Chapter 66: The Chronicles of Thatched Cottage

At the Qingzhou Guard’s Left Thousand-Household mansion.

Guo Cai’er lightly waved her hand toward Xing Tao and wrote on a piece of paper: “After you left, Prince Huai’s guard, Second Fool, attacked me. I used a life-saving technique, but still got injured.”

After finishing, she gently removed her clothing to reveal her pale left shoulder.

A horrifying blade wound appeared, deep enough to see the bone, still bleeding profusely.

However, this was not caused by Inviting Moon’s blade, but by the chaotic sword energy, which, when it erupted, unintentionally created the wound.

If it had been Inviting Moon’s sharpness and Second Fool’s speed, had the blade directly touched her body, she would have been split in two by now.

“Damn it, I should’ve killed that guard long ago.” The King of Simps was truly furious. He cherished Guo Cai’er like a treasure, and seeing his little darling injured like this made his anger flare instantly. “I’ll take care of it right now…!”

Guo Cai’er furrowed her brows slightly, waving her hand to interrupt him. She lowered her head to write: “Go get some medicine. The sword energy has shocked my internal organs; the internal injuries are worse than the external ones.”

“Got it.” Xing Tao responded immediately, his face serious as he added, “I was so close to catching that new Songstress and the woman who was wielding the throwing daggers, but Li Yan saved them. I suspect there’s something off about him.”

“What do the soldiers say?” Guo Cai’er communicated with him through writing.

“According to the soldiers’ description, they… they were about to catch the new Songstress, but they were led into an Obsession Illusion by her Spring Breeze Delight. Then Li Yan must have been enchanted, and in the end, he fled with the Songstress.” Xing Tao was well aware of the Songstress’s supernatural ability, so he was quite certain in his answer.

“If Li Yan only saved the Songstress, it would indeed raise suspicions of him being an undercover agent, but why would he save others as well?”

“…!” The crude Martial Artist was momentarily dumbfounded, unable to figure out the other’s motives.

“I feel like this isn’t as simple as it seems.” Guo Cai’er shook her head, continuing to write: “We made a move, and our target was everyone. Li Yan exposed his identity and powers to save everyone—why would he do that? I think he’s trying to buy favor and establish his dominance in the Court Faction, making everyone listen to him.”

Xing Tao nodded stiffly, “That makes sense.”

“We’re going to be isolated. The players in the Court Faction won’t trust us for the time being.” Guo Cai’er paused before continuing to write: “But it’s fine, let Li Yan handle everything on the frontlines. The undercover agents in the Court Faction will naturally act against him, and we can observe in the shadows. By the way, the other thing I asked you to investigate—how’s it going?”

Xing Tao shook his head. “I had the soldiers pay special attention. Among all the players present tonight, no one used any supernatural abilities through a book.”

“Go get the medicine.” Guo Cai’er wrote indifferently.

“Alright, I’ll be back soon.” Xing Tao nodded and hurried out.

Tonight, Guo Cai’er had tasked Xing Tao with two things: first, to force the players to reveal their abilities and then capture them all; second, she had him pay attention to whether anyone used a book during the conflict.

This book was called The Chronicles of the Thatched Cottage, and it contained crucial clues about the undercover player in the Court Faction.

However, this clue wasn’t something she had discovered in this Star Gate, but was instead provided to her earlier by Mr. He.

After leaving the Star Gate in the first act, the Bell Society used underhanded tactics. Mr. He and his group of subordinates went to Shanghai, preparing to target Ren Ye’s family while also gathering information about the Qingliang Prefecture Star Gate.

On the day Mr. He arrived in Shanghai, one of his subordinates found a piece of information about the Qingliang Prefecture Star Gate being sold in a player chat group.

The person selling this information was none other than Little Wolf Warrior.

After the transaction was completed, Mr. He and his group, showing no honor, chose to double-cross the seller and directly killed the body possessed by Little Wolf Warrior, taking the information without paying for it.

The information Little Wolf Warrior sold was worth a fortune.

This piece of paper not only recorded some construction details of the late imperial princess’s tomb, its historical background, and some maps of the tomb passageways, but it also contained a very clear and revealing piece of intelligence.

It was written as follows: “In the fifteenth year of Emperor Wu’s reign, the old Prince Huai, while traveling through the capital, inadvertently saved an orphaned child of a disgraced minister. This orphan was not yet four years old at the time. Due to the close relationship between this disgraced minister and the old Prince Huai, the old prince secretly adopted the child. When the child grew up, the old Prince Huai sent him into the capital to secretly collect information on the court, acting as an informant.

This orphan’s gender and appearance remain unknown to anyone, but there are rumors that… the old Prince Huai once gave the orphan a book called The Chronicles of the Thatched Cottage, and this book is the token of recognition between the orphan and the descendants of the old Prince Huai.”

The importance of this information was self-evident, almost directly indicating that there was an undercover agent of Prince Huai within the Court Faction, though they might not yet have recognized each other.

The information sold by Little Wolf Warrior was detailed and could withstand careful scrutiny, with a lot of supporting evidence to refer to.

In the previous act, Guo Cai’er had visited the capital. While carrying out tasks for Emperor Jing, she had also gone to the court’s archive and searched through many case files.

Among those files were the construction details and background of the late imperial princess’s tomb, as well as a file on the wild history of Prince Huai’s mansion. The file clearly recorded that the old Prince Huai had indeed helped a disgraced minister, and it was precisely because of this help that he offended the then Crown Prince, Emperor Jing…

Moreover, this minister’s orphan truly disappeared, and his identity was erased by Prince Huai’s people. Outsiders didn’t even know whether the orphan was male or female.

