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Lu Xiaofeng, known for his carefree nature, found his expression contorting the moment he heard that answer.
Not to mention the young novices like Huang Rong and Guo Jing.
Even Mei Chaofeng, who considered herself a villain, was momentarily stunned, doubting she had heard correctly.
“On what grounds!” Lu Xiaofeng erupted angrily.
In just a few words, it was clear that Fang Yingkan was nothing short of a fiend.
He greedily seized the women around him.
To maintain his good reputation in the capital, he simply killed anyone who might leak information.
Even worse, he created a pitiful “specimen” displayed in the Rare and Exotic Beasts Garden, solely to instill fear and awe in others.
If all the martial artists in the world behaved like Fang Yingkan, treating ordinary people without martial skills as their playthings, what justice or morality would remain in the world?
Lu Xiaofeng originally wanted to add, “Report to the authorities,” but suddenly recalled that she had already said so.
She had been sent back to the Shentong Marquis Mansion precisely because reporting to the officials had failed.
Even more... tragic.
“Since the capital has the Ministry of Justice handling cases, with the Six Doors assisting—whether it’s Zhu Yueming, the chief constable of the Ministry, or Wu Qing, the ruthless chief constable of the Six Doors, all renowned martial experts—why...”
“Because there’s no evidence,” the woman replied.
She neither cried nor made a scene; she merely dropped those six words calmly, yet the weight of them was suffocating.
For someone like Fang Yingkan, “no evidence” was his greatest shield.
Sikong Zhaixing and Lu Xiaofeng knew the woman displayed in the Rare and Exotic Beasts Garden was personally rescued by them, but if it came to court, they wouldn’t even doubt that Sikong Zhaixing himself would be the first to be punished.
As for the other evils committed by Fang Yingkan, there were subordinates ready to take responsibility and clean up the mess.
What complicated matters further was that he bore the title of “Shentong Marquis.”
This meant that all the forces in the capital had to weigh many considerations before moving against him.
“Sister,” Huang Rong suddenly became alert, “does that mean what I told you earlier—that he wants to strike the Mysterious Heaven Alliance again—is even more troublesome than I thought?”
While draping a cloak over the woman to shield her from the cold spring dampness after the poison had been forced out of her body, Shi Qingrua didn’t answer Huang Rong directly but asked, “Rong’er, today you and this young brother broke into the Marquis’s mansion and must have confronted the new guests there. What’s your impression?”
Huang Rong considered for a moment: “If we judge by martial skill, among those we saw today, only the young master of White Camel Mountain and Fang Yingkan himself showed real skill. The others, while skilled, were nothing more than a disorganized mob. But I suspect that Fang Yingkan’s confidence in doing this to someone must mean he has his own backing.”
“So his ambitions are far greater than what you’ve seen.” Shi Qingrua sighed.
Lu Xiaofeng’s eyes flickered, catching the meaning: “Madam’s point is that he placed such a group in front of the Shentong Marquis Mansion. Though they are decent fighters, they seem little more than hired thugs, which implies that young Marquis Fang is rather inept at selecting talent...”
“If he dares to come, just kill them all at once,” Guan Qi said coldly.
Shi Qingrua looked back and saw the same expression on his face as when he said, “Kill all who stand in the way,” and shook her head: “Sometimes brute force can overcome all methods, but sometimes rules must be followed. Fang Yingkan’s backing by Fang Geyin means that the gangs loyal to the great hero Fang are his godfather’s support. If he were killed without cause, the capital would descend into chaos.”
Chaos would harm many more people, which benefits no one.
“Then let Fang Geyin come to the capital, and I will face him,” Guan Qi said bluntly, unable to understand the subtlety.
At this, everyone fell silent for a moment.
But they had to admit that, for a straightforward man like Guan Qi, his words were the most sensible.
Fang Yingkan’s position as young marquis was earned through Fang Geyin’s heroic deeds.
Fang Yingkan’s status in the Jianghu was not due to guile but because he had a good godfather.
Now that he neglected national duty and committed such inhumane crimes, it was only right for Fang Geyin to come and end this disaster.
A child’s failure to be taught is the father’s fault—
That was undeniable.
“But even if Fang Geyin comes to the capital and kills his godson to make amends, will the capital truly be clean?” Shi Qingrua closed her eyes to ponder, then slowly spoke: “The Shentong Marquis Mansion is actually one of the least influential factions in Bianjing City. It was simply exposed suddenly after hiding beneath the sewage pond.”
Would killing just one Fang Yingkan solve the world’s problems?
She abruptly shifted tone: “Have I told you about what happened before I came to the capital?”
Zhu Xiaoyao knew a little but very limited.

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The Holy Lord’s wife could have won over Bai Choufei and Wang Xiaoshi only because she had dealings with them before.
According to intelligence from the Golden Wind Misty Rain Pavilion, it came from the Hubei region.
Beyond that, nothing more was known.
