Ju County is not far from Yishui.
Therefore, when a rare spiritual genius emerged from the Yishui County Exorcism Department, Magistrate He of Ju County naturally heard about it.
Gossip is a human instinct.
In the past few days, Magistrate He has been inquiring about the Yishui young genius named Gu Xu.
The first statement he heard was: "Gu Xu is only seventeen years old, but he has been tested as a third-level talent. He also mastered the exquisite talisman and seal skills. He was appreciated by the big shots in the capital and was promoted to the eighth-level experience."
One day later, the rumors he heard became: "Gu Xu has a talent that is rare to see in a century, and his talisman and seal skills are comparable to those of a master. He puts the big shots in the capital to shame. Even the chief minister wants to accept him as his disciple."
Another day later, the rumor became: "Gu Xu's talent is unprecedented, and his skills in talisman and seal script are better than those of the national master. The big shots in the capital bow to him when they see him, and the chief minister wants to be his brother."
"..."
All in all, the rumors are getting more and more exaggerated.
Magistrate He was also confused by these various versions of the story.
He even felt that if some time passed, the rumor might turn into "Gu Xu has broken through the Nine Realms and will soon overcome the calamity and become an immortal."
…………
At this moment, the protagonist of the rumor finally arrived outside the Juxian County Government Office.
Magistrate He didn't know what Gu Xu's purpose was in coming here.
But as a mortal, he would always have some awe in his heart for practitioners who had a transcendent status and mastered many mysterious methods.
What's more, this Gu Xingcheng from Yishui County is likely to be a popular person favored by the head of the exorcism department.
Therefore, even though he was a seventh-grade county magistrate, he still chose to lower his profile and show due etiquette.
So, he took the initiative to come to the black carriage, opened the door for Gu Xu himself, and said with a smile: "Master Gu is here today, what are you doing?"
Gu Xu responded politely: "Gu is here today. There is something I need to trouble Mr. He."
"What's the matter?" Magistrate He asked curiously, "As long as there is any way I can help, I will never hesitate."
"I dare to ask Mr. He, did the Juxian patrol capture a group of bandits tied to trees on the official road today?" Gu Xu said with a faint smile on his face, "I caught those bandits.
"I heard that within the jurisdiction of Ju County, for every bandit captured alive, one can get two taels of silver as a reward; for every bandit captured alive, one can get ten taels of silver.
"If I remember correctly, I captured a total of eighteen ordinary bandits and one leader, and I can get a reward of forty-six taels of silver. I have to trouble Mr. He to pay for his work!"
Magistrate He stood there stunned for two seconds.
As to why Gu Xu, a talented practitioner, came to this simple and shabby government office, Magistrate He had many speculations in his head——
For example, there are evil spirits hidden in the yamen;
For example, there is a treasure of an immortal buried under the lobby;
Another example is that poor feng shui in this place will affect your future fortune...
But he never expected that Gu Xu would come here just to get the reward!
He thought that practitioners were all worldly masters who regarded money as garbage!
At the same time, seeing Magistrate He's blank eyes, Gu Xu's smile showed a little apology: "I'm sorry, Mr. He, maybe I was a little too direct, let you-"
"——It's okay!" Magistrate He finally came to his senses and interrupted him, "It's just a bounty. Mr. Gu, I'll get it for you right now!"
After saying that, he turned around and walked towards the house.
To be honest, forty-six taels of silver is nothing to the Juxian County Yamen.
Moreover, Gu Xu caught so many robbers at once, which could be regarded as solving a big trouble for him.
The reason why Magistrate He hesitated was very simple.
That is - the cold, arrogant and otherworldly persona of the practitioners in his eyes has completely collapsed.
…………
After a while, Gu Xu left the Juxian County Yamen in a happy mood with the banknote in his pocket, boarded his black carriage, and set off back to Yishui.
A few days ago, he had hosted a banquet for his colleagues in the Exorcism Department at a restaurant to celebrate his successful promotion.
That meal cost him twelve taels of silver, which made him heartbroken.
