Chapter 30 Ajiu: Grandpa is asleep
In a dim alchemy room deep in a dilapidated Taoist temple called "Qingxu Temple" in the western suburbs of the capital.
An old Taoist priest with a hunched back and wearing a washed-out Taoist robe was staring blankly at a clay statue with half its ear missing. In the incense burner in front of the statue were several burnt-out, low-quality incense sticks, emitting a pungent smell of smoke.
The old Taoist priest was none other than Xuan Chenzi, the abbot of Qingxu Temple. His expression was even uglier than that of the statue, his eyes filled with surprise, suspicion, and uneasiness.
"How could it be...how could it be exposed so quickly?" Xuan Chenzi muttered to himself, his dry fingers tightly gripping a wooden bird hidden in his sleeves...a "brother version" exactly the same as the wooden bird that Ajiu fished out!
"That useless Wang Wu! He's more of a hindrance than a help!" He spat fiercely, a trace of resentment flashing in his eyes. "Could it be... that little girl?"
He recalled the portrait his employer had given him, of a seemingly innocent, even somewhat foolish little girl. His employer had simply said that this girl possessed something "troublesome," and had him use the "Soul-pulling" technique, combined with the "Eye of the Formation" within the Imperial Master's Mansion, to slowly wear away her luck, causing her to become even more foolish, and ultimately... quietly "return" to her true origin.
Xuan Chenzi had originally thought this was an easy task. Although the Imperial Preceptor's Mansion was heavily guarded, Wang Wu, the insider, was easily bribed. The "Soul-pulling Bird" he had refined was also extremely secretive. As long as the core of the formation remained intact, the little girl's soul would be slowly "pulled" away by him sooner or later.
But unexpectedly, after just a few days, the soul-pulling bird, which was the "eye of the formation", was discovered!
"No... I have to notify my employer immediately!" Xuan Chenzi made up his mind, stood up and wanted to go out.
At this moment, the dilapidated wooden door of the alchemy room was pushed open with a creaky sound.
Standing at the door was a man in night clothes with a black cloth covering his face. He had a tall figure and eyes as sharp as an eagle.
"Master Xuan Chenzi, my master invites you." The man's voice was cold and emotionless.
Xuan Chenzi's heart skipped a beat, but he forced himself to remain calm and said, "You... who are you? I don't even know your master."
The masked man sneered, "Master, there's no need to panic. My master just wants to ask why the 'bird' in the Imperial Master's Mansion can no longer fly so quickly."
Xuan Chenzi's forehead was covered in cold sweat. He knew he was in serious trouble. His employer... seemed even more powerful and well-informed than he had imagined!
"This... this is just an accident! I... I can find another way!" Xuan Chenzi hurriedly explained.
"No need." The masked man walked slowly into the alchemy room. He glanced at the chaotically piled medicinal herbs and moldy scriptures in the alchemy room, and a trace of imperceptible disgust flashed in his eyes.
"My master said," the masked man walked up to Xuan Chenzi and lowered his voice, "Since the 'bird' can no longer fly, then the only option is... to ask the birdkeeper to be quiet as well."
Xuan Chenzi's pupils suddenly dilated. He wanted to call for help and resist, but the masked man was as fast as a ghost, and a hand like an iron clamp had already grabbed his throat!
"Uh...uh..." Xuan Chenzi kicked his legs wildly, making futile struggle sounds.
The masked man's eyes showed no mercy, and he gradually increased the force of his hands. Soon, Xuan Chenzi's struggles became weaker and weaker, and finally... his head tilted, and he was completely silent.
The masked man loosened his grip and tossed Xuan Chenzi's body onto the ground like trash. He carefully inspected the alchemy room, but found nothing unusual. He then pulled out a small porcelain bottle and sprinkled some colorless, odorless powder onto Xuan Chenzi's body and around the room.
After doing all this, he left Qingxu Temple quietly, as if he had never appeared.
At this moment in the Imperial Master's Mansion, Ajiu was holding a clean handkerchief and wiping the wings of the "ugly bird" very carefully.
"Ugly Bird, are you happier now that you're clean?" She muttered as she wiped herself. "Your master must not like giving you a bath, that's why you stink. When Master comes back, I'll ask him to make you a nice, fragrant nest, okay?"
