Chapter 63
This… was a bit too surreal.
Mu Qing was utterly stunned inside, but on the surface, she still managed to keep a calm expression—mainly because Sister Qin Qin looked like she was about to burst into tears right then and there. If she broke down now, the two of them would just end up crying together.
Forget it. After all that effort, and they’d ended up with nothing.
What a total “what the hell” kind of situation.
Mu Qing even worried there had been some emergency—maybe those who had been hunting them suddenly showed up.
She’d been genuinely concerned they’d been ambushed and wiped out by forces sent by the Second or Third Prince.
But after she thoroughly searched every room she’d visited before, she couldn’t find a single clue—granted, she had no martial training, couldn’t fight, but she’d watched enough martial arts and detective dramas to know some basics of scene investigation.
Like—were there signs of a struggle? Any blood, or suspicious items left behind…?
To improve efficiency—and to keep herself from panicking—Mu Qing even gave part of the search to Sister Qin Qin.
She gently comforted the teary-eyed, anxious Qin Qin, then decisively assigned her a task. Unexpectedly, after a round of searching, Qin Qin suddenly burst into tears.
“Sister Qing, I didn’t find anything at all. Am I useless…?”
She started crying right away, and Mu Qing nearly lost it on the spot.
Still, she had to pull herself together and console her. “Don’t cry, Qin Qin. I didn’t find anything either. And actually, finding nothing might be a good thing—it could mean they’re not in trouble.”
Qin Qin sniffled. “But… what if they didn’t even have time to react before being captured?”
…Little sister, that’s just… cruel.
Qin Qin’s blunt words hit Mu Qing square in the heart, leaving her briefly stunned.
Because honestly, she had to admit—Qin Qin made a solid point. Signs of struggle would obviously indicate they were attacked. But the absence of such signs didn’t prove they weren’t.
After all, if the attackers were overwhelmingly powerful, it could explain a clean scene—no evidence left behind.
That was some scholar-level analysis. No wonder she was the beloved daughter of Baihe Academy’s famed Elder Qin.
A true top student. Even in a completely unrelated field, she still shined.
Motivational speeches weren’t going to work here. She was too smart to be fooled by empty words.
Mu Qing sighed silently, then quickly shifted into problem-solving mode. No matter what the reason—whether they left voluntarily or were abducted—the fact remained: they were gone.
One of the reasons she’d searched so thoroughly was to look for a message—some clue her husband or Miss Yanran or even Ying Thirteen might’ve left her.
A note, a token, a scrap of anything.
Even just a single word, a trace of intent—anything would’ve helped.
But no. There was nothing.
Worse yet, if she and Qin Qin stayed here, they’d be sitting ducks—drawing unwanted attention.
That was the one thing she was certain about. So instead of standing around like fools, it was time to find a new angle.
Mu Qing stood in place for a moment. Just as Qin Qin’s tears were about to fall again, she finally came up with a new idea—go to the jade shop.
As they say, if the monk’s gone, the temple is still there.
Thinking back on everything recently, Mu Qing realized it had all started when she bought that jade pendant at the shop.
Someone had put it there deliberately.
Out of all the jewelry shops in Tongzhou, that jade piece hadn’t ended up in any of the others. It had been placed specifically in Boss Wang’s shop.
That alone was worth thinking about.
Not to mention—the unremarkable shop assistant turned out to be one of Xiao Wu’s people.
Between her husband’s subordinate Ying Thirteen, and Xiao Wu who could casually pose as a shop hand, this original novel’s world really was starting to feel straight-up fantastical.
Originally, her attention had been on the protagonist Liu Feng’s path to greatness—or rather, the way he collected women and soared to the top.
As for these quirky, supporting characters with dramatic backstories—she’d never paid much attention.
Now she was realizing there were all kinds of strange details buried beneath the surface—martial arts, secret identities, even conspiracies? What happened to normal plotlines? The whole thing was starting to feel like a crossover between detective and fantasy genres.
Mu Qing internally grumbled but stayed sharp.
She comforted Qin Qin a bit more, stopping her pearly tears from falling again—at least enough to steady her for the next task.
Qin Qin was really something. Just a moment ago, she’d been sobbing like a tragic heroine, but after a few words from Mu Qing, she’d straightened up with an eager expression—like she was excited to team up as a detective duo.
