Chapter 107 The Gray Sparrow's Double Falls from the Roof, the Real Killer Move is Hidden Beside Meng Huai'an

Muddy water in the back alley splashed onto the Earless Servant's face.

Shen Yue's flying dagger was embedded in his shoulder; half his body was pressed against the wall, twitching, while the old scar on his throat pulsed with each breath.

Sun Qi's short blade pressed against his throat, his gaze sweeping over the Earless Servant's half-missing ear, then over the iron mask that had rolled into the mud.

"Where is Grey Sparrow?"

The Earless Servant did not speak, only raising his still-movable left hand, his fingertips struggling to form a gesture.

Sun Qi's expression darkened.

When Zhao Gang arrived, he saw the gesture and his brows furrowed immediately.

"What is he signaling?"

Sun Qi stared at the Earless Servant's hand.

"The Archives Room has been breached."

Zhao Gang was stunned, then cursed, "We just counter-encircled the Archives Room; who is he reporting a breach to?"

Shen Yue dropped from the wall, the ash on her sleeves not yet settled, the handle of her flying dagger spinning half a turn in her palm.

"To the real Grey Sparrow."

Sun Qi gritted his teeth.

"He stood on the roof on purpose, making us think we had caught Grey Sparrow."

Zhao Gang lifted his foot and stepped on the Earless Servant's wrist.

"Where is your master?"

The Earless Servant looked up at him, squeezing out a few hoarse, wheezing sounds from his throat, yet the corners of his mouth tugged upward.

Zhao Gang bent down and grabbed him by the collar.

"Playing mute until now, who are you still trying to guard the door for?"

The old scar on the Earless Servant's throat suddenly split open, black-red poisonous blood gushing from the wound and splashing onto Zhao Gang's cuff.

Zhao Gang's expression changed, and he immediately let go and retreated.

"It's poisonous."

Sun Qi slashed open the servant's jaw with his blade, but the man had already lost his breath, the light in his eyes fading rapidly.

Shen Yue crouched down and used her scabbard to push aside his cuff, causing a half-broken wooden tablet to slide out and fall into the muddy water.

Zhao Gang looked down.

"A tablet from the Wang family's outer residence?"

Shen Yue picked up the wooden tablet with a cloth, and seeing the half-character "Wang" on it, her expression darkened as well.

"Half a piece."

Sun Qi looked at the Earless Servant's corpse, the veins on the back of his hand bulging.

"He retrieved a letter from the waste paper shop, acted as Grey Sparrow on the roof, and carried a Wang family tablet before he died."

Zhao Gang sneered.

"Is this tablet meant to make us chase after the Wang family's outer residence?"

Sun Qi looked up toward the night sky beyond the Main Courtyard's roof.

"Grey Sparrow wants us to chase."

Lin Chen stood at the alley entrance, not looking at the fleeing black shadows in the distance, but focusing only on the gesture the Earless Servant had made at the end.

Zhao Gang turned his head.

"Inspector, shall we pursue?"

Lin Chen withdrew his gaze.

"Do not pursue."

Zhao Gang grew anxious.

"Grey Sparrow is right outside; he used a double to trick us, he definitely hasn't gone far."

Lin Chen turned and walked toward the Main Courtyard.

"He had his double stand there for us to see, so he isn't afraid of us chasing."

Sun Qi took a step to follow.

"Then what is he afraid of?"

Lin Chen did not stop his pace.

"He is afraid of Deputy Chief Meng Huaian speaking."

Zhao Gang's expression changed, and he immediately looked toward the side corridor of the main hall.

"The side room."

In the Main Courtyard, the scent of blood from the Archives Room had not yet dissipated, and the smoke from the fire in the West Courtyard's stable was suppressed by sand and dirt, leaving only gray mist drifting out along the base of the walls.

In the direction of the side room, Deputy Chief Meng Huaian's crying and shouting had changed tone.

