Chapter 147: Bianliu County in Complete Disarray

They heard a knock at the door.

The two exchanged a glance.

Fei Yu immediately stepped forward and opened it.

"You again!"

Fei Yu glared, ready to explode.

But Yan Jing rushed past her and grabbed Old Master Liu's hands.

"Master Liu!"

"You're back!"

Old Master Liu froze. He had prepared a whole speech, never expecting that this down-and-out young master, whom he hadn't seen in years, would still remember him.

[Loyalty Level +1]

Like Favorability, Loyalty Level also started at a baseline of 60. Yan Jing just hadn't expected his safety officer this time to be Old Master Liu.

"Master Liu, where have you been these past few years?"

Yan Jing pulled Old Master Liu over to sit down. Beside them, Fei Yu still wore a cold expression. She couldn't shake the feeling that the man in front of them wasn't their butler at all.

"I went on a long trip," Old Master Liu said, waving a hand.

"I originally wanted to find a place to break through to the Fourth Tier, but I ended up covered in injuries instead. I'm afraid it will take some time to recover my former strength."

"That doesn't matter. It's just good that you're back!"

Yan Jing waved a hand. "Xiao Yu, pour a pot of tea! And go find a change of clothes!"

Fei Yu shot Old Master Liu a scathing glare, then scoffed and went to pour the tea.

Taking the opportunity, Yan Jing lowered his voice.

"Master Liu, things haven't been peaceful here in Bianliu County lately. You picked a bad time to come back."

"Is that so?"

Old Master Liu nodded. "Then I'd say I came back at the perfect time!"

"It's a bad time, Master Liu."

"The perfect time!"

"Perfect time?"

"Exactly."

"Alright!"

Yan Jing slapped the table. "Then I'll tell you!"

Just as he was about to speak, Fei Yu's furious roar rang out from a distance.

"If you break that table, are you going to work odd jobs to pay for a new one?!!"

"Cough, cough."

Yan Jing cleared his throat and lowered his voice again.

"Someone wants to kill me!"

"Who?" The Old Man's expression sharpened.

"I don't know."

"Why do they want to kill you?"

"I don't know."

"When are they going to strike?"

They already had, right on the rickshaw.

"I don't know," Yan Jing said, shaking his head. "But either way, someone is trying to kill me."

The Old Man stared blankly.

"Did you ever sell that house like I told you to back then?"

"I sold it," Yan Jing said.

"And what about all those collectibles of yours? Did you pawn them off like I asked?"

"Of course I did!"

"Then why would anyone still want to kill you?"

"I don't know."

At the end of the day, it came down to those three words.

Yan Jing had actually guessed a few things, but he couldn't say them yet.

Given the Old Man's current condition, telling him would be useless. If he heard the truth and acted impulsively, he might actually throw his life away trying to fight them.

But he still had to tell the Old Man about the assassination attempt.

First, to keep him on high alert and watchful.

Second, it was the only way to lead into what came next.

"Young Master, listen to me," Old Master Liu said. "During my travels this time, I made two friends. With them around, whatever trouble you're in can definitely be solved."

"Really?"

Yan Jing feigned sheer joy. "Where are they?"

"Well... I'm not sure yet," Old Master Liu said, looking embarrassed. "But I promise you, once we find them, not only will your problems be nothing, but even the troubles of Bianliu County won't amount to a thing!"

"Good! With your word, Master Liu, my mind is at ease!"

Before Yan Jing could slap the table again, a teapot slammed down in front of him. The table shuddered, and tea splashed from the spout.

"Why don't the two of you just conquer Minhu tomorrow while you're at it?"

Fei Yu sneered and turned back to cooking.

The two men, entirely unfazed, went back to their discussion.

Soon, Old Master Liu described the appearances of the Cameraman and Tiger to Yan Jing.

"Master Liu, I've heard rumors about these two!" Yan Jing said.

"Really?"

Old Master Liu's eyes lit up.

"But... this might be difficult to handle..."

Yan Jing looked troubled. "The guy who looks like a tiger is currently in the hands of Big Landlord Lin over on North Street. The other one ran off toward the west, and nobody knows where he ended up."

Hearing this, Old Master Liu didn't grow more anxious; instead, he breathed a sigh of relief.

He believed that with that kid Yi Ji's abilities, surviving wouldn't be an issue.

