He changed Tiwat

Chapter 33: The fault of chess (2)

Han Fulai's statement, "Seeing is not necessarily believing," was the most blatant sarcasm. Ye Lan felt she should be angry, but surprisingly, she couldn't muster even the slightest bit of anger.

She felt a deep chill.

Han Fulai followed her around discreetly for three days. If her initial tracking had already exposed her, it meant that everything she did afterward was under Han Fulai's control! Therefore, the flaws she revealed were not limited to this one time—for Han Fulai, participating in this investigation was an accident, and for Ye Lan, Han Fulai's involvement was also an accident.

Since the hastily altered layout couldn't escape his notice, how far did he see? Was it because he had seen through that matter that he had endured until now, only to strike at the last moment and thwart her plan?

Thinking of this, Ye Lan felt a chill run down her spine.

As she herself said, "This is the worst-case scenario, but often the worst-case scenario is the closest to the truth."

This wasn't the first time Ye Lan had experienced failure in her intelligence career; she had even lost many comrades because of it. But each failure became a driving force for Ye Lan's progress. Only this time, however, did Ye Lan feel—powerlessness.

As if seeing through Ye Lan's thoughts, Han Fulai changed to a comforting tone: "Miss Ye Lan, there is no need to blame yourself. My participation in this review was something you did not expect beforehand, and it was an accident for both of us. Originally, the time from the interview to the result should have been able to be extended by a few more days, but because you were worried that I would be too deeply involved in this matter, you had to act in advance, so some oversights were inevitable."

Han Fulai's words of comfort did not make Ye Lan feel any better, because they meant that Han Fulai had indeed completely seen through her intentions.

"Let's move on to the biggest flaw in this incident," Han Fulai said. "The disappearance of the three undercover agents from Black Rock Factory is the biggest flaw in your entire plan, Miss Yelan—because you couldn't capture them then. If you had, nothing could have been accomplished. But because of this, the entire timeline of the operation is seriously flawed!"

"Sigh, it's Wu Pei, isn't it?" Ye Lan sighed again.

Wu Pei, who was standing outside the Qingxupu Ruins, exposed to the northwest wind, had no idea that his bonus for the year had slipped away in the time it took to say a few words.

“I left him a note telling him to come find me after he finished the task, but I didn’t expect that because he hadn’t made any progress in the investigation, he was so eager to make a name for himself that he came in such a hurry… and he even revealed that he had already started investigating Zhiyi as soon as we met.”

Han Fulai nodded slightly.

"Yes, when I first met Wen Yuan and Shang Hua at the Yan Shang Tea House, they were talking about how that big guy Wu Pei had gone to sea and had been keeping watch at sea for some time. Miss Ye Lan, you immediately changed the subject and assigned them the task of investigating Zhi Yi, skipping over this matter, but I still kept it in mind."

"When Wu Pei returned and reported to you on the progress of the investigation into Zhiyi, I knew that you had already started investigating Zhiyi long before we met, and that you already had something on Zhiyi."

As Han Fulai spoke, he glanced at Zhiyi.

Zhiyi kept his head down and didn't say a word, as if everything was none of his business.

"So you conclude from this that I've been lying to you all along," Ye Lan said with a wry smile.

Han Fulai shook his head. "Actually, even without Wu Pei's mistake, I could have made the same judgment."

"Oh? I'd like to hear more." Yelan readily abandoned her reserve as an intelligence specialist. She had come to realize that the young man before her was no longer the naive boy she and Yanfei had manipulated when he first arrived in Liyue.

“There are three reasons,” Han Fulai said, holding up three fingers.

"The first is the connection between Zhiyi's 'Qingxupu Redevelopment Plan' and Black Rock Factory. You requested the plan and it was the first thing you reviewed. I believe that with your abilities as Ningguang's direct intelligence officer, it's impossible that you didn't notice this. I believe that it was from this flaw in the plan that you discovered the existence of the three Black Rock Factory spies and used this as a basis to ask Zhiyi to cooperate with you."

“That’s right,” Ye Lan admitted immediately. “Anything else?”

"Secondly, the timing of those three people's disappearance was too coincidental. I took Zhiyi's planning documents to investigate that very night, and those three people just happened to disappear that same night. It seems like someone was trying to silence them before I found out about this. Of course, this can only be considered a point of suspicion. After all, there are many other possibilities, but the traces left in that abandoned house confirmed my guess."

