While Gu Xu and Xue Nu were enjoying hot pot, two clerks from the Exorcism Department of Liangzhou Prefecture began their daily patrol missions.
One of them was tall and thin, with sparse hair. He was carrying a bulging cloth bag on his back and a black and white compass in his hand.
The other man was short, with a big beer belly, and held a slightly rusty machete in his hand. He looked less like a practitioner and more like a butcher in the market.
I heard the short, fat little official say: "Brother Yue, are you sure your compass really works?" 「
"Of course it works," the tall, thin clerk said, patting his chest. "Last night, under its guidance, I destroyed a group of monsters' lair in the suburbs of Longzhou City." With this thing, we no longer have to worry about insufficient merit in the future. 「
The tall and thin official's full name is Yue Tianlu.
He likes to collect antiques, but he has always been reluctant to spend money. Every day, he hopes that he can be like the protagonists in the storyteller's stories, using his unique vision to pick up things at street stalls.
But in reality, there aren’t many blind street stall owners.
Over the years, Yue Tianlu has never had the experience of finding treasures. Instead, he often got scolded by his wife for carrying a bunch of odds and ends home.
Until yesterday, Yue Tianlu felt that he had finally turned a corner.
When he passed a street stall on the outskirts of the city, his attention was attracted by a black and white compass.
The compass shone with dazzling light, and it was something unusual at first glance.
But the stall vendor didn't seem to notice anything unusual about it.
He sat on the bench, closed his eyes, and took a nap. He seemed not to be afraid that the compass would be stolen by thieves.
"How much does this cost?" Yue Tianlu stepped forward and asked.
"Five coppers." The hawker opened his eyes and glanced at him, his tone sounding impatient.
Yue Tianlu was overjoyed and felt that he had gotten a big deal.
He threw down five coins, picked up the compass, held it in his arms, and rushed home excitedly, intending to share this joy with his wife.
But he didn't see that in the shadow not far behind him, there was an old man with a white beard in dark blue robes looking at him with interest, a faint smile on his lips.
…………
So, that night, Yue Tianlu and his colleague Qiu Maoxiang began to perform their duties in Longzhou City, searching for traces of ghosts under the guidance of the black and white compass.
"Brother Yue, are you really sure this thing can locate the ghost?" Qiu Maoxiang, a short and fat monk, once again questioned the function of the compass in Yue Tianlu's hand.
Since setting off, the two of them have been wandering around the downtown area. There are noisy people and busy traffic around them. Where does it look like there is a ghost hiding?
"I used it to find ghosts yesterday. "Yue Tianlu's tone is still determined, but his heart is not as confident as before.
Because he noticed that the compass was pointing at a crowded restaurant called "Zui Chun Xuan" at the moment.
Yue Tianlu is extremely familiar with this restaurant famous for its hot pot. In their free time, their yamen often come here to have drinks and dinners.
If there is really a ghost hiding here, it should have been discovered by superiors with advanced cultivation levels.
Just when Yue Tianlu was confused, a man and a woman walked out of the restaurant side by side.
The man is dressed in a green shirt and looks elegant, while the woman is dressed in white like snow and stands gracefully.
Although they couldn't see their faces, their temperaments alone were enough to make Yue Tianlu couldn't help but sigh silently: What a perfect couple.
[In view of the general environment,
"The pointer on your compass is moving." At this time, Qiu Maoxiang, who was next to him, reached out and poked his arm, reminding him.
Yue Tianlu came back to his senses, took a closer look, and found that the compass needle was indeed turning slowly.
Initially he pointed at Zui Chunxuan.
But as the man and woman walked out of the restaurant, this finger
The needle also gradually turned to the streets.
At this time, a breeze suddenly passed by.
The wind was warm and gentle.
The veil of the woman in white just happened to blow up, revealing half of her face in front of the two of them.
The two clerks stood there blankly for a moment, as if they had been struck by lightning.
They have never seen such a charming woman since they were born.
