NOVEL NEXT Chapter 631: General Xuelong
So, the "General Steward Order" he just issued to the other stewards through Qing Ying went smoothly without any hiccups.
Entering the courtyard, the whole place had an elegant air, and three maidens bowed to welcome him: "Young master, your journey must have been tiring!"
Lin Xiaosu nodded lightly and slowly ascended to the top of the pavilion.
The maiden carrying a tray of tea wanted to follow, but Saintess Qian Ling extended her hand and took it: "There's no need to attend."
"Yes, miss!" The maiden gave a slight bow.
The two of them went up to the top of the pavilion.
Once on the pavilion's top, there was suddenly a sense of quietness.
Lin Xiaosu glanced around and saw a water jar placed below the pavilion's window sill. There were three lotus flowers in the jar, seemingly just a decoration for the pavilion, but it was actually the array eye.
This was a sealing formation.
To ensure that the sounds inside wouldn't be heard outside.
This was probably what set the Heart Pavilion apart; it mostly dealt with information work, and privacy was its foremost concern.
"Can we speak freely?" A thread of Qian Ling's voice reached his ears.
Lin Xiaosu smiled, "Although there is a soundproof array here, for the most private matters, better to use voice transmission."
Saintess Qian Ling extended her hand with a cup of tea, handing it to him.
Lin Xiaosu took it, and casually pulled...
Saintess Qian Ling sat on his lap.
She felt completely awkward.
"This is the daily posture between Li Chengnian and Yan," Lin Xiaosu said, "Forgive my rudeness, sister."
Inside, Saintess Qian Ling felt like the waters of the Spring River, churning with countless waves.
"The path you've chosen, you must walk it to the end, even with tears..." Saintess Qian Ling gently exhaled, "Why drag the Ancient Sect into this?"
This was the point of confusion inside her.
The two of them "returned," but that Black-bearded Elder, Dragon Clan man, Li Family's steward became ghosts and couldn't return. There are many explanations for this.
Lin Xiaosu chose the most explosive one: the three were killed by masters of the Ancient Sect.
"Because for the death of the three, a definite conclusion is needed." Lin Xiaosu said.
"Definite?"
"Yes, we could say they were delayed on the road, they disappeared, or their whereabouts are unknown. At this stage, it indeed won't cause big upheavals, but it would become an unresolved case. Heart Pavilion's uniqueness is that they don't allow unresolved cases; if one day an elder has a sudden urge, and insists on seeing the living or seeing the corpse, there are ways to recreate the scene from then. In such a case, only a definite answer can prevent it from becoming an unresolved case, thus eliminating the need to use Great Divine Power to recreate the scene of the day."
There was a hint of confusion in Saintess Qian Ling's eyes: "Detective thinking?"
Lin Xiaosu laughed, "Yes, that's detective thinking."
A detective must investigate any uncertainty.
And this uncertainty they had could not withstand investigation.
Therefore, making uncertainty not become uncertainty, the high folk of Heart Pavilion wouldn't need to travel all the way to Zuo Zhi Lake to investigate this dubious case.
As for whether they could capture any clues over the empty water, others might doubt; Lin Xiaosu did not because he himself could do it.
If he could do it, does it mean others can't?
How could that be possible?
The key to his ability in this area is the Time Law infused into the Heavenly Tao Wisdom Eye.
The Time Law is the foundation.
Speaking purely of the Time Law, he is still quite shallow; he hasn't even formed a "Time Tao Seed", and this world has a path called "Space Time Path". Does he dare to bet that high folk of the Space Time Path haven't even formed a Time Tao Seed?
Saintess Qian Ling nodded gently, "I don't understand detective thinking, but I admit what you say makes sense. Yet, have you thought about another issue, what kind of waves would this order create?"
Although the Ancient Sect is in the distant Western Divine Ruins, and Ancient Sect disciples aren't many in the Southern Domain, there are still some.
With this black pot lightly tossed, what would they do?
They could unknowingly invite a disaster upon themselves.
Lin Xiaosu laughed, "You should know there are basic rules for the Ancient Sect: those who haven't reached the Fourth Realm can't easily go into the world. Even those roaming outside, even if not in the Fourth Realm, surely have the power to counter the Fourth Realm. Is it so easy for Heart Pavilion to kill them?"
"You..." Saintess Qian Ling was greatly shocked, "You're borrowing Ancient Sect's power to clear Heart Pavilion!"
"Sister, you're really smart; how did you come up with such a good plan? I admire you so much, you're handsome... oh, you're beautiful and so smart; how can others live?"
Saintess Qian Ling was flabbergasted, "What you said... are all my words."
Haha...
Lin Xiaosu laughed, laughed very flamboyantly.
With his laughter spreading, Saintess Qian Ling also had some movement on his lap, and this movement brought friction to their bodies. Saintess Qian Ling seemed to once again experience the sensation of his True Qi stimulation on Lao Mountain, feeling a bit distracted.
She wanted to leave, but this rascal said that this was the daily between Yan and him together. To avoid being seen through, it's best not to move randomly; however, not moving seemed to be leading this guy in that direction, so she cleared her mind quickly and changed the topic, "Why are you so familiar with Heart Pavilion? Did Hu Ji really tell you?"
"You are the person I am most familiar with in this world, so I won't lie to you!" Lin Xiaosu leaned to her ear, "This is the Sub-God Soul Searching Technique; whatever Li Chengnian knows, I know!"
