Chapter 34 - 33: Demon Beast

Chapter 34: Chapter 33: Demon Beast

Lu Jing’an’s face showed little surprise when he heard the news of Li Zhaolin’s death.

Still,

It had happened a little too quickly.

’Was the Li Family that decisive?’

"The Li Family acted quickly."

Lu Jing’an’s voice was low, as if he were commenting on some trivial matter.

But Lu Huaiqian shook his head, a trace of inscrutable gravity on his face.

"The Li Family didn’t kill him."

"He was killed by a Demon Beast in the wilds."

"When he didn’t return, the Li Family sent people out to look for him."

"They found a Guard, severely wounded and unconscious."

"It was from this Guard they learned that the group had been attacked by a Demon Beast on their return journey."

This outcome...

...was something Lu Jing’an truly hadn’t expected.

Li Zhaolin had died in the jaws of a Demon Beast.

Lu Jing’an had never considered such a fate for him.

Lu Jing’an knew, of course, that Demon Beasts roamed the wilds.

But having grown up within the city walls,

he had never laid eyes on the creatures of legend.

The world beyond the city was perilous.

Lu Jing’an wasn’t one to go looking for trouble for no reason.

But for Li Zhaolin to be killed by a Demon Beast...

...the whole thing sounded inexplicably fishy.

Li Zhaolin had been accompanied by two Martial Cultivators at the Blood-Breaking Barrier.

His escort party numbered seventy or eighty men.

They had at least forty to fifty rifles and handguns combined.

With that kind of firepower, even if they had encountered a Demon Beast,

it should have been the beast that was riddled with bullets, not the entire party that was wiped out.

The Demon Beasts of this world...

...weren’t the sprites from storybooks that could summon storms, change shape, and speak human languages.

Such beings existed only in urban legends; no one had ever seen one in the flesh.

Real Demon Beasts...

...were merely wild animals that were larger, tougher, and stronger, with slightly higher intelligence.

A few rare breeds might even develop strange and unpredictable special abilities.

But at their core, they were still just beasts.

They might be terrifying to ordinary folk,

but against a scion of a Noble Family like Li Zhaolin, surrounded by Guards,

even a Demon Beast that had developed a Superpower wouldn’t dare to provoke them lightly.

After all, a beast of that caliber would possess an intelligence that couldn’t be underestimated.

It would know how to pick its battles, how to tell the strong from the weak.

As long as Li Zhaolin hadn’t actively trespassed in its lair or deliberately provoked it,

why would a Demon Beast throw itself at them just to be killed?

’If the Li Family had done it themselves, deliberately sending Li Zhaolin to be fed to a Demon Beast...’

’...to grant him a "dignified" death,’

’...that could almost make sense.’

’But such a method would be far too clumsy, and it would leave too many traces.’

So, the whole affair reeked of something strange.

In a flash of thought, Lu Jing’an spoke again.

"So the Li Family is using this to demand an explanation from us?"

His suspicion wasn’t unfounded.

If the Li Family weren’t trying to exploit the situation,

he wouldn’t have been summoned to the study.

’Now that the man is dead, of course they have to squeeze every last drop of value from him.’

’Such is the cold calculus of the Major Clans.’

Lu Huaichuan picked up the conversation, his tone growing more somber.

"The Li Family reported this to the higher-ups.

The authorities reprimanded your father for failing to maintain public order."

"They’ve ordered him to kill the beast responsible by a set deadline."

Lu Jing’an understood at once.

’It’s still about the position of Chief of the Public Security Bureau.’

’Their attempt to assassinate me failed, so they’ve found another angle, using this supposed failure of governance as leverage.’

’Except this time, the one who died was one of their own.’

He wanted to point out that since they weren’t after the chief’s position,

they could simply ignore the whole Demon Beast affair.

But he swallowed the words before they left his mouth.

’He could see the logic so clearly; how could his father and two uncles not understand it as well?’

’There must be more to this.’

After a moment’s thought, Lu Jing’an ventured,

"Is there someone in the higher echelons we can’t afford to disobey,"

"who has given a direct order?"

"Someone insisting we must eliminate this Demon Beast?"

Lu Huaichuan nodded, a hint of resignation in his eyes.

"Yes."

"Secretary Hu from the Provincial City gave the order himself."

"He wants us to take care of that Demon Beast by the deadline."

"Secretary Hu?" The name didn’t ring a bell for Lu Jing’an.

Lu Huaichuan explained in a low voice, "Secretary Hu is... let’s say he’s our Lu Family’s patron over in the Provincial City."

"We pay him a handsome sum every year as a retainer."

"If we run into any minor or moderate trouble,"

"he’ll help smooth things over for us."

