The Female State Preceptor

Xu Lingyin is a gifted child. This morning, while her mind was still asleep, her body woke up on its own, shaking the maid who was taking care of her.

Then, with her eyes closed, she was dressed, washed, and had her teeth brushed by the maidservants, and then she was led to the front hall.

Smelling the aroma of rice porridge and meat buns, Xu Lingyin suddenly opened her eyes and happily discovered that she had fallen asleep right at the dining table.

By this time, it was already daylight, and only Second Uncle Xu was sitting at the table in the front hall eating breakfast.

Both Aunt and Xu Lingyue were sealed by the quilt.

"Where's my older brother?" Xu Lingyin looked around. At this time, her gluttonous older brother should already be sitting at the table, eyeing her meat buns.

"Never mind him," said Second Uncle Xu.

"Big brother's meat buns are mine now." Xu Lingyin's face lit up with an innocent smile.

She had barely finished speaking when she sniffed, "It smells so good."

"Eat it quickly if it smells good," Second Uncle Xu urged.

"It's not the fragrance here," Xu Lingyin said earnestly to her father, looking up at him.

Second Uncle Xu didn't understand, but soon he saw the oval-faced girl in the yellow dress enter, her almond-shaped eyes scanning the hall. "Where's Xu Ningyan?"

"She's probably sleeping," Second Uncle Xu thought to himself. "Why did this girl show up uninvited?"

"He's not here," Chu Caiwei shook her head. "I came from his courtyard."

After she finished speaking, she saw the chubby little girl, who was deeply attracted by the breakfast in her arms.

Today, Chu Caiwei bought donkey meat sandwiches, fried fish balls, crystal cakes, and braised pig's trotters, packed them up, and ate them as she traveled.

She needed to speak with Xu Qi'an urgently.

"Do you want some?" Looking into those big, innocent eyes, Chu Caiwei's heart softened again.

Xu Lingyin nodded vigorously.

"Then I'll share some with you," Chu Caiwei said.

"Ahem." Second Uncle Xu glared at the greedy little girl and said earnestly, "Lingyin, your sister is a guest. You should wait until she finishes eating before you eat."

"Okay." As long as there's food, Xu Lingyin is very agreeable.

"So sensible." Chu Caiwei patted her head, thinking about last night while also eating.

A few minutes later, she was surprised to find that the breakfast she had brought, which weighed three or four pounds, had all disappeared.

"The little girl stole some food while I wasn't looking?" She looked suspiciously at Xu Lingyin, who was standing to the side and whose head wasn't even as tall as the table.

Xu Lingyin's eyes were brimming with tears, on the verge of sobbing. "Sister, are you making fun of me?"

"."

Second Uncle Xu felt as if he were seeing Xu Lingyin grown up.

At Haoqi Tower, Wei Yuan nodded after listening to Jiang Luzhong's report, "Understood. Any progress on the Ya Zi organization I asked you to capture?"

"We've been investigating covertly, without alerting any government offices or powerful figures. After the death of the Earl of Pingyuan, they began to lie low, but because they haven't been suppressed, they haven't all stayed in the capital yet. We can close in at any time," Jiang Luzhong said.

"So it seems the Earl of Pingyuan's eldest son has inherited the Ya Zi organization." Wei Yuan chuckled lightly, displaying a calm confidence that everything was under control, and gave the order:

"Let's close the net while they still don't know that the Earl of Pingyuan's eldest son has been killed."

Jiang Luzhong clasped his hands in acceptance of the order, but hesitated to speak.

Speak your mind.

"Xu Qi'an was also present when the eldest son of the Marquis of Pingyuan was murdered. Although I don't know why he sneaked into the Marquis of Pingyuan's residence, he must have seen the murderer," Jiang Luzhong said, expressing his speculation.

Just then, footsteps sounded at the top of the stairs, and a clerk in black came up and whispered a few words to his colleague who was guarding the top of the stairs.

The clerk guarding the stairwell immediately entered the tea room, bowed, and said, "Duke Wei, Xu Qi'an, the gong-wielding Xu Qi'an, requests an audience."

Wei Yuan smiled. "Perfect, summon him up."