Mu Qing didn’t know whether to laugh or sigh. But what could she do? Qin Qin was just too cute to stay annoyed at. Might as well roll with it.
Since Qin Qin had no objections to heading to the jade shop for clues, the two set off together right away.
Their inn was on Tongzhou’s busiest main street, and the jade shop wasn’t far. They arrived quickly.
The store was as busy as ever.
But the shop assistant from before was gone.
The one they’d seen at Xinghua Tower—the one who’d helped Xiao Wu—was nowhere to be found.
Mu Qing wasn’t surprised. Her real target today was the shop owner, Boss Wang.
Naturally, when she asked the new assistant, the answer was, “The boss isn’t in today.”
But she didn’t take that at face value.
So, it was time to use a different tactic.
Namely—money talks.
Mu Qing didn’t waste her breath. She grabbed Qin Qin and started shopping.
She always carried silver notes, and though she hadn’t dabbled in jade before, she actually had a decent understanding of it.
Because she liked it.
Out of all jewelry types, jade was her favorite. Her personal collection included bracelets, hairpins, pendants, rings—too many to count.
She especially loved rare colors and high water-quality stones.
And as the saying goes, the more you look, the more you learn.
After one casual circuit around the store, Mu Qing had already picked out several exquisite pieces.
And as for Qin Qin—she was no slouch either. Elder Qin had once been a top-ranked scholar, and the family had a long line of literary excellence. Though their bloodline was thin now, their noble bearing remained.
For such families, jade was a staple. It was a scholar’s favorite accessory. Qin Qin, raised under Elder Qin’s influence, had become a true jade enthusiast.
With excellent taste and sharp eyes.
Which meant, of course, the pieces she picked were all expensive.
In less than half an hour, Mu Qing and Qin Qin had browsed nearly everything in the store.
They did intend to buy—but artfully.
Buy less, buy quality—and offer critiques. That was key.
They each selected a delicate, unique item. Not necessarily the most expensive by total price, but by unit weight? Definitely.
And both pieces had story. After purchasing, they opened the boxes on the spot, admiring them while offering commentary.
Naturally, a crowd of curious customers gathered around.
Soon, others were asking the two “fairy-like sisters” to give opinions on their chosen items.
“This bracelet has good translucency, but these lines here—see the fissure? It ruins the look.”
“Oh, this hairpin is a great pick. Excellent carving. But sadly, it’s just mid-tier icy jade, not glassy at all. Asking eighty taels is really too much.”
Mu Qing and Qin Qin gave honest reviews—sometimes praising, sometimes criticizing—and quickly tanked several potential sales.
After just half an hour, the shop was practically deserted.
The new assistant was about to have a breakdown. He came over and tried to be polite several times. Mu Qing and Qin Qin graciously fell silent whenever he asked, but as soon as they turned to leave, the crowd would beg them to stay and give more feedback.
Eventually, the poor assistant was so desperate he was ready to kneel. But the crowd of ladies had already chased him away.
Of course, Mu Qing and Qin Qin weren’t deliberately ruining business.
It was just… one positive recommendation per ten people. And those few transactions weren’t high-value. So overall, yeah—the shop was losing money.
The assistant was a mess. He’d probably figured out what they were really there for. But whether he lacked courage or had other reasons, he still didn’t call the boss out.
Not until half an hour later, when Boss Wang finally emerged on his own. The same middle-aged man from before.
He looked at Mu Qing and Qin Qin, sighed helplessly, gave them a respectful bow, and said:
“You two ladies win. I give up. Tell me—what is it you want to ask?”
Mu Qing smiled, rose from her seat, and returned the greeting politely. “Boss, I hope you won’t take offense. It was a bit urgent, so we had to resort to this clumsy trick. Don’t worry—those items the other girls were picking? We bought them all. And we picked out a few more for good measure. You won’t lose out.”
Boss Wang gave a wry smile. “Miss, you’re really something… With words like that, what can I even say? Go ahead, ask what you came to ask.”
Seeing he was willing to talk, Mu Qing didn’t beat around the bush. “Then I’ll get straight to it—Boss Wang, may I ask… who is your employer?”