"The third point you mentioned is the bloodstains, right?" Ye Lan nodded. "It was indeed my fault that I couldn't clean it up properly that night. I just didn't expect that you would notice that trace."

“Yes. Those are traces left after a fight. According to ‘Iron Arm,’ the three undercover agents were about the same size as him, all of them burly and strong. Even if Zhiyi wanted to silence them, he was just a weak scholar, so at most he would have used methods like poisoning. How could he have left traces of a fight? So I judged that someone was helping him. It’s strange that you didn’t tell me about those bloodstains at the time, Miss Yelan. I don’t believe you would have missed such traces.”

"Moreover, the footprints they left behind are equally suspicious. The people who took away those three undercover agents knew to clean up the scene and not leave any evidence that could point to their identities, so why did they leave such obvious footprints? The matter of the ink from Zhidong Kingdom may have been an oversight, but footprints are impossible to overlook. If it were me, I would definitely clean up the part of the footprints that pointed to the abandoned house to ensure that no one could find the crime scene."

“It’s obvious that the traces left behind were premeditated. The purpose was to lead the clues to that abandoned house, but without revealing who the three undercover agents were—just as you said, as long as we can find out from these clues that Zhiyi is making a deal with the Fools, that’s enough.”

"In addition..." Han Fulai reached out and pointed to the secret room where Wen Yuan and the Thousand Rock Army soldiers had ambushed them.

"Zhiyi said he hid those three undercover agents in that secret room. I'd like to know how he managed to carry three people back and forth between Qingxu and Liyue Harbor in one day?"

"Perfect!" Ye Lan even clapped her hands. "That day, I used the excuse of directing my men to investigate evidence that the Fools were the masterminds behind Zhiyi. After parting ways with you, I went to find Zhiyi and had him arrange a secret meeting with those three undercover agents that very night. After a fight, I knocked them all unconscious and handed them over to Wen Yuan and Shang Hua to transport to Qingxupu. When we went to investigate the Black Rock Factory, Wen Yuan and Shang Hua had already brought those three undercover agents to this ruin."

"Then, I have another question..." Han Fulai hesitated, which was uncharacteristic of him, "Miss Yelan, can you really distinguish the scent of the ink from the Zhidong Kingdom?"

"Guess?" Ye Lan's smile was sly.

Chapter Thirty-Four: The Breakthrough Point of the Chess Player (Part Three)

Han Fulai naturally couldn't guess. He chose to believe it rather than not, since it's normal to have a super sense of smell on a continent where gods exist.

He was currently thinking about something rather disrespectful to Gan Yu—Gan Yu's true form was a Qilin, and could a Qilin's sense of smell be even more acute than Ye Lan's? He remembered that Gan Yu could even smell the slightest hint of oiliness in food; he needed to find an opportunity to let Gan Yu try smelling ink, who knows, it might come in handy someday…

At this moment, Ye Lan's voice interrupted his thoughts.

“I understand how Deputy Minister Han saw through my flaws, but based on that alone, how can you discern my true purpose, such as killing Yusupov?”

Han Fulai did not answer her question directly, but instead smiled slightly at Ke Qing sitting next to him.

"Let me answer that question for you," Ke Qing said calmly.

"Before entering the Qingxupu Ruins, Mr. Han told me that if we didn't encounter any Fool soldiers along the way after entering the ruins, it would mean that this plan was aimed at the intelligence agents of Zhidong Kingdom; if Miss Yelan wanted to leave evidence of Zhiyi's transaction with the Zhidong intelligence agents on the spot, it would prove that Zhiyi's death was not far away."

"Now it seems that Mr. Han's prediction was completely accurate."

Ye Lan's beautiful eyes flashed, and she understood the key point.

"Deputy Minister Han is truly shrewd! Ye Lan is completely convinced."

Ye Lan had been wondering why Ke Qing would get involved in this matter. In her opinion, Ke Qing had no reason to help Han Fulai protect Zhi Yi, but Ke Qing's two sentences just now had explained everything.

Ke Qing had no reason to help Han Fu protect Zhi Yi before – she never intended to do so either. Ke Qing really came to capture Zhi Dong's spy!

Han Fulai only asked Ke Qing to act in a play for him, a play in which she remained completely calm and at Ye Lan's behest. Han Fulai's real purpose was to make Ye Lan reveal herself that this spy-catching act was a hoax.

