He Buning received the news and rushed to the west of the city with Xiao Liu, by which ti Qiu Siming had already dispatched the Imperial Guard to encircle ng Mansion three layers deep both inside and out.
Each of the Shengjing Jinwu Guards was equipped with firearms, their muzzles pointed at various areas of ng Mansion, including the surrounding rooftops which were manned by Imperial Guards and Yin Walkers from the Shengjing Exorcism Bureau, ensuring no one—human or ghost—could escape from ng Mansion.
He Buning and Xiao Liu stood at the window of the highest tavern in the west of the city, focusing intently on ng Mansion’s direction through a monocular. He Buning watched as Qiu Siming personally led people into ng Mansion, holding his breath with tension.
Although Xiao Liu couldn’t clearly see the situation over there, he could imagine what might happen, which made him equally tense and caused him to grip his sword tightly.
For Shengjing City and Qiu Siming, even if they temporarily lost track of Sang Que and the others, it wouldn’t be difficult to re-acquire their position.
It seed Sang Que and the team had certainly infiltrated ng Lian’s residence, yet now that ng Mansion was surrounded, even if ng Lian wanted to protect them for various reasons, disguising them as household mbers wouldn’t work.
Qiu Siming had ways to identify them, exposure was inevitable.
Besieged by such heavy forces and unable to enter the Hidden Realm from within Shengjing City, escaping was extrely difficult.
Yet, even as the situation seed dire, He Buning and Xiao Liu still held hope, hoping that Sang Que could find a way to break free.
It wasn’t entirely impossible—after all, the Sixth Level female Yin Walker in the palace had to protect the Empress Dowager and Your Majesty and wouldn’t leave the palace regardless of the situation.
Zuo Jinye was presently not in Shengjing, and the other Sixth Level Yin Walker in Shengjing City, Old General Qiu Wanjun, was injured and could not act. If Sang Que and the team fought desperately, it might not be impossible.
If it truly ca to that, He Buning and Xiao Liu would strive to support them.
Ti ticked by, and all was quiet at ng Mansion; the Jinwu Guards’ firearms were inactive, and the Yin Walkers had not thrown their yin objects.
"Sothing’s not right..." He Buning furrowed his brow, puzzled.
Xiao Liu also noticed the anomaly, "Aren’t they in ng Mansion?"
He Buning shook his head, "They certainly are, otherwise Qiu Siming wouldn’t have made such a grand show of surrounding ng Mansion, the Inspection Bureau’s tactics wouldn’t fail."
At this mont, He Buning saw Qiu Siming leading people out from the inner courtyard of ng Mansion. From his location, he could see the scene in the front courtyard of ng Mansion.
Qiu Siming’s face looked gloomy as he tossed the mirror in his hand to the nearby guard, then turned to the family mbers of ng to speak.
ng Lian, as the Wuhou Team Captain, stood with a bent back, nodding and bending, looking caught between laughter and tears, talking continuously to Qiu Siming while Qiu Siming ignored him with a look of anger.
Behind ng Lian was his elderly mother, the Old Madam of ng Mansion, who was so frightened that her steps faltered, needing support from the nanny beside her.
ng Lian’s first wife appeared rather composed, silently following beside the Old Madam. He Buning’s keen eyes noticed bloodstains on the hem of Lady ng’s dress, indicating that there was a killing in the back mansion.
He Buning’s heart tightened abruptly, yet seeing Qiu Siming’s deanor, it didn’t seem like they had caught anyone; instead, it appeared they found nothing, leading to his frustration.
Qiu Siming glanced at Old Madam ng; after all, she had been Your Majesty’s wet nurse, and the relationship between the Evil Suppression Bureau and Your Majesty was rather delicate. Without necessity, Qiu Siming didn’t wish to make any further complications, so he scolded ng Lian softly.
Qiu Siming waved his hand, prompting the Jinwu Guards to swiftly stow their firearms and withdraw. He patted ng Lian on the shoulder, causing ng Lian to bend his knees almost to the point of kneeling.
