A Yao of noble birth and a Fox spirit!

Xueling and Wei Meng exchanged a glance. They had been standing opposite Bai Yingyue and Zhenyan for quite a while now, and the young swordsman was still breathing heavily through clenched teeth, while the demon's mood had clearly lifted.

Neither of them dared to ask what had happened during the hour they had temporarily parted ways at the Yinghua Pavilion. It certainly hadn't been anything pleasant. Wei meng cleared his throat: »Now that we have official permission, what next?« he asked. He apparently wanted to lighten the mood by getting Ying yue to speak.

The young man with the serious face had stood there as if frozen, saying nothing. His gaze cleared somewhat and stuck on Wei Meng. He seemed to relax a little.

»Now we should question the old woman from this morning,« he said decisively. »She knows something, but didn't want to talk as long as she had to fear taking action against the nobility.« After he had described the woman to Wei meng and Xueling, they nodded. They still remembered the house where she lived. After all, they had questioned every single farmer and fisherman.

When they left the city, they were reluctantly allowed to pass through by the guard on duty, but with Chen Qian fan's official letter, they were not allowed to stand in the way of their investigation. The old woman's house was still lit up, apparently she had been waiting for them.

She sat on a wooden table in her courtyard, absentmindedly mending her clothes when Ying yue approached her. She looked up when she recognized the young swordsman, her expression brightened. After she had seen the letter, she sighed with relief.

»Perhaps everything will be all right now, old friend,« she said softly, stroking the piece of cloth she had patched.

»Old friend?« Ying yue repeated. Xueling, Wei meng and Zhen yan had gathered around the wooden table and listened to the old woman's story.

Her name was Shuya, Shi Shuya. She used to live in the Yang household, as a servant to their only daughter, Yang Chen lu. Chen lu had been a cheerful, if hot-tempered, girl. She loved learning, art and song.

She was overjoyed when she received a marriage proposal from the city's most eligible bachelor, Chen Qian fan. His father was the owner of a school that specialized in song and music. He courted her properly, bringing flowers and jewelry, listening and caring. Shuya was happy because Chen lu was happy, and nothing seemed to stand in the way of a blessed future.

But Qian Fan's father fell ill and died shortly afterwards, and in order to maintain her standard of living and the Yinghua Pavilion, Chen Qian fan bought the girls out and now had them not only sing and dance, but also do other favors. It didn't take long for Chen lu to realize what he had done to his former school and to confront him.

But Chen Qian fan had had enough of playing the loving husband. One night, when Shuya returned from the market with fabrics and yarn, she found her mistress crying and severely beaten in a corner of her room. Qian fan swore it was a one-time mistake and promised to restore the Yinghua School to its former glory. But he didn't keep a single one of his countless promises. The Yinghua Pavilion did shine, but in a very different light.

After Shuya had informed the guards several times and even approached the Yang family, she was given a choice by Chen Qian fan. She would either work in the Yinghua Pavilion or be thrown out of the estate. Horrified, she agreed to work as a prostitute so that she could continue to take care of the now completely broken Chen lu.

»It was terrible. There was no more than a shadow left of my once so cheerful mistress. Che Qian fan took what he wanted, when he wanted it. She even had to endure the difficult birth of their son all alone. When I returned to her chambers one night, I saw that everything was full of blood!« Shuya cried so hard that her whole body shook.

Xueling took her in her arms and gently stroked her back. »So much blood, in her bed, on the floor, and then I heard it. A scream, very soft, hoarse, barely audible. I found her newborn wrapped in cloths in a drawer of her dresser. She herself was nowhere to be found. I searched everywhere, woke up the whole house. In the end, she was found in the kitchen, trying to get goat's milk because she was unable to breastfeed her child.

She was severely traumatized when she realized that she could not give her own son the love he deserved, and not even the milk he needed. A few weeks later, I woke up because it was so cold. I saw Chen lu leaving the estate. I ran after her. But no matter how hard I pulled on her and begged her to go back, she stubbornly kept running.

I don't know where she got it from, but she came out with a key to one of the city gates. I looked everywhere for a guard, but I found no one. Before I could check the guardroom, Chen lu had vanished from my sight, and I ran after her. The last I saw of her was her calm, almost contented step into the Yinhu. I screamed as loud as I could, waking many of the sleeping farmers and fishermen. I screamed and shouted for someone to save my mistress.

But it was dark, and even the best swimmers couldn't find more than a piece of her dress.« Tears dripped onto the fabric she had patched up, and only now did Ying yue realize that it wasn't the same rough material as her clothes, but clearly shimmering high-quality silk.

