Hu Li paused and said, "Nothing can escape your eyes, senior. The incident in Shangying City, where the man who bought clothes ended up dead. Initially, I thought the clothes seller, Xu Xiazi, was the real murderer, but he was killed in the same manner by the true culprit."

"What manner?" the old man asked.

"Poison," Hu Li said. "Deadly poison."

Upon hearing this, the old man picked up the little girl and swiftly dashed out of the courtyard.

Hu Li muttered to himself, waiting in place for them to return.

But within a quarter of an hour, the old man returned with the little girl.

"I have not deceived you, senior," Hu Li said.

"Go inside first," the old man urged the little girl.

The two stood silently outside for a moment, then the old man sighed, "Why did you come to Shangying City? Not for treasure, I presume, but to seek death?"

"Hu Li indeed came for the Liangwang's underground palace, but I am not here to plunder treasures. It's just that someone I admire died because of the Liangwang's underground palace," Hu Li explained.

"There are countless who have died for that. Do you think you'll find the truth easier here, or is it easier to die?" the old man scoffed. "Whether your words are true or false, it's none of my concern, nor is it Shangying City's concern. I won't kill you, considering you saved her three times. The farther you are from Shangying City, the better. Don't rush to find death."

With that, the old man entered the house.

Hu Li stood in the courtyard, lost in thought for a while.

From the old man's behavior, it seemed he had a close relationship with Xu Xiazi.

Perhaps Jiang Yu's guess was correct. The trap set on May 3rd was just a scheme devised by those who guarded Shangying City. But they didn't expect to fail so miserably this year, with Xu Xiazi dead.

Hu Li returned to the inn and saw Jiang Yu sitting at the round table, handing him a cup of tea. "Back already?"

Hu Li was taken aback for a moment, then closed the door. "What happened?"

"Those guys next door caused quite a stir," Jiang Yu said.

Hu Li didn't immediately react. It took him a while to realize that Jiang Yu was referring to the group of Black Horse Escort Agency escorts who arrived at Shangying City shortly after Bai Huai Shui.

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"What kind of trouble can they cause?" Xu Cheng, the one from Jindao Gate, besides swinging his big knife a few times, wasn't useful for much else.

"They ran into Bai Huai Shui just now," Jiang Yu said. "There was a fight."

Hu Li felt a bit uneasy. Bai Huai Shui, with his weak physique, couldn't wield a knife, let alone confront those skilled escorts. If he clashed with them head-on, it was like throwing eggs at a stone wall. By now, his face might be ruined.

"How's my master?" Hu Li asked.

"Bai Huai Shui?" Jiang Yu raised his voice slightly. "Next door, happily counting the silver."

This development seemed off. Hu Li still worried and said, "I'll go check."

"If he hasn't lost an arm or a leg, what are you looking at?" Jiang Yu glanced at Hu Li, thinking he was making a fuss, then continued, "What about you? Going out so late, do you have some secret you can't tell?"

Hu Li got the exact answer he needed. The weight on his heart was lifted. He chose a seat next to Jiang Yu, poured himself a cup of tea, and said, "I went to inform him about Xu Xiazi's death."

"Could you tell anything from his reaction?" Jiang Yu asked.

"It seems you were right. May 3rd was just a hoax. His relationship with Xu Xiazi seems good," Hu Li said.

Jiang Yu chuckled. "These people sure know how to stir up trouble."

Hu Li and Jiang Yu left the room together.

The candlelight in Bai Huai Shui's room was still on. He walked in.

Bai Huai Shui himself was sitting at the round table, with a bunch of silver coins on the table, leisurely sipping tea.

Seeing Hu Li coming in, he raised his hand generously. "A share for the visitor, half each."

"You're generous, master," Hu Li said, sitting down and starting to put the silver coins into his pocket.

"You're not being polite either, nephew. It's a mutual exchange," Bai Huai Shui said, still boasting about his achievements, "If those guys came back in an hour, they would surely be kicked out of this inn, or they would simply lose this escort to me."

Bai Huai Shui couldn't help but laugh when he thought of the four men's embarrassed faces from earlier.

"Do they have escorts with them this time?"

"Otherwise?" Bai Huai Shui raised his eyebrows. "Would Black Horse Escort Agency send people out without taking any escorts? They're not so wealthy to afford that."

"They've been staying in Shangying City for several days, neither going nor receiving anything. It's strange," Hu Li said.

"They even have time to come and bother me," Bai Huai Shui agreed, then diverted the topic himself, "Is the head of the Black Horse Escort Agency's Yanran Branch crazy? Sending out such idiots."

These past two days, the escorts of the Black Horse Escort Agency had been too quiet, so much so that Hu Li had almost forgotten about them. Now, with this commotion, he was reminded.

When escorting criminals, the Black Horse Escort Agency probably knew about the Liangwang's underground palace.

Timing their arrival to coincide with this and staying for so long, they probably came for the underground palace too. And they might have plans for the half-map.

"They're quite audacious. Knowing Jiang Yu is here, they still dared to come forward," Bai Huai Shui said, "So they had to come up with a solution, saying they were delivering an escort. It would be best if they could get some treasure at that time. If not, this excuse is still foolproof."

Hu Li pondered Bai Huai Shui's words for a moment.

"Nowadays, business dealings are not as straightforward as one might imagine. There's a mix of black and white. It's hard to tell who's honest and who's not," Hu Li commented.

"Master's words are getting more roundabout," Bai Huai Shui remarked.

Bai Huai Shui glanced at Hu Li, then changed the subject, "Is the silver packed? Go back and rest."

Hu Li's pockets were full, but he wanted to take a few more coins. Bai Huai Shui noticed and said, "Nephew, don't be shy. Let's call it even."

Bai Huai Shui, unusually, didn't say much more and nodded for Hu Li to leave.

The candles in the corridor were still burning.

Xu Cheng hadn't stayed in a room where someone died. After all, he had been the king of the mountain for so many years; he couldn't stand that bad luck.

Hu Li, Bai Huai Shui, and the four men from the Black Horse Escort Agency occupied all the rooms on the left side of the corridor. Hu Li walked along the corridor, and only one room was still lit.

He stopped at the doorway of the lit room.

With a forceful push, the person inside cursed and pushed the door open, brandishing a knife as if to rush out.

Hu Li dodged backward, avoiding the door slamming into his face.

There were three people inside, and the one closest to Hu Li was none other than Xu Cheng.

Seeing Hu Li, Xu Cheng immediately blew his beard and stared, "Oh, it's another talented disciple of the No-Phase Zen School. First, your junior brother, now a fake nephew."

"Are you looking for revenge on my master?" Hu Li looked at the big knife Xu Cheng was holding and smiled.

"Your master cheated us out of all the silver we had," Xu Cheng said.

"It seems Xu Master's skills are not as good as others'. The principle of fair gambling is clear. I'm sure Xu Master understands it well, and I don't need to say more," Hu Li said unreservedly, then smiled at the two men behind Xu Cheng.