533: Chapter 533 A List

Because many of the key intelligence officers of the Moon Worship Cult were located quite far away, it would take about six days to gather the leaders of each branch to the stronghold in Dayue City.

An Ya did not know that Lin Xiao had come in person, but upon hearing that it was an order from her "Prince Brother-in-Law," she obeyed and followed through.

With nothing better to do, Lin Xiao took Leng Bingyan with him to the mountains to visit General Leng Duo.

General Leng Duo had not been back from the Great Peacock Kingdom for long, and upon learning that Lin Xiao had arrived, he was very pleased.

Father-in-law and son-in-law enjoyed wine together, chatting about how they helped Prince A-Lai reclaim his throne.

"My good son-in-law, you don't know, that place, the Great Peacock Kingdom, is damp, sultry, and infested with snakes, insects, rats, and ants."

"Our brothers in the Black Dragon Cavalry suffered greatly just to help that A-Lai restore his nation."

"Not to mention anything else, they couldn't sleep well night after night. They suffered from the climate, vomited, had diarrhea, and still had to fight during the day..."

"Fortunately, the brothers held their breath and didn't embarrass you, Prince of Zhenbei. We finally helped him take back his territory!"

Leng Bingyan, who was pouring wine on the side, couldn't listen anymore and chided, "Father, stop talking nonsense. Can it be as bitter as when we were hiding in the mountains back then?"

"This time, there were supplies from the Moon Worship Cult and no pursuers behind us. How hard could it be for the Black Dragon Cavalry to fight that ragtag army, which was like a bunch of wild monkeys?"

General Leng Duo glared at his daughter, "You're married now, and you're already siding with outsiders! What's wrong with your father pouring his heart out to his son-in-law?"

"I'm only doing this with my son-in-law. In front of outsiders, would I ever show any weakness?"

Lin Xiao couldn't help but chuckle, "Father-in-law, you really worked hard this time, and the brothers of the Black Dragon Cavalry didn't have it easy either."

"I had already planned to reward the Black Dragon Cavalry with 50,000 taels of silver. How about this, I'll give them 100,000 taels directly!"

General Leng Duo showed a hint of joy, "Magnificent! Don't worry, Prince, once this money falls into the hands of our Black Dragon Cavalry, it will only be used for military expenses; it will never be wasted!"

"By the way, Prince, when are you going to name my Yaner a noble consort..."

"Father!!" Leng Bingyan blushed with shyness, "You're drunk!!"

Lin Xiao scratched his head, thinking to himself that he hadn't even declared himself emperor yet, but his father-in-law was more anxious than he was.

However, after drinking with him twice, he could tell that although Father-in-law Leng had the surname Leng, he wasn't cold at all.

Finally, Lin Xiao asked General Leng Duo to help keep an eye on the sugarcane plantations in the Great Peacock Kingdom.

When the sugarcane harvest comes in the second half of this year, buy it all at a price 20% higher than the market rate.

Buy as much as there is!

General Leng Duo was somewhat puzzled, "Son-in-law, if you want to make sugar, buying at the normal market price is enough. Why pay 20% more? Sugarcane isn't expensive, but with such a large quantity, that's an extra hundred thousand taels or so."

"That's right, Husband. Prince A-Lai was only able to sit back on his throne because of us. If we tell the Great Peacock Kingdom to grow sugarcane, he wouldn't dare disobey." Leng Bingyan didn't quite understand either.

Lin Xiao smiled, "If we pay the market price, they will certainly grow it, but they won't grow it with their lives on the line."

"Father-in-law, just listen to me. Spread the news that I am buying sugarcane at a high price. Not just in the Great Peacock Kingdom, but let it be known throughout all sixteen kingdoms!"

"By the end of this year, the Northern Trade Alliance will buy up all the sugarcane from the sixteen kingdoms!"

General Leng Duo looked confused, but since he wasn't the one paying, he just nodded to show he understood.

Several days later.

An Ya gathered a group of key leaders from the Moon Worship Cult's intelligence network in one place.

Several elders of the Moon Worship Cult were very puzzled, and when they met, they naturally asked An Ya, the Saintess, why she had summoned them.

At this moment, Leng Bingyan walked in and ordered someone to throw the corpse of Mingxiu in front of everyone.

After Mingxiu died, her corpse still maintained her disguised state, which naturally caused an uproar among the crowd.

"Many of you should know her."

Leng Bingyan said, "The person in charge of Dayue City, Mingxiu, disguised herself as me and attempted to lure assassins to assassinate Prince Wu, Liu Bing."

"Now that she has confessed everyone involved in the conspiracy, the list is in my hands."

As she spoke, Leng Bingyan took out a piece of paper and swept her sharp gaze across everyone present.

These secret agents were all shrewd people; even if they were all very surprised, none of them showed any obvious panic.

"Miss Leng, we really didn't know about this."

"That's right, we have now turned over a new leaf and are wholeheartedly serving the Prince. Heaven and Earth are our witnesses!"

Leng Bingyan gave a scornful laugh, "Since I've asked you all to come, it's naturally because I've found reliable evidence."

"You don't have to be nervous. Our Prince will not wrong a loyal subject, nor will he let any traitor go!"

"Today, you only need to cooperate with me and accept the investigation properly, and you will naturally be cleared of suspicion."

Leng Bingyan then opened the list and read out a name from it:

"Jing Yun of the Yuzhou Branch, come with me to the inner courtyard for questioning."

A plain-looking woman walked out, trembling, glanced at the group of people behind her, and had no choice but to follow her in.

After waiting for the time it takes to burn an incense stick, Leng Bingyan came out again.

"Ahemu of the Fuzhou Branch, it's your turn, come with me."

Another middle-aged man, who looked honest and simple and was wearing the attire of a native of the Southern Border, walked out with a nervous expression.

"Miss Leng, may I ask about Sister Jing Yun..."

Leng Bingyan smiled, "Don't panic, she has already said everything that needed to be said. She's fine now."

Everyone looked at each other, each revealing a look of unease.

Said everything? Could it be that she gave someone up?!

Those with guilty consciences became even more terrified.

Those who should have been fine were also worried about being framed, feeling restless.

The time Ahemu spent inside was far longer than Jing Yun's. After waiting for two sticks of incense, Leng Bingyan finally came out again.

This time, there was a clear trace of murderous intent on Leng Bingyan's face.

"Zhang Yue of Yue Prefecture, come out..."

That Zhang Yue was dressed like a scholar, with delicate skin and tender flesh. When he heard his name called, he was so scared that his face turned as pale as gold paper.

His steps were heavy, and he looked back every three steps, his eyes seeking help from someone.

But a certain figure ignored him completely.

Zhang Yue's heart sank involuntarily.

When he arrived at the backyard and entered the dark room, Zhang Yue saw that inside there were various terrifying torture instruments, still stained with fresh blood!

"Sit down," Leng Bingyan said leisurely, "Don't worry, as long as you tell the truth..."

"I'll talk! I'll talk!!"

Without waiting for Leng Bingyan to ask more, Zhang Yue flopped to his knees and said, "Miss Leng, I was just helping out. Mingxiu, Jing Yun, Ahemu, and Jiao Shu—they were all raised by the Left Protector. They have deep backgrounds; I didn't dare to disobey!"

A satisfied smile appeared on the corner of Leng Bingyan's mouth, "Tell me in detail, who else is there, and what were you planning to do?"

As she spoke, the woman pulled over a chair and sat down, placing the list in her hand aside casually.

The panicked Zhang Yue did not realize that there was not a single word written on that paper; it was completely blank.