The wife who climbed up the ladder of wealth and power abandoned her hard work and suffered the consequences.

The old man's question completely caught Wu Liren off guard. He had initially thought the man was testing his knowledge. Then, overjoyed, he realized he had encountered the legendary "hunting for a son-in-law under the list." This opportunity to marry a rich and powerful man was a rare one, but he had a lovely wife at home... For a moment, a mixture of surprise, joy, and worry coalesced in his expression.

Wu Liren's brows relaxed and his eyes widened as he answered in a clear voice, "I am Wu Liren, courtesy name Yide, from Yonghe Town, Anyang, West Hebei Province. I am twenty-five years old and married."

As soon as these words came out, Xiaoyue, who was hiding in the beams, felt all her nervousness turn into happiness. But at this moment, a large hand quickly approached her from behind, covered her mouth in an instant, and then turned into a wisp of wind with her.

Xiaoyue was about to struggle, but a familiar scent brought clarity to her panic. It was a fresh herbal aroma that had accompanied her for hundreds of years.

When he reappeared, the wilderness was deserted, with only green mountains and clear waters.

"Brother Jiuye! Why are you here?"

The man in front of Xiaoyue was a burly man with sharp eyebrows, starry eyes, a straight nose and powerful cheeks. His distinct black and white eyes looked at Xiaoyue with concern. "Xiaoyue, you are wasting your magic and interfering with the affairs of the mortal world. You will be punished by heaven before your eyes."

"Passing the imperial examination is the official's wish. If I don't help him, what's the point of me learning magic?"

"Is it worth it for that person?"

"I know he loves me, it's worth it! Brother Jiuye, humans only live for a hundred years, but they live a colorful life. They go through countless hardships, but they remain loyal until death. It's all because of love! Without love, what's the point of this magic, what's the point of this life? Brother Jiuye, do you know love?"

"I know love, I know it very well!" Facing Xiaoyue's aggressive questioning, Jiuye did not show any weakness, "But love is between the same kind. Does he know your identity?"

"He doesn't know..." Xiaoyue told the truth.

Jiu Ye asked back, "Will he still love you if he knew? Can he accept a relationship with you? Especially since his head is full of so-called sage books."

"Brother Jiuye, I can keep him in the dark and just treat him as an ordinary person. At worst, I can stop using magic for the rest of my life and grow old with him."

"Aren't you cheating?"

"Cheat? Brother Jiuye, whether he knows or not, he only has less than a hundred years left. As long as he doesn't know for the rest of his life, does cheating or not cheating make any sense? Brother Jiuye, what's your last name?"

Xiaoyue's question was so sudden that Jiuye was stunned for a moment before answering, "My last name is Qing, the Qing of Qingqiu. Why?"

"Why do all the men in our Qingqiu clan have the surname Qing? It's because the cultivation techniques we practice were mistakenly divided into yin and yang. The men all practiced 'Qingtianjian' and the women all practiced 'Qiu Haiping'. But so many of our ancestors practiced for tens of thousands of years, and didn't know they were wrong until they were reduced to ashes. Did they feel deceived? Did they hate it? Even if the techniques were unified now, they still wouldn't necessarily reach the final step. Wouldn't the outcome be the same? A lie that remains unexposed is the truth, and truth only matters for choices. Time is defined only from the beginning of life!"

Jiuye clearly didn't think Xiaoyue's explanation was right, but he couldn't refute it. He hesitated for a long time before saying, "You don't even dare let him know you're an alien. Is this still what you call love?"

"Why does love need so many conditions? If I didn't have this stunning beauty, would he still love me? If I didn't have this, if I didn't have that, would he still love me? Brother Jiuye, after a thousand years, haven't we seen through it yet? If I don't have this, if I don't have that, would he still love me? What a ridiculous question! Why not ask if he would still love me if I were a man?" Xiaoyue spoke eloquently, and soon she smiled and said, "Without a beautiful beginning, how can there be love? All those other assumptions are just unnecessary troubles!"

Jiuye was speechless for a moment. Xiaoyue thought for a moment and continued, "Brother Jiuye, I know you like me. If I tell you that I only have brotherly and sisterly feelings for you, and don't have any romantic feelings for you, will you still love me? Will you still be good to me and protect me?"

"You, this, I..." The thoughts that were crowded together were unclear and could not be explained. Jiu Ye was so anxious that his true energy leaked out, and a storm was stirred up around him. For a moment, sand and rocks flew everywhere, covering the sky and the sun.

After the resentment in his chest subsided, he finally calmed down. "No matter what, I will protect you! But this time, you've interfered in worldly affairs, which has affected the fate of the world's literature. The heavenly punishment is very severe. I'm not sure I can protect you completely."

Xiaoyue said with a smile, "No matter what time it is, you are always my best brother Jiuye! But don't worry, before I left the mountain, my master gave me a Guanyin Bodhisattva amulet, which will surely turn danger into safety."

"I hope everything is alright..."

Compared with their journey here, Wu Liren and his companions were full of high spirits on their return journey, thinking, "It's a good feeling to return home with youth as your companion."

By the time he returned to Yonghe Town, his home was already decorated with lanterns and overflowing with guests, thanks to a messenger he had sent ahead. Wu Jingcheng was in high spirits, his face radiant. "Thanks to the grace of the government, the blessings of our ancestors, and the support of all the local people, today is a double celebration for our Wu family..."

Amidst the cheers of congratulations, both the host and the guests were filled with joy. When the guests had dispersed, Wu Jingcheng resumed his solemn and dignified demeanor.

"Xiaoyue, come here."

"Father..." Xiaoyue whispered with her head down.

"You said you were returning home, so why did you come back with Yide?" Wu Jingcheng's voice was not loud but his tone was very serious.

