"What are you talking about? I don't understand," Zhou Pan said, his face quickly regaining composure as he asked calmly.
But those present were all seasoned veterans of the martial world—how could they miss the hint of something amiss?
In the Taixing Carriage Company's group, a young man whispered to his companion, "Senior Brother, what's Anqing Hall?"
"It's not a faction," the senior brother replied with a faint smile. "It was once the largest male brothel in Chang'an City, and Lu Gongyuan was its master."
"Oh!" The youth's eyes widened, and he shot Zhou Pan a strange look.
A so-called "gentlemen's hall" was a male brothel.
Men with a penchant for other men, or those with "broken sleeve" inclinations, had existed since ancient times, particularly thriving in the capital and Minzhou, known as "Capital Gentlemen" and "Minzhong Sworn Brothers."
In the capital, for instance, there were famous establishments like "Spring Return Hall" and "Classic Righteousness Hall." The men there, called "gentlemen," not only studied the arts of music, chess, calligraphy, and painting but also had to master the Four Books and Five Classics. Looks were secondary; a sharp mind and refined speech were essential.
The Westbound Beggars' Sect and local human traffickers, whenever they found a handsome, eloquent young man, would send him to these halls, where they fetched prices higher than those of renowned courtesans.
But such proclivities were the quirks of nobles and tycoons. Common folk, especially the rough-and-tumble martial artists who gorged on meat and guzzled wine, looked down on them.
Hearing Zhou Pan linked to a gentlemen's hall, the crowd's gazes turned odd.
It seemed this Old Monkey Zhou, indeed, had no heirs in his lifetime…
But such matters were personal tastes. At most, they'd be the subject of jests over drinks. How could they be tied to Li Hu's death?
In the hall, seeing Zhou Pan deny it, Li Yan narrowed his eyes, suppressing a chilling killing intent, and said gravely, "There's no wall that doesn't let some wind through. Did you think this could be kept hidden?"
"Back then, my father took a job to find a kidnapped young master. All clues pointed to Anqing Hall, yet nothing was found."
"You colluded with Lu Gongyuan, sending someone to tip off my father to search for informants in a brothel, where he was killed."
"Afterward, you hurriedly rushed from Xianyang to Chang'an, working with the authorities to raid Anqing Hall and hunt down Lu Gongyuan. Not long after, that brothel mysteriously burned down, and all the courtesans inside died tragically."
"Did you think killing to silence them would leave no evidence?"
At these words, the hall erupted in shock.
Old Master Zhang Yuanshang's face darkened, and he slammed the table. "Zhou Monkey, so there's this matter too? My poor brother Li's reputation was ruined, and he's had no peace for a decade!"
"Damn it, if you don't clear this up, we're not done today!"
Even Han Kun, the Cao Gang leader, shook his head. "Zhou Pan, if this is true, your methods are too despicable. With so many lives lost, you still want to retire peacefully from the martial world? No such luck."
The others were equally indignant.
Li Yan stood in the hall, his eyes barely concealing his murderous intent.
This information had been slipped to him by Guan Wanche earlier. Though he didn't know why Guan didn't reveal it himself, Zhou Pan's expression confirmed it was likely true.
Thinking of his grandfather's silent suffering over the years, Li Yan felt a surge of rage, itching to charge forward and chop off Zhou Pan's head.
Facing the crowd's accusations, Zhou Pan was silent for a moment before sighing and shaking his head. "All I can say is, back then, I was acting under orders from the Chang'an Prefecture's Military Office to assist in capturing Lu Gongyuan. It's been so long, I doubt the office would pursue it now."
He glanced at the crowd. "Lu Gongyuan's gentlemen's hall and that brothel were both Maitreya Cult outposts in Chang'an, secretly plotting rebellion."
"What?"
The hall was stunned.
Such a claim couldn't be fabricated.
A decade ago, during the great drought in Guanzhong, the Maitreya Cult had stirred trouble, inciting villagers to rebel, killing officials, and forcing commoners and martial artists to join them, burning villages of those who refused.
Martial artists were naturally wary of the court.
But the Maitreya Cult, with their heretical teachings, had caused even more deaths.
Zhou Pan sighed, looking at Li Yan and shaking his head. "This involves court secrets, so I can't say much. Let's just say your father was unlucky and stumbled into a den of thieves!"
"Don't dodge the issue!" Li Yan sneered. "The Maitreya Cult is one thing, but if you hadn't deliberately lured him, how would my father have fallen into an ambush?"
