A master of metaphysics is farming.

The matter was not yet closed. The county magistrate and the prefect were sent to the capital by the prefectural governor, and all evidence, witnesses, and other relevant documents were prepared.

The corruption case eventually led to allegations of buying and selling official positions. Even though the prefect had the power of life and death, he could not easily convict him and could only transfer the case to the Court of Judicial Review for a personal trial.

Several people sat around the table in the inn. Jinghua sat leaning against the bed, while Xianghe sat to the side chanting scriptures.

Shuiyue sat inside, watching quietly, while the ghost's figure floated to the side.

The room was very quiet, except for Xiang He's chanting.

After about an incense stick's time, the chanting stopped. Xiang He gently pinched the mirror in her palm, and the reflection of the moon in the mirror returned to her mind to rest.

Xiang He stretched his neck to relax his body, and casually glanced at the female ghost. "Well, your soul was previously imprisoned in the water, but now that it has come out to seek justice, shouldn't you leave with your wishes fulfilled?"

"But if the magistrate interrogates me later..."

Xiang He could tell that the female ghost was unwilling.

She walked over and sat down, picked up the warm tea on the table and took a sip. "I'll tamper with your body so you'll pretend you fell into the water, caught a cold, and died."

Having said all that, the female ghost could no longer remain in the human world.

She looked at her father with a tearful face, "Father, your daughter is unfilial and cannot stay by your side to fulfill her filial duties..."

The uncle was deeply moved, tears welling up in his eyes. "Don't cry. It's a wish fulfilled. Those two corrupt officials will definitely be brought to justice. We've done a good deed, haven't we?"

"Um……"

The father and daughter talked about their mutual concern, undisturbed by anyone.

After the two finished talking, Xiang He followed the uncle to his residence at night. She was surprised to find that he was so bold as to blatantly hide a corpse in his house, without fear of being seen.

He lived outside the city, in a house in the mountains, a place that ordinary people would not be able to find. There were one or two other houses at the foot of the mountain.

Xiang He laid the female ghost's body flat on the bed. The body had already begun to decompose and smelled of decay.

She took out a piece of yellow paper, drew a talisman on it, and chanted a long incantation before sticking the talisman on her forehead. A drop of blood fell on it, and the yellow paper disappeared from her forehead along with the changes in her body.

The body was not bloated, and even the smell had dissipated.

The middle-aged man and the female ghost were stunned. "The Taoist priest is amazing..."

Xiang He clapped his hands. "It can only remain unchanged for three days at most. We need to bury him as soon as possible and try not to let anyone see his face."

"Not many people will see it. We will ask the people at the foot of the mountain to come and see it. It will be buried tomorrow."

To be absolutely certain, it's still necessary to let people know how she died, so that if they want to summon witnesses later, there will be people to corroborate her testimony.

Xiang He didn't linger. He asked the underworld officials to send the female ghost away before leaving again under the cover of night.

The mountaintop was deserted at night. Xiang He hurried back to the inn. He Sui'an was still awake. She pushed open the door and entered.

The warmth inside dispelled the chill, and Xiang He rubbed his arms. "I have a question."

The first question came to her, and He Sui'an picked up a blanket from the side and handed it to her, saying, "Ask away."

Knowing what he meant, she sat down on the tea table opposite him, covering half of her body with a blanket. "Last night, I did go with that stinky Taoist priest, and I even took some silver. How did you manage to exonerate us?"

The magistrate firmly believed in the supernatural tales. If he had continued to press the matter of the Taoist priest deceiving people, Xiang He and the stinky Taoist priest would have been arrested as well. But surprisingly, the matter was not mentioned at all today.

He Sui'an lowered his eyes, a smile playing on his lips, "The county magistrate was already too frightened to speak, and the prefect was also focusing on the matter of corruption and official positions. No one mentioned ghosts or monsters; even if they were, the prefect wouldn't investigate further, just thinking that he was desperately grasping at straws and had been deceived."

That makes sense...

