After the fairy disappeared

Chapter 2548 Each with their own inner thoughts
If Hu Xin had seemed somewhat bewildered and struggling to recall just moments before, he was now quite certain, yet remained outwardly polite:

"Then, perhaps I missed it?"

But the expression on his face clearly said, "That's not true!"
Inside the cardamom garden, everyone held their breath.

Xiao Ping stared intently at him, and the air in Quanyin Pavilion seemed to freeze for a moment.

After a full five or six breaths, she leaned back and said irritably, "Fine, I'll let it go if I missed it."

Hu Xin chuckled and said, "Then I'll think of something right now."

"No need, just pretend I didn't mention it."

Just then, there was a knock on the door, and the guard's voice came in:
"Master Xiao, Master Duan has arrived."

Duan Heyun has arrived.

Xiao Ping then put the paperweight back on the table: "I've taken up a lot of your time, Manager Hu, go and get back to your work."

Xiao Yun, who was standing to the side, also seemed to secretly breathe a sigh of relief.

"You're too kind." He Lingchuan bowed to her and turned to leave.

Duan Heyun was standing outside the door. When he opened the door and saw him, he was taken aback.

"Master Duan." He Lingchuan also bowed to him and passed by.

Xiaoyun escorted him all the way to the entrance of Quanyin Pavilion and then returned.

He Lingchuan walked slowly from Quanyin Pavilion to the exit of Lotus Valley, then passed through Yuntai and returned to Baiwanshan.

The feeling of being pricked by thorns finally disappeared.

During this time, Aunt Zhu also realized what was going on. A dozen eyes stared at Hu Xin, and she said in a sinister tone:
"Fine, fine, you're asking for it!"

Hu Xin looked miserable, but gritted her teeth and said, "If I fall into your hands, I'll die sooner or later!"

It would be better to drag these enemies down with me before I die!
He knew his chance had come the moment Aunt Zhu asked that question.

The key point is that he had been obediently cooperating all along, answering whatever questions they asked, which made the enemy take him for granted.

Ten days ago, Lord Xiao didn't ask that question at all. Therefore, she must have become suspicious of the "Hu Xin" in front of her!
This Lotus Valley and this Spring Sound Pavilion are the territory of the Heavenly God Helu, and also the most important base for the Lingxu Gods in the mortal realm. If Master Xiao senses anything amiss, the Heavenly God will immediately unleash his thunderous might!
Therefore, this is his only and last chance to fight back.

Hu Xin has no regrets, but how did the person impersonating him discover that he was lying?
Dong Rui stood in front of Aunt Zhu and whispered, "Spare his life for now; he still has a use."

Aunt Zhu snorted heavily, her gaze towards Hu Xin still unfriendly.

He Lingchuan returned to Baiwan Mountain and, after confirming that he was not being followed, finally spat out the God-Slaying Pill.

Many pills can melt instantly upon entering the mouth, but liquids are not easy to spit out. He Lingchuan himself carried countless pills, and just now, taking advantage of the opportunity to examine the God-Slaying Pill, he secretly took out an empty wax pill from his storage ring, tucked it into his palm, squeezed it, and then put the pill into his mouth.

Previously, empty wax pills had to be differentiated by size, which was very troublesome. Cang Yan's newly developed empty wax pills are actually pill clay, colorless and transparent, with a clay-like texture. Rolling it a couple of times on the surface of a pill will evenly coat it, and it will also become dry and hard.

Just now, He Lingchuan was rubbing the pills in his palms, which was exactly what he was doing. Xiao Ping thought he had some doubts.

The mud ball solidified quickly before he put it in his mouth.

Even if a pill is highly toxic, it won't work if it doesn't touch his skin and stomach.

However, his action was very subtle. The wax ball was kept in his palm the whole time. Not only did He Lutian, who was monitoring Quanyin Pavilion, not even Xiao Ping and Xiao Yun, who were watching him closely, notice anything amiss.

How could he dare to actually take the pills that Xiao Ping gave him?

Aunt Zhu immediately said, "Since it's so troublesome, you might as well pretend to eat it and then stuff the pill into the cardamom garden."

"Would Xiao Ping think I wanted to eat it?" He Lingchuan then threw the wax pellet into the cardamom garden. "Let's analyze it."

Dong Rui took the wax pill, carefully cut it open, and spread it out for everyone to see.

Right in the center of the pill was a tiny white dot, about the size of a grain of rice. Dong Rui picked it up with tweezers, and it even moved.

"It's a Gu worm, which we call 'white glutinous rice' in our trade." The shape of this thing is very similar to a grain of glutinous rice. "If it is not specially processed, it is harmless to the human body and will be naturally expelled from the body after a few days."

The little stone golem clone stared intently: "Then why give it to Jiuyou to eat?"

“There is a connection between the Gu worm and its master,” Dong Rui said seriously. “If Jiu You were to secretly hide it in the storage space or the cardamom garden on the spot, Xiao Ping would know! Of course, after Jiu You left the Lotus Valley, she would no longer be able to sense the Gu worm.”

"Even the real Hu Xin might not dare to eat her food, right?" Ling Jinbao interjected. "Who would dare to easily eat something taken out by a demon puppeteer?"

Dong Rui rolled her eyes, deciding not to argue with him.

"At the very least, it will deepen her suspicions about Jiuyou."

“She’s been testing me from beginning to end,” He Lingchuan finally spoke to the others. “The paperweight she picked up from the table is probably significant. I noticed Xiao Yun was paying close attention to it. If Xiao Ping is determined to deal with me, that paperweight will likely play a crucial role. I suspect it’s a signal Xiao Ping is sending to the gods.”

He Lingchuan's heart finally settled down after Xiao Ping put the paperweight back in its place.

Ling Jinbao asked, "Like using a broken cup as a signal?"

"possible."

Aunt Zhu couldn't hold back any longer: "How did you find the correct answer just now?"

Everyone understood the trap Xiao Ping set for He Lingchuan, but the problem is, after the real Hu Xin gave a misleading and wrong answer, how could Jiu You properly deal with Xiao Ping?
In that extremely short moment, how did he determine that Hu Xin was lying?

“Xiao Ping already suspects me. The trap she set for me only has two options: yes or no,” He Lingchuan said. “If I am a fake, I can only go along with what she says, because questioning her without knowing the correct answer is obviously riskier.”

“Although Hu Xin from Doukou Garden gave a positive answer, don’t forget that Xiao Ping was just being sarcastic and confrontational with me. How could she possibly change her tune and want to recruit me?” He Lingchuan understood the mentality of those in power all too well. “Judging from her attitude, she looks down on Hu Xin completely, now and even more so before. She has no sincerity whatsoever, not even bothering to pretend. What use would she have for him?”

If you really want to recruit someone, you should at least treat them politely, not like this. So, "she asked that question suddenly just to trick me."

"Therefore, the correct answer can only be—no. If I dared to be ambiguous, we would most likely already be fighting to break through."

Everyone muttered under their breath, "Damn, this is way too dangerous!"
If it were them, how could they possibly think of it?

(End of this chapter)