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

Upon learning that the princess had been found, the county magistrate and town officials outside the gate hurriedly rushed into the mortuary.

However, upon looking up, he saw a giant standing there and was so frightened that he quickly retreated.

Li Zhao was extremely nervous and asked his subordinates, "Was I seeing things? Was that... a Di slave inside?"

The subordinate replied tremblingly, "Sir, you're not mistaken, it's absolutely true..."

Before Li Zhao could react, he heard someone call out to him from behind: "Magistrate Li."

"Your humble servant is here."

He stepped forward with a heavy heart, and heard Ren Fengjue instruct: "In the next two days, clear out all the corpses from the nearby villages and the 'Di Nu Camp,' record them, and give them a proper burial."

"Also, prepare a large prison van."

Li Zhao swallowed hard, then asked fearfully, "Where are we going to take that... Di slave?"

Ren Fengjue said, "You don't need to worry about that. Just report the situation here to the prefectural government truthfully, the more detailed the better."

Upon hearing this, Li Zhao breathed a sigh of relief and immediately stopped asking questions, issuing the order without further ado.

Ren Fengjue and the others rushed to the manor in the eastern suburbs overnight.

At dawn, news of the murder in Zhujia Village spread from the county government office to the prefectural government office. Within half a day, a notice was sent to the Prince's Mansion.

Meanwhile, at the manor outside the eastern suburbs, Yan Zhengchu was trying to use a calming incantation to eliminate the Di people's violent aura.

After working for half a day, the Di man's eyelids drooped, he was exhausted, and soon fell fast asleep.

Yu Lang, watching from the side, couldn't help but laugh. "Daoist Master, this calming mantra actually has a sleep-inducing effect?"

Master Yan had not expected this outcome and felt inexplicably like "playing the lute to a cow".

But while the Di people were asleep, he immediately used his paper-crafting technique to make a paper figure, took a drop of blood from between his eyebrows, and let it congeal on the paper figure.

Yu Lang couldn't help but ask, "Daoist Master, what kind of new and interesting thing is this?"

Yan Zhengchu said in a low voice, "This technique is considered a semi-unorthodox method among the techniques of my Yunhe Mountain, and it is not suitable to publicize it."

Yu Lang immediately became interested: "Hmm? How so?"

Master Yan skipped over the topic of magic and said directly, "The young marquis instructed us to keep a close eye on him and not to lose track of him again."

"And the purpose of this technique is... to control him through this little figure. Even if he loses his mind, he can be stopped in time. As long as the technique is still active, no matter how far he runs, he can be found."

"oh…"

Yu Lang suddenly realized and gave a thumbs up, "As long as it's used for the right purpose, it can't be considered a crooked path."

The two had just finished their work and were about to go back for a nap when they saw a figure enter the door and hurriedly walk inside.

Yu Lang looked closely and realized it was the chief steward of the Prince's mansion. He immediately called out to him, "Chief Steward Sun, is there something urgent this early in the morning?"

Steward Sun stamped his foot and immediately replied, "A letter has suddenly arrived from the Marquis of Zhenbei's residence..."

"A letter from the Marquis of Zhenbei's residence?"

Yu Lang and Yan Zhengchu asked almost simultaneously.

Steward Sun hurriedly presented the letter to the two men, saying, "It's absolutely true; it was delivered just half an hour ago."

Yu Lang was taken aback when he saw that there was indeed the seal of the Marquis of Zhenbei on the top of the letter.

He dared not open it without permission, and solemnly said, "Let's go find the young marquis and the princess."

A moment later, everyone gathered in the hall.

Zhao Wan was so sleepy that she kept yawning, and was pushed out by her maid Xiao Xizi.

Even knowing that the Marquis of Zhenbei had sent a letter, Princess Fenghua showed no sense of urgency. After unfolding the letter, she glanced at it line by line without any change in her expression.

"He invited us to his home as guests..."

Upon hearing this, everyone's expressions turned strange.

Ren Fengjue immediately took the letter and looked at it, his expression immediately hardening.

It turns out that in addition to inviting Zhao Wan, the letter also specifically mentioned Ren Fengjue, Yu Lang, and even the Daoist priest Yan Zhengchu of Yunhe Mountain and Xia Ximo, the daughter of General Xia, all of whom were listed in the letter.

Even the name is correct...

Is he inviting everyone to a "Feast at Hongmen"?

Yu Lang couldn't help but ask, "My lord, why do I suddenly feel a chill down my spine?"

Yan Zhengchu echoed, "Me too, I have a feeling of 'a formidable enemy at hand'."

Zhao Wan, unaware of their fear of the Marquis of Zhenbei, yawned and asked, "Is the Marquis of Zhenbei really that scary?"

Yu Lang hesitated for a moment, then only said, "It's definitely more terrifying than the princess imagines."

Zhao Wan looked unconvinced.

She had actually met that person once before.

It was at her father's birthday banquet, but she was too young to know how to tell the difference.

She only felt that her father did not like this Marquis of Zhenbei, saying that he had an "evil aura" about him.

As a child, Zhao Wan did not understand what "evil energy" meant, but she could indeed sense that the aura emanating from the Marquis of Zhenbei was different from that of ordinary people.

However, if I were to try to explain it in detail, I couldn't quite put my finger on what that feeling was...

Yu Lang then asked Ren Fengjue, "Sir, his invitation to us at this time must have been premeditated. What should we do?"

Before Ren Fengjue could speak, Xia Ximo coldly said, "Just go directly."

Zhao Wan immediately chimed in, "I also agree with Miss Xia."

Hearing them say that, Yu Lang had no choice but to swallow back what he was going to say.

Ren Fengjue put down the letter and smiled slightly, "Going to the Zhenbei Marquis's residence is only a matter of time. I released Di Nu's disappearance to test Jiang Ting's reaction, but I didn't expect him to be so undisguised..."

He then said to Yan Zhengchu, "The method that Master Yan mentioned before can be used now."

Hearing their mysterious tone, Zhao Wan quickly asked, "What method?"

Yan Zhengchu replied mysteriously, "Well, you'll find out later, Princess."

Ren Fengjue added, "There are still three hours before the banquet. Everyone should go back to their rooms and rest to get some rest, as there may be some dealings later."

Three hours later, it was only the Shen time (3-5 PM).

However, outside the East Suburb Manor, a group of people had appeared around noon, standing in neat rows and solemnly waiting by the roadside.

After everyone came out of the main gate, the leader immediately came to greet them.

"Wu Kai, deputy general of Wan Tingjun, has been ordered to come and receive the emperor."

With a strong voice, he bowed and then made way for the dozens of soldiers behind him, saying, "Gentlemen, please get on the carriage."

At first glance, this setup seems to show great respect for distinguished guests, but walking in the middle gives one a sense of overwhelming pressure.

Zhao Wan also felt uncomfortable. She always spoke her mind, and frowned slightly. "I'm not used to riding in other people's carriages, so I won't trouble myself."

Wu Kai didn't put her in a difficult position, simply saying, "Please make yourself at home, Princess."

Zhao Wan waved her hand, and the commander of the Golden Feather Guard personally drove the princess's carriage out of the manor, and everyone then boarded the carriage.

Throughout the entire process, Wu Kai remained expressionless. After Zhao Wan and the others mounted their horses, he gave an order, and dozens of Wan Ting soldiers led the way.