've suffered some injustice, but young people need to experience some setbacks; it's not necessarily a bad thing."

"We have met Master Gao and will follow his teachings," the students said in unison.

At this moment, Chen Xuan and the others did not approach, but quietly ate melon seeds on the side. They had just finished eating, and no one knew when Chen Xuan had a handful of melon seeds in his hand. It was given to him by the little girl, who knew her master's habit and always had them ready.

Mr. Pei looked at the students of the academy with a stern face, his expression full of disappointment: "Zhang Wei, Huang Wentao, Liu Hanyuan, Wang Yang, Du Yuelin, you guys have really given the academy a lot of face, haven't you? Have you wasted all these years of your studies? Have you forgotten the principle of 'a wise man avoids dangerous situations'? You actually got kidnapped by a bunch of petty thieves. I'm ashamed for you."

They were, after all, outstanding students of the academy. As the headmaster, how could Mr. Pei not pay attention to them and recognize them? He called out their names directly, and he was furious at their lack of ambition. If it weren't for their disheveled appearance and the presence of outsiders, he would have already slapped them one by one.

The students of the academy are not all weak scholars. Among these few, three of them have considerable martial arts skills. Coupled with their intelligence, shouldn't they be able to easily outwit a bunch of stupid thieves with a little thought? It's shameful that they had to be rescued.

It's not that Mr. Pei had too high expectations of them. To him, even if he were physically weak, dealing with a bunch of stupid thieves should have been a piece of cake. He, Pei Zhenlong, had experienced this when he was young. Wisdom is equal to strength. If he can't even handle this little difficulty, how can he be of great use in the future? The officialdom is even more precarious. What will you use to deal with it then?

Under Mr. Pei's reprimand, the group blushed with shame and dared not face anyone. They did not try to find excuses for themselves, but only felt ashamed for disappointing their teacher.

How can they not feel ashamed? The academy teachers taught them too many classic cases of dealing with various situations. They failed to apply what they learned, so who can they blame? Could they blame the robbers for being uncivilized and kidnapping them without giving them a chance to speak?

With a cold snort, Mr. Pei said disappointedly, "This isn't the time to blame them. I'll deal with you later."

Then Lao Gao looked at General Wang and asked, "General Wang, did your trip go smoothly? Tell me the details."

"Yes, sir. Our men were ordered to carry out the rescue. Following the general direction, we tracked the bandits and found their hideout in a mountain valley about 300 miles southwest of Mo City. There were only about 30 of them, including two Xiantian masters. We devised a simple rescue plan to feint to the east and attack from the west. We successfully found the young masters in the underground chamber. During the rescue, the bandits discovered us and there was a brief struggle, but we managed to capture them and kill 13 of them. The remaining two bandits, including the one with Xiantian cultivation, have been brought back and are outside. You can interrogate them at any time, sir," General Wang quickly and concisely recounted the events.

Sending a well-equipped cavalry unit to deal with dozens of kidnappers is like using a sledgehammer to crack a nut. Even if there are innate masters among them, how can the scattered soldiers of the martial arts world compare to a regular army?

However, General Wang hesitated slightly when talking about the two innate kidnappers. Anyone with a brain would think it was abnormal. With such cultivation, they would be superior to others anywhere. Even princes and nobles would have to bow down and treat them as honored guests. It was unreasonable to take them to be kidnappers. Even if they wanted to take hostages to extort money, it would be easier and more profitable than going to powerful forces and big families.

There's definitely something fishy going on here. Chen Xuan, standing to the side, looked on with great interest, sensing the juicy gossip.

With a twitch at the corner of his mouth, Lao Gao looked at Chen Xuan, who was engrossed in eating sunflower seeds, and chuckled, "Nephew, can you be serious for once?"

Chen Xuan hid the melon seeds behind his back, winking at the little princess who was too embarrassed to show her face, signaling them to continue. Old Gao, who already had a general idea of ​​what was going on, looked at the students and said gently, "You've suffered quite a bit, haven't you? Someone, bring seats, tell us what happened."

