The Ace Bigshot Becomes A Farmgirl

The carriage moved slowly. Although Wei Qin’s wounds had improved significantly by now, excessive jolting would still worsen her injuries.

The guard at the city gate was much the same as last time when they came in, except... there were a few more pairs of particularly sharp eyes.

They stopped the carriage, glanced inside, and seeing nothing unusual, let them pass.

However, Meng Yunzheng looked back and noticed that the carriage behind them, also leaving the city, was checked thoroughly inside and out by the soldiers before being allowed to leave.

Indeed, they were still searching for Wei Qin, just seemingly aware of their status, so they weren’t too obvious about it.

After the carriage left the city, Shu Yu helped Wei Qin out, letting her lean on a soft pillow and stretch her arms and legs.

Heichang County wasn’t very far away. Even at their slow pace, they arrived in the city by afternoon.

They stayed at the same inn as before, booking four rooms again. This time, however, they placed Wei Qin in Ying Xi’s room, as Zhao Xi’s room was inconvenient for her.

After resting, Shu Yu and Meng Yunzheng instructed Ying Xi and the others to stay in the inn while they casually strolled toward the alley where the Dongqing Temple master’s courtyard was located.

As expected, that courtyard was still locked, with no sign of anyone having been there.

The two exchanged a glance and knocked on the door of the neighboring courtyard.

The same woman answered. Despite multiple visits, they hadn’t seen anyone else at this courtyard, as if she was the only one living there.

Seeing them, the woman immediately smiled and said, ”You’re back? Did you find your master?”

Shu Yu shook his head, prompting the woman to sigh, ”Your master hasn’t returned these days either, but don’t worry, he might have just gotten held up by something.”

”But it’s already been so long. We’ve been here in the southwest for over half a month.”

The woman waved her hand, ”Oh, you wouldn’t know. Around here, odd things and peculiar occurrences are more frequent. Your master, being an obviously skilled Daoist, is often invited to people’s houses to perform rituals and aid others. He must be busy. You’ll just have to wait a bit longer.”

”I suppose that’s all we can do.” Shu Yu sighed, thanked the woman, and then she and Meng Yunzheng slowly meandered back to the inn.

At this point, the two finally had the chance to quietly discuss He Fang and Kang Shuxian.

”Originally, out of the five or six sisters, we didn’t know who was suspect. Now that these two have surfaced, we can narrow it down. But since both have invited me to their homes, what do you think their intentions are?”

”Most likely, they’re trying to inquire about Qi Lie’s whereabouts and probe into our activities in Qingxuan County.”

”These two, He Fang’s intention to invite us to their home seems stronger, yet it was Kang Shuxian who first stopped our carriage. Such a coincidence raises suspicions. So it’s hard to say which one of them is linked to the black market.”

”Don’t worry. After I met with Qi Lie, he probably had someone keep an eye on them. Since they stopped our carriage, those monitoring them should have noticed.”

”Hmm.”

Talking, the two returned to the inn and didn’t go out again.

Since Wei Qin needed to recover, they stayed in the inn as much as possible, considering they didn’t really have much to do but wait for the Dongqing Temple master to return.

Unexpectedly, after resting in the inn for just a day, Ma Lu arrived the next afternoon.