Chapter 313: A Mountain Out Of Nowhere
Zuo Wentang briefed them on what happened. The first half of his story was true but the latter half was entirely made up. Of course, he didn’t just jabber on nonsensically. Zuo Wentang made sure that it sounded coherent and believable.
For example, he told them that he had pursued and fought the monster only to realize that he was quickly losing the battle. Thankfully, his friend here came just in time to help out and although they managed to put up a fight, the monster had escaped from their grip.
“I tried my best but there were just too many of them and each of them was unusually strong,” Zuo Wentang lied through his teeth. Qu Wenji, Tilly, and the dumbstruck leopard were just about ten steps behind him. None of them dared to even make a squeak as they watched Zuo Wentang lie his way through the situation.
“Even Steward Zuo couldn’t handle them, huh?” Zheng Yuan frowned, clearly skeptical of his words.
Suddenly, of the two strange-looking men behind Zheng Yuan, the one with the python on his arm stared straight at Lin Jin, his expression menacing. His forehead was shaved bald and there was a tiny braid at the back of his head. He then asked, “Who is this?”
Zheng Yuan wanted to know too so his companion’s question came conveniently.
Zuo Wentang scoffed. “This is Chief Lin of Maple City’s Beast Appraisal a.s.sociation. I was drinking with Chief Lin at Grace Pavilion when something so terrible happened. I was referring to Chief Lin, who helped me fend against the monster just now.”
“Chief Lin?”
Zheng Yuan abruptly came to a realization. “I’ve heard of him before. So you’re Chief Lin. I’ve recently heard how Chief Lin defeated Yang Jie of the Friar a.s.sociation and was even promoted to a Rank 3 beast appraiser. What an honor to be able to meet you in person.”
His words sounded genuinely superficial.
Fortunately, Lin Jin didn’t mind it. Zuo Wentang was screaming on the inside out of joy when he realized how Zheng Yuan’s group genuinely couldn’t see Qu Wenji and the rest. This truly was amazing.
This was why he didn’t mind Zheng Yuan’s provocative tone.
He was aware of Zheng Yuan’s odd temper. The man would disrespect the city lord whenever he felt like it, never mind his steward.
And they couldn’t help it since the man was working for Grace Pavilion. Zuo Wentang would refrain from provoking them as well if he could afford to.
Compared to this, Zuo Wentang was much more impressed with Lin Jin’s skill. Three living, breathing adults were practically right under their noses but Zheng Yuan and his group were completely clueless of it.
Amazing.
This was too amazing.
Zuo Wentang realized that his greatest gain today was befriending someone as remarkable as Lin Jin.
After learning of Lin Jin’s ident.i.ty, the other three didn’t seem interested anymore and began pressing for further details from Zuo Wentang instead.
Zheng Yuan was a pretty competent investigator. Upon arriving at the scene, he managed to deduce from the clues available to him that Qu Wenji and Tilly were kidnapped by people from the Gra.s.sy Continent. And these kidnappers were formidable individuals at that.
“They mustn’t have gone far. Even if they had, they can’t be faster than eagles. Let’s give chase,” Zheng Yuan said to his companions. Then, he saluted Zuo Wentang and Lin Jin for the sake of formalities. “My good men, I would have loved to continue conversing with you, but as you know, I have work to attend to. I will be taking my leave now. However, I will visit you two again someday.”
Zuo Wentang returned a salute without saying more.
All of a sudden, Zheng Yuan froze.
Everyone else tensed up because Zheng Yuan was looking right at that freshly made mountain.
“How odd… how odd,” Zheng Yuan commented. “Why don’t I recall there being a mountain here?”
After a few pats and a shake of his head, Zheng Yuan muttered, “Maybe my memory was wrong.”
Having said that, he wasted not even a single second. He patted the eagle and they took to the skies immediately, heading west in pursuit of the kidnappers.
Of course, their search would end up unfruitful and their efforts were destined to be futile because what they were searching for was standing right before their eyes.
Once the trio and their eagles were gone, Zuo Wentang bowed at Lin Jin. It wasn’t just Zuo Wentang, but even Qu Wenji came forward and knelt down to pay her respects.
