Once I enter the pass, great Confucian scholars will surely debate the classics for me.

The three things Cai Guozhong mentioned are both difficult and easy to accomplish, but they all have a certain timeliness and urgency.

If you do one thing, you might miss the opportunity to do the other two and end up with nothing. This seems like a deliberate attempt to make things difficult.

Moreover, given Cai Guozhong's power in the homeland, with his advisors, brain trust, and a large number of soldiers at his disposal, there's really no need for Zhou Qingfeng to handle these three matters for him.

Perhaps they wanted to find a reason and excuse to refuse in a legitimate way.

But what was the purpose? Why did Cai Guozhong conceal Ye Tingxiu's whereabouts?

The more Zhou Qingfeng thought about it, the more uneasy he felt. The more confused he became, the more he realized that Ye Tingxiu was in deep trouble.

"One issue is the repeated theft of logistical supplies, which raises many questions."

"One is a secret gathering of cult members plotting a conspiracy."

"One is that Cai Nianxiong ran away from home to find his mother."

Zhou Qingfeng temporarily put aside his many doubts and focused on the important matter. After a moment's thought, he said, "Time is of the essence. Jin Wei, go and track down Cai Nianxiong. He just escaped from Yitian and hasn't gone far. If you find him, bring him back immediately. If anything unexpected happens, you can handle it yourself. Remember to keep your communication bracelet on and contact me anytime."

Jin Wei nodded slightly: "Alright, then young master, please be careful."

Jin Wei wasn't so worried about Zhou Qingfeng's safety anymore, because he knew that Lord Xiao was secretly protecting the young master. Anyone who tried to ambush the young master would be taken care of by Lord Xiao first, so the young master's safety was actually quite well guaranteed.

Zhou Qingfeng watched Jin Wei leave quickly, then scanned the empty streets. Near the entrance of the Baron's mansion, there were very few passersby, only armored warriors standing guard at the ends of the streets and alleys, and groups of patrol teams patrolling around the Baron's mansion.

Being unfamiliar with the area, Zhou Qingfeng glanced around, randomly chose a direction, and quickly walked out of the main street in front of the Baron's mansion. There he saw many people from Ravenburg, grabbed a passerby and asked where the nearest tavern was. After receiving a reply, Zhou Qingfeng decisively headed towards the tavern.

Aside from assigning three tasks, Cai Guozhong provided no useful clues or reminders, not even an address, which was clearly a deliberate attempt to make things difficult for him.

Most people would be dumbfounded. Being unfamiliar with the place and knowing nothing, they would have no way of getting started.

However, Zhou Qingfeng was able to quickly find a way to break the deadlock. If there was no intelligence, he would try to quickly and accurately obtain the intelligence he wanted. Where there was the most intelligence and the most cultivators, it was undoubtedly places where people gathered, such as teahouses, taverns, and brothels.

Soon, Zhou Qingfeng arrived alone in front of the tavern, pushed open the door and entered. The noisy atmosphere inside the tavern immediately stopped, and everyone cast scrutinizing glances at him.

The air seemed to freeze at that moment.

The land of no man is constantly at war, teeming with bandits, thieves, and merchants who risk everything to make a living from the disaster. But Raven Castle is a military fortress, housing many soldiers and their families, as well as many civilians who have fallen on hard times, seeking Cai Guozhong's protection there.

Plague, war, and famine have made many people impoverished. People have no money and have become poor. However, they are powerless to change this situation. As long as they get a little money, they drink and seek pleasure to numb themselves. Most of them start by chatting and complaining, and eventually they roar angrily that the world should not be like this!

Most of the women who accompanied customers in the tavern were widows whose husbands had died while they were serving in the army, or respectable women who had lost their families. They could not leave the nomadic land and had to sell alcohol and engage in prostitution in order to make a living. It can be said that a small tavern contained multiple businesses including gambling, prostitution, and drinking.

Ultimately, it's a poor place. Even the owners of taverns have to find ways to develop multiple businesses to make a profit, otherwise they simply can't operate.

In principle, military areas like military castles should not have gambling dens, brothels, or taverns, as these would erode the soldiers' fighting spirit. However, soldiers are also human. While they can be suppressed in the short term through prestige and military regulations, violence and bloodshed can occur at any time in the long run.

Therefore, while prostitution, gambling, and drinking are prohibited in principle, they are permitted in practice.

Just do it secretly, avoid people, and don't do these messy things while wearing your military uniform. The higher-ups will just turn a blind eye.

Everyone needs a place to release stress and relieve emotions.

Ravencrest only has three taverns. In a place where acquaintances frequently come and go, the sudden arrival of a stranger is bound to attract attention.

After a brief period of scrutiny and silence, the tavern returned to its bustling and lively state.

A leave officer secretly took a voluptuous widow to a room upstairs for pleasure, while a group of leave soldiers, dressed in civilian clothes, embraced prostitutes and gambled around a gambling table to pass the time. Other guests ate, drank, and chatted as usual, and no one paid much attention to Zhou Qingfeng anymore.

Zhou Qingfeng found a seat and beckoned to the shopkeeper behind the counter.

The tavern owner rushed over, bowing and scraping, and said with a smile, "What does the guest need?"

Zhou Qingfeng took out a hundred coins and threw them over: "I need to find a guide urgently, preferably a local. He should be well-informed and have clean hands. There will be a reward if he does a good job."

The tavern owner, holding the money, smiled even more broadly: "No problem, please wait a moment, sir."

After saying that, the tavern owner turned around and ran to find someone. He quickly brought back a shifty-eyed young man and introduced him: "Guest, his name is Xiao Lingtong. He is the most well-informed person in this area. It is no exaggeration to say that there is nothing he does not know within a hundred miles of Ravenburg. That's why everyone calls him Xiao Lingtong."

Zhou Qingfeng tossed a hundred coins to the tavern owner, stood up, glanced at Xiaolingtong, and said, "There are too many people here, let's go outside to talk."

Xiao Lingtong followed Zhou Qingfeng out of the tavern and into the damp, narrow alley outside.

Mobile phone: "What is your honorable name, sir?"

Zhou Qingfeng: "Jiangdong".

Xiao Lingtong: "Hehe, it's Brother Jiang! I've heard so much about you. What news do you want to know, Brother Jiang? I, Xiao Lingtong, am known for my honesty and trustworthiness. Just ask me anything you want. My fees are very cheap. I only charge you 2000 yuan per message. How about that? Isn't that a great deal?"

Zhou Qingfeng: "What I need is a well-informed guide. I'll hire you to do something for me, and I'll give you 10,000 yuan afterwards. Do you want to do it?"

Xiao Lingtong: "Brother Jiang, I charge 2000 yuan for each message I send. You want me to be both a guide and handle things? 10,000 yuan is too little, far too little."

Zhou Qingfeng: "If you don't want me to do it, I'll find someone else."

Xiao Lingtong: "Hey hey hey~~~ Brother Jiang, I'll do it, I'll do it, I didn't say I wouldn't do it, 10,000 coins is fine, but you have to prepay 5,000 coins."

A flash of green light appeared in Zhou Qingfeng's palm, revealing five strings of magic coins. He tossed them over: "One thousand per string, count them yourself. Take the money and do my job. Remember, work for me. Don't ask questions you shouldn't ask, and forget everything you hear. Be careful with your money, and don't tell anyone else, otherwise..."

Xiao Lingtong chuckled as he counted the money, nodding repeatedly: "I understand, I understand. There are rules in our line of work too. If you break the rules, you won't be able to stay in this business anymore."