And now, he finally got the money back by catching the robbers.
These forty-six taels of silver were definitely a generous bounty for him, more than his entire year's salary.
In the Daqi Dynasty, the salaries of officials were generally not high.
Because Emperor Taizu, the founder of Da Qi, was born in poverty and hated corrupt officials since he was a child, he set lower salary standards for officials.
It is barely enough to keep the family fed and clothed.
But if you want to frequently participate in social activities, or hang out in high-consumption places such as Jiaofangsi and restaurants, or have several concubines, keep a group of servants, or buy expensive spiritual resources, then these salaries are far away. Not nearly enough anymore.
"The money you get from catching robbers is much faster than getting paid for death in the yamen." Thinking of this, Gu Xu silently sighed in his heart, "If I hadn't needed the resources of the Exorcism Department to help me cultivate to the highest level before I was thirty, In the seventh realm, I really want to submit my resignation and make a living by catching robbers from now on."
Immediately, he took out the "God Machine Token" from his pocket and whispered to it: "Mission accomplished."
The Suzaku pattern behind the "Divine Machine Token" immediately glowed with a light red halo.
…………
Gu Xu came in a hurry and left in a hurry.
When night fell, he returned to Yishui, leaving only the legend of slaying demons in Ju County.
——This is mainly due to the fan family’s publicity.
Because their son Fan Zhou had returned safely today, the couple was beaming with joy. They held a banquet in their courtyard and invited the neighbors to share wine and food.
A guest asked: "I heard that ghosts are very ferocious and eat people without spitting out bones. Your son has been in the ghost lair for so long, and he can still come back alive?"
The master of the Fan family coughed dryly and followed Hu Xu's previous explanation: "Well... the ghost my son encountered this time was quite special. It only breathed in breath and did not eat meat, so the dog barely managed to save his life."
The guest suddenly realized: "It turns out that ghosts are vegetarians!"
At this time, someone asked again: "The man from the exorcism department who came to handle the case is younger than my son. He looks like a well-connected person - is he really capable of defeating that evil spirit?"
The Master of the Fan family raised his chin and replied proudly: "Not only did he kill the evil ghost, but he only used one move."
"One move? So exaggerated?"
"Yes, one move, I saw it with my own eyes!" One of the onlookers couldn't help but interject.
At the same time, another young man jumped onto the rockery, imitating the tone of the storyteller, and described the scene vividly: "... At that time, I saw the ghost was angry, raised his hand, and black clouds instantly appeared. Rolling, covering the sky and sun, murderous intent swept across the wilderness.
"Under such a situation, everyone present turned pale and lost their minds. For a time, they thought that the ghost king came to the world and wanted to turn the mortal world into the netherworld.
"But will our Lord Gu be afraid of this powerful move? Obviously not.
"At that critical moment of life and death, that handsome and free-spirited figure stood on the spot, his eyes were cold, and his moves were like the wind. The light burst out from his palm, like fireworks and shooting stars, like the blazing sun.
"In an instant, the sharp edges emerged, the haze dissipated, and the world was restored to purity..."
The others gathered around him and clapped their hands and cheered.
The people of Daqi like to hear stories about heroes and warriors slaying demons.
And Gu Xu's ability to get rid of ghosts with one move happened to be a real story that happened around them, which made them listen with gusto.
An old man sat in the corner and murmured to himself: "Thanks to the exorcists who fought desperately against the ghosts day and night, we, the helpless mortals, can sit here and listen to the story safely... …”
At this moment, everyone in the Fan family courtyard was immersed in a happy atmosphere.
There is only one exception.
That is Fan Zhou.
Since being rescued by Gu Xu, whenever he sees a beautiful woman, he will point at her and shout "Ghost" and then run away.
In the technical terminology of Gu Xu's previous life, this is called "post-traumatic stress disorder".
However, the women at the banquet were more dressed up than the other.
So Fan Zhou simply locked himself in the room and saw no one.
There was a commotion outside, and the inside was deserted.
It’s so lonely!
