Students were students, but those of Basking Moon Academy were naturally of a higher status. Tang Jie’s words were for etiquette’s sake, but actually forsaking this welcome would be lowering the prestige of the academy.
Hierarchy was omnipresent, as was abuse of this hierarchy. It was just that oppression was not something that needed only be expressed through words and facial expressions. The everpresent class differences were the greatest representation of the nobility of Immortals and the lowliness of mortals.
Elder Xu invited the three into the room, and Tang Jie immediately seated himself at the head seat. “We have come here to ask you about Lin Lang.”
“High Immortal, please ask as many questions as you please. This lowly one and his daughter will tell you everything we know.” Xu Xi’an pointed at himself and then at the young girl next to him.
The young girl was probably Xu Mujun. She was very beautiful, but she kept her head bowed and seemed unwilling to speak.
Tang Jie thoughtfully glanced at her and then sipped his tea. “I have heard that when Young Lady Xu was at Cloudflow Academy, she was on good terms with Lin Lang. Is this true?”
Xu Mujun softly nodded and answered, “Young Master Tang, this truly is the case. I had been away from home for the first time and had nobody around me upon entering the academy, leaving me very discomfited. At that time, Lin Lang appeared and helped. As time went on, I began to develop feelings for him. I did not think… I did not think that he would be so ambitious that he would become a spy for Godhead Palace…”
The girl began to sob.
Tang Jie corrected, “To be more precise, his father was a spy for Godhead Palace. As for the man himself, we cannot know until we catch him.”
The girl was taken aback by his words. “Young Master Tang, are you saying that Lin… he isn’t a member of Godhead Palace?”
“I haven’t said that he is or is not, only that we have to catch him first to confirm it,” Tang Jie indifferently said. “Right, Young Lady Xu, might I ask where you were when Lin Lang escaped?”
“I was cultivating in my residence.”
“Did he come to find you before running?”
The girl shook her head.
“How long was it after he left that you decided to go home?”
“Three days later. Young Master Tang, I will not lie to you. Although I left to carry out a mission, the mission was only an excuse. After the incident, I became extremely afraid that I would be implicated, so I quickly returned home.”
“You said that the Basking Moon Sect’s people came to find you not long after that?”
“Yes.”
“How long exactly?”
“Around ten days after.”
“Lin Lang has never tried to contact you after escaping?”
“No, absolutely not!” the girl firmly said. “This lowly woman can swear on her Heart Demon that this lowly woman had no contact with Lin Lang after the incident!”
“Oh?” Tang Jie glanced at the girl, and even Wei Tianchong and Shi Meng exchanged a glance.
Although swearing an oath on the Heart Demon wasn’t an absolute guarantee, the attention it had been given for such a long time had caused the majority of cultivators to take Heart Demon oaths very seriously.
If what Xu Mujun said was true, then didn’t this mean that Tang Jie’s conjectures were completely wrong? The trail left by the Basking Moon Sect might not mean that they already had a firm grasp of Lin Lang’s location. It was more likely that they had yet to verify their findings.
Tang Jie narrowed his eyes. “I see. Then tell me what you do know.”
Xu Mujun began to tell them everything she knew about Lin Lang.
Perhaps because she wanted to clear herself of suspicion, Xu Mujun was extremely detailed, recounting everything about Lin Lang’s interests, hobbies, and lifestyle, hiding nothing.
Wei Tianchong and Shi Meng were rather disappointed at the lack of results from this questioning.
It was already late in the night, so Tang Jie said, “Miss Xu, thank you for your cooperation. Please, accept my apologies for disturbing your estate at this hour.”
“Not at all, not at all!” Xu Xi’an hastily said. “Since the three of you are here, why not stay and have dinner before leaving?”
The Xu Estate had already prepared dinner for the three of them.
Tang Jie gladly accepted, and the three of them partook in dinner.
With the questioning done, the dinner conversation was much more relaxed and natural. The Xu Estate was particularly courteous, serving up good foods and wine, with even numerous precious spirit foods.
Tang Jie and the others feasted without courtesy, using this chance to chow down. As he ate, Tang Jie commented, “Mm, not bad, not bad. The Xu Estate deserves its place as a great clan of Fengyin, serving such delicacies. Yet it’s a pity…”
“What is Young Master Tang sighing about? If possible, we will do our utmost to serve the young master,” Xu Xi’an replied.
“It’s a pity that there are no redfruits from Yueyang. This is the best food for dissipating the effects of alcohol. There’s also no white lotuses from Linchuan, which are great for whetting the appetite, and I don’t see any of the honey lotuses from Sanjiang. That’s a true delicacy of the mortal world.”
Xu Xi’an was startled. “Is that so? Yueyang, Linchuan, and Sanjiang all border Fengyin. This old man is incompetent to not know of such things. In the future, I will certainly have them prepared for the young master.”
“It’s no big deal. Right, does this estate have any Jade Pine Tea? Taking this after a meal is excellent for clearing the mind.”
“Unfortunately, there is none,” Xu Xi’an said, starting to sweat.
“Ah, then forget it.” Tang Jie smiled.
He turned to Xu Mujun. “Right, there is something I would like to ask Miss Xu.”
“Young Master, please speak.”
“Not too long ago, I became acquainted with a female cultivator. I would like to get on better terms with her, so I would like to send her an embroidery to express my feelings. I have heard that Fenglin Park and Meijian Workshop have the best needlework in Yan Province, but I don’t know which is better. Miss Xu, as the daughter of a distinguished clan, must know more than me on this matter. I would like to hear Miss Xu’s opinion on the matter.”
