Teng Yu’yi dismissed the maids, leaving only Master Cheng and Duan Fu to guard the door.

“Young Master, regarding the fierce ghost that arrived uninvited tonight, I wonder if there might be other reasons.”

Ling Chengyu: “What are your thoughts?”

“When we encountered the tree spirit, Little Daoist Juesheng mentioned that it was obsessed with beautiful women’s appearances and very selective before attacking. Besides choosing based on looks, it would also check if the woman’s skin had any damage. But before my sister entered the bamboo grove, she had accidentally cut her palm with embroidery scissors during the ribbon-cutting ceremony.”

Du Tinglan opened her palm: “This was my wound at the time if Young Master would like to see.”

Teng Yu’yi added from the side: “The wound was quite deep, and Sister hadn’t completely stopped bleeding when she entered the grove. Spirits have very keen senses and can smell blood from far away. Logically, it shouldn’t have found Sister’s appearance suitable, yet it ambushed her. According to Sister’s later recollection, the tree spirit must have been lying in wait in the grove. It wasn’t after her appearance but rather her life. This is strange—Sister has never made enemies in either Yangzhou or Chang’an. The only person she’s had any conflict with is Lu Zhao’an.”

Ling Chengyu already knew about these matters. He had people watching Lu Zhao’an, not only because the man might have harmful intentions but also because he was curious about how Lu Zhao’an controlled the tree spirit.

Unfortunately, after nearly a month of surveillance, Lu Zhao’an hadn’t shown his hand. It wasn’t until recently, when Hu Jizhen suddenly lost parts of his hun and po souls, that things took a turn.

“Young Master must have noticed already. I’ve also had people watching Lu Zhao’an these days. When I heard recently that a Young Master Hu had suddenly fallen ill with a strange disease, I became even more suspicious of Lu Zhao’an.”

Teng Yu’yi then described how Lu Zhao’an had only cared about saving himself that night.

Ling Chengyu raised his eyebrows—so that was it. He had suspected Hu Jizhen might have discovered some secret about Lu Zhao’an, but he hadn’t expected this backstory.

“You knew about this all along?”

Teng Yu’yi nodded: “Young Master Hu nearly lost his life on the spot. I thought he would surely spread the word of this incident, but unexpectedly he kept completely silent. Since the person involved chose not to expose Lu Zhao’an’s true nature, I didn’t feel it was my place to interfere. Then not long after, I heard Young Master Hu had fallen ill with a strange disease. Young Master, don’t you think the timing of his illness is too convenient?”

“So you suspect Lu Zhao’an is behind it?”

Teng Yu’yi: “The imperial examination will be held soon, and Lu Zhao’an’s marriage arrangement with the Zheng family is still undecided. Given these two points, it wouldn’t be surprising if Lu Zhao’an took desperate measures. Now that Hu Jizhen has fallen ill, there’s still one person who knows Lu Zhao’an’s true nature—my sister. Tonight a ghost inexplicably found its way to the Teng Manor, where my sister happens to be staying. I have reason to suspect Lu Zhao’an led this ghost here.”

The last statement was somewhat far-fetched, but it would explain why she kept encountering ghosts.

Ling Chengyu smiled—it seemed Teng Yu’yi was worried about being labeled as “unlucky,” but she shouldn’t forget that it was still a mystery why the corpse demon had suddenly targeted her.

However, her explanation was somewhat plausible—using fierce ghosts to eliminate targets would allow the perpetrator to escape cleanly.

Teng Yu’yi caught a glimmer of amusement in Ling Chengyu’s dark eyes, knowing he still had some doubts. But even if he didn’t completely accept this explanation, he couldn’t deny its possibility.

“Withdraw your people,” he said after meeting her gaze for a moment. “Lu Zhao’an is very cautious. Too many watchers will only alert him.”

Teng Yu’yi quickly replied: “Alright, I’ll tell them to stop following him tomorrow.”

Ling Chengyu paused, somewhat unused to her agreeing so readily. Except for when they fought the corpse demon together, it was rare to see Teng Yu’yi so willingly cooperate.

“Also, I’d like Lady Du to give me the letters Lu Zhao’an wrote to you. If he used cinnabar talismans or similar items, the letters would retain traces. I need to confirm whether he knows mystical arts.”

