Qin Yao cast a glance at the shopkeeper — whose face was full of happy anticipation — and set the hairpin back in its box. She stood and smiled: “Just browsing — nothing caught my eye.” Then she gave Lin Xiao a meaningful look, stepped forward, and walked toward the exit: “Shopkeeper, that will be all for today. Once I’ve found an azure-vein crystal, I’ll come back to your shop to have the jewelry made.”

Lin Xiao quickly glanced at the jewelry box on the table, hesitated a moment, then seeing that Qin Yao had already moved ahead, he had no choice but to follow her out and ask, puzzled: “Azure-vein crystal? Are you planning to have jewelry made from azure-vein crystal?”

Qin Yao remembered that Lin Xiao had once helped her break into the Court of Judicial Review and was not entirely unfamiliar with the details of the cases, so she had half a mind to tell him about her own deductions. But the moment she opened her mouth, she suddenly remembered that laying things out fully would inevitably draw in the matter of Feng Boyu having privately retrieved belongings from the victims — and though she trusted Lin Xiao’s character, she was still unwilling to bring unnecessary trouble down on Feng Boyu.

After weighing it over for a moment, she left out the part involving Feng Boyu entirely and said only that, having grown too curious about the cases, she had asked her master to use a concealment technique that allowed master and disciple to slip into the Court of Judicial Review and retrieve the belongings of Rou Qing and Wen Niang for examination.

“I know this wasn’t proper conduct, but I always felt these cases were not so simple — which is why I went to the trouble of finding a way to examine Wen Niang’s remains.” Qin Yao’s voice was a little unsteady. It was the first time she had spoken to Lin Xiao and felt this uncertain of her footing.

Lin Xiao had deployed Chang Rong and others in rotating shifts to keep watch over Qin Yao. He was naturally well aware of the whole sequence of events by now. Seeing that Qin Yao was deliberately covering for Feng Boyu, he had no wish to expose it — but the thought that Qin Yao, throughout all of this, had chosen to seek out Feng Boyu rather than him, left an indescribably sour and tight feeling in his chest.

He was silent for a good while before he finally said: “A’Yao — I’ve been occupied these past days fulfilling an imperial order to investigate the Dayin Temple affair and haven’t been able to spare the time. But if you want to continue pursuing those cases in Pingkang Ward, I’ll go speak with Liu Zan on your behalf. You needn’t have any reservations — feel free to go to the Court of Judicial Review to examine the remains directly.”

Having said that, he very nearly added another sentence after it: — and stop going to find that Feng Boyu.

Qin Yao heard those words and felt that Lin Xiao was truly a man of cold exterior and warm heart. A surge of deep gratitude welled up inside her: “I’ve already troubled the young lord once before. Seeing how busy you are, I didn’t feel right imposing again. But since the young lord doesn’t mind the inconvenience, if there is anything I need your help with in the future, I will certainly be shameless enough to come and ask.”

Lin Xiao found Qin Yao’s grave and earnest manner somewhat exasperating — yet the heavy, stifling feeling of pressure in his heart eased somewhat.

He took out the jade token Qin Yao had sent via A’Han when she came to find him at the palace that night, and returned it to her: “Keep this token with you. If, as you say, the person behind this case has some background, they likely won’t be easy to deal with. Please do not act alone.”

Though he said as much, he also knew perfectly well these words were as good as nothing. Qin Yao’s nature was to grow stronger when pressed hard — if she truly found some thread of a lead, she would not easily give up out of fear of difficulty.

Qin Yao had not had a chance to reply when Chang Rong came hurrying from the other end of the street: “Young lord — the Emperor summons you urgently.”

Qin Yao parted ways with Lin Xiao, and rather than returning to the Qu estate, she went with A’Han directly to Qingyun Temple.

The temple was still and silent. All the way to the inner courtyard, there was not a single worshipper or temple disciple to be seen. Only when they reached the inner compound did they spot the little acolyte Fu Yuan dozing at the door of their master’s room.

“Where is Master?” Realizing Qing Xuzi was probably taking an afternoon nap, Qin Yao and A’Han woke Fu Yuan gently and asked in a low voice.

Fu Yuan, seeing that his senior brother and senior sister had returned, rubbed his eyes and stood up quickly: “Not long ago a monk came to the temple. Master and the monk are inside the room talking.”

A monk? Qin Yao and A’Han looked at each other in bafflement. Since when had their master been in contact with a monk?

While they were still puzzling over it, the door let out a creak and Qing Xuzi emerged from the room leading a tall man.

Upon seeing Qin Yao and A’Han, Qing Xuzi’s expression visibly stiffened — clearly, he had not expected the two of them to return at that particular moment.

