......

On the other side.

Just as he was about to reach Snow City, Lu Ding suddenly received a call from Zhan Tingzhou.

He answered.

[Hey, Lu Ding, how do you write the character 'source' in Songyuan Valley?]

Lu Ding looked at his phone in disbelief.

Zhan Tingzhou's voice was still coming through [Hey, Lu Ding, can you hear me?]

Lu Ding sighed: "You're using a phone to call me, can't you just type it out and check for yourself?"

Zhan Tingzhou was struck as if by a thunderbolt.

He swore he wasn't usually this stupid.

It had to be the lingering numbness and drowsiness from Lu Ding's 'army medic' treatment, those fist-pounding punches.

*Click.*

Zhan Tingzhou hung up without another word.

Lu Ding laughed, though the smile was one of speechless exasperation.

"Having him write a report... this... can he even do it?"

He couldn't help but mutter to himself.

Casting his gaze ahead, there lay Snow City.

The temperature here was low, and the sky was currently filled with falling goose-feather snowflakes.

That was the origin of Snow City's name.

However, because the New City had previously suffered from chaotic seasons and disordered time, Snow City hadn't seen snow in many years and was almost due for a name change.

Then...

Lu Ding returned the twelve bronze zodiac heads to their places.

Snow City began to snow again, and the people were overjoyed, celebrating the return of the snowfall.

For some reason, a sudden thought struck Lu Ding.

A city that hadn't snowed in decades was now suddenly covered in snow~

"Well, well, Old Xue is still chasing after me."

He turned his head to look at the visibly tense Zheng Feng: "Nervous now, are we? I told you not to come, but you insisted."

Zheng Feng steadied his emotions: "In response to Grand Duke Lu, there are things that must be done, even if it means death."

This was his conviction, his attitude toward his father, and his redemption for the image of his father in his heart.

"Alright, alright, just be stubborn then. Heads up, I win; tails up, you win. Keep your mouth shut for a while. If they curse you, take it; if they hit you, endure it."

Zheng Feng nodded solemnly: "Even if they kill me, I won't utter a single sound!"

Damn.

At those words, Lu Ding couldn't hold it in anymore.

He reached out directly: "Ah, I can't stand it any longer!!"

*Smack!* He slapped the back of Zheng Feng's head. "Why do you have to be so damn stubborn!"

"If they're going to kill you, you shout! You dodge! If you don't shout and you don't dodge, how am I supposed to save you? I came with you to bring you back, not to take your corpse back to the Mouth of the Evil Prison, you idiot, you museum-piece of an idiot!"

Zheng Feng rubbed the back of his head, giving an awkward smile.

Lu Ding's metaphorical phrase, 'heads up, I win; tails up, you win,' had been heard by him as a statement of fact.

Lu Ding glanced at him and said, "Let's go!"

He strode forward.

Merging with the flow of people, they entered Snow City.

Although he didn't know the exact location of the Snow City 749 Bureau, the Great Han was a technological age, and there was signal coverage and base station infrastructure here.

He opened his phone and used the navigation directly.

Soon, the two arrived at the main gate of Snow City 749.

He wasn't here to cause a scene today, so they had to follow proper procedures first.

They registered at the guard post and requested an announcement.

When the gate guard learned that the person before him was Lu Ding...

The guard investigator's eyes went wide.

"Yes! Yes!! Yes!! That's it! The scholar-warrior sleeves! No wonder you looked so familiar! It's Grand Duke Lu! Please, have a seat, Grand Duke Lu, have a seat! Rest for a while, have some water! I'll go and announce you right away!!!”

That investigator was so excited, it was like the New Year had come early.

He brought out a stool, poured some water.

His face was practically splitting from grinning.

He even said, "Grand Duke Lu, could you give me an autograph later?"

Lu Ding nodded: "Of course."

Nowadays, he was famous throughout the New City. Who didn't know him?

In many places, the 749 bureaus both fantasized about Lu Ding leading them, letting them live the same kind of life as the Western White Ridge 749, and also feared his arrival, dreading that he would settle accounts with them like the Path of Dry Bones.

Of course.

For the New City investigators who themselves didn't have major problems, Lu Ding was their idol!!!

What investigator, in the dead of night, hasn't fantasized about being Lu Ding for a moment, imagining just how dashing and carefree their life would be?

Truly exhilarating.

Here, the Snow City gate guard investigator was chatting with Lu Ding like a curious child, asking all sorts of questions.

On the other side.

Inside the Snow City 749 office.

Three people were seated around a table.

They were:

The Snow City 749 Special Envoy, Meng Yu.

The Snow City 749 Bureau Chief, Cheng Hong.

The Snow City 749 Deputy Bureau Chief, Zhai Hun.

At the head seat, Meng Yu's expression shifted as she remained silent.

Facing her, Bureau Chief Cheng Hong spoke first: "Special Envoy, do you have a past connection with Special Envoy Lu?"

Meng Yu cast a naturally sharp glance his way: "I've never even met him."

This made Cheng Hong shrink back: "That's strange then. Since you have no history with him, and Snow City, though close to the West, isn't the closest, if he wanted to grab territory, he wouldn't come directly to Snow City."

Zhai Hun sat sprawled in his chair like a Great General: "If you ask me, why overthink it? Deal with the situation as it comes. If you can't block it, just agree to whatever he says."

"We're all in the same system anyway."

"It's not like he can kill us, can he?"

"I haven't done anything utterly heinous. The most I've done is take some money, and I didn't even ask for it; they gave it to me voluntarily. I didn't help them do anything bad either."

Meng Yu listened carefully, waiting until Zhai Hun stopped before asking: "Are you finished?"

Zhai Hun swept a glance at her: "Finished."

The next second.

*SLAP!!!*

A heavy slap landed squarely on Zhai Hun's face, making his flesh roll. The left side of his cheek swelled up high at a visible rate.

"This slap is for the countless times I've told you not to use foul language in front of me."

*SLAP!!*

Another slap landed on the other cheek.

Meng Yu's voice rang out: "This slap is for the countless times I've told you to sit properly in my presence."

She stood up, pressed her hands on the table, leaned forward to close the distance between herself and Zhai Hun, and met his gaze directly: "Don't challenge my rules again, or else... I'll gut you!"

Zhai Hun finally restrained himself: "I'm sorry, Special Envoy Meng."

Meng Yu nodded slightly and straightened up: "Bureau Chief Cheng, prepare a banquet. I've long heard of the fearsome reputation of the Corpse-Shattering Taishui. It's a rare opportunity to meet him today. Since we're all colleagues, we should treat him well."

Cheng Hong: "Yes, Special Envoy Meng!"

This preparation took two hours.

But Lu Ding had plenty of patience.

After all, he had already prepared himself for everything.

Wasn't this just a power play?

Of course, under normal circumstances, he wouldn't put up with it, but today he was accompanying Zheng Feng to apologize on behalf of his father.

Soon.

Snow City 749 Bureau Chief Cheng Hong personally arrived, beaming: "My apologies for the wait, Grand Duke Lu. Our special envoy has prepared a banquet. How about we discuss your business over a meal?"

Lu Ding rose to his feet: "I've put you to all this trouble. Well then, shall we go?"

Cheng Hong stepped half a pace back and extended his hand to guide: "Right this way, please."