Du Tinglan and Teng Yu’yi exchanged glances. Though Ling Chengyu never boasted about his character, and sometimes even seemed a bit uncouth, it was true that after Grandfather had gone to Qingyun Temple to tell him the truth, no rumors disadvantageous to the Du family had spread in Chang’an. This proved Ling Chengyu kept his word—when he said he wouldn’t leak information, he absolutely wouldn’t.

“Very well, I’ll have someone deliver them to Young Master tomorrow,” Du Tinglan said gratefully.

Teng Yu’yi seized the opportunity: “I’m worried about Sister staying at home, but I don’t understand mystical arts. Even with the Xiaoya Sword’s protection, I still struggle against powerful fierce ghosts. Last time the two young Daoists gave me many talismans, but they don’t seem very effective. I’m afraid someone might lead more fierce ghosts to Teng Manor in the coming days—”

She naturally gestured at the bell on her wrist: “The Spirit-Calling Bell still can’t be removed, and I’m worried about disturbing Young Master again. With a formation for protection, at least we won’t disturb anyone’s sleep late at night.”

Ling Chengyu had guessed this was why she went to such lengths to entertain him, but her words aligned with his thoughts—he too was tired of that bell.

Moreover, he was curious whether there was anything strange about Teng Yu’yi’s courtyard. Controlling such fierce ghosts wasn’t easy, and even the most careful person would leave traces nearby. Given Teng Yu’yi’s words, he casually looked out the window: “Setting up a formation isn’t difficult, but there’s one thing I need to clarify first. Please have all the manor’s servants come out—I’d like to examine them carefully.”

Before Teng Yu’yi could feel happy, her mind buzzed—Ling Chengyu suspected there was a traitor among the Teng Manor’s servants.

Fortunately, after examining the manor’s servants, Ling Chengyu found nothing amiss. Then came the task of setting up the formation, which took considerable effort. By the time Ling Chengyu finished, dawn was breaking.

Teng Yu’yi quickly ordered Master Cheng to carefully prepare breakfast. The Teng Manor’s servants were incredibly fast, and in the blink of an eye, they presented a table full of delicacies.

Ling Chengyu had been about to leave but frowned at this display. Teng Yu’yi seemed determined to show hospitality a hundredfold, with both northern and southern soups and noodles on the table.

Teng Yu’yi and Du Tinglan couldn’t possibly finish so much food—what a waste. He shook his head inwardly but reluctantly stayed for breakfast.

Breakfast was served in the flower hall, with a screen set up in the middle. Ling Chengyu sat outside the screen, while Teng Yu’yi and Du Tinglan sat inside.

As Ling Chengyu picked up his chopsticks, he realized it had been a long time since he’d had such a formal breakfast.

For the past half year, with his parents and second brother away from Chang’an, and his younger sister serving as a companion in the palace, the vast Prince Cheng’s Manor often had only him. Sometimes, busy with exorcism or investigating cases, he would simply buy a flatbread in the market to stave off hunger. Even when dining at the manor, his meals were casual.

Teng Yu’yi and Du Tinglan ate very properly—not a sound of bowls or chopsticks came from behind the screen. Then he heard Du Tinglan say softly: “This is good for your health, don’t pick it out.”

Ling Chengyu thought to himself that Teng Yu’yi sometimes really had a child’s temperament—look, she was still picky about food at her age.

He finished quickly and glanced at the screen before leaving: “This formation only surrounds Teng Manor. I can’t guarantee anything once you’re outside it. You and your sister had better not wander around at night these next few days.”

Teng Yu’yi stood behind the screen, respectfully seeing off her benefactor: “Travel safely. Don’t worry, we absolutely won’t go running around at night.”

When Ling Chengyu reached the door, he faced the rising sun, its faint light carrying an adorably bright orange hue.

As he descended the steps, his pace unconsciously lightened. Strange—after being busy half the night, he didn’t feel tired at all. After some thought, he figured it must be the lingering effects of the Fire Jade Root Soup he’d drunk before.

At Teng Manor’s gate, Master Cheng had already prepared his horse.

Ling Chengyu expressed his thanks and rode toward Prince Cheng’s Manor.

Commander Chang and Kuan Nu had been busy inquiring about their young master’s whereabouts and were overjoyed to see Ling Chengyu return.

“Where did Young Master go last night?” Kuan Nu complained. “After this humble servant finished visiting the five Daoists at Dongming Temple, Young Master had disappeared.”

Commander Chang also sighed: “Young Master should at least inform us servants before leaving.”

Ling Chengyu tossed the reins to the servants waiting at the door, smiling: “My apologies, there was ghost trouble elsewhere last night, and I left in such a hurry I forgot to tell you. By the way, how did things go at the Five Paths Temple last night?”