Qin Yao and A’Han were no less startled. For the man following their master out was none other than Qing Xuzi’s longtime adversary — Abbot Yuan Jue.

Qin Yao’s gaze moved back and forth between her master — who was wearing a thunderous expression — and Abbot Yuan Jue — whose face was entirely calm — wondering inwardly what on earth was going on. Were Master and Yuan Jue not long-standing enemies who would have been perfectly happy never to see each other again? How had they ended up meeting here?

And if she remembered correctly, just a short while ago Abbot Yuan Jue had been taken into custody by the authorities following the incident of the intruders at his temple. How was he walking freely in and out of Qingyun Temple right now?

Qin Yao was full of questions. Not wanting to be rude by staring, she could only turn her puzzled gaze toward her master.

Qing Xuzi clearly had no intention of offering any explanation to his two disciples. Completely ignoring Qin Yao’s gaze, he turned and led Abbot Yuan Jue toward the outer courtyard.

As the two men passed A’Han, Yuan Jue could not help but stop. He looked quietly toward A’Han, and his gaze carried the faintest trace of grief and compassion.

A’Han looked at Yuan Jue with confusion, then looked at his master, thoroughly at a loss.

Qing Xuzi let out a pointed, forceful cough. Yuan Jue seemed to come back to himself and moved his gaze away from A’Han’s face. He pressed his palms together and said softly to Qing Xuzi: “Please do not trouble yourself to see me out.” His voice was as calm and steady as ever — the sort of voice that made one feel settled simply by hearing it.

Qing Xuzi let out a short, dismissive sound: “I had no intention of seeing you out — be on your way.” He said this, yet stayed where he was in the courtyard, watching without moving, until Yuan Jue’s figure had completely disappeared through the courtyard gate, before turning and going back to his room.

Qin Yao followed closely in her master’s footsteps. She very much wanted to ask why Yuan Jue had come to Qingyun Temple, but a single glance at her master’s expression — dark enough to rain — made her quietly swallow every question back down.

The room was so still that a falling needle would have been audible. After a long while, it was A’Han, with his characteristic disregard for the atmosphere, who spoke first: “Master, A’Yao and I used the Yin-Pointing Talisman and found evidence of malevolent energy on Wen Niang’s remains.”

Qing Xuzi shifted slightly, and his gaze swept over to Qin Yao.

Qin Yao quickly sat up straight, and honestly told her master everything she had discovered over these past few days. To prevent her master from doubting her reasoning, she even took out the paper packet containing Wen Niang’s hair and used a Yin-Pointing Talisman to demonstrate right there and then.

Qing Xuzi narrowed his eyes and watched as the Yin-Pointing Talisman, barely brought close to the hair in the packet, immediately produced blue-tinged flames that leapt up from the talisman paper.

Gradually, Qing Xuzi’s expression grew grave: “This Wen Niang — she’s the one who was found hanged in the prison?”

Qin Yao nodded, and ventured a look toward her master: “She is the only one of the victims in Pingkang Ward whose facial features were left intact, and the only one whose remains we never examined with the Fathomless Mirror. If I hadn’t happened to hear Feng Boyu mention it, I wouldn’t have thought to use the Yin-Pointing Talisman to check her remains.”

Qing Xuzi’s expression turned sharply grim. He rose and paced rapidly back and forth a few steps, then stopped abruptly and looked at the two disciples: “You should both remember — your master once told you about an extremely vile dark art from the demonic world, known as ‘Returning Yang.’ A hundred years ago, an evil entity set on reviving its dead companion harvested the facial features of victims in order to assemble a ritual formation and perform a soul-summoning ceremony. Because this technique was so utterly brutal and bloodthirsty, it alarmed both the Buddhist and Daoist orders. After the eminent masters of both faiths joined forces to destroy that evil entity — shattering its soul and obliterating its form — they established an unwritten rule: whenever any evil entity employs that category of dark art, every member of the Buddhist and Daoist orders has both the right and the duty to destroy it!”

Qin Yao and A’Han nodded together: “We remember.”

Qing Xuzi gave a self-mocking laugh: “Yet when this very dark art was unfolding right under my nose, your master was too arrogant and overconfident, too slow to recognize the warning signs — and by the time I noticed something was wrong, it had dragged on so long we had nearly allowed a great disaster to unfold!”

Seeing her master’s expression turn unusually grim, Qin Yao’s heart lurched in alarm. She quickly rose to her feet: “Master—”

Qing Xuzi held up a hand. He looked somewhat weary: “The reason there were no signs of demonic activity on the bodies of Xue Li’er and the others is that those women’s deaths were indeed carried out by human hands. The evil entity behind it all, in order to prevent anyone from the Daoist or Buddhist orders from growing suspicious, had no choice but to work through a human intermediary to harvest the facial features. That is why no matter how carefully we used the Fathomless Mirror to search, we found no trace of demonic involvement in the case.”

