Yin Yang Soul Searcher

Inside the main hall, Bai Jueming reported to Li Zhengshan in detail how Zhang He obtained the herbs and why he framed Manager Chen.

Fatty Zhou Dahai nodded repeatedly beside him, remarking on how good young people's memories were. Unlike himself, who frequented brothels and whose memory was clearly not as good as it used to be.

"I see," Li Zhengshan said, leaning back in his chair. "Zhang He was afraid his business was bad and he'd be kicked out by his employer. After the masked man found out about this, he gave Zhang He the herbs and told him to sell them to any pharmacy on Hua'an Street. This would help Zhang He close down the business."

"But why would the masked man help you?" Li Zhengshan pointed at Zhang He and said, "What value do you have? The masked man could have found someone else."

Zhang He stammered, "My lord, I don't know what value I have that would make that person help me. It's just that he said that, and I didn't want to be fired by my employer, so I was confused for a moment." At this point, Zhang He finally couldn't help but kneel down on the ground: "Please, my lord, spare my life!"

Bai Jueming looked at Zhang He kneeling on the ground with some pity, but a moment of greed arose in his heart. If he had known this would happen, why did he do it in the first place?

Ignorance doesn't excuse guilt. Wait, I think I got into prison for embezzling money... I didn't know I was stealing from the imperial mines...

"Perhaps it's just a coincidence?" Bai Jueming analyzed. "They just happened to know Zhang He's difficulties, seized upon Zhang He's weakness, and thought that Zhang He would do his best to complete this task. This way, the masked man can save himself some trouble."

"It's barely acceptable," Li Zhengshan said, rubbing his temples with a slight headache.

Just then, a minor official came in and reported, "Master, there is a woman named Tang Weiwei from the Craftsmen's Hall outside who says she has come to deliver a message."

"Tang Weiwei? Delivering a letter?" Li Zhengshan frowned, thinking for a moment. "If I remember correctly, she's Cheng Yanbing's junior sister. Did she say what kind of letter she was delivering?"

"Reporting to the Master, the young lady didn't say," the clerk replied truthfully. "As soon as I heard she was from the Craftsmen's Hall, I came to report immediately. I didn't have time to ask her in detail."

Cheng Yanbing's junior sister? She must be the girl he met yesterday. Yesterday on the street, he said there were no traces of array stones in that formation. Could the letter she delivered be related to that? Bai Jueming wondered to himself.

"Let her in," Li Zhengshan said, pointing to Zhang He kneeling on the ground. "And while you're at it, throw him in the dungeon; you won't get anything useful out of him anyway."

"My lord, my lord, I have confessed everything. Please be lenient with me!" Zhang He knelt on the ground, kowtowing repeatedly.

Zhou Dahai delivered a swift chop to Zhang He's neck, knocking him unconscious. The blow was ruthless, making Bai Jueming grit his teeth in disgust.

The clerk obeyed and left. Two men came in shortly after and dragged Zhang He away. A short while later, the clerk returned, followed by a bouncy little girl.

Bai Jueming turned around and saw a young girl wearing a light blue dress, with exquisite features. She was carrying several bags. She looked up at the entrance of the hall to confirm that it was Zhengshan Hall before entering.

The girl I saw on the street yesterday, her name is Tang Weiwei. She just seems a little dim-witted, but that's good.

The girl entered the main hall and met Bai Jueming's gaze. She exclaimed in surprise, "It's you!"

She greeted me first. Does she like me? No, judging from her surprised expression, she must like me. Besides, I'm not a gigolo.

Bai Jueming smiled kindly and said familiarly, "Junior Sister Tang, what brings you to the Yin Yang Palace?"

"My senior brother asked me to deliver the message," Tang said with a slight smile.

Before Bai Jueming could say anything more, he heard Li Zhengshan cough twice.

Sitting behind the table, Li Zhengshan couldn't help but speak up, "You two are chatting? Don't you even respect me as the head of this hall? Miss Tang, what letter did your senior brother ask me to deliver?"

"This is it." Tang Weiwei said, walking to the chair next to her and placing the bags of pastries on it. Then she took a folded piece of paper from her sleeve and placed it on Li Zhengshan's desk.

Li Zhengshan unfolded the letter and flipped it over: "Miss Tang, there's nothing written on it. Did you take the wrong one?"

Tang Weiwei shook her head: "I didn't take the wrong one, it's this letter. My senior brother asked me to give it to you, and then you can give it to the Imperial Advisor. The Imperial Advisor will understand after reading it."

