Chapter 136 The sound of the piano hides the edge

Chen Mu understood clearly; the situation was far more complex than he had anticipated.

He not only had to deal with the City God and his lackeys but also guard against the interference of Xu Changze and Wen Jingxing, and there might even be other variables that Jiang Xiong had not mentioned.

"Brother Jiang, do you mean for me to wait for the right moment, strike quickly, and ideally succeed and leave before they can react?"

"Exactly." Jiang Xiong nodded slightly.

"I will provide the detailed layout of the City God Temple, the patterns of its daily activities, and the container for extracting the divine cache."

"But when to act, how to create opportunities, and how to deal with unexpected situations—all of that must be planned by you."

"My only requirement is that it be clean and swift, without leaving any traces related to me."

Chen Mu nodded; he naturally understood the other party's concerns.

Their arrangement was essentially a dangerous transaction: he would put in the effort and risk his life, bearing all the risks and Karma, while the Jiang Family provided intelligence and partial support, reaping the rewards.

Once the formal discussion concluded, the atmosphere softened slightly. Qi Huan took the Medicinal Pill gifted by Jiang Xiong, and its effects were indeed extraordinary.

The color gradually returned to his pale face, and the muddled, stabbing pain in his Divine Soul was greatly alleviated. He was deeply grateful and respectful toward Jiang Xiong, a stark contrast to the casual demeanor he showed before Chen Mu.

After staying for a short while longer and drinking half a cup of tea, Chen Mu rose to take his leave.

Upon leaving the private room, Chen Mu had a thought and whispered to Qi Huan beside him.

"Chief Qi, you go back to the inn and wait for me; I will return shortly."

Qi Huan was stunned and slightly puzzled, but he did not ask further questions, simply nodding and departing first.

Chen Mu, however, did not go downstairs. Instead, he walked straight along the corridor toward the depths of the Peony Pavilion, toward that private room carved with twin lotus flowers.

His pace was not fast, appearing as if he were strolling casually, but in reality, his consciousness was already spread out, perceiving the movements around him.

Soon, he stopped in front of that familiar vermilion wooden door.

The door remained tightly shut, and there was silence within. Chen Mu raised his hand and knocked gently on the door.

"Knock, knock, knock."

"The door is unlocked, please come in."

The room remained simple and elegant. Shen Qingyin was still dressed in plain white robes, sitting by the window with his fair hands resting on the zither, though he was not playing.

Hearing footsteps, he turned his head slowly. Seeing Chen Mu, he seemed surprised, but it immediately turned into a gentle smile.

"So it is Young Master Chen. Returning so soon, did you leave something behind? Or… do you have new insights into the story I told last time?"

His attitude was composed, as if the strife and bloodshed outside the Peony Pavilion had nothing to do with him.

Chen Mu walked to the table and sat down, studying the other person with an inquisitive gaze.

Shen Qingyin's appearance was indeed impeccable, and that unique aura between a man and a woman was still thought-provoking, but that was not what Chen Mu was focused on at the moment.

"Young Master Shen does not seem surprised that I have returned?"

Shen Qingyin poured him a cup of tea, his movements smooth and fluid.

"I have seen countless guests come and go in a hurry here. You are not an ordinary person, Young Master, and you have your own methods of doing things. Whether you return or not is entirely within reason."

Chen Mu picked up the teacup but did not rush to drink, instead looking at the light green tea soup in the cup.

Shen Qingyin looked up and met Chen Mu's gaze. Those eyes were clear as crystal, revealing no panic or calculation.

"The things you are concerned about, Young Master, are nothing more than the undercurrents of the officialdom and the well-being of the people."

"I am merely a piece of duckweed, selling my skills to survive. I know very little about these major matters and have no power to interfere. If you wish to inquire about something, I fear you have found the wrong person."

His words seemed to distance himself from the matter, but in reality, he had lowered his stance to the extreme, blocking any room for further probing.

Chen Mu did not commit to an opinion and set down the teacup.