“Wen Niang’s death truly was an unplanned accident in the killer’s scheme. She was not a target for the collection of facial features — but for some reason, the killer was forced to silence her. Because she was confined in the Court of Judicial Review at the time, the killer couldn’t get inside the prison — but that evil entity could come and go freely. That is why she is the only victim in this case whose death was at the hands of an evil spirit.”

Qin Yao nodded slowly to herself. It all fit together. Her master’s reasoning aligned exactly with her own previous thinking.

“Master — what do we do now to deal with that evil entity?”

Qing Xuzi rose and paced back and forth, thinking aloud: “The troublesome aspect of this case is that not only is there an evil entity manipulating things from behind the scenes, there is also a human killer who is willingly acting as its instrument. It is already difficult enough to find the evil entity — but to find that one killer in the vast sea of humanity is like fishing for a needle at the bottom of the ocean.”

Qin Yao frowned: “Master, I recall that the Record of Demonic Entities states that the ‘Returning Yang’ technique — from the time of the first collection through to the final ritual formation — cannot exceed one hundred days in total. It has now been nearly two months since the first victim was discovered, and yet the evil entity still hasn’t gathered all the required features. It has gone to such elaborate lengths to lay its groundwork — it would never allow itself to fail at the last step. I suspect it will try by any means possible to find its next target in the shortest possible time.”

Qing Xuzi stroked his beard and nodded: “At this point, there is nothing left for us but to use the most cumbersome method to find that evil entity.”

“The most cumbersome method?” Qin Yao was taken aback.

Qing Xuzi looked at Qin Yao and A’Han: “Both of you — come close and listen.”

Qin Yao and A’Han stayed for the midday meal at Qingyun Temple before returning to the Qu estate.

The moment she stepped inside, Qu Chen Shi handed her an invitation card: “After the two of you left this morning, the Jinghai Marquis Manor sent this over. It says Miss Qin is holding a birthday banquet tomorrow at her home and invites you to join.”

Qin Yao paused, then took the invitation and looked at it. Indeed it bore the Jinghai Marquis Manor’s seal, with two lines of neat, elegant script — clearly written by Qin Yuan herself.

Since the other party was showing a genuine wish to befriend her, Qin Yao naturally had no reason to decline. She promptly called for paper and brush and wrote a proper reply accepting the invitation.

Qu Chen Shi watched with a warm smile, gently stroking her daughter’s hair: “It’s good to spend more time with these young ladies from distinguished families — you’ll learn their graceful refinement from them, and it’ll help work out some of that wildness of yours.”

Qin Yao squinted at her mother: “How can you say such things about your own daughter? What wildness? What am I doing wrong?”

Seeing her daughter annoyed, Qu Chen Shi quickly smiled and pulled Qin Yao into a hug: “Not wild at all, not at all! My A’Yao is Mother’s little treasure, every bit of you only things Mother loves.”

Mother and daughter were busy discussing what birthday gift to bring Qin Yuan when a servant announced that Madam Feng and Feng Chuyue had arrived.

This was the Feng mother and daughter’s first time calling at the Qu estate. Though Qu Chen Shi and Qin Yao were somewhat surprised, they warmly told the servant to show them in immediately.

Madam Feng had her hair combed into a neat, smooth coin-shaped bun today, with no jewelry of any kind. Her clothing was half-worn and simply plain.

Feng Chuyue, however, was wearing a brand-new peach-pink narrow-sleeved short jacket, paired with a lake-blue floor-length skirt. Both were brilliantly vivid colors, and thrown together like that, they were raucously bold — yet thanks to her fair complexion and youthful beauty, it worked rather than clashing, producing its own distinctive charm.

Madam Feng was, as one might expect of any honest person who lived by simple rules, extremely direct and unpretentious in the way she expressed friendliness. After greeting Qu Chen Shi, she produced several varieties of local mountain produce she had brought from Yuanzhou and said warmly: “These were given to us by the neighbors before we left. They may look unrefined, but they’re the most nourishing things you can eat. I only hope Madam Qu and Miss Qu won’t think them too crude.”

The words came out haltingly, yet the phrasing was curiously apt — as though someone had carefully taught it to her beforehand.

Qu Chen Shi’s greatest pleasure in life was organizing meals for the family, and she had always had a weakness for fresh and unusual ingredients. She was so delighted she could scarcely close her mouth, and quickly took the basket of mountain goods from Madam Feng with both hands: “Madam Feng, you are truly too thoughtful! This is the sort of thing you can’t buy with money — far from being crude, we are in your debt!”