Why didn't you tell me about the letter to the Imperial Advisor sooner? I had to read it over and over again.

Thank goodness there were no words on it. If I had actually seen something I shouldn't have, would I still be alive? A vein throbbed on Li Zhengshan's forehead; he wanted to curse. But he had to hold it in. This girl was a direct disciple of Qiao Shou from the Craftsmen's Hall; her background was too powerful. He was just a hall master of the Yin-Yang Hall, not a direct disciple of the Imperial Preceptor.

Taking a deep breath, Li Zhengshan suppressed the urge to curse and asked in a gentle tone, "Is there anything else, Miss Tang?"

Tang Wei blinked her big eyes and explained, "Master, you need to give the letter to the Imperial Advisor now, and then everything will be fine, and I can go back."

"Alright, please wait a moment, young lady." Li Zhengshan forced a smile, then got up and left from the back of the hall.

Originally, Li Zhengshan didn't want to do as he was told, but then he thought about it again. He should hand over the letter to the Grand Preceptor as soon as possible, otherwise it would delay the Grand Preceptor's important business... Thinking of this, Li Zhengshan felt that the letter in his hand was a little hot.

Inside the hall, Zhou Dahai, who had been silent all along, walked up to Bai Jueming and asked incredulously, "How do you, a rogue cultivator, know Cheng Yanbing's junior sister? Are you two very close?" Of course, Zhou Dahai didn't know; the two had only met once yesterday and exchanged a few words.

Who do you think you are? Just because you're a rogue cultivator doesn't mean you can't know someone of this caliber. "Yesterday on my way home, I ran into Miss Tang and Cheng Yanbing shopping and we chatted for a bit." Bai Jueming then added, "I didn't expect we'd have such a pleasant chat. Miss Tang must have fallen for me, otherwise her expression would have been so surprised and delighted when she saw me as soon as she walked in."

"Ha," Zhou Dahai sneered, "You're such a damn braggart. What's her status? Why would she need to have a crush on a lowly Yin-Yang Master like you?"

"She's a weapon refiner from the Craftsmen's Hall, and I'm an Yin-Yang Master from the Yin-Yang Hall. Isn't that a perfect match?" Bai Jueming said disdainfully, "You're just jealous that such a beautiful girl knows me. You're just a sour grapes."

"I'm jealous of you?" Zhou Dahai pointed to himself incredulously, then explained, "You think she's just an ordinary weapon refiner in the Craftsmen's Hall? Let me tell you, she's one of the three personal disciples of the Hall Master. She has a chance to inherit the Hall Master's position in the future. And I've also heard that her family seems to have a noble title. Just think about her status. Do you think she'd have feelings for you?"

"What if? Fate is such a mysterious thing." Bai Jueming thought for a moment. Since she was of such high status, he should try even harder to win her over. In this cold, feudal society, having another trump card for survival would be crucial.

Bai Jueming glanced back at Tang Weiwei, only to see the girl unpacking large and small packages, placing various snacks on the table, and eating them as if no one else was around. What a glutton! The Onmyoji's main hall, such a solemn place, she can actually eat like that.

"I don't mean to discourage you, but with a girl of such high status, you shouldn't have any illusions..." Zhou Dahai patted Bai Jueming's shoulder earnestly.

Before Zhou Dahai could finish speaking, Tang Weiwei stood up and rummaged through the unopened packages, finally taking the smallest one. She walked over and handed it to Bai Jueming, saying, "Thank you for treating me to steamed buns yesterday. This is for you."

Bai Jueming said happily, "Oh, no need, no need. Junior Sister Tang is too kind. It's just a few buns. How can they compare to such expensive pastries?"

The package was labeled with the words "Tangxinzhai," and Bai Jue knew that this was the most expensive and best-tasting place for pastries in the capital.

Zhou Dahai stared wide-eyed, his face filled with disbelief.

Just as Bai Jueming was about to reach out to take it, Tang Weiwei pulled her hand back from mid-air and took the package back. "Since you don't want it, I'll treat you to steamed buns next time."

After saying that, he walked back to his chair and continued eating his snack. Bai Jueming's hand remained awkwardly in mid-air.

"Hahaha!" Zhou Dahai quickly covered his mouth, his shoulders twitching uncontrollably.

Sigh. Bai Jueming let out a long sigh, a little melancholy. Was this girl doing it on purpose? Mei Li Mao...