"Young Master Shen, do you know a guest with the surname Jiang? Perhaps, Zhao?"

Shen Qingyin's expression remained unchanged, and he shook his head lightly.

"There are many guests in this building, and I welcome and send off many people. Surnames are just code names. I know guests with both the surnames Jiang and Zhao. I do not know who you are specifically referring to. If you wish to find someone, perhaps you can describe their appearance, and I will do my best to recall."

Impeccable.

Chen Mu looked at him, trying to find even a trace of disguise on that face, but he found nothing.

This person was either truly completely uninvolved, or his scheming was profound to the extreme.

Chen Mu rose and nodded slightly.

"No need, it was just a passing question."

"I apologize for disturbing your leisure, Young Master Shen. Farewell."

Shen Qingyin rose to see him off, still maintaining that gentle and polite appearance.

"Take care, Young Master Chen."

Not until Chen Mu's figure disappeared outside the door and the door gently closed did Shen Qingyin slowly sit back down in front of the zither table.

He extended his slender fingers and plucked the zither strings gently; the sound was clear and resonant.

Plucking the strings to play a clear melody, a short song hummed softly, unable to last long.

The lamp light flickered, and a hint of melancholy appeared on Shen Qingyin's face. A moment later, a very low self-muttering sounded in the room, though it was barely audible.

Leaving the private room, Chen Mu walked downstairs, his thoughts racing.

Shen Qingyin.

The timing of this new top courtesan of the Peony Pavilion, that temperament and cultivation that seemed out of place in a brothel, and that near-perfect composure and detachment when facing his inquiries.

It was too perfect, which instead made it seem deliberate.

To be in a place of chaos like the Peony Pavilion yet remain detached, and to handle a visit with such obvious investigative intent as his with such impeccable responses.

This level of composure and scheming was certainly not something an ordinary Xianggu could possess.

Was he a person of Xu Changze, or a person of Jiang Xiong?

If he was Xu Changze's person, then although his meeting with Jiang Xiong tonight was sufficiently covert, it was hard to guarantee that no traces had fallen into this person's eyes.

If he passed the news to Xu Changze, or to Wen Jingxing behind him, then the situation for him and Qi Huan would become even more dangerous.

But if he was Jiang Xiong's person… then matters would be even more complex.

Jiang Xiong regarded him as a sharp but controllable chess piece used to seize the city gods divine treasury. If Shen Qingyin was also a hidden piece laid by the Jiang Family, then for the Jiang Family, he had likely been under some form of observation from the moment he stepped into Yunmeng.

His chance encounter with Jiang Huoyu, Jiang Xiong's relief and hatred at the city gate, and even the coincidence of the Peony Pavilion auction—the shadow of the Jiang Family's influence might be behind it all.

Dancing with such a behemoth required weighing every step; otherwise, one wrong move would mean losing everything.

Of course, there was a third possibility: Shen Qingyin belonged to no one, merely a chess piece accidentally caught in the vortex, or a third party with other motives.

But regardless, this person was certainly not as simple as he appeared on the surface.

These thoughts flashed through Chen Mu's mind, eventually settling down.

Regardless of who Shen Qingyin was, increasing his own strength was the fundamental way to deal with all variables.

Having figured this out, Chen Mu headed straight to the Peony Pavilion's kitchen, cut half a jin of spiced beef, weighed a bag of marinated dried tofu, and packed a plump smoked wild rabbit. At this hour, perhaps only such a place that catered to all-night revelry could provide food.

He wrapped it in oil paper, carried it, walked through the streets and alleys, and pushed open the wooden door of his small courtyard.

The door to the main house was tightly shut. Chen Mu placed the things in his hand on the stone table by the well, making a slight sound.

Almost immediately, the door to the main house creaked open a crack. Jiang Huoyu poked half her head out, her eyes sleepy, her hair still somewhat disheveled, holding that pitch-black Soul-Devouring Spirit Cat tightly in her arms.