Prison
After Chenying ran off in tears from the courtyard gate, Duan Xu’s figure appeared at the gate. He glanced at Chenying’s departing figure before turning to look at He Simu.
The tall and beautiful woman in the sunset turned her head slightly, giving a faint smile, as if silently declaring Duan Xu’s failure and her own foresight.
Duan Xu didn’t seem to think he had failed. He walked up to her and smiled, “Chenying just needs some time to accept it. Give him some time.”
“Accept? Accept what? He doesn’t need to accept anything,” He Simu waved her hand, stretched her body lazily, and walked past him.
“People fear evil ghosts like sheep fear wolves; it’s only natural. Chenying’s reaction is perfectly normal. It’s best for him to avoid evil ghosts for the rest of his life. But someone like you, who fears nothing, is an anomaly. It’s the rightful place for a Ghost King to be hated and feared by humans.”
He Simu lightly dropped these words and disappeared from the doorway.
She didn’t seem to be upset or concerned about Chenying’s fear or rejection, as if she was used to it. Perhaps, as she said, most things in the mortal world were just “no big deal” to her.
It was just a matter of amusement in her spare time.
After the decree was issued, General Qin quickly gathered the generals to revise the battle plan. With Zheng An overseeing it, Duan Xu and his Tabai troops were finally not excluded.
During this time, the Daliang army was dispatching provisions and weapons. Duan Xu, accompanied by Xia Qingsheng, Han Lingqiu, and a team of soldiers, followed General Su Ying to survey the terrain north of Shuozhou. Shuozhou City, due to its advantageous position and terrain, would serve as the major rear base on the northern bank.
He Simu, who temporarily lost her powers, naturally stayed in Shuozhou City, wandering around with Duan Xu’s money pouch. She had become so notorious that even the vendors in the city knew about this strange guest who squandered money everywhere and broke things.
Chenying stopped crying, but he still often visited his “little sister” who was sleeping. Whenever he saw He Simu, he was always a bit timid. He Simu would just give him a smile, neither cold nor warm.
After Duan Xu left the city for a few days, a group of unexpected visitors arrived in Shuozhou City.
On that day, He Simu crushed another pile of peach pastries, then, holding the remains of the pastries, she leisurely returned to the Lin family’s residence. She saw people coming and going in the Lin family’s house, and there was a vague sound of crying. Puzzled, He Simu handed the paper bag to the steward of the Lin family and instructed him to feed the pastry remains to the dogs. Then she asked, “What’s going on in the mansion? Why is it so noisy?”
The steward sighed and said, “Miss He, who was taken by the Tabai Army, seems to have contracted a strange illness and cannot wake up from a long sleep.”
He Simu asked in surprise, “Could it be that she has awakened?”
“No, it’s not that. Her family has come looking for her.”
“Oh, I see…”
He Simu paused for a moment, then realized what the steward had said and turned to ask, “Miss He Xiao’s family has come looking for her?”
Encountering acquaintances when incognito was a huge trouble, so He Simu generally moved to remote places to avoid it, hardly ever encountering old acquaintances in strange lands.
This time, even during her rest, she encountered all sorts of unusual incidents.
He Simu rubbed her temples and followed the sound of crying. Passing through the corridor and the stone gate, she saw a woman being supported and wiping her tears, while Song, a captain of the Chengjie Army, stood beside her comforting her. Several servants stood in groups on the side of the courtyard. He Simu stood among them and asked quietly, “Who are they?”
Recognizing her as a good friend of General Duan, the servant said to He Simu, “The woman in the middle wearing dark brown clothes with some white hair is Miss He’s mother, and the one supporting her is Miss He’s elder brother. It is said that after Miss He went missing, they came all the way from Yuezhou to look for her. When distributing the missing person’s portraits, someone in Liangzhou said that the person in the portrait looked very similar to Miss He Xiao, so they came here again. Just now they confirmed that Miss He is indeed their missing relative. The birthmarks on her body also match. However, Miss He is currently in a deep sleep and cannot be awakened, which greatly saddens her mother.”
He Simu’s gaze swept over the people in the courtyard and leaned against the wall, observing the scene with detachment.
The scene was truly moving, as if the girl who wanted to end her life a few months ago because her mother and brother were going to sell her to an old man to be his concubine was now a lie. Judging from this situation, her relatives must have received money and realized she was missing, rushing over urgently to find her?
The woman cried, “She is not called He Xiao at all! Her name is Qiao Yan, she’s my youngest daughter. She inexplicably went missing over three months ago. She’s the most obedient and sensible girl, how could she travel hundreds of miles to Shuozhou alone?”
Indeed, this person really needed to think carefully about how they drove their obedient and sensible daughter to make a deal with demons, lending her body for six months in exchange for freedom.
Beside the woman, her brother supporting her said, “Yan’er never knew any magic tricks, let alone the skills of fortune-telling. It seems the master was right, my sister’s body has been possessed by an evil spirit!”
He Simu raised an eyebrow, shifting his gaze to the elderly Taoist dressed in snowy white robes standing beside Captain Song. Captain Song bowed to the old man and said, “Master, as you previously mentioned, there’s a malevolent spirit causing trouble in the city. Could it be referring to Miss He… oh, I mean, Miss Qiao?”
The old Taoist stroked his beard and calmly replied, “I observed from afar just now and saw the gathering of malevolent energy above Lin Mansion. As it entered the mansion, the aura of gloominess intensified. I also examined Miss Qiao’s symptoms; she shows no signs of illness but remains in a deep sleep, clearly under the influence of malevolent magic.”
