Mingzhuo reached for his phone and glanced at the time. Sure enough, the restart failed.

She said without changing her expression, "Okay, I'll wash up and come down right away."

Since I'm already late, I should at least tidy myself up and look more dignified.

When Mingzhuo came downstairs, Li Wenhe, He Wangyao, and Pei Di had been waiting on the sofa for a long time.

She turned her head and saw Gu Xu leisurely drinking tea and chatting with Ruan's mother on the other single sofa, a scene of harmonious joy.

He Wangyao clearly saw Ming Zhuo and couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

Great! The boss is finally here. I don't have to be tricked into revealing information by Ruan's mother anymore.

He Wangyao's impression of the Ruan family mother and daughter next door at Qinghui Residence was still based on gossip from a wealthy family's daughter, who said that the elegant Qinghui Residence was actually inhabited by a village woman.

Later, the Cheng family also said that Ruan Mingzhuo's biological mother was a poor woman from the lower class with feudalistic ideas.

Although I know these are mostly sarcastic remarks, I can't help but feel that Ruan's mother is uncultured and has a kind temper.

He then realized he had been careless; Ruan's mother spoke subtly and without revealing any secrets, but she was constantly trying to elicit information from him.

If Li Wenhe hadn't reminded him, he would have fallen into the trap.

He finally understood why Ah Xu had come in person. With just the three of them—one diamond, one platinum, and one bronze—they would be easily overthrown.

Is she really an illiterate village woman? He seriously suspected that Mingzhuo's intelligence was inherited from Ruan's mother.

"Since you're all busy, I won't chat any longer." Mother Ruan smiled and ended the conversation, then got up and walked to Mingzhuo's side to straighten her clothes.

She said gently, "Don't overwork yourself. Nothing is more important than your health. Take the things your mother prepared with you."

Mingzhuo glanced at the large and small bags in Ah Hu's hands, and his eye twitched.

Ruan Mingying handed her a good luck charm, saying, "This was offered before the Bodhisattva altar; it will surely protect you and keep you safe."

She was very enthusiastic about getting amulets for protection and changed them regularly; Mingzhuo had gotten used to it.

After saying goodbye to their families, the group got into the car.

Mingzhuo looked at Gu Xu somewhat embarrassedly, "Thank you for troubling me again."

Knowing she might sleep a little too soundly, she thought Gu Xu was experienced and asked him to set an alarm to wake her up.

She will definitely wake up if someone calls her.

Unexpectedly, Gu Xu didn't wake her up at all and just let her sleep on.

Gu Xu: "It's good that you're alright."

Although he was experienced and knew that she would fall into a deep sleep when her magic power was greatly depleted, he was still worried that something unexpected might happen.

These people were going to attend the Xuanmen Academic Exchange Conference, so it was inconvenient for Gu Xu to continue accompanying them.

I don't know what the organizers were thinking, but the venue for this exchange meeting was set in the neighboring city of Lei.

It would take two hours to drive there. Mingzhuo had slept enough and looked at the scenery outside the car window with great energy.

Li Wenhe: "Don't you need to look at the slides again? If not, why don't you listen to the story instead?"

Pei Di asked, puzzled, "What story?"

He Wangyao understood. "You received a phone call this morning. Was it from Lao Hou?"

Li Wenhe's lips curled up slightly, his mood relaxed and pleased. "Yes."

Hou Zhihui made the call specifically to report on the Jiang family's secrets.

Jiang Yuncheng broke the money sword, which angered Old Master Jiang, who ordered both Jiang Yuncheng and Jiang Yunli to kneel before the ancestral tablets.

This kneeling incident caused trouble. In the middle of the night, a series of ghostly howls and screams came from the Jiang family ancestral hall.

Jiang Yuncheng insisted that he had seen a ghost, while Jiang Yunli said he hadn't seen anything. The two had conflicting accounts, but this time Jiang Yuncheng was stripped of his pants and beaten by Jiang Shengying.

The Chiang family ancestral hall enshrines the ancestors of the Chiang family, who were all Taoist masters in succession. How could the spirits of the ancestors frighten the younger generation?

Moreover, there is a special magic array in the ancestral hall, so if any ghosts or monsters approach, Jiang Shengying would not be able to fail to notice.

Jiang Shengying believes that Jiang Yuncheng was having a nightmare while he was asleep, which is why he mistakenly thought he was seeing a ghost.

Such disrespect for ancestors, such insincerity, and such poor skills deserve a beating.

"So did he really see a ghost, or was he just pretending?" Li Wenhe asked, guessing that it must be Ming Zhuo's doing.

Mingzhuo: "It's not really seeing a ghost. It's a special technique that mischievous Shadowmoon children use to scare ordinary people."

When she got the puppet, she naturally learned how to use those spells.

She originally just thought it was fun and didn't intend to use these things on ordinary people.

But that Jiang Yuncheng is really annoying, and since he's a member of the Xuanmen sect, he's not an ordinary person.

"Even though I'm gentle, I can't just let them attack me head-on, can I?"

"You're very gentle?" He Wangyao didn't pay attention to controlling her volume. Boss, do you have some misunderstanding about your own temper?

Pei Di immediately disagreed: "Where is my boss not gentle? She clearly has a good temper just like me!"

Li Wenhe: "..."

He turned his head away expressionlessly, thinking to himself that the two of you had the same strong sense of self-confidence.

After a while, he turned his head back. "Is that Shen Ruodi really completely dead? I mean, vanished without a trace?"

Mingzhu shook his head. "The Shadowmoon Clan has many secret techniques. He said he would come back, so he probably has a way to return."

However, it would inevitably come at a huge price, but at that moment, she was certain that the other person was dead and their soul had been scattered.

He Wangyao's heart tightened. "What should we do then?"

"What do you mean, what to do?" Mingzhuo said calmly. "It's uncertain whether he can even stand in front of me. If he dares to cause trouble again, of course I'll continue to beat him up."

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