From Han Fulai's perspective as a juror, there was no reason to stop her from arresting Zhiyi, much less to force Yelan, Ningguang's direct intelligence officer, into using force. Therefore, Han Fulai specifically asked someone with a firm stance to do this. Yuheng Star is, after all, one of the seven stars of Liyue, an existence on par with Tianquan Star.

It's one thing for Ke Qing of Yuheng Star to be unaware of the truth, but it's quite another to deliberately deceive Ke Qing of Yuheng Star and be exposed by Ke Qing herself.

To paraphrase a civil servant like Han Fulai: "It's not wrong to lie; it's wrong to lie and then get caught."

With this leverage, Han Fulai had Shen He control the situation by force and Ke Qing control the scene by authority, leaving no room for error and instantly reversing the situation.

In Keqing's eyes, since the Qingxupu Ruins had been occupied by the Fools as a secret base beforehand, there should have been Fool soldiers guarding it. It was strange that they hadn't encountered a single Fool along the way.

From the moment they entered the Qingxupu Ruins, the entrance they chose and the route they took were all planned by Ye Lan. She also discovered the hidden doors and secret passages. The fact that their operation went so smoothly could only mean that Ye Lan had already explored the ruins and that they were currently under her control.

When Yusupov closed the iron gate, blocking everyone's way, Yelan was able to immediately find the secret passage, which happened to be blocked by cargo boxes, making it perfect for secretly monitoring Zhiyi and Yusupov. Not to mention Keqing, even Shenhe, who knew nothing about intelligence work, could tell that there was something wrong with this secret passage.

Given the time constraints at the time, finding another passage was already quite difficult, let alone the fact that Ye Lan had found a secret passage that was practically created for surveillance. Clearly, when Wen Yuan and Shang Hua moved the three undercover agents to Qingxupu, they also conveniently used cargo boxes to block the exit of the secret passage, facilitating Ye Lan's subsequent eavesdropping.

So the moment Keqing reached the end of the secret passage, she realized that it was all part of Yelan's elaborate plan.

Of course, even with this, Keqing could only conclude that Yelan had been planning this for a long time and had arranged everything in advance to capture Yusupov. However, Yelan's subsequent words when she watched Zhiyi poison Yusupov and when Zhiyi was about to light the fuse to blow up the Qingxupu Ruins completely betrayed the fact that Yelan had long conspired with Zhiyi to kill Yusupov.

Surely Zhiyi couldn't have brought in that huge pile of explosives that could have destroyed Qingxupu all by himself? How could a student like him have gotten so much explosives? Moreover, Yusupov was completely unaware that there were explosives in the secret room where they were drinking. Clearly, the Fools didn't send anyone to participate in the transportation of the explosives—who had the ability and time to do such a thing in secret? Of course, it was Yelan, who had an intelligence force at his disposal.

If Ye Lan and Zhi Yi were accomplices, why did Zhi Yi light the fuse and blow up Qingxupu? And why did Ye Lan take such good care of filming evidence, only to interrupt Zhi Yi at the last moment?

Ke Qing stared at Zhi Yi, who looked dejected, and slowly asked, "Zhi Yi, did Miss Ye Lan initially instruct you to blow up Qingxupu to cover up the crime after killing Yusupov?"

“Yes.” Zhiyi answered without hesitation.

Zhiyi had already realized something: he had checked the explosives when he set the fuse. If the goal was simply to capture or kill Yusupov, why would Yelan and the others provide him with real explosives? Wouldn't that increase the risk of the operation?

“So, things are clear. Miss Yelan used Zhiyi and then abandoned him… I don’t think Zhiyi’s actions are forgivable, but I think he should be put on trial. Miss Yelan, your original goal was exactly what Zhiyi wanted to do before—to blow up the Qingxupu Ruins and bury Yusupov and the others with Zhiyi here, right?” Keqing looked at Yelan.

If Han Fulai, Ke Qing, and others hadn't been there, the Qingxupu Ruins would probably look very different today.

“If I really light the fuse and leave this secret room, I’ll find that my escape route is blocked, won’t I?” Zhiyi laughed bitterly, his face full of self-mockery. “In the end, I’m just like Yusupov, a pawn that can be used and discarded at will… Miss Yelan, can you tell me why this is?”

"You poisoned and murdered your own teacher, Uncle Tian, ​​and conspired with the Fools to betray Liyue's interests. Do you really think your crimes can be wiped clean?" Yelan's lips curled up, full of sarcasm.

