Qiao Mu left the house and headed directly towards the marketplace in Imperial Capital.
The marketplace was always bustling, especially in the early morning when people gathered.
As Qiao Mu got closer, the number of pedestrians on the road gradually increased, making it lively.
Qiao Mu walked at a slow pace and didn’t disguise himself, deliberately showing his true appearance to the world.
While walking, he also paid attention to the people around him, expecting that some force would not be able to resist jumping out to confront him.
However, after walking for a long time, he didn’t sense any strong individuals. Instead, relying on his exceptional hearing, he heard people whispering around him.
"That person over there is Qiao’s family, the somewhat famous Qiao Shuanglin, right?"
"I heard he is a heartless old man, but very concerned about his reputation. Yesterday, even if someone just blocked his path in front of the clinic of that famous doctor, he would order his followers to beat them up."
Qiao Mu didn’t pay attention to the whispers of the common people. He was just curious about how fast these rumors spread, which indeed exceeded his imagination.
Hai Wuya’s guess was probably true. Someone must have been fueling the fire behind the scenes. After all, Imperial Capital is not a small place like Yan City, where even trivial matters can spread throughout half of the city overnight.
"Hmm… Is that Dao Zhen from the Great Dao Sect?" Qiao Mu spotted a slightly familiar figure from the entrance of a tea house on the side of the road.
The other person was enjoying morning tea, but when he noticed Qiao Mu’s gaze, he smiled and nodded, appearing friendly and approachable.
Qiao Mu’s gaze hardened, but he only nodded slightly.
His current identity is the father of Qiao Zhong, a prisoner in the heavenly prison, so he naturally doesn’t know this Dao Zhen.
He can see through Dao Zhen’s uniqueness at a glance, and can explain it with Qiao Mu’s extraordinary insight. If he were to chat with him for a few more sentences, it would go against the setting of not having met before.
Qiao Mu turned his head and continued walking as if nothing had happened.
Soon, they arrived at the market street in the Imperial Capital, and the pedestrians around them became gradually dense, coming in a continuous stream.
"Why hasn’t anyone come to challenge me yet? With this great head of mine, who will be able to chop it off this time?"
Qiao Mu rubbed his head with his palm, feeling slightly disappointed.
Apart from Dao Zhen from the Great Dao Sect, he didn’t notice the presence of any strong individuals that would impress him.
Since there were no disturbances, he shifted his attention to the execution ground at the market entrance in the far distance.
On one side of the execution ground, there was a sharpened wooden stake, where Qiao Zhong’s head was impaled as a deterrent.
This head seems to have been specially preserved by the government officials, and it still looks very lifelike with all its facial features intact, frozen in the moment before Qiao Zhong’s death.
The people at the vegetable market are already used to seeing such things, they didn’t pay much attention to the head.
Only some children who come to the vegetable market for the first time would look at it for a bit longer, feeling both shocked and scared, then they couldn’t help but look at it again.
"They should take my head." Qiao Mu whispered.
Just as his attention was focused on his own head in the distance.
But suddenly, a figure behind him intentionally or unintentionally approached.
Qiao Mu sensed something and slightly moved to the side to avoid it.
Her voice was sharp and loud, piercing through the bustling market.
In the Imperial Capital market, there were many idle onlookers who enjoyed the excitement. On any other day, they couldn’t get enough of the beheading shows. But now, upon hearing this scream, many people turned their heads to look.
The butcher at the nearby stall, who was slaughtering a pig, placed his cleaver on the chopping block and strode over.
He glanced at the young woman’s curvaceous figure, instinctively wiping his hands on his apron before approaching.
"Miss, what’s wrong?" he asked gruffly.
The young woman, with teary eyes and a mix of anger and embarrassment, pointed at Qiao Mu standing next to her.
"This old man, just now… he… he…" She couldn’t finish her sentence, as tears streamed down like beads, wetting her blouse and evoking pity in the hearts of those who saw her.
At this time, more and more people gathered around and formed a small circle, enclosing Qiao Mu in the middle.
"You shameless person, don’t even think about running…" The butcher shouted loudly and bravely stepped forward to grab Qiao Mu.
But just after taking two steps, they saw Qiao Mu standing there, without any intention of running at all.
Moreover, this old man seemed aged, but stood tall and straight like a pine tree, with sharp eyes. With just one look, the butcher instinctively withdrew his hand.
"He almost embarrassed me with these tricks… but I won’t be fooled." Qiao Mu sighed softly in his heart, his gaze falling on the young woman’s face.
He faintly felt a sense of familiarity in the appearance of this young woman. Upon careful thought, it seemed that she appeared among the crowd that blocked him outside the clinic yesterday…
"This old man is Qiao Shuanglin, I remember him! He’s the one who fought outside the Apricot Forest Clinic yesterday!"
"Right, is he the one from Qiao’s family in Nan Province? How dare he act so arrogantly in our Imperial Capital?"
"Seeking fame and stirring up trouble, Qiao Shuanglin couldn’t hold back after fighting with the nobles yesterday, huh?"
In the crowded market, a brave person stepped forward to point out Qiao Mu and explain to the curious crowd who Qiao Shuanglin was and what happened.
"Are you done yet?" Qiao Mu became a little impatient listening to all the gossip around him.
Now, he became even more certain that someone had been instigating the crowd at the clinic yesterday.
The events from yesterday and today were very similar, both involving someone manipulating the public from behind the scenes…
"This job was really poorly done," Qiao Mu smirked to himself.
The incident at the clinic yesterday was forgivable, as he voluntarily paid the medical bill for someone else, giving the other person an opportunity to take advantage of it.
And today’s job was to frame him, a highly skilled martial artist with sharp senses?
Although Qiao Mu’s attention was focused on his own problems, he didn’t notice the approach of an ordinary woman beforehand. However, he knew that he hadn’t touched her body just now, and instinctively avoided any contact.
"He is old but won’t die, he must be a thief! Surround this shameless old man, don’t let him escape, quickly report to the authorities!"
The noise around grew louder and louder as the angry crowd surrounded Qiao Mu, just like the commotion at the clinic’s entrance yesterday.