The Jinwu Guards and the Day Traveling Envoys from the Evil Suppression Bureau around ng Mansion withdrew within less than a quarter of an hour. On the surface, the siege on ng Mansion was lifted, but He Buning quickly checked several directions and found three Yin Walkers still hidden on high points outside ng Mansion monitoring it closely.
He Buning contemplated briefly, then laid down the binoculars and rapidly left with Xiao Liu. Although he didn’t know what thod Sang Que and the others used to elude Qiu Siming’s pursuit, He Buning believed Sang Que surely had her ways.
Sang Que ca to Shengjing City likely for the Yin Child’s heart, and as long as he helped Sang Que acquire the heart, Sang Que would undoubtedly co to him.
...
ng Mansion.
ng Lian, accompanied by his personal servant, wore a grin to bid farewell to Qiu Siming and the others, watching them disappear at the end of the street before turning around, holding his barely erect waist.
The servant ng Quan promptly reached out to support him, and the two n strolled slowly back to the front courtyard of ng Mansion.
Old Madam ng glared at ng Lian and coldly snorted before slowly making her way to the back courtyard with support from Nanny Wang, leaning heavily on her dragon-headed cane.
Madam ng, too, bent her knees slightly and returned to the back mansion to manage the earlier chaos herself.
ng Lian sighed heavily, "Calamity without cause!"
ng Quan led ng Lian into the main hall and seated him, hurriedly serving tea and chasing away irrelevant people, behaving obsequiously.
Once ng Mansion’s staff had all dispersed, a quick expression of fatigue crept across ng Quan’s face; he turned to look back at ng Lian seated at the head of the main hall, holding his head in apparent worry.
ng Lian also lifted his eyes to steal a glance at ng Quan, a tacit communication passing between them, as they continued their act as master and servant.
No one knew the current ng Lian was Ghost Vendor and the servant ng Quan was Cheng Ge, the Gu Master from Yunzhou.
anwhile, Madam ng heading to the back mansion had transford into Hua Qianmian, Old Madam ng into Yao Zhen, and Nanny Wang beside her had been impersonated by Sang Que.
Everyone now celebrated, thankful for Sang Que’s decisive and swift action, which didn’t wait until nightfall.
They genuinely hadn’t known there was an Inspection Bureau in the Shengjing Exorcism Bureau capable of accurately pinpointing their positions as outsiders.
’ng Lian’s’ post-fear wasn’t purely an act; Ghost Vendor truly feared, now realizing he had been stalked by the Exorcism Bureau from the mont he slipped into the city, bait for catching bigger fish.
In the back courtyard, Madam ng and Old Madam parted ways at a fork, and Madam ng curtsied and hinted to Yao Zhen and Sang Que that she would handle matters within ng Mansion without worry.
Rising, Hua Qianmian resud her appearance as Madam ng.
Returning to the back yard, Hua Qianmian confined all the girls ng Lian kept in her rear mansion each to their own courtyard, instructing the servants to move those killed by the Jinwu Guards to the firewood room to be cremated and buried after reporting.
Among them, one concubine wasn’t killed by the Jinwu Guards. While Hua Qianmian and the others stealthily slipped into the back courtyard of ng Mansion with Sang Que’s help, the Madam being impersonated by Hua Qianmian was imposing rules on six concubines.
The one who died was the fallen Second Aunt, beaten to death before the other concubines on Madam ng’s orders as a demonstration of authority.
Old Madam ng learned of the deed impartially, even sending Nanny Wang from her side to praise Lady ng’s matriarchal deanor.
"A nest of scoundrels!"
Hua Qianmian cursed viciously in her heart, seeing their wicked behavior. She felt utterly guiltless when manipulating the Painted Skin Ghost to peel off their skin, only satisfaction!
However, Hua Qianmian hadn’t anticipated her art of painted skin could evade even the Evil Suppression Bureau’s mirror.
"Sigh, the price of ten thousand gold seems still low, yet I’ll consider it a friendly price for Sang Mulan!"
Hua Qianmian’s heart swelled with pride as she quickly imrsed herself in Madam ng’s role, ensuring the ng Mansion’s normal operations while guarding against the Yin Walkers spying from the shadows.
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