Chapter 10: Successful Infiltration

Chapter 10: Successful Infiltration

Xue Qinghe frowned as he looked at the young girl who had been brought before him by the cavalry. She wore plain coarse linen, as ordinary as could be, and had short, unremarkable hair.

Why was he encountering another roadblock? Xue Qinghe couldn't help but sigh inwardly.

"First Prince, have you encountered some trouble?"

Wang Si, hearing the commotion outside, poked his head out of the carriage, curious.

Then he saw a little girl with light golden hair, currently being held by two cavalrymen in front of the carriage.

Seeing Wang Si, Xue Qinghe offered an apologetic smile. "My apologies, Brother Wang, for this spectacle."

Xue Qinghe comforted Wang Si and then turned to the knights holding the girl. "Release her and let her explain why she stopped us."

Hearing the First Prince's command, the knights let go of the girl.

As soon as she was freed, the girl rushed towards the carriage.

The cavalrymen reached out hastily, but they couldn't catch the little girl.

Fortunately, she had no ill intentions. She simply knelt down with a plop beside the carriage, a little closer to Xue Qinghe.

"Noble sir, please be my savior!"

After kneeling, the girl started to kowtow repeatedly, her forehead hitting the ground with a series of loud thumps. This action caused Xue Qinghe to furrow his brows, and he glanced discreetly at Wang Si.

Noticing Wang Si's curious expression, Xue Qinghe breathed a slight sigh of relief.

Surely it couldn't be that he had just recruited an "inside man" and now someone from the other side had come to make contact?

He was overthinking it; this girl was probably just an ordinary person.

"Tell me, what is your difficulty?" Xue Qinghe, known for his magnanimity, politeness, and affinity with the common people, maintained his outward image by suppressing his irritation at the interruption. He spoke gently, wanting to hear the girl out.

"Noble sir, last night, my drunkard father came home and accidentally killed my mother. Then he knocked me out and tied me up, saying he would sell me to an inn for alcohol money! When I woke up this morning, he was still asleep, so I used a pair of scissors to cut the ropes and ran away.

Please, noble sir, help me. I don't want to be sold to an inn by my drunkard father."

The girl sobbed as she showed everyone the deep, bloody marks on her wrists.

Hearing this, Xue Qinghe's frown deepened. If he were to uphold the principle of seeing good deeds through to the end, he wouldn't be able to simply rescue this girl; he would also need to arrange a good place for her to go.

"Wang Si, do you have any suggestions for this girl?" Xue Qinghe turned to Wang Si, leaving the decision to him.

Wang Si was taken aback by the sudden question. He glanced at Xue Qinghe and then at the girl kneeling on the ground, his expression conflicted for a moment.

Then he pushed those thoughts aside and leaned closer to Xue Qinghe's ear. "First Prince, for her to have accurately stopped your carriage, she is definitely not an ordinary girl. As for the marks on her wrists and her story about her father, they are most likely a pretense."

As he spoke, Wang Si felt a sense of oppressive scrutiny. This gaze was targeted and hostile, and it felt more oppressive than the gaze of a Douluo-level soul master.

He had experienced the gaze of a Douluo before, and it hadn't felt like this.

So this must be… a Title Douluo.

Damn! Someone from the Spirit Hall had found them.

Xue Qinghe sensed Wang Si's hesitation and realized that someone from the Spirit Hall was likely trying to communicate with him.

This set off alarm bells in Xue Qinghe's mind. Someone from the Spirit Hall had managed to arrive in Tian Dou City unnoticed, and the royal Douluo-level Soul Master in hiding had not detected them.

Undoubtedly, this person was a Title Douluo.

Title Douluo!

Xue Qinghe swallowed hard. He had hoped to catch a big fish, but this one was a bit too big for him to handle!

"So, Brother Wang, what do you suggest we do now?" Xue Qinghe felt that even the Tian Dou royalty was no longer safe. Although Wang Si was a spy from the Spirit Hall, he had just reminded Xue Qinghe of his presence.

