Chapter 81: Shall We Share a Drink?

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Xu Boqing sat at his desk, a teapot set before him, a volume entitled "On the Origin of Qi" in his hands. Immersed in his reading, he failed to notice how dusk had quietly fallen outside.

Jiang Jin lingered before the study, hesitating for a long while before finally mustering his courage to knock on the door.

“Master Inspector, I have something to report…”

“Hm?” Xu Boqing’s attention was drawn from his deep reading; he closed the book, only now realizing the light outside had dimmed. Clicking his tongue inwardly, as if awakening from a reverie, he glanced at Jiang Jin and asked, “What is it?”

“We’ve nearly finished tallying Li Lezhi’s household assets…” Jiang Jin paused, then withdrew a small ledger from his sleeve and presented it. “So far, the assets amount to more than six hundred thousand taels. The remainder is perhaps another two or three hundred thousand; we estimate the count will be complete by tomorrow.”

“Tsk, tsk…” Even Xu Boqing, with all his experience, could not help but be amazed as he took the ledger and leafed through it. This corrupt official’s family fortune was even greater than he had anticipated.

The Xu family’s rice shops had been operating for over twenty years, yet their accumulated wealth barely reached several tens of thousands of taels—already enough to be considered local gentry. The Empress Dowager, secluded in the inner palace for nearly two decades, had amassed little more than two hundred thousand taels in stipends. Yet Li Lezhi, merely the prefect of Hongyang City—hardly at the center of power, and only a magistrate for a dozen years—had managed to accumulate a fortune in the millions.

How astonishing was that? And those grand corrupt officials in the capital—how much more must they possess?

Seeing the Inspector sigh, Jiang Jin spoke with careful deliberation: “There is one matter I decided on without your approval, and I beg your pardon.”

“What is it?”

Jiang Jin bowed and replied, “This afternoon, some farmers from outside the city came to lodge a complaint—accusing Li Lezhi’s family and kin of their misdeeds. Seeing you were engrossed in study, I forbade anyone to disturb you and took it upon myself to confiscate their ill-gotten assets. The seized property amounted to over forty thousand taels. As for the land deeds that Li Lezhi’s family had unscrupulously gathered, I took the liberty, in your name, to redistribute them among the local farmers.”

“Well done.” Xu Boqing nodded slightly, tapping the ledger in his hand. “Tomorrow, have these assets sent to the capital for confiscation.”

He paused, then stretched as he rose. “As for whatever remains unaccounted for, and the assets confiscated from Li Lezhi’s relatives, there is no need to report them. Estimate their value and divide them among yourselves.”

“Ah, this…” Jiang Jin’s first reaction was not delight but alarm. As the Inspector rose, he dropped to his knees with a thud.

“Master Inspector, I swear I have not embezzled so much as a single coin from the seized property! Please investigate thoroughly!”

Xu Boqing was momentarily taken aback, then chuckled. “What, do you take me for a man who likes to say the opposite of what I mean?”

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Jiang Jin swallowed dryly. “I… I would never dare.”

“Get up.” Xu Boqing waved his hand. “I have always rewarded and punished fairly. You ran errands for me at Autumn Wind Stockade; a reward is only just. I haven’t much silver on me, so take the remaining confiscated wealth as your reward.”

“Ah, this…” Only now did Jiang Jin realize the Inspector was neither probing for corruption nor joking—he truly meant to grant the remaining assets to the team.

That was nearly three hundred thousand taels!

Coming to himself, he bowed joyfully. “On behalf of my colleagues, I thank the Inspector for your generosity!”

“That’s enough.” Xu Boqing waved dismissively. “I’m heading out. Don’t let such trifles delay you—finish the tally tomorrow and set out for Jiangling Prefecture soon, so we may resolve the next targets without delay.”

“Yes, sir!”

With that, Xu Boqing left the room. After a leisurely stroll, he paused, thoughtful, and after some hesitation, made his way toward Siqing House.

He had assumed that, after the day’s events, Siqing House’s business would suffer come nightfall. Yet from a distance, he realized he had underestimated the men of Hongyang City.

