Star Trace Gate

Chapter 874: The Wandering Ghost, the Blind Man's Guidance

Xuwang Village, clan hall.

After listening to Zhao Haochen's summary of the case, the elders and family patriarchs all looked at each other in bewilderment.

Zhao Mi sat upright in the first seat, and after a moment of contemplation, he took the initiative to ask Sun Michen, "Patriarch Sun, what do you think about this?"

Sun Michen was the head of the Law Hall, the chief of the three halls. He had just personally visited the scene of the prison break in the Heavenly Prison, investigating alongside Zhao Haochen. He must have a thorough understanding of the case. Zhao Mi proactively questioned him, both out of respect and to remind everyone not to rely solely on his own one-sided speculation. It would be better to pool the wisdom of all. That way, if anything went wrong, it would be the fault of the group, not just one person.

Although Sun Michen was easygoing and disliked fighting, he was also a seasoned veteran. As soon as he heard Zhao Mi's words, he understood what he meant. He nodded slightly and said, "Nephew Zhao's analysis of the case is extremely detailed and logical. Many of his views are consistent with mine. I believe there will be no problem following his investigative direction."

"However, the level of this death row prisoner No. 79 and his mysterious and unpredictable magical powers are not inferior to ours. I think we should still be on guard."

He paused for a moment before adding slowly, "If he kills someone and then tries to run away, that would be troublesome. If he escapes from the Illusion Village alive, then we old guys would become complete jokes in the eyes of intruders."

When everyone heard this, they all nodded in agreement.

Seeing that everyone agreed with his son and Sun Michen, Zhao Mi spoke up, "If you all agree, then the Patrol Court will be responsible for investigating this case, and the Law Court will supervise. The two courts will work together to find the traitor as soon as possible and recapture No. 79 alive."

"During the investigation, if any clear clues are found, they must be reported to the clan hall promptly."

"Afterwards, the Wudao Academy and the Clan Hall will also select 30 elders with powerful divine skills to secretly guard the four corners of the village to prevent Death Row Prisoner No. 79 from escaping in desperation."

"Yes." Qian Zhongge nodded slightly and agreed, "My adopted daughter, Qian Mei, is the night commander of the Death Prison. If No. 79 successfully escaped from prison under her hands, then my Qian family will inevitably be held responsible. I am willing to provide ten elders of the clan and ten special magic tools to help the patrol hall hunt down No. 79. I am at your disposal at any time."

Li Taishan smiled upon hearing this and advised, "Number 79's smooth escape from the prison was clearly not a spur-of-the-moment plan, but rather something he had been secretly preparing for for a long time. Qian Mei was simply unlucky and happened to catch up with him during his escape. So, Brother Qian, don't blame yourself too much."

"This is absolutely true!"

"...!"

Everyone echoed, and their words were full of respect for Qian Zhongge.

Qian Zhongge was the most senior and most experienced of the four clan leaders. Furthermore, as the dean of the Wudao Academy, he commanded countless students and former officials, including the core members of the four major clans and many centenarians. Therefore, everyone felt like they were facing a teacher when they met him.

However, Qian Zhongge also had many of the faults of an old scholar, such as being too serious and stubborn about everything, sometimes even to the point of being pedantic. This made everyone respect him, but also instinctively want to stay away from him.

"The death memorial will be postponed for one month until the jailbreak case is successfully solved and then re-held."

Zhao Mi stood up and said, "If there are no other opinions, this meeting is over. The contents of the meeting will be recorded in the prison escape case file."

"Just do it."

"can."

"...!"

Everyone expressed their agreement, and then the clan meeting ended, and the big guys went back to their homes and looked for their mothers.

……

In Xiaopo's house, it was already the end of the hour of Hai when Ren Ye returned, but Aunt Tianwei had not yet rested. She sat alone in the narrow living room, lighting a candle, which faintly reflected her beautiful profile.

When Little Bad Wang entered the house, he thought he had seen the old corpse from the mountain village. He was so frightened that his face turned pale: "Little aunt... why are you not sleeping in the middle of the night and lighting a candle for yourself?"

After she finished speaking, the room fell silent for a few breaths. Then, the young lady tilted her head slightly and said bluntly, "A huge battle broke out in the Heavenly Prison, with countless strange phenomena. Everyone in this illusory village has sensed that someone has escaped. Does this matter... have anything to do with you?"

Ren Ye had not previously told his aunt why he wanted the Tongshen Powder, but the commotion in the prison today was so loud that everyone in the village knew about it, and he could no longer conceal it.

“It’s about me.”

He nodded calmly.

The young aunt's bright eyes were filled with worry as she whispered, "A prisoner on death row has escaped. Such a serious matter will definitely not be left unresolved by the clan hall. If they find out, you will surely die...!"

"I know."

Ren Ye sighed, bent down and sat beside his aunt, lowered his head and said: "The person I saved may be able to help me find my eyes... You know, this is my obsession."

"...I know." Aunt Tianwei nodded slightly, her expression gentle. She didn't say anything scolding or complaining. She only asked softly, "Can you control the death row inmate? Once he's rescued, do you have a comprehensive follow-up plan?"

"Yes." Ren Ye's expression was serious, and he nodded solemnly. "He has the same goal as me in some things. In order to win my trust, he even gave me his life magic weapon. He won't do anything tricky before achieving his goal. He is even more afraid that I will be found out than I am."

After careful consideration, the young aunt asked tentatively, "Can I see him?"

