Chu Ming watched the stall owner's back, his brows slightly furrowed.
He always felt that something was off.
It didn't take long for the tea stall owner to bring up the freshly brewed tea, "Please enjoy, sir."
Chu Ming responded casually, his gaze falling on the tea.
Under the [Sword Gourd Spirit], the dirt in the water, the veins of the tea leaves, even the scratches at the bottom of the cup were all crystal clear to him.
"Um..." The tea stall owner didn't leave. He stood in front of the small wooden table, smiling broadly at him.
"Is there something else?"
The tea stall owner bent over even more, the wrinkles on his face stacked due to his smile, looking somewhat unsettling, "The payment for the tea."
"How much?"
"Three coins for old tea, five coins for new tea."
Chu Ming reached into his chest pocket, then pretended to freeze.
He slowly pulled out his hand, a hint of embarrassment flashed across his face.
"I'll pay you after I finish drinking."
"Young sir..." The tea stall owner seemed to notice something, his smile fading a bit, "This is a small business I run..."
"I said, after I finish drinking." Chu Ming lifted his gaze, revealing a clear look.
The tea stall owner hesitated for a moment, but eventually sighed and left.
Chu Ming stared at the tea on the table, activating the [Sword Gourd Spirit] once more.
"Tea stains, tea leaves, broken leaves... Could I have been mistaken?"
There were no visible toxic elements in the tea, and the leaves were indeed new. It seemed fine.
He lightly shook the teacup, stirring the tea, yet still did not detect any unusual particles.
After a pause, Chu Ming set the teacup down, glancing casually toward Wheat Alley.
He needed to observe the movements inside Wheat Alley before making his next plan.
At dusk, when Captain Hou went home for dinner, that would be his opportunity.
He waited for over half an hour, with more and more pedestrians stopping by the tea stall for a drink.
At sunset, Chu Ming did not see Captain Hou or Housekeeper Fang, but instead, three individuals dressed in Flying Fish Suits arrived at the tea stall first.
Baiyuan County's Criminal Defense Bureau!
One glance was enough for him to recognize their identities, linking them to what Hou Wuchun had mentioned. These three were likely the ones threatening Captain Hou and Housekeeper Fang.
"Oh my, the three lords are early today." The tea stall owner hurriedly brought up three cups of tea.
"Did I ask for new tea?" One of them overturned the small wooden table holding the teacups, aggressive in demeanor.
"My master doesn't drink new tea, don't you know?" Another kicked the rolling teacup, speaking coldly.
The tea stall owner hunched over, continuously apologizing, "Yes, yes, I'm getting old, my memory isn't good, I remembered wrong, remembered wrong. Please sit here while I make new tea."
The commotion wasn't too loud, yet the surrounding stalls could hear it clearly.
As their gazes gathered, even the pedestrians on the road stopped to watch.
Chu Ming remained unperturbed, his eyes flashing coldly.
These three were doing it deliberately.
"Captain Hou and Housekeeper Fang are hiding near Wheat Alley, staking out the murderer, but the Criminal Defense Bureau, wearing Flying Fish Suits, swagger over to Wheat Alley to drink tea, and even make a scene to harass the tea stall owner."
"If the murderer is around, he definitely wouldn't dare come over."
"Which means Captain Hou and Housekeeper Fang are just wasting their time."
Although he understood the purpose behind the actions of the three from the Criminal Defense Bureau, he did not act rashly, choosing to sit quietly.
As pedestrians dwindled, shadows of the buildings lengthened, eventually covering the entire street.
"Let's go." Shao Pengshu brushed open his Flying Fish Robe, readying his sword as he stood.
"Master, the girls from the Fragrant Garden have been arranged." Zhang Yii bowed as he spoke.
The three men coldly scanned the area, causing the tea stall owner to shrink back in fear.
Once they had left, the tea stall owner cautiously emerged, cleaning up the mess.
"Grandpa, let me help you."