Old Gao was still very gentle with the students. He did not look down on them because of his high position and power. Who knows when they would be serving in the same court? He would not speak ill of them unless necessary.

The students sat down somewhat awkwardly, their eyes meeting. Huang Wentao, the eldest and seemingly the most composed among them, spoke first: "Your Excellency, this is what happened. A few days ago, in the afternoon, a few of us students and I were sharing our practical experiences. We had learned some basics from the geomancer, and given the hot weather, we decided to go to the countryside to find a water source for a refreshing bath. But out of nowhere, a group of thugs jumped out, ambushed us, beat us up, and took us away, imprisoning us in a dark, gloomy basement. We lived in constant fear until General Wang and his men arrived and took us away. That's what happened."

After listening to the story, Chen Xuan, who was enjoying the gossip, almost rolled his eyes. It was a lie. It was true that they were robbed, but it was by no means without reason. It seemed that even a fool could tell that they had secretly agreed on the same story.

Oh, there were so many people at the exchange meeting, why did they only rob you guys? Is it because you're handsome?

"Oh, really? It seems you've suffered an undeserved misfortune," Old Gao chuckled, then asked, "Did those kidnappers say anything or ask you anything after taking you away?"

“Yes,” Wang Yang said, standing up with a resentful expression.

Raising an eyebrow, Old Gao said, "Tell me about it."

Wang Yang immediately turned ashamed and indignant, gritting his teeth as he said, "Those bandits didn't kidnap us for no reason. I heard them say that they would first use us to make a fortune, and then they would use their connections in Yuhua Kingdom to send us there recently, after a major upheaval. They would then force us to become eunuchs in the palace. This is a blatant humiliation! Your Honor, you must uphold justice for us, otherwise how will we ever face anyone again?"

Forcing scholars like them to become eunuchs is a tremendous disgrace. It is true that a major upheaval has recently occurred in Yuhua Kingdom, and those bandits did indeed say such things, so Wang Yang is not lying. However, it is worth considering whether those bandits randomly selected lucky audience members to kidnap.

Seeing that they were still trying to confuse the issue, Mr. Pei's face darkened. He was a shrewd old man, and there were few people he couldn't see through. These young people were too green to try to play tricks on him.

He chuckled softly, a look of disappointment flashing in his eyes, and said in a deep voice, "Is that so? Is there anything else you'd like to say?"

Chen Xuan could tell that Mr. Pei was giving them one last chance. If they revealed the real reason, there might still be hope. Even if they were in the wrong, considering their youth and excellent education, Mr. Pei would swallow his pride and give them another chance.

Clearly, they were going to disappoint Mr. Pei. Zhang Wei stood up and said firmly, "That's how it is. I know I've brought shame upon the academy. Now that things have come to this, I hope that Lord Gao and the headmaster will uphold justice for us and severely punish those lawbreakers."

Liu Hanyuan lowered his head and remained silent, a cold glint flashing in his eyes behind everyone's back. After leaving, he would find a way to shut those robbers up forever, even if they knew nothing. He had worked so hard to get to where he was today and become an outstanding student of Liuyu Academy, and he could not afford to have any stain on his reputation.

But his background wasn't exactly humble; he was just from a small family that had enough to eat and wear. How could he possibly silence the robbers who possessed innate martial arts skills forever? His biggest advantage was that he was considered relatively outstanding among the students at the academy, and perhaps he could use that to his advantage.

As for Wang Yang and Zhang Wei, they couldn't be relied on. They came from similar backgrounds to themselves, both from the lower class, and didn't have the ability to quietly eliminate the robbers.

With a disappointed look at the students, Lao Gao asked General Wang, "General Wang, did you make any other discoveries during your rescue?"

Upon hearing this, Du Yuelin and the others felt a jolt in their hearts. They quickly exchanged glances and nervously looked at General Wang and the others.

