Chapter 275: Bastard

“Why would she kill herself?”

Zheng Fan found the conclusion difficult to understand, even with A’Ming’s physical examination supporting it.

A’Ming shook his head.

“Master, that is not something this subordinate can answer right now. But there is one way to approach it: infer the motive from the consequences. What did her death cause—or what might it cause?”

“You mean she wanted to force the Marquis of Jingnan and the imperial court into open conflict?”

“This subordinate is only offering a possibility. Master is the one who must decide what to believe.”

Zheng Fan shook his head.

“No. Something is wrong.”

“There must be another problem buried in all of this.”

“Tell me—do you think the Marquis of Jingnan already knew she killed herself?”

“This subordinate cannot be certain, but...”

“But what?”

“Master, we have been in this world for less than two years. And because we arrived here as adults, much of the way we live, observe things, and think about problems still comes from our previous lives.

“Take her wound, and the conclusion this subordinate just reached.

“In our old world, almost no one would think along these lines, because there was no high-level martial cultivation, no magic, no collection of powerful cultivators and demon beasts like this world has.

“But here, from the Marquis of Jingnan’s perspective—as a veteran commander who has spent years campaigning on battlefields, and as an extraordinarily powerful Martial Artist himself...”

“You mean the Marquis of Jingnan may have realized long ago that she killed herself?”

“Judging by the traces on the wound and the other details, this subordinate thinks the chances that the Marquis failed to notice anything unusual are very low.”

“No. That creates another knot.”

Zheng Fan raised a hand.

“Go on, Master.”

“We are trying to think the way people in this world would think. Fine. Let us stay with that.

“What kind of woman was Dujuan?

“Before becoming the wife of the Marquis of Jingnan, she worked in intelligence.

“And she was calm enough to perform a Caesarean section on herself under the medical conditions of this era.

“That means she was both meticulous by nature and physically strong, with no small amount of qi and blood cultivation.”

“Yes.”

“Then that creates the problem.

“If she was meticulous, and if her cultivation was strong, then when she arranged her own death, would she really overlook details like the condition of the wound?

“If she wanted to use her death to force the Marquis of Jingnan into conflict with the imperial court—to drag Tian Wujing and the Jingnan Army onto the opposite side of the State of Yan—would she make such a crude mistake?”

“Master is correct.”

“Damn it. If the Blind Man were here, this would be easier. That bastard analyzes things quickly.”

A’Ming nodded in wholehearted agreement.

“So she killed herself? She deliberately let the Marquis of Jingnan see that she killed herself? And then she still killed herself? And now no one knows where the child went?

“My head hurts.”

“This subordinate is a little confused as well. And many of the representatives of the various factions inside the city are probably just as confused.

“Oh, right, Master. There is also word that before the Marquis of Jingnan’s wife left the residence and went up the mountain, she killed quite a few people inside the estate.

“According to the man the Sixth Prince planted beside His Highness the Crown Prince, the Marquis’s wife was pulling out nails.”

“Whose nails?”

“Unclear.”

For the Marquis’s residence to contain planted agents was hardly surprising.

After all, Dujuan herself had once been one of the greatest “nails” of them all.

“When I arrived, the Marquis of Jingnan was sitting right there.”

Zheng Fan pointed toward the threshold of the main hall.

“So that is why the Marquis never ordered a full search of the residence or the entire city. He never made a great show of hunting for an assassin or pursuing clues...”

A’Ming continued the thought.

“Because the Marquis already knew his wife killed herself.

“What he was waiting for was not a murderer.

“Nor was he waiting for a clue.

“He was waiting for... an explanation.”

Zheng Fan reached out and grabbed A’Ming by the shoulder.

A’Ming felt Zheng Fan’s body sway slightly.

“And then I cursed Tian Wujing to his face.

“I told him that even if he wanted to die together with his wife and child, he should at least catch the murderer and take revenge before killing himself.

“I told him I looked down on the way he was giving up on himself.”

A’Ming’s lips twitched.