Ren was also stunned for a moment, then shook his head and said, "Auntie, there's no need to put two people at risk for something that one person can do. Besides, if the storyteller knew that there was another person who knew the inside story and was secretly helping me with the plan, he would be uneasy. There would be no benefit in seeing him, and it would only increase the risk."

"Yeah, that's right." After careful consideration, Aunt Tianwei nodded with a relieved expression. "You've grown up and have your own ideas and hopes. As your only relative, I won't be a stumbling block to you. If you can do it, do it yourself. If you can't, I'll help you... Even if you poke a hole in the sky, I will die with you when it collapses and the earth collapses."

Ren Ye felt warm in his heart when he heard this. He suddenly thought of his father who was buried in Kunlun Mountain, and also of his two masters, Senior Bai Tiao Ji and others who stood behind him to protect him from the wind and rain.

He could sense his aunt's love for the blind man, and he could empathize with this simple and pure family relationship, so he smiled and nodded, saying, "I know our lives have always been difficult, so... I would never be so reckless as to joke with my own life."

"Well, it's getting late, go to bed."

The young girl slowly stood up and raised her hand to extinguish the candle.

"Aunt, wait a moment, I have something to tell you." Ren Ye hurriedly called out.

"what's up?"

"Well, after the commotion in the Sky Prison today, Sun Michen, the head of the Sun family, also arrived on the scene, and... he kept giving me that strange smile." Ren blinked. "I was very confused and wanted to ask him tentatively, but he spoke first. First, he asked me how I was doing, and then he invited us to a dinner at his house in the next two days. He said that since the Yin family had fallen and you were unemployed, he could help you find a respectable job."

The younger sister-in-law looked calm and said briefly, "Do you remember what I told you?"

"I remember." Ren Ye nodded immediately: "You said that after you lost your job, no matter who came to your house to look for you, they should say you were not at home."

When the aunt heard this, she smiled with relief: "That's it. I don't want to see Sun Michen, and I don't want to go to the Sun family. Just find an excuse to get rid of him."

Ren Ye heard this answer and became even more curious. "Aunt, I always feel that Sun Michen seems to be particularly close to us aunt and niece, and seems to care about you very much... But I don't remember any connection between the Sun family and us! Is there something... that I don't know?"

"Children should stay out of the adult business."

Aunt Tianwei didn't explain much, she just replied calmly, "I'm tired, I'm going back to my room to sleep."

"Aunt, we are so hungry that we have no idea where to eat... Since the Sun family has invited us, why don't we have a sumptuous dinner for free? I can be shameless and submit a menu to them. I guarantee that all the dishes are your favorites..." Ren Ye wanted to persuade her again.

"Oh!"

The aunt closed the door and ignored him.

"Alas... What is our connection with the Sun family?" Ren sighed, and the gossip fire in his heart burned even more fiercely.

Frankly speaking, he really wanted to attend the banquet at the Sun family's house because he felt that the reason Sun Michen treated his aunt and himself differently must be due to some previous relationship between the two families. This relationship would likely be reflected in their interactions, which could help Ren Ye find his own identity more quickly.

But the aunt didn't seem to be too fond of the Sun family, and she was able to resist the temptation of a free meal. For a greedy foodie, this was a difficult choice that could cost her life...

My aunt's attitude towards the Sun family is so cold, which further proves that the two families have some unknown connection... Well, I have to find a way to get my aunt to talk later, and also find a chance to have a brief chat with the head of the Sun family.

The rice was in the pot. Ren Ye took a quick bite, then quickly washed up and walked into his room.

I don’t know if it was because he was too tired or because his mind was tense all day, but he fell asleep the moment he lay down on the bed, snoring loudly and sleeping very soundly.

……

The next morning, at the Li family.

Fat Li sat at the dining table with dark circles under his eyes and a sallow complexion, looking extremely dazed.

Since he went to work in Tianlao, his breakfast time was advanced by about half an hour every day, and he ate with his eldest grandson Li Fusheng.

"Huh? What's wrong with you today? Why are you eating so little?" Li Fusheng usually tried his best to avoid talking to Xiaopang, because if he did, he would have to call him "Grandpa," which made him feel uncomfortable. But Xiaopang was a little out of character today, staring at the dozen or so exquisite dim sum on the table without even touching his chopsticks. This went against his usual appearance as a fat man, and it also made him feel strange.

"I drank too much last night, and I feel a little rundown today." Fatty Li waved his hand and asked casually, "You've just become the prison commander, and something so serious has happened in the Sky Prison. You won't be implicated, will you?"

"To say there's no involvement at all is nonsense." Li Fusheng didn't think much about it. He just sighed while holding the steamed bun and said, "The escape of the death row prisoner is the responsibility of the Punishment Hall. But at the clan meeting last night, there was no one from the Punishment Hall, and I, the new prison commander, didn't even have the qualifications to attend as an observer...!"

Fat Li blinked and said in surprise, "Why is that? If something happens in this prison, it can't be avoided without you, the prison commander?!"

"Ah."

Li Fusheng sneered, "When Second Grandfather came back, I casually asked around. It seems that Zhao Haochen suspected there was a traitor in the Death Prison, secretly helping No. 79 escape. So... all of us have become suspects, and naturally, we can't participate in the meeting."

"Ah? There is such a thing?!" When Fat Li heard the word "traitor", he swallowed his saliva unconsciously.

"I think Zhao Haochen's speculation is correct. The guards in the Death Prison are so strict that No. 79 would not be able to break through the confinement of the Soul-Breaking Pill without external help... There must be a traitor." Li Fusheng judged with certainty.