49: Chapter 49 News from the Prince's Mansion

Chen Fan lowered his head, his wide bamboo hat obscuring all his expressions.

He replied slowly, "This subordinate's life is the Saintess's life."

What a manipulator.

This woman was simply obsessed with him.

When he was the Black Wind Demon, she had tricked him, indirectly leading to the destruction of Black Wind Mountain.

When he was Lin Shou, she had even used him as bait and a discarded pawn, leading to his clear-cut death.

Now, reincarnated as Chen Jinzhong, he had become her dog once again.

This cycle of Karma really was endless.

Chen Fan thought to himself that sooner or later, he would settle the score with this woman.

"Go."

Su Xin was very satisfied with his answer and waved her hand.

Chen Fan didn't say another word; he stood up, pulled open the dilapidated wooden door, and his figure quickly merged into the night outside.

...

Leaving the dock, Chen Fan was in no rush to head to the Xiushan Princes Mansion.

He first found a secluded corner to take off his conspicuous black clothes and changed into a set of ordinary coarse linen clothes he had swiped from the roadside.

Although Chen Jinzhong's face had been exposed to the Xiushan Princes Mansion's personal guards, the scene had been chaotic, and it was in the middle of the night, so there probably weren't many who remembered his appearance.

Furthermore, his current identity was that of a Jianghu assassin working for the White Lotus Sect, not a guard of the Xiushan Princes Mansion.

Following the route in his memory, he traversed a few small alleys and soon arrived near the Xiushan Princes Mansion.

Unlike the hustle and bustle of the day, the Xiushan Princes Mansion appeared even more imposing at night.

The high walls were like a crouching giant beast; on top of the walls, there were guards every three steps and sentries every five, with torches illuminating the surroundings as bright as day.

In front of the gates, white lanterns had been hung, and an atmosphere of sternness and mourning shrouded the entire residence.

Captain Li Zhong was dead, and the security of the Xiushan Princes Mansion was more than ten times stricter than when he was still Lin Shou.

Using the cover of night, Chen Fan utilized the movement technique of the Longxing Sect and silently scaled the roof of a residential house like a civet cat.

He gazed into the distance, taking in the entire defensive layout of the Xiushan Princes Mansion.

The patrol teams were twice as dense as before, and everyone was armored and armed, their expressions tense.

The number of hidden sentries had also increased significantly; people were hiding in some secret corners he hadn't even known about when he was a guard.

Trying to sneak in would be as difficult as ascending to heaven.

Charging in would be suicide.

It seemed that the task Su Xin gave him was indeed a hot potato.

Of course, he didn't want to work for the White Lotus Sect; there was no pay, so why risk his life?

Chen Jinzhong had worked for her before because he was Su Xin's simping dog, but Chen Fan wasn't.

So, he would just do the bare minimum to get by.

Chen Fan didn't linger; after observing for the time it takes to burn an incense stick, he quietly retreated.

He found an inn named "Yuelai" two streets away from the Xiushan Princes Mansion and checked in.

It wasn't too big or too small, with people coming and going, making it the most suitable place to hide his identity and gather information.

He requested a room on the second floor by the window, from where he could see the main road leading to the Xiushan Princes Mansion.

For the next two days, Chen Fan lived an exceptionally peaceful life.

He spent most of his time in his room every day, silently digesting the martial arts memories of Chen Jinzhong's body.

The tricky footwork of the Longxing Sect's movement technique, as well as the "Soul-Severing Dagger" set created specifically for assassination, were completely different from what he had learned before.

Occasionally, he would go downstairs to sit in the inn's lobby, order a pot of the cheapest inferior wine and a plate of fennel beans, and listen to the merchants from the north and south chatting.

But the information he received was mostly trivial rumors.

For example, Butcher Zhang in the west of the city had taken another concubine, or the dog belonging to the wealthy Li in the east of the city had gone missing.

Information about the Xiushan Princes Mansion, however, was scarce.

Captain Li Zhong's death was like a giant boulder, pressing down on the deep waters of the Xiushan Princes Mansion, leaving not a single ripple.

Everyone had become cautious, afraid that saying the wrong word would bring fatal disaster upon themselves.

Until the afternoon of the third day.

Chen Fan was sitting in the corner of the lobby as usual, drinking wine in boredom.

