271: Chapter 271 Empty Nest

However, the private room was completely empty.

Only the half-open window creaked slightly in the night breeze, its sheer curtains fluttering in the wind.

Lin Wan was stunned in place, her entire body freezing up.

Where were they?

She slowly lowered the sword in her hand, her gaze falling on the round table in the center of the private room.

The table was laden with a sumptuous spread of food and wine.

They were all signature dishes from the teahouse, steaming hot and exuding an enticing aroma.

Right in the center of the table sat an exquisite wine pot, with two wine cups placed beside it.

One of the wine cups was filled to the brim with clear wine.

Beneath the wine cup was pressed a piece of white Xuan paper.

Lin Wan took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the raging fire in her heart, stepped forward, and pulled out that piece of Xuan paper.

The handwriting on the paper was the same as before.

"Lord Lin, you've worked hard handling the case. Consider this table of food and wine a reward for you."

"Eat more to nourish your brain. After all, the next case won't be so easy to investigate."

"No need to thank me, Shanjun."

Looking at the message on the paper, Lin Wan only felt a surge of hot blood rush straight to her head, trembling all over with anger.

Nourish her brain?!

This bastard actually dared to curse her for having no brains?!

Lin Wan clutched the piece of Xuan paper tightly, her hands trembling with anger, wishing she could tear this damn paper into pieces.

Hearing the commotion outside the door, the Constables were so frightened that they hurriedly rushed in.

"My Lord, what happened?!"

When they saw the utter mess all over the floor and Lin Wan's face, which was so gloomy it seemed like water could drip from it, they were all so frightened into silence that they didn't even dare to draw a full breath.

Lin Wan stood amidst the wreckage, her chest heaving violently.

Never in her life had she suffered such grievance!

Never had she been toyed with like this by anyone!

"Shanjun..."

Lin Wan recited this name through gritted teeth,

"You just wait for me. I, Lin Wan, swear that even if I have to dig three feet into the ground, I will drag you out!"

The night wind blew in from outside the window, messing up Lin Wan's hair, but it could not blow away the shame and anger in her heart.

In this silent confrontation, she had lost far too miserably.

Downstairs, Shunzi heard the loud noise coming from upstairs and shrank his neck in fright.

"Goodness, Lord Lin's temper is way too explosive, right? What a terrible waste..."

He touched the heavy silver in his bosom, feeling secretly fortunate in his heart.

Fortunately, that guest had paid the bill in advance; otherwise, who would he go to for the meal money?

As for immortals fighting, what did it have to do with a mere waiter like him?

He just needed to make money.

Lin Wan took a few deep breaths, forcing herself to calm down.

She coldly glanced at the mess on the ground and turned her head to look at the Constable behind her.

"Go, bring that waiter up! I want to interrogate him personally!"

"Yes!" The Constable hurriedly took the order and went downstairs.

Before long, Shunzi was brought up.

Looking at the utter mess all over the floor, Shunzi swallowed hard in fright, his legs shaking uncontrollably.

"L-Lord... What is this...?"

"I ask and you answer. If you dare to have a single half-truth..." Lin Wan's eyes were icy.

"Yes, yes, yes! This little one will certainly say everything I know and say it all without reservation!"

"When did that person wearing the bamboo hat arrive? How long did they stay in the private room? Did they have any contact with anyone else?" Lin Wan asked like firing machine-gun bullets.

Shunzi quickly recalled:

"Replying to the Lord, that guest came about an hour ago. He asked for this private room alone, ordered a pot of tea, and sat by the window the whole time. During this period, aside from calling this little one in to settle the bill, he didn't contact anyone else."

"How much money did he give you when he settled the bill?" Lin Wan keenly grasped the main point.

Shunzi hesitated for a moment, but still honestly pulled that ingot of silver out from his bosom: "J-Just... just these. He said the rest was all a reward for this little one."

Lin Wan looked at that silver ingot and sneered.

He was truly generous with his spending.

"What else did he say?"

"H-He just told this little one to deliver a message across the street, saying that a good friend from Six Doors would arrive shortly, and asked this little one to prepare a table of good food for you..." Shunzi's voice grew softer and softer as he spoke, fearing that any phrase might anger this formidable ancestor again.

Lin Wan closed her eyes, rapidly reviewing the entire process in her mind, and scenes seemed to appear before her eyes.

Beside the window of the elegant pavilion, a tall and straight man leaned against the wall, lifting a brush to write a letter, and called the waiter to send it over.

Afterwards, he saw the movement of Six Doors from the window, left the silver, ordered the food in advance, and dashingly settled the bill and left.

The entire plan was interlocking, without a single flaw.

It was as if everything was under the opponent's control.

When Lin Wan completely immersed and substituted herself into it, she discovered that her every move was actually within the other party's line of sight.

It seemed even every step of her own had been anticipated,

Why would he understand her so well?

A question arose in Lin Wan's heart, and gradually Shanjun's entire persona was constantly reshaped in her mind, finally converging on that face from that night.

Back on that day of the demonic cult riot in the capital, although she was under the cover of night, she had seen the other person's face clearly.

But the portrait she drew was like a stone sinking into the sea, failing to raise the slightest ripple.

High martial arts, meticulous mind...

Lin Wan stroked her chin with one hand,

"The face seen that night might not be his true face..."

Just as she was deep in thought, a burst of footsteps came from downstairs, interrupting Lin Wan's train of thought.

"My Lord, news has come from outside the city!"

Right at this moment, a Constable hurriedly ran upstairs, knelt on one knee to report.

"Speak!"

"The Deputy Chief Constable led people to discover a large number of combat traces in a grave mound at Shili Slope outside the city." The Constable swallowed a mouthful of saliva, looking somewhat nervous,

"And... a dead body was discovered!"

"A dead body?"

Lin Wan's willow-like eyebrows slightly furrowed; this suddenly popped-up dead body indeed disrupted her arrangements.

But seeing that there were no clues here, she had no choice but to say helplessly:

"Where is the body? I'll go take a look."