If I stay in the Hehuan Sect, I'll live off the pampered daughters of the Heavenly Pride Sect.

A peach petal spun around the patrol mirror, and the shadow of the flower partially obscured the two wrist-shaped red marks reflected in the mirror.

Mo Chengyue leaned against the carriage wall, the white silk on his left palm bulging with marks from the black nails, but his gaze first looked up at the sky.

A white jade wine pot hangs in mid-air, its belly large enough to support half a carriage. A few peach blossom branches dangle from its spout, their petals scattered all over the official road by the wind.

Xie Buci leaned against the belly of the pot, his clothes half-open, a small wine gourd hanging beside his collarbone, and a white jade cup between his fingers.

He glanced down at the scorched earth, his peach blossom eyes curving, and he didn't bother to draw out the last syllable of his sentence.

"Oh my, so many people are surrounding my little ancestor of Clear Spring Peak, lining up to receive a reward?"

Luo Qi pressed the back of his hand against his sword, sweat trickling from his chin into his collar.

"Thank you, Senior Brother. The Patrol Hall is investigating a case on the orders of the External Affairs Hall, not to besiege Qingquan Peak."

Xie Buci tilted the cup downwards; there was no wine in the cup, only two peach petals spilling out.

"A message?"

"Your Patrol Hall is so poor now that you can't even afford a piece of paper?"

Qian Shan gripped the patrol mirror and took a half-step back.

"Thank you, Senior Brother. The image stone in the hall should have recorded the spirit message, but Senior Brother Luo was in a hurry to get here, so he didn't take the paper token."

Luo Qi turned his head to look at Qian Shan, his lips taut and straight.

"Qian Shan, nobody's asking you."

Xie Buci tapped the wine glass with his fingertip, the rim of the glass making a soft sound.

"I asked."

Qian Shan lowered his head, but did not put the patrol mirror away.

"Yes."

Xie Buci sat up from the white jade wine pot, his clothes being lifted half an inch by the wind. He slowly glanced at Luo Qi's waist token, his gaze finally settling on the half of the jade token sealed with talismanic fire.

"A private token from the Deacon's Office, a message from the External Affairs Office, poisonous miasma on the official road, plus a Deacon from the Patrol Office who wants to take away a witness."

"Junior Brother Luo, you handled this business trip quite well."

Luo Qi's throat moved.

"Thank you for your caution, Senior Brother. The Mountain Patrol Hall only follows the hall's rules."

"Hall rules?"

Xie Buci chuckled, and the white jade cup twirled halfway between his fingers.

"You tell me the rules of the church, but first you need to stand firmly on your knees."

As soon as he finished speaking, peach petals began to spread out layer by layer from both sides of the official road.

The energy descended gently, like the dampness of spring clinging to the hem of a garment. Others only felt a slight warmth on their cuffs, but the knees of the disciples from the Mountain Patrol Hall sank lower and lower.

Luo Qi leaned on his sword, the soles of his boots worn into the scorched mud, leaving two marks.

"Xie Buci, are you going to use your late-stage Golden Core cultivation to suppress the Mountain Patrol Hall?"

Xie Buci floated down from the belly of the pot, his toes landing on the petals, without getting a single drop of blood or grime from the horse carcasses on the official road.

Don't label people randomly.

"I'm a coward. When I heard someone bullying my junior brother, my hand slipped."

Luo Qi was about to speak when his sword sheath hit the ground first, followed by his knee sinking into the mud.

Several disciples behind him knelt down, the copper bell of the patrol shuttle pressed to the ground, ringing intermittently.

The driver poked half his face out from the back of the carriage, opened his mouth, and then covered it with his hand.

Manager Hu glanced at him.

"Say what you want to say, don't bottle it up."

The driver spoke incoherently.

"This is the first time I've ever seen someone slip and slide like that."

Qin Wanzhuang veered her sword to the side, the fire line receding to the edge of the scorch mark.

"Thank you for your lack of concern, please tone down your perfume."

Xie Buci had just landed in front of the car door when the fragrance of peach blossoms from his sleeve was cut short by her words.

He raised his sleeve to sniff, his eyebrows lazily twitching.

"Second Junior Sister, your nose is too unforgiving. Today I'm using the newly blended Spring Snow Fragrance from Peach Blossom Spring, which costs ten spirit stones for a small bottle."

Qin Wanzhuang looked at his half-open collar.

"It's an eyesore."

Xie Buci lowered his head and tried to pull his collar up, but he only managed to pull it halfway up.

"Alright, I'll save Second Junior Sister a second eye."

Qin Wanzhuang held the scabbard across his clothes.

"All gathered."

Xie Buci's fingertips trembled, and the white jade cup almost slipped out of his hand.

"Why aren't you doing anything about your junior brother? He's practically turned himself into a bloody mess."

Mo Chengyue leaned against the carriage wall, the edge of the medicine cloth on his right wrist showing dark red, and the white silk on his left palm was also stained with dampness.