"Besides, you are innocent. No one will believe in ghosts unless they have seen them with their own eyes. Just try to avoid doing this in front of others in the future."

Hearing how relaxed he sounded, Xiang He nodded, "This is my livelihood, I'll just have to be more careful in the future."

Seeing her helpless expression, He Sui'an's deep eyes flashed with tenderness, "Don't worry, even if it's like this in front of others, I can help you sort it out."

Suddenly, they looked up and their eyes met.

The tenderness in the other person's eyes met hers, and Xiang He paused for a moment before looking away, lifting the blanket and getting up to walk towards the door. "Get up early tomorrow."

"it is good."

Turning around and closing the door, Xiang He quickly walked into her room, took off her clothes, and lay down.

His eyes were wide open, showing no signs of sleepiness.

That guy seems a bit different lately, unlike when we first met. He seems to be smiling more often than before…

"Taoist priest, are you unable to sleep?"

A lively voice suddenly came from beside her ear. Xiang He grabbed the large umbrella and was about to throw it, but fortunately she realized it was a familiar voice and stopped raising her hand.

Shuiyue, with her graceful figure and swaying waist, approached. "My sister is cultivating in the mirror; I don't want to disturb her."

Xiang He shifted her body to make room for her, saying, "Since you two are twins, you should cultivate together."

"I felt unwell because my sister was still chilled, so I came out."

Xiang He continued to look at the ceiling, and Shui Yue, sitting on the edge of the bed, followed suit. Suddenly remembering what had just happened, she couldn't help but smile and her eyes narrowed. "Is the Daoist thinking about Mr. He?"

"No."

"Mr. He is a kind person. He would read aloud to us, and he was always humble and polite."

"Ah."

"My sister and I are grateful to the Taoist priest and the master for allowing us to stay by their side."

"Ah."

Shuiyue frowned and looked at her curiously, "Daoist Master, you really aren't thinking of Mr. He?"

Xiang He rolled her eyes, pulled the blanket over her head, and said, "I should go to sleep. If you're bored, you can go upstairs and play with Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter."

"Ok."

-

-

Once again embarking on the journey to take the imperial examination, Jinghua's cultivation level increased significantly, and Shuiyue's strength also improved along with it.

The four ghosts weren't so reserved; they would occasionally come out to patrol at night.

The Mirror Flower Water Moon loved to tease the four ghosts, finding it quite amusing to see them with their stern and angry faces.

Xing Ji and Zhu Nan were completely immune to them; they would even greet each other when they saw them, and everyone got along well.

That night, they didn't find their next place to stay and had to rest temporarily in the mountains along the way.

"Young master, there is a stream ahead where you can rest for a while."

"Ah."

The carriage stopped, and He Sui'an got off first, reaching out to Xiang He. Xiang He instinctively reached out and grabbed him, easily jumping down. "How much longer until we reach the next place?"

"It will take about two more hours; the horse needs to rest for a while."

Xiang He said nothing more, but walked to the stream and squatted down. He could reach out and touch the cool water, then splashed it on his face, clearing his head which had been dizzy from the carriage ride.

"It's not so cold lately, but it's hard to find a fish..."

"Make do for now," He Sui'an squatted down as well, imitating her to wash her face. "Cold water really does make you feel refreshed. Don't keep your hands soaking in the water all the time, or you'll easily catch a cold even if they're not cold."

"understood."

The two gazed silently at the water's surface, their reflections both showing exhaustion; the days of riding in the carriage had taken their toll.

"How many more days will it take to get to the capital..."

She felt like her butt was about to give out from sitting so long, and it still seemed so far away...

"Still—um."

He Sui'an's mouth was covered by Xiang He, her eyelashes fluttered, but after a while her eyes darkened, and Ling Ran followed her gaze to the mountain.

Xing Ji and Zhu Nan also fell silent, their faces solemn as they looked up at the mountain.

The cold night wind rustled the leaves, and the sound of horses trotting the ground was clear, but among the shadows of the trees on the mountain, there were several swaying shadows.

The whisper stopped, and a silver light shot through the air, heading straight for the two of them—