"Achoo!"
"Achoo! Achoo!"
anwhile, Yang Xiao, who was sitting in the office, had sneezed several tis in a row, to which Xi nxiu passed a cup of coffee over, winking and teasing, "Xiao, could it be that soone is thinking of you?"
Hearing this, Yang Xiao smiled, his mood quite good as he didn’t mind joking with Xi nxiu, and after a mont of contemplation, he said, "Probably so bored woman who can’t stop thinking about . No worries, I’m used to it."
"It could also be soone from the Yu Yuan Sect." Beibei, who had been busy reading comics with her legs up on the desk, took the ti to turn her head and glance over.
Shush, shush, shush—
After putting his pen down, Yu Shu picked up a notebook, which had a line of words neatly written in beautiful font: The Yu Yuan Sect has won too.
Da Xiong closed the webpage he was browsing and joined in the conversation, "Speaking of which, that mysterious person from the Yu Yuan Sect is really powerful. They managed to tie with Qu Muzhi and then rescued soone right in front of so many of our brothers."
"Yeah, that incident had a very bad impact. The specifics have been sealed off, but the rumor mill has it that Qu Muzhi threw the fight, that he knew the person who ca to break the prisoner out," Beibei said in a lowered voice, sounding secretive.
"Exactly, I’ve heard that too. The story inside is very complicated. It wasn’t anything as simple as luring the enemy into a trap. The woman from the Yu Yuan Sect was intentionally released by Qu Muzhi, she’s his brother’s girlfriend." Da Xiong got more and more excited as he spoke, "The one who did the prison break was an old friend of his, indebted to him."
"No, that’s not right, I have insider info. The person who ca wasn’t a man at all, but a woman in disguise! Her real identity is an intimate friend of Qu Muzhi from many years ago, and the captured evil cult woman is her bosom buddy. Qu Muzhi, recalling old feelings, didn’t finish her off," Xi nxiu declared with conviction.
Yang Xiao: "???"
Everyone in the office kept adding lines to the gossip, with Yu Shu unable to get a word in and resorting to cracking open a bag of sunflower seeds, showing great interest in listening. In just this short while, the prison breaker’s gender and even sexual orientation had changed several tis. A love triangle had unfolded between the prison breaker, the captured evil cult woman, and Qu Muzhi.
Seeing Yang Xiao stay silent, Beibei turned around and curiously asked, "Chief, what do you think about the prison breaker? What kind of person are they?"
"Um... they should be a man." Yang Xiao spoke up to defend himself, "Their sexual orientation is normal as well, they had so tactics, but out of fear of our brothers lying in ambush nearby, they didn’t dare to protract the fight. After rescuing the person, they left. He doesn’t know Qu Muzhi, nor is there any lodramatic secret love triangle. He’s a normal man with normal thoughts."
"Impossible, that’s not right," Xi nxiu imdiately refuted Yang Xiao’s self-narrative, turning to ask Beibei, "Ms. Bei, where were we just now?"
"This person harbored an unrequited love for Qu Muzhi and wanted to destroy him." Beibei answered excitedly.
Da Xiong touched his chin, pondered for a mont, then nodded, "It sounds strange, but the more I think about it, the more it makes sense."
Yang Xiao: "Where does it make sense? Co on, you guys tell , where is there a shred of sense in that?"
Just as Yang Xiao beca agitated and wanted to defend himself, Yu Shu raised his notebook: Chief, matters of the heart can’t be asured rationally.
Soon after, Yu Shu put down his notebook, wrote sothing briskly, then lifted it again, displaying a new line of text: You don’t have a girlfriend, you wouldn’t understand.
In the face of the combined antagonism from the other four mbers of the team, Yang Xiao was forced to agree that the prison breaker was a complex individual who had harbored a hidden love for Qu Muzhi for years, had a strong masochistic tendency, appeared physically male yet identified psychologically as female.
Finally making it to noon, Yang Xiao was relieved to see the so-called analytical masters leave. It had brought so rare peace to his ears; the morning’s events had raised his blood pressure.
After a quick lunch at the cafeteria, which left him with no appetite due to annoyance, he planned to return to the office for a short nap. But just as he lay down, the office phone rang. It was Nalan Shuo, asking him to co over right away.
