When the book-traveling little detective meets the two-faced prince

Chapter 388 Integrity: How Can One Not Go Hungry?

Although Kwan Chi-hang had tried his best to smooth things over, upon closer inspection, many parts were still far-fetched and even riddled with loopholes.

But on the ship, because it was a very small passenger ship, everyone was very close together, so Lin Lezhi didn't feel comfortable asking questions and had no room to speak.

From the moment they boarded the ship, almost everyone was talking about Jiang Lian'an solving another bizarre case, and everyone praised her.

Fortunately, they stayed on the island during the investigation and then stayed at the inn, so very few people knew what Jiang Lian'an looked like.

As long as they don't admit it, no one will recognize them.

But hearing them talk about what he had done still made him feel a little awkward. However, when the people were talking, they were all talking about Jiang Lian'an.

Therefore, Lin Lezhi had the feeling that they weren't talking about him, but rather that they were just repeating hearsay about other people's stories.

But halfway through the journey, some people got bored, and since there was nothing else on the ship to pass the time, they took out a book from their pockets to read. It was discovered that the book was by Wuyouke.

The conversation quickly shifted from Jiang Lian'an to Wuyouke.

"I heard that in the Huaifeng Village case, Qi Xi, the only survivor of Huaifeng Village, cleverly used Wuyouke's book 'Four Great Mysterious Cases' to replace one of the cases and reveal the truth of the Huaifeng Village case."

"I've heard about it too. This Carefree Guest has become very popular since he first started out. After this case, his storybooks will probably sell even better than before."

When they were talking about Jiang Lian'an, Lin Lezhi didn't really feel it, but when it came to Wuyouke, Lin Lezhi really felt it.

I felt like I was sitting on a hot stove; my face was burning hot.

Upon hearing the name "Worry-Free Guest," Guan Ziheng tensed up completely, his face stiffening. Liu Yunhe, on the other hand, listened with great interest, even wishing he could become one of them.

While listening to others talk, Liu Yunhe kept an eye on the various expressions that flashed across Lin Lezhi's face.

Feeling embarrassed, Lin Lezhi's eyes darted around and accidentally met Xiao Yihuo's gaze.

As if sensing the reason for Lin Lezhi's anxiety, Xiao Yihuo looked at Lin Lezhi with a leisurely air, a meaningful smile appearing in his eyes. Lin Lezhi quickly looked away.

Lin Lezhi didn't know where to look. The boat was so small. His gaze fell on Xiao Yihuo's hands, where he was holding a small copper pot. Since he had given it to him, it had almost never left his hands.

He seems to be really cold.

He had kept quiet for a long time because he was afraid that the people around him would worry.

Thinking of Xiao Yihuo's body, Lin Lezhi couldn't help but feel guilty. After all, he was the culprit.

"What? You haven't heard yet?"

"What did you hear?"

"When I went to the bookstore to buy storybooks a few days ago, the bookstore owner told me that Wuyouke suddenly stopped writing and it seems that there will be no new books published in the future."

Upon hearing this, many people present looked regretful.

"What a pity! The Huaifeng Village case is now known to everyone. Whenever it is mentioned, people will probably bring up his storybooks. If he had continued writing, the next book would definitely have been in high demand."

"Maybe they just don't want to make this kind of money. Aren't scholars and writers supposed to be very principled?"

Listen and.

Lin Lezhi was not only being roasted on a hot stove, but also felt like she had been stabbed.

Integrity, how much is it worth?

Does his integrity keep him from going hungry?

He has no scholarly integrity whatsoever; who would turn down a pile of hard-earned money?

He had been writing the book for about three months, and it sounded incredibly popular, but he was still completely broke. After that, Guan Ziheng wouldn't let him take any money, and he truly didn't have a single copper coin on him; he was penniless.

If he hadn't been too busy writing afterwards, he definitely would have seized this opportunity. Who would give up such a great opportunity to make a lot of money and reach the pinnacle of life for no reason? Nothing is more useful than real money.

Without money, you can't get anywhere, no matter what dynasty you live in.

Is it possible...

Are you really going to go begging yourself?