The clerk obeyed and went downstairs. Soon, Xu Qi'an, dressed in the uniform of a Nightwatchers, went up to the seventh floor, glanced at Jiang Luzhong, clasped his hands and said, "Greetings, Duke Wei."

"Jiang Jinluo said you went to the Pingyuan Marquis's residence last night?" Wei Yuan asked with a smile and a gentle voice, without any hint of accusation.

"I'm here to investigate a case, the Sangbo case," Xu Qi'an replied frankly.

Jiang Luzhong was stunned for a moment, his brows furrowing. He suspected that Xu Qi'an was lying. Pingyuan Bo had died long before the Sangbo case, and apart from a broker organization, there was no clue to prove that Pingyuan Bo was involved in the Sangbo case.

"What did you find out?" Wei Yuan narrowed his eyes.

Xu Qi'an did not answer, his gaze lingering briefly on Jiang Luzhong.

"Jiang Jinluo, you may leave now." Wei Yuan was used to this little gong's requests to dismiss those around him.

Jiang Luzhong gave Xu Qi'an a deep look, then left dejectedly.

After the footsteps had completely faded from view, and considering the hearing of a high-level martial artist, Xu Qi'an waited a long time before speaking:

"Duke Wei, I did indeed see the attacker from last night, and I have confirmed his identity."

Wei Yuan raised his teacup, took a sip, and asked expressionlessly, "Who is it?"

"The monk Heng Hui of Qinglong Temple, the same monk who stole the temple's Law Artifact and eloped with Princess Pingyang," Xu Qi'an continued without concealing anything.

"I suspect he possesses a seal of Sangbo."

Wei Yuan glanced at him. "What makes you say that?"

Xu Qi'an said, "The death of the Marquis of Pingyuan's eldest son is exactly the same as that of the Imperial Guards who died in battle that day."

Wei Yuan smiled and said, "You did a great job; this is a very useful clue."

"Then this humble servant will take his leave." Knowing that Wei's father was determined to "take care" of him, Xu Qi'an no longer insisted on his help.

Some bosses are like that; when they see a pretty girl come to the company, they think about secretly keeping her as a mistress so she won't come to work anymore.

Having a personal female secretary is actually not safe, because there are too many rumors and gossip.

Xu Qi'an resisted this behavior; he just wanted to work quietly in the government office.

As Xu Qi'an went downstairs, he saw a clerk rushing upstairs in a hurry.

Upon exiting the Haoqi Tower, he saw Jiang Luzhong standing guard downstairs. Old Jiang approached him, frowning, and asked, "What's going on?"

Xu Qi'an's heart skipped a beat, and he clasped his hands in a fist and asked, "Is Jiang Jinluo handling the case of the Marquis of Pingyuan?"

Jiang Luzhong was immediately somewhat annoyed. "Whether it's my father or my son, I'll handle it."

"To be honest, the Earl of Pingyuan is involved in the Sangbo case." Xu Qi'an immediately told Jiang Luzhong about the matter of Monk Heng Hui, and the Golden Gong's eyes lit up when he heard it.

"Jiang Jinluo, we should work together to handle this matter. That way, you'll not only solve the Pingyuan Earl's case, but you'll also be involved in the Sangbo case," Xu Qi'an said earnestly.

"As for this case, I've almost finished investigating it. Let's share the credit."

Jiang Luzhong nodded slightly. "That's absolutely right."

Xu Qi'an smiled sincerely. A high-ranking martial artist had been lured into his camp. Wei Yuan wouldn't help me, so I'll find my own helper.

As the two were talking, they saw Wei Yuan, dressed in blue, come downstairs. Seeing the two still standing at the door, he said, "Lu Zhong, come with me to the palace."

"Yes!"

Watching the two figures leave, Xu Qi'an stroked his chin. It must be the murder of the eldest son of the Marquis of Pingyuan that enraged Emperor Yuanjing.

Xu Qi'an left the yamen and rode his horse toward the imperial city at a slow pace, as he needed to take some time to organize his thoughts.

"Perhaps my assumption is wrong, and the mastermind behind it all is not the Prince of Zhenbei. The Prince of Zhenbei attempted to rebel, so he colluded with the northern Demon Race and the northeastern witch god sect to blow up the Sangbo seal, releasing the first supervisor, in an attempt to plunge the capital into chaos."

