"It doesn't matter if it's detailed or not. Everyone is here, and they are definitely here to help Wu Huai. When you catch him, you can kill him or chop him up, and Chi Gou will not interfere."
Hua Jingchun did not give a direct answer.
Shi Jingzhi didn't intend to persuade her, he hummed in understanding, "I'm sorry."
Yin Ci looked at Hua Jingchun coldly. Since she didn't know the identities of the people from Kushan Sect, it was naturally inconvenient for them to find out the truth. However, based on Hua Hufa's understanding of Wu Huai, he would definitely not believe that the two of them were strangers.
But as Hua Jingchun said, as long as Wu Huai is captured and Yin Xian is brought out, he has no interest in the relationship between the two people - right now he and Shi Jingzhi have more important things to do.
"Aci looks good in black." Shi Jingzhi took off the old man's face and changed him into night clothes, revealing only his eyes. "When our sect has money, we will change the sect uniforms to black."
Yin Ci didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Shi Jingzhi was worthy of the name "Yuzi". His life was not guaranteed yet, but this man was already imagining the future of Kushan Sect. Thinking of this, he tasted something else - for some reason, Shi Jingzhi liked talking about the "future" with him more and more.
Whenever this person talked about the future, he would be beaming with joy, and he was not afraid or panicked when facing death.
However, the stronger the hope, the stronger the despair when stepping on empty air. In a moment of trance, Yin Ci didn't know whether this was good or bad. He pressed his buzzing head and tried to get rid of those inexplicable emotions.
"The current one is good, no need to change it. Master is more suitable for bright colors, otherwise it will be easy to be caught."
Shi Jingzhi's face was already demonic. When the panic of impending death subsided, the corners of his lips were always curled up intentionally or unintentionally, making him look more cunning and affectionate. If he were to wear black, he would really be regarded as a demon.
Shi Jingzhi snorted and squinted at Yin Ci: "Ah Ci is right, I must be safe and sound, waiting for you to come and propose marriage - to be honest, this lucky bag of yours is really hard to put away. I'm afraid it will fall off, come and help me move it to another place."
When Yin Ci mentioned the brocade bag, his fierce momentum instantly shrank by two points. He approached without saying anything and tied the brocade bag carefully to the inside of Shi Jingzhi's chest. The two were of similar height, and Yin Ci lowered his head slightly when he moved. As a result, before he raised his head, he felt a soft touch on his forehead.
"These days, you have been listening to Ah Ci and have not been seriously injured. This is a reward for yourself." Even so, Shi Jingzhi's breath has a faint smell of blood. "If Ah Ci can survive this, I will also reward you."
Yin Ci sighed secretly: "What kind of reward?"
The head of the sect said shamelessly: "Let me kiss you."
Yin Ci: “…”
Shi Jingzhi learns too fast, which is not always a good thing. Now when he does this kind of thing, his ears are red. Yin Ci somewhat missed the bright red tomato. The faint worry after smelling the blood just now was also diluted by this light-hearted teasing... I don't know if this fox did it on purpose.
Outside the window, the moon is rising, dark clouds are rolling in, and the light and shadows are extremely varied. It is a good time to act.
Their mission was to drug the kitchen staff of the Chigou Sect.
Hua Jingchun adheres to the spirit of "don't employ people if you doubt them, and don't doubt people if you employ them", and entrusts this important task to two people. Although from Yin Ci's point of view, she is more concerned about the factor that "the people around her are not capable enough and may expose the plan".
The head of the sect was not the three-legged cat who used his head to push the snow. Yin Ci said, "He touched the branches with his feet, leaving only a few leaves trembling slightly."
The custom of Chi Gou is to celebrate happiness but not funerals. It started out as a tomb raider, and each generation of leaders feared being held accountable by the King of Hell after going to the underworld, so they buried their dead in a frugal manner and kept the location of their graves secret, calling it "self-punishment." Now that the enthronement ceremony is approaching, the huge Chi Gou sect is decorated with lights and colors. Scorpion flags are erected everywhere, and golden lanterns are hung. Bone tomb-raiding bells are hung with red strings, ringing under the eaves.
These bone bells were interlaced with spider-thin steel wires. Once someone touched them, the entire area would buzz. The resonance of the bone bells was cold and unpleasant to the ear, and the sound could be heard three miles away. It was an excellent protective instrument. Not to mention that every courtyard was packed with officials patrolling. The officials came and went with torches in their hands, their spines tensed tighter than bowstrings.
However, no matter how tight the Chigou Sect's defense was, they could not withstand the profound skills of the two men, one of whom was particularly familiar with the road.
"There is a hidden hole under the wall here. After passing through the hole, there is a passage inside the abandoned house." Yin Ci said with certainty.
