Chapter 166: Senior brother, the golden cicada escapes from its shell

In the room, Li Longling sat at the desk, feeding her young phoenix spirit pet with corn while listening to a report from a palace guard. Xiao Yunluo was assisting her as usual.

“Two nights ago, there was a theft and a fire at the Jiang Mansion in Du Chun City. The young master, ‘Jiang Yu,’ and his wife, ‘Pei Lianxue,’ both perished in the flames,” the guard reported.

Upon hearing this, the two at the desk couldn’t help but show shock on their faces. Li Longling remained composed, but Xiao Yunluo, visibly alarmed, stood up and questioned, “What? What are you saying? Why didn’t you report this yesterday?!”

The guard, somewhat intimidated, quickly explained, “We thought that Palace Master Li had been busy recently, so we planned to report it after clarifying the situation.”

Seeing Xiao Yunluo’s distressed expression, Li Longling gently patted her shoulder, signaling her to calm down. Xiao Yunluo took a moment to regain composure and then speculated, “What?! How is that possible? It must be Ye Anping and Lianxue’s plan to escape.”

“They couldn’t have died at the hands of thieves,” she added.

“Continue,” Li Longling calmly instructed, “Tell us the details.”

The guard continued, “Upon investigation, we found that Jiang Yu and Mrs. Pei were stabbed twenty-five times and died on the spot. The thief then deliberately set the room on fire. We found the bodies of five thieves in the mountains, and their leader, Wang Hushan, escaped with most of the stolen money.”

Li Longling inquired about the thief’s name, and the guard replied, “He should be called ‘Wang Hushan.’ They were a group of bandits from Yuhu Mountain in Xi Zhou, often involved in robberies. They knew about the demonic cultivator in Chilong Mansion and came specifically for that.

Li Longling, upon hearing this, found it amusing. Senior Ye’s methods resembled those of street-smart individuals who frequented the black market. However, she also acknowledged that Senior Ye managed to escape and left her a parting gift. The mention of Xi Zhou sparked another realization. It was situated next to Chilong Mansion, and now, after this incident, she could take advantage of the competitive relationship between the two and gain the upper hand.

Amusingly, Xi Zhou had sent a letter some days ago, seemingly expressing condolences for the demonic attack on Chilong Mansion. However, the repeated use of the term “blind” in the letter, at least thirty times, left her feeling uneasy. She smirked at the thought of now being able to assert dominance over Xi Zhou.

Li Longling pondered momentarily, furrowed her brow, and said, “Send Chief Zhou Wei to lead the guards to Xi Zhou. They need to explain. The mountain bandits of Yuhu Mountain are entangled with the internal affairs of Xi Zhou. Young Master Jiang and his Dragon Slaying Society are heroes in the aftermath of the Demonic Cultivator Rebellion. This matter cannot be left unresolved!”

“Yes!”

With a nod from the palace guard, he turned and left. After she departed, Xiao Yunluo furrowed her brow, still looking concerned.

“Li Junior Sister, could it be Ye Anping and the others? How could they…”

Li Longling chuckled, asking in return, “Xiao Senior Sister, don’t you have confidence in Senior Ye?”

“It’s not that I don’t have confidence, but I…”

Xiao Yunluo pursed her lips, thought momentarily, and then exclaimed, “He could have come over and told us first! Hearing such news suddenly, how could people who care about him not be worried? Believe it or not, I’ll tell Senior Sister Feng later. She might rush straight into the Judicial Office… always doing things her way, not telling anyone anything…”

“Sigh…”

Li Longling shrugged, watching Xiao Senior Sister’s display of frustration. Somehow, she felt that Xiao was quite childish. Just hearing her voice, she initially thought Xiao Senior Sister was a reliable older sister. But now, seeing her shorter stature, Li Longling felt she was a reliable younger sister. At that moment, another maid entered the room.

“Miss, the young lady of Shadow Moon Sword Sect and her junior brother would like to meet.”

“Huh?” Li Longling paused, thought for a moment, then stood up from her seat, carrying her baby phoenix spirit pet, and walked out. “I’ll go out to meet them.”

“Yes…”

Li Longling was no longer as timid as when she met Yun Xi last time, relying on Xiao Yunluo to handle things. She confidently strode out the main hall door, deliberately closing her eyes as if she couldn’t see.

Yun Xi, waiting outside, saw her coming out and first bowed in a gesture of courtesy, then greeted her with a smile.

“Young Master Li, your eyesight is inconvenient. How did you come out? Let’s just go inside.”

Li Longling looked surprised at Yun Xi’s courteous actions. It seemed she didn’t treat her as a blind person, doing everything perfunctorily. Her gestures were relatively standard. However, the “junior brother” behind her wasn’t as good. Although he bowed, it seemed superficial.

Li Longling hesitated momentarily and asked, “Young Master Yun, what’s your accent…”

“Mandarin… On formal occasions, I have to use this… What’s wrong? Can’t understand?”

“I do, but it just feels a bit odd.”

“Then I’ll switch back.” Yun Xi smiled, “This time, we came to ask how Young Master Li is considering the matter. Also, have you learned anything about my brother and sister’s whereabouts?”

Li Longling smiled and shook her head. “I appreciate Young Master Yun’s kindness, but forgive me for not agreeing to the request on the jade slip. After all, Chilong Mansion is the only thing my father left for me.”

“That’s it.” Yun Xi shrugged without surprise, took out a jewelry box from the storage bag, and said, “It seems that Young Master Li already has a way to deal with it. Just think of it as an unnecessary move on my part. But if Young Master Li has difficulties, you can send me a letter anytime. These are a pair of empty mountain jade bracelets. Just treat them as gifts between friends.”

Li Longling hesitated for a while, then reached out to take it. Then, Yun Xi asked, “What about my brother and the others? Have they been found?”

Li Longling paused and replied, “I have found the two people that Young Master Yun mentioned, but they have left Chilong Mansion and are missing.”

Yun Xi twisted his eyebrows, looked at Li Longling’s expression, and said, “Li Mei’er, this matter is critical. Why don’t you spare me?”

“Everything is true. They left without saying goodbye.”

“Okay, in that case, we will stay soon. The Moon Shadow Sword Sect sent a letter a few days ago, asking me to return soon.”

“Well, be careful along the way, by the way…” Li Longling turned to Yun Xi’s junior brother and smiled, “Senior, on a formal occasion, I still suggest that you don’t be so perfunctory when saluting.”

After hearing this, the man paused slightly, and suddenly his eyes widened: “Ah? This…”

Yun Xi paused momentarily to react, looked at the young phoenix on her shoulder, and suddenly realized, “I see…”

“Well, Sister Yun, your clothes are so stylish.”

“Huh – okay, okay, if Li Mei’er has time to come to my place from now on, I’ll treat you to hot pot and stay soon.”

Yun Xi saluted again, waved her hand, turned around, and led her junior brother down the steps and left.

After they walked away, Li Longling sighed softly, looked to the west, and murmured, “The Hundred Lotus Sect… I must go and see it later.”