Chapter 343 - 213: Impersonating the Real, The Waters of the Wu River (4)

Chapter 343: Chapter 213: Impersonating the Real, The Waters of the Wu River (4)

From his carriage, Yao Zhizhang watched Xie Yuan come to a halt and couldn’t help but ask in confusion, "What are you waiting for?"

The moment he spoke, he suddenly felt something was off. He turned his head to look ahead.

At the mouth of the alley ahead, a tall, burly man with a full beard was hurrying toward the side gate. Seeing Yao Zhizhang looking at him, the man’s face lit up, and he rushed over.

"Lord Yao! Lord Yao!"

"Stop!"

Yao Zhizhang’s sharp roar brought Meng Hesheng to a halt.

Then, he frowned and glanced to the side, only to find that the figure who had been there a moment ago had vanished without a trace. His pupils constricted.

’Where did he go?’

Yao Zhizhang subconsciously scanned the area around his carriage but found no sign of him. ’Did the man just vanish into thin air? Or did he teleport to the alley entrance and then run toward me?’

His heart tightened. Frowning at the bewildered Meng Hesheng standing before him, he asked urgently, "You were looking for me? What is it?"

Meng Hesheng looked utterly confused. "Uh," he said nervously, "it’s about what you just said. I have a question..."

"Just now?"

An ominous feeling crept into Yao Zhizhang’s heart.

"Yes, you just came to my boat gang’s headquarters..." Meng Hesheng whispered, glancing behind him to see if anyone else was around.

Besides Yao and Meng, the only other person in the alley was Yao Zhizhang’s driver. The County Magistrate’s driver was, of course, one of his own trusted men.

Yao Zhizhang’s eyes narrowed. In an instant, he understood. "I did not just visit the boat gang."

"What?"

Meng Hesheng was dumbfounded. The doubts he had suppressed earlier all resurfaced at once.

Yao Zhizhang had already guessed that the man he’d just seen was an impostor who had likely visited Meng Hesheng first. The man standing before him now was the real, deceived person.

Still, he cautiously confirmed a few secret matters with the man to ensure he was indeed the real Meng Hesheng. Only then did his eyes practically burn with fury.

"That scoundrel! I nearly fell for his trick! I will hunt him down!"

Not far away, Xie Yuan and Situ Qin watched the scene unfold hand in hand. He shook his head with a hint of regret. "A pity. We were so close."

"At least we’ve confirmed they’re in deep together. There’s definitely a bigger story behind all this."

Situ Qin gently shook Xie Yuan’s arm to console him. "You already did a great job. It seems you have a real talent for impersonation."

The two of them remained outside the county government office to keep watch. They observed Meng Hesheng and Yao Zhizhang discussing for a while, and though both were furious at having been tricked, they didn’t say much more. One returned to the government office, and the other went back to the boat gang.

Government officials and officers bustled in and out of the county government office. Xie Yuan couldn’t tell which of them might be sent to report to Mr. Qian, so he and Situ Qin had no choice but to return to the inn for the time being.

"We may not have found the abducted people or this so-called Mr. Qian today, but we still made significant progress."

Xie Yuan and Situ Qin sat in a corner of the main hall, waiting for their food to be served.

Situ Qin smiled. "In a single day, we’ve confirmed that the local County Magistrate is colluding with the gang leader in human trafficking. We’ve even found a clue about the person pulling the strings. We just lack hard evidence. That’s very impressive progress."

Xie Yuan nodded slightly and mused, "But after today, the two of them will certainly be on high alert. It probably won’t be easy to find clues from their movements or the people around them."

"If we can’t find them, let’s make them expose themselves."

Situ Qin smiled faintly.

"What do you mean?"

Seeing that Situ Qin seemed to have an idea, Xie Yuan asked with interest.

Situ Qin took a sip of tea. "Right now, they’re probably more anxious than we are, because they don’t know who’s investigating them."

"So..."

Xie Yuan’s eyes lit up.

"We from the Justice Hall just struck the grievance drum. They’ll definitely come looking for us. When they do, we can just react to their actions accordingly."

Situ Qin said with certainty.

Xie Yuan nodded. "Good point. The fact that they can’t find us will only make them more anxious. After all, it’s clear they can’t tolerate any leaks. In the end, they’ll be the ones who can’t bear the wait. Miss Qin, you truly are brilliant. I was just thinking that if all else failed, we could resort to force—tie them up, turn the tables, and torture them for a confession."

Situ Qin broke into a charming smile. "Master Xie, you’re clearly a man of great cunning, yet you’re so fond of using force."

Xie Yuan looked into Situ Qin’s clear, lively eyes. Seemingly oblivious to the double meaning in her words, he felt a stir in his heart.

Before he could say anything, the Shopkeeper himself brought over several dishes and placed them on their table.

"Food’s here! Thank you for your patience, esteemed guests."

Xie Yuan waited for the dishes to be set down and politely thanked the Shopkeeper. He noticed the man wasn’t in a hurry to leave and was smiling as he spoke, "You two honored guests have come from afar. Please, try my specialty Wu River grilled fish. It’s affordable, delicious, and you certainly won’t find it anywhere else."

Xie Yuan saw that there was indeed a grilled fish among the main dishes, but they hadn’t ordered it. He raised an eyebrow and said, "Shopkeeper, we didn’t order this grilled fish."

The Shopkeeper replied with a smile, "This dish is on the house. No charge."

Situ Qin’s eyes lit up, and she beamed, "Well then, thank you, Shopkeeper..."

Xie Yuan waved a hand to stop her, silently cursing this glutton for being so easily bribed.

’If you’d been born here, you would’ve been the first one abducted!’

His guard went up slightly, but he smiled and said, "Shopkeeper, we can’t accept a reward we haven’t earned. Why are you giving us a free dish?"

The Shopkeeper stroked his beard and chuckled. "You two came all the way from Nanshan County. I’ve been there before. The mountains are green and the waters are clear. The view of the southern mountains is exceptionally beautiful. And, hmm, the food is delicious, too..."

Xie Yuan and Situ Qin exchanged a slightly awkward glance. Neither of them had actually been to Nanshan County; they had just made up a fake sect from a distant place. They had no idea if the Shopkeeper was telling the truth or not.