As for Tiger, the so-called Big Landlord Lin was actually considered a great philanthropist in Bianliu City.

At the very least, while the work might be hard and exhausting, it wouldn't kill him.

A short while later, Fei Yu served the food.

One bowl for each person, and two dishes on the table.

A few bits of tofu dregs floated in the cabbage soup, and pork cracklings were mixed into the white rice porridge.

Even so, Old Master Liu ate with great relish.

"Young Master, after I finish eating, I'd like to take a walk by the stream," Old Master Liu said as he sipped his porridge.

In Minhu, only places near water had a heavy enough concentration of spectral energy.

"Go ahead," Yan Jing said. "As long as you don't fall in, you can do whatever you like."

After finishing his meal, Old Master Liu changed his clothes and headed out.

Yan Jing remained in his seat, deep in thought.

The Young Master of the Luo Family he was role-playing as was already dead, killed on the rickshaw.

To assassinate a Second Tier expert in a bustling market using Soundless—if he hadn't been drugged, the killer would have to be at least at the Third Tier. And not just any Third Tier, either.

And recently, our Eldest Young Master Luo had only been swept up in one particular matter.

That was the election for a new county head in Bianliu County.

Much like the era in Yan Jing's memories, a county head in a Domain like Minhu served as little more than a figurehead.

Some county heads were propped up by gangs, some were held hostage by mounted bandits, and others took the office purely to amass wealth.

The only people a county head could actually command were ordinary residents; everyone else was completely beyond their control.

But a city like Bianliu County barely had any ordinary residents to begin with, meaning there was no wealth to be plundered.

Because of this, absolutely no one wanted to be the county head of Bianliu County.

In the past, whenever transfer orders were issued for the position, the vast majority of appointees simply never showed up.

And those who did come always ended up dead in the crossfire between the major factions.

But this time...

It was different.

This time, word came down from the Lake: they wouldn't dispatch anyone from above anymore. Instead, Bianliu County would choose its own candidate locally.

Whoever managed to serve a full three months as county head would be transferred directly to the Lake to take on a role far greater than a mere county official!

The moment this news broke, every faction was sent into a frenzy.

Minhu centered around a lake that branched outward into twelve great rivers. Those twelve rivers split into numerous tributaries that formed smaller rivers, which then trickled down into streams.

This Domain was filled with all sorts of bizarre and absurd things, but no matter how eerie or absurd they were, everyone had to obey the people by the Lake.

So, everyone wanted to become someone from the Lake.

Forget the Lake—even being stationed by a small river was a massive step up from a stream.

Because of that, the local factions in Bianliu County weren't the only ones involved this time. Even the Domains situated along the six neighboring streams were reaching their hands into the county's affairs.

It was safe to say that right now, Bianliu County...

Had been thrown into complete disarray.

And Eldest Young Master Luo, whose identity Yan Jing had taken over, had been selected by one of these factions to run in the election.

Looking at it from that angle...

The identity of his killer seemed quite obvious.

It was just someone from one of the other seven, eight, nine, or ten factions!!!

"Heh."

Under Fei Yu's watchful gaze, Yan Jing, who had been staring blankly at the ceiling, suddenly let out a dry laugh.

Forget it.

None of this had anything to do with him for the time being. He just needed to get a good night's sleep first.

"I'm heading out. I won't be back tonight."

He stood up.

"If you're not coming home, where are you going to sleep? South Main Street? Or under a bridge by the stream?"

Fei Yu's gaze was ice-cold. "If you tell me you've secretly hidden money to go sleep on some woman's belly while leaving us to survive on nothing but the essence of heaven and earth, I'll go hunt that bitch down tomorrow."

"I'm sleeping at a friend's place."

Ignoring Fei Yu's threat, Yan Jing waved his hand and walked out the door.

"Since when do you have friends? What's their name?" Fei Yu asked, caught off guard.

"Her name is Ruyan."

Yan Jing's voice drifted in from far outside.

Fei Yu ground her teeth in fury.

So he was going to sleep on a woman's belly after all.

Surface World.

Yan Jing slept soundly until broad daylight, and then he received a call from Shen Youran.

Over the phone, Shen Youran's excited voice rang out:

"Hello? Xiao Yanzi! Are you still busy today? The stuff arrived!"