Chapter 384: Troubles Everywhere in the World (Part 1)
The street below the inn fell silent for a moment. Pedestrians and vendors looked up, stunned, toward the source of the shout, spotting Chen Changsheng, then hearing his next words.
"I am Chen Changsheng. Su Li is in the room behind me. Whether you want to kill him or save him, anyone who wants to come, come quickly."
Just like his previous words, this sentence drifted through the sunlit spring city of Xunyang, spreading swiftly and far, and would soon leave the city, traveling across the continent. Countless eyes fell on the inn's window, on Chen Changsheng's face. The streets of Xunyang remained quiet for a while longer, then were shattered by a cacophony of noise, plunging into chaos!
There was the sound of a porcelain bowl hitting the ground and breaking into eighteen pieces, the sound of windows being slammed shut almost violently, cries tinged with sobs, the innocent questioning of children full of confusion, the scolding shouts of parents, the urgent clatter of hooves galloping into the distance, and even the faint, trembling rumble of heavy city gates closing far away!
In just a moment, the pedestrians and vendors on Xunyang's streets had vanished completely. The long avenue became empty and desolate, leaving only scraps of paper from oil cakes drifting along the road, along with a few wisps of dust from the distant city gates. Xunyang seemed to have instantly turned into a ghost town—not every empty city is a stratagem; sometimes an empty city means it is a dead city, or soon will become one.
Chen Changsheng stood by the window, gazing at the silent, deserted street, listening to the fading sounds of people, watching the timid eyes peeking through the cracks of tightly shut doors, stunned into silence. He couldn't understand why simply shouting that Su Li was here had caused such an uproar. Vaguely, he felt he might have done something wrong, or perhaps he had still underestimated the matter.
In late spring in Xunyang, the wind threading through the alleys should have been warm, but now the stoves by the roadside had gone out, and there was no trace of human presence, so the wind carried a chill. Chen Changsheng instinctively closed the window again and turned back. He saw Su Li sitting in a chair, looking at him with a mix of helplessness and mockery, asking, "Scared?"
Chen Changsheng's voice was tense as he said, "It's just a gamble, after all."
Su Li's left hand had somehow grasped the yellow paper umbrella, and his right hand lightly tapped the armrest of the chair. Looking into Chen Changsheng's eyes, he said, "Then I can tell you now... you've lost the bet."
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The words "Su Li is here" spread through all of Xunyang at an unimaginable speed. Even the fastest red eagles or red geese of the Zhou army couldn't intercept this news. Xunyang fell into a dead silence, but behind that silence was true chaos. No one knew how many ordinary households had broken their bowls and dishes, or how many people had twisted their ankles.
The most tense place was, of course, the inn where Su Li and Chen Changsheng were staying. This inn was also the source of the chaos. The dining guests fled as fast as they could, and the lodgers left without even grabbing their luggage, disappearing with the crowd. Even the innkeeper and the waiters had slipped away quietly.
Now the inn was silent, with tables and chairs scattered everywhere, looking a mess. Only by the wall, at the counter, stood an accountant. His eyebrows drooped downward, giving him a shabby appearance. His long gown was washed very clean, which only made him look more impoverished. Perhaps because he was too poor to give up this job, he hadn't left the inn yet, still standing behind the counter, fiddling with an abacus, calculating the accounts.
The news had spread, so people naturally began to arrive. To Chen Changsheng's slight relief, the first to come were from the National Church.
The Bishop of Xunyang was the highest-ranking bishop of the National Church in the northernmost part of the continent, with great authority and power. The current Bishop of Xunyang was Hua Jiefu, a trusted confidant of His Holiness the Pope. Thus, he held an extremely revered position in Xunyang and even throughout the Tianliang Prefecture. He rarely needed to personally visit the City Lord of Xunyang or the prince's mansion, but today he had to come to this inn in person, and the attitude he displayed made the entire city of Xunyang feel uneasy.
Hua Jiefu did not let the dozens of accompanying priests enter the inn. He straightened his red robe on the stone steps and walked in alone, behaving with great restraint, even with a hint of humility. If Su Li were not severely injured and near death, this respect would have been for him. But now, this respect was for Chen Changsheng.
Chen Changsheng was now the Dean of the National Teaching Academy. As Cardinal Merisa had said, within the National Church, aside from His Holiness the Pope, he didn't need to bow to anyone; on the contrary, others should bow to him. Still, having a respected Red Robe Cardinal bow respectfully to him made him uncomfortable, and he instinctively shifted his body slightly.
