Catching Monsters

Chapter 295 Ao Qing
Outside the capital city, in a small courtyard nestled among bamboo groves, Ye Xiuyuan sat drinking tea, while opposite him sat Feng Yu, dressed in the everyday clothes of a eunuch.

Feng Yu was holding a Go board and playing against Ye Xiuyuan on the opposite side.

He said with a smile, "Mr. Ye's chess skills are superb, beyond the reach of ordinary people."

Although Feng Yu was a eunuch, he had followed Xiao Yuzheng since childhood, and the arts of playing the zither, chess, calligraphy, and painting were considered basic skills. His Go skills were among the best in the eunuch world.

Of course, another major reason was that not many eunuchs dared to beat him.

When he encountered Ye Xiuyuan, Ye Xiuyuan showed him no mercy, pushing him to his doom with every move. Before long, Ye Xiuyuan's defeat was inevitable.

Ye Xiuyuan smiled faintly, not bothering with Feng Yu's flattery, and instead put away his flag and asked, "Has the auction for this meteorite in the capital been decided?"

"Don't worry, Mr. Ye. His Majesty said that the Hu army suffered a great defeat, and Mr. Ye deserves much credit for this. This meteorite will definitely be auctioned off and presented to you," Feng Yu said with a smile.

This Mr. Ye Xiuyuan is quite strange. He has no interest in fame, fortune, gold and silver treasures, but he is obsessed with meteorites.

Ye Xiuyuan's gaze remained fixed on the chessboard as he slowly said, "If I remember correctly, this meteorite is to be auctioned in three days?"

"Yes." Feng Yu nodded slightly, then smiled and said, "Don't worry, in the capital, no one can take what His Majesty wants from him."

……

Most of the time now, only Wen Chen, Jiang Yun, Xu Suwen, and Ao Yu stay in the Sanqing Temple.

Qin Shujian has officially joined the Eastern Garrison Command and reports to the Eastern Garrison Command office every day from early morning to late at night.

Wen Chen was naturally extremely envious of this. He was only one step away from the eighth rank of the Daoist realm, and he would be able to break through as soon as the time was right.

Joining the Embroidered Uniform Guard would be a great honor for one's ancestors.

Whenever he thought of this, he felt extremely excited, and recently he has focused all his energy on breaking through his cultivation level.

Jiang Yun, humming a little tune, lay in the backyard of Sanqing Temple, basking in the sun.

Jiang Yun already had 30,000 taels of silver, but he knew that it was definitely not enough to buy the meteorite.

Zhao Gongcheng could lend out 20,000 to 30,000 taels of silver.

In total, it amounted to fifty or sixty thousand taels of silver.

However, the capital city is full of hidden talents, and this amount of silver may not be enough to buy the meteorite.

Xu Suwen sat beside his recliner, peeling a snow berry.

This snow fruit is somewhat similar to a pear, but its taste is a bit astringent.

She handed the peeled fruit to Jiang Yun and asked curiously, "Have you been raising money these past few days to buy that meteorite?"

“Our Duke Zhenguo’s mansion does have some savings.”

Jiang Yun took the snow-white fruit, lay back in the chair, took a bite, and said, "Not for now. There are too many rich people in the capital. I'm afraid my little bit of money isn't enough."

Jiang Yun didn't waste time on internal conflicts; he was determined to obtain the meteorite.

After all, he hadn't figured out what the meteorite was actually used for.

Jiang Yun simply wanted to give this treasure, which everyone valued so highly, a try.

"I'm just joining in the fun, just passing by."

Suddenly, Ao Yu, with her keen sense of smell, sniffed around and found them: "Oh, so you're stealing fruit and you didn't even call me?"

Seeing this, Xu Suwen smiled and said, "Miss Ao, please wait a moment, I'll carve another one for you."

After saying that, he picked up a fruit from the fruit basket beside him and prepared to peel it.

Ao Yu didn't care about such things; he simply grabbed the fruit and threw it into his mouth, one after another.

"good to eat."

……

A sizable procession of horse-drawn carriages slowly approached from the east gate of the capital.

The team consisted of more than twenty people, who exuded a strong demonic aura as if nothing was amiss.

Inside the carriage, a young man of about twenty years old, dressed in a long robe, with a cold expression, slowly lifted the curtain, looked at the distant capital city, and said indifferently, "My sister arrived in the capital, and her fate is unknown. I don't know if she is alive or dead."

Inside the carriage, an old man with a fox-like face said with a smile, "Lord Ao Qing, this human capital is full of hidden talents. There are countless masters in the five great academies and five Buddhist temples alone."

"Moreover, there are also top experts stationed in the imperial city."

"It would not be surprising if Lord Ao Yu died in the capital."

The young man called Ao Qing's eyes flashed with murderous intent as he slowly said, "Find her whereabouts as soon as possible, whether she is dead or alive."

"Yes." The old man nodded slightly, then reminded Ao Qing, "Sir, we still need to get the important business done. We must get our hands on the meteorite."

Ao Qing frowned and said, "I heard that this time, they're planning to sell this meteorite at an auction house in the capital?"

"These humans are troublesome. If it were our demon kingdom, and such a treasure appeared, we would naturally fight it out. Whoever is stronger should own it."

The old man advised, "After all, we've entered human territory, so let's try to follow their rules as much as possible."

