Chapter 572: Murder

“How did she end up here? And in such a disguised outfit?”
Lin Dong frowned slightly. He could sense that the mental probe scanning the surroundings belonged to Zi Han— the top star of Wanxian Tower, who had some secret relationship with Ling Chenyue.
It was also Zi Han who had gone upstairs wearing a hooded cap earlier.
Lin Dong couldn’t understand why she would sneak into Renheng Restaurant, and why she would expend so much spiritual energy to probe the entire restaurant. She would never do such a thing unless under threat. After all, there were always those stronger than her; in the capital, it wasn’t hard to encounter experts at even the third or fifth stage of the Heart Reversal phase.
If she rashly used her mental powers to scan the whole restaurant and encountered someone stronger, she would surely feel frustrated. Even if she didn’t take action, it was possible that others might become suspicious.
Lin Dong, being far stronger than Zi Han, might not attack her just for probing him, but he was now curious about why she was so nervous.
When Zi Han’s mental probe reached him, Lin Dong subtly released his spiritual energy, creating a strange barrier around himself and the dishes on the table.
Zi Han glanced briefly before moving on to the next target, unaware that her mental probe had made a mistake.
While enjoying the food at Renheng Restaurant, Lin Dong kept an eye on the private room upstairs.
Half an hour later, steady footsteps came from the stairs. Another customer wearing a hooded cap went upstairs, followed closely by an expressionless old man who seemed to be a guard.
Led by the waiter, the hooded customer and the guard went to the third floor, entering the very room Zi Han had reserved.
Inside the room, the food was already ready. After the waiter left, Zi Han bowed slightly and said in a slightly hoarse voice, “My lord, please sit!”
The hooded customer merely snorted coldly and said, “Hand over the ledger, and I’ll spare your life!”
“What a domineering lord!” Zi Han didn’t confront him directly. With a flip of her hand, she produced a thick ledger.
She then placed the ledger on the table.
The hooded customer gave a slight signal, and the old man stepped forward, appearing instantly beside the table.
Downstairs, Lin Dong grew concerned. He instinctively sent his mental probe toward the old man—only to find that he was an expert at the sixth stage of the Heart Reversal phase.
Although he couldn’t understand how Zi Han had connected with some lord, the old man’s strength made Lin Dong no longer doubt the hooded customer’s status as a lord.

A warrior at the sixth stage of Xin Ni period could only serve as a bodyguard for someone if they were from Tian Wei Pavilion; otherwise, it was impossible. For nobles, in case they encountered desperate criminals, Tian Wei Pavilion would assign one or two bodyguards based on their status. The strength of these bodyguards varied depending on their status—Emperor Qian Wei had two peak-level warriors as his bodyguards, while the crown prince and empress each had one peak-level warrior. A prince was considered fortunate to have a warrior at the sixth stage of Xin Ni period as his bodyguard.

With a wave of his hand, the ledger flew up and was grabbed by the old man. Suddenly, a look of shock appeared on his expressionless face.

Without hesitation, the old man struck with his palm, aiming straight at Zi Han’s chest. Zi Han moved swiftly, and with her strength at the second stage of Xin Ni period, she easily dodged his attack.

“Run!” the old man shouted, suddenly taking out a colored cylinder from a mobile cabinet.

“It’s too late!” Zi Han’s spirit sword flashed into her hand. Just as the old man tried to open the cylinder, her sword pierced through his heart. With a thud, the old man slowly collapsed.

This scene not only shocked the customers in hats who stepped back in panic but also terrified Lin Dong. He could tell that poison must have been applied to the ledger. But what kind of poison could instantly weaken a warrior at the sixth stage of Xin Ni period?

It was a warrior at that level!

Lin Dong finally understood why Zi Han had used her mental senses to investigate the surroundings of the tavern. It was better not to encounter someone stronger than her; if there was, they would surely send someone to investigate what she was up to. Seeing this, no one would dare follow Zi Han.

Even the strongest warriors weren’t that bold. They might seem fierce under normal circumstances due to their strength, but in a crisis, no one wanted to risk their lives—let alone for mere curiosity. If just touching something could instantly weaken one’s strength, who knew whether the poison on the ledger was also on the sword or could even be scattered in the wind? Not to mention those unrelated to the matter—even if Lin Dong knew it was Zi Han who killed them, he wouldn’t dare investigate why she did it. The poison on that ledger was too terrifying.

Although he understood that such terrifying poison couldn’t exist in large quantities, he still wouldn’t risk his life to test it.

Hiss…

Without mercy, Zi Han twisted her wrist slightly, and blood sprayed from the neck of the customer in hats. With a thud, the man died, unable to believe he would die so unjustly.

