"Uh..." Yuan Fang stared at him blankly. He had long harbored some suspicions, but now that the other man admitted it so frankly, as if it were the most natural thing in the world, he found it hard to believe. Remembering how this man had deliberately exposed him in public before, he could not help lowering his head in sorrowful resentment. "Daoist Master, why harm me? Nanshan Temple helped Song Yanqing only because I had no choice." He had thought this man still bore a grudge over Nanshan Temple. Other than that matter, he had no enmity with him!
Niu Youdao patted his shoulder. "You're overthinking it. I'm not harming you. I'm helping you."
Yuan Fang looked up in astonishment. "Helping me?" His expression clearly said, You're setting me up, aren't you?
His hand felt somewhat sticky. Niu Youdao withdrew it and sniffed; it reeked of sauce. He casually wiped it on a clean spot on Yuan Fang's clothes and said, "Hiding your head and showing your tail like this isn't a solution. You weren't the only one who showed your face that day—a whole pack of bald heads. She can't afford that humiliation now, so she hasn't made a big fuss and started investigating. But once she gets serious, do you think you can stay hidden like this? That's why I say, the longer the night, the more dreams it brings. Better to settle this cleanly."
What if I get cleanly killed? Yuan Fang muttered inwardly, while continuing to plead aloud. "Daoist Master, please show mercy and let us go, all right? When I return to Nanshan Temple, I'll set up a longevity tablet for you before the Buddha's statue and pray every day for your blessings and long life, all right?"
Niu Youdao planted his sword on the