Just then, from under the table where the tea stall owner brewed his tea, a little girl dressed in hemp cloth crawled out, with dirt and ash on her face.
"No need, Grandpa can handle it." The tea stall owner swiftly cleaned up the table and chairs overturned by the Criminal Defense Bureau.
The little girl blinked and approached Chu Ming, "Big brother, it's getting dark, aren't you going home?"
The tea stall owner approached, looking at the untouched, long-cooled tea on the table, pulled the little girl behind him, "Young sir, we need to close up, could you..."
Chu Ming looked into the girl's bright eyes, embarrassment fleeting across his face again, "Old man..."
However, before he could continue speaking, the tea stall owner interjected, "The tea isn't good, no charge for the young sir. We live quite far, we need to close up."
Chu Ming paused for a moment, smiled at the girl, and then left on his own.
If the tea stall owner was suspicious, he deliberately didn't drink tea, didn't pay, and pretended to act suspicious himself. That should have alerted the other party.
With that alert, the other party might take action and reveal a flaw.
"What a strange big brother." The little girl picked up Chu Ming's teacup, sniffing it with her rosy face, then turned to the tea stall owner, "Grandpa, that big brother is a scholar, isn't he?"
The tea stall owner's eyes flashed slightly as he continued to clean up the tables and chairs.
Chu Ming left the tea stall, crossing to the other side of the street at the alley's entrance, a somber expression crossing his face.
"Wheat Alley, murder, Arresting Office, Criminal Defense Bureau..."
He walked to the end of the street, using the night to hide himself in the shadows.
"Alley entrance, tea stall, Criminal Defense Bureau, the elderly tea stall owner, little girl..."
His brows gradually furrowed.
"Is there anything I've missed?"
"The tea shows no problems," he recalled every detail from sitting at the tea stall to leaving it.
Just as he was deep in thought, the tea stall owner had finished tidying the stall, walking down the street with the little girl, likely going home.
Chu Ming hid in the shadows, his eyes suddenly focusing.
At that moment, he caught the tea stall owner glancing surreptitiously toward Wheat Alley.
"Clearly there is something wrong."
A series of murders had recently occurred in Wheat Alley; normal pedestrians would walk along the side of the street far from the alley entrance. Yet the tea stall owner strolled down the center of the street with a little girl, seemingly unafraid.
"Grandpa, I'm scared." The girl clutched the tea stall owner's pant leg, her childish voice echoing on the mostly empty street.
Inside Wheat Alley, several figures hurriedly emerged.
"Damn it, wasted another day." One of them seemed quite displeased.
"Let's go quickly, I'm starving. If Captain Hou sees us coming out of the alley entrance, he'll scold us again."
"Old Yuan, are you still patrolling tonight?"
"Yes, I have no one overseeing me, patrolling at night earns a little extra money, doesn't it?"
"Ha ha."
The three constables had just stepped out of the alley when they saw the tea stall owner and the little girl standing in the middle of the street.
"What time is it, why are there still people here?" One of the constables swore under his breath.
They'd been staking out Wheat Alley without anyone knowing, forbidding entry through the alley entrance.
"Old man, you didn't see anything, hear me?" Another constable stepped forward to threaten.
The tea stall owner nodded, "Don't worry, lord official, don't worry."
Saying this, he hurriedly pulled the little girl along, their steps somewhat hasty as they departed.
"Haha, that's how it goes. An old fool with a brat, if they dare speak up, they won't survive in Liuu Town."
Even though they were merely junior constables from the Arresting Office, in the eyes of ordinary people, they were unapproachable officials.
"Alright, I'm really hungry. My wife is waiting for me."
"I'm hungry too, there's plenty of good food on South Street, I'll go first."
"You are truly famished." The constable named Old Yuan chuckled, "Quick and clean, don't waste time. We still need to stake out tonight."
South Street, also known as Old Flower Street... A place to seek fallen blossoms and wilted willows.
"No worries, my skills are familiar to you."