»It wasn't a full moon?« he asked. Shuya looked up and shook his head. »He likes to say that, doesn't he? She would have been moonstruck, but she wasn't. He drove her mad, he drove her to suicide. But no one listened to me. I was threatened that my family would be killed if I continued to interfere, but... »she took a deep breath and shrugged her shoulders, seeking help. ‚Now there is no one left anyway, with whom they could blackmail me,' she said softly.

Ying yue thought about it. He already knew that Chen Qian fan had lied to him, his entire body language was hostile towards him. But after more than thirty years, he felt safe. Even if Chen Chen lu was the wet woman, something else must have sparked her anger.

‚A wet woman is usually a woman who has killed herself because she couldn't stand the abuse of her husband any longer. Whether they drown, hang or even set themselves on fire, they all just want to escape their husbands,' Wei meng's voice sounded behind them. He nodded, while bowing his head with folded arms and giving Shuya a compassionate look.

»That sounds just like Chen Chen lu!« Xueling was still comforting the old woman, who had finally been able to speak the truth after so much time. Wei meng sat down next to her with a heavy sigh and gestured to Ying yue with an irritated hand movement that he could leave. Ying yue hesitated for a moment, but then realized that there was nothing he could do and lacked words of comfort, so he backed out without a word.

They were silent for a while and Ying yue ignored the fierce eye contact that Zhen yan sought to communicate something important with him. Finally, he stopped and turned around, unnerved. Zhen yan hurriedly stopped to stay three steps behind, and his dark green robe billowed.

»What?« Ying yue asked irritably.

His serious white face with the curved, contracted eyebrows and the dark eyes looked at him annoyed. His lips formed a narrow line. »That's strange, isn't it?« the demon blurted out, as if he expected Ying yue to understand what he meant. He didn't. Ying yue narrowed his eyes even more.

»What's strange about it?« It often happens that the souls of unhappy people can't move on and linger at the place of their death. Chen lu committed suicide, so she was extremely unhappy and is now reaching for the Yang energy of the living!« Zhen yan shook his head slightly and his voice took on a lecturing tone that did not go down well with Ying yue.

He crossed his arms over his chest and let Zhen yan finish.

»Demonic spirits, which consist of the remains of human souls and have absorbed and embodied their desires and longings during their lifetime, immediately turn into Yao after death, which hurt other people. Chen lu, however, only began to pull the fishermen into the lake and drown them three decades after her death, which means that her soul was satisfied with her death for the time being!« he explained. Ying yue thought that sounded quite logical. In fact, the time span indicated that something must have happened to arouse Chen lu's anger.

»But if she was satisfied with her death, why did she stay here and not go to the afterlife?« he asked in return. Zhen yan gave him one of his most beautiful smiles. »In fact, very few souls go directly to the afterlife after their death. Only those who had no regrets in life and were ready for death can pass over. But most of the time, mortal life is marked by too much pain, deprivation and regret, which makes it impossible for the soul to move on after death.

They linger until they have forgotten their resentment, or until it is appeased by kind people. In Chen Lu's case, I assume that there is something she couldn't let go of!« Ying yue considered this, his chest rising and falling with his deep, regular breaths.

»So Chen Chen lu committed suicide, which satisfied her soul but did not appease her. So something must have happened in the past few weeks, about a month, when the series of murders began, to spark her anger and turn her into a demonic spirit,« Ying yue concluded. Zhen yan looked at him proudly. »Let's go question her son before Chen Qian fan beats us to it,« Ying yue said, walking with firm steps.

Just before the city wall, Xiaodan suddenly glowed in a bright, silvery light. Ying yue stopped immediately and looked around, hand on sword hilt. Zhen yan had also stopped and was looking up at the city wall. Ying yue followed his gaze, but saw nothing except the whitish glow of the moon.

»Who was that?« he asked. Zhen yan's gaze slid from the wall to Ying yue.

»Not who, what,« he corrected. ‚Nothing that could be dangerous,' he said carelessly. Ying yue narrowed his eyes. ‚Is it because of the wet woman here?' he asked. Zhen yan seemed to deliberate briefly before answering. »I don't think so. This being doesn't rely on the corrupted energy of the wet woman,« he replied. Ying yue, who could not sense any lies in his words, let go of Xiaodan.

»It might be here by chance, but it probably won't stay for long. Demons with a consciousness and soul of their own don't get along well,« Zhen yan added.

»So it's like you?« Ying yue asked and worry resonated in his voice. Even if Zhen yan had no interest in slaughtering humans for whatever reasons, it was different with most demons. Suddenly Zhen yan laughed. ‚Of course not,' he replied. Ying yue, who was about to ask further, closed his mouth; he could tell from the arrogant grin on Zhen yan's face that his arrogance forbade him from being compared to other Yao. Even if the Daiyu himself were standing before them, Zhen yan would probably still stubbornly claim that he was something better.