Yang Xiao had anticipated Nalan Shuo coming to look for him, so without any rush, he took out his backpack, retrieved the Ghost Duster, secured the horsetail whisk end with a rubber band, and wrapped the handle with pre-prepared bark-colored tape. Having stuffed the duster back into his backpack and slung it on again, he checked over his plan once more on the way. Finding no issues, he proceeded to knock on Nalan Shuo’s door.
After closing the door, Nalan Shuo sized up Yang Xiao from head to toe, his gaze full of scrutiny. After a mont, he said coldly, "Did you cause the trouble at the City Center Official Residence?"
"It was ." Yang Xiao admitted openly.
"What are you trying to do?"
"I need to divert the City Center Official Residence’s attention onto the Yu Yuan Sect to clear my own suspicions." Yang Xiao finished speaking and his mouth opened again, but then it closed without making another sound.
"Is there sothing else you want to say?" Nalan Shuo asked.
After hesitating, Yang Xiao spoke up, "I admit I have a personal agenda."
"Speak."
"I heard from Ms. Wen that next month the Provincial Office will send soone to inspect the preparedness of all the offices in Rongcheng. Rongcheng is eligible to nominate a deputy director-level chief, and only you and Chief Huang are on the inspection list. As your subordinate, I hope to lend you a helping hand."
Upon hearing this, Nalan Shuo let out a cold laugh, "Is this the answer you’re giving ?"
Unfazed, Yang Xiao replied, "One who receives favor repays with loyalty. Although my thods are hardly refined, the results are clear and evident. I, Yang Xiao, have no other intentions but to repay the grace you have shown , chief. Let this be my little bit of selfishness."
"Judge by words and observe by actions. Since you say you are loyal to , why haven’t you told the truth?" Nalan Shuo folded his hands on the table, creating an oppressive atmosphere.
"I don’t understand what you’re talking about. I’ve admitted that I was the Prison Breaker and that I was the one who wrote the poem on Chief Huang’s office wall. What do you an by hiding anything?" Yang Xiao looked puzzled.
Nalan Shuo pulled open a drawer, took out a kraft paper bag from within, and slid it across the table surface, stopping right opposite Yang Xiao, "See for yourself."
Yang Xiao picked up the kraft paper bag and found a docunt inside. From the markings, it was clear the docunt was destined for the Provincial Office. It detailed the process of his fight with Qu Muzhi, and there were descriptions of his use of the Human Bone Staff and Soul-Capturing Mirror as well.
"The ability to appear suddenly must be the Soul-Capturing Mirror’s doing. What is that short stick, and just how many things are you hiding from ?" Nalan Shuo slamd the table forcefully, causing Yang Xiao to shiver in fright.
But after the initial panic, Yang Xiao quickly regained his composure; he had fully expected this outco and imdiately started explaining with a contrite expression, "This... this is a misunderstanding. That’s not a short stick, it’s the Ghost Duster. I was worried about being recognized, so I disguised it a bit."
Upon hearing this, Yang Xiao took the initiative to take out the Ghost Duster from his backpack and demonstrated to Nalan Shuo how to insert the horsetail whisk end into the sleeve and hold the handle to use it like a stick.
Nalan Shuo also beca sowhat doubtful by this display, and he countered, "I’ve looked into the information on the Black Buddha Mother, the Helmsman of the southeast. It’s said that the Ghost Duster is used with extre brutality, leaving a bloodied and unrecognizable scene. But according to Qu Mu’s report, your wooden Magic Artifact only damages the spirit, not the body."
"That’s because I didn’t want to hurt him; after all, he is also a brother from the Patrol Defense Office. If not for brotherhood, at least for the bonds of comradeship," Yang Xiao gently waved the duster, feeling the surging power fluctuating, aid at the side wall of the office, and said confidently, "Chief, if you don’t believe , I can demonstrate it right now."
This move turned Nalan Shuo’s face white with fear. He leaped up from his chair and shouted, "Stop, stop imdiately, STOP!"
There were very few records on the Little Holy Spirit White-Robed Buddha Mother in the Provincial Office, mostly just bloody scenes from after the slaughters. No one knew the extent or nature of its abilities, and Yang Xiao had counted on exactly this.
"Chief, do you believe now?" Yang Xiao held the Ghost Duster, gesturing vaguely in Nalan Shuo’s direction.
"I believe, of course, I believe you, now please put away your powers, be careful not to attract attention," Nalan Shuo hadn’t expected Yang Xiao to be so forthright, whipping out his treasure at the slight sign of conflict.
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