She possesses an ethereal, unearthly and fragile beauty.
Like smoke, like a dream.
Those fairies who descend to earth in myths and legends are probably nothing more than this.
After a while, the gauze fell back to its original place, once again covering the unearthly beauty of the woman in white.
"This woman is so good-looking...she must be a female ghost!" The two clerks glanced at each other at the same time and came to the same conclusion in their minds.
Just as they were thinking about reporting the situation to the Yamen, a drunk man suddenly stumbled out of the tavern opposite, like a crazed wild boar, pushing the crowd and swearing obscenities over and over again.
The young man and woman, who looked like a fairy couple, were not immune to the drunken man's attack.
I didn't know whether the drunk man's palm was waving towards the face of the woman in white, either intentionally or unintentionally.
The man in green clothes stepped forward and pulled the woman in white clothes away.
The drunkard's palm fell on the edge of his mask, causing the mask to fall to the ground with a snap.
Gu Xu frowned, knelt down, picked up the mask and put it on again.
At this moment, he suddenly realized that as a practitioner, he could completely block this drunkard with his true energy.
There was no need for him to stand in front of the snow girl himself. There was no chance that his mask would fall off.
"This doesn't seem like a mistake I would make." He said silently in his mind.
Although Gu Xu moved very quickly.
But the moment the mask fell off, it was enough for the people around him to see his appearance clearly.
"This young man looks so familiar, I feel like I've seen him before somewhere."
"Do you still remember the wanted notice posted at the city gate? He is the traitor Gu Xu who committed the crime of collaboration with the enemy and treason!"
"Gu Xu? Is it really Gu Xu? But I heard someone say a few days ago that he had fled to the north and became the face of Queen Dayan. How could he suddenly appear in our Longzhou City?"
"How can I guess the traitor's thoughts?"
"I have to say that this traitor is really handsome, even more handsome than in the portrait. If the emperor hadn't personally issued the arrest warrant, I really don't want to believe that such a handsome man would commit treason by colluding with ghosts..."
"..."
The people in Longzhou were talking a lot, but in action they quickly dispersed and left the streets, not wanting to get too close to the traitor Gu Xu.
They were afraid that he would collude with ghosts and harm all living beings again, turning Longzhou City into the second Luo Jing.
Some people even ran towards the government offices, hoping to report the rebels' whereabouts and receive the reward.
The streets, which were originally bustling with people, soon became deserted.
Seeing such a scene, Gu Xu laughed at himself.
He silently lamented that Emperor Tianxing's wanted order was really powerful - with just a portrait and a few short lines, people all over the world forgot about his past achievements and regarded him as a rat crossing the street and a heinous bastard.
Thinking of getting the power of incense from this group of drifting people in the future, and advancing to the ninth realm...
He only felt that the road ahead was difficult, even harder than reaching the sky.
…………
Naturally, Yue Tianlu and Qiu Maoxiang, the junior officials of the Exorcism Department, also saw Gu Xu's appearance.
They were stunned for a few seconds, then immediately took out the jade talisman of communication and quickly reported what they saw and heard to the Yamen.
At this moment, both of their hearts were beating loudly.
This is the most exciting thing they have seen since working in the Exorcism Department——
A beautiful female ghost and a fugitive who was highly valued by the emperor appeared in front of them at the same time!
While nervous,
I also felt extremely excited.
Because they know that opportunities for promotion and salary increases are coming soon.
Maybe in a few days, they will be able to put on the Qiyao uniform and become official imperial officials based on their contribution to finding Gu Xu today.
…………
In the attic of a nearby house, a scrawny storyteller and a hunchbacked old man were standing by the window, paying attention to the situation on the street.
"The story you made up this time is not up to standard," the hunchbacked old man patted the storyteller on the shoulder and commented calmly, "First there was a gust of wind that lifted the veil just right, and then there was a drunken man who knocked off the mask just right... ...So many deliberate coincidences may arouse Gu Xu's suspicion and make him discover our existence. 「
