Endless Winter: My Camp Upgrades Infinitely Chapter 1257 - 416: Secluded Cultivation Charge, A Half-Hearted Arrest, Let Your Superior Come [Subscribe Request!]

Numerous individuals initially intended to wrap up their business in Hongmen City and head home, but after witnessing the monumental clash on the eighteenth between Great Xia and the Six Towns, they became consumed with the desire to explore Xia City. Consequently, since the 18th of last month, a growing stream of travelers has followed the North Bank of the Xing River toward Xia City.

In contrast to other parts of Xia City, the North Fifth District does not require the establishment of the standard Eight Departments. To accommodate the bustling trade, Qiu Peng originally founded a Camp Supply Department here. However, as the population swelled, order became a necessity, prompting Li Tiancheng to establish a Prison Department and appoint Hou Ming as the Chief of Punishment.

By the fifth of October, Hou Ming’s records indicated the local population had surged past 63,000. Of these, twenty percent possessed Cold Resistance levels, while the vast majority were at the Earth-digging Realm Limit, with only a handful having achieved true Earth-digging Realm cultivation.

Although most newcomers sought to integrate into Great Xia, others chose to depart. Despite this fluid migration, the overall population continued an upward trajectory.

As the populace expanded, maintaining control became increasingly difficult.

These arrivals hailed from every corner, bringing clashing temperaments and customs. The majority were traders, which inevitably invited friction. Some were bitter rivals who felt the urge to fight on sight, not to mention those harboring secret, malicious agendas, leading to chaos that defied description.

Setting aside common brawls, even with Great Xia’s stringent ban on violence, skirmishes erupted daily, and occasional murders occurred, placing immense strain on Hou Ming, the new Chief of Punishment.

Regulations usually allowed a station-based Chief of Punishment at most three Silver Order Prison Wardens. Faced with no other options, he was forced to request twenty additional Silver Order Prison Wardens from the Inner City Headquarters merely to manage the immediate needs of the North Fifth District.

Patrol duties in this sector are shared by the Fei Peng and Beizhao armies—troops recently reassigned from the Bashang migration—who now rotate their oversight of the camps, leaving the Prison Wardens to focus solely on investigations.

This underscores the sheer volatility of the North Fifth District!

As fate would have it, Xiang Liang was selected as one of the twenty additional Silver Order Prison Wardens.

Presently, an apprehensive Xiang Liang shadows his superior, Hou Ming, walking alongside Bai Shanning and twenty-two other Silver Order Prison Wardens. Behind them trudge over a hundred Iron Order Prison Guards. This heavily armed force of over a hundred men moved with thunderous urgency toward a residence nestled deep within the North Fifth District.

The atmosphere in the North Fifth District turned icy and murderous the moment this massive contingent of Wardens was deployed.

"The Wardens are out in full force; what could have happened?"

"Something significant must be afoot. A murder, perhaps?"

"A simple murder wouldn't require this many men. It isn't exactly rare. Maybe there was a massacre?"

"That sounds plausible. Let's follow and see for ourselves!"

……

As they marched, the sight of so many Prison Wardens moving in unison tipped off the bystanders that a major event had unfolded. While the cautious slunk back into their homes, more intrepid souls dared to trail behind the detachment, hoping to witness the drama.

"That Chu Yan’er looks suspicious. How could she be involved in trouble?"

Xiang Liang, however, was too gripped by anxiety to notice the crowd.

Just a short while ago at the Prison Department, he had been stunned to hear Chief of Punishment Hou Ming declare that Chu Yan’er and her six companions were all considered suspects.

His introduction to Chu Yan’er had been purely accidental. Last month on the 19th, while escorting Mu Longhe back from Hongmen toward Songyang Ridge, they had stumbled upon Chu Yan’er’s group struggling against two Advanced Snow Ridge Foxes. While they might have ignored such a scene outside of Great Xia’s borders, they could hardly turn a blind eye on their own territory.

Consequently, he, alongside Xiang Wentian and Bai Shanning, moved to intervene.

With Xiang Fuhai in their party, they didn't technically need to engage two Advanced Snow Ridge Foxes; nonetheless, Xiang Fuhai wanted to provide a training opportunity for his grandson, Xiang Wentian, allowing the five of them to handle the beasts.

After the rescue, they learned the seven had bypassed the main road to reach Xia City faster, only to accidentally wander into the hunting territory of the Snow Ridge Foxes.

The rescued group was profoundly grateful. Discovering they were all destined for Xia City, they requested to travel together.

Having cleared their initial background checks at Qinghepu, Xiang Liang and Bai Shanning felt no cause for alarm and agreed.

During the skirmish, Xiang Liang had personally saved the only woman of the group, Chu Yan’er. She was quite engaging, chatting with him constantly on the road to Xia City, and they soon grew quite close.

What followed, however, was a series of shocking developments!

Despite her plain demeanor, Chu Yan’er revealed artistic talents that rivaled Chief Painter Bai Yunzi of the Craftsmen Department, earning her widespread fame within days of arriving.

Coincidentally, as Hou Ming reassigned Xiang Liang to the North Fifth District, their relationship deepened. Out of gratitude for saving her life, she had not only bestowed lavish gifts upon him but even painted a portrait of his wife, Wang Yuxiu, for free.

Living in the Inner City, Xiang Liang heard that Lady Yuan was seeking a master painter for her son Yuan Shao’s birthday celebration. Wishing to return the favor for all she had done for him, Xiang Liang went out of his way to introduce Chu Yan’er to Lady Yuan.