"But now, I'm starting to doubt whether the one sealed away is the original supervisor. Also, if the Prince of Zhenbei is the mastermind, then the line of Heng Hui doesn't make sense."

"The conflict between the civil service and the nobility groups involved in the monk Heng Hui seems a bit far-fetched to pin the blame on the Prince of Zhenbei."

"The best course of action now is to find Heng Hui and capture him, then all the mysteries will be solved. And to capture Heng Hui, finding Number Six is key. Number Six is Heng Hui's senior brother, and the latter shouldn't be so foolish as to kill him to silence him."

As the outline of the imperial city came into view, Xu Qi'an's ears twitched; someone was calling his name from behind.

"Xu Ningyan"

Looking back, there was a beautiful woman with an oval face wearing a pale yellow dress. Her eyes were particularly large, bright, and expressive, giving her a lively and adorable appearance.

"I went to the Xu Residence to look for you this morning, but you weren't there. I just went to the Nightwatchers's office, but you still weren't there. Song Tingfeng said you might have gone to the Imperial Academy of Music to fool around with Fuxiang." Chu Caiwei spurred her horse to catch up with him and rode alongside him, complaining incessantly.

"He's slandering my character," Xu Qi'an said seriously. "I never go to places like the Imperial Academy of Music. Hey, don't use your Qi-Watching Technique. Although I'm a gentleman, I don't want to be watched with Qi-Watching Technique."

Chu Caiwei tilted her head and said, "They say Fuxiang is your lover."

"No."

"Really not?"

"Yes, Fuxiang is a friend I just made, not a lover," Xu Qi'an answered sincerely, without the slightest deception.

Chu Caiwei said "Oh," and then got back to the main topic. "The Bureau of Astronomy Observatory has detected demonic energy, exactly the same as the energy on the day the Sangbo case was bombed. I came specifically to inform you."

"I already know about this; I almost died at their hands." Since it involved Daoist Jinlian, Xu Qi'an didn't want to elaborate, and changed the subject. "Do you still have that 'power pill'?"

"Let's do it another day, I don't have it with me."

"I don't want another day, I want today."

"Alright, I'll come to your residence before dusk."

Chu Caiwei came to see the Eldest Princess. Although she was assigned to assist Xu Qi'an in solving the case, Xu Qi'an did not want to use her.

It's not that Chu Caiwei was useless, but rather that Monk Heng Hui possessed a magical Law Artifact that shielded his aura, effectively suppressing the Bureau of Astronomy's Qi-Watching Technique.

So he simply stopped keeping her by his side and let her go to the Princess's residence and restaurants to have her fun.

The two parted ways at the gate of the imperial city. With his gold medal, Xu Qi'an had no trouble passing through the imperial city and soon arrived at the legendary Lingbao Temple.

This is a very grand Daoist temple, with red walls, black tiles, and a tall, wide gate.

Two young Daoist boys stood at the door, scrutinizing Xu Qi'an as he rode up on horseback.

"My name is Xu Qi'an, Nightwatchers's Office. I have been ordered by His Majesty to thoroughly investigate the Sangbo case and wish to request an audience with the Imperial Preceptor. I hope the two Daoist masters will grant me this audience." Xu Qi'an spoke first and showed his gold token.

The two young Daoist disciples looked solemn and bowed, saying, "Please wait a moment, sir."

The young Daoist on the left quickly entered the temple. Xu Qi'an waited for more than ten minutes, but the young Daoist returned, shaking his head and saying:

"The Daoist master is practicing his martial arts and does not receive outsiders. Please leave, sir."

It seems the emperor's golden token is indeed useless; it can only reveal the existence of the Earth Book. Xu Qi'an then said, "Please pass on another message for me, you two Daoists."

The young Daoist on the right interrupted meticulously, "He simply won't see you. No matter how much you plead, the Daoist leader will not see you."

Xu Qi'an silently exhaled, dismounted, looked around for a moment, and then took out two ingots of gold from his pocket.

Silence speaks louder than words.

The young Daoist priest went inside again.

"Hey, come back, we haven't said anything yet," Xu Qi'an called him back and whispered in his ear.

The young Daoist priest went inside and returned a dozen minutes later with a warm smile, "Sir, the Daoist master requests your presence."