Mountain and River Festival

Chapter 6: An Nuo
Sheng Yuanyao's question received no answer.

The exact date of Mr. Huo Qi's death could be determined, but the old Taoist priest at Danxia Temple lived in a remote mountain area, with few worshippers, and the time was so long ago that no one could say for sure when the Taoist child appeared beside the old Taoist priest.

Not to mention the exact time, no one can even tell whether he is disabled or not.

Who would remember the insignificant people from ten years ago...

However, Lu Xingzhou spoke with a Xiazhou accent, possessed the Danxia Monastery's land deed, and could refine elixirs. He was most likely the Taoist child from back then. If he was also the Seventh Young Master Huo, then even the Huo family murders would be nearly solved. Sheng Yuanyao could almost imagine a complete story of love and hatred in her mind.

Unfortunately, there is no clear connection between the Taoist boy and Master Huo Qi, and solving the case cannot be based on conjecture.

There was also a slight age difference between Lu Xingzhou and the seventh son of the Huo family. If the seventh son of the Huo family were still alive, he would be eighteen this year, while Lu Xingzhou would be nineteen. He was able to exchange the land deeds, and his identity and travel permits were all legitimate. Of course, forgeries could be ruled out, but this would be difficult to prove. Crucially, Sheng Yuanyao knew many people in the Huo family, and Lu Xingzhou didn't look like them.

Sheng Yuanyao spent several days investigating and inquiring, but this was the only progress he made.

In short, judging from the surface evidence, Lu Xingzhou really has nothing to do with the Huo family murder case.

She stood up wearily and headed straight out of the Demon Suppression Division, heading towards the Huo residence. According to reports from her subordinates, Lu Xingzhou had been repairing the former Danxia Gang site over there for the past few days. She felt she had to meet him, as she had a lot to ask.

As a result, after walking only two blocks, I saw a chubby-faced little Taoist boy sitting in front of a grocery store on the corner.

The little Taoist boy was huddled there with his hands in a hood, two black lenses on his eyes that almost covered half of his face. Beside him was a small flag with the words "Divination and Hearing" written on it.

Let alone asking for divination, just looking at this scene can make people laugh out loud.

Sheng Yuanyao's mood suddenly brightened after a few days of depression. Smiling, she walked over and squatted in front of the little Taoist boy: "Hey, why are you here alone?"

The little Taoist boy extended his index finger and pushed the black lens down a little. He glanced at Sheng Yuanyao from above the lens and said, "Beautiful sister, it's you. Do you want to tell fortunes?"

Sheng Yuanyao smiled and said, "Come to think of it, I haven't asked you your name yet. What's your name?"

"My name is Anuo, which means "Nuo" in glutinous rice.

"Look at the Taoist boy's attire, shouldn't he use his Taoist name?"

"Anuo is my Taoist name. My full name is Nuomi Tuanzi, and my last name is Lu!"

Sheng Yuanyao almost laughed out loud. Her biggest impulse right now was to rub the little kid's face, but unfortunately their relationship wasn't that serious. She still had to maintain the demeanor of the leader of the Demon Suppression Division...

Seeing her like that, Anuo scratched his head: "Why, Anuo can't be a Taoist name?"

"Yes, yes, of course. Um... Master Anuo, where is your master?"

Being called "real person", Anuo was very happy: "Master is repairing the house, and I come out to earn some extra money."

Sheng Yuanyao was quite speechless: "You just made a lot of money, you are not poor, why do you seem to be particularly short of money, and you still need a child like you to help supplement the family expenses, and Lu Xingzhou is not afraid of anything happening."

Anuo put his hands on his hips and said, "Anuo is very capable and can help Master a lot!"

Sheng Yuanyao still smiled: "So how many times have you opened a shop?"

An Nuo smiled apologetically and said, "Just waiting for the Yuan people to come."

"Then am I your destined one?"

Anuo blinked her big eyes.

Who knows whether they are destined to be together or not? Anuo only knows the "yuan" in "yuanbao", but this sister definitely has it.

Sheng Yuanyao smiled and said, "How much is your divination? How about you tell me a divination?"

Anuo's eyes lit up immediately: "One tael of silver, just one tael!"

One tael of silver is very expensive... Where would such a fool come from to ask such a little kid to tell his fortune and pay one tael of silver?
But Sheng Yuanyao actually took out a few ounces of silver and said with a smile, "How about my marriage?"

Rather than predicting marriage, it's more like teasing a child.

Sure enough, there are Yuan people! An Nuo snatched the silver and said with a smile: "Sister, you have no intention of finding a marriage partner. The elders in the family are really trying to urge you to get married, which is one of the reasons why you fled to Xiazhou."

Sheng Yuanyao's smile froze on her face.

She came to Xiazhou for many reasons, but it was undeniable that avoiding her family's pressure to get married was definitely one of them! And this reason was unknown to outsiders except her family!
Is it really calculated? No need to even read the characters, palm lines, or arithmetic, just face reading?

A bit outrageous...

Her expression became more serious. "What happens after that? What's my true purpose?"

Anuo looked Sheng Yuanyao up and down for a long time, and his expression hidden under the sunglasses also became a little strange. His chubby hand scratched his head in confusion.

Sheng Yuanyao's heart suddenly tensed up: "How?"

Anuo smiled awkwardly: "Don't worry, sister, I will marry the person I love in the future. It's just that there may be a few sisters."

Sheng Yuanyao had no expression on his face.

fart.

