Holding a lantern, guiding souls across, Lady Hou comes from the underworld.

Although Zhao Wan did not dine with everyone, she instructed the kitchen to prepare a sumptuous feast.

Yu Lang counted on his fingers and suddenly sighed, "The last time we ate such a sumptuous meal was on Yunhe Mountain, on the night of Lord Ren's birthday."

When his birthday was mentioned, Ren Fengjue's eyes clearly showed some unease, but he pretended not to hear and did not respond.

At this moment, Steward Sun personally brought over two small jars of wine and said to everyone, "This is wine brewed by the Princess herself, and she specially ordered it to be sent here to entertain you all."

Upon hearing that the wine was brewed by Princess Wu, Yu Lang immediately stood up, clearly showing great interest.

"I never expected to be able to drink wine brewed by the Princess herself!"

Ren Fengjue frowned slightly and immediately warned, "Young Master Yu, drinking will lead to trouble."

Steward Sun immediately said, "Young Marquis, there is no need to worry. The Princess Consort instructed that this is a medicinal wine, especially suitable for drinking in the winter in the Northern Territory. When Your Highness was alive, you always drank the Princess Consort's brewed wine."

Upon hearing this, Yan Zhengchu quickly opened the wine jar, sniffed it, and said, "It does indeed smell like medicinal herbs. I'll have to try it."

The jar wasn't big; after he poured himself a bowlful, only half was left.

Yu Lang poured another half, and the wine jar was empty.

"That's all?"

The princess is being far too stingy.

Yu Shaoqing dared not speak aloud, but could only mutter to himself.

Steward Sun smiled, picked up another jar, and poured a bowl for Ren Fengjue and Xia Ximo respectively, saying, "The Princess Consort also instructed that this medicinal wine should not be drunk in large quantities; one bowl per person at most."

Ren Fengjue originally intended to give them the other jar as well, but upon hearing this, he couldn't help but glance at the bottom of the bowl.

He remembered promising Xia Ximo that he would never drink alcohol outside again.

Just as he was trying to think of a way to decline, Yu Lang and Yan Zhengchu over there had already started talking about it with great interest.

"I've never tasted such a unique medicinal wine before. It contains astragalus, angelica, codonopsis, safflower... Did they add anything else?"

"I can't taste it, but it's quite mild and doesn't taste like alcohol..."

Manager Sun said, "Only the Princess knows the recipe for this medicinal wine. This old servant... has no way of knowing it."

Ren Fengjue asked him, "Has Steward Sun tried this wine?"

Steward Sun shook his head with a smile: "How could this old servant have such good fortune? In the past, only the Prince could enjoy it in the entire Prince's mansion. Even if the Princess wanted to drink it, the Princess Consort wouldn't give it to her."

"Although the princess has neglected domestic affairs due to illness over the years, her feelings for the prince have never changed."

This didn't sound like a big problem, but Ren Fengjue frowned slightly.

Just then, someone outside the door called out to Steward Sun, so he took his leave.

As soon as Steward Sun left, Ren Fengjue picked up the bowl, sniffed it carefully, and examined its color by the light.

Seeing his obvious suspicion, Yu Lang hesitated, put down his wine bowl, and cautiously asked, "Does Your Excellency suspect something?"

Ren Fengjue deliberately said, "I suspect there's something wrong with the wine."

"?"

Yan Zhengchu also put down his wine bowl, his expression changing slightly. He and Yu Shaoqing exchanged a glance, wishing they could choke each other...

"Why didn't you say so sooner, sir? Master Yan and I have almost finished drinking."

"Is it poisonous? It's not too late to induce vomiting, is it?"

Ah Xia has already brought the silver needles to test it...

Ren Fengjue replied, "It's not that it's poisonous. Princess Wu has no grudge against us, so she wouldn't poison us. I just find it a bit strange..."

Hearing that there was no poison and that Ah Xia's silver needles had not detected any toxicity, the two finally stopped their fuss.

Yu Lang rinsed his mouth with tea and asked, "What's strange?"

"The relationship between the princess and the prince."

Yu Lang was somewhat puzzled and couldn't help but lean closer to listen, "What do you mean by that?"

Princess Yang, wife of Prince Wu, came from a prestigious family and was once a noblewoman in the capital.

However, the Yang family's most prosperous and glorious period was during the previous dynasty...

When Lady Yang married King Wu, the country had just been pacified. After King Wu was enfeoffed, he established his own government in Liangzhou and moved far away from the capital.

Ren Fengjue had heard from his mother that King Wu was a womanizer and that his wife was jealous, so they must have resentment in their hearts.

Therefore, he naturally suspected that the deaths of Madam Du and the concubines in the mansion were related to her.

However, Zhao Wan said that Princess Wu had been ill for more than ten years, never leaving the house, and had long since stopped caring about household affairs.

As a senior member of the household, Steward Sun also said that the Princess's feelings for the Prince have never changed over the years.

Everything seemed unrelated to her, yet it felt inextricably linked to her…

That's the strangest part.

"I can't quite put my finger on it, but the mysteries surrounding this mansion are still unsolved, so we must not let our guard down."

Ren Fengjue had never met Princess Wu, so he couldn't make a judgment based on that.

Although Yu Lang didn't hear any "useful" news, he still felt that it made sense.

However, when I turned to look at the table full of food, I suddenly lost my appetite.

Although Xia Ximo ate his meal silently without making a sound, he clearly heard their conversation.

She glanced down at the medicinal wine in front of her, seemingly lost in thought.

After dinner, everyone went back to their rooms, but no one went to bed.

As midnight approached, Yan Zhengchu and Yu Lang each used an invisibility talisman to quietly enter the Zhenxia Courtyard.

Ren Fengjue, however, found his pure yang body too "flashy" and stayed alone in the guest courtyard.

According to the plan, Master Yan was to find traces of ghosts in this place with the strongest yin energy, including Aunt Du's main soul.

At this point, everything was ready, and Master Yan began to perform the ritual in the courtyard.

As usual, he had Yu Lang scatter "ashes" around the courtyard and set up a bell-ringing array in the middle.

"Listen carefully. If the bell rings in a moment, it means a ghost is approaching."

Yan Zhengchu sat in the center of the formation, holding the jade sword in front of him.

Yu Lang and Xia Ximo stood under the corridor, intently observing their surroundings.

Before long, a chilling wind swept through the courtyard, followed by the sound of a bell, then two, three, and finally a chorus of sounds…

Although he couldn't see the spirits, Yu Lang, who was watching from the sidelines, felt his hair stand on end. He hurriedly hid behind Xia Ximo and asked in a trembling voice, "How... how many ghosts are there?"

Xia Ximo didn't say anything, but his brows furrowed.

There were scattered, unclaimed souls all around.

Summoned by the array, they appeared one after another in the courtyard, yet each one lacked consciousness and form…

Yan Zhengchu also gasped and glanced back at Xia Ximo.

"Miss Xia, it seems that the wronged souls of the Prince's mansion have all gathered here."

At the same time, Ren Fengjue, who was in his guest room, was also startled by a knock on the door.

He put down his pen, crumpled the papers on the table into a ball, and threw them into the basket.

When I got to the door, I couldn't help but pause for a moment.

"Is it Miss Mo?"

The person outside hesitated for a moment before replying, "It's me."