The river was murky and foul-smelling, and the bridge was old and dipidated, but with the sun just rising, a soft golden light reflected off the water. The morning mist still lingered above the surface, and a gentle breeze stirred the drooping willow branches by the riverbank. In the distance, the faint crowing of roosters could be heard, creating a scene with an unexpected touch of poetic beauty.

  What ruined the moment was a woman squatting on the far side of the bridge, washing a chamber pot, a child strapped to her back.

  Yan Qi wrinkled his nose and called out, “Hey, madam! Did you see anyone climb out of this window just now?”

  The woman looked up, gred at him, then lowered her head again and muttered, “Early in the morning, are you seeing ghosts or something?”

  Yan Qi was left speechless. With an awkward smile, he muttered, “Where did that rascal go? Did he fall into the river and drown?”

  Guo Dalu's stomach felt emptier by the second, and his irritation was rising. He was just about to find someone to vent his frustration on when he scowled and said, “If one drowns, that’s one less person to worry about—my only concern is that he won’t drown.”

  Wang Dong gnced at him from the corner of his eye and said, “Why is he so irritable this morning? Don’t tell me he didn’t get a chance to vent his frustrations st night?”

  Yan Qi chuckled. “He had both bedbugs and a goddess by his side st night. No matter how much pent-up energy he had, it should've been completely exhausted.”

  Wang Dong raised an eyebrow. “A goddess? Bedbugs? Did he spend the night in a ruined temple? He might as well have come here and slept on the tables.”

  Guo Dalu's face instantly turned bright red, but fortunately, at that moment, a waiter arrived with two steaming bowls of noodles, along with two rge ptes of braised fish and pork ribs. The rich aroma drifted up with the steam, filling Guo Dalu's nostrils. How could he possibly endure it?

  Suddenly, he focused all his attention on the space beneath the table as if there were little goblins putting on a performance down there.

  Even though Yan Qi and Wang Dong were busy eating their noodles, their eyes couldn’t help but follow his gaze under the table. That was exactly the opportunity Guo Dalu was waiting for—he swiftly reached out for the biggest piece of pork rib.

  But just as his fingers touched the meat, a pair of chopsticks shot through the air and nded on the back of his hand with a sharp thwack!

  Yan Qi, watching him slyly from the corner of his eye, grinned and said, “You already ate seventeen or eighteen things, and now you’re trying to steal someone else’s meat? Were you a starving ghost in your past life?”

  This guy truly had a natural pair of thief's eyes.

  Guo Dalu, his face burning with embarrassment, awkwardly withdrew his hand and muttered, “Some people just don’t know gratitude. Here I am, kindly swatting away flies for him, and he turns around and bites me.”

  Yan Qi smirked. “In this freezing weather, where would flies even come from?”

  Wang Dong added, “There may not be flies, but there are definitely still a few bedbugs.”

  These two seemed to be acting strangely today, constantly picking on Guo Dalu and opposing him at every turn.

  Left with no other choice, Guo Dalu ignored them and sat in a daze for a while before suddenly grinning. “Do you know what I′m thinking about?”

  No one answered—because their mouths were full of meat.

  Guo Dalu had to continue on his own. “I′m thinking that this bowl of noodles must taste amazing.”

  Yan Qi swallowed his mouthful of noodles with a sip of broth before chuckling. “Correct! It’s rare for us to have such delicious noodles.”

  Guo Dalu asked, “Do you know why this bowl of noodles tastes so different?”

  Yan Qi blinked. “Why?”

  Guo Dalu said leisurely, “Because it was cooked using water from the river. Water that also flushes the trines—of course, it has a unique fvor.”

  Yan Qi remained unfazed and even giggled. “Even if it were cooked with foot-washing water, it’s still better than having nothing to eat on an empty stomach.”

  Guo Dalu was stunned for a moment, then suddenly leaped up, spread his arms wide, and shouted, “I want to eat too! I have to eat! If anyone tries to stop me, I′ll fight them to the death!”

  Meanwhile, Lin Taiping sat there, lost in thought.

  He had been back for quite some time, staring bnkly as if waiting for someone to ask, “Why did you suddenly disappear? Where did you go? What were you doing?”

  Yet, no one asked. It was as if he had never left at all.

  Left with no choice, Lin Taiping spoke up himself. He gnced at Guo Dalu before slowly saying, “I just saw someone. You'd never guess who.”

  Guo Dalu, unable to hold back, asked, “Do I know this person?”

  Lin Taiping replied, “Even if you don’t know him personally, you’ve at least seen him before.”

  Guo Dalu pressed further, “Who exactly is it?”

  Lin Taiping said, “I don’t know who he is either because I don’t recognize him.”

  Guo Dalu was stunned again. With a bitter smile, he said, “What kind of nonsense is that? Can anyone understand what he's saying?”

  Ignoring him, Lin Taiping continued, “I don’t recognize his face, but I do recognize his clothes.”

  Guo Dalu couldn't help but ask, “What kind of clothes?”

  Lin Taiping answered, “Bck clothes.”

  Guo Dalu ughed. “There are people in bck clothes everywhere. You could find dozens of them on any street.”

  Lin Taiping said, “Besides his clothes, I also recognized his sword.”

  Guo Dalu finally sensed something significant and immediately pressed, “What kind of sword?”

  Lin Taiping replied, “A sword that’s one foot and seven inches long—but paired with a four-foot-long scabbard.”

  Guo Dalu let out a breath and asked, “When did you see him?”

  Lin Taiping said, “When you arrived.”

  Guo Dalu suddenly ughed. “You think this is strange?”

  Lin Taiping asked, “Don’t you?”

  Guo Dalu said, “He was supposed to come to the county town to report in. If you hadn’t seen him here, now that would be strange.”

  Lin Taiping said, "He was supposed to hand over Jin Shi, the staff, Feng Qiwu, and that batch of stolen goods to the authorities, wasn't he?"

  Guo Dalu replied, "Yes."

  Lin Taiping said, "But the authorities haven't heard anything about this. No prisoners have been brought in over the past two days."

  Guo Dalu was finally a little surprised. "How do you know that?"

  Lin Taiping said, "I went to the authorities to ask."

  Guo Dalu thought for a moment and said, "Maybe he pnned to take the prisoners somewhere else."

  Lin Taiping said, "There are no prisoners."

  Guo Dalu frowned. "What do you mean, no prisoners?"

  Lin Taiping said, "I mean that Jin Shi, the staff, and Feng Qiwu—they're all gone. That batch of stolen goods is gone too. I tracked him all the way to where he was staying, and he was the only one there."

  Guo Dalu was stunned.

  Yan Qi and Wang Dong were also stunned.

  Lin Taiping downed the wine in front of Guo Dalu in one gulp and said coolly, "Now do you find this strange or not?"

  Guo Dalu said, "Strange."