“Three Daoists at the temple are recovering from injuries. Daoists Jianxi and Jiantian received this humble servant. They accepted Young Master’s gold ingot and went to the nunnery to exorcise ghosts with smiling faces.”

Commander Chang observed Ling Chengyu’s expression—the young master’s brows were relaxed, and despite chasing ghosts half the night, his complexion was remarkably good.

“Has Young Master eaten breakfast?”

Ling Chengyu replied casually: “I have.”

This early?

Ling Chengyu glanced at Chang Rong and Kuan Nu, stepping into the manor: “Just bought some flatbread at a shop.”

What flatbread shop would be open so early? Commander Chang watched their young master’s retreating figure without further questions, privately planning to have the kitchen make some wontons. Suddenly he remembered something important: “Oh right, a runner from the Court of Judicial Review came looking for Young Master earlier, requesting Young Master’s immediate presence at the court.”

“What for?”

“They said they received a strange female corpse.”

Ling Chengyu froze, then strode quickly back to the rear courtyard, ordering bath water to be prepared. After bathing and changing into official robes, he rode to the Court of Judicial Review.

It was still early, and there weren’t many carriages in front of the court. Ling Chengyu walked straight through the main hall toward the inner chambers, where Yan Wanchun, who had been on duty the previous night, came out to meet him.

Director Yan looked much paler than usual, whether from exhaustion or fright.

“Evaluator Ling, please come with me to the morgue.”

Ling Chengyu had never seen Director Yan so disturbed and asked curiously: “What kind of corpse is it? Is something very wrong?”

Director Yan wiped cold sweat: “You’ll understand when you see it, Young Master was just inquiring about this yesterday.”

At the morgue entrance, before even entering, Ling Chengyu smelled a thick murderous aura—the unique presence of a fierce ghost. Pushing open the door, he saw a corpse on the examination bed, covered with a white cloth. From the shape, it appeared to be a female body.

Ling Chengyu walked to the bed and lifted the cloth. Despite being mentally prepared, he was still shocked—the face before him was familiar, the same as the female ghost who had invaded Teng Manor last night.

His gaze quickly moved downward, confirming the wound in the woman’s abdomen.

Director Yan couldn’t help himself and turned to vomit, knowing his behavior was inappropriate but struggling to control himself: “When Young Master inquired about the Tongzhou case yesterday, this Yan didn’t think much of it. Only after seeing this woman’s corpse did I understand how cruel the murderer was. Such a small fetus wouldn’t survive after being stolen—why would the killer do such a thing?”

Ling Chengyu’s expression was also grim, but he knew that in such brutal major cases, the corpse needed to be examined particularly carefully. Upon closer inspection, he discovered that the woman’s wounds were chaotic and disordered, not seeming to be made by a blade but rather as if torn open by bare hands.

“Is this corpse from Tongzhou?”

Yan Wanchun hesitated: “No, this woman was from Chang’an, named Shu Liniang, only twenty years old, living in Spring Peace Lane in Chonghua District—”

Before he could finish, a commotion erupted outside, with runners shouting: “Director Yan, weren’t you on duty last night? The judicial officer from Tongzhou Prefecture personally brought a case, the victims’ bodies are laid out in the hall—it’s a married couple. Oh heavens, come quick, their manner of death is too terrible!”

Ling Chengyu exchanged glances with Yan Wanchun and quickly walked to the door.

The runner was startled to see Ling Chengyu: “Young Master, did you spend the night at the court, or did you arrive early this morning?”

Ling Chengyu had no time for idle chat: “You said it’s a married couple? How did they die?”

The runner shuddered: “The wife died from having her abdomen cut open and her fetus taken while still alive.”

Ling Chengyu froze, and Yan Wanchun was also utterly shocked: “So Young Master’s story was true. Could this… could this be the work of the same person…”

Ling Chengyu walked straight past the runner toward the exit: “We hadn’t received any case files from Tongzhou in the past few days—why did they suddenly bring the bodies here?”

The runner hurried to keep up with Ling Chengyu: “According to the judicial officer, the local prefecture was actively pursuing the killer, but then the yamen suddenly became haunted. Everyone who saw the ghosts said they were the vengeful spirits of this couple. The Tongzhou Prefecture feared the case wasn’t simple, so they had no choice but to have the judicial officer bring the couple’s bodies to Chang’an.”