Feng Chuyue suppressed a smile and said: “Before we came, neither Mother nor I knew what to bring. It was Brother’s idea — he knows exactly what will please Auntie and A’Yao.”

Qu Chen Shi nodded approvingly: “Boyu is young, yet so thoughtful in everything he does — and so handsome too. He really is a boy anyone would love.”

Before she had finished speaking, a thought suddenly occurred to her. Her eyes lit up, and she turned abruptly to look at Qin Yao.

Qin Yao, sensing her mother’s burning gaze on her, was about to look over with a puzzled expression when Feng Chuyue stood up and came over to her side, eyeing the things on the table: “A’Yao, are you giving someone a gift?”

Qin Yao immediately looked pained: “A classmate from the academy is celebrating a birthday and has invited me to a banquet. Mother and I are both at a loss for what to give her.”

Feng Chuyue seemed briefly surprised, then sat down beside Qin Yao and said, with a show of casualness: “Hmm — if it were my birthday, I would like nothing more than to receive clothes or jewelry. I imagine all girls feel much the same.”

As she spoke, she picked up a silk-covered box from among the items on the table and pushed it toward Qin Yao: “I think this bracelet would be quite nice.”

Qu Chen Shi shook her head from the side: “That bracelet is too ordinary. A noble young miss from a marquis’s household may not think much of it.”

A flash of intense longing crossed Feng Chuyue’s eyes: “Is A’Yao going to the Jinghai Marquis Manor?”

Seeing that look on her face, Qin Yao suddenly felt a premonition of something unpleasant.

And indeed, Feng Chuyue shook her arm with a coaxing sweetness: “A’Yao, I’ve never been to a noble household like that before. Could you take me with you? Just so I can see what it’s like?”

Qu Chen Shi was momentarily stunned. This Feng Chuyue was all very well, but she really did have a way of throwing everything into disarray without warning. Dropping in on a relative’s home was one thing — but a formal banquet where one had been specifically invited by name? How could you just bring someone along uninvited?

Qin Yao said, with some difficulty: “A’Yue, it’s not that I don’t want to bring you — it’s just that I’m not particularly close with Miss Qin of the Jinghai Marquis’s household. If I brought someone without asking first, it might seem rather rude.”

Feng Chuyue flushed slightly, looking downcast: “If it puts you in a difficult position, then let it go.”

Madam Feng’s face tightened with something like embarrassment. She opened her mouth, seemed to want to scold Feng Chuyue, but after holding her breath for quite a while, all she managed was a dispirited: “Chuyue—”

The atmosphere went a little stiff.

After a long pause, Qu Chen Shi forced a smile to smooth things over: “Chuyue is young and just arrived in Chang’an — it’s only natural she wants to go out and see the city.”

Feng Chuyue pouted: “Isn’t that right? It’s not like I’ll cause any trouble. A’Yao, why don’t you write a note to Miss Qin, ask whether she would agree to you bringing a friend along — she might say yes.”

Qu Chen Shi had not expected Feng Chuyue to seize on the opening she had left and press all the way in. There was truly no way to smooth over this one anymore, so she closed her mouth and said nothing further.

Feng Chuyue, however, seemed to take Qu Chen Shi’s silence as tacit approval, and kept pestering Qin Yao about writing the letter.

Qin Yao looked at Feng Chuyue’s expression — bright with hope — and the suspicions she had been turning over earlier became all the more concrete. She hesitated for a moment, and seeing that Madam Feng had not raised another word of objection, she relented: “Let me try asking.”

In her letter, however, she made it clear that Feng Chuyue was the same young miss who had greeted the Marquis at the Fragrant Pavilion that day — putting the decision entirely back in Qin Yuan’s hands.

As it turned out, Qin Yuan’s reply came back quickly. She said that Qin Yao was welcome to bring a companion and would be more than pleased to have her — she asked Qin Yao not to give it another thought.

The next day, Feng Chuyue arrived at the Qu estate early to wait for Qin Yao.

On the way to the Jinghai Marquis Manor, Feng Chuyue could barely contain her delight. She held onto Qin Yao’s arm the entire way and kept asking her in detail about Qin Yuan’s likes and preferences — chattering on and on the whole journey, nearly pushing Qin Yao’s patience to its absolute limit.

After what felt like forever, they finally arrived at the Jinghai Marquis Manor. A number of carriages were parked outside the gate, and several young men stood on the steps before the entrance — all handsomely dressed, riding fine horses, clearly here to attend the banquet as well.

One of them was wearing a snow-blue round-collared brocade robe with a black flat-top soft silk cap, his sideburns cut clean as a blade. He had the appearance of a distinguished young noble.

Just as Qin Yao stepped down from the carriage, the young man happened to turn his head, and upon seeing her, he suddenly broke into a bright smile: “Miss Qu.”