Lin Jin quickly helped her up.
“I can’t accept this!”
“You can!”
It was Zuo Wentang who spoke as he too got on his knees.
This prompted Lin Jin to help them both get up on their feet while panicking.
“Brother Lin, I, Zuo Wentang, will never forget the grace you’ve shown us today. From now on, if you ever need my help, just say the word. Whether or not I can fulfill it, I will do my best even if it means risking my life,” Zuo Wentang declared resolutely.
The debt he owed to Lin Jin was simply too great.
If it weren’t for Lin Jin, Qu Wenji wouldn’t be able to escape from the abyss of suffering. And no matter how capable Zuo Wentang was, he would never be able to save his lover from Grace Pavilion.
Now, he had succeeded. With just a bit of planning, he would soon be able to give Qu Wenji a new ident.i.ty. Zuo Wentang would also be able to get out of this situation unscathed.
Of course, he couldn’t leave at once because that would just arouse suspicion, especially from someone as sharp as Zheng Yuan.
At the thought of that person, Zuo Wentang quickly said, “Brother Lin, that guy from earlier won’t be easy to deal with. He’s incredibly strong and used to work as a detective for the government. It’s said that there’s no case he can’t crack and when he said he would come and visit us, I don’t think he was joking.”
Lin Jin smiled. “It’s alright. If your arrangements are proper, he may be suspicious of you, but what can he do without evidence? Moreover, you have City Lord Bai to s.h.i.+eld you so you’ll be fine.”
Zuo Wentang nodded and didn’t say any more. Now, he was only afraid of Zheng Yuan turning back so he had to make arrangements for Qu Wenji quickly.
“Wentang, Sister Tilly doesn’t have anywhere to go right now so can you arrange a temporary place of dwelling for her as well?” Qu Wenji asked softly.
Standing beside her was a pitiful-looking Tilly.
Zuo Wentang nodded. “Wenji, we’ll do whatever you say. Don’t worry, Miss Tilly has been of great help to us so it’s only appropriate that we help her out too.”
“What about him?” Tilly looked at the equally pitiful leopard monster, Lin Bao.
For Lin Bao, Lin Jin had some plans of his own.
Because of this monster, Lin Jin had probably offended an expert so he had questions he needed answers to.
But now was not the time for conducting the interrogation.
Lin Jin turned to Lin Bao and said, “Return to Gra.s.sy Continent’s Westward Country at once. Remember, don’t cover your tracks and it’s best if they are traceable. You can go into hiding immediately after you return and wait for this to blow over. I don’t think this will end easily. Even if Grace Pavilion stops pursuing the matter, with their King Yan dead, Westward Country definitely wouldn’t let things go. Find an opportunity to come back to me when that happens.”
This wasn’t a negotiation, and everyone here knew that. It was an order.
Lin Bao understood the gravity of the situation so he nodded at once. “Don’t worry, sir. Lin Bao remembers. I shall heed your instructions from now on.”
“Alright, please be careful on your way back.” Lin Jin waved.
At this, Lin Bao bowed before sprinting away.
The speed at which he moved on land was as fast as a bird gliding through the air.
“Sir, are you planning to let Lin Bao distract those three to buy Sister Qu some time?” Tilly asked.
Brilliant as she was, Tilly’s guess was correct.
However, Lin Jin wouldn’t praise her.
“Brother Zuo, I’ve achieved some enlightenment earlier so I’d like to return and study it. Please do as much as you can on your own, and if you ever need my help, you know where to find me,” Lin Jin said.
From this point on, Zuo Wentang didn’t really need much help from Lin Jin anymore. The latter had helped him too much that Zuo Wentang felt he couldn’t repay it in one lifetime.
“Brother Lin, hurry on back. Don’t worry, I’ll take care of things here.”
Lin Jin nodded. After saluting them all, he walked away slowly. Zuo Wentang and the others were left to wonder if something were wrong with their eyes as they watched Lin Jin leave. The man clearly didn’t walk fast but every step he took seemed like ten steps, and after a few more, he was already beyond the horizon.