The business had indeed been affected—but not as he expected. Far from being deserted, it was more bustling than ever!

Lanterns and streamers adorned the entrance. In the past, the girls would eagerly coax passersby to enter, but now, not only did they refrain from enticing customers, even those posted at the door had already been led away.

As Xu Boqing stepped out from the shadows, his appearance shifted into that of a middle-aged man.

Inside Siqing House, on the raised dais, dancers in gauzy silks swayed gracefully, while the guests in the private booths flushed red, shouting their praises with abandon.

Perhaps it was the sheer number of people, but when he activated his “Heaven’s Eye” technique, the scene appeared different from what he’d witnessed in daylight.

From the central dais to the booths, even the decorative ribbons dangling from the lofts, the entire establishment resembled an enormous, finely woven net.

The girls bore filaments of something like “silk threads,” all converging into a single stream that led to the upper floor.

There was no need to wonder—the other end surely belonged to Zhu Sisi.

People were connected by these lines, as though a puppeteer controlled their every move—a bizarre and unnatural sight.

The guests below seemed to revel within this invisible web, each stained by the same fine threads, as if the word “desire” was written plain upon their faces.

Xu Boqing’s expression grew peculiar.

Though he could perceive something of what was at play, his understanding of the arts of immortals and demons was woefully inadequate; he could not fathom the true meaning of what he saw.

And that, indeed, was the reason he had come to Siqing House tonight.

He intended to seek out Zhu Sisi and inquire about the world of cultivation.

Shaking his head, Xu Boqing exited through the entrance. With even the reception girls gone, no one tried to stop him.

Yet he did not leave.

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Instead, he slipped around to the rear of Siqing House.

Activating his “Heaven’s Eye,” he swept the area, ignoring the tangled couples—some caught up in love, others struggling for livelihood—until he located Zhu Sisi’s room.

The door and windows were firmly locked. The demoness herself sat at the table, chin propped on her hand, lost in a daze, her eyes clouded with bewilderment.

The table before her was littered with empty wine flasks—and a jade pendant.

At first, Xu Boqing intended to force open the window and enter directly, but seeing her thus, he hesitated.

After a moment’s thought, he stopped at a nearby tavern to buy two jars of fine wine. Then, under cover of darkness, he resumed his own appearance.

With barely a sound, he forced the window open and, clutching the two jars, vaulted lightly into the room.

Zhu Sisi, startled from her reverie by the noiseless opening of the window, furrowed her brow and turned, just in time to see a figure leap through.

As he landed, Xu Boqing met her startled gaze and offered a sheepish smile. “It has been a while, madam.”

“You—”

She began to speak, but as if remembering something, her expression shifted; with a cold snort and a flick of her sleeve, she turned her eyes away. “What are you doing here?”

Seeing that she would not look at him, Xu Boqing’s eyes flickered to the table, noting the jade pendant had vanished with her motion. He made no comment, but instead teased, “I missed you, so I came to see you.”

“Scoundrel Xu!” Zhu Sisi glared at him fiercely, her voice icy. “Do you truly think that losing to you once has broken my spirit? Or do you imagine that, having bested me, you can toy with me as you wish?”

“Twice, actually,” Xu Boqing replied.

“You—”

“Wait, wait!” Seeing her eyes redden with anger and her lips part as if to summon some magical weapon, Xu Boqing hastily explained, “I’m only joking, madam. Please, don’t be angry…”

As she stood, trembling with indignation, he smiled. “To tell the truth, I’ve been troubled today, and have already drunk quite a bit. Yet no matter how much I drank outside, it did nothing to ease my frustrations. In the end, I realized that wine alone cannot dispel one’s cares…”

He patted the two jars in his arms and smiled. “So I thought, if the cup will not suffice, perhaps the jar will do. But drinking alone is dull, and I find myself a stranger in this place. It occurred to me, madam, that you must be just as troubled as I am. So shameless as it may be, I’ve come here—hoping to invite you to share a few jars, and perhaps ease what weighs upon our hearts.”