He Simu scrutinized the dignified grey-robed old man for a moment before smiling lightly.
Interesting.
Which act is this playing out now?
Upon hearing the old Taoist’s words, Captain Song immediately asked the Taoist to find a way to expel the evil spirit and restore peace to Shuozhou Prefecture. The old Taoist took out a piece of talisman paper from his pocket, muttered an incantation, and the talisman paper emitted a red light.
With a wave of his hand, the old Taoist commanded, “Go find the ghost!”
The talisman paper trembled eerily and shot through the crowd like an arrow, only to be caught in mid-air by two fingers.
He Simu casually dropped the talisman paper from his hand and shook his fingers. “What is it that you intend to do, Master Taoist?”
The old Taoist widened his eyes, pointing at her. “It’s her! She’s the evil spirit that possessed Miss Qiao earlier! She’s the malevolent force causing chaos in Shuozhou Prefecture!”
The men, women, and children in the courtyard all turned to look at He Simu in silence.
He Simu dropped the talisman paper, paused for a moment under everyone’s gaze, then lifted her eyes and smiled gracefully. “What’s this? Couldn’t the Chengjie Army find any fault with General Duan, so they had to resort to slandering him and those around him?”
The people in the courtyard suddenly realized and looked towards Captain Song, who had been unfairly accused. His face flushed with anger, he retorted, “Stop talking nonsense! The Master and I just happened to learn about this incident! What does it have to do with General Duan?”
He Simu remained calm and composed, smiling without saying a word.
General Yin of the Chengjie Army was somewhat superstitious about Feng Shui. Whenever he led troops into battle, he always brought along one or two Taoist priests to assess the situation. This elderly Taoist was Master Mingfeng, whom General Yin favoured and relied on the most.
It’s been reported that Master Mingfeng had long sensed the presence of malevolent forces within Shuozhou Prefecture. Today, while walking on the street with Captain Song, they happened to encounter the Qiao family looking for their missing relative. Master Mingfeng then guided them to the Lin family. Upon entering Lin Mansion, Master Mingfeng felt the heavy malevolent aura and followed them inside, where he saw the unconscious He Xiaoxiao — no, in fact, it was Qiao Yan.
Inside the tent, Wu Shengliu and General Yin sat on opposite sides, with He Simu sitting beside Wu Shengliu, and Master Mingfeng sitting beside General Yin. Kneeling in the camp were the mother and son from the Qiao family, with General Qin and Zheng An seated at the head.
General Yin stood up and asked, “Qiao Wu, tell us, when did your daughter go missing?”
The woman bowed down and replied, “Reporting to Your Excellency, she went missing on October 24th last year.”
General Yin clicked his tongue and looked at Wu Shengliu, saying, “I heard that Miss He Xiaoxiao appeared in Liangzhou on October 26th last year, crossing hundreds of miles in just two days. If it weren’t for the help of ghosts and demons, who among us could achieve that?”
Wu Shengliu widened his eyes and angrily retorted, “What’s the matter? If she says she went missing on a certain day, then she did! If she says she’s Miss He’s mother, then she is! Should I also say I’m your father?”
General Yin slammed the table and angrily said, “Wu Shengliu, watch your mouth!”
Wu Shengliu jumped up, “Bah! Who are you to tell me to watch my mouth! What are you going to say? You want to say that He Xiaoxiao is a monster, right? Miss Seventeen is also a monster, and the entire Tabai Army is a nest of monsters, isn’t it? Why don’t you say that General Duan is also a monster? He’s a royal relative, you dare to accuse him?”
General Qin shouted loudly, “What’s all this noise! Sit down, all of you!”
General Yin and Wu Shengliu glared at each other for a moment before sitting down indignantly. General Yin snorted and said, “Wu Shengliu, don’t be so obstinate. General Duan is indeed a young talent, but the Duan family is all civil officials. When he first came to the front lines, he achieved remarkable feats and even infiltrated enemy camps to assassinate their commanders. Do you think that’s possible? Most likely, he used some kind of demonic power, something shady…”
Zheng An coldly interjected, “General Yin, speak with evidence. Accusing someone of witchcraft and using ghosts is a grave accusation, and one should not make it lightly.”
However, Wu Shengliu gritted his teeth, his robust figure oddly showing signs of tears. “Who are we guarding Shuozhou Prefecture for? Who? If you have even a shred of conscience, you wouldn’t say such things! General Duan has put in so much effort and suffered so much for the defence of this city, and you just dismiss it all with talk of witchcraft? Let me tell you, as long as there’s one person from the Tabai Army still alive, we won’t allow you to harm General Duan’s people!”
“You’re quite something, Wu Shengliu. Are you taking orders from Duan Shunxi or from General Qin? The Tabai Army…”
“Stop all this noise!” General Qin exclaimed.
He Simu leaned back in her chair, thinking to herself that General Yin’s ability to deduce the correct answer and then fabricate a completely nonsensical, jealousy-filled speculation was truly remarkable.
Given the current situation, it seemed she didn’t need to do or say anything. Once the flames of conflict were directed towards Duan Xu, it would become a struggle between the two factions, and whether or not she was a malevolent spirit would become irrelevant.
As long as it was established that General Yin was trying to falsely accuse Duan Xu, all the evidence presented by Master Mingfeng could be deemed as having ulterior motives. Presently, besides her inability to die, she appeared entirely human. Whether or not Qiao Yan woke up was the only unresolved matter.
She lifted her teacup and took a leisurely sip, when suddenly a voice outside the tent shouted, “Report! Marshal, Miss He Xiao, from the Tabai Army, has woken up!”
He Simu choked on her tea.
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