Gongsun Jing didn’t yield any useful information.
However, at least it could be confirmed that Tan Yurou should be safe for now. But her identity was vastly different from before; she was no longer the sheltered young lady of the past, but the underground queen of the entire Jianghu in Xi Dingzhou. Her sudden disappearance wasn’t causing panic throughout the Jianghu of the entire state and invoking endless chaos.
Wang Anfeng’s heart still harbored plenty of irritation.
He simply stepped out of the side room and wandered around the Tan Residence, looking for any clues or traces.
Many people within the Tan Residence had seen him before and knew that he had protected Tan Yurou. Besides, in this yard, a good number of the guards had been swapped out for the Ironclad Guards of the Giant Whale Gang, who recognized him as their own Young Master. Naturally, no one dared to stop him.
As he passed by a room, Wang Anfeng’s steps hesitated slightly.
He seemed to detect a faint scent of flowers in the air, which, upon close examination, was exactly the same as that used by the woman posing as ’Tan Yurou’.
Wang Anfeng slightly furrowed his brow and stopped a passing maid with his hand, speaking in an even tone:
"Excuse me."
The maid gave him a bow and said in a low voice with her head down:
"Your servant has seen Wang Xiaoxia, may I know what instructions you have?"
Wang Anfeng nodded his head and pointed towards the room from which the scent of flowers was coming, saying:
"May I ask the lady, whose residing place is this?"
The maid glanced at it and turned her gaze back, replying:
"Here? This is the residence where Miss lived before."
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"Since she was seven, she lived here until now. If Xiaoxia is..."
Moments later, the maid left. Wang Anfeng stood outside the room, pondering one question after another.
This room belonged to Tan Yurou, so why was the fragrance that was identical to the one on the corpse present here?
If that body, as Gongsun described, was a traitor of the Tan Residence, then Tan Yurou could not have been unaware of its scent, meaning, this was a clue she left for me...
And now, the clue pointed right to her own room.
With his thoughts solidifying, Wang Anfeng moved slowly to the door, placing his hand on the carved wooden door and remembered the days before when that young girl teased him, asking him to cook, make tea, and play the zither... A slight twitch appeared at the corner of his mouth.
If he were to brazenly enter her boudoir this time, even if it was her own arrangement, he would probably still be teased by her afterward.
Wang Anfeng seemed to see the young girl blushing as she said: Discover hidden tales at freewebnovel
"Xiaoxia, how can you barge into a girl’s boudoir..."
At that time, I’ll say it was you who led me in here.
Wang Anfeng muttered under his breath, preparing himself for the expected difficulty; the urgent task at hand was to find the suddenly missing Tan Yurou, so he could not accord to ordinary etiquette. He whispered an apology and let out a bit of his Vigorous Qi through his hand. There was a sharp crack, and the copper lock broke directly in half. Then he gently pushed the door open and stepped inside.
A light fragrance wafted towards him.
It was not the flower scent he had smelled before, but rather something lighter, unaffected by the presence of the floral aroma.
Wang Anfeng paid it no mind, closed the door behind him, and followed the scent of flowers, inspecting the room. The interior was extremely elegant and clean, with a zither on one wall and a painting on the other, nothing else worth noting.
Wang Anfeng walked two steps forward and spotted a small Jade Box next to a flowerpot in a somewhat concealed spot. The floral scent was emanating from there. With a slight frown, he lifted his hand and operated his Mixed Yuan Skill defensively, in case the object was dangerous. He tried to grasp it but found it immovable, as if connected to the earth itself.
The youth was momentarily stunned, then recalled something, holding the object and swaying it left and right.
Silently, the wall split from the middle, revealing a secret door.
A letter hung on the door, which Wang Anfeng took down to read.
The completely white paper was inscribed with delicate handwriting in a single line.
"You’ve actually found this place... I warn you, do not come down..."
Wang Anfeng’s temple throbbed.
Pushing the door open, he found a spiral staircase that wound its way downward, with a second letter hanging above.
"I warn you again, Wang Anfeng, a gentleman keeps to the proprieties."
Wang Anfeng glanced at it, expressionless, and walked past.
Acting as though he hadn’t seen it at all.
After roughly a hundred steps, the surroundings were pitch dark, but Wang Anfeng’s cultivation was quite advanced, and he practiced the Pupil Skill, allowing him to see in the dark as if it were daylight. It was then he saw a third letter.
"If you dare to come down again, I will report you to the authorities..."
Wang Anfeng couldn’t hold back any longer and burst into laughter, exclaiming:
"Report to the authorities?!"
"I want to see exactly what game you’re playing!"
The thought of him abandoning his urgent affairs and rushing back, only to be thoroughly pranked, kindled a fire of anger within Wang Anfeng’s heart. He had spent two whole hours on the way worrying and fearing.
The greater his worry was at that time, the greater his annoyance now.
He quickened his pace, and within a dozen breaths, he had descended the staircase to find a secret room.
All was dark, the walls bore the marks of torches that had left black streaks on the stone.
Walking among them, he couldn’t hear his footsteps at all.
Wang Anfeng frowned, knocking lightly on the wall, his expression subtly changing. Then he extended his right hand, pressing it against the wall, his Inner Strength slowly seeping into it, only to dissipate like water into fine sand. The youth recalled information he had seen in the Academy’s Wind Character Tower, his eyes reflecting a moment of realization mixed with astonishment.