The inn's door curtain was lifted, and a staggering figure reeking of alcohol burst in.

The person was wearing the attire of a servant from the Xiushan Princes Mansion, his steps unsteady, his face flushed red; he had clearly just come from drinking at some tavern.

Chen Fan's movements paused slightly.

Zhang Cheng.

That colleague who had initially told him the gold sore medicine was a reward from the Princess, envious that he had struck good luck.

Why was he in this state?

Chen Fan calmly adjusted his bamboo hat, hiding his face deeper into the shadows.

Zhang Cheng was clearly drunk; he plopped down at an empty table not far from Chen Fan and slammed a few copper coins onto the table.

"Innkeeper! Bring wine! The best Daughter Red!"

The innkeeper approached with a flattering smile, "Sir, you've already had quite a lot. Why not rest for a bit?"

"Rest my ass!" Zhang Cheng glared, roaring in a rough voice, "I'm going to drink myself to death today! Bring the wine, I'll pay you!"

The innkeeper, helpless, had to go behind the counter to get the wine.

Soon, a jar of wine was brought up.

Zhang Cheng impatiently slapped off the mud seal, hugged the wine jar, and started gulping it down.

The pungent wine flowed down the corners of his mouth, soaking his lapels.

While drinking, he cursed incoherently.

"Damn it... this life is unlivable..."

"Captain Li Zhong is dead... inside the Xiushan Princes Mansion, it's like someone's father died... everyone has a long face..."

An idler at the next table who was also drinking leaned over and asked, "Brother, you look like you work at the Xiushan Princes Mansion, right? Why are you drinking alone?"

Zhang Cheng hiccuped and glanced at him sideways.

"What do you know..."

He seemed to have found an outlet, and the floodgates opened.

"You don't know, right now in the Xiushan Princes Mansion, you have to be careful even when breathing. The Prince of Xiushan hasn't smiled in the last few days. Whoever upsets him gets dragged out and beaten to death!"

"Is it that serious?" the idler clicked his tongue.

"You bet it is!" Zhang Cheng took another big gulp of wine, lowered his voice, and said with a hint of mystery, "And that's not the worst of it! You guys don't know, but the day before yesterday, the Prince of Xiushan and the Princess had a huge fight!"

Chen Fan's hand holding the wine cup froze in mid-air.

The idler's interest was completely piqued, and he hurriedly asked, "A fight? Why? Didn't they say the Prince of Xiushan had long since grown tired of the Princess?"

"Who knows why!" Zhang Cheng waved his hand, his face showing a mix of schadenfreude and regret.

"I heard from the sisters in the inner courtyard that the Princess was crying so sadly, and she even cursed at the Prince of Xiushan. It's said that they even reached the point of breaking off relations..."

"As a result, the Prince of Xiushan was furious and ordered on the spot that the Princess... be grounded!"

"Grounded?"

"Yes! Grounded! Locked in the Lanyue Pavilion, no one is allowed to visit, and she isn't allowed to take a single step out! What's the difference between that and being cast into the cold palace!"

After Zhang Cheng finished, he sighed again.

"Pitiful, truly pitiful. To think that back then, the Princess was the number one beauty of our Xiushan Prefecture... and now..."

"And that kid Lin Shou, he really died for nothing... He lost his life to protect his master, and what happened? His master ended up in this state. His death really had no value at all..."

He slumped onto the table, muttering drunkenly.

In the corner, Chen Fan sat quietly.

The hustle and bustle outside the window and the discussion at the next table seemed to fade away from him.

In his mind, only the words "grounded" remained.

He remembered the woman in the Treasure Pavilion whose earlobes turned slightly red when she received the Phoenix Seeking Phoenix.

He remembered her in the carriage, softly reciting that poem, full of anticipation, asking him what the second half was.

Clouds recall her garments, flowers her face, the spring breeze brushes the railing, dew thick and fragrant.

If not seen atop Qunyu Mountain, she would be met under the moon at the Jade Terrace.

Under the moon at the Jade Terrace, they never met after all.

Instead, she ended up grounded in the deep palace.

Chen Fan picked up the cup of wine in front of him, which had long since gone cold, tilted his head back, and downed it in one gulp.

The wine was strong, pungent upon entry, and burned as it slid down his throat.