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

Ren Fengjue's expression hardened, but he asked, "Does Master Yan mean there's an even more powerful evil entity behind this?"

"It's just speculation."

Yan Zhengchu originally wanted to explain to him in detail, but then, for some reason, his expression suddenly changed.

"Forget it, the less you know about these things, the safer you are."

Ren Fengjue had figured out his temperament and knew that he was tight-lipped.

If someone doesn't want to talk about it, no matter how you ask, they won't tell you.

He nodded knowingly, as if he had no interest whatsoever.

"I only need to know the truth about 'Ruyan's death,' and you don't need to tell me anything else, Taoist priest."

Yan Zhengchu was taken aback. "You really don't want to know at all?"

Ren Fengjue waved his hand: "I don't want to."

As they were talking, the sound of horses' hooves came from the official road not far away.

A man was seen whipping his horse and galloping at full speed, and in the blink of an eye, he was on the bridge.

This person was none other than A-Xia, one of the servants in Ren Fengjue's household.

He stood on the bridge and then saw the carriage and Young Master Ren in the woods. He immediately spurred his horse and rode over.

"Young Master!"

Inside the forest, Ren Fengjue's horse and carriage had separated, and judging from the extent of the damage to the carriage, it looked as if it had just gone through a fierce battle.

"What happened? Did we encounter some thieves?"

Seeing Xia's astonished expression, Lord Ren remained calm and composed: "Under the Emperor's nose, how could there be any thieves?"

"How's it going? Any developments at Hongxiu Tower?"

A-Xia nodded hesitantly: "We've found out. That Simeng is indeed problematic."

Ren Fengjue didn't seem too surprised, and simply instructed, "Let's go. I'll borrow your horse. We'll talk in detail on the way back to the capital."

Ren Fengjue used Xia Ximo's horse to rehitch a carriage that was barely usable. He first invited Xia Ximo into the carriage and then asked Yan Zhengchu if he wanted to come along.

Since Yan Zhengchu still needed to find the "Soul-Nourishing Pearl," he agreed to get into his car.

Since the carriage was already cramped and they were worried about it being too crowded, Master Ren decided to sit directly in front of the carriage with Ah Xia.

"Young master, isn't this... inappropriate?"

He is, after all, the young marquis of the Renxuan Marquis's family. How can he lower himself like this?

A-Xia felt it was against the rules; in terms of status and position, it should have been the Taoist priest who offered her the seat.

"It's alright."

Ren Fengjue chuckled and glanced into the carriage. "Look at how dilapidated the car is, what's the point of being picky?"

"Let's catch the carriage. Tell me about the situation at Hongxiu Tower while you're at it."

Upon hearing this, Ah Xia didn't dare to say anything more. After confirming that the wheels were unharmed, she picked up the reins and urged the horse to go.

Inside the carriage, Xia Ximo showed no courtesy and even took the main seat for granted, occupying most of the space.

Yan Zhengchu could only sit awkwardly on a small stool to the side.

To be honest, although he had calculated that Xia Ximo and the young marquis were destined to be together, he did not know her specific identity.

Seeing her sitting in the main seat with an air of superiority, I couldn't help but begin to have doubts.

Yan Zhengchu had only been in the capital for a few days and didn't have much information to gather.

However, given Lord Ren's reputation in the capital, there were bound to be some rumors about him circulating.

I heard that the emperor's most beloved princess intends to make him her consort.

Could it be?

Not right either.

Judging from this woman's fate, she doesn't seem to be born into a royal family.

As he was quietly calculating, Xia Ximo, who had been resting with her eyes closed, suddenly called out to him, "Taoist."

That's so rude.

Yan Zhengchu frowned. He had a name and a surname, and even the young marquis would respectfully address him as "Master Yan." How come he was just called a dry "Taoist" in her mouth?

He turned his head to one side, pretending not to hear.

Xia Ximo then glanced at him, but said to herself, "I have something I'd like to ask you for help with."

please?

That cold tone hardly sounded like someone was "asking for help."

They clearly want to send people away, don't they?

Yan Zhengchu finally found an opportunity to put on airs, "You can invite me, but it won't do without two or three ingots of gold."

Xia Ximo was quite direct: "I have no money."

No money?

Yan Zhengchu deliberately squinted and glanced at her.

Hmph, she's supposed to be a young lady from a wealthy and powerful family, dressed in fine clothes, and she still says she has no money?

It's obvious they don't want to give it.

"I'm sorry, but I need to make a living while traveling the world, and I can't do business at a loss."

After he finished speaking, he was met with silence.

Xia Ximo closed her eyes again, no longer intending to haggle.

This piqued Yan Zhengchu's curiosity, and he wondered what she might need his help with.

But after a long while, the other party did not speak again.

Yan Zhengchu could no longer hold back: "Why don't you tell me what it is first? This Taoist priest may consider reducing the fee accordingly."

Xia Ximo didn't even look up: "No need."

"..."

Yan Zhengchu gritted his teeth in hatred and blurted out, "You two really are a perfect match!"

This sentence was spoken quite loudly, and Ren Fengjue, who was sitting outside the carriage, naturally heard it.

He lifted the half-open carriage curtain and peeked inside. He saw Yan Zhengchu looking upset, but found it inexplicably funny.

"What's wrong with Master Yan?"

Yan Zhengchu snorted and said, "It's nothing."

Ren Fengjue smiled slightly, but then defended her: "Miss Xia probably hasn't recovered from the danger she just faced, so she might have been a bit blunt. Please forgive her, Daoist."

"Is that so?" Yan Zhengchu replied sarcastically, "I think Miss Xia is no ordinary woman. She might not even flinch if Mount Tai collapsed before her."

"She doesn't seem like someone who'd be afraid of ghosts at all. Ghosts would only be afraid of—"

The second half of the sentence was on the tip of his tongue, but he suddenly swallowed it back.

It was only because Xia Ximo suddenly raised his eyes and gave him a cold look.

"Noisy."

"..."

The carriage entered the capital, but did not immediately head to the Red Sleeve Pavilion. Instead, it arrived at a grand mansion.

After parking the car, Yan Zhengchu didn't want to stay a moment longer and just wanted to say goodbye.

Ren Fengjue called out to him, "Master Yan, since you're here, why don't we go together and see if you can find what you're looking for?"

Yan Zhengchu paused, turned around and saw the words "Wang Residence" carved on the gate, while the house was filled with a malevolent aura.

There's obviously something going on.

He reluctantly said, "Then let's go take a look together."

Ren Fengjue nodded, and seeing that Xia Ximo hadn't gotten out of the car, he stepped forward and asked, "Miss Xia, would you like to wait here?"

The person inside simply responded with a faint sound.

He was unsurprised by this and said, "Alright, Master Yan and I will go take a look first. Miss, please rest here."

Just after Ren Fengjue and the others left, a faint gust of cold wind lifted the carriage curtain, and a ghostly figure appeared on the small stool where Yan Zhengchu had just been sitting.

"Well? Do you remember anything?"

As Xia Ximo asked the question, the ghost raised its lowered head, and after a long while, it said in a low voice, "I remember now, the person who killed me was my best sister in the Red Sleeve Pavilion..."

Do you know why she wanted to kill you?

The ghost's face showed pain.

"She said she was jealous of me..."

"They're jealous that I have King Yu backing me up."

"They're jealous that I'll have the chance to enter the royal palace and enjoy wealth and luxury in the future."

A tear of blood streamed down her cheek, and the ghost's voice trembled: "She doesn't know that I have already begged His Highness King Yu to redeem us both and let us out together."

"His Highness has already agreed, the very night before she's supposed to kill me..."