Strange Skills

Xu Xian was taken aback, then couldn't help but burst out laughing.

Yang Xu blinked, then turned to look at Xu Xian. "What does he mean?"

Yang Xu turned to look at the servant again, "Tsk... What are you saying? What do you mean, 'tears are streaming down your face'?"

The servant opened his mouth, as if considering his words, but Xu waved his hand.

"Go about your business and hurry up and serve the food. My brother isn't very bright, and he might bite when he's starving!"

The servant, feeling as if he had been granted a pardon, put down the teapot and ran away in a flash.

"You're the one who bites!"

Yang Xu was still pondering, "Tsk... wait, what does he mean? Is he making my eyes water, or do I smell bad?"

He brought his arm to his nose and smelled it.

Xu Xian picked up his teacup and took a sip.

People are praising you for being clean...

"Is this a compliment or an insult?" "Figure it out yourself."

The food and drinks were all served.

The two clinked glasses.

Yang Xu tilted his head back and downed the wine, then put down his glass, picked up a piece of braised beef, and chewed on it.

"When are we going back to the capital? Everything's done here. Sun Buhai is dead, the caravan has run away, and the butcher has run away. What are we doing here if we don't go back to the capital?"

"Go back to Beijing?"

Yang Xu was taken aback, then turned to look at him. "No, the case has stalled, why aren't you going back?"

"What I said that day was just for everyone else to hear..."

Xu put down his wine glass. "Because I suspect there's a mole within the Qingzhou Inspection Bureau."

Yang Xu's eyes widened as he swallowed the meat in his mouth.

"Tsk... I knew there was no such thing as a coincidence! We went to the mine to check the accounts, and we were ambushed on the way. We went to the Sima residence to arrest someone, and the assassins arrived right after the person died..."

"Every time we had a lead, someone beat us to it; every time we took action, we ran into their encirclement. I thought it was just bad luck, but it turns out someone was tipping us off! Why didn't you say so sooner?"

"I told you I was afraid you wouldn't act convincingly..."

Yang Xu kicked him across the table.

  

Xu Xian smiled and dodged the question, then poured himself another glass of wine.

"Although Sun Buhai is dead, that old bastard still had a backup plan. He knew that he might be used as a pawn one day, so he made preparations early on. He sent his family away, so there were no other corpses in the Sima mansion except for himself."

"He left some things for us at his home, and I've already received them."

Yang Xu hurriedly asked what the item left behind was.

Xu Xian shook his head.

You'll find out tomorrow.

"Tsk... You're something else. You've been secretly doing something big behind my back. I thought we couldn't investigate any further. I was so worried watching you travel around every day. But you've actually found out everything about them while you were on vacation."

"Xu Xian, you're too cunning, but I like it."

Yang Xu chuckled, picked up his glass, clinked it against his own, and downed it in one gulp.

As they were talking, the beaded curtain was lifted from the outside.

A woman walked in gracefully, wearing a light purple jacket, her black hair half-tied up, and two pearls the size of rice grains hanging from her earlobes.

Yang Xu looked up, frowned,

"Why is there only one? Didn't we say we'd bring ten to choose from first? Does your brothel think we can't afford to pay because we're poorly dressed?"

Xu Xian didn't notice any of this because his gaze was fixed on the girl's chest, and he was taken aback.

Of all the people he had ever met, only one woman possessed such a broad mind.

The girl stepped forward and bowed. "My sisters are still behind. I'll come up first to serve you. Would you two gentlemen like to hear some music or..."

"What kind of music are you listening to..."

Xu Xian reached out and pulled the person over to sit on his lap. "So sensible, you're quite pitiful..."

Yang Xu couldn't bear to look, his eyes turning purple with jealousy. He turned his head away, clicked his tongue, picked up his wine glass, and gulped down a mouthful.

"Why is it always you who gets to choose first when there are girls around?!"

Xu Xian ignored him, his left arm around the girl's waist, gently massaging it, while his right hand picked up a peanut with chopsticks and popped it into his mouth. "How old are you, girl?"

"nineteen."

"Nineteen is great! You're at the prime of your life, wouldn't you like to discuss something with me...?"

Xu Xian's gaze slowly moved from her face to her neckline, and the corners of his mouth turned up slightly.

