My Years in the Jianghu with the Prince: A Time of Unethical Conduct

Chapter 234 Back to the Beginning

Chapter 234 Back to the Beginning

As you go further, the amount of gravel on the road increases significantly, and there are even stones as tall as a person standing in the middle of the road, blocking your way.

Countless stones were scattered haphazardly, making the already rugged mountain path even more difficult to traverse.

The two found a relatively flat spot, tied their horses to a nearby tree, and continued on foot.

until—

"There is truly no way out."

The two stopped at the end of the mountain path. Chu Ling frowned, looked ahead, and sighed in a low voice.

Strictly speaking, according to the diagram, this path should not end here, but there is no longer any feasible way to proceed.

Just as the woodcutter had said, the place before their eyes was littered with fallen trees and countless boulders and mud.

Although some gaps have been created by human intervention, it is absolutely impossible to continue passing through them.

"According to the village records, the Fu family ancestral graves are located nearby."

Xie Yan leaped onto a boulder and gazed into the distance. After a moment, he sighed helplessly, “But judging from the scene here, the ancestral graves must have been buried once again.”

He stroked his chin, his expression gradually becoming serious.

Just as Chu Ling thought Xie Yan was about to offer some profound insight, he heard him say something very deep and meaningful—

"I wonder if they consulted fortune tellers back then and found out that they would face another calamity after their death... Oh no, including the time when the founding emperor returned to his hometown, it should be two calamities."

The heavy atmosphere that had been tinged with disappointment was easily broken by Xie Yan's words.

Chu Ling watched Xie Yan clicking her tongue in amusement as she sighed to herself, then shook her head and turned her gaze back to the village chronicle in her hands.

After examining it for a while, he frowned, as if he had made a discovery. He took out a map of Jinlin from his bosom, spread it out on the boulder, and placed it next to the village chronicle, comparing them carefully.

"What's wrong?" Xie Yan turned around, noticing the commotion, and asked in confusion.

"It seems there's another path," Chu Ling said to Xie Yan in a deep voice.

"Ok?"

Upon hearing this, Xie Yan immediately jumped down from the boulder and went to Chu Ling's side.

"Although times have changed and some places differ from the maps drawn in the village chronicles, they still overlap with the current maps of Jinlin."

Following his words, Chu Ling pointed out several locations on the map one by one, "Look here, here, and here... they all correspond to the locations recorded in the village chronicle."

Xie Yan blinked, and after comparing these places under Chu Ling's instructions, she also noticed something.

Seeing that Xie Yan had also figured it out, Chu Ling raised his chin slightly and continued, "According to the map, we should be here now."

His hand stopped and pointed to a road that stretched across a mountain.

“Follow this road straight ahead, cross the mountain ahead, and you will reach an official road outside Jinling City.”

Chu Ling paused, his eyes darkening, and said meaningfully, "That is the official road that we were stopped on when we tried to enter the city."

Xie Yan continued thoughtfully, "So, going that way will also lead to the location of the Fu family ancestral graves."

"I remember when we were stopped, the soldiers said they were clearing the mountain road. Could it be that they were clearing the ruins from more than ten years ago?"

"That's really quite efficient."

Xie Yan chuckled lightly and exchanged a glance with Chu Ling.

After all this time and effort, we've come full circle.

The two exchanged a knowing smile and sighed helplessly.

Jinlin City.

As the sun began to set, two figures climbed over the wall of a mansion on West Street, unnoticed by anyone.

"It seems like no one is keeping watch outside today."

Xie Yan landed steadily and casually brushed the dust off her clothes.

Chu Ling followed suit and walked inside with Xie Yan. "Perhaps they have dispelled their doubts and are heading home."

Before he could finish speaking, Xuanfeng, who had heard the commotion, rushed out from around the corner under the courtyard wall, sword in hand, looking menacing.

Upon recognizing the person, they abruptly stopped in their tracks and exclaimed joyfully, "Your Highness, you've finally returned!"

"Ah."

Chu Ling nodded slightly and glanced at the guards who had followed him out. "What's the situation here?"

Xuanfeng reported in detail: "Your Highness, after investigation, those who have been secretly following us in the city are indeed people sent by the government."

"However, we have been pretending to be merchants and moving around the city for the past few days, so we should have successfully deceived them. Since yesterday, those who were secretly watching us have all withdrawn."

As the group walked back, Xuanfeng continued, "The portrait of the Earth God that you asked me to draw has also been sent back, and I believe we will have results soon."

"besides……"

For some reason, he suddenly paused while he was speaking, and his expression became somewhat heavy.

After hesitating for a moment, he whispered, "His Majesty has sent word that Eunuch Xiao has confessed and accepted punishment."

Although Chu Ling's expression remained unchanged, his steps faltered almost imperceptibly. "Before he was brought to justice, did he reveal the mastermind behind it all?"

“No,” Xuanfeng shook his head, “Eunuch Xiao took his own life, and there hasn’t been a chance to interrogate him yet.”

"But he left a sentence before he died, which seemed to mean that this person had once saved his life."

"A life-saving grace?"

Chu Ling pondered for a moment, a thoughtful look flashing in his eyes.

"Yes, although we don't know who it is, His Majesty has been secretly investigating and has also followed the clues to find out all those in the court who intended to rebel."

Xuanfeng cupped his hands and said solemnly, "Now that all the followers of the Holy Sun Sect are dead, no matter how much we try to block the news, they will definitely notice and be on guard. His Majesty wants you to speed things up and act carefully."

Chu Ling nodded slightly. "I understand."

Yu Bai picked up the conversation, "There's one more thing. Although we weren't able to gather any important information because we had someone following us the whole time."

"But we discovered the Five Eccentrics of Youzhou at the home of Prefect Fukangnian of Jinlin."

This time, Xie Yan didn't need anyone to remind him; he immediately remembered who the Five Eccentrics of Youzhou were.

"...Why are they everywhere?"

Despite saying that, I've only actually met them three times.

The first time was at the Dong Mansion, the place where the treasure map first appeared; the second time was at the Martial Alliance, where they stole the other half of the treasure map; the third time was here, the final location of the treasure.

From this perspective, the identities and purposes of these five people are quite obvious.

Even if they are not members of the Church of Saint Sun, they have close ties with it.

Thinking of this, Xie Yan smiled slightly, elegantly straightened her clothes, and said, "It seems that it's time for me to return to my old ways."