Hua Jiefu straightened up, didn't even glance at the closed door beside him, and said to Chen Changsheng, "We just learned that you are still alive, but we couldn't confirm it. Seeing you today is truly a joyful thing. I believe that when this news reaches the capital, His Holiness the Pope will also be overjoyed. Countless people in the capital will be eagerly awaiting your return."
He didn't say everything, but he had said enough. The Bishop got straight to the point, asking Chen Changsheng to leave Xunyang. If Chen Changsheng agreed, the Xunyang Cathedral would undoubtedly send powerful guardian cavalry, and Hua Jiefu might even escort him personally.
Chen Changsheng looked at the closed door, was silent for a moment, then said, "You know, I'm in a bit of trouble right now."
"I admit that this gentleman is indeed a huge trouble, perhaps the biggest trouble in hundreds of years." Hua Jiefu glanced at the door and said, "But this is not your trouble, nor is it the National Church's trouble. If you insist on staying in this inn, this trouble will grow bigger and bigger, until even I can't handle it."
Chen Changsheng asked, "When will those... troubles appear?"
Hua Jiefu said, "Very soon. And news from the capital says that someone from Huaiyuan might be coming to the north. Their identity can't be confirmed yet, but it's certain that they are a big trouble."
Chen Changsheng was silent for a while, then asked, "Can't I take Mr. Su back to the capital with me?"
Hua Jiefu didn't need to think and directly replied, "The Li Palace hasn't said anything."
Chen Changsheng fell silent again, understanding his meaning. It had been some time since he encountered the two assassins and Xue He. The Li Palace must have known about Su Li and him, but they only ordered the subordinate cathedral to escort Chen Changsheng back to the capital, without mentioning Su Li at all. This already represented the Li Palace's stance.
"I might need to wait at the inn for a while longer."
"We will certainly protect your safety, but we cannot protect this gentleman just because you want to protect him. You should understand, that's not fair."
"Yes."
Chen Changsheng looked at Hua Jiefu and said, "So you can pretend you don't know I'm in Xunyang."
Hua Jiefu said, "But you are in Xunyang, and how long will you stay? Everyone's troubles must eventually be solved by themselves, especially since this gentleman himself is a trouble."
Chen Changsheng thought for a moment and said, "I want to wait until someone from the Li Mountain Sword Sect arrives, or... someone he trusts, someone capable of protecting him."
Hua Jiefu sighed and said, "Everyone knows that Su Li has never trusted anyone... He has no friends, not a single one. If you wait for such a person to appear, how long will you wait?"
"Maybe... but I always feel that someone should be willing to help him."
After saying this, Chen Changsheng turned and walked toward the room.
Hua Jiefu suddenly spoke behind him, "You probably don't know... some things happened outside the Zhou Garden. You really need to return to the capital as soon as possible to deal with them."
Chen Changsheng stopped and asked, "What things?"
Hua Jiefu said, "Liang Xiaoxiao is dead."
Chen Changsheng hadn't expected to hear such news. After a moment of shock, he said, "He was a spy for the demon race. Who killed him?"
Hua Jiefu's expression was somewhat complicated as he said, "He said you killed him."
Chen Changsheng was very surprised and asked, "He said that? I killed him?"
"Yes, although he didn't explicitly say it before he died, everyone knew what he meant." Hua Jiefu looked into his eyes and said, "He died under the final form of the Li Mountain Sword Sect's Dharma Sword. In the Zhou Garden, only Qi Jian and you know this sword technique."
Chen Changsheng was stunned, unable to understand what was going on.
Hua Jiefu concluded, "Liang Xiaoxiao said that you and Zhexiu were spies for the demon race. Zhexiu... has already been thrown into the Zhou Prison."
Hearing this, Chen Changsheng was silent for a long time. He knew he had to return to the capital as soon as possible, but how could he leave now? He looked at the closed door and felt that this was truly troublesome.
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(The Spring Festival isn't over yet, but the holiday ends here. Let me say a belated Happy New Year to everyone I haven't seen in a while. I'm just starting to get back to work, so I need to slowly find my rhythm. The update volume won't be too much. Last month, I fell short of the promised eighty thousand words, but I'll make it up this month. New year, new atmosphere, even if... I can't do it, I still need to work harder. Once again, my regards to everyone.)