"Your master is quite famous in the Zhao Kingdom. I thought that asking him to come out this time would settle the matter, but I never thought it would end like this."
Zhao Shisong led the way and said with regret.
"But you don't have to be afraid. It may be just the cold weather and the overcast weather in my house, and my wife's frailty. It should not be a serious illness."
Ning Jiujiu nodded and said: "Master has been immersed in this Tao all his life, and finally died because of it. In a sense, it can be regarded as a good death."
Zhao Shisong never thought that this young man would be so open-minded. He laughed a few times and praised: "If things go well in the future, I believe you will be able to excel."
Ning Changjiu said: "Thank you very much."
Ning Xiaoling walked silently with her head down.
Zhao Shisong glanced at her and felt that this little girl was delicate and cute, but there was always a cold and cold look in her eyes. He couldn't help but want to tease her: "Little girl, how old are you this year? I have been studying with your master for several years." ?”
Ning Xiaoling said honestly: "I am fourteen years old and have practiced Taoism with my master for three years."
Zhao Shisong nodded and said, "I think you are quite intelligent. You must have learned a lot over the years, right?"
Ning Xiaoling cursed Ning Qinshui a few times in her heart, but smiled on her face and said: "Not really, it takes years and years to cultivate Taoism."
"The little girl is quite modest."
"Mr. Zhao, thank you very much."
Zhao Shisong's residence is not far away, and he arrived during the conversation.
There was a carriage parked at the door of the mansion, and a wandering Taoist priest with a yellow talisman on his forehead walked out, leaning forward and backward, muttering something in his mouth.
"This recipe has been tried and tested in the past. What's happening now? Could it be that I'm also possessed by something evil?"
When the wandering Taoist priest saw Zhao Shisong coming back, he immediately stood still, clasped his fists and bowed, saying apologetically: "Your Majesty, I'm sorry for my incompetence. I really can't understand your lady's illness. She seems evil but not evil. She looks like a demon but not a demon. It's a sad path."
Zhao Shisong sighed and said, "It's okay, just get the money and go home."
The wandering Taoist priest responded, and then he noticed that Zhao Shisong was followed by two "little ones" wearing Taoist robes.
The Taoist looked slightly strange and asked curiously: "You guys do this too?"
Ning Jiujiu asked: "Is something wrong?"
The wandering Taoist priest walked around them twice with broken steps, shook his head, and said: "The seedling is a good seedling, but listen to the advice of the senior, go back, don't waste your efforts."
Ning Jiujiu ignored him, just looked at Zhao Shisong and said, "Mr. Zhao, please lead the way."
The Taoist priest's cheeks turned red with anger, and he jumped to his feet and said: "For those who do our job in this imperial city, I can at least be ranked among the top five. It's okay if you don't listen to my good advice!"
Ning Jiujiu ignored him. Zhao Shisong was dissatisfied with the Taoist priest's careless behavior. He waved his hand casually and led Ning Jiujiu toward the house.
After taking a few steps, the Taoist priest turned around and followed him.
Ning Xiaoling naturally disliked him, so she frowned and said, "Smelly Taoist priest, why are you following me?"
The soldier said vigorously: "I'm just watching from the side. I don't want to disturb you. I just want to open my eyes and see what tricks you have. You dare to be so arrogant at such a young age."
Ning Xiaoling raised her slender eyebrows and was about to refute a few words when Ning Jiujiu said directly: "It's okay, just let him."
…
Across the courtyard and corridor, in the antique courtyard room, the sound of coughing could be heard from afar.
The maid standing at the door saw Zhao Shisong coming back, shouted "Master" and moved out of the way.
The heater in the room has a comfortable temperature. A young woman is lying on her side on the floor. The woman's cheeks are slightly white, her eyes are half-closed, and she covers her chest and coughs from time to time. Her expression is delicate and pretty.
Ning Xiaoling thought she would be a dignified and virtuous lady, but she didn't expect her to be so young and beautiful. She looked about twenty years old, and she didn't know who she was.
When the woman saw Zhao Shisong, she put her hand on the brocade quilt and wanted to stand up to salute. Zhao Shisong quickly ran to her side, held her hand and comforted her a few words.
The woman glanced this way, frowned and said, "Didn't the Taoist priest just leave? Why is he here again? I don't think he has much ability. It's annoying to go around here."
"You..." The Taoist Youfang took a deep breath and sighed: "Madam is right."
Then she looked at the two unfamiliar faces and smiled weakly: "This little Taoist priest is quite handsome, and he looks a little happy."
Ning did not respond to her compliment for a long time.
He looked around, looking over the high beams, as if looking for something.
The man looked at him with interest, waiting for him to make a fool of himself.
Ning Changjiu put his hand into his sleeve and touched it, but found nothing.
The Taoist couldn't help but laugh when he saw this: "Why, did you forget to bring the talisman? Do you want Pindao to lend you a few?"
The woman on the couch couldn't help but frown, Zhao Shisong glared at him quickly, and the Taoist stopped laughing angrily when he saw this.
Unexpectedly, Ning Jiujiu actually showed his hand: "Just lend me a copper coin."
"Copper coins?" The Taoist frowned: "Are you kidding me?"
Ning Chang spread his hands.
The Taoist looked at the eyes of the people around him, sighed, took off his money bag, took out a copper coin and threw it over.
