Proving one's path through killing—this kind of merit is poisonous!

Chapter 19 Quarrel
Wan Qi was taken aback for a moment, then quickly replied, "It's number 3640. That room is only ten meters away from the miscellaneous affairs hall."

"This one will do. Thank you for leading the way, senior brother!"

Wan Qi nodded and was about to lead the two to that room when Cui Qingyuan suddenly stopped.

Her expression suddenly turned serious, and after a moment, she said to Gu Jinhe, "Junior Sister, you..."

Seemingly sensing that she had something to do, Gu Jinhe waved her hand before she could finish speaking and said, "Senior Sister, if you have something to do, you should go back first. I can handle things here."

"OK then."

She didn't know what had happened, but her master used a telepathic technique to call her back.

But she was really worried about Ahe...

Thinking it over, she took out a few talismans from her spatial storage and handed them to Gu Jinhe.

"Keep these. Burn one if you need anything."

She wrote the talisman herself, and once it was burned, she would know she was in danger and would rush to her aid immediately.

Cui Qingyuan's words carried a certain air of defiance, and he was relieved to see that Gu Jinhe had accepted the gift.

"Thank you, senior sister."

"No need to be polite." Cui Qingyuan drew his sword, then leaped onto it and said, "Then I'll be going now."

After watching Cui Qingyuan leave, Wan Qi finally breathed a sigh of relief, his expression suddenly relaxing.

He sized up Gu Jinhe's clothes and, seeing that she didn't seem to be related to Senior Sister Cui, inquired, "Junior Sister Gu, what's your relationship with Senior Sister Cui?"

"As for our fellow disciples."

After Gu Jinhe answered, seeing that he wanted to ask more questions, she quickly interrupted him, saying, "Senior brother, it's getting late, please lead the way."

Wan Qi then seemed to suddenly remember something and hurriedly said, "Oh right, after I take you there, I still have to report back to the elder... Let's go!"

As he spoke, he walked around the outer perimeter of Tingyu Garden, saying as he went, "This place is divided into four gates: east, west, south, and north. Your room is near the south gate, so it will be faster to go around from here."

Gu Jinhe memorized everything she saw and heard, understanding the layout of the entire Tingyu Garden, so that she wouldn't get lost here.

After finally arriving at the South Gate, I saw a group of women gathered there. As I got closer, I heard them arguing.

"Don't blame Senior Sister Zhou. It was my fault for not putting the ancestral jade pendant away properly. Although we don't know why the jade pendant ended up in her room, Senior Sister would never do something like stealing."

A woman dressed in brown spoke with tears welling up in her eyes, the beauty mark at the corner of her eye adding to her pitiful appearance.

Beside her, a tall, slightly robust woman said, "Junior Sister Fu, you're so kind-hearted. Even at a time like this, you're still thinking of speaking up for her. This jade pendant was already in her room; if it wasn't her, who else could have taken it?"

Another woman snorted and offered a suggestion: "If you ask me, we should hand her over to the elders and have them kick her out of the servants' quarters."

"Get out!"

"Drive them out..."

His words drew agreement from many people, and even the onlookers couldn't help but shout a few words.

Gu Jinhe glanced at Wan Qi, a question forming in her mind: "Are they that free?"

They're not even doing any quests!

Wan Qi shook his head helplessly and said, "Disciples in the miscellaneous service department have fixed tasks every day. They have to finish these tasks before they can take on any missions." He paused for a moment, a hint of disdain in his eyes, and continued, "But most disciples only have time to finish their fixed tasks to make ends meet. They don't have time to take on any missions, and even if they do, they can't finish them."

"I see." No wonder she noticed that many people didn't even know how to guide their Qi into their bodies.

Looking at the crowd of disciples, Gu Jinhe thought to herself: I wonder how long this farce will last.

She was about to ask Wan Qi to lead the way again and enter through another door when she heard a voice.

"I didn't steal it! I've said it so many times, this jade pendant is mine!"

Gu Jinhe looked in the direction of the voice and saw a woman dressed in the same brown servant's robes, glaring angrily at the three people who had just spoken.

She has explained it several times, but these people seem not to understand.

If it weren't for escaping being hunted down, would she really want to stay in this dilapidated courtyard as a menial disciple?
Thinking about this, she looked annoyed.

The woman with a beauty mark at the corner of her eye smiled slightly, but in an instant, she returned to her delicate appearance.

Taking advantage of her superior cultivation level, Gu Jinhe took in everyone's expressions and roughly understood what was going on, which made her stunned.

This scene and this conversation really stirred up some unpleasant memories for her!
She remembered that her younger brother had once stolen money from the family and then told their parents that he had stolen it. She had argued with them, but no one believed her.

Then they remembered that Gu Ping had stolen meat from the kitchen but insisted that the original owner had eaten it. Even though his mouth was still greasy, Gu's parents were more willing to believe that the original owner had stolen the meat.

People will only believe the "truth" that they want to believe!
Congratulations, host, for unlocking the mission: Do a good deed every day.

Mission Details: Please help the jade pendant find its true owner.
Time limit: Within today

Reward: Ten seeds of Bichun flower

The system, which had been quiet for a long time, suddenly assigned a task, which should have made Gu Jinhe happy.

But upon looking at the task details, I was speechless...

Is this system no longer content with just helping humans? It's even meddling in matters concerning jade pendants.

Then she looked at the reward. If she remembered correctly, the Bichun flower was one of the spiritual herbs used to refine a grade three antidote pill.

With that thought in mind, she pushed through the crowd and walked into the middle of the group.

"Who are you?" The tall woman looked at Gu Jinhe with a blank expression and asked in an unfriendly tone.

Gu Jinhe walked to the south gate and replied, "I'm just passing by, you don't need to worry about me, keep arguing and bickering."

After saying that, she sat on the steps, put her elbows on her knees, and rested her chin on her palm, gesturing for the others to continue.

Fu Qingxue's carefully crafted emotions were choked up by Gu Jinhe's interruption, leaving her unable to cry or continue her act.

So she reached out and tugged at the tall woman's sleeve, whispering, "Senior Sister Qin, this was originally a conflict between Senior Sister Zhou and me. Let's handle it privately, so we don't make a fool of ourselves in front of everyone."

"She's shamelessly stealing from you, why are you still giving her face? Are you afraid she'll hurt you?"

As Qin Shu spoke, seeing Fu Qingxue's frightened expression, she felt a surge of protectiveness. She patted Fu Qingxue's hand and said, "Don't worry, I've already reached the first level of Qi Refining. She's the one who should be afraid."

As she spoke, she pointed at Zhou Yue and said, "Besides, she was in the wrong to begin with. If she hadn't taken your jade pendant, none of this would have happened."

Gu Jinhe, watching from the side, couldn't help but clap her hands and asked, "You both say the jade pendant is yours, but who can prove it?"

(End of this chapter)