When Lou Mu returned after sending Magistrate Wang away, Tang Nian was already asleep.
Seeing that Tang Nian's brows were furrowed even when she was sleeping, Lou Mu removed the barrier and took Tang Nian's pulse.
After a long pause, Lou Mu stood up and sighed. Despite being so badly injured, he still insisted on going out to investigate.
The bead that fell out of Tang Nian's sleeve that day was secretly slipped in by Lou Mu when Tang Nian wasn't paying attention.
If it weren't for that bead absorbing some of the High God's restraints for Tang Nian, allowing her to resist for a while and hold out until he arrived, she might not have woken up even in ten days, let alone three.
And it was precisely because of the Supreme God that Lou Mu could not tell whether Tang Nian's true form was safe or not.
Like foxes, Xiangliu's so-called nine heads and nine tails are all formed through cultivation. If he is seriously injured and his strength is weakened, he will lose his tail or head.
As a genius of the Xiangliu clan, Tang Nian cultivated nine heads at a young age. However, nine heads are not like nine tails. Tang Nian cannot easily revert to his original form, nor can he release an illusion of his original form.
She is now bound by the High God, and not only Lou Mu cannot see it, but Tang Nian sometimes wonders if she has degenerated into an eight-headed or seven-headed serpent.
Lou Mu never went back after going down the mountain, but he still heard a little about Tang Nian's affairs.
At this moment, Tang Nian unconsciously frowned not because of her injuries, but because she had a strange dream.
Perhaps because she kept thinking about foxes before falling asleep, in her dream she returned to her childhood, hugging a white fox and refusing to let go, desperately stroking the little fox's head and tail, even kissing it, and pestering it to sign a contract, which was a symbiotic contract.
Tang Nian was startled awake from her dream. She sat up and looked out the window; it seemed to be dark already.
Lou Mu was sitting at the table, handling business by the light of an oil lamp, when he heard a sound behind him. He turned around and saw Tang Nian sitting blankly on the bed, her face full of disbelief.
Tang Nian sat on the bed, staring blankly at Lou Mu, still not recovered from the dream she had just had.
For some reason, when she thought of the white fox in her dream, the more she looked at it, the more it resembled Lou Mu.
Tang Nian shook her head in fright; how could she have such a terrible thought?
"What's wrong?" Lou Mu put down his pen, looked at the stunned Tang Nian, and couldn't help but laugh.
Tang Nian didn't speak, turning her head away from him. She couldn't very well say that she had sexually assaulted him in her dream.
Lou Mu walked over and gestured for Tang Nian to extend her hand: "Let me take your pulse."
Tang Nian hesitated for a moment, then slowly extended her hand.
After Lou Mu got on board, he raised an eyebrow in surprise. He hadn't expected Tang Nian's recovery ability to be so fast.
That's fine too. If Tang Nian stays in bed for a few more days, not only will Tang Nian go crazy, but his plans will also be delayed.
"Oh, right, take a look at this." Lou Mu took out an opened letter from the table; it was a letter sent by someone from the capital.
Tang Nian took out the letter and read it quickly, her face growing darker with each line she read.
The letter essentially stated that the Chu emperor had ordered all Taoist priests to be prohibited from entering the city, with those who violated this order to be executed without mercy.
This imperial edict was issued in secret, which is why Tang Nian did not receive the news.
"Has something big happened in the capital recently?" Tang Nian took a deep breath, folded the letter, and stuffed it back in.
"People have gone missing."
Lou Mu then pulled out another letter from the pile of letters on the table and handed it to Tang Nian.
Tang Nian shook her head and did not take it.
This matter is likely related to evil spirits and is also inextricably linked to the royal family.
"what do you want to do."
Tang Nian knew that Lou Mu wasn't being kind by telling her this news; he must have something to ask her.
Lou Mu nodded approvingly: "Act with me in a play."
Given Lou Mu's position as the Grand Secretary and his considerable power, it's understandable that the Chu Emperor would be wary of him.
The Chu Emperor intended to have Lou Mu marry a royal princess to keep him tied down, but Lou Mu refused.
With the idea that if he couldn't have it, he would destroy it, the Chu Emperor assigned Lou Mu to investigate the case of the frequent disappearances of people in the capital and forced Lou Mu to sign a military pledge.
Lou Mu helps Tang Nian hide her identity and enter the imperial city, while Tang Nian helps Lou Mu find out the truth.
"As a seven-tailed fox, you don't need me to help you eliminate evil spirits, do you?"
Even someone as oblivious as Tang Nian could see that this matter was related to the royal family, and might even be the work of the Chu Emperor. She didn't believe that Lou Mu couldn't see that.
Lou Mu shook his head: "This time it's not an evil spirit, it's a ghost."
Taoist priests can not only capture evil spirits, but also exorcise ghosts. Lou Mu was completely ignorant of Taoist arts, so having Tang Nian, the Taoist master, with him made the exorcism much easier.
“There’s one more thing.” Lou Mu raised his hand to set up a barrier, then continued, “I’m too conspicuous, so I need you to divert their attention.”
Tang Nian raised an eyebrow. Although Lou Mu's words were very cryptic, she still understood what he meant.
He pretended to fall for a honey trap, but in reality, he plotted to seize power.
It seems that Lou Mu has already determined that the person who caused the trouble is the Chu Emperor, and he already has a candidate in mind for the new emperor.
Tang Nian did not agree immediately; clearly, this time her sacrifice would be particularly great.
"Okay, but you have to do me a favor too."
"What's up?"
Tang Nian recalled what Jiang Chen had said back then, and shook her head: "I can only say that after I see Jiang Chen."
Although Tang Nian did not tell Lou Mu what Ren Xing'an said after being possessed by Jiang Chen, Lou Mu already had a plan in mind.
It was getting late, so the two decided to head up the mountain early the next morning.
Lou Mu originally wanted Tang Nian to rest for another night, but Tang Nian couldn't sleep after remembering the dream she had during the day. In the end, she stayed with Lou Mu at the table all night looking at the mountain of letters.
As the rooster crowed for the first time, Tang Nian stretched and rubbed her swollen eyes.
The two of them spent the entire night reading through all the letters that had been sent from the capital in recent days.
Tang Nian also had a certain understanding of the current situation in the capital and could foresee the great storm that would be stirred up after she went there.
The Crown Prince is ambitious, bold, and meticulous, and has many supporters in the court; the Second Prince seems to enjoy nature, but in reality, he is biding his time and has many subordinates in the shadows; the Third Prince cares about the people and acts decisively, and also has many supporters in the court.
The Chu Emperor was old and frail, and his three sons were eager to seize power. The Chu Emperor seemed to have become obsessed with alchemy and intended to delegate power, but had no intention of abdicating.
Lou Mu appears to remain neutral, with all sides trying to win him over.
However, Tang Nian knew that Lou Mu had secretly sided with one side, but Tang Nian couldn't tell which side it was, but it certainly wasn't the Chu Emperor.
Thinking about it, Tang Nian glanced at Lou Mu, who was still writing a reply, and felt that it was too lenient of him to only ask Lou Mu to do one thing.
After the rooster crowed, the sky slowly brightened. When the first ray of sunlight shone into the room, Lou Mu put down his pen and stood up.
"Get ready, we should head up the mountain."
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