In order to hide the secret of "immortality", Yin Ci always wore a ghost leather coat in front of others. When he stayed in the sect for a long time, he always needed some ventilation. Most of the secret rooms and secret passages in the Chi Gou Sect were all designed by "Su Zhi".
Now that Su Zhi had come in person, all those messy weapons and human hands were skipped. The master and the apprentice were like two clever cats, turning around and around, and soon found the Red Hook Sect's kitchen.
The cooks of Chigou Sect are all members of the sect. The lights are kept on in the kitchen all night to ensure that meals are provided for those who patrol the night and work at night. The Chigou Kitchen is a separate courtyard with running water and landscaping. The design is grand to the point of being wasteful.
“… Ah Ci, this kitchen occupies such a large yard, it is quite magnificent. Is it your work?” Shi Jingzhi squatted on the eaves, taking a hissing breath.
“I sometimes prepare meals myself.”
"What a refined mood."
In fact, he wanted to test some poisons and poison himself in different ways. Some poisons are really hard to swallow if they are not processed. During those years in Chigou, Yin Ci had eaten a lot of poisons, but in the end, he only wrote a book of 100 poisons for the killers of Chixiezu, and he himself was still alive and kicking.
It was hard to talk about these things with Shi Jingzhi, so Yin Ci had to acquiesce. Talking about the past of seeking death in front of this person seemed as far away as in the last life.
Thinking of this, he couldn't help but reach out and touch the back of Shi Jingzhi's head. Shi Jingzhi was startled, but instead of avoiding, he turned his head and rubbed Yin Ci's palm, feeling the warmth.
Before the two of them finished being intimate, a fragrance suddenly rose from below, accompanied by low complaints.
"It's ok for the brothers who work at night, but why is the Tai Heng Sect Leader also staying up so late? It's already several o'clock in the morning, and we have to prepare extra midnight snacks."
"A well-known and upright sect, so they just put on airs. There's nothing we can do about it. Our leader... the previous leader was very polite to Tai Heng. Otherwise, if you don't stand out, people will always keep an eye on you. Didn't the previous leader say that this is called mediocre and mediocre!"
"…I don't think that's what you mean? Never mind. What did Qu Duanyun order? It smells so good."
"Don't mention it. It's a freshly slaughtered chicken. His servants specially handed over the menu, saying that our food is greasy and strong, and Taiheng can't get used to it."
Shi Jingzhi said angrily: "Last time when we went to Qu Mansion, wasn't that kid quite frugal? Ah Ci..."
"We'll have chicken tomorrow." Yin Ci said.
The master and the disciple smiled at each other, and when the two servants walked away, they bent down and went into the kitchen.
The medicinal tea and wine used in the enthronement ceremony came from different merchants and were all sealed in the innermost cellar of the back kitchen. With Yin Ci, a spy at the ancestor level, the two of them had a smooth journey - the medicinal powder they had used to temporarily disperse the popularity of the people was not strong in nature, let alone poison, and was extremely difficult to detect.
After administering the medicine, there was still an hour left before the agreed time to return. Sect Leader Shi naturally did not want to be left out: "Let's go and take a look at Qu Duanyun, maybe we can find out something about Yinxian's trick."
As a distinguished guest of Chi Gou, Qu Duanyun lived in Luoshen Tower, which had an excellent environment. There were trees, lakes and scenery around, and it was very lively. There was only one room with lights on in the whole building. The master and apprentice went upstairs in the dark and skillfully closed the wooden windows.
"The chicken soup is almost done, send it to Xiaohuan." Qu Duanyun was holding a book and said without looking up. "It's cold in Shafu at night, and she is young and weak, so it's a good time for her to replenish her body."
"Master, eat first. The rest of us are servants, so we can just eat what you leave behind."
"She has been looking unwell during the day. If she continues like this, she might catch a cold. Her internal organs are burning. She doesn't need this bowl of soup. Take it."
This should have been a scene of Tai Heng being noble and kind, but Shi Jingzhi frowned, looking oddly displeased. Even through the black cloth of his nightgown, Yin Ci could see the wrinkles between his brows.
But Qu Duanyun was a top-notch expert, so they had to be careful even when breathing, not to mention transmitting their voices. Neither of them said a word, and they turned into two wooden thresholds outside the door.
In the room, Qu Duanyun was the only decent person except for a few ordinary old servants. Listening carefully, there was no other sound. As expected, people depend on their fortunes, and it is not easy to catch the flaws of the immortal.
However, Qu Duanyun had only turned a few pages of the book when the silence was broken by a series of footsteps.
Judging from the voice, the person who came was a tall young man. The master and the apprentice held their breath and concentrated, but Xu Jingming pushed the door open and walked in: "This damn place is too cold, Qu Duanyun, did you prepare a hot pot? The whole place smells like feet, it's not clean."
Shi Jingzhi's gaze instantly changed from expectation to disgust, without even a transition.