"Senior, I was just accompanying the vehicle to escort the documents. Encountering poisonous miasma on the road is a normal work-related injury."

Xie Buci turned to look at him, the mischievous glint in his peach blossom eyes lingering at the corners of his eyes. His gaze swept from the tattered sleeve to the white silk, and then to the sword box lying horizontally in the carriage.

"normal?"

"You went out and your clothes were torn, your sleeves were red, your hands were bandaged, your carriage was gone, your horse was rotten, and you even dragged back a servant from the Ministry of Works who was tied to a door panel."

"Mo Chengyue, if you go two more times, will they put up a begging sign for you at the entrance of Qingquan Peak?"

Shopkeeper Hu hesitated for a moment, then the lampshade swayed slightly in her hand.

"Thank you, Master. He really doesn't look like a beggar on this journey."

Xie Buci turned his head away.

"What does that look like?"

Shopkeeper Hu tilted the white paper lantern slightly towards Mo Chengyue's right sleeve.

"Like an accountant who owes debts to more than a dozen companies and is being chased down on the main road."

The driver whispered a finishing touch from the back of the cart.

"There's no horse yet."

Mo Chengyue raised the scabbard of the Rain Flower Sword and tapped the edge of the coachman's shoe.

"Your life-saving money hasn't been settled yet."

The driver immediately shut his mouth and hugged the old cloth tightly with both hands.

"I didn't say anything when I went, I just went to cover the horse."

Qin Wanzhuang glanced at her coldly.

"Sit still, the poisonous gas on the ground hasn't dissipated."

The coachman pulled the shoe back.

"I'll go sit too, I'll go too, it's a life-saving opportunity."

Xie Buci looked at the people in the car, the white jade cup pressed to his lips, but he didn't drink.

"You guys are making quite a scene."

Luo Qi knelt in the scorched mud, his hand brushing against the waist token, leaving several mud streaks.

"Senior Brother Xie, if Qingquan Peak wants to take people away, they should hand them over to the Xunshan Hall."

Xie Buci seemed to only then remember that there was someone on the ground, and turned to look at them.

"Oh, you're still here."

Luo Qi's jaw snapped.

"I'm on an errand."

"It's not easy to be forced to kneel while doing official business."

Xie Buci raised his sleeve, and peach petals circled around Luo Qi.

"Come, repeat it again: Who gave you the order, what order did you give, who are you taking away, where are you taking them, and who guarantees their survival?"

Luo Qi pressed his hand against his sword, and mud squeezed out from between his fingers.

"The Foreign Affairs Office has sent a message: the missing servant has been taken back to the Foreign Affairs Office for questioning and will be detained according to the office rules."

Mo Chengyue added a sentence.

"There are no official orders, no guarantees, no on-site inspections, and no transfer of cases involving malaria."

Xie Buci nodded.

"Did you hear that? Even a beggar is better at solving cases than you."

Mo Chengyue looked at him.

"Senior brother, could you please use a different form of address?"

Xie Buci handed the white jade cup to him.

"Junior Brother with the Ragged Sleeve?"

Qin Wanzhuang raised her sword sheath again.

"Thank you without hesitation."

"Alright, alright, patient Qingquanfeng."

Mo Chengyue's eyelids drooped slightly.

"This isn't very auspicious either."

Manager Hu interjected.

"Master Mo, stop being picky. It's good enough that you're alive and being called that."

The young servant bit his belt, and when he heard that he was to be taken to the Foreign Affairs Hall, he squeezed out a few muffled sounds.

Manager Hu used a silver hairpin to hold the end of the cloth in place.

"Teeth closed."

The young man turned his eyes to Xie Buci, the bloodstain on his forehead smeared on the door.

Xie Buci glanced at him.

"A menial servant in the Foreign Affairs Office?"

Mo Chengyue offered a reminder.

"He's been cursed with water and there are still bubbles in his mouth, so we can't let him talk nonsense for now."

Xie Buci put the white jade cup back into his sleeve.

"I understand, a living witness."

Qin Wanzhuang handed the talisman containing the jade pendant to Xie Buci.

"This item must also be sealed."

Xie Buci did not accept it, but instead used peach petals to support the talisman paper as it floated up.

"Second Junior Sister, you sealed it more cleanly than I did, why would I touch it?"

Qin Wanzhuang looked at his cuffs.

"You do have some self-awareness."

Xie Buci looked down and saw the pinkish-white stain on his sleeve, then coughed lightly.

I was in a hurry to leave today.

Mo Chengyue asked.

"Why did you come to the official road, Senior Brother?"

Xie Buci pointed to the wine pot in the sky.

"My master complained that Peach Blossom Spring was too noisy before his afternoon nap and told me to get lost."

Qin Wanzhuang looked at him.

"Let's get down to business."

Xie Buci tapped the bottom of his cup against his palm.

"The Qingquan Peak image talisman received your sealed reply. Master turned over and said that if Cheng Yue were to actively seek help, he would most likely only have half a breath left."

"She was too lazy to get up, so she asked me to retrieve it."