Chapter Ninety-Five: Lodging Arrangements

Shangguan Chuci’s suggestion struck everyone as sensible. Lin Jianyan also nodded and said softly, “Young Master Chu speaks wisely. This is indeed not the time for further investigation; rest and recovery should come first.”

No sooner had she spoken than one of the armored guards of the Demon Suppression Bureau stepped forward. With a clatter, the black-gold chains in his hand rattled, and he was about to bind the brother and sister of the Hundred Tempering Sect once more. In a low voice, he said, “Since that is the case, then please accompany us back to the Bureau for a few more days.”

The senior brother had already been like a startled bird, and now that iron chains were set upon him, the arrogance in him flared up again. He shouted angrily, “What do you mean by this? My junior brother and I risked our lives just now to scout the way for you. Even if we cannot claim credit, we have at least borne hardship. Is this how your Demon Suppression Bureau treats those who have done you a service?”

The guard’s face remained expressionless as he replied coldly, “Merit is merit, fault is fault. Those are two separate matters. Your corruption by the Dao runs so deep; how could we put the two of you in this town and rest easy?”

“Rest easy?” The senior brother let out a cold laugh. “Lock the two of us in your Demon Prison, and the people of Zhenhai will of course be safe enough. But I’m afraid that within three days, my junior brother and I will have our Dao hearts shattered and become true fiends. By then, when you cut us down, that will be another great merit for the Demon Suppression Bureau!”

As the two argued, Lin Jianyan’s delicate brows furrowed. At last she spoke up. “There is no need for the two of you to worry. The Demon Suppression Bureau has its rules and will never slaughter the innocent. I can guarantee in the name of the Bureau that once this tidal calamity has passed, your identities will be properly verified, and you will be allowed to leave in peace.”

Her voice was gentle, and everyone present felt the tension in their hearts lessen somewhat.

Yet the senior brother still wore an expression of distrust.

Hearing their exchange, Lu Chenyuan’s gaze shifted. He thought that this might be a chance to come into contact with, and learn more about, the immortal sects of the Nine Provinces. Besides, Shangguan Chuci and her numerous powerful guards were still at the inn, so there should not be any real trouble. Thus he said, “Since the two of them are so resistant to the Demon Suppression Bureau, why not let them return to the inn and rest?”

Once Lu Chenyuan had spoken, the armored guards of the Demon Suppression Bureau immediately suppressed the impatience on their faces. They almost reflexively bent and were about to answer, “Yes.”

But halfway through the word, they realized that would not be appropriate. Their expressions turned strangely strained, and they looked to Lin Jianyan for her instruction.

For a moment, the whole place fell silent.

The senior brother had been about to erupt again, but at those words he suddenly quieted down.

He first looked at Lu Chenyuan, then at the gentle and kindly Lin Jianyan, and said earnestly, “I think what the commissioner says makes perfect sense! The Dao corruption on us is severe indeed, and we are truly a danger. We should return with the officers and be kept under watch in the Bureau. That way the people of Zhenhai can truly be at ease!”

His change of attitude was so abrupt that everyone was stunned.

Lin Jianyan looked at him in astonishment, unable to understand why he had been resisting so fiercely a moment ago, only to seem like a different person after Lu Chenyuan said one word.

At that moment, a soft laugh escaped someone’s lips: bright, clear, and pleasant to the ear. It was Shangguan Chuci, who could no longer hold back.

She snapped open the white jade folding fan in her hand, as though to hide the smile she could not suppress. After a short pause, she said, “The two of you do not trust the official offices of the Demon Suppression Bureau, yet you think my friend’s inn is a place even more dangerous than the Demon Prison. Saying it that way makes things rather difficult for us.”

She paused, then looked at the embarrassment on the senior brother’s face and went on, “Why don’t we each give a little ground and meet halfway?”

“Commissioner Lin,” she said, turning to the girl holding the lamp, “why not stay in Brother Lu’s inn as well?”

“In that way, you can keep an eye on this brother-sister pair and prevent them from causing any trouble. And secondly, you can also guard against our Proprietor Lu doing anything improper to them. What do you think?”

Only then did Lin Jianyan understand, after seeing the look of reverence and fear on the faces of the brother and sister.

So these two were actually terrified of Lu Chenyuan to this extent!

On reflection, though, it was hardly surprising.

Even she, the commissioner of the Demon Suppression Bureau, had mistaken him for a capricious demon the first time she met him. How much more so for others?

And yet for some reason, when she thought of it now, the fear in her heart had faded quite a lot. In its place arose a feeling she could not quite name.

To stay at the inn… well… it did not seem impossible…

Lu Chenyuan took in everyone’s expressions and did not know whether to laugh or cry.

He suddenly remembered the two of them whispering on the beach earlier. By now, in their hearts, he was probably already some unfathomable old demon.

Just as he was lost in thought, he saw Commissioner Lin, who held the lamp, stealthily glancing at him. The moment their eyes met, she looked away at once like a startled doe in the forest. She coughed lightly, and two faint patches of red even rose on her refined, oval cheeks.

As if to cover it up, Lin Jianyan said, “Young Master Chuci’s suggestion is indeed not bad. It is just that… I wonder what Proprietor Lu thinks? Are there any spare rooms left in the inn?”

At that, Lu Chenyuan smiled and said loudly, “Of course there are. Ever since Manager Qian left, the guests have scattered, and there are plenty of empty rooms. Let alone three more people—even if another dozen came, there would still be enough.”

Hearing this, the senior brother cursed inwardly all the more. This brat had said earlier in the day that the guest rooms were full, and now he claimed there were plenty of vacancies. He truly changed his face faster than flipping a book!

He only felt that he and his junior sister had already been targeted by this young demon, and that from now on they might never know another peaceful day. He could hardly suppress his misery.

Who would have thought that the junior sister beside him would, at this moment, incline herself slightly toward Lu Chenyuan and make a small bow?

“Since that is the case, then my senior brother and I shall trouble you.”

And so, the brother and sister settled at the Tide-Watching Inn, while the group from the Demon Suppression Bureau returned to their office to rest and recover.

Just after everyone returned to the main hall, Shangguan Chuci was about to go upstairs when she suddenly turned back. Her lovely eyes swept across Lin Jianyan and the brother-sister pair, and a trace of barely perceptible mischief flashed deep in them.

With a crisp snap, she closed the white jade folding fan in her hand and smiled. “It is fine if others do not know Brother Lu’s temperament. But since the three of you can now be counted as half one of our own, let me speak in Brother Lu’s stead and tell you a few of the local unwritten rules.”

The junior sister from the Hundred Tempering Sect was startled by this, and curiosity also appeared in her cool eyes. She asked, “Unwritten rules?”

Lu Chenyuan was even more baffled. He thought to himself, I’ve been helping out in this inn for so long—when did I ever hear of any rules like that?

Seeing everyone’s expressions, Shangguan Chuci’s smile deepened. “I call them the ‘Strange Tales of the Tide-Watching Inn.’ Since you are all staying here, it would be best to know a few things in advance.”