Yes, he had reminded him. Just as the royal Soul Master had said, Wang Si was merely a "disposable piece" in the Spirit Hall.

Now that he had felt Xue Qinghe's goodwill, he wanted to repay it, which meant that they were now in this together.

Wang Si suggested in a soft voice, leaning in close to Xue Qinghe.

"We cannot decide the life and death of your father based on your words alone, but you certainly cannot go back.

At eight or nine years old, it's the perfect time to start your education. I'll send you to the Tian Dou Royal Academy.

Although the Royal Academy hasn't started its term yet, there are still some teachers residing there."

Xue Qinghe pretended to ponder for a moment before replying in a calm and reassuring tone to the girl who had stopped his carriage.

The girl kneeling before the carriage pursed her lips and then banged her head on the ground a few more times.

"Noble sir, I only have a second-rank innate soul power. Even if I enter the Soul Master Academy, I won't amount to much.

Please, noble sir, take me in. Although I may not have the delicate features and figure of other girls, I can take care of people."

The girl emphasized the words "take care of people."

These words caused Xue Qinghe to frown, and just as he was about to rebuke her, he suddenly felt two pokes on his waist.

Xue Qinghe immediately became alert.

Could it be that the Title Douluo was making a move? Was the plan to plant an insider foiled, and now they were resorting to assassination?

How domineering!

Xue Qinghe complained inwardly, but he stepped down from the carriage and approached the girl. He lifted her chin with his hand and nodded in an appraising manner.

"You're being too modest. Your looks are indeed quite pleasing."

Xue Qinghe took out a token from his storage-type soul guiding device and began instructing the surrounding soldiers, who were standing by nervously.

"You men, escort her back to her home and find her father. If her father is indeed as she described, idle and planning to sell his daughter for alcohol money, you have my permission to execute him on the spot.

Afterward, if anyone seeks to hold you accountable, present this token. Deal with her father, and then send her to the Royal Palace."

Xue Qinghe addressed the soldiers but handed the token to the girl.

"Once you arrive at the Tian Dou Royal Palace, you can tell the guards that you are a new maid for the Crown Prince's mansion. The guards will take you for an assessment.

If you pass the assessment, you will be allowed to stay, but if you fail, then I'm afraid you will have to leave."

After the girl received the token, Xue Qinghe provided her with further instructions for her journey ahead.

Once everything was arranged, Xue Qinghe returned to his carriage and departed.

...

Not far from this commotion, in a nearby tavern, She Mao Douluo and Ci Tun Douluo furrowed their brows.

"Young Master, that fellow by Xue Qinghe's side is truly troublesome. If not for his reminder, Xue Qinghe wouldn't have gone through all this trouble."

Seated across from them was an eight or nine-year-old girl, her eyes tightly shut as she exhaled softly.

"It's done. We will proceed with the plan from here."

Qian Renxue's eyes remained closed as she seemed to be manipulating the distant body, performing some actions.

"Young Master, wasn't our infiltration plan interrupted? Why are we still proceeding with the original plan?"

She Mao Douluo asked, puzzled.

Clearly, due to the presence of that man by Xue Qinghe's side, their plan to plant a spy had failed. Why was their young master still insisting on carrying out the original plan?

By doing so, wouldn't they expose many of their undercover agents in Tian Dou City?

"I have a more convenient method for infiltration. We'll just follow our initial plan.

Some of our undercover agents will likely be discovered, but you don't have to worry about that. We can even afford to abandon one or two core agents."

She Mao Douluo and Ci Tun Douluo exchanged glances upon hearing this, bewildered by the mention of abandoning core agents.

They had come to infiltrate in the first place, so why were they now willing to give up core members?

Qian Renxue offered no explanation.

If the Tian Dou City had undercover agents from the Spirit Hall, then the Spirit Hall might also have its own spies in the Tian Dou City.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end