Universe Infinite Canteen

Gu Qingyi thought for a moment, "So someone used Merry Woods' name to borrow a large sum of money and let that Beggar's Gang Member gamble. When he lost, they threatened him in the name of Merry Woods to steal the Lotus Bowl. Who could that person be?"

Ma Lu looked towards Lady Yin, "Did any other suspicious people visit Merry Woods that day?"

Lady Yin said, "I have many customers every day, coming and going. It's impossible for me to remember all of them, or to say I have much of an impression of most."

"Can we talk to the croupiers of the gambling house?" asked Ma Lu. "That person, since he could pretend to be someone from Merry Woods, obviously is very familiar with this place and must have been here before to check things out."

"Moreover, after lending money to that Beggar's Gang Member, he would also have to follow him to see if he really went to Merry Woods, and to make sure the Beggar's Gang Member lost all the borrowed money. Logically, he should have been at the scene at that time as well."

Lady Yin raised an eyebrow, "If you aren't worried about being misunderstood by the Beggar's Sect, then come in. I will call out all the croupiers from the gambling house and let you ask them questions."

Upon hearing this, Ma Lu and Gu Qingyi followed Lady Yin through the entrance of Merry Woods, passed the bathhouse behind the main gate, and arrived in the courtyard.

Lady Yin asked the two to sit and wait for a moment, and after a while, a group of young girls came from the connecting corridor across from them.

The girls were of various shapes and sizes, each with her own charm, all exceptionally beautiful.

However, like Lady Yin, they were all dressed in martial attire, with short swords at their sides, and their pretty faces full of unease. Find your next read on My Virtual Library Empire

Seeing them, Gu Qingyi couldn't help but sigh. With the conflict between the Beggar's Sect and the Heavenly Dragon Sect escalating, no one could stay out of it; she wondered how many of these girls would survive until dawn.

But as much as she felt for them, she didn't forget the task at hand, and together with Ma Lu, they questioned each of the young girls.

And indeed, they found new clues.

These girls were picked by Lady Yin to be croupiers at Merry Woods not only for their good looks but also for their keen eyesight and exceptional observational skills.

According to a croupier named Mu Dan, there was a man with a red birthmark under his right ear following the Beggar's Gang Member when he came to gamble.

Mu Dan initially didn't know the relationship between the two because they didn't speak to each other.

However, each time the Beggar's Gang Member lost money, he couldn't help but glance at that man, which made Mu Dan remember him.

According to another croupier named Qing Lian, a man with a red birthmark under his left ear had also visited Merry Woods to gamble before, and he had come for three consecutive days.

Sometimes he would watch others gamble, and sometimes he would join in. However, he did not bet much, winning some and losing some, nothing noticeable.

Qing Lian paid attention to him because even though he spoke in the local accent, she had never seen him in Yuchang County before.

Additionally, Qing Lian noticed another detail – his fingers were covered with calluses.

"That man must also be a martial artist, and he has killed before," Qing Lian tilted her head and contemplated, "Although he didn't carry a weapon, there was a murderous aura about him, and he had companions."

"Companions?"

"Yes," Qing Lian was certain, "They pretended not to know each other, each gambling on their own, but occasionally there would be an exchange of glances. That man, like him, also had a murderous aura."

"Ah, now that you mention it, I recall as well," interjected Mu Dan at that moment.

"That day, there were two men at the same table as the Beggar's Gang Member who had very fierce eyes, but they were a bit different, they kept avoiding eye contact, yet it seemed a bit too deliberate."

"Ah, so there's more than one person setting this up?"

Gu Qingyi had already formed an answer in her heart after asking.

In order to pretend to be someone from Merry Woods lending money to the Beggar's Gang Member and then ensure that the latter lost all the money within Merry Woods, clearly one person wouldn't be enough.

This new clue immediately excited her again, as finding a group of people was always easier than finding just one, especially since those guys had very distinctive features.

A group of fierce-looking jianghu folks would surely stand out no matter where they went.

Ma Lu also thought of this and asked Lady Yin, "Can you help us find these people?"

He was also just trying his luck, after all he knew the current situation of the Heavenly Dragon Sect; compared to the Beggars' Sect, they were at a disadvantage, so basically all their manpower was hunkered down on their own turf, more accurately, within a few strongholds.

Unexpectedly, Lady Yin nodded after hearing this, "Give me half a dual-hour, as long as this group is still within Yuchang County, I'll be able to find them."

Half a dual-hour later, a young server dressed like one from a restaurant came to Merry Woods, bringing information about the whereabouts of that group.

The good news was that they were still within Yuchang County; the bad news was that the dye workshop where they were hiding belonged to the Beggars' Sect, and neither the young server nor other members from the Green Dragon Sect could get in.

Especially at this critical juncture, they couldn't just barge in by force.

Ma Lu inquired about the location of the dye workshop, thanked Lady Yin, and then left Merry Woods, heading there with Gu Qingyi.

After stepping out, Gu Qingyi looked up at the sky, the sunset had already begun to tilt westward, and there was at most half a dual-hour left before the sun would set.

She didn't know if there was still a chance to prevent the great battle between the Beggars' Sect and the Heavenly Dragon Sect, but since there was a new clue, she had to continue the investigation if only to uncover the truth.

The two quickly arrived outside the dye workshop; the main gate of the workshop was tightly closed, with no Beggar's Gang Members standing guard outside, and it was unclear how many people were inside.

Gu Qingyi worried that barging in recklessly would put them in danger, and just as she was thinking whether to seek help from Chu Qianyuan, to her surprise, Ma Lu had already kicked open the main gate and rushed in.

Ma Lu's reasoning was simple; since the dye workshop belonged to the Beggars' Sect, he wasn't sure about the relationship between those hiding inside and the Beggars' Sect. Going to seek help from them now might just startle the snakes in the grass.

The most crucial thing was that there wasn't enough time. If the Beggars' Sect and the Heavenly Dragon Sect actually started fighting, the ensuing chaos would mean that no one could guarantee that these people would still obediently stay inside the dye workshop.

After all, this place was Yuchang County; both Ma Lu and Gu Qingyi were outsiders here. Their intelligence, network, and resources they could mobilize were no match for the locals.

So at times like these, they had to act fast. While contemplating carefully before acting could avoid dangers to a certain extent, it also made it easy for the correct answer to slip through their fingers.

Ma Lu kicking the door of the workshop took the people inside by surprise.

The four sturdy men in the front yard were playing cards and showed astonishment on their faces when they saw Ma Lu and Gu Qingyi rush in.

Ma Lu raised his hand, scattering a handful of small stones, but this time, there were actually two men who dodged out of the way.

This was partly due to Ma Lu not having properly practiced hidden weapons, but clearly, the agility of those two men was also not weak.