The Killer's Cleansing Manual

Chapter 158 Mrs. Wu's Secret

Although Qi Zhaomian was surprised by her bluntness, he didn't completely believe her. He just nodded and said, "If you're short of manpower, I can have someone follow you and assist you."

He Qing thought for a moment, then finally agreed: "I'll cut three scars on the tree trunks I pass by as a mark. Don't follow too close."

After she finished speaking, she stood up and left. Qi Zhaomian watched her leave and asked Yue Liu, "What do you think of this person?"

Yue Liu retracted his gaze: "His aura is steady, his posture is upright, and the calluses on his knuckles suggest he is used to using swords. He must be a martial artist."

Qi Zhaomian nodded, and a pigeon fluttered down onto the table. Qi Zhaomian took down the note and unfolded it while listening to Yue Liu's question:

"But I still can't see through her identity. Is she really not He Qing?"

The note had been unfolded. Qi Zhaomian glanced at it and handed it to Yue Liu.

"I've been researching for two months, and this answer is coming just in time."

The King of the Southern Barbarians had six sons and two daughters. The daughters were twins, and only the younger one was publicly known. She was named Princess Yaoyue. She later took the Chinese name He Qing and married General Zhennan, Ye Lang. The eldest daughter was known only as Liuhe, while the others were unknown. She recently arrived in Beijing with her entourage.

"Liu He." Qi Zhaomian murmured, "She is much more interesting than her sister."

Liu He rushed all the way back to the general's mansion. As she expected, after Ye Lang's farce in the morning, Ye Xiurong immediately asked Li Chou to go with her in order to prevent Ye Lang from doing anything excessive again.

Ye Lang escaped in the morning, so even if he ran as fast as he could, he would not be caught up.

Li Chou had just prepared the carriage when he saw Liu He pull over a horse and ride it steadily. He was a little surprised.

Although He Qing was indeed a female general of the Southern Barbarians before, she had been working for Ye Lang for so many years and had long stopped wielding swords and guns. In order to please the noble ladies in the capital, she had never ridden a horse again. Therefore, it was a bit surprising to see her getting on a horse at first glance.

Liu He pulled the reins and his dark pupils swept over the crowd: "The carriage is too slow, what are you doing? It's time to set off!"

Li Chou finally reacted and got on his horse. The group headed straight out of the capital.

-

More than half a month later, Lin Shanjuan and Ye Xi finally arrived in Yuezhou, and after several twists and turns, they found Wu Liu's residence.

The two men stopped their horses in front of the gate of Wu's mansion. The gate was quite imposing. It seemed that although Duke Sui was separated from his wife, he had not forgotten her.

The servant at the door saw that the two of them looked exhausted and stepped forward to ask, "Where are you two from?"

Ye Xi took the initiative to talk: "We came from the capital and have something important to see Madam."

The servant had no suspicion and led the two men into the house.

Entering the mansion shocked both of them—the mansion was filled with scantily clad men, and not a single maid was to be seen. The men, carrying trays and acting coyly, some with exaggerated makeup and others with seductive glances, gave Lin Shanjuan goosebumps.

Ye Xi immediately became alert. As the saying goes, when something is abnormal, there must be something wrong. Since the Wu Mansion is so abnormal, the thing must be quite big.

She subconsciously thought of the detoxification pills her sister-in-law had given her before she left. No matter what would happen in a while, now was a good time to take them.

This Mrs. Wu might not be a simple person.

She quickly put a pill into her palm, put it into her mouth while coughing, and gave one to Lin Shanjuan.

The two followed the servant into the inner courtyard. As soon as they stepped through the door, they heard the sound of stringed instruments, mixed with the laughter of men and women. As they stepped in, the sound became clearer.

Lin Shanjuan lowered his eyes to Ye Xi, and they both walked cautiously to Mrs. Wu.

Mrs. Wu should be in her fifties, but perhaps because of proper maintenance, her face is still youthful. She sits in a high seat, and several men with their arms around her waist squat beside her, serving her respectfully.

"Madam, the guests are here."

Mrs. Wu's interest shifted from her male favorite to the two people below her. After looking at them carefully, a hint of interest flashed in her eyes.

"Since you two have come to me, I believe there must be something going on in the capital. Tell me."

Her bluntness caught them both by surprise. Ye Xi followed the plan he had prepared on the way and replied, "The Duke is in danger and has ordered us to fetch his wife and meet her outside the city."

Mrs. Wu chuckled. "Him? We've been separated for many years, and the love between husband and wife has long since faded. Why would we still see each other?"

But she changed the subject: "You two must have had a very hard time coming here, why don't you rest here for a night before continuing."

The men and women in this place looked improper. Lin Shanjuan wanted to refuse, but Mrs. Wu seemed to see through her thoughts and took the initiative to stop her from refusing.

"I won't go see anyone. But if you come to get something, you can. I've kept it here for so many years, I'm tired of it."

The two looked at each other, and for the sake of the "thing" she mentioned, they had no choice but to agree.

"Then it's better to be respectful than to obey."

Madam Wu gave a meaningful smile and said, "Someone, go clean up the east wing."

The two followed a man who only had half a skirt hanging on his lower body to the east wing. Along the way, they were dazzled by the various kinds of men they saw.

There are handsome scholars who are so weak that they can't even tie a chicken, as well as strong and powerful men, and there are countless people with fair skin.

They stayed in the east wing. After the man bowed and left, Ye Xi touched her arm.

"Who is this Madam Wu...who is she? Why are there so many of them in the mansion..."

Lin Shanjuan forced a smile. "Eighty percent... eighty percent is similar to a man keeping a concubine? Her tastes are quite broad, she has all kinds of tastes."

Speaking of this, Lin Shanjuan became curious. He looked out the window and saw all kinds of men walking around with their upper bodies exposed.

Ye Xi said with a stern face: "How can a man of your stature, like seven feet tall, be so exhausted as to be stuck in this mansion doing such things? How can I be worthy of my parents?"

Lin Shanjuan sighed, "You talk like an old man."

Her eyes swept across the various bodies, but suddenly she discovered a very strange commonality—

Each of these people seemed to have a series of numbers branded on their bodies. Although they were slightly different from the Arabic numerals used by modern people, the numbers were still recognizable.

Ye Xi thought she was admiring those naked men, and couldn't help but frown and pull her back, even threatening her: "After returning to the capital, I will report to His Highness!"

Lin Shanjuan couldn't help laughing: "I didn't even look at their bodies, and yet I complained. Look..."

Ye Xi put his hands behind his back and said, "I won't look!"

Lin Shan was so amused that he dragged her to the window and said, "Look, they all have numbers on their bodies, right?"

Ye Xi squinted his eyes and scanned them one by one, apparently trying to minimize the dirty images his eyes took in.

"...I haven't seen it before." She was less resistant when she got down to business. "I've seen this thing before. Some people in the southwest used these symbols to count, but I don't fully recognize them."

Lin Shanjuan barely recognized it: "This thing is called a number. We don't use this counting method here. This is..."

Arabs, isn’t this concept a bit too advanced?

After thinking for a moment, she changed her words and said, "A... niche counting symbol."

Ye Xi nodded: "You know a lot."

Lin Shanjuan smiled in response, "This Madam Wu must have some hidden secret. She kept us here, so she must be planning something tonight."