After a moment's thought, General Wang clasped his hands and said, "Your Excellency, we didn't find anything else. However, on the way back, I interrogated the captured bandits. They didn't kidnap people without reason; they were instructed to do so with a specific purpose. But they couldn't explain who instructed them. The other party was a single contact, saying that if they did as instructed, they would receive a generous reward afterward. That's all I know."

At this point, Old Gao stopped asking questions and instead called out to the door, "Someone, bring me the investigation results!"

Upon hearing this, Huang Wentao and the others felt a sudden unease.

Looking at them with a half-smile, Old Gao still spoke gently, "Under the clear sky, how dare these petty thieves abduct pillars of the court? I will investigate thoroughly and not let anyone get away with it."

Soon, a man dressed as a constable rushed over from outside the door. Judging from the badge on his waist, he was actually the chief constable of Huizhou. His cultivation level was not low; he had already reached the upper level of the Innate Realm.

Before Lao Gao, he bowed respectfully and presented a stack of documents filled with writing, saying, "Sir, all the details are here. Please take a look."

"Chief Constable Qian, you've worked hard. Please stay here and take a look. I might need your help later," Old Gao said, nodding as he took the documents.

"I wouldn't dare, it's my duty," Constable Qian bowed and stepped aside, secretly giving Zhang Wei and the others a disdainful look.

Holding the document, he quickly scanned it. The more he read, the darker his face became, his brows furrowed with barely suppressed disappointment. Finally, he tossed the document, which contained all the details, in front of Wang Yang and the others, and said coldly, "This is what you call being robbed without cause? You're utterly unworthy of being scholars!"

"Your Honor, we are innocent! We do not know what we have done wrong!" Du Yuelin knelt down with a thud, his face pale. His body was trembling slightly, and he probably knew that he had been exposed and was making a last-ditch effort.

As Lao Gao tossed out the stack of papers, the scraps fluttered in the air. Chen Xuan glanced at them and read through all the contents, understanding the reason behind it all. He couldn't help but twitch his lips, looking at Wang Yang and the others with admiration, saying, "What a talent! The idea is quite good, but unfortunately, reality isn't a storybook, otherwise you might have actually succeeded."

Everyone could tell that Chen Xuan was being sarcastic.

Blinking, the little girl, puzzled and curious, asked in a low voice, "Master, what's going on?"

With a smile, Chen Xuan succinctly summarized the situation: "It's quite simple. These scholars seem to have some ulterior motives. With their knowledge, they could have had bright futures if they followed the proper path. Unfortunately, perhaps because of their backgrounds, they couldn't wait and wanted to take shortcuts. During this field trip, they encountered some young ladies from wealthy families on an outing, and they harbored inappropriate thoughts. Taking advantage of their martial arts skills, they sneaked into a secluded spot while the ladies were bathing and playing, avoiding the guards to steal their intimate clothing. After succeeding, they intended to spread rumors that they had secretly pledged their lives to each other and had engaged in illicit relations, ruining the young ladies' reputations. In this way, the young ladies would either be too ashamed to live in the world or would have no choice but to marry them and climb the social ladder!"

"It's a pity, just as I said, reality isn't a storybook. These ladies from noble families wouldn't be fooled by such petty tricks. One of them was a daughter of a prefect. Before their plan could even be implemented, they had only just informed their families about the stolen personal belongings when the family took decisive action, tracked them down, and secretly hired people to eliminate the threat. However, those hired fake robbers were insatiable and didn't kill them immediately, wanting to extort more money. As a result, as you all saw, the plan of these unscrupulous people failed, and they didn't die either. The parents of those ladies from noble families couldn't get rid of them, and now the victims are waiting outside for questioning."

After Chen Xuan finished speaking, everyone looked at Zhang Wei and the others, whose faces were pale, with disdain in their eyes. This guy is not worthy of being called a scholar.

...(End of this chapter)