Lu Ye exchanged a puzzled glance with Bai Sheng, holding the slip of paper. He couldn't recall knowing anyone in Qingcheng, so why would someone know his name and leave him such a note?
Lu Ye unfolded the paper. A few small characters were written on it: "Lu Ye, I know your secret. Meet me at the broken temple in the south of the city at midnight tonight."
The handwriting was unfamiliar, and it didn't seem like someone he knew. Lu Ye frowned slightly and handed the note to Bai Sheng.
After reading it, a flicker of surprise crossed Bai Sheng's eyes, and she immediately put the note away. What secret could Lu Ye possibly have? If there was one secret, it would be her, and her space.
However, they had both kept their possession of the space a closely guarded secret. Besides Lu Hua, no one else knew.
And Lu Hua was currently in the capital. No matter what, she would never put her elder brother and sister-in-law in danger.
Could it be that their comings and goings from the space were inadvertently observed? And the observer was someone they knew?
Qingzhou was separated from Bianzhou by Changzhou. If it was someone they knew, who would travel all this way?
Seeing the slight abnormality in their expressions, Wen Zhimo asked, "Brother Lu, is something the matter?"
Lu Ye smiled casually, "Just an old friend left a message."
"Oh, then Brother Lu, come, let's continue drinking!" Wen Zhimo raised his wine cup.
Lu Ye smiled and raised his cup as well. After drinking, he gave Bai Sheng a reassuring look.
Bai Sheng was not afraid, but rather filled with curiosity.
If someone had indeed seen them disappear and reappear out of thin air, it would be easy to dismiss.
Moreover, such supernatural claims, without firsthand witness or evidence, would not be believed if spoken by ordinary people. At most, they would be considered mad.
It seemed the person who wrote this note was not someone difficult to deal with.
Midnight, the broken temple in the south of the city.
The crescent moon was faint, and the night was dark.
Lu Ye and Bai Sheng arrived at the entrance of the broken temple but saw no one.
"Is anyone there?" Lu Ye called out tentatively into the darkness.
There was no response, but it startled the crows roosting in the broken temple, their caws suddenly rising, sounding somewhat eerie.
At this moment, a small figure suddenly flashed out from the broken walls of the temple. Lu Ye stepped forward with a swift movement and effortlessly apprehended him.
"Ah, it hurts! Spare me, sir!" It was a child's voice, sounding somewhat familiar.
Bai Sheng lit the lantern in her hand. The child Lu Ye was holding turned out to be the little beggar who had delivered the note to them that afternoon.
He was gaunt, looking like a little turnip.
"Speak! Who sent you!" Lu Ye questioned sternly.
The little beggar trembled and said, "The person who sent me was a limping beggar, wearing a mask. I don't know him. He said to deliver a message tonight, and… and he would give me 10 taels of silver."
Bai Sheng said coldly, "What message?"
The little beggar cleared his throat and said, "Lu Ye, I saw your carriage disappear into thin air in Tianshui Town. If you want me to keep quiet, give the little beggar 100 taels of silver. After I receive the 100 taels, I will never bother you again."
Bai Sheng and Lu Ye were startled. It was indeed as they suspected – their comings and goings from the space had been seen, and this person was from Tianshui Town, someone they knew.
However, why was this person in Qingzhou? And had become a limping beggar?
Lu Ye recalled the group of beggars he had seen that afternoon; there indeed seemed to be a limping one among them. httpδ:/m.kuAisugg.nět
The limping beggar must be hiding nearby, as he surely wouldn't entrust the 100 taels of silver to the little beggar.
Lu Ye glanced at Bai Sheng. Bai Sheng understood and released the little black snake from their space.
The little black snake was thrilled to be entrusted with such an important task for the first time. Taking advantage of the cover of night, it slithered its way towards the limping beggar.
Lu Ye took out his dagger and held it to the little beggar's neck, saying in a cold, measured tone, "If you want to live, go quickly and tell that limping beggar to come and see me in person. Otherwise, I will search every beggar's den in Qingzhou to find him, skin him, pull out his tendons, and dismember his corpse."
The little beggar shivered in fear, "I… I don't know where he is. He just told me to come here to deliver a message and collect money, and after that, he would find me himself."
Bai Sheng threatened the little beggar, "This is extortion. If you fall into our hands today, tomorrow we can report you to the authorities and send you to prison."
The little beggar wailed, "I don't know anything. The limping beggar found me yesterday and said he could bring me wealth. I was afraid he would beat me to death, so I… I agreed."
It seemed this little beggar didn't know the full story.
"Ah, a snake! A snake!"
Just as Lu Ye was about to interrogate the little beggar further, a scream suddenly came from behind the broken temple.
Lu Ye pressed the acupoint on the little beggar and then swiftly flew towards the back of the broken temple.
The little black snake immediately found the limping beggar. It wanted to bite him fiercely, but he was too dirty and smelly, and it couldn't bring itself to do so. It could only endure the stench and pounce on him, to scare him.
The limping beggar was dragged into the broken temple by Lu Ye. Bai Sheng used a branch to push aside his greasy hair and brought the lantern closer. In the lamplight, despite his extremely dirty face, it looked somewhat familiar.
Lu Ye exclaimed in surprise, "Lu Dagang?"
Upon hearing the name, Bai Sheng remembered who this person was. Wasn't this the one who eloped with Zhang Lanlan from Huangsha Village? Bai Sheng had met him only a few times, but because of Zhang Lanlan, she was very familiar with this name.
So, it was him who saw them entering and exiting the space in town!
Normally, when going to town, Hongshupo and Huangsha Village shared the same road, with many villagers passing by. Even if Lu Dagang followed them, they would only assume he was also going to town. Moreover, Lu Dagang was a person with very little presence, he had never registered in Lu Ye's mind, and it was normal for him to be overlooked.
However, why had he become such a disheveled figure? And where was his sweetheart, Zhang Lanlan?
Seeing that Lu Ye recognized him, Lu Dagang immediately knelt before Lu Ye, kowtowing and begging, "Lu Ye, please let me go. When I was in Huangsha Village, I never intentionally harmed your family. It was only because I was blind and liked that wretched woman Zhang Lanlan that I helped her with some surveillance. This time, I wanted to go to the capital to get revenge on that wretched woman, but I was penniless, so I… I resorted to this method. I truly… really want to get revenge on that wretched woman and can't let her get away with it!"
"Didn't you elope with Zhang Lanlan? Why do you want revenge on her? Where is Zhang Lanlan?" Bai Sheng asked.
Deep hatred seeped into Lu Dagang's eyes. He gritted his teeth and said, "What elopement? That wretched woman wanted to go to the capital and was afraid of being unsafe alone, so she asked me to accompany her. All along, I was just her pawn. These years, damn it, I was blind as a dog! I was sold by that wretched woman and still helped her count the money!"