“I didn’t want to kill the teacher! I just… just wanted to make him sick. The fish soup contained not only poison but also antidote… I said I would never betray the position of Tian Shu Star!… I…” Zhi Yi’s voice grew weaker and weaker. He knew that his explanation was pale and meaningless, even if he was telling the truth.

"Even if what you say is true, the damage to Uncle Tian's body has already been done... Besides, do you think your excuses can justify your actions?" Ye Lan's face still wore a mocking smile. "Deputy Minister Han, and Lady Ke Qing, is this the kind of person you want to protect?"

“That’s right, the person I want to protect is just this one.” Han Fulai’s face also maintained a smile. “I actually believe what he said. Since Uncle Tian is willing to give him a chance, I think he doesn’t really want to kill Uncle Tian… But I want to save him, regardless of whether I believe him or not, or even Uncle Tian.”

Chapter Thirty-Five: The Turning Point in Chess (The End)

“Miss Yelan knows very well who I am.”

Han Fulai's words were loaded with meaning, and Ye Lan certainly understood what he meant.

Tian Shu, Ke Qing, Gan Yu, Ning Guang, and even the immortals are all no match for the Geo Archon, Liyue's most powerful figure.

"I simply judged that protecting Zhiyi would be more beneficial to Liyue, that's all."

"I would like to ask Vice Minister Han for his guidance." Ye Lan frowned.

Her cooperative attitude was aimed at extracting intelligence—how much Han Fulai knew and to what extent?

The fact that Han Fulai was backed by the Rock King was no secret to Ningguang, and Yelan naturally knew it as well. In fact, ever since he revealed the Jade Shield at the Jade Pavilion, people at the level of the Liyue Seven Stars already knew that Han Fulai had a special relationship with the King.

This only increased Yelan's wariness of Han Fulai—with the Rock King Emperor in seclusion, if Han Fulai harbored ambitions, how many people in Liyue could keep him in check? Where was the Emperor's limit in his indulgence of him? What exactly did he want to achieve by doing this?

These are all questions that Yelan has to consider.

Han Fulai then turned the conversation to Zhiyi.

"Zhiyi, you just asked Miss Yelan why she wanted to kill you. Do you need me to tell you the answer?"

Zhiyi gently shook her head. "No need, I know."

He turned to Ye Lan and spoke slowly, his voice heavy: "I first met Uncle Tian when we were fishing by the sea. Most of his teachings to me were done while we were fishing... Miss Ye Lan's actions, in fishing terms, are called 'baiting'."

"Compared to rivers and lakes, the ocean is much larger, and its aquatic environment is vastly different from that of freshwater. Fish are also more dispersed... so 'baiting' is even more important."

As Zhiyi spoke, he recalled how Uncle Tian had taught him to fish and couldn't help but smile wryly.

"The so-called 'baiting' refers to placing bait in advance at the fishing spot to attract fish to the vicinity, which can effectively improve the efficiency of fishing. For example, the golden blackback bass is a type of fish that likes to gather and feed. Uncle Tian often baits the spot before high tide and casts his fishing rod in the middle of high and low tide. When the tide rises to a high level, the fish will come to feed with the tide. According to Uncle Tian, ​​this is called 'one tide of seawater, one tide of fish'."

"The most important factors in 'baiting' are timing and location. No matter how good the bait is, if it's thrown in the wrong place, it won't attract fish. To be honest, I've never quite mastered the art of this, but Miss Yelan is undoubtedly a master... because Yusupov and I were the 'bait' that Miss Yelan prepared, and this Qingxupu Ruins is where Miss Yelan fishes."

"Miss Yelan, you took advantage of Yusupov's gullibility towards me, diverted the Fatui guards, and set a trap here to kill Yusupov, those undercover agents, and me, and planned to blow up the Qingxupu Ruins... There were two purposes—first, to use this as leverage to control Yusupov's lieutenant Theofan, making him act as a 'double agent'; second, to sacrifice Theofan, the only one in the know, when necessary, to draw out the other Fatui forces lurking in Liyue!"

"Since the treasure of the Qingxupu Ruins is of great importance to the Fools, and with a Fool's executor secretly overseeing the project, they cannot easily abandon it. Using Yusupov's autocratic actions as an excuse for failure cannot truly cover up the deaths of these people. Pantalone will inevitably become suspicious. With all those who knew about the mission, including myself, dead, Winter's forces can only thoroughly investigate the only survivor, Theofan..."