"How much money do we have?" Ao Qing asked.

The old man said in a low voice, "Along the way, I raised about 40,000 taels of silver."

They called it a fundraising scheme, but in reality, they robbed any wealthy people they encountered along the way, and killed them all if they didn't pay.

These demons were incredibly powerful, and the local government couldn't control them.

They robbed their way through, managing to steal only 40,000 taels of silver.

Ao Qing nodded slightly and said, "This much money should be enough." Soon, the team, filled with demonic energy, slowly arrived at the city gate.

At the city gate, a team of more than thirty Imperial Guards was already waiting. After confirming that these people were envoys from the Demon Kingdom, they respectfully invited them into the capital.

After entering the capital, they were quickly settled in a rather luxurious restaurant for temporary accommodation.

Ao Qing entered the house and had just sat down to rest when a demoness arrived mysteriously.

She was the maid who accompanied the fourth prince.

"Little demon Tao Kui greets Lord Ao Qing."

The female demon named Tao Kui entered the room and knelt down respectfully. She was a minor demon sent by the demon race to the capital to gather information.

Ao Qing sat by the window, looking at the bustling streets outside, not even glancing at her directly, and said, "I heard you're in the capital now, accompanying the Fourth Prince?"

"Yes."

Ao Qing asked calmly, "I should have given you a message before, telling you to use your connection with the Fourth Prince to find a way to get your hands on the meteorite."

With a helpless expression, Tao Kui respectfully said, "Reporting to Lord Ao Qing, the Fourth Prince did send someone to the Yuanhu Auction House..."

"There are far too many important figures who are interested in this meteorite..."

It is said that even His Majesty is very interested in this item and sent a palace eunuch to inquire about it.

Upon learning this news, the fourth prince dared not act rashly.

Tao Kui respectfully said, "However, the Fourth Prince still managed to find out that the starting bid for this meteorite should be ten thousand taels of silver..."

Ao Qing's eyes twitched slightly. Ten thousand taels of silver?

"By the way, is there any news about my sister, Ao Yu?" Ao Qing asked.

Upon hearing this, Tao Kui said, "Some time ago, I heard that Lord Ao Yu went to Qingfeng Temple and caused a great disturbance, but was severely injured by the Heavenly Master of Qingfeng Temple."

"He is probably recuperating at the Sanqing Temple now."

"Sanqing Temple?" Ao Qing narrowed his eyes.

He was not familiar with the situation in the human capital, so he inquired carefully, and Tao Kui naturally answered all his questions without reservation.

She stayed by the Fourth Prince's side and heard about many things happening in the capital.

"So, my sister is hiding in the Sanqing Temple to recuperate from her injuries, and there's a human centurion inside?" A smile appeared in Ao Qing's eyes: "I should go see my sister. She's seriously injured, and as her younger brother, I have to protect her."

……

evening.

In the living room of Sanqing Temple, Xu Suwen prepared a table full of dishes. Ao Yu sat at the table early, chopsticks in hand, ready to eat.

Jiang Yun, Qin Shujian, and Wen Chen were also sitting at the table.

Qin Shujian was chatting with Wen Chen about the various interesting things that happened after joining the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

After all, he had a special status; he was Jiang Yun's apprentice and had just joined the Embroidered Uniform Guard. Therefore, he was not allowed to carry out many dangerous missions.

Wen Chen was extremely envious.

"The fish are here."

Xu Suwen placed a plate of freshly steamed fish on the table and untied her apron: "Alright, let's start eating."

Ao Yu had already been holding chopsticks in her right hand and a bowl in her left, like an athlete waiting for the referee's command to sprint in the 100-meter dash.

Hearing Xu Suwen say that it was time to eat.

She quickly devoured the food on the table.

She has a big appetite, so Jiang Yun and the others didn't dare to be slow. If they ate too slowly, all the food on the table would probably end up in Ao Yu's stomach.

As Ao Yu was devouring her rice, she suddenly stopped, frowned, and looked towards the outside of the Sanqing Temple.

"What's wrong?" Jiang Yun, who was eating, noticed Ao Yu's strange expression.

When Ao Yu is eating, he is completely oblivious to everything else.

Ao Yu stuck out his tongue, licked the rice off the corner of his mouth, and said, "Someone's coming. My heart is pounding. I have a feeling that the person has some ill intentions."

"Honest intentions?"

Jiang Yun frowned slightly, and soon he also sensed a demonic aura gradually approaching from outside the Sanqing Temple.

Moreover, this demonic aura also carried a faint killing intent.

Jiang Yun put down her chopsticks and looked at Qin Shujian and Wen Chen: "You two go to the backyard first."

"Yes." The advantage of Qin Shujian and Wen Chen was that they unconditionally obeyed Jiang Yun's words without needing to say anything more.

After the two left, Jiang Yun and Xu Suwen exchanged a glance and walked out of the living room.

In front of the main hall of Sanqing Temple, a handsome young man stood there, looking in their direction.

"Who are you?" Jiang Yun frowned.

"My name is Ao Qing, and I'm here to see my sister." A faint smile appeared on Ao Qing's face as he looked at Ao Yu inside the house.

He slowly walked forward, his gaze icy, and said, "What? You don't recognize me?"

(End of this chapter)