Yang Xu spat out a mouthful of wine and coughed so hard he slammed his fist on the table.

The girl blushed and lowered her head shyly.

"What you say, young master, is certainly possible, but you'll have to wait until I—take your head first!"

As soon as she finished speaking, she flipped her hand, and a cold light shot out from her sleeve. It was an extremely thin soft sword, its blade as narrow as a willow leaf. She flicked it open in the air and aimed straight for Xu Xian's throat.

The tip of the sword was less than three inches from Xu Xian's Adam's apple.

Yang Xu's smile froze on his face. He reached for the long sword leaning against the table, but it was too late.

Xu Xian smiled and leaned forward, almost face to face with the girl, just enough to avoid the soft sword. His right hand passed under her armpit, and he used the chopsticks in his hand to strike her wrist.

The woman winced in pain, and her fingers involuntarily loosened, causing the soft sword to slip from her grasp.

She reacted extremely quickly, grabbing the sword hilt in mid-air with her other hand and swinging it upwards. Xu Xian threw down his chopsticks, grabbed her wrist, and pulled her hand around her chest, locking it firmly below her left breast.

At the same time, he grabbed her buttocks hard with his left hand.

The woman let out a soft moan and went limp. Her soft sword clattered to the ground, and she collapsed into his arms, held firmly by his hand, unable to move.

Yang Xu stood in front of the table, holding a long sword, staring blankly.

The woman's face turned red as she gritted her teeth and tried desperately to break free, but Xu Xian's left hand was locked very tightly, and the more she struggled, the less power she had.

"You knew she was going to kill you?!"

The woman also looked at her with disbelief, gritting her teeth, "How did you figure that out?"

Xu Xian sneered, looked down at her, and gently pinched her cheek with his left hand again.

"With eyes like mine, I can discern a woman's size from a hundred meters away. I have a photographic memory. If I can't recognize your disguised face, how could I not recognize your chest?"

"One trip to Taibai Tower wasn't enough, you actually chased me all the way from Kyoto to Qingzhou. Last time at Taibai Tower you escaped through the lake, this time you delivered yourself right to my door. If it weren't for my keen eyesight, you would have really succeeded."

"Tell me who your master is, and I'll teach you a quick death."

Yang Xu opened his mouth, then closed it, then opened it again.

"Wait a minute, no, you mean recognizing people by their chest? What kind of skill is that? The Inspection Department didn't teach this, did they?"

"Exceptionally gifted!"

Ouyang Ruiming lay slumped on Xu Xian's lap, biting his lip and ceasing to struggle, his eyes calm.

"It was my carelessness. I underestimated your palm technique at Taibai Tower last time, and I underestimated your eyesight this time. But I have nothing to tell you, so you don't need to think about it."

Xu Xian frowned slightly, reached out and touched behind her ear and chin. There were no seams from the disguise mask, the skin felt natural, and there were no traces of medication.

"How did she disguise herself? I can't tell."

Yang Xu also came over and took a closer look. "I don't know either. Usually, people use masks or apply medicine to their faces to disguise themselves, but there are no marks on her face. We need to find a pharmacist to take a look."

Xu Xian put away her soft sword, but did not tie her up. He simply put her down from his lap and pressed her onto the chair next to him.

"Don't even think about running away. You're only at the Body Tempering Realm, you can't even beat me, let alone someone at the Meridian Opening Realm here. Sit down and pour yourself some tea if you're thirsty."

He then raised his glass to Yang Xu.

"I didn't expect to gain anything like this. Tomorrow I'll take her back to Qingzhou and ask Dean Zhou about it. Under the influence of Confucianism, she can't keep a secret."

Yang Xu also picked up his wine glass, his eyes involuntarily glancing towards Ouyang Ruiming, clearly excited.

"Tsk... After all this time, we've finally caught one alive. At least we have someone who can talk. I don't know how much we can get out of them, but something is better than nothing!"

The two drank happily, and Yang Xu even hummed a tune from the Iron Gate Pass.

Ouyang Ruiming sat on the chair next to him, his hands on his knees, his back straight, and he had regained his composure.

She watched as the two people in front of her clinked glasses in celebration, and her lips twitched—they seemed to completely disregard her.