At this moment, a clever commoner thought, "Do you think Qi Xi might be Wuyouke? The book 'Four Great Mysteries' was just published not long ago, and he just happened to use it as a replacement. What a coincidence!"

"You know what, it's actually quite possible. He's gone to the military camp with General Dingyuan now. Once he's in the military camp, he'll have to train hard every day. How will he have any chance to write books? He'll definitely have to stop writing altogether."

Surprisingly, many people find this claim credible.

Lin Lezhi now finally understands why the story of him receiving a book as a gift after hearing interesting tales has spread throughout the martial arts world.

That's the power of the martial arts world—to turn something that didn't happen into something that did, based on a few casual words.

after a while.

Who knows how it will be circulated?

Saying.

Why doesn't anyone connect Jiang Lian'an and Wuyouke?

After finally arriving at a station, changing boats, and stopping to rest and recuperate, Lin Lezhi was finally able to catch his breath.

Lin Lezhi pulled Guan Ziheng to a dark corner and adopted a "resistance will be punished severely, confession will be treated leniently" stance to interrogate him, demanding that Guan Ziheng honestly confess: "What about the money?"

Guan Ziheng was also terrified when he heard about this.

To know.

If the waiter had asked the question in front of everyone, they would have been able to figure out the connection between Lin Lezhi and Wuyouke after a little thought about the timing of Wuyouke's birth and closure. That's why they hurriedly interrupted him.

Guan Ziheng honestly confessed: "There was originally no business relationship between bookstores and inns, but they are a good place to gather people together. Inns that can be used to order books can also serve as a signboard to attract business and expand their reputation by leveraging the power of the martial arts world. Isn't that what we agreed on at the beginning?"

"Yes, but what does this have to do with money?"

“At first, it didn’t matter. But gradually, some inns felt that being able to order books in their shops could improve their business, so they took the initiative to approach the bookstores to discuss cooperation. If the person in charge was willing to use their shop as a book ordering point, they would be willing to give the person in charge a small portion of the money the inn earned on the day of the order, as a kind of errand fee.”

"No, how come I didn't know about this? Have you been hiding a lot of money from me?"

"There's not much, just a little."

After saying that, Guan Ziheng realized he had let something slip and it was too late to take it back, so he simply admitted, "It really isn't much money, just some hard-earned money for running errands."

Guan Ziheng's voice carried a hint of resentment, and he said somewhat guiltily, "It's not convenient for people to know your identity, so I've always been the one dealing with people outside. You definitely don't know."

Before Lin Lezhi could speak, Guan Ziheng cut her off, bringing up old grievances to block her: "Besides, if we kept all the money with you, after that beating you gave us last time, we wouldn't be able to survive on the streets. Now that we've stopped working, we still need to have some savings. Oh, you're not really going to eat and drink other people's food, are you? How can you be so shameless?"

If Guan Ziheng were to say that, Lin Lezhi would truly be in the wrong. She shifted her gaze away and said in a weak voice, "Didn't I already return your share to you?"

Lin Lezhi wanted to let the matter drop, but Guan Ziheng was unhappy to hear this, and even very angry, saying: "What do you mean by 'you return my share'? You went out and came back covered in injuries, and you call that returning my share? Do you think I'd be happy to see money? I'd rather you didn't return it to me."

The words fell.

Lin Lezhi also realized that her words were inappropriate, and with a hint of self-reproach and guilt in her eyes, she said, "I'm sorry, Ziheng."

"I……"

Guan Ziheng realized he had spoken too harshly, so he stopped pressing the matter and said instead, "However, Jianghe Inn did give too much. They probably want to give us the money in another way. But as you just saw, I didn't take more than I was entitled to. I only took what I was supposed to take."

To ease the tension, Guan Ziheng said with a slightly smug expression, "Luckily, I reacted quickly enough and knew how to adapt to the situation. I interrupted him in time and smoothed things over. As long as we stick to our guns and deny it, even if they guessed it..."

Just then, a voice suddenly appeared beside them, saying leisurely, "Guessed what? Guessed he's Wuyouke?"