"Father, I..." Before Xiaoyue could finish, Wu Liren interrupted, "Father, I was worried about Xiaoyue being lonely on the road, so I sent someone to bring a letter to invite Xiaoyue to come to the capital with me. I was afraid you wouldn't agree, so I wrote the letter asking Xiaoyue to use the excuse of returning home. If you want to punish me, please punish me."

Wu Jingcheng ignored Wu Liren and looked at Xiaoyue, then continued, "Then let me ask you again, you are from Ye Town, Cizhou, and your home is the second house west of Ganming Temple in Xiaotianshui Lane in the east of the town, right?"

Xiaoyue's heart tightened, and her voice trembled slightly, "Yes, father."

"Then why is it that last time a caravan went to Ye Town, I asked someone to bring some festival gifts to my in-laws, but the caravan came back and told me they hadn't found my in-laws?"

"Father, perhaps the merchant forgot your instructions and is saying he couldn't find it. Wasn't it to this address that you went when you proposed marriage?"

Xiaoyue's answer is not unreasonable.

Wu Jingcheng asked again: "Have you ever been to Tianxi Town?"

Xiaoyue answered cautiously, "Father, where is that?"

"Yonghe Town is to the west, on the bank of the Huan River, about two hundred miles from here."

"My Lord Father, I just learned about this place today. I've never been there before."

Wu Liren asked, "Father, why do you ask about Tianxi Town?"

"There are gossips in the neighborhood saying that a few years ago, there was a lot of talk about a fox demon in Tianxi Town. According to eyewitnesses, the fox demon took the form of a woman who liked to wear white clothes. She was born with extraordinary beauty and was extremely charming."

Wu Liren answered loudly, "Father, I do not speak of strange things. If I have not seen it with my own eyes, it is all just hearsay."

Wu Jingcheng paused for a moment, then smiled and said, "Good, good, you are worthy of being a Jinshi chosen by the emperor. Xiaoyue, you go first. Although Yide is well-educated and has passed the imperial examination, his character may still be unstable. I will give him some further advice."

Xiaoyue closed the door and walked out. Before she had taken a few steps, another breeze carrying the familiar scent of medicine swept her up.

The moon is bright, the stars are sparse, and the water is silent.

"Brother Jiuye?" Xiaoyue was a little displeased.

Jiuye's distinct black and white eyes sparkled even more brilliantly in the moonlight. He continued to gaze at Xiaoyue with deep affection, and after a long pause, he spoke, "Don't trust your Wu Liren. He wants to harm you!"

"How is that possible? Brother Jiuye, stop joking."

"You know, my left eye can see the past, and my right eye can see the future. That day he was in the Prince Consort's Mansion..."

"I was there, and I heard him clearly say 'I've got a wife'. And then you took me away."

"Yes, but after we left, he pretended to choke up for a long time before saying, 'But my wife passed away six months ago due to illness.'"

"Brother Jiuye, stop joking! I know you can see the past and the future, but that takes a lot of energy. Would you easily go and see such a trivial thing?"

"Believe it or not, divine punishment will definitely come. I don't know when or how it will happen, and I don't dare to watch. It's always better for you to be careful."

"Don't worry, Brother Jiuye! I know you're good to me, it's okay!" Xiaoyue still didn't believe it. She secretly thought that Brother Jiuye had been scaring and lying to her since she was a child for her own good, and this time he must be repeating his old tricks. Anyway, her husband would definitely not harm her. He had just come to her rescue.

When Wu Liren returned to his room, the red candle flickered. Xiaoyue, sitting at the table, noticed Wu Liren still carrying a wine jug in the flickering light.

"My dear, you have played a great role in my husband's success in the imperial examination. Now that it's just the two of us, I'll toast to you."

Wu Liren closed the door, walked to the table, poured a glass of wine and handed it to Xiaoyue.

Xiaoyue took the wine and was about to drink, but suddenly she noticed that Wu Liren's right ring finger was still trembling. Xiaoyue couldn't help but think of Jiuye's reminder again.

Xiaoyue placed the wine glass on a corner of the table near her and said softly, "God rewards hard work. This is all the result of your hard work, my lord. How dare I take all the credit? If we have to drink, it should be our husband and wife."

After saying this, she picked up the wine jug, took a glass and placed it on the table and filled it.

Just as he was about to hand it to Wu Liren, a sudden gust of wind blew up, breaking the window and blowing out the red candle. The moonlight was like frost, quickly covering the entire room.

"Please wait a moment, sir. I will go get the fire starter."

"No hurry, the moonlight is just right now. Wouldn't it be wonderful for you and I to drink together under the moon?"

"Master..." Xiaoyue said shyly, "I respect you."

"cheers!"

"cheers!"

…

"How is it? Is there any result?" Liu Che's gentle voice completely locked up a not-so-gentle dream a thousand years ago.

"Well, he wanted to use poisoned wine, but I switched it, so he poisoned himself."

"How did you find out?"

"I'm very smart..." Xue Jiuyue boasted about herself playfully first, and then told the story of her dream.

"This result further solidifies my belief that he's the culprit behind your nightmare," Liu Che concluded clearly. "Now let's sort out the details. The details in the dream can't be ignored. First, we have the place name: Yonghe Town, Anyang. Then there's Wu Liren, whose courtesy name is Yide. I don't recall him appearing in the alumni directory, but I wonder if it's a homophone. I'll research this in more detail. And then there's Jiuye. This is the first time I've heard of him. Could you elaborate on your feelings about him?"

"In my dream, he seemed very kind, like a brother or a family member. Seeing him made me feel safe and secure." Xue Jiuyue combined her previous impression of Jiuye with her diving experience. "Do you remember the smell of Gynostemma pentaphyllum? He has that smell."