"Inspector."

"I want to see the Inspector."

"I still have things to say, I really still have things to say."

In the room next door, Qian Li cried even harder, his forehead banging against the door panel.

"Deputy Chief Meng, please save me."

"My mother is still in the family quarters; I cannot die."

On the other side, Luo Qing kept slamming against the door, the iron chains rattling as he dragged them.

"Let me out."

"I will confess everything."

"The Wang family's people must have come; you won't be able to hold them off."

The two patrol guards guarding the side room looked at each other.

The older patrol guard frowned.

"Shut up, all of you."

The younger patrol guard clutched his stomach, his face slowly turning pale.

"Brother, my stomach hurts."

The older patrol guard glanced at him.

"It hurts at a time like this?"

The younger patrol guard's forehead broke out in sweat, his body sliding toward the wall.

"It really hurts."

As soon as he spoke, a thin needle shot through the crack in the door, piercing the older patrol guard's wrist.

Just as the older patrol guard was about to draw his blade, his palm lost all strength, and his waist saber clattered to the ground.

"There's a needle."

At the end of the side corridor, three patrol guards carrying water buckets ran over quickly, their bodies covered in ash, wet towels pressed to their heads.

The leader gasped and shouted, "The fire in the West Courtyard has started up again; Head Shen ordered us to bring water over."

The older patrol guard leaned against the wall, gritting his teeth as he looked at them.

"Stop."

The three did not stop their pace.

"Why stop when putting out a fire? Can you bear the responsibility if there's a delay?"

The younger patrol guard curled up on the ground, clutching his stomach and groaning; he couldn't stop them at all.

The leader walked to the door and set the bucket down on the ground, the bottom of the bucket making a soft sound.

Inside the room, Deputy Chief Meng Huaian saw that face through the crack in the door; he backed away, his spine hitting the corner of the wall.

"Old Xu?"

The man looked up, revealing a familiar face beneath the wet towel.

He was a servant in the Meng Estate's Accounting Room who had followed Deputy Chief Meng Huaian for many years; usually, he was submissive and timid, never daring to look up even when speaking.

At this moment, his hand reached into the bottom of the bucket and pulled out a short crossbow.

"Master."

Deputy Chief Meng Huaian's lips trembled.

"Why are you here?"

Old Xu looked at him through the door crack, his tone much lighter than usual.

"The Wang family sent me to see you off, Master."

Deputy Chief Meng Huaian's face drained of all color.

"The Wang family said they would protect me."

Old Xu raised the short crossbow, aiming it at the door crack.

"If you go on your way, Master, your wife and Young Master can still live."

Deputy Chief Meng Huaian's legs went weak, and he slid down against the wall.

"They never intended to protect me from the start?"

Old Xu lowered his head and cocked the crossbow.

"Master, what the Wang family wants is someone who will keep their mouth shut."

Inside the room next door, a door bolt was pushed aside.

Lin Chen stepped out from the shadows, the black abyss not yet unsheathed, the Inspector's command flag hanging in his left hand.

Old Xu and the other two turned simultaneously.

Lin Chen looked at Deputy Chief Meng Huaian.

"Did you hear clearly?"

Deputy Chief Meng Huaian slumped in the corner, his lips moving for a long time.

"I heard clearly."

Lin Chen looked at Old Xu.

"Grey Sparrow sent you to kill, and he's still watching from outside?"

Old Xu's gaze swept behind Lin Chen.

"The Inspector knows too late."

Lin Chen took a step forward.

"Whether it's too late or not depends on who dies first."

Old Xu raised his hand.

Three short crossbows fired simultaneously.

One crossbow bolt pierced through the door crack, aiming straight for Deputy Chief Meng Huaian's throat.

One shot toward Lin Chen's chest.

The third hugged the corner of the wall, blocking Deputy Chief Meng Huaian's path to dodge sideways.

