Monsters take the blame
Wu Zi and Xu Yi have been traveling around for half a month, looking here and there. They would stop and chat with villagers who had gone into the water before. Before long, the two of them determined the location of the cave where the underwater monster lived.
Just as they had figured out the monster's lair, envoys from the capital arrived. The visitors were Chu He, a third-rank imperial inspector, and Yi Qing, the director of the Imperial Observatory.
Wu Zixian performed the ritual of cultivation to Yi Qing: "Greetings, Senior Brother."
"Hmm." Yi Qing simply nodded in acknowledgment without saying anything more.
The county magistrate, Qu Yi, stepped forward and greeted the censor: "Greetings, Censor."
"Brother Qu is too kind..." The Imperial Censor also said a few polite words: "I have long heard that Brother Qu has governed Quhua Town very well. Seeing it today, I can confirm that it is indeed true. When I return to the capital, I will definitely report the facts."
Qu Yi said happily, "Then, thank you very much, Imperial Censor Chu. I have prepared some simple wine; please come and join me. Please..."
"Please, please, please..." Imperial Censor Chu said politely twice before walking to the front.
Qu Yi nodded to Wu Zi and Xu Yi, then followed the censor...
After Xu Yi had finished eating in the private room for quite some time, the two officials were still toasting each other. One said, "Brother Qu is truly a man of great talent..."; the other said, "How can he compare to Brother Chu's upright character..."; one said, "Brother Qu governs effectively, his promotion is only a matter of time..."; the other waved his hand, "How can he compare to Brother Chu's boundless future..."
Xu Yi frowned, looking at this and that... then turned her gaze to Wu Zi, where she saw the two cultivators discussing cultivation techniques and array artifacts, their conversation quite animated...
Xu Yi simply took out the small bell and asked, "Bai Er, Bai Er, have you arrived in the capital?"
Bai Er's cheerful laughter came from the other end: "Not yet, but it'll be soon. How about your side? How's it going?"
"People have been sent from the capital; they should be able to handle it soon..."
Xu Yi unconsciously looked up and saw that the four people who had been chatting so enthusiastically had stopped and were staring at her blankly. She laughed awkwardly twice and said to Bai Er, "I... I'll talk to you later..." Then she cut off the conversation and looked at the four people at the table, looking confused: "What's wrong?"
"Miss Xu's bell is quite magical..." Imperial Censor Chu only said half a sentence.
"This bell is indeed quite good..." Xu Yi was about to agree when she heard Yi Qing speak up: "It's just a sound transmission talisman, and it only works on specific people."
"No, that's not it..." Xu Yi was about to speak when she noticed Wu Zi kicking her foot under the table. She understood and didn't argue further.
Hearing Imperial Censor Chu laugh twice, he said, "Your Excellency need not worry. I am merely curious. I am not the kind of person who would covet a gentleman's possessions..."
“Of course, of course,” Yi Qing nodded. “This secret method is also used in the Imperial Palace’s Surveillance Department. If Imperial Censor Chu is interested, he can go to the Surveillance Department to take a look.”
Chu He's face stiffened, and he joked, "Master Yi Qing is joking. How can we, mere sons of ordinary officials, enter the Ministry of Supervision?"
Yi Qing gave a curt "hmm" and then fell silent, leaving the air somewhat quiet.
Qu Yi put on a smiling face and said to Chu He, "Imperial Censor Chu must be tired from your journey. Why don't you go to the post station to rest first?"
"Brother Qu is truly kind," Chu He said with a smile, "Then I, Chu, will take my leave." He then bowed to everyone at the table in farewell and was led away by a servant of the Qu family…
Xu Yi realized something was wrong and asked Wu Zi timidly, "Did I... cause trouble?"
“Not at all,” Wu Zi shook his head, “It’s just that these magical artifacts are indeed very attractive to mortals.”
"Not to mention Imperial Censor Chu, even I am tempted by this magical artifact that can transmit sound instantly..." Qu Yi interjected from the side, "Miss Xu is a person outside the secular world, so she doesn't care about these things. However, it is normal for people to have worldly desires."
“Hmm,” Yi Qing also spoke up: “When I was young, I didn’t understand and was tricked out of a lot of magical artifacts, which almost caused a disaster. You should be more careful in the future.”
Xu Yi originally thought that Yi Qing's reluctance to talk was due to his aloof personality, but now she realized that he had been deceived too many times, which was why he hid part of himself. She then said regretfully, "It's such a pity that he can't show his true self to others."
This remark successfully drew the attention of the three people again. Qu Yi laughed and said, "This world is quite complicated..."
Wu Zi patted Xu Yi's head and said softly, "You'll gradually understand in the future."
Yi Qing nodded in agreement, saying, "Be careful."
Xu Yi looked at the three people who were willing to teach her, nodded obediently, and replied, "Okay."
After a long pause, Yi Qing exclaimed, "Miss Xu, you have a natural talent."
Xu Yi wasn't sure if this was a compliment, so she just pursed her lips and remained silent.
Yi Qing didn't mind, and turned her head to look at Wu Zi. Under Yi Qing's gaze, Wu Zi slowly blushed...
Qing naturally understood; cultivators can see through appearances to the inner workings... so he smiled knowingly at Wu Zi.
