The third day of the twelfth lunar month, at the hour of You, in the woods east of the city.

In the afternoon, Hua Qingcheng reported to Emperor Nalan Yunzhi that there were missing children hidden in Xiangyang Temple and that someone was using the blood of young girls and boys to water the red roses.

Upon hearing the news, Nalan Yunzhi was furious on the spot, and immediately ordered General Feng Cailan to mobilize 20,000 soldiers and horses to cooperate with the princess to encircle and suppress those unscrupulous Taoist priests in Xiangyang Temple.

At this moment, General Feng Cailan was assigning tasks to 20,000 soldiers. She was clad in armor, exuding the iron-blooded spirit of a veteran on the battlefield. Her sharp eyes slowly swept over the crowd of soldiers below.

"All officers and men, listen to my command. We will now divide our forces into five groups. Generals Chen, Qin, Zhou, and Lu, each lead 3,500 soldiers to encircle Xiangyang Temple from the east, west, south, and north. Until Her Highness gives the order, remain hidden in the forest."

"Yes, General Feng!"

"As for the remaining 6,000 soldiers, they will follow this general and simultaneously attack Xiangyang Temple through the main and back gates. Together with the four armies led by Chen, Qin, Zhou, and Lu, we will capture all the Taoists within the temple in one fell swoop."

"Take down all the Taoists in the temple in one fell swoop!"

"Take down all the Taoists in the temple in one fell swoop!"

"Take down all the Taoists in the temple in one fell swoop!"

…

The soldiers were filled with indignation when they learned why they were fighting this time. They were even more excited about the call of General Feng Cailan. They were ready to fight and wanted to capture those unscrupulous Taoist priests of Xiangyang Temple right now.

"very good!"

"Set off!"

After boosting morale, Feng Cailan led 20,000 soldiers and horses from the east of the city and headed towards the northern suburbs.

At the same time, in the front yard of the East Palace.

"Qingqing, the thieves are treacherous and cunning. You must be careful when you go to Xiangyang Temple this time!"

Before leaving, Mu Lige personally put a cloak on Hua Qingcheng and used water instead of wine to cheer her up.

This was the first time that Hua Qingcheng led an army to encircle and suppress the bandits. It was of great significance both to the children trapped in Xiangyang Temple and to Hua Qingcheng herself.

Emotions are contagious. Although Mu Lige was worried in his heart, he always maintained a calm and composed appearance, trying to calm himself and his young wife.

"Brother Li, don't worry, they are just a group of Taoist priests. I still have the thunder bomb made by Zuo An in my hand. If necessary, I will use it and will never let anything happen to myself." Hua Qingcheng drank the water in the cup, hugged Mu Lige and said goodbye to him.

Of course, it was just a Xiangyang Taoist temple, so there was no need for Sky-shaking Thunder. Hua Qingcheng said this simply to reassure Mu Lige. After all, Sky-shaking Thunder was something Hua Qingcheng had prepared for Mu Lige as a secret weapon for his future revenge in Zhaoyang Kingdom. He wouldn't reveal it so easily at this moment.

"Don't worry, brother."

Wu Chen nodded solemnly to Mu Lige. Without further ado, he had already conveyed his promise to protect Hua Qingcheng's safety to Mu Lige.

"Xiao Qingcheng, this is a guide bee, please keep it. I have already sprinkled the 'Searching for Her Powder' on Shan Zuo's body. As long as we release the guide bees, we can follow them and find Shan Zuo's location accurately." Han Yichen handed something similar to a beehive to Hua Qingcheng.

"Okay, Achen. I'll remember that."

Hua Qingcheng took the hive containing the guide bees and put it into the space.

"I'm about to leave, now... give me a lucky kiss!" Hua Qingcheng curled the corners of her lips slightly and teased at the men in the yard.

As Hua Qingcheng finished speaking, Mu Lige took the lead and kissed Hua Qingcheng on the lips. Even if it was just for good luck, as long as it was what his wife wanted, he would naturally be willing to give it to her.

Then, Hua Qingcheng's forehead, cheeks and neck soon received kisses from Situ Ye, Han Yichen, Yu Xiaotian, Si Chengfeng and others. Even Wu Chen, who would go together, was not to be outdone and gave Hua Qingcheng a hard kiss on the ear.

Hua Qingcheng: ...

(This gentle place is indeed the tomb of a heroine! She was almost unable to walk after being kissed by these guys...)

Suppressing her attachment to her husbands, Hua Qingcheng resolutely turned around and boarded the carriage pulled by Xiangyun Horse, heading out of the palace. Hua Qingcheng and Wuchen had originally wanted to ride on separate horses, but since Situ Ye was accompanying them, the three of them finally decided to take the carriage.

Mu Lige stood at the gate of the East Palace, watching the carriage moving farther and farther away until it disappeared into a black dot. Only then was he supported by Shu Mo and Li Xiang and returned to Lingkun Courtyard.

Mu Lige, who always believed that man could conquer nature, after returning to his own courtyard, for the first time ever had someone set up an incense table and lit incense, praying devoutly to the gods and Buddhas in the sky, praying for his young wife to return safely...

Yu Xiaotian wasn't idle even after returning to the Fanyin Pavilion. He was preparing for the upcoming fierce battle with the vengeful spirits. As for whether the wronged souls in the red rose field of Xiangyang Temple would be eliminated or liberated, it would naturally depend on whether they had committed any evil deeds that harmed anyone...

As the troops headed towards the northern outskirts of the city, danger approached the children trapped in the secret room of Xiangyang Temple...

After admiring his accumulated wealth in the treasure room, Wang Zhenyi, in order to speed up his process of "retiring from the underworld", decided to refine the elixir of youth for all the girls and boys in the temple at once.

As for the "dregs" left after the girls and boys had taken their heart's blood, they were naturally used according to custom, either to water the red roses or to chop them up and make meat dumplings, and then handed over to the "greatest philanthropist in the capital" to distribute to refugees and beggars. There was no waste, and everything was put to good use... (so that the government could not find out)

At 4:15 of the You hour, I went to the dormitory of Wang Zhenyi, the abbot of Xiangyang Temple.

"Go, extract all those 'alchemy herbs' tonight, and have someone prepare the other ingredients. I'll have to work hard and stay up late tonight to make the elixir."

Wang Zhenyi's eyes lit up and his mouth was wide open, as if the money he earned from selling the Rejuvenating Pills was piled up in front of him.

"Yes, Master."

The fat Taoist priest who was in charge of the kitchen (Wang Zhenyi's subordinate when he was a bandit) bowed in response.

After leaving Wang Zhenyi's quarters, the fat Taoist priest immediately led the group of Taoist priests who worked in the kitchen (formerly the henchmen of Wang Zhenyi's bandit gang) back to the kitchen. Leaving them waiting at the entrance to the secret passage, the fat Taoist priest only allowed Dongsheng and Xiluo to accompany him down the secret room with Baozi, and then headed towards the "melon" secret room where Shan Zuo and other children were imprisoned.

Tonight was the day these children would die. The fat Taoist priest was kind enough for once and had someone give them an extra meal, a steamed bun for each of them.

“Eat quickly!”

"Don't dawdle and waste my time!" The fat Taoist priest shouted at the child in the secret room in a bad mood.

However, when Shan Zuo picked up the bun and smelled it, he immediately recalled the pile of corpses he had seen in the "bitter melon" secret room...

"Ugh~"

A strong feeling of nausea suddenly surged into Dan Zuo's throat.

"You can't eat it!" Shan Zuo shouted immediately as he looked at the children who were about to put the buns into their mouths.