"...Next, the Qingxupu Ruins will become Miss Yelan's fishing ground."

This is what Han Fulai mentioned before: "Everyone will die." Ye Lan's plan is multifaceted; it can both lure the enemy out of their hole and use someone else to do the dirty work. Even though Zhi Yi understands that he has been tricked by Ye Lan, he can't help but admire her brilliance.

Recalling Theofan's smug face when he conspired with him to kill Yusupov, Zhiyi couldn't help but sigh... They were all pawns; who could truly control their own life and death?

Ye Lan's lips curled up as she looked at Han Fulai: "As the one who sabotaged the plan, what are your thoughts, Deputy Minister Han?"

Han Fulai looked at Zhiyi and slowly uttered a sentence: "My feeling is... Zhiyi, it is not unjust for you to lose to Miss Yelan, because you never understood why you died until your death."

Zhiyi was taken aback. After a moment, he bowed deeply to Han Fulai and said, "Please give me your guidance, Vice Minister Han."

Han Fulai turned to Ye Lan and smiled, "Miss Ye Lan, would you mind if I told you this reason?"

Ye Lan simply sneered, "If Vice Minister Han doesn't want to talk, no one can force you."

Han Fulai thought that Ye Lan naturally couldn't stop him.

Ye Lan's purpose in being here now is only one—to report to Ning Guang what happened today at the Qingxupu Ruins. She believes that Han Fulai's reason for keeping her here to "talk" is the same. And she also knows that Han Fulai is doing this to show Ning Guang his sincerity.

This is what Han Fulai wanted to tell Ningguang through Yelan: he sabotaged Ningguang's plan not for personal reasons, but for the public good.

Han Fulai maintained his smile: "Then, Miss Yelan, please take out another recording conch shell and deliver my words to Lady Ningguang verbatim."

Ye Lan reached out and tapped the die that looked like an ornament hanging around her neck.

She had activated the miniature recording device she carried on her body the moment she asked Han Fulai to untie her bound hands. As an intelligence operative, Ye Lan always had a backup plan. Even if Han Fulai hadn't allowed her to record, she had already secretly started recording long ago.

Ye Lan gestured to Han Fulai, "Vice Minister Han, please speak."

Han Fulai pointed to the ground beneath his feet and said to Zhiyi, "The real reason Miss Yelan wanted to kill you is right here. This is the key point that Miss Yelan has deliberately obscured and ignored throughout the whole affair!"

Zhiyi pondered for a moment, then suddenly looked up: "You mean... the treasure in the Qingxupu ruins!"

“Yes, the treasure of Qingxupu. Lady Keqing, do you remember what I told you before we came?” Han Fu looked at Keqing.

Ke Qing nodded. "Tools are there to help people solve problems, so problems come first, then tools."

"Yusupov is a tool, Zhiyi is a tool, and Miss Yelan, you... are also a tool."

Han Fulai looked directly into Ye Lan's eyes, and for the first time during their eye contact, the latter looked away.

"The reason why the Fools orchestrated the 'Qingxupu Redevelopment Plan,' the reason why you, Zhiyi, were drawn into this matter, and the reason why Miss Yelan set up this trap, is all for this treasure, or rather, the secret—the secret of the demon god who left behind the Qingxupu ruins!"

Chapter Thirty-Six: Cheers, Future Executors of the Fools!

The reactions of everyone present to Han Fulai's words varied.

Ye Lan stared at Han Fulai with a tense expression, without saying a word.

Shen He stared calmly at Ye Lan, his mind racing with thoughts of grabbing her head and slamming it against the ground three times if she suddenly attacked. He figured she'd pass out after that.

Zhiyi's expression shifted, unconsciously connecting the recent events involving the demon god Oser and the attack by Ba Che, wondering if he had almost helped the Fools release the sealed demon god.

Keqing's expression was grave. There were numerous demonic ruins on the Liyue Plain, and even as a Star Seven, she knew very little about them. If the Qingxu Pool ruins involved demonic secrets, given Ningguang's style, it was quite possible she would secretly send Yelan to investigate, or even eliminate everyone who knew to protect the secret.

Han Fulai continued speaking slowly and deliberately: "Actually, before entering this ruin, I didn't know who left it or what secrets it held—but on the secret door leading into the ruin, I found an emblem, a square one, representing the rock element."