"Murder?"
Chen Ming was taken aback at first, then hurriedly said, "You can't say things like that recklessly. I'm a law-abiding citizen. You can't accuse an innocent person out of thin air."
"Law-abiding?"
Wang Yangming sneered, "Just over a month ago, you committed a crime and were sent to prison, and yet you still claim to be a good citizen? I think you're a habitual offender."
Chen Ming vigorously shook his head, "I was framed. Lord, if you investigate, you'll find the truth."
Wang Yangming shouted sternly, "Today, I'm investigating your murder of Xiao Lin. Confess honestly! Otherwise, you'll have to explain it in the prison of Six Gates."
Chen Ming's face changed, "It seems you are determined to pin this crime on me. We have no grudge or enmity, so why are you framing me? Do you think I'm easy to bully?"
Wang Yangming put on a stern face, "I bear no grudge against anyone. You know whether you killed someone. Confess, and you'll suffer less. The people in prison won't be as lenient as I am."
In the past half month, he hadn't found many useful clues. However, relying on his experience and intuition, he knew the murderer must be this Chen Ming.
It's a simple deduction. If it were one of Xiao Lin's other enemies who killed him, they would have left their name to claim revenge.
Rather than staging a suicide.
The only one with such a motive, recent enmity with Xiao Lin, and the ability to kill was Chen Ming.
Unfortunately, the other party handled it too cleanly.
Wang Yangming couldn't find any evidence, so he straightforwardly confronted him. Determined to take him down today, no matter what.
As long as he confesses, no one can find fault with it.
Wang Yangming believed that Lord Zhao would be very pleased with this gift.
Lord Zhao, new to the position, needed to establish authority.
Huo Chengkun, as a respected elder of the city, with numerous disciples, never opposed Six Gates, making him a perfect target for establishing authority.
He had inquired that Chen Ming served as a sparring partner for Huo Chengkun's disciples at the Huo Mansion but wasn't a true disciple of Huo himself.
Targeting this person wouldn't provoke much resentment from Huo Chengkun.
However, to outsiders, Chen Ming was an instructor at the Huo Mansion. Taking him down would also tarnish the Huo Mansion's reputation.
A perfect candidate for establishing authority without overly offending Huo Chengkun.
Just perfect!
...
"My lord!"
At this moment, Chen Rui rushed in from outside, excitedly saying, "There must be some misunderstanding here. I swear on my life, my brother would never kill anyone!"
Wang Yangming didn't even glance at him, only fixated on Chen Ming, raising his chin, his tone cold, "Did you hear that? Your brother wants to shelter you, so I'll have to arrest him too. If you don't want to involve your family, you'd better confess now. I can let him go."
"You—"
Chen Rui never expected that this constable from Six Gates would use him to threaten his brother. Shock and anger overwhelmed him, rendering him speechless for a while.
Chen Ming's slightly bent back slowly straightened, gazing sharply at this constable from Six Gates, "Are you sure you want to break things off with me?"
Wang Yangming appeared disdainful until he heard a faint "crackling" sound from Chen Ming's body, his face abruptly changed, exclaiming, "Muscles and bones resonating? You've reached Ninth Grade?"
How is this possible?
Too shocked to control his facial expression, he turned extremely unsightly.
What?
His second brother reached Ninth Grade?
Chen Rui, caught between shock and anger, froze on the spot upon hearing this, staring at his brother in disbelief.
...
After a moment of internal struggle, Wang Yangming finally chose to leave.
He himself possessed Ninth Grade cultivation, believing his strength sufficient to take down Chen Ming.
However, without knowing his opponent's background, it wasn't wise to make a deadly enemy.
"It's strange. Wasn't it said that this one's talent was mediocre, enough that even the Huo Mansion couldn't keep him? How did he suddenly become a Ninth Grade martial artist?"
Stranger still, if he had this kind of ability, how was he imprisoned over a month ago?
If he had displayed his cultivation, would the owner of Jin Yuansheng dare to treat him like that?
