More importantly, that man and demon deliberately killed people and caused panic to achieve their goals, which is truly despicable. Xie Beihan clenched his fists. "Exactly! We must quickly catch them before they use the sa trick to deceive and harm others again!"
Nanli nodded as she collected so demonic energy with a talisman. "I ca alone this ti, but I’ll borrow your guards."
"I’ll co too," Xie Beihan said. "I want to reclaim that one thousand taels!"
If soone dared to deceive him, he would throw them into prison!
Nanli gave him a disdainful look. "His Highness assigned you a task, but you’re ignoring it?"
"Soone else is managing it for . I can take over when I return. Oh, little sister, His Highness won’t know unless you tell him. That man deceived and treated like a fool. I must go with you," Xie Beihan explained.
Nanli shrugged. Since Xie Beihan insisted on coming along, she had no choice.
But He Wen had already left Shouling County for half a day; they needed to act quickly.
Xie Beihan imdiately gathered so n and inford Officer Zhang about the matter along the way.
Officer Zhang was taken aback. He never imagined that the Taoist nad He and the demon could collaborate.
After composing himself, he dispatched a few n to accompany them. Recovering the silver that the townsfolk lost was essential.
After the ti it takes to drink two cups of tea, the n were ready.
Nanli and Xie Beihan mounted their horses neatly. Nanli tossed out a paper crane, which was attuned to demonic energy, to lead the way.
It was nearly dusk, and they had to travel in the dark.
However, when they were about to leave the city gates, the townsman who had stopped Nanli before appeared again, his face pale, clearly disturbed by the evil spirits.
Nanli pulled the reins, stopping her horse. She remained steady in her saddle.
With a hint of annoyance, she asked, "It’s you again?"
The townsman trembled, his voice shaking. "The evil spirits in my ho are causing havoc. The Ninth Princess must co back with to take a look. Your Highness, rest assured, I will pay this ti."
"You were so reluctant to spend money on talismans at first?" Nanli said. "I need to leave the city now, and besides, I’m not eager to take your silver anymore."
The townsman was terrified and was about to kneel down to beg Nanli.
Nanli narrowed her eyes and immobilized the townsman with a talisman. She was just a Daoist trying to make money and didn’t want to trouble ordinary people.
So she took out the sa talismans from before and said, "Hurry up, fifteen taels of silver."
The townsman was skeptical. "The evil spirits are fierce and have wreaked havoc in my ho. Are these few talismans enough?"
"They’re enough," Nanli said calmly. "Don’t worry, I offer after-sales service. If these talismans can’t handle the evil spirits, I’ll co in person."
Hearing this, the townsman finally felt relieved. He handed over the money and took the talismans.
Nanli and her group wasted no ti and imdiately rode out of the city.
With the talismans in hand, the townsman hurried back ho.
The evil spirit seed like a mischievous troublemaker, wreaking havoc in the house by stacking furniture together and uprooting flowers, plants, and trees.
Following Nanli’s instructions, he placed the talismans in the east, west, south, and north directions.
Previously, he had hired a Taoist to perform rituals, but after two days, the evil spirit returned to cause trouble again. He had spent a lot of silver on it, so when he saw Nanli today and guessed her identity, he mustered the courage to ask for talismans.
The fifteen taels he paid were his last savings. If they didn’t work, he would go to the capital and cry to death in front of the Prince Yu Mansion, letting everyone see that the famous Ninth Princess was just a fraud with no abilities.
However, shortly after the talismans were posted, a gust of wind blew, and soon, the house inside and out didn’t feel as cold anymore. What the townspeople didn’t know was that the talismans had ford a protective array, driving the evil spirit away.
As long as the talismans weren’t removed, the house would be protected, and no dirty things could enter.
anwhile, Nanli and her group continued on their journey. As the sky darkened, the moon rose, casting a silvery glow. Suddenly, the paper crane stopped.
Naturally, everyone halted as well. Xie Beihan looked puzzled. "Why did the paper crane stop flying?"
"The demonic energy has disappeared; it must have been concealed," Nanli said, looking south where the moon had risen.
"Did we lose track of them? What should we do?" Xie Beihan grew anxious.
The world was vast, and if that man and demon wanted to hide, they would be hard to find.
Nanli asked one of the officials, "Where is this direction leading?"
The official replied, "It’s heading to Ruyang City. If we ride, it’ll take about three days."
Nanli narrowed her eyes. "They most likely went to Ruyang. After all, Ruyang is also a wealthy place, making it easy to deceive people."
Upon hearing this, Xie Beihan wanted to rush there overnight.
However, Nanli advised him not to hurry. Even if they reached Ruyang, they might not catch the culprits since the demonic energy was hidden. They decided to stay overnight at an inn and set off early the next day.
Initially, Xie Beihan was worried that Nanli couldn’t handle the journey, so he constantly asked after her well-being, afraid that she would tire out. However, after two days, Nanli remained energetic and showed no signs of fatigue. It was Xie Beihan who felt exhausted from riding for two days straight; his bones seed to be falling apart. He had no energy left to ask about Nanli’s well-being and hoped she would inquire about him instead.
Seeing him like this, Nanli bluntly said, "I shouldn’t have let you co along."
Xie Beihan felt helpless. "Little sister, you’re really heartless."
"As a grown man, can’t you endure riding for two days? Does that sound reasonable?" Nanli rolled her eyes.
Although she expressed disdain, when they passed through a small town halfway, she bought a carriage and hired a driver for Xie Beihan so he wouldn’t have to ride anymore.
Xie Beihan didn’t care about losing face anymore and happily sat in the carriage.
"Little sister, you’re truly considerate and gentle," he thanked her. "The Ninth Prince is indeed fortunate to have married you; he must have accumulated a lot of virtue in his past life."
Nanli smiled at him. "You’re flattering . How are your marriage arrangents going?"
His second brother had already gone to propose at the Pri Minister’s residence, but there had been no news from Xie Beihan yet.
Xie Beihan waved his hand, unconcerned. "A man should establish his career before starting a family. I’m not in a hurry."
Nanli rembered how he had dismissed his concubine to focus on studying Daoist arts. Now that he hadn’t achieved much, she wondered if he regretted it. As they were about to reach Ruyang City, she drew a disguise talisman for him to use.
To others, Xie Beihan’s appearance had changed drastically, lacking the noble and handso deanor he had before.
When Xie Beihan looked at himself in the mirror, he exclaid in amazent.
With this disguise, he could confidently enter the city without worrying about being recognized by He Wen.
It was noon, and the streets were bustling. They first found a restaurant to eat and asked around about any strange occurrences in Ruyang to determine whether He Wen had co to the city.
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