Lin Chen's Xuanhuang True Qi sank; the crossbow bolt at his chest struck beneath his armor, the tip embedding half an inch deep with a dull thud.

The black abyss unsheathed, the blade's light flashing past the door crack, slicing the crossbow bolt aimed at Deputy Chief Meng Huaian's throat into two pieces.

The third brushed past Deputy Chief Meng Huaian's cheek, drawing a line of blood, and nailed into the back wall.

Deputy Chief Meng Huaian screamed, his pant leg soaking wet, and he crawled on the ground toward Lin Chen.

"Inspector, save me."

"I'll write it, I'll write everything."

"The off-the-books accounts, the names, who the Wang family gave silver to, who took empty salaries, who suppressed cases for them—I'll write it all."

Zhao Gang rushed from the corridor entrance; seeing Deputy Chief Meng Huaian in that state, he suppressed the anger on his face again and again.

"You know how to write now?"

Deputy Chief Meng Huaian cried, his snot and tears mixed together.

"I want to live."

"I really want to live."

"Inspector, I took silver in the past and did dirty work for others; I admit it."

"But the Wang family wants to kill my whole family; I won't accept that fate."

Lin Chen did not look at him, but stared at Old Xu and the other two.

"Take them alive."

Zhao Gang drew his blade.

"Understood."

The two fake patrol guards beside Old Xu simultaneously lifted their water buckets; oil jars and smoke bombs were hidden at the bottom.

One of them grabbed an oil jar and was about to smash it on the ground.

Zhou Tie stepped in from outside the side corridor, his iron spear sweeping across the door frame, wood chips flying; the spear shaft pressed against the man's chest, forcing him to retreat three steps.

"Try smashing one and see."

That Death Warrior gritted his teeth, his wrist still pushing down.

Shen Yue turned out from behind him, the sandbag in her hand directly covering the mouth of the oil jar, while her other hand kicked the smoke bomb into the water ditch in the corner.

"Playing with fire once is enough."

The Death Warrior's expression darkened, and he drew his blade with a backhand motion.

Shen Yue's short blade passed close under his elbow, a line of blood dripping down his sleeve.

"Hands are needed to write confessions; don't force me to cripple you."

Sun Qi blocked the end of the back corridor, but his gaze was locked on the feet of the other Death Warrior.

When that man retreated, his footsteps were very light; the second step was against the wall, the third step was a diagonal stride, connecting with the traces left by the black cloth by the coffin that night at the mass grave.

Sun Qi's breathing deepened.

"It's you."

The Death Warrior glanced at him.

Sun Qi's hand gripping the blade tightened slowly.

"You were there the night of Wu Si's death, too."

The Death Warrior did not answer, only reversing the grip on his narrow blade in his palm, his toes shifting toward the darkness of the back corridor.

Zhao Gang heard the name Wu Si, and his eyes turned red immediately.

"Sun Qi, hack him down."

Sun Qi's blade was already raised, but before it fell, he saw Lin Chen standing at the side room door, watching him, neither urging nor stopping him.

Sun Qi gritted his teeth, changing the direction of the blade.

The blade's light descended against the side of the Death Warrior's knee.

The Death Warrior screamed and fell to the ground, blood gushing from his leg, and the narrow blade flew from his hand.

Zhao Gang rushed up and stepped on the opponent's chest.

"Run, why don't you."

Sun Qi crouched down, his short blade pressing against the Death Warrior's chin.

"How did Wu Si die?"

The Death Warrior gritted his teeth, his forehead covered in sweat, yet he was still smiling.

"You want to know?"

Sun Qi's blade tip pressed upward half an inch.

"I ask one question, you answer one question."

The Death Warrior looked at Lin Chen, then at Deputy Chief Meng Huaian, who was crying like a puddle of mud on the ground.

"You think that by catching Deputy Chief Meng Huaian, you've caught the Wang family's accounts?"