Suddenly, she stopped moving her hands and sniffed hard with her little nose.
"Huh?" She tilted her head and looked out the window, a hint of confusion on her face...
"Sir... Sir..." She suddenly threw down the wooden bird, ran to the door of Chu Xuanyi's study, and called softly.
Chu Xuanyi was discussing the specific plan for inspecting Taoist temples with his staff. When he heard Ajiu's voice, he frowned impatiently: "Ajiu, I'm busy. You can have fun by yourself first."
"But...but sir..." Ah Jiu pouted and pointed to the west with his little hand, "That...that old man who lives in a pile of moldy books, likes to secretly eat candy beans, smells of stinky medicine, and keeps ugly birds...he seems...he seems to be asleep...sleeping so deeply, he will never wake up again..."
She paused and added, "And... and beside him, there was another... a man dressed in black, who also smelled of that stinky medicine, but... but even more vicious and cold... He blew out the old man's... 'lamp'..."
Chu Xuanyi and the staff in the study all took a deep breath when they heard Ajiu's disjointed but informative words!
That old man who raises birds...is dead?
Or was he silenced by a man dressed in black, with a similar smell but more vicious and colder?
This, this, this... Could it be that this girl Ajiu has the ability to see and hear from afar?
Chu Xuanyi felt a chill run from the soles of his feet straight up to his head, and he almost took off from the spot. The several staff members behind him looked at each other with their jaws dropped, looking at Ah Jiu as if he were a demon descended from the earth... no, a god!
"Ah...Ah Jiu..." Chu Xuanyi's voice was a little shaky. He tried hard to calm his mind and make sure his expression was not too distorted. "You...say it again? Which old man? Which man in black?"
Ah Jiu was startled by the Imperial Master's serious expression. He twisted the corners of his clothes with his little hands and repeated timidly, "It's... it's the old man who lives in the west, has a lot of moldy books and smelly medicine jars, likes to secretly eat candy beans, and keeps ugly birds... He, he didn't move, as if he was asleep... Then, a man in black clothes, who also smelled of that smelly medicine, but had eyes as cold as ice and covered his face... He faced the old man... huh -"
Ah Jiu blew air into the old man's body, and then the little flame... went out...
"Light...light refers to a person's life or soul!" An aide exclaimed in surprise, then realized his loss of composure and quickly covered his mouth.
Chu Xuanyi no longer cared about his staff's misbehavior. He stood up suddenly, his face livid. "Come here! Prepare the horses immediately! Select the elite guards and follow me to Qingxu Temple in the west of the city! Quick!"
He was almost certain that the "old man" Ah Jiu was talking about was Xuan Chenzi from Qingxu Temple! And that "man in black" must have discovered that his plan had been exposed and came to kill him to silence him!
"Think twice, sir!" another aide tried to dissuade him. "Qingxu Monastery is probably in a dangerous place right now. You..."
"I can't care about that anymore!" Chu Xuanyi interrupted him, "If it's really as Ah Jiu said, we're too late and our only clue is gone! And..." He glanced at Ah Jiu with a complicated look, "This matter must be reported to His Royal Highness the Regent immediately!"
While ordering his servants to prepare the horses, he grabbed a pen and paper, quickly wrote a secret letter, and gave it to his confidant: "Send it to the palace immediately and hand it to His Royal Highness the Regent! It's urgent!"
After arranging everything, Chu Xuanyi took a deep breath and looked at Ajiu who was looking at him with his big innocent eyes.
"Ajiu, you..." He wanted to tell her to stay in the house, but then he thought, this girl can "see" all this, what if the man in black knows her existence...
"You...you go with me!" Chu Xuanyi gritted his teeth and made a decision. Bring her along, at least under his nose. If anything unexpected happens, perhaps her magical "perception" can come in handy! Of course, the premise is that she doesn't say anything shocking and scare him to death again.
When Jiu heard he could go out with his master, he immediately forgot his little fear and clapped his hands happily, "Great! Master, take Jiu out to play! Master, shall we go catch that bad guy who blew out the lantern?"
Chu Xuanyi: "..." He just wanted to grab his hair now.
Soon, the group rode at full speed and headed straight for Qingxu Temple in the west of the city.
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