Plotting with You: The Forensic Scientist in Ancient Times!-Chapter 334 - 333: Tasteless

"What?! How could this be happening!" Yan Shu widened her eyes in surprise. She had been walking single-mindedly, never once looking back, and naturally noticed nothing unusual behind her.

Lu Yan remained silent. He was calmer than Yan Shu, but from his expression, it was clear he hadn’t looked back either, just like Yan Shu, unaware if the path was the same as before. He simply didn’t show it out of pride.

On the contrary, Lu Zhang nodded immediately upon hearing Zhu Yu’s question, then instinctively looked towards Lu Qing, seemingly waiting for his elder brother to solve this puzzle.

Among those present, who was the most stable and reliable at crucial moments was clear without words.

"Indeed, as we walked along, each time we turned, the sense of direction felt different." Lu Qing frowned. "Initially, I thought this fortress was built according to an array, but carefully observing the old steward’s walking style and route, it seemed we weren’t in any array."

"That’s what struck me as strange," Yan Daoxin also sensed something amiss from start to finish. "To say that the walls move on their own, or the paths shrink, I absolutely don’t believe it. Even illusion techniques couldn’t make us all see exactly the same illusion.

They must have used some method aimed at confusing the visitors, so they couldn’t move freely.

The old steward was clear about not wandering outside the courtyard, obviously because there’s a secret in this fortress they don’t want outsiders to know!"

Lu Qing nodded and said to Lu Yan, "There are indeed hidden complexities here.

I suspect your past tax collectors went missing not because the people here were unwilling to pay; they are so wary of outsiders that paying taxes quietly would draw no attention and avoid disturbances. Making people disappear only draws your attention.

So, it’s most likely those few people encountered something preventing them from reporting back, hence, they were either imprisoned or killed to silence them."

Lu Yan’s face darkened, his fists clenched. "Audacious! Daring to lay hands on court officials! Once we uncover the truth here, I’ll crush these scoundrels to bits!"

Lu Zhang opened his mouth, wanting to advise Lu Yan not to act impulsively. Knowing if he spoke, he would be ridiculed as weak by Lu Yan, he closed his mouth again.

"Originally, we felt this place was suspicious and guessed there might be something strange, just to find out what.

Now, with government involvement, it seems the secrets behind this Immortal Castle are deeper than we thought." Lu Qing nodded to Lu Yan, not opposing his previous words, "However, we need to be twice as cautious now, not reckless, and mustn’t act alone.

The shopkeeper showed no surprise when he heard us mention ’Jie bandits.’ And as we walked, we’ve noticed near the Immortal Castle, those people’s figures vanished.

Thus, I suspect the so-called Jie bandits may very well be linked to this strange Immortal Castle."

Listening to Lu Qing, Lu Yan initially felt phrases like "not reckless," "mustn’t act alone" were targeting him. He wanted to defend himself but, hearing the latter part, couldn’t bother arguing and nodded repeatedly.

"So, it does seem that way!" he said to Lu Qing. "When we fought bandits before, the people were miserable along the way, unable to discern the bandits’ origins, knowing only that bandit soldiers oppressed them. Whether they were Jie, Shuo, from Fan Country or Jin Country, they couldn’t distinguish.

If we hadn’t captured a group speaking Jie language and wearing Jie armor, wielding Shuo-forged black iron weapons, we couldn’t determine their ties with Jie Country.

But the old steward, at the mention of Jie bandits, didn’t hesitate, assuring us they wouldn’t interfere. This is strange."

Upon hearing mention of "Jie bandits," Yan Shu almost stood up but quietly sat down after their conversation.

Zhu Yu pursed her lips to avoid accidentally laughing out loud.

Lu Yan’s self-association wasn’t entirely incorrect, though Lu Qing’s caution against recklessness and impulsiveness wasn’t just directed at him, but also Yan Shu.

Yet Lu Yan didn’t know that Yan Wei’s brother was indeed Princess Yan Shu, Jie King’s only daughter, and wouldn’t realize it, thinking Lu Qing was solely worried about him.

As Zhu Yu sipped tea, she meticulously recalled everything seen upon entering the Immortal Castle.

After a while, a detail previously unnoticed sprang to mind, and she almost jumped from her chair, directly approaching Yan Daoxin to ask, "As we came in, you didn’t smell anything unusual, did you?"

Yan Daoxin was startled by her question and recalled cautiously.

Going by Zhu Yu’s question, the answer "yes" seemed reasonable, yet Yan Daoxin, after thorough recollection, truly hadn’t smelled anything out of the ordinary, good or bad.

So he could only truthfully shake his head: "I truly didn’t smell anything."

"Is there a spice in this world that is colorless and odorless?" Zhu Yu asked again.

"What kind of joke is Chief Historian Yu telling?" Nearby, Lu Yan interjected, "You said it’s a spice, even if it could be colorless and smokeless, how could it be odorless?"

Yan Daoxin also nodded: "The Third Prince is right, whether seductive fragrance or anything else, achieving light smoke is possible, but having no scent is impossible.

Why do you inquire?"

"Because you said there’s nothing wrong with this tea, yet as I sat drinking, I felt a sudden clarity and refreshment." Zhu Yu frowned, filled with doubt, "If not compared, the change might not seem obvious, but feeling refreshed now makes me realize that as we walked in, I was a bit dazed."