Infinite Professions from a Pearl Collector
Chapter 29 - 27: Your Grace, That’s the Young Master’s Head

Chapter 29: Chapter 27: Your Grace, That’s the Young Master’s Head

Staring at Cheng Zhiwei’s body, Chen Ye slowly exhaled. The nerves that had been stretched to their absolute limit finally relaxed a little.

From setting the fire to break the stalemate, to ambushing and killing Li Chunfeng, and then luring and ambushing Cheng Zhiwei—this series of actions seemed as smooth as flowing water. In reality, every step was a walk on a knife’s edge, and the toll on his Heart Spirit and stamina was immense.

Especially during the assassination of Li Chunfeng, the arrow that Cheng Zhiwei had suddenly shot nearly grazed his ribs. If he hadn’t forcefully twisted his body at the last second, Li Chunfeng might have actually escaped.

Fortunately, it was all over.

He didn’t know if Li Jun was dead, but that was no longer important. After all, limited by this world’s level of technology, the explosives he had cobbled together weren’t particularly powerful.

Li Chunfeng was dead, and two experts from the Six Gates had been taken down with him. The deterrent effect had been established. He’d leave the rest to fate.

Just then, the faint flicker of torchlight appeared in the distance, accompanied by the sounds of chaotic footsteps and shouts.

Chen Ye knew the pursuers had arrived. Without the slightest hesitation, he turned and leaped into the darkness, vanishing from sight.

A moment later, group after group of men holding torches and weapons swarmed into the area.

Constables from the Six Gates, Soldiers from the Military Patrol Station, and constables from the Arresting Department... Men from the Capital City’s three major Government Offices had all gathered here.

It turned out that during the chase, Cheng Zhiwei had managed to leave behind unique markers that only those within the Six Gates could understand. That was why these men had been able to track him here so quickly.

But when they arrived, all they found was a single body, still warm.

"It’s... It’s Miss Cheng!"

"Quick! See if she’s still breathing!"

An old constable tremblingly placed his fingers under Cheng Zhiwei’s nose, then shook his head, his face turning deathly pale.

Everyone present felt a chill shoot from the soles of their feet straight to the top of their skulls.

Li Chunfeng, the young master of Duke An’s Mansion, had been publicly beheaded.

Cheng Ming, the highly respected Old Chief Constable of the Six Gates, had his throat slit with a single cut.

And now, even Cheng Zhiwei, hailed as the most outstanding expert of the Six Gates’ younger generation, lay brutally murdered in this desolate corner.

To say nothing of Duke Anguo, Li Jun, whose fate was still unknown!

Tonight, this Stepping Moon Thief had basically dragged the faces of their Government Offices through the mud.

He had completely torn a hole in the sky!

The leaders of the Six Gates, the Arresting Department, and the Military Patrol Station all had ashen faces.

They knew they probably wouldn’t be able to keep their official posts.

Having caused such a massive disturbance yet failing to even catch a shadow of the culprit—how furious would the court officials and the Emperor, who resided deep within the palace, be?

They didn’t even dare to imagine it.

"First... first, let’s take Miss Cheng’s body back." An Old Chief Constable from the Six Gates spoke, his voice dry, breaking the deathly silence.

Meanwhile, the great fire at Duke An’s Mansion was finally being extinguished, thanks to the tireless efforts of countless people.

But for the people of the mansion, putting out the fire was secondary. The safety of Duke Anguo, Li Jun, was what truly concerned everyone.

If the young master died, they would, at most, receive a beating.

But if the Duke also died, every last one of them—the servants and guards—would have to follow him to the grave.

Thus, amidst the ruins of the pavilion, which had been mostly flattened by the explosion, hundreds of people searched frantically, digging with their bare hands and shouldering debris as if their lives depended on it.

"Found him! The Duke is here!"

After an unknown amount of time, a joyous shout jolted everyone to attention.

