Jiang Zhengqing returned from outside with a solemn expression and went straight to Songhe Hall.
Grandma Bai had just woken up from her afternoon nap when she saw her son's bitter face.
"Speak, what is it?" Old Mrs. Bai asked Zhu Yu to help her sit up. Since waking up this morning, she felt much better. After taking her medicine and taking a nap, she felt even more energetic than before. She felt that in another three to five days, she would be able to get out of bed.
Jiang Zhengqing took everything out and placed it by the bedside.
He solemnly said, "Mother, Seventh Girl is right. These Five Elements Coins have been tampered with. There is a small evil-gathering array on them. If they are hung at the bedroom door, they can indeed make people sick and slowly die without them knowing."
Old Mrs. Bai's expression turned icy: "That bitch is dead and still trying to scheme against me! Go and take care of her son and her daughter, don't leave a single one alive."
Old Madam Bai had always disliked concubines and their children. So when the old Marquis died, she drove away all the concubines and their children born out of wedlock, leaving only her legitimate son, Jiang Zhengqing, by her side.
Not only that, she disliked not only her son's concubines and illegitimate children, but also Yuan Qi. She gave Yuan Qi the bracelet she had worn for many years, simply to silence gossip and prevent people from saying that Yuan Qi had saved the old lady's life, yet the old lady was so indifferent and showed no gratitude whatsoever.
Jiang Zhengqing agreed: "I would have done it even without Mother's permission. This matter is definitely related to the siblings. Cui Gu alone could never have obtained something so powerful."
Grandma Bai asked worriedly, "Has the evil-gathering formation on here been dealt with?"
Jiang Zhengqing said, "Master Xuanji has dealt with it. He said that the person who set up this formation has suffered a backlash. He will also help investigate who used such evil magic to harm people. He will send someone to tell us when he has any news."
Grandma Bai was also filled with lingering fear: "It's all thanks to Seventh Girl. If it weren't for her, I would be on my way to the King of Hell. It's just a pity she's an illegitimate daughter. If she were a legitimate daughter, or even a concubine's daughter, I could have loved her a little more. Sigh..."
Jiang Zhengqing also felt a little regretful: "Who says otherwise? It's just that she didn't have the good fortune. But then again, if she hadn't been an illegitimate daughter who had stayed in the Taoist temple for several years, how could she have seen through these Five Elements Coins?"
Grandma Bai agreed wholeheartedly: "No matter what, Seventh Girl has done a good job this time. Find someone to teach her manners and help her to temper her temper. She might be useful in the future and become Bai Lu's right-hand woman. Let's nurture her well."
Jiang Zhengqing agreed: "I will do as Mother says. Bailu is destined to be Empress, and she can't do without a capable assistant by her side."
...
Yuan Qi had been there for a few days and found that the feng shui of the Jiang residence was quite good; a master must have been consulted when the residence was built. However, the spiritual energy was not abundant, far inferior to that of the Fusang Temple, which was too unfavorable for cultivation.
If only we could set up a spirit-gathering array.
The Spirit Gathering Array requires eight jade talismans. The best jade for making talismans is Kunlun jade, but Kunlun jade is very expensive. She has a quirk: everything she uses must be the best, and she doesn't want to compromise at all.
Feeling the little silver coin she had in her small cloth bag, she realized it wasn't even enough to buy a piece of Kunlun jade. She sighed inwardly and thought, "I'd better make some money quickly."
Yuan Qi changed into a light green silk skirt, slung her cloth bag over her shoulder, and swaggered out the door. Today, she set up her stall under the big locust tree as usual.
The sign advertising three divinations a day for ten taels of silver each was up for a short while before customers started coming in.
The woman who came was a woman in her thirties. Judging from her clothes, she was not a wealthy person. She did not have any decent jewelry on her head, and only used a wooden hairpin to hold her hair in place. However, upon closer inspection, the woman had delicate skin and pierced ears, so she must have lived a good life in the past.
The woman looked haggard, with bluish-gray under-eyes and bloodshot eyes. She untied the purse from her waist and poured out a pile of loose silver, which was clearly hard-earned money.
Yuan Qi rummaged through the silver with her small hands and estimated it to be about ten taels.
Looking at this person's face, the marital palace is full and round, proving that the couple's relationship is harmonious. However, the children's palace is dark and has messy lines. She can see the problem at a glance. Although he has both a son and a daughter, his relationship with his children is weak.
"What does my sister-in-law want to know? Are you worried about your children?" Yuan Qi's childish voice struck the lady's heart like a heavy hammer.
The woman's dull eyes suddenly lit up, and she excitedly grabbed Yuan Qi's fair little hand: "Young Taoist Master, you are truly a divine being! My twin sons, a boy and a phoenix, are about the same age as you. They went missing during the Lantern Festival on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, and it has been more than two months since then, with no trace of them. Since you could tell at a glance why I came, you must be able to calculate the whereabouts of my sons, right?"
“You’ve come to the right person.” Yuan Qi smiled slightly, her small hands rummaging through a pile of loose silver and stuffing it into her cloth bag. Her hands were small, and she could only grab three or four pieces of loose silver at a time. It took her several tries to get all the loose silver into her bag.
Her dark eyes gave people great hope and strength. The woman felt inexplicably at ease looking at her, thinking that although the young Taoist priest was not old, he seemed to have real skills.
Yuan Qi took out three copper coins from his cloth bag and placed them on the table. He then took out three incense sticks and a small incense burner from the bag, lit the incense sticks with a tinderbox, and inserted them into the incense burner.
He then grabbed three copper coins, held them in his palm, raised them above his head and shook them gently, muttering incantations.
The first line is a yang line.
The second line is a yin line.
The third line is also a yin line.
The fourth line is a yin line.
The fifth line is a yang line.
The sixth line is a yang line.
Yuan Qi's movements and expression were extremely serious. He shook the object with great devotion each time, muttering something under his breath.
"Gen is the upper trigram and Dui is the lower trigram. This is the Mountain-Lake Loss hexagram, which is inauspicious but also auspicious. Sister-in-law, your children are still alive, but they will have to suffer a little."
The woman wept with joy. Seeing Yuan Qi's innocent little face, her sincere expression didn't seem like that of a charlatan trying to scam people out of food and drink: "Young Taoist priest, you seem like a good person. Young Taoist priest, could you please tell me where my son and daughter are? Please, young Taoist priest!"
The woman left the small stool and knelt down directly before her.
Yuan Qi quickly helped her up: "Sister-in-law, don't be like this. The divination shows that your two children are in a place with mountains and water in the northwest, and they are currently safe. By the way, sister-in-law, you must not cross the river by boat at night."
She took out two amulets folded into triangles from her cloth bag and handed them to the woman with both hands: "These amulets will ensure your safe journey."
The woman thanked him and left in a hurry.
Yuan Qi craned his neck to wait for the next customer.
Just as her stomach was growling with hunger, another customer came in. This time it was a young scholar in a white robe, who looked to be about twenty-five or twenty-six years old. The customer gave her a pile of loose silver coins as usual.
"Young Taoist priest, I just saw you telling fortunes for that lady. Could you also tell my fortune? Will I pass the imperial examination this spring? What will my future career be like?"
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