Combining what she already knew with the information from Little Wolf Warrior, Guo Cai’er was able to confirm the accuracy of the message. That was why she insisted that Mr. He purchase the information. However… she never expected that her own ally would be so shameless as to not even give a few yuan, choosing instead to rob Little Wolf Warrior.

Thus, Guo Cai’er knew before entering the second act that there was an undercover agent of Prince Huai within her faction, which is why she was so eager to stir things up tonight. She knew that one of the players had to be in possession of The Chronicles of the Thatched Cottage, and this item… could very well be their entry token.

Unfortunately, tonight the Chief Historian’s mansion was too chaotic, and Xing Tao didn’t manage to find anything.

But it was okay—only she knew this information, and sooner or later, the person holding The Chronicles of the Thatched Cottage would reveal themselves.

Whoosh!

Just as Guo Cai’er was lost in thought, the Disc Command hidden in her arms suddenly vibrated twice.

She reached out, took it out, and focused her consciousness on it.

“I am Li Yan. Heh, I don’t know how many ghosts are inside this Disc Command, but I suggest that comrades who truly swear loyalty to the court should stop using this to communicate. Oh, by the way, that idiot Qingzhou Guard’s Left Thousand-Household Commander, I wish your whole family dies!”

This time, Li Yan did not disguise his voice, angrily shouting in his own original tone.

The Disc Command remained silent—no one responded.

Guo Cai’er withdrew her consciousness and muttered softly to herself, “Tonight, this Li Yan saved all the players who appeared in the Chief Historian’s mansion… He’s clearly a very ambitious person.”

…

Prince Huai Mansion – Women’s Courtyard, a modest main house.

After treating her wound with a golden wound ointment, Zhang Meixuan’s delicate face turned bitter with hatred.

The elite lawyer from the real world was filled with loathing toward Xing Tao tonight. She was now convinced that the Qingzhou Guard’s Left Thousand-Household Commander was very likely the traitor embedded in the Court Faction.

Though he claimed to be rooting out the undercover agent, his actions tonight had targeted all the players indiscriminately.

If not for Li Yan using a divine ability to save her, Zhang Meixuan might have lost her life in the Chief Historian’s mansion.

What she didn’t know was that Li Yan had also intended to confirm the identities of other teammates tonight. However, before rescuing everyone, he was already affected by a charm spell, operating at the limits of his consciousness, unable to continue further actions.

Still, taking the risk to reveal herself tonight wasn’t entirely fruitless. At the very least, she was able to confirm the identity of one ally.

With that in mind, Zhang Meixuan finished treating her wounds, changed into a new outfit, and prepared to head out again.

As she stepped into the courtyard, she suddenly paused.

The sharp-minded lawyer reconsidered—although she was certain of her ally’s identity, there was no need to contact them directly. It was better to remain cautious and leave herself some room to maneuver.

After a brief hesitation, she turned and entered the adjacent servants’ quarters.

…

Half an hour later.

Chief Historian’s Mansion – Hall of Washing Flowers.

After cleaning himself up, Li Yan squatted on a chair, cursing aloud, “Damn filthy woman, ruined my plans!”

Tap, tap!

The sound of footsteps echoed as a servant rushed in. “Sir, a servant from the women’s courtyard requests to see you.”

Li Yan froze for a moment but showed no surprise on his face. “Let him in.”

“Yes, sir!”

Moments later, a simply dressed man walked into the hall and knelt, saying, “Greetings, Lord Li.”

Li Yan’s expression remained stern. “I don’t recall ever meeting you. What business do you have with me?”

“T-This humble one was sent by someone to deliver a message to you,” the man stammered, trembling as he knelt. “She asked me to tell you that she will never forget what happened tonight. She and you are both members of the Court Faction. Once inside the tomb, she will follow your lead.”

Li Yan pondered for a moment before leisurely picking up his tea cup. “Who is this person who sent you? What is her name?”

“She said you will naturally learn her name once you enter the tomb,” the man replied, bowing low.

“How, then, are we to recognize each other inside the tomb?” Li Yan asked with a sly smile.

The man hesitated briefly. “She said…”

“Enough. She’s been talking, so I suppose it’s my turn to say something,” Li Yan interrupted with a wave of his hand. After a moment’s thought, he stood up, walked over to a bookshelf, and pulled out a book.

With measured steps, he approached the kneeling man. His voice turned icy, and his gaze grew sinister as he asked, “If I told you that I would kill you unless you revealed the identity of the person who sent you, what would you do?”

The man paused before replying, “Then I would die.”

“Heh, loyal to a fault, aren’t you?” Li Yan sneered.

“A person only lives once. Who doesn’t have a few loved ones they’d give everything for?” the man replied evenly, neither humble nor arrogant.

Li Yan nodded slowly and handed the book to the man. “This item will serve as the token by which we recognize each other inside the tomb. Only she and I will know of it. Tell her to avoid contact with anyone else. The Qingzhou Guard’s Left Thousand-Household has allies, including a woman. One of them may be Prince Huai’s undercover agent, and the other might be the Songstress.”

“I will relay your message exactly as you’ve instructed.”

The man accepted the book, raised his head, and saw the title written in 6 large words:

THE CHRONICLES OF THE THATCHED COTTAGE!