Shi Qingrua said, “Let’s not speak of earlier events; just the past six months. When I reached the Dongting Lake area, a major event occurred.”
“The great gang of the Land and Water routes, the Chang Kong Gang, was wiped out. Its key members were first poisoned, then slaughtered amid the chaos, and their treasured martial art, the Eternal Divine Finger, disappeared without a trace. When the Chang Kong Gang existed, some underground dealings in Hubei were guarded and not exposed, but with its fall, all sorts of scum began to rise.”
“I don’t know martial arts and was tricked into a human trafficking place, where I overheard some news...”
When the now elegantly dressed Holy Lord’s wife of the Mysterious Heaven Alliance spoke like this, the contrast with reality almost made one think this was long ago.
Yet it had been only half a year.
More shocking was her account.
“The escort agencies and boat gangs in the Jianghu trust the reputation of the Six and a Half Hall more than the Golden Wind Misty Rain Pavilion, even some who do business in the shadows. For example, the Inkstone Studio near Dongting Lake sounds cultured but is actually a troupe—and not an ordinary one.”
“Boss Gu of Inkstone Studio’s favorite trick is called ‘Human Ball,’ where people are scalded with boiling water, coated with scorpion powder, their limbs bound and broken, and spectators pitying these broken souls naturally give more silver.”
Huang Rong gasped sharply.
Thinking that Shi Qingrua had once suffered such a fate, barely escaping, made it even more horrifying.
“I was lucky,” Shi Qingrua continued. “Boss Gu, protected by the Six and a Half Hall, grew reckless. At year’s end, planning a big deal, coinciding with the Hall’s expansion into Hubei, they targeted several key figures, turning their children into ‘Human Balls’ as warnings. They drove our newly captured people from Hunan to Hubei to confuse matters and facilitate their cargo transfer. Among the goods was even the only son of the Hubei Governor Wen.”
Lu Xiaofeng murmured, “What kind of luck is that...”
Shi Qingrua sneered, “Because a decoy meant to distract didn’t need to know what they looked like, they could survive intact for now. Another piece of good news was that the northward invitation was a scam!”
Her voice grew colder: “The Six and a Half Hall’s reputation in Hubei was decent, and though they failed to strike a deal with Governor Wen, it wasn’t hostile. This incident only pushed him fully toward the Golden Wind Misty Rain Pavilion.”
“As for why this happened suddenly—the mastermind of this affair, the twelfth leader of the Six and a Half Hall, was not one of them but a mole from the Golden Wind Misty Rain Pavilion, Xue Xishen! Before meeting the troupe bosses, he had already informed the authorities.”
“Sacrificing a dozen children to drag down several criminals in Hubei and Boss Gu, while the Six and a Half Hall lost their ninth leader scouting the situation, was a profitable business for the Pavilion. By chance, Wang Xiaoshi and Bai Choufei passed by and rescued me, so I escaped intact.”
“Later, I met Seventh Brother in Bianjing; you know the rest...”
“Xue Xishen—” Zhu Xiaoyao’s face flickered briefly, but she quickly restrained herself, aware of others present.
Yet she could hardly keep from gasping.
If the Six and a Half Hall was at fault, then Xue Xishen’s exploitation of this to provoke the ‘deal’ was equally problematic!
Given Xue Xishen’s position, the subordinates had no say in his methods.
His push, while beneficial to the big picture, treated ordinary lives as a joke.
Shi Qingrua interrupted Zhu Xiaoyao’s thoughts: “No need to dwell on Xue Xishen.”
“If not for the journey north with Wang Xiaoshi and Bai Choufei and my faint knowledge of the Pavilion’s financial tactics, knowing that Master Su wouldn’t tolerate such dealings, I would have lost all respect for the Golden Wind Misty Rain Pavilion.”
“But some gangs are not entirely bad, some mostly evil. Many commit crimes to maintain status beyond the Emperor’s sight—not just Fang Yingkan alone!”
These people couldn’t be wiped out by Guan Qi’s exceptional skills alone.
If such matters were easy to solve, the Divine Marquis Zhuge would have done so long ago, not waited till now.
“...So, what does Madam plan to do?” Lu Xiaofeng couldn’t help but ask.
He paused after speaking.
Asking that question silently signaled something.
His first reaction was to believe Shi Qingrua could do something about this.
Shi Qingrua asked back: “You trust me that much? The Divine Marquis knows the world’s situation but can’t turn the tide. Seventh Brother is peerless in martial arts, yet the Mysterious Heaven Alliance has declined and become a haven for scoundrels. When I made the pact with Master Su, I couldn’t even confront Xue Xishen directly. So why do you think I can do more now?”
At least in Lu Xiaofeng and Sikong Zhaixing’s eyes, she had no martial skills.
Among martial artists, she was one of the easiest to deal with.
Lu Xiaofeng stroked his mustache and clicked his tongue: “How should I put it? Though I don’t know Madam well, I do know you wouldn’t show us this without reason.”