“This…” Xu Mujun frowned, and then softly replied, “In the end, Fenglin Park’s work is a little better.”
“Is that so? Thank you.” Tang Jie grinned.
Once he was full of wine and food, Tang Jie finally stood up. “Miss Xu, thank you for your cooperation. It’s getting late, so we won’t trouble you anymore.”
As he showed his intent to leave, everyone in the Xu Clan sighed in relief, and they all went to the gate to send him off.
As they were walking through the estate, Tang Jie casually asked, “Right, the last time the Basking Moon Sect sent people, who came?”
Xu Mujun was surprised by the question and glanced at her father, who replied, “It was Esteemed Master Chang Yuping of the Basking Moon Sect and two of his subordinates.”
“Chang Yuping?” Tang Jie muttered. He still wasn’t part of the Basking Moon Sect, and his understanding of its internal structure was limited. He had more of an understanding of illustrious figures like Yan Changfeng, but the Basking Moon Sect had many Mortal Shedding Realm Spirit Masters, so he didn’t know much about them.
“Which hall did he belong to?” Tang Jie asked.
“The Law Hall,” Xu Xi’an replied.
“The Law Hall?” Tang Jie muttered. “What did Esteemed Master Chang say?”
“Esteemed Master Chang asked us questions and then searched the entire Xu Estate, only leaving once he confirmed that there was nothing. I thought the matter was over there, not expecting…”
Xu Xi’an did not continue, but it was easy to deduce that he wanted to say, “Your Basking Moon Sect has already confirmed that my Xu Clan has no connection to Lin Lang, so why did you come again?”
“I see.” Tang Jie suddenly laughed. “I presume that the Xu Clan already spent a lot from that, yes?”
Xu Xi’an was stunned, and then he smiled. “Not at all. The Sageheart Kingdom is protected by the Immortals so that we might enjoy fine weather and bountiful harvests every year. This old man has nothing but admiration for the Immortals. High Immortals, it must have been hard to come such a long way. The Xu Clan must present a meager gift to express our gratitude, and if you should accept, you would be giving my Xu Clan much face.”
He waved his hand, and servants came forward, presenting to them several sillk boxes.
Tang Jie opened the box and glanced inside. Inside were spirit coins, not silver taels, and each box had at least one thousand.
When he saw this money, Tang Jie’s gaze darkened, but Wei Tianchong and Shi Meng seemed delighted.
It had to be understood that even though Wei Tianchong came from a great clan, when it came to spirit coins, he also felt that he never had enough.
It was easy to talk the talk, but when temptation was truly presented before one’s eyes, the vast majority of people would fail to resist the temptation.
Wei Tianchong couldn’t help but reach out to those three silk boxes, but to his surprise, Tang Jie slapped his hand away, after which he lightly pushed the silk boxes back.
Xu Xi’an was stunned by the sight. “Young Master Tang, what do you mean by this?”
Tang Jie slowly said, “The students of Basking Moon have undertaken a mission to hunt down Lin Lang, and we came here to investigate his whereabouts. So long as the Xu Clan obeys the law, it does not need to worry about anything.”
Xu Xi’an angrily smiled, “Is Young Master Tang saying that my gesture is out of a guilty conscience? If Young Master is dissatisfied, you may simply accuse my Xu Clan of harboring a fugitive!”
“That won’t be necessary,” Tang Jie lightly said. “I am only saying that we are only carrying out an impartial investigation and will not rashly accuse innocents. Sir, there is no need for you to be anxious.”
“Then this old man will put his worries to the side.”
At this time, they had reached the gate.
Just when they were about to leave, just when Tang Jie was about to step through the gate, he suddenly asked, “Miss Xu is in your fourth year. Can I presume that you are at the Spirit Lake Tier?”
“Yes, I am at the Spirit Lake Tier,” Xu Mujun replied.
“I have heard that the Xu Clan has only the one daughter, so all its hopes are on your shoulders.”
“Mujun is incompetent, lacking in virtue when meeting others and failing in my studies, and now, I have only placed a great burden on my clan,” Xu Mujun answered, lowering her head.
“So you are the only cultivator of the Xu Clan?”
“Yes.”
“How strange. Why do I remember the Xu Clan also having a servant student, then?” Tang Jie abruptly remarked.
Xu Mujun’s body shuddered.
Tang Jie chuckled and strode out of the gate.
Once he was out of the Xu Estate…
Tang Jie’s face instantly sank.
Wei Tianchong saw that his expression wasn’t right and asked, “Are you frustrated that you weren’t able to confirm anything? That’s not necessary…”
He was about to comfort Tang Jie when Tang Jie shook his head. “Lin Lang is in the Xu Clan!”
He spoke with such confidence that the other two were startled.
Shi Meng hastily said, “But that Xu Mujun swore a Heart Demon oath. She did it so confidently that I don’t think it was fake.”
Tang Jie countered, “The problem is this: is she actually Xu Mujun?”
“Huh?” The two of them were dumbstruck.
Wei Tianchong pointed at Tang Jie and said in a quavering tone, “You… you’re saying that that girl, she… she… She wasn’t Xu Mujun?”
“Of course!” Tang Jie spat at the ground. “Her acting was so bad that if she was Xu Mujun, then I’m True Person Changfeng!”
Shi Meng asked, “How do you know that she isn’t Xu Mujun?”
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