“Chop him!”

Xiao Wu had been busy all night. Not only had the shopkeeper given him a severe scolding, but he also had to take a cleaver to the neighboring Hongxiu Brothel to personally chop up the dancer he had once been intimate with, getting covered in blood in the process.

Now, acting out of anger, the heavy bone-chopping knife, wielded with great force, flew from his hand, spinning and buzzing in the air directly towards the Crown Prince’s face.

In that critical moment, Li Xuan drew his sword. The tip of his blade lightly touched the spinning knife’s handle. With a slight flick of his wrist, the bone-chopping knife began to spin around the sword’s tip.

Li Xuan flicked his wrist again, sending the bone-chopping knife back the way it came, straight towards Xiao Wu’s chest and abdomen.

Xiao Wu’s face turned pale with alarm. He bent backward in a “plank bridge” pose, and the bone-chopping knife whistled perilously close past his nose.

With a thud, the bone-chopping knife struck the wooden board outside the counter, its handle still trembling.

“He’s tough, let’s go at him together!” Xiao Wu cursed angrily.

The shopkeeper, however, snapped at him, “Get out of here, stop making a fool of yourself.”

“Oh,” Xiao Wu straightened up, pulled his cleaver from the counter, and, leading Xiao Liu, retreated to stand beside the shopkeeper.

The shopkeeper first assessed Li Xuan. His effortless swordsmanship just now was truly astonishing, but even more striking than his sword skills was the young man beside him, dressed in white with narrow sleeves and a silver crown adorning his tied-up hair.

The moment Xiao Wu threw the bone-chopping knife, the young man’s smile remained unchanged, and he didn’t even blink. It was as if he had been certain from the start that the knife couldn’t harm him.

Such composure was rare.

Xiao Wu quietly asked, “Shopkeeper, who are these people?”

The shopkeeper calmly replied, “Given their composure and the presence of such a skilled bodyguard, they must be the ‘Big Shot’ from the capital.”

The Crown Prince smiled, breaking the tension, and cupped his hands. “My good shopkeeper, we are merely passing through with no ill intent. Could there be some misunderstanding between us? If we spoke offensively just now, I apologize.”

The shopkeeper also smiled, cupped his hands, and said, “It was my foolish employee who caused this misunderstanding; it has nothing to do with you, honored guests.”

The Crown Prince took a few steps forward, observing the inn with interest. “Shopkeeper, your employees are all innate-level officers. No wonder Dragon Gate Inn has such a renowned name in Guyuan City. But I wonder, why did your employee immediately attack when I mentioned Chen Ji’s name? Did Chen Ji do something to offend your establishment while staying here?”

The shopkeeper explained, “You misunderstand, honored guest. Young Master Chen is a valuable patron of this inn. Just tonight, spies from the Jing Dynasty attempted to assassinate him, even blowing a large hole in the roof of the Heaven-tier A room. So, when you asked if Chen Ji was staying here, my employee assumed you were also here to assassinate Young Master Chen.”

At these words, the Crown Prince instinctively asked with surprise, “Jing Dynasty spies tried to assassinate Chen Ji? Why?”

The shopkeeper glanced at the Crown Prince and calmly stated, “Perhaps it’s because Young Master Chen previously disrupted their plans. These Jing Dynasty spies fear his keen perception and are afraid he might uncover more clues, so they simply decided to strike first.”

The Crown Prince turned to look at Qi Zhenzhuo. “Did he mention this tonight?”

Qi Zhenzhuo shook his head. “No, he didn’t say anything.”

The Crown Prince sighed softly. “We were only concerned with the information he delivered, never realizing he was still in such danger. It’s truly shameful. Brother Chen Ji is also incredibly tolerant; he never mentioned a word of this. These days, people who just do their work without complaining are too few.”

Qi Zhenzhuo’s face flushed, and he dared not speak.

At this moment, Li Xuan, on the side, changed the subject. He sheathed his sword and loudly asked the shopkeeper, “Excuse me, shopkeeper, did you hear anything from the neighboring Hongxiu Brothel just now? Where did their people go?”

Xiao Wu brazenly replied, “We chopped them up. What about it?”

Li Xuan: “?”

Just like that?

Li Xuan asked with doubt and surprise, “Why did you ‘chop up’ the people from Hongxiu Brothel?”

The shopkeeper replied with a slight smile, “They had nothing better to do in the middle of the night than come here to assassinate Young Master Chen. They brought it upon themselves. It’s only because Young Master Chen wasn’t injured that they were merely chopped up. If he had been hurt, they’d find death a luxury.”

Qi Zhenzhuo was startled.

The Crown Prince and Li Xuan couldn’t help but exchange a look. *Chen Ji is actually this well-acquainted with Dragon Gate Inn? Earlier, they had only mentioned his name, and the inn’s employees had immediately attacked them.*

*Hongxiu Brothel came to assassinate Chen Ji, and the inn’s employees went to their place overnight and chopped people up?*

*How long had Chen Ji been in Guyuan?*

*How could this be?*

The Crown Prince was silent for a moment, then quietly said to Li Xuan and Qi Zhenzhuo, “If we are to succeed on this trip to Guyuan, I imagine we will greatly need the assistance of Brother Chen Ji. I hope you both will set aside your prejudices and make amends with him later.”

Li Xuan quickly cupped his hands. “Your Highness need not worry. Whatever is required of your humble servant to help you succeed, I will do. Moreover, Chen Ji truly possesses extraordinary abilities, and I will certainly discard my disdain and arrogance.”

