Chapter Ninety-Nine: Late-Night Visitor

"Do not ask, do not interfere."

What on earth was his respected teacher trying to tell him? What message was hidden behind these words? His mentor had never told him that he was a descendant of Li Si. As for this hidden compartment, his teacher must have anticipated that he would inevitably be forced to seek out the *Book of Heavenly Fate*. Whether he obtained it himself or someone handed it to him, it would eventually fall into his hands. Viewed in this light, his mentor must have acquired this book and deliberately placed this letter inside the *Book of Heavenly Fate*.

His mentor would also have known that if an outsider obtained the *Book of Heavenly Fate* and carelessly damaged its contents, a descendant of Li Si would be unable to directly unlock the secret behind the Yishan Stone Inscriptions. Thus, this setup guaranteed the complete preservation of the contents within the inner layer. Outsiders—or cautious figures from powerful factions—would never recklessly extract what was hidden in the interlayer, as no one wished to court taboos.

Looking at the four powerful, vigorous characters on the letter, Li Zisheng fell into deep thought. What did his mentor truly mean? His teacher was a man of boundless learning, a great master of ritual studies, and possessed profound insights into the ways of officialdom and human nature. How could he not understand the superficial truth that when one enters the pugilistic world, one's actions are no longer one's own? He himself was merely a commoner; how could he possibly be so carefree as to say he would not care, simply because he was told not to? To say "do not interfere, do not care" was sheer fantasy.

Just as his desire to kill Deng Qing was not without foundation—Deng Qing had indeed gone too far—Li Zisheng had roughly guessed that his mentor's death was inextricably linked to Deng Qing.

At the same time, he had wanted to test Yanhong's standing within the Three Tastes House, as well as the organization's ultimate capabilities. He had never expected the Three Tastes House to possess such immense influence. A mere master of the White Tiger Hall could casually agree to assassinate a high-ranking imperial official. Although Yanhong had demurred with a few polite evasions, her subsequent agreement had been exceedingly prompt. This alone demonstrated that even a single branch hall possessed extraordinary might, forcing Li Zisheng to elevate his estimation of the Three Tastes House to an even higher tier.

Even someone as powerful as Deng Qing could have his life and death decided with a single word, merely because Li Zisheng had casually mentioned it to the master of a Three Tastes House branch. Under such circumstances, his mentor could not possibly have failed to anticipate this outcome. Yet, despite all this, his mentor had still left behind these four characters, proving that there must be a profound and hidden meaning behind them.

Li Zisheng could not yet fathom the true meaning, but one thing was certain: since his mentor had explicitly told him not to ask and not to interfere, it indicated that immense danger lurked beneath the surface—a danger far exceeding the lives of merely one or two individuals.

As Li Zisheng was deep in thought, a series of knocks suddenly sounded at the door.

"Master Li, are you asleep?"

The voice was entirely unfamiliar, belonging to a woman whom Li Zisheng had never encountered before.

"No. Who is outside?"

"Master Li, I was sent specifically by Miss Ling'er."

The person outside spoke in a calm tone.

"Come in." Since Sister Ling'er had sent someone at this late hour, her words implied the gravity of the situation.

"What is the matter?"

"Master Li, Yanhong cannot be trusted."

As soon as the woman slipped into the room, before saying anything else, she dropped this abrupt statement. It felt completely out of place to Li Zisheng, who could not grasp the crucial point of her warning.

"What do you mean?"

"I originally thought Master Li was a clever man, but it turns out you are merely a fool."

Without offering any explanation as to why Yanhong was untrustworthy, the woman went straight to rebuking Li Zisheng.

Li Zisheng did not fly into a rage out of embarrassment; after all, he had yet to hear what Ling'er actually wanted to convey.

"What is your purpose in coming here? What message does Ling'er have for me?" Abandoning all pretense of pleasantries, Li Zisheng directly questioned the woman's motives.

"Didn't I just say it? Yanhong cannot be trusted. Miss Ling'er simply sent me to tell Master Li this single sentence."

"You are having me watched?" Li Zisheng demanded sharply.

"Watched? Not quite, not quite. It is merely a matter of protecting the person Miss Ling'er brought along. Since we must ensure everyone's safety, it is inevitable that we keep an eye on them at all times to prevent any unnecessary mishaps. Wouldn't you agree, Master Li?"

Upon hearing this, Li Zisheng felt a vein throbbing on his forehead. This was shameless—the woman possessed enough audacity to dress up the act of surveillance in such a refined and casual manner. It was practically an insult to his intelligence.

Ignoring her entirely, Li Zisheng turned back to his book and began flipping through the pages, paying no heed to the subtle shift in the woman's expression.

"You!" Seeing his attitude, the woman grew furious, resembling a tiger whose whiskers had just been yanked.

Li Zisheng continued reading his book, completely indifferent to the changing moods of the woman sitting opposite him.

"Don't you want to know why Yanhong cannot be trusted? Why Miss Ling'er sent me to tell you this?"

The woman seemed to be driving herself to distraction, glaring at Li Zisheng with deep displeasure.

"No."

Li Zisheng replied with a single, calm word that drove the woman even closer to madness.

"Why?"

Losing her composure, the woman demanded in an aggressive tone, deeply offended that her authority was being flouted.

"No particular reason. I simply do not care to know." Making it clear that he had no intention of sparing her feelings, Li Zisheng calmly deflected her angry inquiry.

"Hmph! You may not want to know, but I am going to tell you anyway." Looking at him with a stubborn glint in her eye, the woman clearly wished to salvage some of her wounded pride through her words.

"Yanhong and Deng Qing are old acquaintances—and acquaintances of a deeply intimate nature at that. Previously, Deng Qing wanted to eliminate you simply because you were in contact with Ashina Zanghe a bit too closely. Therefore, Yanhong will undoubtedly seize the first opportunity to eradicate you completely. Staying in this territory holds no long-term future for you, which is why Miss Ling'er sent me to give you a warning. Very well, I have said all that needs to be said."

Having finished, the previously imposing woman haughtily turned her head away, refusing to look at him as if trying to calm her riled emotions.

This piece of news somewhat surprised Li Zisheng, though its credibility remained open to question. He could not simply conclude that Yanhong and Deng Qing were in cahoots based solely on the word of this unidentified woman. Li Zisheng was not so pedantic as to assume that any connection automatically implied complicity.

Even so, there was no smoke without fire; there must be some substance to these rumors, otherwise this woman would not have been so utterly convinced.