From her control over Sikong Zhaixing’s emotions, Lu Xiaofeng didn’t doubt that lack of martial skill was her weakness. On the contrary, he thought she wished more than anyone else to control the situation by other means.
He even suspected that her escape from Hubei wasn’t so simple.

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But when her goals perfectly matched Lu Xiaofeng’s tastes, there was no need to probe further.
“Also,” Lu Xiaofeng’s gaze shifted to Guan Qi, “Madam is half the owner of the Mysterious Heaven Alliance, a local power. Some things you couldn’t do before, you can now.”
So he wanted to hear Shi Qingrua’s plan.
Indeed, he disliked being constrained. Even with a sword at his throat, he wouldn’t give in easily. But retreating from all challenges was not his way!
Shi Qingrua didn’t press further. After a moment’s thought, she said: “The officials want to see only one gang left in Kaifeng—this is the consensus in Bianjing. My prior agreement with Master Su was to unite the Mysterious Heaven Alliance and Golden Wind Misty Rain Pavilion to first deal with the Six and a Half Hall, then tackle the Shentong Marquis Mansion and other entrenched forces. But now, having seen Fang Yingkan’s case first, perhaps there’s another way.”
“In a few days, I’ll find a chance to meet Master Su again to discuss. If Lu Gongzi is free, you may come along. As for...”
She turned to Mei Chaofeng.
The woman’s already pale face now looked even more deathly.
In the earlier dialogue, nothing pertained to her. The group’s attention was on the young Marquis Fang.
But when Shi Qingrua suddenly shifted focus, Mei Chaofeng realized a huge problem.
She heard something she shouldn’t have.
Years ago, after stealing her master’s technique and fleeing Peach Blossom Island, practicing the Nine Yin White Bone Claw and killing many, she was defeated in the northern desert, blinded, and taken in by Fu Kang, son of Fu Zongshu, in Bianjing.
Though she had just briefly fought alongside these people as comrades, she hadn’t forgotten her identity.
She had taken many lives too and should not have heard about the alliance between Golden Wind Misty Rain Pavilion and Mysterious Heaven Alliance!
Yet she was clumsy and slow to escape. Even if she could walk, she’d never flee the sight of the Mysterious Heaven Alliance’s Seventh Holy Lord.
For the first time, she felt powerless as if an ant trying to shake a tree.
Shi Qingrua continued: “Please, everyone stay temporarily within the Mysterious Heaven Alliance. Once this matter ends, you will be allowed to leave.”
“No!”
The voice drew everyone’s attention. Surprisingly, it was not Mei Chaofeng who opposed, but Guo Jing.
Huang Rong began to urge him, but Guo Jing replied seriously, “The herbal medicine stolen today from the Shentong Marquis Mansion must be delivered quickly to Taoist Wang; delaying his treatment would be bad.”
Although the occasion was serious, Shi Qingrua’s face softened slightly at this: “Silly boy, if you’d thought of Taoist Wang only now, he would already have been taken by the Shentong Mansion’s agents. When I sent Xiaoyao to assist you, I also had someone go to your inn; they’ve likely been retrieved.”
Guo Jing scratched his head, “But there’s another matter.”
“When I entered Bianjing, I saw a Mu family father and daughter holding a martial contest for marriage. Fu Kang won but refused to marry the girl. The fight was stopped by the Prime Minister’s wife. That should have been the end, but when I went to steal medicine from the Shentong Mansion today, the Mu pair were missing.”
“I’m sure they didn’t leave early,” Guo Jing hurriedly added, “Their contest setup remained, especially their spears, which were not taken. Rather than leaving voluntarily, it looks like they were taken away.”
If not for needing to secure Taoist Wang’s safety first, he would have sought the Mu pair’s whereabouts.
He had once thought Bianjing was a place of wealth and splendor.
Now, seeing the poisoned woman and knowing Fu Kang’s ties to Fang Yingkan, he felt deeply uneasy.
Just then, Shi Qingrua smiled faintly: “That makes it simple—just report it to the authorities.”
Guo Jing: “Eh... report to the authorities?”
Wasn’t it said the officials colluded with villains like these?
Shi Qingrua explained: “Reporting has nuances. As you said, the Mu pair only had disputes with people at the Prime Minister’s residence; it’s possible they were taken there as guests. Rather than you storming the Shentong Mansion and then the Prime Minister’s house, better to let the Six Doors handle it.”
“The Prime Minister’s subordinates, after the Lianyun Village case, are already on Wu Qing’s radar. They wouldn’t want another black mark. If the Mu pair are indeed in their custody, Wu Qing’s visit will likely secure their release—better than you risking it.”
Compared to other problems, this was the easiest to solve.
Only...
It required troubling Wu Qing, the ruthless chief constable.
Shi Qingrua thought ruefully, at least this time, Wu Qing wouldn’t be forced into marriage—
How could that not be a small matter?