As dawn broke, the city's residents awoke, feeling as though they had experienced the deepest sleep of their lives, now refreshed and invigorated.
Just as the people were preparing to leave for work, a piercing cry suddenly echoed from the direction of the city's only inn.
“Father—!!”
Curious onlookers gathered at the inn's entrance to watch the commotion.
Outside the inn stood a dozen or so individuals dressed in martial arts attire, appearing to be martial artists, surrounding the inn and shouting about finding the murderer.
Guests who had stayed overnight inside tried to leave but were forced back by these individuals brandishing weapons.
Seeing their drawn blades and bloodshot eyes, the departing guests dared not insist, retreating to the inn's main hall, though not without muttering complaints.
“Which inn doesn't have a few deaths? Who knows who you’ve offended?”
“Exactly, they don’t consider who their enemies are and instead make trouble for us.”
The guests huddled together, complaining.
A young woman descended from the upper floor, her face streaked with tears, her hands and body still stained with fresh blood. It was Zhao Ying, Zhao Dehua’s daughter.
Zhao Ying walked to the guests, took a deep breath, and then bowed deeply.
“Everyone—” She choked up slightly: “My apologies for the inconvenience.”
“I am Zhao Ying, the Young Chief Escort of Tiger Might Escort Agency in Jizhou Prefecture.”
There were many escort agencies named Tiger Might in the world, but only a few were famous. Those who frequently traveled in the Qi-Lu Region had more or less heard of the Tiger Might Escort Agency in Jizhou Prefecture, and they all quieted down at this moment.
Zhao Ying continued, forcing herself to speak: “The Chief Escort of Tiger Might Escort Agency, my father Zhao Dehua, was tragically murdered by villains in this inn last night.”
“His body is currently laid out in the guest room.”
“My father traveled the martial world for over ten years, always upholding justice and never harming others. You should all be somewhat aware of this.”
“As a child, if my father is murdered and I do not investigate the truth and seek revenge, I will have no face to continue walking in the martial world.”
“Today, I only ask for your convenience, considering my father’s character over the past decade.”
Zhao Ying spoke, then paused for a moment, gesturing.
The dozen or so escorts who had surrounded the inn outside now entered, encircling the guests and staring coldly at them with drawn weapons.
This caused the guests to retreat, huddling together.
Zhao Ying bowed deeply again, saying: “This is a vendetta from the martial world. I will only check if you possess martial arts. If not, I will immediately escort you out respectfully.”
“If you possess martial arts, please come with me. If it is determined that you are not involved, our Tiger Might Escort Agency will offer our apologies and compensation!”
Although Zhao Ying was young and lacked extensive experience in the martial world, she had been trained by Zhao Dehua for many years, and her own disposition was resilient.
Facing such a sudden catastrophe, she was immediately able to force herself to calm down.
This combination of intimidation and persuasion, coupled with her delicate features and her tear-stained yet composed demeanor, directly put the initially displeased guests on the spot.
Of course, the menacing escorts surrounding them also played a significant role.
Immediately, a guest stepped forward: “Young Chief Escort, please do not be offended. We were simply unaware of the situation and spoke rashly.”
“I have long heard of Chief Escort Zhao’s chivalrous reputation. Young Chief Escort, if you wish to investigate, please start with me.”
Zhao Ying thanked him, stepped forward, grasped the man’s pulse, and carefully examined him.
Seeing that he had no internal energy and no signs of martial arts practice on his body, she immediately bowed in apology and escorted him out.
Seeing this, the remaining guests also cooperated with Zhao Ying’s examination.
There were not many guests staying overnight, and in a short while, the inn's main hall was empty. Among the guests from last night, there wasn't a single martial artist.
Zhao Ying said nothing upon seeing this, turning to go upstairs to collect Zhao Dehua’s body.
Suddenly, she remembered something, ran downstairs, grabbed the innkeeper’s hand, and sternly demanded: “Which room did those three people who dined with us last night stay in?!”
Upon receiving the answer, Zhao Ying immediately called for the escorts to go upstairs and kick open the door to Li Miao’s room.