"Things like our pay silver, military provisions, and other such matters."

"But when something major happens, we’re still on our own."

He paused briefly before continuing.

"And we’re not the only family under Secretary Hu’s protection."

"In the past, we weren’t even on his radar. He looked down on the Lu Family."

Lu Jing’an immediately picked up the thread.

"It’s because we handled the last matter so well."

"He now sees the Lu Family as useful, so he wants to use this incident to test our capabilities again."

"And if we succeed, he’ll back us for the chief position of the newly merged Public Security Bureau?"

Lu Huaichuan grunted in affirmation, but there was no hint of pleasure on his face.

"That’s what he said."

"But you can’t count on a verbal promise like that."

"The difficult part is that we can’t figure out what he truly wants."

He frowned and continued,

"We’ve sent several feelers to the Provincial City to gather information."

"But none have come back with anything concrete."

"Your second sister also went to deliver money."

"He accepted the money but refused to see her."

At this, Lu Jing’an’s brow furrowed slightly as well.

’That complicates things.’

’You could say it’s about the money...’

’...because he took the money but refused a meeting, which likely means he feels the offer wasn’t sincere enough.’

’But the amount "enough" would be is probably more than the Lu Family can easily afford.’

’But you could also say it’s not about the money, because he did accept it in the end.’

’This indicates he doesn’t want to crush the Lu Family.’

’It’s more like, if the Lu Family handles this, it benefits everyone.’

As for the Demon Beast itself...

...anything capable of nearly wiping out Li Zhaolin’s retinue could not be underestimated.

Damaging their own strength at such a precarious time was by no means a wise move.

Lu Jing’an completely understood his father and uncles’ hesitation.

"What can I do to help with this?"

Lu Jing’an raised his eyes, looking calmly at Lu Huaiqian behind the desk.

Lu Huaichuan glanced at his brother before answering.

"Jing’an, the three of us have been discussing this for a long time, but we still don’t have a foolproof plan."

"We called you here to hear your thoughts on the matter."

"To see if you have any ideas on how to break this impasse."

Lu Jing’an fell silent for a moment.

’I have too little information.’

’The only reason I could take down the Lin Family...’

’...was because I investigated in secret for over a month, grasping every key detail before laying out my plan.’

’With this, I only know the barest details. I can’t make a rash judgment.’

"There are indeed too few useful clues,"

Lu Jing’an said slowly,

"so it’s difficult to form a concrete plan. However, there are a few things we can do right now."

Lu Huaichuan’s eyes lit up. "Go on."

"First, make the Li Family hand over all clues and intelligence they have on the Demon Beast."

"They are the aggrieved party and the ones who found the scene first. They must have details."

"If the Li Family doesn’t cooperate, we can ask Secretary Hu to intervene."

"Since his interests are also tied to this, I imagine he’d be willing to put some pressure on the Li Family."

"If the Li Family still tries to evade responsibility, then even if we fail, the blame won’t fall entirely on the Lu Family."

Hearing this, Lu Huaichuan’s eyes lit up, and he clapped his hands.

"A fine piece of misdirection! Brother, Jing’an’s plan is viable!"

He turned to Lu Jing’an, his gaze filled with undisguised admiration.

"Jing’an, if this works, you’ll have earned great merit."

Lu Jing’an simply shook his head. "You praise me too highly, Second Uncle. I was just following the logic of the situation."

’It’s not that brilliant a strategy,’ he thought. ’Just a common-sense response.’

’My father and uncles hadn’t thought of it before...’

’...likely because they’re so wary of Secretary Hu that they didn’t dare factor him into their plans.’

Lu Jing’an, however, had no such reservations.

In his eyes, anyone or anything useful could be used as a pawn.

After a long moment of contemplation, Lu Huaiqian finally spoke, his voice as steady as ever.

"Huaichuan, find a way to gather more information. Organize it and send a copy to Jing’an’s residence."

"Understood." Lu Huaichuan agreed, then shot Lu Jing’an a look of approval.

Seeing that there was nothing else, Lu Jing’an rose to take his leave.

"Jing’an."

Lu Huaiqian stopped him, his tone softening slightly.

"We’ve sorted through the assets seized from the Qian and Lin Families and found some things that should be useful for your Martial Arts Cultivation."

"I’ve had them organized and sent to your villa."

Lu Jing’an paused, and a flicker of genuine delight finally appeared in his eyes.

This was what he had been waiting to hear.

"Thank you, Father." He bowed. His voice was quiet, but clear and sincere.

As he turned and left the study, the dusk outside was deepening.

A streak of lingering red on the distant horizon looked like a bloodstain that could never be wiped clean.