Given my status and position, if my future husband dares to take a concubine, I'll chop him to death!

Ah Nuo glanced at her cautiously and quietly hid the silver. It's easy to guess what this sister is thinking... But sister, is there a possibility that your conjugal palace is not like the main palace...

Sheng Yuanyao expressionlessly took out another large ingot. An Nuo's eyes lit up as she was about to take it, but Sheng Yuanyao suddenly took it back: "Although your marriage predictions are not accurate at all, if you can figure out who the murderer of the Huo family is, this silver will be yours."

Ah Nuo smiled apologetically: "No one can tell fortunes like this. At most, we can calculate clues."

"That's the clue."

Ah Nuo counted on his fingers for a long time, muttering, "The evil spirits are taking my life... I've done too many evil things."

Sheng Yuanyao took back the silver ingot and exchanged it for one or two ounces of silver.

Ah Nuo was about to cry but had no tears: "Don't worry, sister, there are still clues, there are still clues... Well, the trouble starts from within the family."

Sheng Yuanyao narrowed his eyes and suddenly asked, "How much do you know about your master's past at Danxia Temple?"

Ah Nuo shook his head: "I don't know, I was only six years old! Master never told me about such a long time ago."

"...Don't you know there's a sow named Xiaohua buried there?"

"That's what I heard when Master was making fun of Gang Leader Liu behind his back."

"Um...where have you been living these past few years?"

"In the south, Miaoyin Mountain. My master picked me up and raised me. He had difficulty walking and was bullied, so he brought me back to his hometown." Anuo said aggrievedly, "But within half a year, I was bullied again."

Sheng Yuanyao remained silent.

Lu Xingzhou was helped by Danxia to cross the river and then the bridge was demolished. Although he was slapped in the face on the spot, he was essentially bullied.

If he had found Ah Nuo in her cradle and raised her until now, then he would have been only thirteen years old that year...it must have been quite difficult these years. No wonder the master and disciple both seemed so obsessed with money. If they didn't find ways to make money, how could they have survived to this age, and how could they have supported their cultivation?

Sheng Yuanyao thought about it and decided there was nothing else to ask Lu Xingzhou specifically. Assuming he was the murderer, directly asking him wouldn't reveal anything. He wasn't as docile as a six-year-old, so she had to consider indirect probing.

Thinking of this, he said, "Then go back and tell your master that I have a madman here and ask him to treat him. As long as he can really cure him, the price is negotiable."

An Nuo became happy and said, "Okay, I'll go tell Master right away."

After saying that, she plopped into the grocery store at the back and put the change on the counter, which was almost as high as her. "I want two pounds of wife cakes, but no wife. Can I have a discount?"

Sheng Yuanyao finally laughed out loud.

It was obvious that there was no discount on the wife cakes. With a sad face, Anuo hugged two kilograms of cakes and quickly returned to the original site of the Danxia Gang - it had been almost repaired in the past few days. Since it was rented by the Tianxing Sword Sect, it was estimated that starting tomorrow this place should be called the Tianxing Sword Sect, or it should be renamed the Chamber of Commerce.

The Tianxing Sword Sect hadn't yet moved in, and the mansion was bustling with workers replacing beams and painting. Lu Xingzhou had set up an alchemy room in a corner, refining his own elixir.

Ah Nuo ran in and laughed from a distance: "Master, I made two taels of silver today!"

Lu Xingzhou looked at Dan Huo and smiled slightly: "Sheng Yuanyao's business?"

"Yes, yes." An Nuo put the cake aside and said with a smile: "Sister Sheng wants you to go and get treatment. Do you want to go?"

"That's natural."

"But Master..."

"how?"

"Have you revealed too many clues? Aren't you afraid of being arrested?"

"If it were a local veteran, she would have arrested me and interrogated me, perhaps even tortured me into a confession, but she's Sheng Yuanyao," Lu Xingzhou said leisurely. "The Sheng family has been working for the Demon Suppression Division for generations. Sheng Yuanyao is new, but she still has some ambition and values ​​procedural justice. She won't act recklessly without any evidence. So when I heard it was Sheng Yuanyao here to gain experience, I knew the opportunity had come."

"Aren't you afraid that Sister Sheng will really find out it's you? I think she's very smart and attentive."

"But didn't you kill that person?"

Ah Nuo: “…”

Lu Xingzhou laughed. "Actually, the clues I gave her had little to do with us. They just proved that I was the descendant of the Taoist temple. As for the murderer, I always guided her to think of Huo Shang. I wanted her to inform the Huo family in Beijing that Huo Shang might not be dead."

"Why let them think Huo Shang is not dead? Is it just to shift the blame?"

"If only servants had died, the Huo family would probably have sent a steward to deal with it, which wouldn't have been very meaningful. But if Huo Shang were to reappear, it would have to be someone from the Huo family." Lu Xingzhou stared at the fire, the flames reflected in his eyes, as if they were burning. "My hope of healing my leg, and the Huo family's hell, will both begin from now on."

"What if they insist that you are Huo Shang?"

"But I'm definitely not Huo Shang, so no matter how you test it, it's useless." Lu Xingzhou smiled slightly: "Of course, if they really think so, there are some other benefits."

"What about Sister Shen Tang and the others?"

"If they are indeed the remnants of the Skywalker Sword Sect, they would be a very useful thug..." Lu Xingzhou paused and frowned slightly. "But I doubt they are from the Skywalker Sword Sect."

(End of this chapter)