Although Du Lianheng came from a wealthy family, beast appraisers had a special status so he was polite as he led Lin Jin and Ouyang Tong inside. Along the way, Lin Jin whispered to Appraiser Yang if he was Yang Qingshi, one of the Rank 3 beast appraisers at headquarters. Ouyang Tong nodded.
Ouyang Tong had mentioned that Appraiser Tan Xun and Yang Qingshi were the ones who participated in this incident.
The Du Manor's compound was elegant and secluded. Just the main hall alone was spacious. The chairs were well-chosen and the tea was excellent. The Du Manor's hospitality was certainly commendable.
This was the nature of businessmen. They would make friends without offending anyone.
This was especially true for beast appraisers.
Even if they didn't welcome Lin Jin and Ouyang Tong's arrival, they wouldn't show it on their faces.
That was how cunning and astute they were.
Knowing that Lin Jin was here to visit his daughter, Du Lianheng said, "Appraiser Lin, Appraiser Ouyang, if you want to visit my poor daughter, please do so. Ever since that incident last year, she hasn't woken up. Sigh, what a tough life she has."
At the mention of his daughter, Du Lianheng sighed, revealing his true feelings.
Without delay, Lin Jin left at once.
Du Lianheng personally led them to a quiet courtyard. This was his daughter's room. A maid had just come out with a basin of water. Upon seeing Du Lianheng, she hurriedly bowed.
"Ever since Lianxi fell into a coma, the servants have been washing her face, combing her hair, and turning her around. She's my only daughter so I hope she'll wake up soon," Du Lianheng said before gesturing for the maid to open the door. Then, he led the way inside.
Lin Jin followed closely behind.
Ever since he stepped foot into the courtyard, he caught a faint scent. It didn't seem like a monster's aura and it was hard to detect. At least, Ouyang Tong couldn't smell it at all. The reason Lin Jin could smell it was because his cultivation had improved and he had fused with Xiao Huo's Dharma body. His five senses were connected so it was normal that he couldn't pick it up on anyone else.
This scent was unusual so Lin Jin immediately perked up.
A woman's room was always neat and tidy, emitting a fragrant scent. However, the moment Lin Jin stepped inside, he frowned and stopped in his tracks.
It wasn't that he was overreacting but the sudden stench caught him off guard.
However, the strange thing was that Du Lianheng, Ouyang Tong, and the servant girl didn't seem to smell anything and didn't have any other reaction.
Lin Jin knew something was off but now wasn't the time to ask so he forced himself to hold back and observe for now.
Inside the room, a young woman was lying on the bed. Looking at her age, she was at most 16 years old. However, she was motionless and covered with a silk quilt.
Needless to say, this was Du Lianheng's daughter.
After lying in bed for a year, Lin Jin assumed that the woman must have lost all of her features or become as thin as a stick. However, the woman on the bed looked as if she was asleep. Other than her pale complexion, there was nothing out of the ordinary.
This was strange.
Moreover, the strong stench was coming from Du Lianheng's daughter.
Unable to resist, Lin Jin whispered to Ouyang Tong.
"Appraiser Ouyang, do you smell anything?"
At this, Ouyang Tong took a deep breath, smiled honestly, and whispered, "Appraiser Lin, it's normal for a woman's room to smell nice."
'Smell my * ss. '
Lin Jin raised an eyebrow. Ouyang Tong didn't seem like he was lying to him. In other words, Ouyang Tong didn't smell anything at all. No, he only smelled a faint fragrance.
Du Lianheng and the servant girl should be the same. So why did Lin Jin smell a stench?
Being a knowledgeable man, Lin Jin decided to investigate this matter further so he wouldn't say anything. He didn't seal off his sense of smell so despite the stench, he could still hold it in.
He now knew that Du Lianheng's daughter was named Du Lianxi. She had been intelligent since she was young and her pet beast was a 'steelwing skylark'.
Lin Jin nodded. He did see a large birdcage in the room but it was empty. It must have been used to store pet beasts.
"Ever since that incident, my daughter's pet beast has gone missing. It must have died in the hands of that evil man. I, Du Lianheng, have never done anything bad so I don't know why he would punish me like this, causing my daughter to suffer like this." Du Lianheng looked at his daughter with a loving expression. Other than that, there was only sorrow.
She had been in a coma for a year. It was almost impossible to save her.
"To be honest, Appraisers, I've already made arrangements for my daughter's funeral, but I still hope for a miracle. I hope that one day, she will wake up and call me 'father' again." Du Lianheng wiped the tears from the corner of his eyes as he spoke emotionally.
Lin Jin comforted him before turning his attention back to Du Lianxi.
Lin Jin couldn't tell anything from her expression. While no one was paying attention, Lin Jin flicked a silver needle and pierced it into Du Lianxi's clothes and bedding. Lin Jin's pupils dilated at once.
Ouyang Tong had been observing Lin Jin's expression so he was startled when he saw the change in Lin Jin's expression. Then, he noticed Lin Jin staring at Du Lianxi so he knew the appraiser must have noticed something.
After some thought, Ouyang Tong said to the servant girl, "I drank it. Get me some water."
The servant girl was stunned. Du Lianheng quickly gestured for her to do so before she hurried away. Then, Ouyang Tong deliberately pulled Du Lianheng aside to talk to him with his back facing Lin Jin.
At this, Lin Jin mused, 'This Ouyang Tong really knows how to read people.'
However, Lin Jin didn't have to turn his back on Du Lianxi. One of his needles was more than enough.
He now knew why Du Lianxi was unconscious and had a strange stench. The mystery that had been bothering Lin Jin was finally solved.
Without retrieving his needle, Lin Jin thanked Du Lianheng and was about to leave.
Perhaps because he had held onto a glimmer of hope for this young Rank 3 beast appraiser, Du Lianheng was disappointed to see Lin Jin leaving so soon without any diagnosis.
However, his businessman nature kept him in check so he didn't show it.
Lin Jin could tell how much Du Lianheng loved his daughter so after some thought, he said, "Lord Du, you should spend more time with your daughter for the next two days. She seems to be getting better so she might wake up in the next two days."
Having said that, Lin Jin excused himself.
Du Lianheng stood rooted to the ground.
Outside, Lin Jin was walking briskly with Ouyang Tong following closely behind him. He looked puzzled.
"Appraiser Ouyang, I'd like to visit that demonic appraiser locked up in the dungeon. Do you have any connections?" Lin Jin suddenly asked.
Perhaps noticing Lin Jin's solemn expression, Ouyang Tong's expression turned serious. "I do."
This Ouyang Tong was a decent man.
"Then I'll have to trouble Appraiser Ouyang to make the arrangements. I'll visit that person tonight," Lin Jin said. Ouyang Tong was puzzled. "I thought Appraiser Lin wanted to go now. If it was at night, it wouldn't be a problem at all. There are a few prison guards in the dark dungeon and I'm familiar with them so I can get it done with just a word. However, the dark dungeon is a little sinister. After all, it's used to detain prisoners on death row. Very few people go there during the day so at night …"
"Appraiser Ouyang, just make the arrangements. I know what I'm doing."
"Alright, I'll make the arrangements."
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
