Chapter 158 - 111: Sword Holding Department Office
They had left as two, but returned with one more.
It wasn’t the man who had been screaming, but a young girl.
Ye Jingshuang gave Jiang Ran a puzzled look.
Jiang Ran smiled. While telling everyone to get moving again, he went over to the carriage.
He had lent his horse to Zhang Zhihua.
He casually took over the reins from Ye Jingshuang and explained the situation to her.
Ye Jingshuang was instantly surprised.
"The new prefect’s daughter?"
"That is certainly a surprise. I never would have thought a chance encounter on the road would involve someone with such an important background."
Jiang Ran smiled.
"Well, that part doesn’t really matter. I’m much more interested in the scene unfolding before us right now."
Ye Jingshuang glanced over at Zhang Zhihua and Li Tianxin.
She couldn’t help but chuckle.
But she didn’t voice any opinion.
The rest of the half-day’s journey passed peacefully.
Jiang Ran didn’t see any sign of the people from the forest, nor the person in the sedan chair.
They arrived at Cangzhou Prefecture without any further trouble.
The moment they set foot inside the city, Li Tianxin let out a huge sigh of relief and eagerly said to Zhang Zhihua:
"Miss Zhang, we’ve arrived at Cangzhou Prefecture. We’ll part ways here."
Zhang Zhihua pouted, wanting to say more.
Li Tianxin quickly added:
"We have important business to attend to, so it’s not convenient for us to take you any further."
Hearing this, Zhang Zhihua’s expression fell, and she couldn’t help but look toward Jiang Ran.
Jiang Ran just spread his hands, giving her a look that said he was powerless to help.
Only then did Zhang Zhihua sigh.
"W-Well, alright then... We’re bound to meet again, Brother Li. Until next time."
After speaking, she bowed to Jiang Ran and the others before turning to leave, looking back every few steps.
As he watched the girl actually leave, Li Tianxin’s tense body gradually relaxed.
He couldn’t stop himself from turning to glare at Jiang Ran, grinding his teeth.
Grinning, Jiang Ran handed the reins to Ye Jingshuang and then led his own horse, falling into step beside Li Tianxin.
"What are you glaring at me for? When good fortune falls right into your lap, don’t you know enough to accept it?"
"Good fortune?"
Li Tianxin seethed.
"How is this good fortune? Do you have any idea? This entire trip... it’s been a fate worse than death."
"It can’t have been that bad."
Jiang Ran thought he was exaggerating.
"She’s just a naive and innocent girl who doesn’t know the ways of the world. She might be a bit clingy, but she’s also quite interesting, don’t you think?"
’At least, I had a great time watching.’
Li Tianxin glared at Jiang Ran, took a deep breath to suppress the rage boiling inside him, and forced himself to speak.
"I have no designs on her whatsoever. In the future, don’t do such unnecessary things again."
"Otherwise, it will only bring harm to everyone involved."
Hearing how seriously he spoke, Jiang Ran gave him a somewhat surprised look.
After a moment of contemplation, he nodded.
"Alright, I understand."
"Huh?"
Li Tianxin froze, looking at Jiang Ran with surprise.
’I thought he’d keep pestering me just for his own amusement, but I never expected him to agree so readily.’
"You can’t force romance, and that’s no way to enjoy the show, anyway."
Jiang Ran laughed. "If you’re not interested, then forget it. I won’t play the worried father anymore."
"Who are you to act like my father?"
It took Li Tianxin a moment to process that. Once it sank in, he couldn’t help but glare daggers at Jiang Ran again.
But he didn’t dare to actually attack him, so in the end, he could only fume in silence.
Still, Jiang Ran’s words did set his mind at ease.
With nothing more to say, the group continued on. They found an inn and rented a small, private courtyard.
They led the carriage and horses inside and got everything sorted out, settling in for the time being.
They had come to Cangzhou Prefecture with two objectives.
The first was to find a place for Liu Wenshan to live and a job that would allow him to support himself.
The second was to deal with the two heads Jiang Ran was carrying.
These two tasks could easily be handled by splitting up.
Li Tianxin and Ye Jingshuang could take Mingyue and go find a residence for Liu Wenshan.
Jiang Ran was wealthy enough that if they found a suitable estate, he could just buy it outright.
He wouldn’t necessarily give it to Liu Wenshan, but he could put him in charge of managing it, which would also provide a place for him and Mingyue to live.
Then, whenever Jiang Ran returned to Cangzhou Prefecture in the future, he wouldn’t need to stay at an inn. He would have a proper place of his own.
Meanwhile, Jiang Ran would take the two wrapped heads and find the newly established Sword Holding Department’s Ministry Office in Cangzhou Prefecture.
No one really needed to rest. They hadn’t traveled quickly, and aside from Liu Wenshan, none of them were tired.
After a brief discussion, they headed straight out.
But unexpectedly, just as they reached the inn’s entrance, they saw Zhang Zhihua, who had apparently been waiting for them. Upon seeing Li Tianxin, she called out in a sweet, delicate voice:
"Brother Li!"
Jiang Ran, Ye Jingshuang, and Mingyue all turned their gazes to Li Tianxin.
Li Tianxin’s expression changed instantly.
He shot Jiang Ran a pleading look, only to see Jiang Ran staring straight ahead, feigning ignorance.
He couldn’t help but flare up in anger. "This isn’t your doing again, is it?"
"How could it be?"
Jiang Ran rolled his eyes. "You’re the one who chose this inn."
"..."
Li Tianxin’s brow furrowed slightly as he walked toward Zhang Zhihua.
Jiang Ran and Ye Jingshuang exchanged a look, and Ye Jingshuang said with a smile:
"Well, I’ll take Mingyue and go on ahead."
"Alright. We’ll meet back at the inn later."
Jiang Ran nodded. The two of them split up, one heading left and the other right, going their separate ways.
Leaving Li Tianxin standing alone at the inn’s entrance to deal with Zhang Zhihua.
...
...
The letter Dao Wuming had left for Jiang Ran contained the secret contact sign for the Sword Holding Department’s Ministry Office.
It was the pattern of a slightly curved sword.