Having navigated the treacherous waters of officialdom for so long, Qu Yi naturally understood many things, and suggested, "Master Qing is also weary from his journey, why don't you come back to my residence with me to rest?"
“Very well,” Yi Qing nodded, “then I’ll have to trouble you, Master Qu.”
"You're too kind, Master..." Qu Yi waved his hand and politely led the way...
Upon returning to the Qu residence, Yi Qing was naturally arranged to sit in the same courtyard. As soon as the three of them were seated, the steward bowed and took his leave, saying, "The three masters must have something to discuss, so this old servant will take his leave now."
"Thank you, butler." Yi Qing bowed politely to the butler, who replied, "You're too kind," and then withdrew.
When only three people remained in the courtyard, Wu Zi immediately covered the courtyard with bells before bowing to Yi Qing and saying, "It's good that Senior Brother has arrived. I wonder if the Supervisor has any instructions on how to proceed?"
"The old man's idea is to let Chu He repair the dike properly first. We'll buy some time, and once the dike is built, we'll try to distract the people and exhaust the will power gathered on the demon before killing it."
Wu Zi nodded: "Okay, Xu Yi and I will follow Senior Brother's arrangements."
"Okay, take me to the riverbank where the monster is staying first, and I'll see if I need to set up any more defensive formations."
“Okay,” Wu Zi nodded, then led Yi Qing to the place where the Soul-Destroying Nails had been buried. As soon as they reached the water's edge, Yi Qing looked at Wu Zi knowingly: “Soul-Destroying Nails?”
“Yes,” Wu Zi nodded.
"That's fine. Nothing else is needed. We'll see how things go when the time comes."
“Okay,” Wu Zi pointed to the stalls by the river, “the snacks here are quite good, Senior Brother can go and try them…”
"Okay, okay, let's go, let's go." After saying that, he took the lead and went ahead.
Xu Yi found some colleagues, and the three of them walked along the river, eating as they went.
While things were calm and peaceful on their side, things were much more complicated on Chu He's side. He first worked with Qu Yi to organize the local county annals that had been compiled over the years, and discovered that since the arrival of the monsters, the maintenance fees for the dikes built over the past few hundred years had been embezzled by the county magistrates in various ways.
And the imperial court's expenses have increased rather than decreased... If that's the case, this demon has also helped those corrupt officials make a lot of money. Anyway, the sacrifices don't go to their own families, so every county magistrate lives a life of luxury.
Chu He was somewhat angry, but this old ailment, if investigated, would trace back to several generations of emperors in the royal family... which was not easy to handle.
Qu Yi was also an official, so he naturally knew where Chu He was struggling... He just looked at the frowning Imperial Censor Chu without saying a word.
After a long pause, Chu He looked at Qu Yi and said, "Brother Qu, this matter concerning the river embankment is a long-standing problem, and... it's really impossible to investigate it further..."
Qu Yi understood Chu He's meaning, and tentatively suggested, "In the end, it all comes down to the arrival of this monster; the crux of the problem lies with the monster. Why don't we... record these deficits and offer them as a sacrifice to the river god?"
Chu He's eyes lit up. Compared to submitting a memorial to the Emperor claiming that the money allocated by his ancestors had been swindled, this explanation was naturally much better: "This is a good idea... Brother Qu is truly talented..."
Qu Yi recalled what Wu Zi and the supervisor had said about the power of vows, and suggested, "This monster has been in this land for a long time. The people from the Imperial Observatory say that there is a cause and effect... Should we ask the Imperial Observatory about it?"
Qu Yi was thinking of reducing the power of the demon's will, but Chu He heard that the Imperial Observatory would be dragged into it: with the Imperial Observatory involved, they could even pin the deficits of dozens of previous county magistrates on the demon... He immediately thought this method was brilliant, and with a big smile, he pulled Qu Yi to go find Wu Zi and the others: "Come on, Brother Qu, let's go find the Imperial Observatory Inspector now."
Wu Zi and his two companions, wanting to stall for time and not wanting to be seen loitering outside, were currently playing the Ascension Chess game. Although this game was similar to the promotion charts for civil and military officials, it was more popular among cultivators because it incorporated various paths of cultivation...
Just as the three were engrossed in their game, they sensed the arrival of Qu Yi and Chu He. They quickly put away the Ascension Chess set and began to discuss the map of Changqu Flower Town in a rather formal manner...
So as soon as Chu He and Qu Yi stepped into their courtyard, they saw the three of them enthusiastically discussing how to draw the formation... Chu He, in a very good mood, stepped forward and bowed: "Masters, how is this plan going?"
This was a polite opening remark, and Qing nodded: "This demon's attributes are complex, so the formation needs to be designed differently, which may take some more time..."
"No rush, no rush..." Chu He waved his hand: "Masters, please take your time. Today, Brother Qu and I have come to discuss the matter of offering the prefectural silver as a sacrifice..."
"Offering silver as a sacrifice?" Xu Yi looked at Qu Yi with great confusion: "Why haven't I heard you mention this before?"
Qu Yi gave Xu Yi a wink from behind Chu He. Xu Yi didn't understand, but Yi Qing did, so she followed Xu Yi's lead and said, "What exactly is the matter? Could Imperial Censor Chu please explain in detail?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