‚Couldn't you find your way back without us?', a deep voice barked behind them. Ying yue looked up. Wei meng and Xueling came running up the path. Since Xiaodan had calmed down, Ying yue refrained from spooking more horses than necessary.

»How is the old woman?« he asked. Xueling had opened her braid, from which her hair had already come loose, and was arranging it.

»She is exhausted and tired; I put her to bed. I think she has been waiting a long time to tell her story to someone who will listen,« she said, and tied her hair back again. »And how do we appease her now? Do we drag her violent husband to the lake and sacrifice him?« Wei meng wondered aloud.

»If Chen Qian fan had been the target, she wouldn't have waited thirty years,« Ying yue pointed out. »Her husband mentioned a son they had together, so we should question him first. Even if he was just a baby at the time, maybe he knows more!«

Wei Meng scratched his chin and made a skeptical face, but with the best will in the world, he couldn't think of anything better. It was true. If her husband had been Chen Qian fan's target, she could have put Shuisheng in fear and terror three decades ago.

»He's probably staying with relatives a few miles west of here in Qiying!« Ying yue added.

»We shouldn't all leave!« Xueling pointed out. ‚Master and I should stay, on the one hand so that we can accompany the fishermen, and on the other hand we should also keep an eye on this Chen Qianfan,' she said. Wei meng nodded.

»She's right,« he agreed. ‚Bai Gongzi and your ... husband should set out for Qiying tomorrow morning. Xueling and I will stay here for the time being,' he said. Zhen yan's mood lifted immediately, but Ying yue gritted her teeth and gave Meng a dirty look.

»Master, don't get her riled up,« Xueling said just as Ying yue turned on her heels and left without saying a word of farewell.

»But why? They've been sitting on each other all day, just like a newlywed couple,« Wei meng chuckled. »Besides, the big one said they were married.«

»Master!« Xueling's sharp reprimand reached Ying yue only as a muffled sound before he passed the city gates and left the two behind.

Instinctively, he stroked his neck, over the spot that Zhen yan had kissed so unabashedly. It tingle and goosebumps spread over his body when he thought about it. When they reached the inn and entered their room, Zhen yan dropped the mask of the tame demon.

He flopped down on one of the cushions and looked at Ying yue with amusement in his dark eyes. »You shouldn't get so angry so easily,« he said gently. »It would be better if you just accepted it. You won't get rid of me anyway,« he smirked. Ying yue was so upset that he tore off his robe without thinking about it. With bared chest, he turned to the demon.

»Nobody gave you permission to spread rumors that we're married,« he growled angrily. He furiously undid his belt and threw it on the floor so he could go to bed in his undershirt when he noticed Zhen yan's gaze. Before he could grab his robe or Xiaodan, Zhen yan was on his feet, blocking his path. Although he didn't use much force or violence, he pushed Ying yue back with one hand on his chest until he was leaning against the wall with his back to it.

Ying yue had learned from the last time and didn't try to strike. Zhenyan would catch his blow and use his momentum to press him even closer. His breathing was rapid, every fiber of his body was tensed to the breaking point. Ready to fight or flee, but under Zhen yan's gaze, he felt like a rabbit crouching in front of a predator.

The demon came closer, his fingertips resting on Ying yue's chest.

»Shameless, no, go away. You always say such unkind words,« he whispered softly. He bent down until his lips gently brushed Ying yue's collarbone. Reflexively, Ying yue reached for him and dug his fingers into Zhen yan's black hair. He was cold and hot at the same time. But Zhen yan only laughed briefly and kissed him gently on the chest between his spread fingers before he raised his lips to Ying yue's ear.

»Why is your heart beating so fast then?« he asked. ‚Because you hate me so much? Because you want to kill me and can't? Or...' He paused and listened. Then the demon suddenly let go of him. Xiaodan glowed and vibrated so violently that it rolled across the floor.

»I'll take care of it, you go to sleep,« Zhen yan said in his usual, slightly arrogant tone and a second later he had vanished. As soon as he had a clear path, Ying yue grabbed Xiaodan and put on his robe, but Zhen yan was nowhere to be found. Still out of breath and with a wildly pounding heart, he looked around. But neither in the inn nor on the street could he find any sign of him.

Even Xiaodan remained silent. Ying yue had no choice but to go back and wait. He straightened his clothes and tied his belt tightly around his waist before sitting cross-legged on the bed, Xiaodan at the ready, and waiting. But Zhen yan didn't return until the early hours of the morning. When Ying yue heard the rustling of his robe and the scent of plum blossoms reached his nose, he couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

Although Zhen yan's actions made him angry, he was still glad that he had come back. When he realized this, he immediately tensed up again and pushed the feeling far back. Why should he be glad that Zhen yan was still there? He was doing well on his own. He didn't need anyone constantly hanging on his coattails and crossing boundaries. He opened his eyes.