Saintess Qian Ling's entire being stiffened up.
My heavens, is the Sub-God Soul Searching Technique really that terrifying?
He merely pressed a finger on Li Chengnian's forehead, and in just ten minutes, all of Li Chengnian's memories were in his head.
She wasn't particularly unfamiliar with sub-gods.
She even once had a Yuan Shen war with a sub-god master (Venerable Hydra Snake).
That sub-god artifact had stayed in her coffin for hundreds of years; she was both unfamiliar and somewhat familiar with it.
However, she never expected the sub-divine skill to be so magical.
It's even more miraculous than the Primordial Spirit Technique.
The Primordial Spirit Technique can devour the opponent's primordial spirit to acquire their memory, but it cannot read the consciousness of an ordinary person without a primordial spirit.
Li Chengnian was only Observing Heaven, without a primordial spirit.
No matter how strong a primordial spirit master is, they can't obtain his memory except by making him speak, yet the sub-divine skill can accurately read the consciousness of an ordinary person without a primordial spirit.
Those who practice Heavenly Dao Skill often look down on sub-gods a bit.
The key is the name...
Sub-god!
Many people instinctively feel that a sub-god is inferior to a primordial spirit.
Moreover, sub-gods do not belong to the category of Heavenly Dao Skills, and there's even a widely known saying: the practitioners of sub-gods easily encounter heavenly retribution.
Therefore, Heavenly Tao Cultivators mostly keep a respectful distance from sub-gods.
Now it seems, many things truly exist for a reason...
"Lord Steward!" A voice seemed to arise from nowhere.
It was Qing Ying's voice.
With this voice, Qing Ying appeared in the pavilion.
Her movement technique was extremely strange, even Saintess Qian Ling could only vaguely sense the sound of wind.
With Qing Ying's appearance, Saintess Qian Ling quickly bounced off Lin Xiaosu's lap.
Fortunately, Qing Ying had her head down, and didn't see her at all.
Lin Xiaosu asked, "Have the orders been issued?"
"Issued, Dove Window has been activated, Eagle Window is standing by!"
Dove Window specializes in intelligence reconnaissance.
Eagle Window specializes in long-range assassination.
"Good!" Lin Xiaosu nodded lightly, leaning back slightly: "What major events have occurred during my absence?"
Qing Ying responded, "The world is ever-changing, major events happen every day. Does the young master wish to know about a specific one?"
"Related to the Imperial Prince!" Lin Xiaosu replied.
Qing Ying said, "Related to the prince, there's only one major event, which is the matter of General Xuelong being imprisoned at the Northwest Zhuyun Platform..."
The Northwest Zhuyun Platform is the front line between the Dahuang Country and the Yanyun Country.
The two countries have been at war for a hundred years.
General Xuelong is the commander of Dahuang's elite 300,000-strong border army.
His imprisonment was quite shocking.
The greatest shock was that he had previously expressed clear support for the Seventh Prince.
Seventh Prince Hong Yun, his mother was merely a "Changzai" with a low status in the palace, so the Seventh Prince was not favored. Other princes were conferred as princes with fiefdoms, but he was stationed at the border, and at the most dangerous Northwest Zhuyun Platform at that.
He guarded the border for ten years, setting aside his princely status to bond with the warriors.
Unexpectedly, this also became his original sin.
Court officials painted a negative picture to the emperor, saying this Seventh Prince, not being favored among the princes, had long harbored different intentions, garnering support from the border army with increasing military power, a trend that must be stopped, or it could become a great threat to the Dynasty.
Thus, the emperor issued a decree, conferred him as King Dingbei, and summoned him back to Beijing.
This conferral seemed to shower the Seventh Prince with royal favor, but in truth, it stripped him of his actual power and effectively placed him under house arrest in the Capital.
The border generals were naturally displeased, especially General Xuelong.
General Xuelong remained fiercely loyal to the Seventh Prince after ten years of campaigns.
When the Seventh Prince returned to the capital, General Xuelong was enraged.
Later, it was heard from the Capital that the Seventh Prince received no fief, his mansion's provisions were the lowest among the princes, and he couldn't even enter the palace, instead frequenting brothels, spending money to drown his sorrows. General Xuelong submitted a memorial to the emperor stating: if ten years of guarding the borders cannot earn a prince the proper treatment, then what's the use of guarding the border?
This memorial was maliciously interpreted by court officials as a sign that Xuelong intended to rebel.
As a result, General Xuelong was captured back to Beijing and imprisoned, and the women of his family were sent to the Imperial Music Bureau.
The news Qing Ying conveyed shocked Lin Xiaosu greatly.
From Li Chengnian's memory, he knew the name of General Xuelong, a truly pure commander with no factional biases. When the current Crown Prince contended with the former Crown Prince, he attempted to draw Xuelong to his side at great cost. But Xuelong not only rejected this alliance but also exposed the evidence, making the current Crown Prince Hong Ding extremely embarrassed, nearly leading to the collapse of the Eastern Palace's great endeavors.
When analyzing this information, Lin Xiaosu had thought this commander could become a leverage point to move Dahuang, but who could have expected that just five days ago, General Xuelong's end had come.
Changes within the court truly occur amid such turbulent times.
Qing Ying informed Lin Xiaosu of this matter because the Heart Pavilion high-ups all knew that General Xuelong's imprisonment was entirely orchestrated by the Crown Prince.
Why do this?
There are two reasons, most people only see the first one.