Then he said, “Master, you have watched too many television dramas.”

“I think so too.”

“But if I were the Marquis of Jingnan, I would have been deeply moved,” A’Ming said. “Nothing moves people more than genuine emotion.”

“I wasn’t trying to do that.”

“To win without a technique is better than having a technique. Master is brilliant.”

“Go die.”

“This subordinate still has to protect Master.”

“What we need to do now is find the child.

“Tell me, after Dujuan gave birth, who did she hand the baby to?”

“This subordinate does not know.

“But whoever knew the answer may already have been silenced.”

“By Dujuan herself?”

“Yes. Very possibly.”

“A’Ming, I want to know the truth.”

“This subordinate wants to know as well.”

Zheng Fan frowned, walked over to the threshold, and sat down in the same posture Tian Wujing had used before.

Then he asked, “If Tian Wujing and that Grand Eunuch from the Yan imperial palace fail to reach an understanding, what happens?”

“We will be in a very unpleasant position.”

“You are that pessimistic?”

“Li Bao has tens of thousands of Zhenbei Army cavalry stationed at Quhe City.”

“It would be difficult for him to stop Tian Wujing.”

“But wiping out Shengle City first would be very easy.”

Zheng Fan fell silent.

In practical terms, Quhe City was much closer to Shengle City than to Litian City.

“Forget it.

“No point thinking about that now.

“If the city is lost, it is lost.

“First we find the child.”

Zheng Fan reached into his clothes and took out the Demon Child.

Then he muttered, “Can you find the baby?”

The Demon Child gave no response.

Meaning: no.

“Master, the Demon Child might have an easier time searching for a soul or spirit. But the baby may still be alive.

“And even if the baby is dead, an infant probably would not immediately turn into a vengeful ghost.”

“Then how are we supposed to search?”

“Master, the greatest problem is this: if the child carries no identifying mark, then even if we find the baby one day, it will be extremely difficult to prove whether it is truly the right child.”

“I know.”

“And Master, although the manpower we have in Litian City is strong, capable, disciplined, and completely loyal, searching a city this large—and possibly even the region outside it—is simply too difficult.

“We still do not have enough people.”

“When you say ‘the manpower we have in Litian City,’ are you referring to yourself?”

“That is correct, Master.”

“Making jokes in front of Dujuan right now is really not appropriate.”

“If she could turn into a zombie and sit up, things would actually become much easier.”

“Hm?”

Zheng Fan looked puzzled.

“Go bite her once and see whether you can turn her into a vampire.”

“Master, she is already dead.

“And completely cold...”

“Then our only option would be Liang Cheng?”

“Liang Cheng could probably turn her into the lowest kind of walking corpse without much difficulty.

“But if we actually did that, this subordinate suspects the Marquis of Jingnan would slap every last one of us to death.”

“Couldn’t she retain some intelligence?

“Like Sha Tuo Queshi?”

Zheng Fan had no idea why Dujuan had killed herself.

And, speaking somewhat coldly, he and Dujuan had never been particularly close.

If she had not been Tian Wujing’s wife, and if she had not been the mother of Zheng Fan’s godson or goddaughter, then whether she lived or died would not have mattered much to him.

He simply did not want to see Tian Wujing suffering.

He wanted Old Tian to have something left to hold on to.

Putting himself in Tian Wujing’s place, Zheng Fan thought that if Old Tian could do what Zheng Fan himself did—bring some wine and food to Sha Tuo Queshi’s coffin every few days and chat for a while—it might actually be a kind of happiness.

“Sha Tuo Queshi was already a powerful expert.

“And before he went to the Marquis of Zhenbei’s estate, he may have prepared something himself—or someone else may have made preparations for him.

“Then, after he died in battle, the shamans of the barbarian Royal Court nearly wiped themselves out before they barely managed to awaken him.

“Master, that process is extremely difficult to reproduce.

“Of course, Liang Cheng might eventually be able to do it, but probably only after...”

“After what?

“My Grade is not high enough, right?”

“Yes.”