Zhou Pan seemed to grow impatient, his face darkening as he shook his head. "That's how it was. Your father walked into his own death. Was I supposed to stop him?"
"Even if you take this to the authorities, it has nothing to do with me!"
His words admitted involvement, yet carried a "what can you do about it" attitude.
Seeing Li Yan's unrelenting killing intent, Zhou Pan raised his chin, his eyes sinister. "If you're not satisfied, you can settle it with me today."
"Bullshit!"
Old Master Zhang stood slowly, furious. "Zhou Monkey, playing dirty with a youngster, huh? Fine, I'll settle this for him!"
Bang!
At that moment, a loud crash came from outside.
Several disciples were flung through the air, rolling on the ground with blood at their mouths, crawling back while shouting, "Master, someone's breaking in!"
The sudden disruption shattered the hall's tension.
Everyone turned to look. Zhou family martial school disciples were being knocked back like they'd been hit by a beast, tumbling into the courtyard, screaming in pain.
Then, two figures slowly appeared at the gate.
One was a young man, about twenty, dressed in plain black cloth, half his face covered with burn scars, short and stocky, wielding a "bone hammer."
The bone hammer, akin to a mace, was a long-handled weapon with a small iron ball at the end. In Tang times, it served as a punishment staff, later becoming ceremonial, called a "golden melon" or "gua zhun."
Depending on its shape, it was either a garlic-bulb hammer or a caltrop hammer.
In plays, generals' double hammers were made of paper and cloth, but in real combat, only those with immense strength or grandmaster skill could wield them, as they were too exhausting to swing for long.
Thus, true war hammers had smaller heads.
The bone hammer was even smaller, delivering fierce force and easy to conceal, making it popular in the martial world.
A single strike from an ordinary person could crack bluestone.
Behind him followed a middle-aged man in a green cloak, holding a tiger-headed staff in his right hand and a "healing the world" banner in his left, looking like a wandering doctor.
His appearance was unremarkable, with graying temples, and he walked with a calm, leisurely air, as if strolling through a garden, clearly there to back the younger man.
Old Master Zhang's pupils shrank, and he sat back down, sneering, "Zhou Monkey, looks like you've got more than one grudge to answer for."
Zhou Pan's face turned grim as he said gravely, "Who are you, and what do you want at my residence?"
The young man twirled his bone hammer, mocking in a hoarse voice, "Oh? Isn't this your golden basin ceremony?"
"What, you've settled with the martial factions, so us mud-legged folk can't come for justice?"
Zhou Pan frowned, puzzled. "I don't recall any grudge with you."
"Of course you don't," the young man laughed, sounding like a vengeful ghost. He glanced at the hall. "You martial artists, bullying the weak with your strength, call your fights with peers 'grudges,' but when common folk die, it's nothing, right?"
Zhou Pan's triangular eyes narrowed. "If you want justice, at least make it clear."
The young man gave a chilling laugh, like a night owl. "Ten years ago, outside Chang'an, in Bazi Village, your disciples, under the pretense of hunting bandits, broke into my home to search."
"They saw my sister's beauty, lusted after her, and defiled her. When my parents tried to stop them, they were beaten to death, and the house was burned, called a bandit hideout. Didn't think a ghost like me would survive, did you?"
At these words, the crowd understood, shaking their heads.
Zhou Monkey's lax discipline and indulgence of his followers had led to plenty of misdeeds in Xianyang. This wasn't surprising.
Zhou Pan was silent for a moment. "I truly didn't know of this. Every debt has its debtor—go after them, not me."
The young man gave a sinister chuckle. "Don't worry, they're already dead. I skinned them alive, their whole families too. Tsk, tsk, those vengeful pelts fetched a good price."
"Now I'm here to send you to join them!"
The crowd exchanged glances, stunned.
Such a bloody vendetta wasn't something martial world rules could resolve—the authorities would intervene.
Sure enough, Guan Wanche stood, waving a hand. The yamen runners unslung their crossbows, shouting, "Stop! Come with us, or we'll kill you on the spot!"
"Kill on the spot?" The young man's scarred face twisted, his eyes wild. "You court dogs! This world is full of demons, the heavens are black, and all must be slain!"
His words sent a chill through the crowd.
This was outright talk of rebellion…
Meanwhile, Li Yan stood grim-faced, staring at the older man.
He sensed a familiar scent from him.
It was the same as that crested snake he'd encountered before!
*(End of Chapter)*