"Taiping City…" Yang Kai stepped out of the inn, thought for a moment, and then realized with a start. "Isn't this the city where that woman Yan Xueman lives?"
Earlier, when those three had blocked his path and tried to buy Ji Yao's vessel, the old man had introduced the man and woman — the man was the Young Master of the Xuanlei Pavilion, and the woman was the daughter of Taiping City's Lord.
When he had entered the city yesterday, Yang Kai had been preoccupied with Ji Yao's condition and hadn't bothered to take note of the city's name. Only now did he realize this was actually Taiping City.
Quite the coincidence.
But Yang Kai wasn't worried. A mere city was far from sufficient to give him pause.
He led Ji Yao toward the city gate, and before long they arrived at the entrance.
Quite a few people were queued up waiting to exit, and a number of martial artists stood guard at the gate, scrutinizing every person who attempted to leave.
"Hm?" Yang Kai's brow furrowed when he saw this. He couldn't tell whether this was a standing rule of Taiping City or whether something had happened.
"Master, could it be because of those three from yesterday?" Ji Yao suddenly asked in a low voice. "Are they looking for us?"
"What are the odds," Yang Kai chuckled. "We entered the city yesterday without attracting anyone's attention. Perhaps something else has come up inside the city."
Ji Yao nodded gently.
Neither of them attempted to force their way through the gate on the strength of their cultivation. They had come to someone else's territory, so following the local rules was hardly a problem. The two of them obediently took their place at the back of the line and waited their turn to exit.
The martial artists stationed at the gate conducted thorough inspections, and subtle threads of Divine Sense swept discreetly over those preparing to leave.
One by one, the martial artists were checked and cleared, and the queue gradually in advance.
"Head of the Dong Family!" Suddenly, a voice called out from a building beside the gate.
"Still haven't found her?" another person asked — presumably the so-called Head of the Dong Family.
"Not yet," the first speaker replied. "But rest assured, Head of the Dong, the other three city gates have all been sealed on emergency orders. If your wife intends to leave the city, she'll have to come through this gate. The moment she appears, we'll definitely find her."
"My thanks, Commander Yu. Sigh, truly a disgrace to the family." The Dong Family Head let out a deep sigh.
Commander Yu chuckled softly. "Head of the Dong, as far as I'm aware, you and your wife have always been deeply affectionate — inseparable wherever you went throughout Taiping City, making everyone envious. How did things escalate so terribly overnight? And why would your wife leave home of her own accord? You've even gone so far as to call upon the City Lord's Manor to help search for her."
Commander Yu's question was met with silence from inside the building, as though the matter was rather difficult to speak of.
Commander Yu added, "If Head of the Dong finds it inconvenient to say, just pretend I never asked."
"Alas!" The Dong Family Head let out a heavy sigh and said, "As the saying goes, a family's shame should not be aired in public. I had hoped to keep this quiet and not blow it out of proportion, but that foolish woman has forced my hand! There's really nothing improper about saying it — it's just that the woman was overcome by greed and stole my Dong Family's clan treasure."
"Theft!" Commander Yu was genuinely shocked. "That doesn't seem right. Your wife holds the highest position in the Dong Family after you yourself, and I've also heard she originally hailed from some great Sect. What could the Dong Family possibly possess that she would feel compelled to take without a word!"
"I don't know if she's been addled by too much lard, to pull a stunt like this." The Dong Family Head spoke with undisguised anguish, then straightened up and said solemnly, "Commander Yu, for the sake of the Dong Family's past kindness to you, I ask that you quietly apprehend the foolish woman once you find her. Do not alert anyone — and especially do not alert City Lord Yan!"
Commander Yu replied, "Understood. Please rest easy, Head of the Dong."
…
The two of them conversed in low voices inside the building. Their words were quiet, but Yang Kai heard every single one with perfect clarity.
He hadn't eavesdropped intentionally — he had simply happened to overhear. But now that he had, he understood why Taiping City was on high alert.
It turned out the matriarch of a certain clan had stolen a clan treasure, prompting the clan head to come after her with the help of the City Lord's Manor. This was a textbook family scandal. The helplessness and pain in the Dong Family Head's words were almost amusing to Yang Kai — the man was clearly in a terrible bind, wanting both to recover the stolen item and to keep the whole affair under wraps.
He wondered what exactly had been stolen to trigger such greed in a clan matriarch.
The line continued to inch forward, and before long, Yang Kai and Ji Yao were nearly at the gate.
At that moment, a streak of light suddenly flew in from outside the city, shooting straight toward the gate.
"Who goes there! No one is permitted to make a scene before the gates of Taiping City!" One of the gate-guarding martial artists bellowed, leaping forward to intercept the approaching figure.
The streak of light halted, revealing a man and a woman.