Zhixu City was the territory of Ba Yingshan, so if they were really determined, no movement on the surface would escape their notice.
Upon receiving the news, he immediately went to the guest room and met Qi Yueru to inform her of the situation, "It's confirmed, we leave today. It won't be long before the goods at Bowan Building are ready, and they'll leave with them."
Hearing the first part, Qi Yueru was ready to leave immediately, but the latter part stopped her, and she asked, "What do you mean, why involve Bowan Building?"
Ba Yingshan did not see a problem, "They went to Bowan Building, probably mentioned the matter of leaving, and the delivery team of Bowan Building will take them along."
Qi Yueru became furious instantly, "With people from Bowan Building protecting them, how can I make my move after we get out? No, you have to find a way to detain the two of them!"
Ba Yingshan also grew angry upon hearing this, "What are those two boys worth, that I would need to make a move? If I make a move to detain them, wouldn't that arouse suspicion? You're just looking for trouble. Once they're out, you have plenty of time and ways to deal with them, however you like. Now that the 'jail heads' are here and clearly suspicious about the Dragon Bone, how can I do as I please?"
Qi Yueru countered, "If they have no guilt, why seek shelter at Bowan Building? The world outside is vast and full of obstacles. If they take this opportunity to slip away, where would I find them in a hurry?"
This was her true thought, and she increasingly felt the local influence of East Nine Plain was suspicious. If there was indeed a problem, seeking shelter at Bowan Building meant they were prepared, surely planning an escape route. This she could not tolerate; she could not afford to let them escape.
Ba Yingshan bluntly said, "How you find them once outside is your affair. I've helped you as much as I could, but detaining them here is absolutely out of the question. I'm telling you, we absolutely cannot afford another complication here. You better leave quickly, and whatever grievances you have, you can resolve them once you're out."
Seeing that he was genuinely angry, Qi Yueru fell silent for a moment and then suddenly asked, "What if the murderer of my son is really them?"
Ba Yingshan disdainfully said, "Whether it is them or not is your matter. Like I said, once you're out, you're free to seek revenge as you wish."
It was clear that he wanted nothing further to do with the matter.
Qi Yueru approached him, her gaze intent as she met his eyes, "If they are the murderers, why would they leave the treasure at the scene and not take it with them? Could it be to divert suspicion from themselves? My son, they had already offended him, so failing one more or less time makes no difference, yet they abandon such a valuable treasure, what are they afraid of? I can't guarantee that my brother didn't reveal something he shouldn't have before he died."
Ba Yingshan's brow twitched, and he coldly said, "What shouldn't be said? You're stretching the truth, drop this ruse!"
Qi Yueru pressed, "It's not about fearing a thousand things, but fearing the one thing that happens. Does City Lord Ba really want to gamble his entire fortune on such a trivial matter? The safest way is to have me deal with them quickly. That way, you can rest easy, and so can the Qi family. You know that the 'jail heads' have become suspicious, any little rumor could spell disaster for you. City Lord Ba, any potential leaks must be swiftly plugged!"
Ba Yingshan frowned, his expression showing some interest but mostly hesitation.
After observing his reactions, Qi Yueru added more fuel to the fire, "City Lord Ba's concerns are not unreasonable, it is indeed inappropriate to take actions here to detain people directly, but it is possible to improvise a bit, find a reason to detain them temporarily. Once the Bowan Building delivery team has left, they can be expelled on account of a misunderstanding or some other reason. This way, it wouldn't stir any waves. Inside Zhixu City, such a small matter should surely be manageable for City Lord Ba, right?"
The Qi family had sent her here not only because it was perfectly justified to visit her son and brother but also because of her capability to adapt to situations.
Ba Yingshan's gaze flickered, and without a word, suddenly turned and left.
Watching him go, Qi Yueru revealed a triumphant smirk, but then her thoughts turned to her deceased son, and her sadness was once again palpable...
In the blacksmith shop where sparks flew and the shirtless, bearded strongman directed several apprentices at work, Shi Chun and Wu Jinliang entered to say goodbye, as they were leaving, and they wanted to bid farewell to their old acquaintances.
Both of their weapons had also been forged here.
The blacksmith shop was located at the very end of the row of stores belonging to Bowan Building, serving the needs of those from the Land of Exile.
Shi Chun really just dashed in to say goodbye, wanting to check if Sister Miao was genuinely absent near Bowan Building's main gate; the proprietress clearly did not like him mixing with her daughter, possibly keeping Miao from him.
Not wanting to follow, Wu Jinliang made an excuse to stay at the blacksmith shop and chatted idly with the bearded smith, unwilling to face the proprietress's displeasure again.
Each store in the row was distinct, with customers at each doorstep, bringing various items for appraisal—mostly unusual stones or minerals—after which they would receive a written amount on paper. This amount could be spent within Bowan Building, and any change was also written down anew.
The amount on paper could not be taken out of the city; once outside the city gates, the numbers on the paper would vanish. So, before leaving, all numbers had to be registered under one's name in Zhixu City, accumulating what was called "merit." If needed next time, it could be withdrawn without any deductions.