It was already empty.
Zhao Ying stepped forward and touched the bedding; it was already cold.
“The bedding is ice-cold, meaning they left at least half an hour ago. The city gates just opened, so if they were just traveling, why would they get up so early?”
“Last night, we were all drugged, and we only woke up half an hour ago to find Father dead. These three had already left by then, proving they were not drugged.”
“The night before last, we encountered them, and coincidentally, we were attacked. Last night, Father had an accident, and coincidentally, they were not drugged and left early.”
“Among the guests who stayed at the inn last night, besides us, only these three possessed martial arts.”
“This matter is absolutely connected to them!”
“It's these three people!”
She ran to the stable and saw that Li Miao’s horses were gone.
“If they were still in the city, leading horses would be very conspicuous. People are easy to hide, but horses are not. They must have ridden out of the city and escaped!”
Thinking this, Zhao Ying immediately shouted: “Mount up! Out of the city! Chase!”
The group immediately mounted their horses and galloped out of the city in pursuit.
— — — — — — — —
On the official road, Li Miao, Wang Hai, Xiao Si, and Mei Qinghe were riding horses.
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Wang Hai looked at Mei Qinghe, who was lagging behind and silent, and quietly said to Li Miao: “My Lord, where did you catch this girl?”
Li Miao had been busy for half the night, watching a good show, and was now content, currently dozing on his horse with his eyes closed.
He replied lazily: “The one who sought revenge the night before last, from Mount Hua Sect.”
“Her martial arts are only slightly inferior to yours, her talent is good, and her character is not bad. Perhaps in the future, she can be given a secret agent’s badge, which would make her half your colleague.”
Wang Hai immediately showed a troubled expression: “She was the one who sought revenge on that escort leader the night before last… My Lord, I smelled blood this morning.”
“You didn’t play that escort leader to death last night, did you?”
Wang Hai was, of course, not questioning Li Miao's intentions.
Having followed Li Miao for many years, he understood his Lord's nature: he enjoyed “playing” with villains, and most of them ended up dead from his games. Towards good people, he generally maintained a respectful distance and would not harm their lives.
Wang Hai himself practiced a claw technique called “Leaf Removal.” Although the name was elegant, it actually meant “stripping a person clean of their branches and leaves, leaving only a human stick,” which was ten times more sinister and ruthless than Zhao Dehua’s claw technique.
Putting himself in their shoes, he naturally knew that given the claw technique Zhao Dehua practiced, his character would not be one of kindness towards others.
His difficulty was how to deal with the escort group when they caught up. Li Miao would certainly be too lazy to act, so he would definitely have to handle it.
“Kill them all?”
“It’s not impossible, but I’m afraid My Lord wouldn’t be pleased.”
Li Miao glanced sideways at Wang Hai.
He had served for twenty years, and people came and went under him, but there was a reason he kept Wang Hai by his side.
Firstly, he was very loyal, even to the point of blind loyalty.
Secondly, he only recognized Li Miao; no one else could control him.
Thirdly, even though Wang Hai followed Li Miao, appearing as a harmless subordinate who would even blush when Li Miao teased him.
In reality, his personality was extremely extreme, and his methods were ruthless and vicious, often eradicating everything, and if left unchecked, he would sooner or later become a great menace. To those he recognized, he was docile. But to others, Wang Hai was a vicious imperial hawk, like something out of a model play, and everyone in the Jinyiwei knew that Li Miao kept a wolf cub who ate people without spitting out bones.
Li Miao knew what Wang Hai was thinking and said: “If they catch up, you can go and reason with them.”
“But don’t kill anyone.”
Wang Hai said: “My Lord, I don’t even know what’s going on….”
“Otherwise, let Miss Mei come with me.”
“Alright.” Li Miao called back.
“Xiao Mei! Go with Wang Hai and reason with Zhao Dehua’s subordinates.”
Mei Qinghe nodded silently, pulled on her reins, and stopped by the roadside with Wang Hai, waiting for Zhao Ying and her group to catch up.
Li Miao and Xiao Si, meanwhile, continued leisurely on their horses.