Chapter 048
Chapter 48: Commanding Commissioner
Today, in front of all the constables at Six Gates, Cang Yin Yue openly denied any marriage arrangement with Fu Yu.
Aside from clearly distancing herself and releasing her pent-up frustrations, her most important reason was precisely for this very moment.
Long ago, the esteemed Madam of Marquis Cang Yuan’s residence had strictly forbidden her from ever stepping foot inside. Moreover, the Marquis’s mansion was heavily guarded by skilled warriors. Even if Cang Yin Yue wished to sneak in quietly and steal the secret manual for the Bone Eroding Yin Wind Finger technique, it would be nearly impossible.
And so, she devised this plan.
Knowing her weak father’s nature, she understood that only by provoking his anger like this would he finally take action and forcibly bring her into the Marquis’s mansion.
However, to Cang Yin Yue, this was exactly the chance she needed.
…
The bustling street was alive with the cries of merchants and endless streams of passersby. Amid this lively scene, a group of stern soldiers clad in armor escorted an ornate carriage, swiftly moving forward.
Within the luxurious carriage, Li Mu Sheng and Eunuch Sun Chang Yu sat facing each other.
Li Mu Sheng lounged casually against the soft cushions, appearing lost in thought. In reality, he was deep in meditation, carefully refining his newly created martial technique—the Life Death Talisman.
Across from him, Eunuch Sun Chang Yu sat upright, eyes slightly narrowed, occasionally glancing at the young man before him. Judging by appearances, the young master closely resembled Consort Jing and was likely the Seventh Prince, who had been lost among common folk for years.
“Young Master Li, our journey to the headquarters of Heavenly Brocade Guard will take roughly an hour. Perhaps we might chat to pass the time?” Eunuch Sun Chang Yu suggested suddenly. He lifted the hot kettle from a side table and carefully poured tea into a cup, handing it to Li Mu Sheng.
Li Mu Sheng glanced upward briefly, accepted the tea, and took a gentle sip. His eyes brightened slightly. [Hmm, this tea has quite a nice fragrance. It must be expensive.]
“What do you wish to talk about? Choose something interesting, or I won’t bother chatting with a eunuch,” Li Mu Sheng lazily replied, willing to indulge the conversation a little longer since the tea was so pleasant.
Eunuch Sun Chang Yu’s eyelid twitched slightly. After a brief pause, he slowly began, “I, your humble servant, have read your files. I learned that you spent your past years in a small martial school in Wan Province.”
“But somehow, Young Master Li has acquired an extremely advanced acupoint-sealing technique, one that even I cannot counter. This greatly piques my curiosity,” he added carefully.
Li Mu Sheng raised an eyebrow. “If you’re curious, then just be curious. Or did you perhaps want to learn this technique from me?”
Sun Chang Yu stiffened slightly, coughing awkwardly. “Young Master Li misunderstands. The Imperial Palace possesses countless high-level martial manuals. Naturally, I have no need to covet your skills.”
“Still… a martial art of such caliber wouldn’t remain obscure in the Martial World. So, I’m curious: who exactly is your master? And how far have you advanced in your martial dao?”
Li Mu Sheng observed the fair-skinned eunuch, who sat awkwardly poised, and stroked his chin thoughtfully. “Did you ask that out of your own curiosity? Or was it the Queen in the palace who sent you?”
Surprised, Eunuch Sun looked closely at Li Mu Sheng, then nodded slightly. “The Queen had a close friendship with the late Consort Jing. She cares deeply about the Seventh Prince and thus wanted to inquire.”
Li Mu Sheng nodded lightly, unconcerned with how much truth lay in those words. He waved dismissively. “I’ve always been honest. Tell the Queen clearly: there’s no powerful force behind me, nor any prestigious martial heritage. I only learned some basic techniques from a small martial school.”
He paused meaningfully, smiling faintly. “But the martial arts I use now—I created them myself. As for my martial dao level…” Li Mu Sheng chuckled, eyes glinting mysteriously, “let’s just say… it’s very high.”
Eunuch Sun Chang Yu knitted his brows and fell silent, saying nothing more. After a lengthy pause, he sighed and shook his head. “I understand, Young Master Li. I’ll relay your words faithfully to the Queen.”
Li Mu Sheng glanced briefly at Sun Chang Yu. It was clear the eunuch didn’t believe his words, but Li Mu Sheng didn’t mind. Sometimes honesty was mistaken for boasting. When basic trust between people vanished, it truly was a sorrowful world.
Silence settled heavily within the carriage once again.
But soon afterward, Li Mu Sheng seemed to recall something and spoke again thoughtfully. “There’s something I forgot to mention earlier. It’s probably still timely to tell you now.”
Sun Chang Yu pursed his lips, somewhat irritated by Li Mu Sheng’s earlier boasting. His voice was cool as he replied, “Young Master Li, please speak. I’ve been listening carefully.”
Li Mu Sheng drained his cup in one gulp and placed it back on the table, motioning for more tea. “You previously mentioned the Demonic Heart Seed within that young man. I suddenly recalled the Commanding Commissioner who was with you earlier.”
Li Mu Sheng narrowed his eyes slightly. “I sensed a demonic aura on him, very similar to a demonic cultivation technique.”
At these words, Sun Chang Yu’s expression changed subtly as he looked sharply at Li Mu Sheng. Quickly, he turned his gaze away, shaking his head slowly.
“Lord Song has served diligently in the Heavenly Brocade Guard for many years. He’s trusted deeply by the Commander, with a clean background. It’s impossible for him to have any ties to demonic practitioners,” Eunuch Sun said firmly, clearly not believing Li Mu Sheng.
Both the Martial World sects and the Great Li dynasty had zero tolerance for demonic cultivators. Such practitioners pursued their goals by any ruthless means necessary—abandoning family, humanity, and even morality itself. The dynasty had long decreed death without mercy to anyone practicing demonic arts, never permitting such people within its ranks.
Seeing the eunuch’s disbelief, Li Mu Sheng raised an eyebrow but didn’t press further. Earlier, his mind had been focused solely on his martial art technique, so he had overlooked this matter. Now that he had informed Sun Chang Yu, he had done enough. Whether or not the eunuch believed him was beyond his control.
Suddenly sensing something unusual, Li Mu Sheng lifted the carriage curtain slightly to look outside. The armored guards escorting their carriage had left the crowded street and entered a quieter alley. However, as they approached an intersection, the carriage carrying Li Mu Sheng suddenly split away from the guards, veering onto another street.
Almost immediately, an identical carriage smoothly emerged, seamlessly replacing Li Mu Sheng’s carriage and continuing along the original route escorted by the armored guards.