Young hero, stay put and don't be reckless.

Chapter 127 Dark Flag

Jiang Xun's heart sank.

"What happened?"

"My men went to investigate Lü Le's goods, but they were discovered." Ying Qi's voice was hoarse, but still steady. "They outnumbered me; I was no match for them."

"Are you badly injured?"

"It's just a superficial wound, nothing serious."

Jiang Xun took out some wound medicine and tore open his sleeve.

There was a deep gash on his right arm, the skin and flesh were turned inside out, and blood was still seeping out.

He frowned, sprinkled the powder on it, then tore off a piece of his own clothing, wrapping it around his arm as he asked, "What did you find out?"

"Medicine," Shadow Seven said. "A large quantity of medicine for treating injuries, reducing fever, and stopping bleeding—three whole cartloads."

Jiang Xun paused.

drug?

Not a repeating crossbow?

Are you sure?

"I've confirmed it; it's all medicine."

Jiang Xun frowned.

He originally thought Lü Le was there to do business with the Xiao family on crossbows, but he didn't expect it to be a truckload of medicine.

Why does the Xiao family need so many medicines? Are they going to start a war with the Great Yong?

"Who hurt you?"

"The guards of the Lü Le caravan."

"Guards?" Jiang Xun was a little confused.

Shadow Seven's skills are no worse than Shadow Thirteen's, so how did he get beaten up by a few guards like this?

"Those guards are all experts." A hint of seriousness flashed in Ying Qi's eyes. "I fought them a few times, but I was no match for them. If I hadn't run fast, this arm would be gone."

Jiang Xun frowned even more deeply.

These are no ordinary guards; ordinary caravans simply cannot afford such personnel.

Although Lü Le did not smuggle repeating crossbows, there must be something wrong with this batch of medicine.

After bandaging his wound, Jiang Xun took a step back and looked at him: "Where's the person I asked you to investigate?"

"There's news," Shadow Seven finally said something positive. "He lives in the south of the city and will be sleeping there tonight."

He then handed over a slip of paper.

Jiang Xun took it, glanced at the address on it, and casually burned it with the lamplight.

He walked to the window and opened it, letting in the night wind, which carried the dry chill of the North.

In the distance, the outline of the Shuofeng City wall appeared and disappeared in the moonlight, like a giant beast lying in the darkness.

"We can't wait any longer," he muttered to himself.

…………

Before dawn, people were already walking on the streets.

The breakfast stalls were set up, with steaming buns piled high in the steamer.

Several early risers squatted by the roadside drinking porridge, their slurping sounds audible across half the street.

Jiang Xun crossed two streets and turned into an alley.

Deep in the alley, there is a small courtyard with gray walls and black tiles. An old locust tree grows at the entrance, its branches and leaves so dense that they cover half of the courtyard wall.

He climbed over the wall and landed silently.

The courtyard was quiet, with only a dim light shining from the window of the east wing.

Jiang Xun crouched down and crept along the wall.

He quietly pushed open the window and peeked inside—a person was lying fully clothed on the bed, the iron ruler at his waist still attached, clearly sleeping quite alertly.

Jiang Xun didn't hesitate any longer and went inside in one swift motion.

The person on the bed suddenly sat up, his hand already touching the iron ruler beside the pillow.

"Who?"

Jiang Xun stood by the window, backlit, so his face was not clearly visible.

Instead of dodging, he took a step forward, letting the light shine on his face.

The man recognized him and frowned: "It's you?"

Jiang Xun remained silent, took out a token from his pocket, and held it up in front of the other party.

"You dare not kneel before me, the envoy?" The voice was not loud, but the tone carried an air of condescending arrogance.

This is something they learned from Huangshan; the people of the Golden Feather Guard all speak in this tone.

The man's expression changed.

He stared at the token for a long time, then looked at Jiang Xun's face, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down.

"Sun Xing, the Dark Banner Commander, pays his respects to Lord Detective." He rolled off the bed, knelt on one knee, and did so swiftly and decisively.

This person was none other than Sun Xing.

On the way to Kunwu Mountain, Jiang Xun sensed that something was wrong with him.

That three-clawed iron hook was exactly the same as the scorpion tail hook used by Xu Shan, the Detective Lieutenant of the Golden Feather Guard.

He became suspicious at that moment.