Seeing that Qi Zhenzhuo was still stiff and unwilling to speak, he quickly shot him a glance.

Qi Zhenzhuo reluctantly said, “I feel the same way.”

The Crown Prince smiled slightly. “That’s good. Perhaps after returning to the capital, you will even become colleagues.”

With that, he looked at the shopkeeper, cupped his hands, and said, “Shopkeeper, we are not here to assassinate Chen Ji; we are his friends. Please have an employee go up and inform him that old acquaintances have come to visit.”

Xiao Wu looked at the shopkeeper, who gave him a knowing look. “Go.”

Xiao Wu clattered up the stairs. A moment later, Chen Ji followed him down. Seeing it was the Crown Prince, he immediately cupped his hands and began, “Your High…”

The Crown Prince subtly shook his head, and Chen Ji immediately changed his address: “Young Master Zhu, please forgive my lack of a proper welcome. May I ask what brings you here so late at night?”

The Crown Prince smiled. “Shall we step outside to talk?”

Chen Ji thought for a moment, then lifted the hem of his robe and walked out.

Once everyone had left, Xiao Wu leaned listlessly on the counter and asked, “Shopkeeper, are those Young Master Chen’s friends?”

The shopkeeper sneered. “No. When I mentioned Young Master Chen was attacked, these people didn’t immediately ask about his safety. Instead, they only cared about why Jing Dynasty spies would try to assassinate him. Are those true friends? If *I* were attacked, what would your first reaction be?”

Xiao Wu pondered for a moment. “Is it time for me to be the shopkeeper?”

The shopkeeper roared, “Get lost! It’ll never be your turn, even if I die!”

Outside, under the night sky of Kucha Street, hundreds of Imperial Guards stood holding their horses.

Chen Ji cupped his hands and asked, “Your Highness, what brings you here?”

The Crown Prince smiled and explained, “You came to deliver a message tonight but couldn’t even enter the Governor-General’s office. When I heard about it, I rushed over, fearing you might feel resentful. Then I just heard you were attacked; you’ve had a tough time.”

Chen Ji said softly, “It is my duty to alleviate Your Highness’s worries; I wouldn’t dare speak of hardship.”

The Crown Prince looked around, and Li Xuan immediately understood. He stepped forward, cupped his hands, and said, “Brother Chen Ji, I apologize for my previous offenses. I, Li Xuan, judged you unfairly. I hope you will let bygones be bygones and continue to assist His Royal Highness the Crown Prince with us.”

Chen Ji quickly replied, “Lord Li, you speak too seriously. I am not a narrow-minded person and have not taken the previous matter to heart.”

After speaking, he looked at Qi Zhenzhuo.

“It’s your turn now.”

Qi Zhenzhuo raised an eyebrow.

He remained silent for a long time, finally bracing himself to cup his hands and say, “I, Qi Zhenzhuo, also admire capable individuals. I apologize for my previous offenses; they will not happen again.”

The Crown Prince smiled, smoothing things over. “Alright, let’s work together harmoniously from now on… Brother Chen Ji, do you happen to have any more clues regarding the Jing Dynasty’s villains?”

Chen Ji recalled the glass shop assistant and the fur shop owner that Xiao Wu had mentioned, but he replied, “To answer Your Highness, not at the moment.”

The Crown Prince showed a slight hint of disappointment but quickly smiled brightly again. “No matter. I imagine Brother Chen Ji will still gain some insights by staying at Dragon Gate Inn…”

However, before he could finish speaking, towering flames erupted in Guyuan City. A massive cloud of smoke rose into the sky in the distance, and the scent of ash drifted on the wind.

Guyuan City grew noisy as families climbed onto their rooftops to look.

Li Xuan pushed off forcefully, soaring into the air like a hawk, and in a few steps landed on the octagonal tower roof of Dragon Gate Inn.

Standing on the grey tiles, he steadied himself on the octagonal tower’s eaves and gazed into the distance. He saw three raging fires burning fiercely within Guyuan City, clearly not accidental blazes.

If they were accidental fires, they would never have started in three places simultaneously!

When Li Xuan discerned the source of the flames, his expression immediately changed. He turned and shouted to the Crown Prince, “Your Highness, this is bad! It’s the direction of the Governor-General’s office, the border army’s granary, and the armory!”

They had guarded against poison in the water, but not against the granary being set on fire. Not only were all the grain stores in Guyuan City destroyed, but the border army’s already scarce rattan armor was also ruined.

No, wait, the Imperial Forest Army’s armor was also in the fire at the Governor-General’s office.

Guyuan was finished.

Chen Ji immediately looked at the Crown Prince. “Your Highness, there must be spies within the border army, otherwise, they would never have succeeded.”

The Crown Prince ordered, “Imperial Forest Army, heed my command! Return to the Governor-General’s office and put out the fire!”

Chen Ji shouted, “Zaozao!”

The next moment, a warhorse neighed from the inn’s backyard. Zaozao burst through the inn’s passageway, pushing aside the cotton curtain, and emerged onto Kucha Street, its nostrils flaring with heavy white steam.

Chen Ji gripped the saddle and swung himself onto the horse. A third-floor window opened, and Zhang Zheng shouted, “Chen Ji, catch!”

With that, he threw the Whale Blade out the window. Chen Ji caught it firmly and then galloped away like the wind.