Carefully storing the account books in the storage ring, Zi Han gently adjusted his hat, opened the window, and vanished as a shadow.
Lin Dong was as if in a dream. He had come to see if it was possible to create public pressure on the top restaurants to disclose their account details and shareholdings, but never expected to meet an acquaintance—who happened to possess such deadly poison.
After some thought, Lin Dong poured himself a drink and waited patiently for the staff to notice something. Though worried that Zi Han might have laid similar traps along the way to stop pursuers, he wasn’t ready to give up on finding out why Zi Han did this.
The assassination of a prince had already given Lin Dong a vague idea of why Ling Chenyue pretended to be clueless and went to such lengths to nurture Zi Han. Only by knowing the identity of this prince could he confirm his suspicions.
The dishes in the private room had long been served, and since Zi Han had ordered that no one disturb them, no staff members had come by. Fortunately, the dishes Lin Dong ordered were expensive and in large quantities, and with his appearance as a plump, hearty-looking wealthy merchant, it didn’t seem strange for him to eat slowly.
On the second floor, tables came and went continuously; no one could imagine that a murder had already taken place above their heads—and that the victim was a prince.
The capital was already in a state of tension due to Emperor Qianwei’s approaching death. Another prince’s death would surely cause a shockwave, shaking the entire city.
After eating slowly for over half an hour with no orders coming from inside the room, the staff member waiting outside couldn’t hold back any longer and cautiously pressed his ear against the wall. After listening for a while with no sound, he pressed his ear against the door. Still nothing. After hesitating, he raised his fist and knocked lightly a few times.
“Gentlemen, would you like more dishes or drinks?”
No response from inside the room.
After asking a few more times with still no response, the staff member grew suspicious. He waved for a few other staff members who were waiting outside unoccupied rooms and explained his doubts. After whispering among themselves for a moment, one of them rushed downstairs.
Soon, the staff member returned with several guards from Renheng Restaurant.
One of the guards placed his right hand on the doorknob and emitted a trace of spiritual energy. With a pop, the door was forced open, revealing a scene that stunned everyone.
“M-Murder! Someone was killed…”
One of the staff members trembled violently and couldn’t help shouting.
Bang!

With a crisp sound, the lead guard slapped the worker in the face.
“Shut up! If anyone hears you, be careful—the boss might skin you alive.” The lead guard glared coldly at the other workers.
Though trembling, none of them dared speak again. A murder in a restaurant was a catastrophic event for such a place. Once word got out, customers would flee. Losing money was one thing, but for days on end—ten or more days—even if the restaurant had strong connections and the authorities wouldn’t interfere with its operations during the investigation, no customers would dare to come back. It would take at least a dozen days for things to calm down enough for customers to return, and even then, the number would be limited. After all, holding a banquet in a restaurant where someone had recently died was a huge obstacle, whether due to lingering doubts or bad omens.
For business to return to normal would take at least half a year, or even a year or two. The losses were especially unbearable for top-tier restaurants, as their main clients were wealthy elites and nobles who were picky. It would be nearly impossible to win them back after they stopped coming for a year or so.
“Go and call the boss over,” the lead guard ordered one of the guards, then scanned the workers. “Do your jobs. If anyone notices anything suspicious, it will be you guys who face consequences.”
The workers nodded meekly and returned to their respective booths.
After checking that the workers, though pale, seemed calm, the lead guard waved and led the guards into the booth, then closed the door.
Below, Lin Dong felt helpless. If he wanted to know the identity of this prince, he would have to wait longer.
Soon, Li Yiliang, with a grim expression, went upstairs to the booth. After taking in the situation, he asked, “Do you know who did this?”
“We don’t. It must have been a warrior,” the lead guard explained. “One died from a sword piercing his heart. The other was strangled with a sword. It seems to be revenge.”
“Were the two killed warriors?” Li Yiliang pressed.
“Both had calluses on their palms, but one’s calluses were quite faint—likely he hadn’t practiced martial arts for years,” the lead guard replied.
“You stay here and watch. I’m going to the imperial court.”

Li Yiliang breathed a sigh of relief. The patrons of top-class restaurants were either rich or noble. A murder case not only brought endless troubles but was also the most difficult to handle. In smaller restaurants, it might be possible to deal with the situation by bribing the family with silver to keep it quiet, but when it came to the rich or noble, silver alone couldn’t cover up the truth.
The only hope was that the victim was a warrior. If that was the case, not only would the imperial authorities not get involved, but the Military Assessment Institute would likely just take a look and leave it at that. At that point, by spending a bit more silver to bribe the imperial officials to send fewer people, and choosing night time for the Military Assessment Institute to take over, and also handling any inquiries from the victim’s family or friends in a secluded place, it was quite possible to cover up the incident.