Chapter 36: The Thirty-Sixth Day as Cult Leader (Part 2)

In short, these problems nearly made Qin Ming break out in a cold sweat. Fortunately, in the end, Qin Ming did not need to take action personally. Everything was actually resolved smoothly!

Over at the restaurant, it was all thanks to Qian Xiaodou’s quick wit. That night, Qian Xiaodou happened not to have gone to sleep yet and was sorting through the ledgers and silver at the restaurant counter.

He had always felt happy counting silver. Every day, he would personally check the accounts. Although the silver did not belong to him, he still felt perfectly satisfied.

It was at this moment that he heard the sound of someone pushing open the door and entering. Qian Xiaodou almost instinctively ducked down and hid beneath the counter, cold sweat seeping out along his back.

He could hear the other person’s nearly imperceptible footsteps slowly testing forward in his direction. Qian Xiaodou’s own martial arts could be said to be unsightly, while the people responsible for guarding the restaurant were still resting on the second floor. If he was discovered first, wouldn’t his little life be handed over right here?

The more he thought about it, the more frightened he became. Just as he looked around for some way to delay time and let him go upstairs to seek help, he noticed the lime that happened to have been set not far away.

Qian Xiaodou’s eyes sharpened. A clever idea immediately appeared in his mind. He directly grabbed a handful of lime, and when the enemy approached, he suddenly leaped up and flung it down.

Then he smoothly grabbed the decorative dagger hanging at the counter and stabbed fiercely toward the enemy’s lower abdomen.

“Someone! There’s a thief! A thief!”

At that moment, he shouted at the top of his lungs and scrambled toward the second floor, rolling and crawling, finally delaying a great deal of time.

That so-called thief was also arrested and brought to justice by the authorities. The news and the Intelligence Pavilion were not exposed at all. It could be considered a close call that was resolved without danger.

Although the method was somewhat underhanded, after Qin Ming heard the cause and effect, he still repeatedly praised Qian Xiaodou for doing well. He had actually managed to think of such a dirty trick as lime. If Qin Ming had been able to think of a move like that before fighting the Blood Blade Sect’s sect leader, wouldn’t he have been able to win easily?

As expected, this victory had Qian Xiaodou’s style written all over it.

It was just that, aside from Qin Ming, the people who knew about this matter did not think so. Most evaluated Qian Xiaodou’s act as a “despicable method” and “beneath contempt,” and so on. This was enough to show how disliked such lowly tricks were by people of the jianghu.

As for the predicament of those two Qingyue Sect disciples, it was also solved by an unexpected person!

At the time, the two Qingyue Sect disciples were scratching their heads and cheeks as they carved wooden blocks, but the results were always crooked and unsightly. Then an angry, cold shout descended from the sky and instantly startled them awake.

“What a reckless waste of precious things! What a reckless waste!”

A scholar strode quickly to their side, looking at the miserably carved wood in their hands and nearly dying of anger. “Is this how you carve wood? You’ve wasted such fine timber!! This is outrageous. What prodigality!”

After being scolded head-on, the Qingyue Sect disciples were first utterly bewildered, then a flame surged up in their hearts as well. “And who are you? You’re just standing there pointing fingers. What kind of hero only moves his lips? If you can do it, then you do it!”

Who would have thought that the scholar would let out a cold laugh and truly snatch away the wooden block and small knife in his hand?

“This old man will do it! Move aside!”

Then his fingers worked with extreme agility, and he truly carved a reversed character for “classic” to show them.

The Qingyue Sect disciples could not help being shocked. “You really do know how!”

Even Yang Xu, who hurried over after hearing about this, could not help repeatedly praising Xu Sheng’s craftsmanship. “Amazing! Truly amazing! Even better than a carpenter!”

Seeing Xu Sheng arrogantly teach the two Qingyue Sect disciples how to carve while the two Qingyue Sect disciples obediently listened and imitated, Yang Xu could not help smiling. The four Qingyue Sect disciples present had officially gathered together.

Looking at Xu Sheng’s lifelike carving, Yang Xu asked curiously, “How did you learn so many crafts?”

Counting carefully, Xu Sheng knew how to farm, how to build walls, how to teach, and even how to do carpentry. Good fellow. He was practically omnipotent!

As Xu Sheng slowly carved the wood, he recalled with a sigh, “It’s nothing much. You know that this old man was originally a disciple of the Qingyue Sect. The Qingyue Sect was already skilled at this sort of craftsmanship... And this old man had originally wanted to master martial arts, eliminate demons, defend the Way, and protect all under heaven. Unfortunately, when I truly faced a crisis, I did something I would regret for the rest of my life. Only then did this old man realize that the sword was of no use to me, and that this old man could not become some great jianghu hero either.”

“Therefore, this old man abandoned martial arts for literature. Then, because I wanted to truly help the common people, I learned many crafts... If someone’s roof leaked, this old man would help patch it. If someone could not do farm work, this old man would try to help with the autumn harvest. If someone’s hoe broke but they had no money to buy a new one, this old man would help repair it... Over time, after accumulating experience through all these years, I learned a little of every craft.”

When Yang Xu heard these words, he admired him even more. “So that was how it was. I never expected that only after passing the age of fifty would I finally understand that what you are doing is truly serving the nation and the people! My heart is filled with admiration!”

The two Qingyue Sect disciples also felt solemn respect. They had not expected that this stubborn little old man who liked to scold people actually had such deeds behind him. They truly admired him!

“But... what was the thing you regretted for the rest of your life?” a Qingyue Sect disciple asked curiously, only to be glared back by Xu Sheng.

