129: Chapter 129 Zhang Qing Appears

Following the surging crowd, Chen Shanzhi and Ouyang Wanqing soon arrived at an open space at the entrance of the Refugee Area.

At this moment, the place was already bustling with noise, chaotic as a pot of porridge.

Several large black pots set upon stones were bubbling and steaming, filled with a thin congee containing heaven knows how much coarse bran and stale grain.

But to these refugees, whose eyes were green with hunger, this was simply a peerless delicacy.

"Don't push! Everyone, damn it, get in line!"

"If anyone dares to crowd forward again, the blade in my hand won't be so forgiving!"

A dozen or so sturdy Martial Artists, dressed in uniform cyan martial outfits with large sabers at their waists, were holding hands to form a human wall, firmly blocking the refugees who were frantically pushing forward.

From time to time, someone would draw their saber by the back, slamming it hard against the backs of refugees attempting to cut in line, knocking them down until they were spitting teeth.

Chen Shanzhi protected Ouyang Wanqing and stood firm on the outskirts of the crowd.

He casually grabbed a scrawny old man who had just received his congee and was wolfing it down while squatting on the ground, and tossed him half a piece of broken silver.

"Old man, I want to ask about something. Which great philanthropist is offering congee here?"

The old man tightly clutched the silver in his hand, afraid it would be snatched away, and said indistinctly:

"In reply to the noble one, it is the ladies from Yihong Pavilion in the city! They say the owner of Yihong Pavilion has a heart of a Bodhisattva and cannot bear to see us suffer, so they come to offer congee several times every month."

Yihong Pavilion? Chen Shanzhi raised an eyebrow, a flash of surprise in his eyes.

Who is the owner of Yihong Pavilion? That is the Saintess of the White Lotus Sect, the demonic enchantress Jiang Yingrao!

This little enchantress kills without blinking; would she be kind enough to come to the Refugee Area to do charity?

"It seems this congee offering and the matter of the missing refugees should just be a coincidence." Chen Shanzhi stroked his chin.

Jiang Yingrao currently has no spare time to run outside the city to engage in such low-class schemes as kidnapping able-bodied men.

"Let's go, a wasted trip. This case still needs to be... hm?"

Chen Shanzhi was just about to call for Ouyang Wanqing to leave when his gaze casually swept over the group of Martial Artists maintaining order, but his eyes suddenly narrowed.

His gaze was firmly pinned on one of the medium-built, plain-looking Martial Artists in cyan clothing. Zhang Qing!

This name instantly surfaced in Chen Shanzhi's mind. In the setting of that eroge, this kid was no ordinary guard from Yihong Pavilion.

He was an undercover agent planted by the Grand Elder of the White Lotus Sect beside Jiang Yingrao!

"This is interesting." A playful, cold smile curled on the corner of Chen Shanzhi's mouth.

A few days ago, Jiang Yingrao had told him personally that she had sent people to secretly keep a close eye on this Zhang Qing.

Chen Shanzhi scanned the crowd with extreme secrecy. Sure enough!

In the pile of refugees on the outskirts of the congee stall, there were a few men dressed in rags and covered in mud. Although they were also in line, their eyes would glance toward Zhang Qing from time to time.

"Zhang Qing is one of the White Lotus Sect Grand Elder's men, and the Grand Elder has long since secretly defected to the Prince of Qi..."

Chen Shanzhi's brain operated at high speed, countless clues colliding frantically in his mind.

The Refugee Area disappearance case... a large number of young, able-bodied laborers... shady underground projects... the Prince of Qi!

Could it be that the mastermind behind the theft of the refugees is the Prince of Qi? But, in the original game plot, there was no such storyline on the Prince of Qi's route!

"Another butterfly effect?" A glint of light flashed in Chen Shanzhi's eyes, and he directly grabbed Ouyang Wanqing's arm and pulled her into an inconspicuous corner.

"What is it?" Ouyang Wanqing frowned slightly and asked in a low voice.

Chen Shanzhi lifted his chin and gestured in the direction of Zhang Qing: "Don't make a sound, keep your eyes locked on that cyan-clad Martial Artist with a black mole on his face."

Ouyang Wanqing followed his gaze, a hint of confusion flashing in her beautiful eyes. That person looked completely ordinary, blending into the dozen or so Martial Artists without standing out at all.

However, looking at the True Qi fluctuations emanating from his body, he had the level of Xuan Guan Ten Apertures.

"With so many people, why do you insist on watching him?" Ouyang Wanqing asked softly.

"Intuition." Chen Shanzhi brazenly spat out the two words.

Ouyang Wanqing looked at him deeply and did not ask further. Although she felt that Chen Shanzhi's "intuition" was purely an excuse, out of trust in this man's keen insight over this period, she still cooperated extremely well by restraining her aura and locking her attention on Zhang Qing.

Time passed minute by minute. Half an hour later.

Zhang Qing had been standing in place obediently, holding his saber in his hand, occasionally pushing away a few refugees who got too close, looking exactly like a diligent bodyguard.

The Refugee Area was already foul-smelling; as the two hid in the corner, Ouyang Wanqing's brows were almost twisted into a knot.

Just when she was getting impatient and thought Chen Shanzhi had really misjudged this time, a sudden change occurred over at the congee stall.

Zhang Qing suddenly clutched his stomach, his expression looking somewhat ugly as he greeted his companion, appearing as if he had eaten something bad and was in a rush to go to the latrine.

His companion waved his hand in disgust, and Zhang Qing immediately clutched his stomach, squeezed through the crowded refugees, and walked hurriedly toward a row of dilapidated latrines deep in the Refugee Area.

"As expected, there's a problem." Chen Shanzhi curled his lips and lowered his voice: "Follow him."

The two, like two weightless ghosts, extremely skillfully utilized the cover of the surrounding haphazardly built shacks to silently trail behind Zhang Qing.

Zhang Qing had the cultivation of Xuan Guan Ten Apertures, and his perception was not lacking. But following behind him was a Genius daughter of the Prime Ministers Mansion at the Xuanguan Eleven Apertures level, and the other was Chen Shanzhi, whose Divine Soul strength was even stronger than a Xuanguan Peak.

Therefore, Zhang Qing did not notice any abnormalities at all.

"Stop." When passing a corner, Chen Shanzhi suddenly reached out and wrapped his arm around Ouyang Wanqing's slender waist, forcefully pressing her entire body into the shadows of a dirt wall.

"You..." Ouyang Wanqing was caught off guard and was just about to struggle.

Chen Shanzhi's warm breath hit her ear directly, his voice lowered extremely low: "Don't move, there's a tail behind us."

Ouyang Wanqing was shocked and immediately held her breath. Sure enough, in less than three breaths.

A few men dressed in tattered clothes, disguised as refugees, moved with extremely light footsteps, quickly sneaking past the other side of the dirt wall where they were hiding, their direction pointing straight at the latrine where Zhang Qing was. They were exactly the people Jiang Yingrao had sent to tail him!

A look of extreme shock flashed in Ouyang Wanqing's beautiful eyes. She was at the Xuanguan Eleven Apertures! Even she had not noticed the presence of these trackers at the first moment, so how did Chen Shanzhi, a Xuanguan Nine Apertures, discover them?

It seems the secrets on this man are far more unfathomable than she had imagined.

After those tails passed, the two then quietly followed. They crouched down behind a pile of discarded firewood about a dozen steps away from the latrine.

The latrine in the Refugee Area had a stench that could practically blind a person's eyes. The men responsible for tailing were clearly also choked by this chemical weapon-like stench. Neither was willing to go in to check, so they just dispersed and guarded the only exit of the latrine tightly.