Thinking about it later, the treasure map was such a secret that Helian Quan would never have told anyone, but Ling Xuan just happened to find out.

This indicates that there must be Golden Feather Guard agents in Shuofeng City, or even in the City Lord's Mansion.

Sun Xing was a personal guard of the city lord's mansion and a confidant of Helian Jun, who had access to the most core secrets.

If the Golden Feather Guard wanted to place someone in Shuofeng City, there was no one more suitable than him.

Jiang Xun breathed a sigh of relief; he had guessed correctly.

But he didn't show it at all.

He put away the token, sat down in a chair, crossed his legs, and looked down at Sun Xing: "Get up and speak."

"Thank you, sir." Sun Xing stood up and stood to the side with his hands at his sides.

Jiang Xun sized him up—this once-powerful captain of the guards in Shuofeng City was now as docile as a cat in front of the Golden Feather Guard's token.

"Has the message I reported received, sir?" Sun Xing asked respectfully, but his eyes held a hint of scrutiny.

Jiang Xun knew he still had doubts, but he remained outwardly calm: "Is the information about the treasure map you mentioned reliable?"

"Your Excellency is wise." Sun Xing's tone carried a hint of relief. "I heard this with my own ears. That day, the young city lord was drunk and babbling incoherently in his lover's courtyard, letting the secret slip."

"Helian Jun?" Jiang Xun raised an eyebrow.

"Yes." Sun Xing lowered his voice. "The young city lord can't hold his liquor. Once he drinks too much, he can't control himself. That night, I don't know why, he drank quite a lot and he was talking to that woman for a long time. I heard everything clearly outside the window."

"What did he say?"

"They say there's a treasure map in the City Lord's Mansion, left behind by the Heavenly Mystery Pavilion. With this map, one can find the treasures of the previous dynasty and become incredibly wealthy." Sun Xing lowered his voice even further. "He also said that the Helian family has been waiting for this day for decades."

Jiang Xun's heart raced a little, but his expression remained calm.

Where is the treasure map now?

Sun Xing shook his head: "This subordinate does not know. The young city lord only said that the treasure map is in the city lord's mansion, but he did not say exactly where it is."

He paused, then added, "However, I suspect it's in Helian Quan's study."

Why?

"Because ordinary people can't enter that study," Sun Xing said. "There are always guards at the door, and it's right next to Helian Bo's side room."

Jiang Xun had a general idea in mind.

As soon as he approached the backyard that day, he felt an extremely strong aura pressing down on him.

With a grandmaster in charge, who would dare to trespass?

He paused, then asked, "How much do you know about the repeating crossbow smuggling?"

"I reported this matter, but orders from above forbade me to intervene." Sun Xing's eyes showed a hint of suspicion. "I wonder, sir..."

Jiang Xun replied without batting an eye: "Times have changed. The situation is different now."

Sun Xing's expression suddenly dawned on him. He didn't know what he had imagined, but he stopped doubting and lowered his voice to say, "I've seen the young city lord play with it once. That thing is well-made, and the crossbow arm is engraved with the mark of the Ministry of Works of the Great Yong Dynasty. It's genuine."

"Only once?"

"Only once." Sun Xing nodded. "The young city lord is very cautious and never takes it out normally. I just happened to see it."

"Can you find out where the repeating crossbow came from?"

"It should have been purchased directly from Dayong."

"Who are the people from the Dayong side?"

"I don't know," Sun Xing shook his head. "This matter is highly confidential; even within the city lord's mansion, very few people know about it."

Jiang Xun remained silent.

He originally thought that the smuggling operation was colluded with the Xiao family of Da Han, but now it seems that it might have been the Shuofeng City Lord's Mansion that was behind it.

After a while, he suddenly asked, "You know about Boss Yang from the East Market being arrested?"

Sun Xing was taken aback, seemingly not expecting him to ask this.

"I know," he said. "After returning to the city yesterday, Huang Hu had a private conversation with the city lord for an hour, after which the city lord ordered the arrest of people."

Yellow coral.

It turned out to be Huang Hu.

Jiang Xun's unease grew stronger.

What exactly is this sword guardian up to?

Sun Xing glanced at him and added, "It was Helian Jun who personally led the men there."

Jiang Xun's eyes flickered slightly: "Why did you specifically mention Helian Jun?"