Chapter 044 – Why is it Spearmanship?
“Wen Xiaoqiao...disappeared?” The news made Li Yuan’s scalp prickle. “How did she go missing?” he asked.
“She was on night watch. Everything was normal. Just yesterday, people saw her wandering around the central market as usual. But by evening, she was suddenly gone. The menial workers searched everywhere, but she’d vanished.”
Disbelief still lingered on Cai Ze’s face; by now, it was clear that something truly strange was afoot.
Li Yuan pressed on. “What about Senior Li?”
“Senior Li is fine... But he hasn’t noticed anything out of the ordinary, either,” Cai Ze replied. He looked at Li Yuan oddly and lowered his voice. “Did you sense something off? Is that why you pretended to be sick and stayed home?”
Li Yuan let out a bitter laugh. “How could I? If Senior Li couldn’t find anything, what hope do I have? My injury is real. You can ask around Little Ink Village or talk to the doctor at Spring Clinic. Plenty of people can vouch for me.”
Cai Ze paused for a moment and then said, “So what do you think is going on?”
After a beat, Li Yuan spoke. “Yesterday, you floated the idea that those missing associates might’ve been quietly done away with. If that’s the case...where are the bodies? Where would someone hide them?”
Cai Ze froze. He’d only made that remark in passing, but hearing Li Yuan’s question, it started to feel all too plausible. He hadn’t suspected outright murder because, first, there were no signs of a struggle; second, in Silver Creek, the Blood Blade Sect was practically the local overlord, and nobody had dared challenge them in ages.
Eyes darting, Cai Ze thrust a basket of apples into Li Yuan’s hands. “Take care of yourself. I need to go.”
Li Yuan accepted the basket and walked him out. “At least come in for some tea—”
“Next time.”