Deputy Chief Meng Huaian looked up, his crying stopping for a moment.

"What do you mean?"

The Death Warrior gasped, a low laugh emitting from his throat.

"Deputy Chief Meng, the accounts you received are only enough for you to take the fall for others."

Deputy Chief Meng Huaian's face turned even paler.

"I still have the Wang family's outer accounts."

The Death Warrior looked at him.

"Can the accounts the Wang family let you see really be called outer accounts?"

Zhao Gang pressed his foot down, making the man's chest cave in.

"Less nonsense."

Sun Qi raised his hand to stop Zhao Gang, his gaze not leaving the Death Warrior's face.

"Where does Qingyun Ridge train people?"

Blood seeped from the Death Warrior's mouth, but he did not bite his poison sac.

"If I speak, can I live?"

Lin Chen walked up to him, the tip of the black abyss hanging at his side.

"You can live until you finish speaking."

The Death Warrior looked at Lin Chen, the smile on his face slowly becoming ugly.

"Lin Chen, you really know how to handle official business."

Lin Chen looked at him.

"Those who handle official business follow rules; those who kill speak their last words."

The Death Warrior's eyelids twitched.

Sun Qi said in a low voice, "Did you kill Wu Si?"

The Death Warrior was silent for a moment, his gaze falling on the medicinal cloth on Sun Qi's face.

"He shouldn't have been the only one to die that day."

Sun Qi's blade pressed into his chin, blood beads sliding down the tip of the blade.

Zhao Gang gritted his teeth nearby.

"Sun Qi."

Sun Qi closed his eyes, then opened them again; the blade moved away from the Death Warrior's chin and instead severed the tendons in his other leg.

The Death Warrior's body arched in pain, but he was stepped back onto the ground by Zhao Gang.

Sun Qi looked at Lin Chen.

"Inspector, I want to interrogate him."

Lin Chen nodded.

"You interrogate."

Sun Qi looked down at the Death Warrior.

"I won't kill you."

"I want you to explain every step of that night with Wu Si clearly."

"Revenge isn't about one swift stroke; if the blade is too fast, the trail will go cold."

Zhao Gang glanced at Sun Qi, and the fire in his chest dissipated a little.

"That sounds like human talk."

Shen Yue disarmed Old Xu and the other Death Warrior, then turned to look at Lin Chen.

"How shall we detain these three?"

Lin Chen said, "Separate them."

Zhou Tie pressed Old Xu against the wall.

"Interrogate this Accounting Room servant first?"

Lin Chen looked at Deputy Chief Meng Huaian.

"Let Deputy Chief Meng Huaian watch the interrogation."

Deputy Chief Meng Huaian lay on the ground, shivering as he looked up.

"Inspector, I can write."

"I'll write it now."

Lin Chen looked at him.

"Every name you write must match their testimonies."

Deputy Chief Meng Huaian nodded repeatedly.

"It will match."

"I know how the Wang family's silver entered the Main Courtyard, and I know why Qian Li's mother went to the family quarters to cry."

In the room next door, Qian Li heard his name, and his crying stopped immediately.

Zhao Gang walked over and kicked open the door next door.

"Qian Li, it's time to settle your mother's accounts too."

Qian Li huddled in the corner, his face deathly pale.

"Head Zhao, I'll talk."

"I'll tell everything."

Lin Chen turned to look at the Death Warrior under Sun Qi's feet.

"Ask about Qingyun Ridge first."

Sun Qi looked down.

"Who manages you people from Qingyun Ridge?"

The Death Warrior gasped for breath, then suddenly laughed.

"Do you really think Qingyun Ridge is just the Wang family's place?"

In the side corridor of the Main Courtyard, everyone's movements paused for half a beat.

Lin Chen looked at him.

"Finish speaking."

The Death Warrior looked up, blood flowing from his lips, his eyes filled with mockery.

"The people of Qingyun Ridge are not just with the Wang family."