“Why are you asking? Is that something you should ask? Your hands move so slowly, your brains are so foolish, and you still dare call yourselves Qingyue Sect disciples! How can Qingyue Sect disciples be as stupid as you! Hurry up and work. There is plenty of wood here that needs carving!”

“...”

The Qingyue Sect disciples’ faces flushed from being scolded. They stubbornly said, “Nonsense. Our senior brothers and senior sisters aren’t necessarily any smarter than the two of us!”

Xu Sheng only answered them with a disdainful look. This made the Qingyue Sect disciples even more unconvinced. Suddenly, a thought appeared in their hearts. There was so much wood to carve. Relying only on the few of them would definitely not be enough. If their senior brothers and senior sisters could also come help, would that not both speed things up and prove that most of them were actually very foolish too?

The two Qingyue Sect disciples could not help looking at each other, the little schemes in their hearts stirring eagerly.

…

Qin Ming did not know about all the little thoughts that had appeared in their hearts. After learning that the predicament had temporarily been resolved, he let out a breath of relief from the bottom of his heart.

But before that heart could thoroughly calm down, he saw Chen Lue, who almost never came to visit him, knock open the door to his study.

Qin Ming’s eyelid twitched. “Has some problem appeared on your side too?”

“That is not the case.” Fortunately, Chen Lue had only come this time for an inconspicuous minor matter. “Reporting to the Cult Leader, Qian Xiaodou sent someone to deliver me a letter a few days ago. He said there were some matters in the restaurant that he could not handle, and it so happens this subordinate is skilled in that area, so he earnestly requested that this subordinate go assist him.”

“However, this subordinate’s burdens have also been heavy recently. Only today did I finally have some free time. Therefore, I have come specially to request the Cult Leader’s instruction. May this subordinate be permitted to descend the mountain for one day?”

Discovering that it was not another unsolvable difficulty, Qin Ming immediately breathed a sigh of relief and casually agreed to his request. However, when he thought of how the road between the Demonic Cult and the restaurant was quite far, and Chen Lue was not skilled in martial arts either, he considerately said, “This seat will have Zhou Ji escort you. Go find him and descend the mountain together.”

On this side, he was still sighing inwardly that he was truly a considerate Cult Leader. On Chen Lue’s side, however, his movements suddenly paused for two breaths. Only then did he nod as if nothing had happened.

“Many thanks, Cult Leader.”

Only after he left the study did Chen Lue’s gaze gradually sharpen. As he rubbed the jade thumb ring on his thumb, he sank into thought.

“...Not a major problem. But it seems I truly have already entered the Cult Leader’s range of suspicion. Is he specially sending someone to monitor me...”

After reaching this conclusion, his expression returned to indifference, as though nothing had happened. He went to Zhou Ji and conveyed the Cult Leader’s order.

Zhou Ji’s thoughts were clearly similar to his. After his suspicious gaze circled Chen Lue twice, this taciturn man silently stood behind Chen Lue and, without saying a word, stared at him as he walked down the mountain.

The two of them barely even exchanged looks before they arrived at the restaurant. Qian Xiaodou, who was receiving guests at the counter, was visibly shocked when he suddenly saw them.

“You two are...?”

Chen Lue suddenly seized his wrist and gripped it tightly, interrupting his words. “Didn’t you have some questions you wanted to ask me? The Cult Leader specially permitted me to descend the mountain and help. Whatever it is, just say it.”

Looking at his meaningful gaze, Qian Xiaodou was confused for a moment before he forced a dry smile and nodded. “Ah, right, right. There are indeed things I need to consult you about. You came at just the right time...”

Chen Lue was busy inside the restaurant for nearly the entire afternoon, while Zhou Ji waited not far away. From time to time, Zhou Ji cast examining glances over. Even Qian Xiaodou felt enormous pressure, yet Chen Lue himself remained calm and composed. After methodically finishing all the miscellaneous tasks, he voluntarily returned to the mountain before dark.

After Zhou Ji returned to the mountain, he immediately reported to Qin Ming. “Cult Leader, this subordinate has been observing Chen Lue the entire time and did not see any strange behavior from him. Is a deeper investigation needed?”

Qin Ming said, “Mm... mm?”

Investigate what??

Qin Ming, who had absolutely no idea what Zhou Ji was talking about, first went blank for an instant. Immediately after that, he was already skillfully putting on an Unfathomable appearance and waved his hand.

“No need. You may withdraw.”

Just like that, he muddled through and sent Zhou Ji away. Qin Ming never paid any attention to this matter again. However, three days later, with the arrival of a confidential letter from Qian Xiaodou, Qin Ming suddenly discovered that a strange incident had recently appeared in the nearby towns.

“People going missing... More than twenty known victims so far. Most are beggars, refugees, or children and women. Most are from Heshan Prefecture... No related intelligence has been found to this day?”

Qin Ming carefully examined this document, his brows unconsciously knitting together. Since ancient times, missing people had never been anything good. Moreover, the number had already exceeded a certain degree. Perhaps there was some conspiracy hidden within.

However, as the Cult Leader of the Demonic Cult, he was not a member of the Embroidered Uniform Guard or the government authorities. Even if he cared about this matter, he had no authority to investigate it. Therefore, he merely had Qian Xiaodou continue trying to investigate. If there were any clues, they could be compiled and sent to the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

Qin Ming currently had a rather high favorable impression of the people from the Embroidered Uniform Guard. By telling them about the disappearances, he could also put his own heart somewhat at ease.

But no matter what, he never expected that something he originally thought had no connection to the Demonic Cult would suddenly descend upon him personally.

When Demonic Cult disciple Zhao Tong went out to purchase supplies, he actually vanished mysteriously and had not returned even now!

Next Chapter >