Everyone scrambled to move the rubble and broken walls on top of him, finally digging out the blood-soaked Li Jun.

The Duke Anguo, a man of immense power in the imperial court, looked utterly wretched.

He was covered in blood, one arm was broken, and one of his eyes was a mangled, bloody mess, completely blinded.

But he was still alive!

It turned out that when the explosion occurred, his seat had been right in a corner formed by the roof beams, creating a small pocket of space that allowed him to narrowly escape with his life.

Not daring to delay, the crowd quickly carried him out. After some emergency bandaging, Li Jun slowly regained consciousness.

"My son? How is my son?" This was the first thing Li Jun said upon waking.

No one dared to answer.

Everyone lowered their heads in silence.

Li Jun understood immediately. He struggled to his feet. "Take me to see my son’s body!"

No one dared to stop him. Soon, Li Jun saw Li Chunfeng’s corpse.

Li Chunfeng’s head had been carefully placed back on the stump of his neck. Someone had also straightened his clothes and wiped the blood from his face. From a distance, he looked as if he were just sleeping.

"Feng’Er... My Feng’Er..."

Tears streamed down Li Jun’s old face as he reached out with his good hand, trembling, wanting to caress his son’s face.

But he was overcome with emotion, and as his hand brushed against it, the head rolled off, revealing the gory, headless torso.

Having lost an eye, Li Jun was disoriented and couldn’t clearly see what had rolled away. He asked the person next to him.

"What was that? Why does my son suddenly seem so much shorter?"

"Your Grace, that... that was the young master’s head!"

"AHHH—!"

It finally dawned on Li Jun. He let out a piercing shriek, his eyes rolled back, and he fainted on the spot.

The crowd scrambled chaotically once more. When Li Jun was finally roused, he no longer cried. His eyes were just bloodshot, and he looked like a Fierce Ghost.

"Prepare the sedan chair! I am going to the palace! I want to file an imperial complaint!"

As Li Jun’s sedan chair sped toward the Imperial Palace through the night, a group of other powerful figures, including the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, Zhang Bo, and the Patriarch of the Lin Family, Lin Hong, also received the news and rushed over.

When they saw the tragic state of Duke An’s Mansion, they were all horrified.

And after learning that Li Jun had gone to the palace for an audience with the Emperor, they conferred briefly and decided to follow.

By the time the grand procession reached the palace gates, the sky was already beginning to lighten with the first hint of dawn.

The current ruler of the Great Zhao Dynasty was its thirteenth emperor, Yang Zhao.

The man had just turned forty and was in the prime of his life. Unfortunately, he was lazy by nature, and with the Dynasty’s power in decline, he spent his days obsessed with the arts of Cultivation and longevity, having not attended morning court for a very long time.

For an ordinary official, getting an audience with him was as difficult as ascending to the heavens.

But Duke Anguo, Li Jun, was a special case. Furthermore, urgent reports from the Six Gates, the Arresting Department, and other Government Offices had already been delivered to the throne. Thus, Yang Zhao made an exception and summoned them all to his personal sleeping chambers.

The moment Li Jun entered the hall, he fell to his knees, and with tears and snot streaming down his face, he gave an embellished account of the previous night’s events.

He went to great lengths to depict the viciousness and depravity of the Stepping Moon Thief and how innocently and pitiably his own son had died, but he didn’t say a single word about the sins his son had committed.

Seated on the Throne, Yang Zhao’s brow furrowed deeper and deeper as he listened to the man’s wailing.

He offered Li Jun a few words of comfort, then his gaze swept over the other ministers below, who wore equally terrified expressions. His voice turned abruptly cold.

"Relay My imperial decree! Seal the entire city—allow entry, but no exit! Order the Six Gates, the Military Patrol Station, and the Arresting Department to coordinate their investigation. Use all available resources and dig this Stepping Moon out for me!"

"I want to see just who dares to act so brazenly right under My nose!"