Li Shutong's last words caught Shen Qingmang's attention. After the sports meet, it was a day off. She left Wuya Peak and came to the small town at the foot of the mountain. However, after walking around from beginning to end, she couldn't find any family with the surname Gu.
Then she slapped her forehead and suddenly realized.
The path had narrowed. Why had she limited her sights to the small town at the foot of the mountain? The Taichu Sect recruited disciples every sixty years, and the people of Yongzhou would send their children here to try out. This town was close to the Taichu Sect, with abundant spiritual energy and the influence of the surrounding environment. Therefore, more children were able to successfully join the sect, but not all of them.
Before, when she asked the children to go down the mountain to purchase goods and visit relatives, some children went home to visit relatives, and some children just went to purchase goods. Gu Suihan always stayed with her at that time, perhaps just because her home was far away.
But Yongzhou is so big, how is she going to position the Gu family?
Shen Qingmang suddenly remembered the two bamboo slips.
She found a deserted place, took out the communication jade pendant, and wrote Yiqing's name on it.
"Hey, Brother Yiqing."
"Junior Sister Qingmang? What happened? Did Ah Rong get into trouble?"
"No, no." Shen Qingmang smiled and said, "Arong is very well behaved. Didn't she go home to see you?"
"It's because she's home that I feel something's wrong. This child didn't like to come home a while ago, but today she came back and waved a medal in front of me. You don't know how busy I was supervising them to rush the work these past few days. Now seeing this medal and other things makes my eyes blurry."
"She just wants you to praise her. Is Arong not around now?"
"No, no, I went to eat. Don't you want her to hear?"
"Well, I have something personal to discuss with my senior brother."
Shen Qingmang heard the sound of swallowing saliva coming from the jade pendant. "Junior sister, let me make this clear first. Although I spoke up for you that day, I absolutely have no improper thoughts about you. Helping you is also helping my Ah Rong. You should understand."
"Of course." Shen Qingmang held his forehead. "Don't worry, Senior Brother, it's not a personal matter. Don't be afraid."
"Ahahaha, I'm not afraid. So tell me, what's the matter?"
"I want you to go to Jingzhen Hall and help me steal a scroll."
"Bang!" The sound of a jade pendant hitting the ground came from the opposite side. Shen Qingmang took a breath and thought that fortunately the jade used for the communication jade pendant was hard and would not be easily broken.
After a burst of rustling, Yi Qing's voice could be heard again from the other side: "Qing Mang, you might as well tell me you like me now. You, you ...
"What a pity! When will it be my senior brother's turn to be on duty in Jingzhen Hall?" Shen Qingmang sighed.
"I thought so too. Jingzhen Hall is much more relaxed than Wanshi Hall. Personnel transfers happen every ten years, and registration for new disciples happens every sixty years. The rest of the time, there's nothing much going on. Unlike Wanshi Hall, today Wuxing Peak broke a few stone tables and asked us to replace them, and tomorrow Wuyin Peak needs a piano stand and asked us to rush to finish it. There are very few days of leisure throughout the year."
"But I see that Senior Brother is living a very leisurely life. How about I find some fun for him to make his life more fulfilling?"
Yi Qing said quickly, "Stop! I beg you to stop! Can I call you Senior Sister? Just tell me, whose bamboo slips do you want to transfer? I'll do my best to help you."
"It's the volume that my disciple's father had the other day."
"Well, you should have told me earlier. I was close that day and could see the words on the bamboo slips clearly. If you want to know anything, just ask me directly."
Shen Qingmang was very surprised. This was really something that came without any effort.
With Yiqing's help, she quickly pinpointed the approximate area where the Gu family lived, in a small town called "Chunhui" in the southwest corner of the capital.
"Miss, are you asking about the Gu family? They're just around the corner, opposite the big banyan tree."
"Thank you, Auntie." Shen Qingmang smiled and thanked the woman who showed her the way, handing her a string of copper coins.
The man probably didn't expect her to be so generous. He took her in his arms with surprise and said, "Hey, girl. Why are you asking about the Gu family? I advise you to stay away from their house. It's not a good place."
"What do you mean?"
The woman looked left and right, lowering her voice, and said, "I heard that the old man from the Gu family entered the immortal sect when he was young, but was unfortunately driven away by the immortals. He went crazy when he came back, and kept talking about how he would one day become an immortal. He was handsome and had no shortage of people who liked him, but after he became crazy, who would be willing to marry their daughter to him? So his career was delayed, and later he was an orphan fleeing famine, with no one to rely on. He just wanted to find a family to live with, so he married in, and then...ah..."
"And then what happened?"
"The next year, the girl gave birth to a big fat boy. Something strange happened on the day of the birth: a big bird circled twice around the roof of Old Gu's house and called out a few times. Old Gu insisted it was a good omen and that his boy would definitely become an immortal. Ever since then, he's been constantly torturing his child. He either makes him stand naked in the snow on freezing cold days or covers him with three layers of cotton-padded jackets on scorching hot days. He says this kind of training will strengthen his bones and muscles and enable him to become an immortal. I think he's lost his mind. Since he can't become an immortal himself, he insists his child become one."
Shen Qingmang felt his head buzzing, and he couldn't even hear the woman's words clearly. The father Gu Suihan had mentioned was clearly a smart, powerful man who had taught him a lot of knowledge, but he didn't expect that even the neighbors would come across as a madman.
So even if what the elder said before was exaggerated, it was probably true to some extent.
"But we haven't seen the young man in his family for quite a while. I wonder if he was beaten to death. His wife was beaten to death two years ago. Oh, what a sin. Now he's left with an old bachelor like this. Girl, if you don't have anything serious, you'd better not come near him."
"Thank you for the reminder, Auntie." Shen Qingmang handed over another string of copper coins.
"Hey, that's enough. We dare not take more. Too much blessing can easily shorten life. You can keep it, young lady." The woman pushed the money back and asked in surprise, "Young lady, why are your hands so cold? Are you feeling cold?"
"It's okay, it will be fine in a while. I'll go first, Auntie. I wish you good health and a long life." Shen Qingmang said sincerely.
The Wuya Sect's words and spiritual arts are the strongest, and the blessings they utter can have some effect, especially for ordinary mortals.
She said goodbye to the kind lady and walked forward as instructed. She saw a dilapidated courtyard with the door half open. She wondered if there was anyone inside.
Shen Qingmang made a hand gesture, became invisible for a short time, and walked in.
The yard was overgrown with weeds, the house was filthy and squalid, and there was a faint smell of slop. The walls were mottled with marks, as if from whipping or something else. Shen Qingmang approached and observed, and found faint traces of old blood.
She clenched her fists, her knuckles cracking.
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