Ning Zhen continued searching for herbs, but her focus was no longer what it used to be. She walked through the woods somewhat aimlessly, her mind unable to settle down. The scene of meeting Mo Xian just moments ago kept flashing before her eyes. Ning Zhen did not find another single herb; it seemed Mo Xian's appearance had completely scattered her attention from gathering medicinal plants. Though she and Mo Xian had parted ways, it felt as though she remained tethered to her every second. Beads of sweat broke out all over Ning Zhen, yet her steps landed firmly on the ground, even if she had no idea where they ought to fall.
As a lone woman, she didn't even know if she had found her path. Her bundle was lost, and upon entering the city, she had no idea if she would have a place to stay, or if she might fall into the hands of villains. Thinking of Mo Xian's youthful innocence—how she would grow nervous just asking for directions, clearly lacking worldly experience—Ning Zhen felt a vague sense of worry, her mind entirely consumed by thoughts of Mo Xian. Ning Zhen was thrown into a state of restless agitation. And yet this was merely a stranger she had crossed paths with just once in her life.
"What is happening to me? Why am I worrying about a passing stranger to this extent?" Ning Zhen wondered inwardly, unable to understand or even accept her current state. It was a feeling she had never experienced before. Ning Zhen was overcome with an unsettling and distressing panic.
As a healer, Ning Zhen had seen all sorts of women—the young, the very small, the elderly; the dignified, the gentle, the pretty. She had always forgotten them the moment they passed; when had she ever felt such a pull? Deeply distressed by how this was affecting her mood, she could no longer bear to stay in the mountain forest. Since she could not concentrate on finding herbs here, she might as well go home. Thinking this, Ning Zhen stopped wandering around the forest and headed straight back.
Duanmu Jinyu, father of Duanmu Shiqing and Duanmu Furong, was the Lord of Ming City. Listening to Duanmu Shiqing's report, Duanmu Jinyu's expression grew increasingly stern. By the time Duanmu Shiqing finished speaking, Duanmu Jinyu's face was as dark as pitch.
"Audacious! Whose gall is this big? How dare they act so wildly in my territory! Investigate! Take men and investigate immediately!" Duanmu Jinyu slammed his right hand onto the table. The table shook instantly, and the official documents upon it bounced up two centimeters before dropping straight back down.
"Yes!" Duanmu Shiqing replied. Then he turned and strode out.
An assassin breaking into the Mu Estate was no small matter! Duanmu Jinyu clenched his fists and slammed them angrily against the wall.
Duanmu Shiqing ordered Commander Ling to take several sharp and capable attendants to keep watch and patrol all the large and small roads and alleys of Ming City, especially the city gates. Any individuals with suspicious behavior were to be reported immediately.
Duanmu Shiqing stood atop the ramparts of the South City Gate. The people entering and leaving the gate were ordinary folk of Ming City. If the assassin had accomplices, they were bound to enter the city through the gates. Furthermore, the assassin had escaped through the South City Gate. If there were accomplices, nine times out of ten they were either waiting in the vicinity of the South City Gate or somewhere outside the city. Duanmu Shiqing stood ramrod straight, his deep gaze fixed on the road extending out from the city gate toward the boundless distance where it vanished from sight.
Duanmu Shiqing tried hard to reconstruct the scene of the pursuit in his mind. A flash of imagery swept before his eyes. Clothes! The blue clothes they had brought back! With only so many clues—the assassin, the blue clothes—he was left searching for suspicious persons like finding a needle in a haystack. Duanmu Shiqing's stern expression relaxed slightly as he gestured to the attendants beside him: "You lot, come here! Follow me out of the city!"
The group leaped onto their horses and galloped straight toward the outskirts. In the distance, a cloud of dust kicked up by the hooves billowed into the air, rolling further and further away.
Commander Ling was leading his attendants around the vicinity of the Mu Estate to check for any suspicious individuals lingering about, scrutinizing passersby one by one and questioning nearby merchants shop by shop. Commander Ling wore a gloomy expression; this incident was no small matter. How on earth had an assassin managed to get into the Mu Estate?
As Commander Ling was secretly pondering how this could have happened, an attendant came to report: "Reporting to the Commander, the proprietor of the grain shop says he saw four people come here, one of whom left while three wandered about on the street. They didn't look like locals, and when the proprietor came out to look again, all of them had vanished."
"Let's go take a look." Commander Ling entered the grain shop.
"Ah, Commander Ling is an honored guest. What brings you the time to visit my humble shop today?" The grain shop proprietor greeted him with a full face of smiles as he hurried out the doorway.
Commander Ling did not reply, walking straight into the grain shop and taking a turn around the interior.
The grain shop proprietor clenched his right hand tightly, his left hand gripping tightly over his right. His two hands were tightly clasped together, yet the smile on his face never wavered in the slightest as he closely followed behind Commander Ling.
When the attendant who had entered to conduct the interrogation hurried out, the grain shop proprietor had roughly guessed that someone else would come. He peeked nervously at Commander Ling's expression. Commander Ling's expression was clearly unsightly. Not daring to say too much for fear of courting bad luck, the grain shop proprietor kept his mouth shut.
"Who is the proprietor of this grain shop?" Commander Ling was already standing at the entrance, gazing out at the street and wondering how those individuals who looked like outsiders had wandered about.
"I am." The grain shop proprietor stepped forward, standing to Commander Ling's left and replying respectfully.
"You were the one who saw four people skulking about suspiciously on the street? Not locals?" Commander Ling furrowed his brows, as if trying to pierce straight through the street with his gaze.
"Yes," the grain shop proprietor replied affirmatively, earnestly recalling the circumstances at the time. "Business today was very desolate. No customers had entered for a long time, and feeling anxious, I went out to the doorway to look outside. I saw four people walking side by side toward this direction. They stopped right at the doorway." The grain shop proprietor extended his right hand to point at the middle of the street in front of the shop. "Thinking they were coming in, I started to walk out. Before I even stepped out, I heard two of the four people talking among themselves. They spoke in very low voices, and I only caught a couple of sentences—didn't understand a single one." The grain shop proprietor turned his head to glance at Commander Ling, and seeing the commander's brow knit even tighter, he figured this matter was likely not simple. A fine layer of nervous sweat instantly broke out on his forehead. He raised a hand to wipe it away, offered an ingratiating smile, and continued: "After they exchanged a few words, the one closer to the outside among the two speakers left on his own. The remaining three walked back and forth on the street, just kept walking back and forth. Seeing that they weren't coming in, I went back inside to sit down. About a quarter of an hour later, a customer came in. When I saw the customer out, the others were already gone." With that, the grain shop proprietor looked at Commander Ling. Commander Ling wore a stern expression, leaving the proprietor too afraid to smile ingratiatingly anymore as he stood there awkwardly.
"Didn't you see where they went?" Commander Ling ignored the proprietor's awkwardness and asked point-blank.
"The one who left first went that way." The grain shop proprietor pointed, then added, "As for the remaining three, I didn't see where they went."
"Could you tell where they were from?" Commander Ling continued.
"That, I couldn't tell. I could only tell they weren't locals." The grain shop proprietor's tone was laden with anxiety and unease.
Commander Ling looked in the direction the proprietor had just pointed—toward the Mu Estate.
Commander Ling walked out of the grain shop, and the accompanying attendants immediately followed. Behind them, the grain shop proprietor called out: "Commander Ling, have a bowl of tea before you leave..."