"He is not your Highness's servant." Qu Duanyun smiled and said, "Your Highness Prince Rong brought four carriages with luggage, so he must have someone else to replace him."
"It's already been the beginning of spring, who knew it would be so cold. It's not something valuable, can't I just pay for it?" Xu Jingming said confidently.
Qu Duanyun sighed and made a gesture. The old servant brought out a soup pot wrapped in an embroidered cloth bag and handed it to His Royal Highness Prince Rong with both hands.
Even after getting the soup, Xu Jingming still refused to leave: "Tomorrow is the enthronement ceremony, why don't you sleep?"
"Thank you for your concern, Your Highness. It's okay."
"You weren't so polite before. Over the years, you've become more and more distant." Xu Jingming muttered. "How about a couple of drinks? Back then, we—"
"In a foreign land, there are some things that cannot be said." Qu Duanyun said calmly, "Your Highness, take what you want and go to bed early."
"Even though I'm in a foreign land, with no one to talk to, I still feel nostalgic. When we were young, we could still call each other 'friends'. What do you mean by your current state? Am I marrying above my station? Can't I sleep with you if I don't want to?"
After saying that, he rolled his eyes and pretended to be a dandy, "It's not impossible to take a rest, just stay here. I just ran into the old servant who brought the soup... Is the Taiheng maid called Xiaohuan? Ask her to warm your bed, and then you can go to sleep."
Qu Duanyun put down the book and said helplessly, "Okay, I'll send someone to let her prepare it right away."
Xu Jingming choked.
Outside the door, Shi Jingzhi frowned even more. He stared at Qu Duanyun warily, his amber eyes narrowed slightly. Yin Ci also held his breath, his eyes moving back and forth between the two of them.
Xu Jingming froze for a moment, as if he was a little lost. He looked at Qu Duanyun with disappointment and shook his head: "Forget it, I was just kidding you. She is a good girl, how can you ruin her? But you..."
He didn't say anything else. He paused for a moment with a look of disappointment, then left silently holding Tang Wuzi.
Qu Duanyun was still calm, his eyes glued to the book in his hand. In the light of the fire, Yin Ci could see it clearly - it was undoubtedly a book of military tactics, with densely packed red comments on the pages.
The two were not in the mood to watch Qu Duanyun reading at night, but Shi Jingzhi did not immediately return to the remote Xunxianju. He jumped all the way to the top of Luoshen Tower. The dark clouds in the sky were about to disperse, and a dark moon hung in the night sky. From this height, the entire Chigou Sect was in sight.
It was a chilly night in Shafu. Shi Jingzhi took off his mask and exhaled a puff of white steam.
Yin Ci was afraid that this person would catch a cold and vomit blood: "Go ahead, be careful not to catch a cold."
"If things get chaotic tomorrow, we won't be able to see this beautiful scenery." Shi Jingzhi looked at the moon, "After all, this is the place you built up with your own hands."
Although Shi Jingzhi was sensitive, he was not the kind of person who would get sentimental at this critical juncture. Yin Ci was silent for a long time: "... Do you have anything to say?"
"Tomorrow you must keep an eye on Qu Duanyun." Shi Jingzhi did not look at Yin Ci, and spoke in a low voice. "Xu Jingming was born with a weak horoscope, and his mother would send him to the Imperial Master's residence every now and then. After Xu Jingming had his hair tied up, his mother allowed him to go out of the palace to play... There were no members of the Qu family in the palace at that time, so how did he get to know Qu Duanyun when he was a child?"
The most likely possibility is the Imperial Master's Mansion.
But it would be a bit rash to make a final conclusion based on this alone. Just as Yin Ci was about to think deeply, Shi Jingzhi spoke for the first time.
"And you're very good at judging people. He makes me uncomfortable. I didn't like him very much before I went to the North. Now I see that I was right... The expression on his face when he gave me chicken soup was not much different from the expression on his face when he sent Xu Jingming away just now. He doesn't care that much, whether it's Xiao Huan or my stupid brother."
This time Shi Jingzhi didn't laugh. No matter how he suppressed his aura, under the frosty moonlight, the majestic aura still spread out.
"Aci, you are immortal, so naturally you look down on the world. But you have integrity in your bones. As long as the people in danger are worth saving, you will always sacrifice yourself first. Hush, don't interrupt me. Did I say something wrong?"
Yin Ci closed his mouth and motioned Shi Jingzhi to continue.
"Qu Duanyun... He is not unkind or unjust, nor is he a hypocrite. It's just that I don't like his 'looking down on me' at all. The first time I felt this kind of chill was when I heard about 'Heaven's Disgust'."
"Even if they didn't go through the Imperial Master's Mansion, he and Xu Jingming might still know each other. I know. This is just my intuition - Qu Duanyun might be related to Yinxian. "
At the same time, Qu Duanyun in the building took a deep breath and snapped the book shut.