“What Grade do you think I would need?”

“High enough to knock the Marquis of Jingnan down with one punch.”

“...”

Zheng Fan said nothing.

...

The Blind Man was exhausted.

The result of pushing himself far past his limits.

As someone whose strength lay primarily in mental power, his physical constitution naturally could not compare with a Martial Artist’s.

He had hurried as hard as he could, but eventually he felt he could no longer continue.

There was no point reaching Litian City if he collapsed and died on the road before getting there.

So the Blind Man chose to stop at a relay station and rest.

The relay station naturally belonged to the State of Yan.

But it was not newly built.

Instead, an existing fortified estate had been repurposed for the job.

It would take time to establish a proper network of relay stations.

Yet without relay stations and post roads, communication was far too inconvenient, especially when trying to consolidate control over newly conquered Jin territory.

So the Yan court had adopted a practical local solution.

Existing Jin fortified estates along the major routes were issued official plaques by Yan and required to serve as relay stations.

Yan officials and couriers could rest, eat, drink, and change horses there for free.

It was somewhat like contracting out service areas along a highway in later generations.

Providing free food, lodging, and replacement horses was obviously a money-losing business.

Yet the Jin fortified-estate lords had practically fought one another for the privilege.

After all, the Yan people were now the new masters of this region.

Yan blades still hung over their necks.

First and foremost, they simply could not say no.

At the same time, Yan would inevitably establish its own governing structure throughout Jin.

That naturally meant it needed help from local powers.

And those local powers likewise needed a ladder—some way to obtain recognition from their new masters.

Running a relay station might lose money in the short term.

But for the lords of these fortified estates, those losses were trivial.

Once they had accumulated enough service and goodwill, they could at least obtain recognition as “one of our own” from the Yan authorities, paving the way for their descendants to enter official service under the new regime.

Looked at that way, they still profited.

The Blind Man held an official post.

In fact, every Demon King did.

Their rank was the standard, cabbage-like Yan appointment of Lieutenant Commander, which Zheng Fan had arranged in bulk.

After entering the fortified estate, the Blind Man presented his waist token and documents for registration.

That entitled him to one day and one night of free food and lodging.

There was naturally no extravagant cuisine.

The Blind Man ordered only a bowl of meat soup and two flatbreads.

Eating flatbread with hot soup was far more comfortable than gnawing on dry rations.

Once he finished, he intended to sleep for a while and continue on his way afterward.

Judging by the remaining distance, he should reach Litian City in less than two days.

He sighed inwardly.

He had no idea what the situation inside the city had become.

When the meat soup and flatbreads were brought over, the Blind Man asked in mild surprise, “There are quite a lot of people here today.”

A relay station was similar to an inn and restaurant.

This one even had curtained rooms offering more diversified services.

Since the relay station was already operating anyway, there was no reason not to accept ordinary travelers as paying customers.

Yan officials could eat, drink, and stay for free.

Everyone else could do the same if they paid.

In fact, fortified estates and stockades throughout Yan territory often offered similar “services.”

Of course, the more unscrupulous ones might effectively operate as human-meat bun shops.

In chaotic times, things like that were especially common.

“You’re right, sir. No idea what happened today, but we’ve had far more guests than usual.”

The Blind Man nodded and stopped asking questions.

He lowered his head and began drinking his soup.

After half a bowl of hot soup, his entire body finally felt much more comfortable.

He was just about to break apart one of the flatbreads and soak it in the soup when a swordsman entered from outside.

The man wore a bamboo hat, with a sword hanging at his waist.

And in his arms, he carried an infant.

The swordsman had barely sat down when the baby suddenly began wailing.

The cries were so loud and miserable they cut straight through the room.

At a nearby table, a man who had been eating and drinking abruptly stood and cursed, “Shut that damned thing up! I can’t even hear myself think!

“Where did this bastard come from, wailing like someone died?”

The swordsman did not grow angry.

Instead, he nodded.

Then calmly agreed, “It is indeed a bastard.”

————

[End of Chapter 275]