The next day, Tang Nian noticed that Jing Yao, who had dressed her up, wasn't wearing the maid's uniform from the manor. She asked curiously, "Jing Yao, are you dressed like this to go out with us?"
Jingyao paused, her hands still holding her hair up. She had almost fallen asleep last night when her master called her out and instructed her that as long as her master was not by Miss Tang's side, she must stay by Miss Tang's side at all times, no matter what the reason, and not leave her, so that she could not be captured by the people in the palace.
"Ouch, that hurts."
Jing Yao tightened her grip, pulling Tang Nian's face contorted in pain. She reached up and gently rubbed her aching scalp.
By the time the two had finished dressing and getting ready, the carriage had been waiting at the door for quite some time.
Hearing the sound of the curtain being lifted, Lou Mu raised his eyelids slightly: "That's really slow."
Tang Nian plopped down next to Lou Mu. She had to pretend to be recovering from a serious illness and dare not walk fast the whole way. Hearing this, she couldn't help but roll her eyes.
The carriage swayed and bumped, and soon arrived at Tianxiang Restaurant. The waiter saw Lou Mu and led the two to the private room in the corner on the second floor.
Outside, Tang Nian could only pretend to be weak and have Lou Mu help her upstairs. But as soon as the door to the private room closed, Tang Nian's true colors were revealed.
The private room was already fully stocked with dishes, the table was piled high, and the aroma filled the air.
Tang Nian stared at the Dongpo pork knuckle on the table, and couldn't help but lick her lips and swallow.
I'd heard so much about how delicious the Dongpo pork knuckle was at Huangcheng Tianxianglou, and now I'm so glad she got to try it.
Lou Mu subtly tugged at Tang Nian's sleeve, worried that she might lose control and break the rules.
The Third Prince hadn't arrived yet, so Lou Mu wasn't in a hurry. He pulled Tang Nian to sit down and thoughtfully poured her a cup of tea: "Be reserved later. If you don't enjoy your meal, I'll pack some for you."
Tang Nian pouted in dissatisfaction: "Do I think I'm such a tactless person?"
Judging from the way you looked at the meat just now, I really can't believe you.
Lou Mu thought this to himself, but still politely shook his head.
A moment later, the screen in the corner of the private room was pushed open, and a man walked out from behind it.
Tang Nian peeked out and discovered a hidden door behind the screen, leading to the private room next door.
The man was dressed in a dark blue robe with delicate brocade patterns at the collar and a brocade belt with auspicious cloud patterns around his waist.
He walked slowly to the table, his posture upright, his demeanor extraordinary, his movements elegant and composed, just like the Third Prince in the portrait.
Tang Nian quickly stood up with Lou Mu and bowed with their hands clasped together.
"Greetings, Your Highness."
“No need for formalities when we’re out in public.” The Third Prince, Chu Yanjun, lingered on Tang Nian for a moment before subtly looking away. “Please sit down.”
When Lou Mu sat down, he seemed to straighten his wide sleeves, but in reality, an invisible barrier was set up in the private room.
"I heard that Miss Tang is a Taoist priest invited by Lord Lou?"
Chu Yanjun was no fool to hold a position in the court. Tang Nian was a well-known figure, and he was brought by Lou Mu. Although his appearance did not seem to match the portrait sent by the secret guards, he still believed that the person in front of him was the legendary Master Tang.
However, since Tang Nian was unwilling to admit it, he wouldn't ask any further questions.
Tang Nian had just put a piece of chicken in her mouth when she heard Chu Yanjun talking to her, so she quickly swallowed it: "You are a Celestial Master, but I really don't deserve to be invited by Lord Lou."
Lou Mu glanced at Tang Nian sitting next to her with some surprise, while Tang Nian raised an eyebrow at her.
"I wonder if Master Tang would perform autopsies?"
Tang Nian was taken aback. Isn't this kind of work usually done by coroners?
She knew the Third Prince wouldn't ask her without a reason, so after thinking about it, she nodded.
Even if she's never seen a pig run, she's at least eaten pork; this little thing is no problem for her.
"Then why don't you come to my residence with Lord Lou after dinner, Master Tang? There are some things I'd like you to advise me on."
After lunch, Chu Yanjun sent his bodyguards to impersonate Lou Mu and the other two to return to the Grand Secretary's residence by carriage, while he himself took the two to his prince's residence.
The layout of the Third Prince's residence was so complicated that Tang Nian was dizzy before she finally reached a rockery.
Chu Yanjun fumbled around for a while and seemed to have found some mechanism on the artificial mountain. The sound of gears turning came from the ground, and then a dark hole appeared in the middle of the artificial mountain.
He took the tinder from the guard beside him and led the two into the cave.
As we continued along the dark passage, a light suddenly appeared – the light of torches.
Every few steps along the wall, a torch was hung to light the way.
Lou Mu twitched his nose slightly, as if he smelled the stench of a rotting corpse.
Chu Yanjun led the two to a secluded chamber deep inside, where a corpse lay, seemingly recently deceased, with all the necessary coroner's tools beside it. It appeared the corpse had already been examined by a coroner.
Despite being covered by a white sheet, Tang Nian keenly noticed that the corpse's abdomen seemed unusually shrunken, as if all the internal organs had disappeared.
"Could Master Tang examine this corpse for me?" Chu Yanjun pointed to the corpse on the iron bed and raised his arm to stop Lou Mu.
"An examined body is definitely easier than an unexamined one," Tang Nian nodded, folded her hands in her sleeves, and slowly approached the body.
As soon as she got closer to the corpse, she felt something was wrong. How could there be wind in this airtight room?
"Be careful!" With Chu Yanjun by his side, Lou Mu dared not speak and could only transmit his voice.
Upon hearing Lou Mu's reminder, Tang Nian didn't think much of it and quickly stepped back.
In Lou Mu's eyes, the instant Tang Nian retreated, a thick ghostly aura surged out from the corpse and rushed straight towards Tang Nian. In an instant, Tang Nian's figure disappeared from his sight.
Tang Nian felt a strong wind envelop her. She closed her eyes, took out her right hand from her sleeve, and took out a talisman. The talisman spontaneously combusted the moment it was taken out of her sleeve.
The fire from the talisman cleared a narrow path for Tang Nian, allowing only one person to pass. She quietly opened her eyes a crack, revealing the snake's cold pupils. She held the talisman in front of her and rushed forward as fast as she could. She took out another talisman and, without hesitation, stuck it directly onto the corpse's chest.
The corpse instantly turned to ashes, leaving only a layer of ash on the iron bed, which then floated off the bed without any wind.
Chu Yanjun was also frightened by this scene, and the guards quickly surrounded him.
Without Chu Yanjun's obstruction, Lou Mu quickly stepped forward and grabbed Tang Nian's shoulder: "Are you alright?"
Tang Nian shook her head, her vertical pupils slowly returning to normal. She looked at the now empty iron bed, her expression solemn: "Thank you."
Why did such a strong ghostly aura not appear during the previous coroner's autopsy, but instead erupt in front of her?
Is it the alchemy mentor causing this?
Looking at the scene before him through the guards, Chu Yanjun, who had originally thought the rumors circulating in the streets were all false, now realized that they were probably somewhat credible.
However, if that were the case, Chu Yanjun couldn't be certain whether Tang Nian's identity as a Celestial Master was reliable. Because Lou Mu was present, he didn't say it aloud.
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