Ning Jiujiu took the copper coins and placed them on the small wooden cabinet in front of the woman. After a while, he said, "That's it."
Everyone was stunned.
OK? What's okay
The man couldn't laugh or cry: "Do you think we are all fools?"
Zhao Shisong was about to speak when he saw the copper coins on the wooden cabinet cracked into three halves. He opened his mouth half-open and looked at Ning Changjiu in surprise.
Ning Jiujiu looked at the young woman on the couch calmly and asked:
"You feel better?"
The woman glanced at the copper coin, chuckled, and was about to shake her head, but after meeting his gaze, she felt that the altar was stiff and cold as it was blown by the biting winter wind.
After a while, the smile on the woman's face appeared again, "Hey, I feel much better, and my body feels lighter."
Zhao Shisong was overjoyed to see that her complexion had indeed improved. He looked at Ning Changjiu with a much kinder look: "I used to think that spending money to eliminate disasters was just a joke. Today, when I met the little Taoist priest, I realized that it was really extraordinary. Zhao didn't know what to do." How to thank you."
Ning Jiujiu said: "Junior sister and I have no place to go."
Zhao Shisong said quickly: "Come here, clean the house, and arrange for the Taoist priest to stay temporarily."
The man was stunned and didn't know what was going on: "This... this, are you guys working together to trick me?"
Zhao Shisong was even more lazy to pay attention to him at this moment, and waved his sleeves directly: "See you off."
"Hey, I..." The man jumped in anger: "My copper coins!"
Ning Jiujiu said: "I owe it."
…
Midnight watch.
The young woman woke up from the couch. She opened the curtains, stretched her body lazily, and stretched out her hands to tuck the long hair draped over her shoulders.
She slowly turned her head and was about to light the lamp when she suddenly exclaimed, holding her heart in her hands with a look of horror on her face.
In the dim room, a figure sat vaguely beside an ancient wooden table.
"Stop pretending." The voice spoke, and the candle was lit.
"You... it's you?" The woman's chest heaved and she said angrily: "You little Taoist priest, I see you are handsome during the day and I think you are a good person. What do you want to do when you break into my boudoir in the middle of the night? You go out now , otherwise I’ll call someone!”
Ning Jiujiu turned his chair and looked at her calmly: "Tell me about your young lady."
"Miss?" The woman grabbed her collar, "What nonsense are you asking? Do you think I'm a servant?"
Ning Jiujiu said: "You've been lying in bed pretending to be sick these days, so you probably won't be able to go out. I've met your lady once during the day. Let me tell you about her."
The woman stared at him faintly, and then smiled: "You men, old and young, are all the same. You have come here, and you are still pretending to be serious with your sister. Hey, do you want to treat my illness?" I promise with my life that if the master hears this, I will beat you out with a stick."
Ning Jiujiu asked: "Don't want to hear it?"
The woman laughed and said, "You little Taoist priest are being unreasonable. Come on, let me listen and see, who is my master?"
Ning Jiujiu said: "She has many chess pieces in the city, but it is not easy to coordinate and send letters between all parties in a hasty layout. You probably haven't received a letter from your master for several days."
The woman shook her head and said, "I don't understand what you are talking about."
Ning Jiujiu continued: "Because she was also seriously injured. Presumably, so many people want to kill her, how can she really escape unscathed."
The woman looked at the young man who was separated from the light with a resentful expression: "You came... just to say these nonsense to me?"
Ning Jiujiu said: "I'm just an ordinary Taoist priest. I haven't determined my position yet. Every word you say may influence me."
The woman's eyes trembled, then calmed down, and said with a smile: "I have never seen an ordinary Taoist priest break into a woman's room."
Ning didn't answer for a long time and just looked at her quietly. The woman suddenly felt that the person sitting in front of her was not a human being, but a ghost without warmth.
She gradually faded her smile: "An ordinary Taoist priest? Then what are you doing in the imperial city? Don't fool me with words like doing justice for heaven."
Ning Jiujiu said: "I don't need to explain to you. A gentleman does not stand under a dangerous wall. If I have the ability to protect myself, I will naturally have the ability to intervene."
"Huh? That's not a small tone." The woman looked at the young man sitting quietly in front of her, and her own breathing couldn't help but slow down.
Ning Jiujiu said: "Just tell me the simplest story about your young lady. I don't need you to betray anything."
"the easiest?"
"Well, like her name, like what happened three years ago."
her name? What happened three years ago
You go to all the trouble to scare me about this kind of thing? Ask anyone in the palace who doesn't know? Am I stupid or are you stupid
The woman was stunned for a moment, not knowing how to answer.
Ning Jiujiu thought that she didn't want to talk and was too lazy to talk nonsense.
At some point, a gold hairpin stopped in front of her eyes from the dressing table. With a whoosh, it flew in front of the woman and almost touched the tip of her nose.
The woman's throat trembled, and she swallowed carefully, not daring to move rashly.
"Are you testing me?" The woman still refused to give up.
"No." Ning sat quietly for a long time waiting for her answer. He raised his hand, and a deadly killing intent suddenly emitted from his body.
The woman sighed as if she was resigned to her fate: "My lady's surname is Zhao Guoguo, and her name is Xiang'er. Three years ago..."
Zhao Xianger…
In the silent night, she slowly talked about that past event.