Many would never return due to various accidents that frequently occurred in the Land of Exile, and then the unclaimed money naturally became the property of Zhixu City.
The main hall of the building was specifically for selling goods, experiencing slightly less traffic compared to the shops.
In a corner of the hall, several ledgers were piled on a long table, where a young man was sitting behind the desk, chewing on his pen while accounting. After some writing and sketching, he was about to put the pen down when he suddenly uttered an exclamation, unable to find a place to set down his pen. After searching the desktop, he scratched his head in confusion, "Where's the pen holder, where did it go?"
Shi Chun, walking towards him, couldn't help but laugh. He knew this young man quite well.
The young man was an apprentice at Bowan Building; his origins unknown, yet at a young age, he had joined Bowan Building as an apprentice.
He was fairly handsome, but sometimes it seemed his brain was not quite sharp.
Shi Chun had already spotted where the pen holder was; wasn't it pressing down those ledgers? Most likely, the young man had placed it there himself.
It was right in front of him, yet the young man couldn't find it. Shi Chun was about to tease him as a reminder, when he suddenly saw the young man bite a pen in his mouth, free his hands to fold a piece of paper repeatedly into a multi-layered "river" shape and place it on the table. He then placed the pen from his mouth onto the rigged paper conveniently and continued perusing the ledgers.
A piece of paper, soft and frail, was simply folded a few times into a tile-like shape, and in a moment, its bearing capacity changed dramatically, firmly supporting a pen.
This scene struck Shi Chun like a bolt of lightning; he stopped dead in his tracks, staring blankly at the paper that had changed form to bear weight.
He also visualized the scene of being frozen by the immobilization charm that night.
That ethereal blue substance, unnoticeable under normal circumstances, had only become visible because the radiating roots released from the immobilization charm gathered it, showcasing its presence in a magical way.
Since that night, he often wondered what had happened, as the scene his right eye saw while under the effects of the immobilization charm had given him a direction to move forward once he got out.
The things he had not understood before, at that moment, seeing the paper support the pen, suddenly touched his soul like a revelation.
"Chaos..." He muttered the confession extracted from Shen Youkun, vaguely realizing an issue. Could the bizarre scenes seen by his right eye be the world of chaos?
Could the chaotic world actually always exist, merely unseen under normal circumstances?
To feel the presence of different substances in the chaotic world, could one simply need to find the right medium?
The young man, flipping through the ledgers, unintentionally looked up and noticed him standing there dazed, and called out, "Chunchun, Sister Miao didn't come this time."
He continued writing and drawing as he spoke.
Sometimes putting down his pen, and other times drawing and writing, after penning down several pages of content, when he looked up again, he noticed Shi Chun was still standing there, dazed. Feeling puzzled, he put down his pen and walked over, shaking his hand in front of Shi Chun, "Chunchun, what's wrong? Feeling down because Sister Miao isn't here?"
"Hmm?" Shi Chun snapped back to reality and asked in return, "Miss Miao didn't come to Zhixu City?"
The young man shook his head, just about to explain when suddenly a loud shout came from outside, "What are you doing, what are you doing, why are you arresting me?"
Immediately, the place erupted into chaos. By the sound of it, it seemed like it was Wu Jinliang's. Shi Chun turned to look, but the view outside the door was blocked by people moving in and out, drawn by the commotion.
In the next moment, the voice shouted again, "Chun Tian, help me!"
Was it really Wu Jinliang? Shi Chun's face changed, he swiftly moved, leaping over the heads of the crowd and landed on the outside steps. He saw Wu Jinliang already captured by several armored guards of Zhixu City, his arms twisted and neck pinned down.
Shi Chun asked in a deep voice, "What happened?"
With a great effort to lift his head, Wu Jinliang exclaimed, "I don't know! I was just about to go in when they suddenly grabbed me."
Before he could finish, a grimy man in tattered clothes, clearly not a city guard, squeezed out from amongst the armored guards, pointing at Wu Jinliang and shouting, "It was him, he bumped into me just now, and then my things disappeared. He definitely stole my things."
At this revelation, the onlookers gasped. In this city, not only fighting but also theft was prohibited, with severe consequences since the guards did not value their lives highly.
Shi Chun felt a pang in his heart and stared incredulously at Wu Jinliang. He knew Wu Jinliang's ways were not always clean, and in the Land of Exile, who had clean hands anyway? Everyone grabbed what they could, but they were about to leave; why take such a risk now?
Wu Jinliang immediately barked back at the man, "Who the fuck are you, when did I bump into you?"
As Shi Chun was about to speak out in Wu Jinliang's defense, the man in the rag suddenly pointed at him, "And him, I remember clearly, they are together."
At this, Shi Chun's eyes narrowed instantly, realizing something was amiss. If it was only Wu Jinliang, he might still suspect him, but now that they were accusing him too, he was clear about his own actions and hadn't seen any collision while he was with Wu Jinliang.