The more Wang Yangming thought about it, the more wrong it felt.
There's definitely something unusual going on here.
...
At the Chen Mansion, in the hall.
Chen Rui looked at Chen Ming, hesitantly asking, "You really... reached... Ninth Grade?"
"Brother, don't let anyone else know about this yet."
Chen Rui's breathing became rapid, trembling as he asked, "You... mean to say, you... really are a Ninth Grade...?"
"Yes."
After receiving a confirmed answer, Chen Rui's eyes moistened, "Ancestors above, our Chen family has finally produced a martial artist..."
Saying this, he stumbled and ran towards the rear courtyard. Judging by his demeanor, he seemed to be heading to the ancestral hall to inform their parents and ancestors of this matter.
Chen Ming initially wanted to remind him of a few things, but seeing him like this, he shook his head silently and let him go.
Now, he finally had time to ponder today's events.
"Normally, Six Gates wouldn't meddle in disputes among martial artists. Old Xiao was a loan shark, lowlife. Dead is dead. Why does this Wang keep pressing the issue?"
He searched the original owner's memories but found he didn't know this constable named Wang, had never even heard of him, let alone had any enmity with him.
There must be something shady here.
A sense of urgency welled up in Chen Ming, "This person named Wang is ultimately a hidden threat."
...
Chen Ming arrived at the Huo Mansion two quarters of an hour later than usual.
Today, the Huo Mansion was in a jubilant mood, with every servant wearing a joyful expression.
Only then did he remember that today was the day Wen Zehao was coming to the Huo Mansion for a betrothal gift.
A few days ago, Huo Qianqian had just celebrated her sixteenth birthday, which, by custom, meant she could get married.
It's said that the ceremony was very lively at the Huo Mansion that day, with many guests invited.
But it had nothing to do with him. He spent the day as usual, going to the Deng Mansion in the afternoon, not attending the ceremony.
Arriving at the martial training grounds, only the students were practicing on their own, with neither the fifth nor the third senior brothers present.
Of course, the groom's side came for the betrothal gift, and they, being part of the bride's family, naturally had to be there.
Initially, those students were practicing lazily, with many slacking off when no one was supervising, just going through the motions.
As soon as Chen Ming arrived, they immediately became tense, training vigorously and without a hint of laxity.
During this period, he'd already established his authority among the students, earned through strength, leaving no one unsatisfied.
He wasted no time and said, "Who's first today?"
Those students immediately stirred, "Senior Brother Chen, isn't today a day of celebration? Are we really doing this?"
"Exactly, with Seventh Brother's proposal happening today, don't you want to join the fun and share in the joy?"
"Senior Brother Chen, when are you going to get married?"
...
"Silence!"
Chen Ming shouted, suppressing their chatter, "As the saying goes, 'A fist is never away from the practice, and the song never leaves the mouth.' One day without practice makes your moves slow, two days without it loses half. For martial artists, there's no day off."
Seeing him so stern, the students didn't dare to ramble on. They quieted down and, as usual, took turns sparring with him.
...
Until the sparring ended around midday, Chen Ming hadn't seen Hong Mingquan, so he left first. He figured it could wait until tomorrow to ask.
In the afternoon, he went to the Deng Mansion, serving as a sparring partner for Deng Ziyang's group.
Before he knew it, the day had passed.
...
The next morning.
At nine in the morning, Chen Ming arrived at the Huo Mansion promptly, only to find the atmosphere somewhat strange today; the servants no longer bore joyful faces.
He paid it no mind, proceeding to the martial training grounds, where he found Hong Mingquan and Zhang Mingyu sitting in the pavilion drinking tea, though both wore somewhat grave expressions.
Instinct told him something had happened.
Chen Ming hesitated about whether to approach, but then saw Zhang Mingyu beckoning him over.
He went over and sat down; before he could inquire, Zhang Mingyu sighed, "You weren't here yesterday. Something big happened in the mansion."
He cautiously asked, "What happened?"
"Little Sister, she's not getting married."