Chapter 149 Exposing Identity

Listening to the footsteps gradually fade away, Jiang Lan lifted her eyes to look at the young scholar standing before her, dressed in a blue robe and wearing a square scarf on his head.

Li Huaining chuckled at the distant sounds and withdrew the hand that had been covering the mouth of the unexpected guest ahead.

“My apologies for the trouble just now, brother. Please do not take offense,” Li Huaining said, rising with a humble bow.

Jiang Lan dusted herself off and stood up. Hearing the voice, she was surprised. “The Great Learning?”

“Brother, are you also studying the ‘Great Learning’?” Li Huaining asked.

Jiang Lan quickly shook her head. “No, no, I have no real study on that.”

“Brother, don’t be modest. How about we talk about the Great Learning…”

Jiang Lan hurriedly cupped her hands. “I have other matters. Until we meet again, until we meet again~”

“Hey~ Brother, I am Li Huaining…”

Jiang Lan didn’t catch the rest as she left the mansion. As soon as she stepped outside, she spotted Yuan Hao and his men.

Not daring to cause a commotion, Yuan Hao only brought three or four men, but each was a top expert.

Jiang Lan dared not use talisman magic; this path was truly dangerous. If her throat were to stiffen or be sealed, how could she eat or drink? Was she to wait for death?

Of the Thirty-Six Stratagems, fleeing is the best stratagem!

She hurriedly ran without looking back. Just as she was about to be caught, a gust of wind swept over.

“Sir, the person is gone!” someone exclaimed.

Yuan Hao halted them, shouting, “Don’t act rashly, consider carefully before making a move.”

Jiang Lan lay on Chifeng’s back, panting heavily. Once her breathing steadied, she sat up, rubbing her leg and plucking at Chifeng’s feathers.

“What were you doing just now? Weren’t you supposed to be guarding outside? I almost got cut down by Yuan Hao’s sword.”

Chifeng writhed in the air in pain.

“Hey! How dare you complain? If I hadn’t lured them away, do you really think that bookworm could have saved you?”

Jiang Lan smoothed Chifeng’s feathers. “That’s more like it.”

“Where to now?” Chifeng asked.

“Of course, back to the mansion. After listening all night by the wall, I really need to catch up on sleep, though it will probably be nightmares after nightmares.”

Curious, Chifeng asked, “What did you hear?”

“Hmm, that’s a secret. If I told you, it wouldn’t be a secret anymore.”

Chifeng bowed respectfully, listening as Jiang Lan spoke seriously yet nonsense.

Looking down at the brightly lit area, Jiang Lan asked, “Is that my room?”

“At this speed, it should be fine,” Chifeng replied.

Jiang Lan did a quick calculation and felt a sharp pain in her arm. “Not good, something’s wrong with Qingli.”

“Qingli? The tree spirit you secretly caught?” Chifeng asked.

Jiang Lan rubbed her forehead, correcting him, “How you say it is quite amusing. Don’t let people misunderstand.”

“Well, you’re the one holding my divine bag and capturing others. Did you get my permission?” Chifeng said, acting coy.

Jiang Lan tugged at a feather. “Whose decision is this, yours or mine?”

In no time, Chifeng admitted defeat. “Y-y-you’re the boss.”

“Fly down quickly.”

Back in her room, Jiang Lan hurriedly changed out of her night-travel clothes. She put on a white nightgown, draped a splendid robe over it, and opened the door.

Outside, she saw Xichi kneeling and Qingli being helped up.

“What’s going on here?” Jiang Lan asked on the surface, but inwardly sighed with relief. Fortunately, only those within her courtyard were present. Besides Xichi, the only other person was the old cook—a woman known for reading the room and keeping secrets.

At this moment, the cook was absent. Although it was brightly lit, perhaps due to the original owner’s temperament, even if trouble arose, no servant dared to come watch.

Jiang Lan looked at Xichi kneeling on the ground, then at Qingli, whose wrists were tied with rough ropes bearing yellow talismans.

“You two, what exactly happened?” Jiang Lan brought over a wooden chair. Xichi and Qingli both wanted to help, but Jiang Lan glared at them.

Yawning, she said, “Why aren’t you sleeping at this late hour? I still want my rest.”

She put on a very impatient expression, squinting as if just waking up.

Qingli looked apologetic, about to speak but was silenced by Jiang Lan’s glare.

She had no choice but to remain quiet, sobbing softly on her knees.

“You, Xichi.”

Xichi nodded. “Master, here’s how it started… I felt this woman’s background was suspicious and, as she possessed extraordinary skills, I feared she was sent to harm you. So I secretly observed and found that she was skilled in witchcraft, not a proper woman. Today she even went to the woodshed, where I saw her speaking to thin air, behaving oddly and suspiciously. So I tied her up.”

Jiang Lan blinked. She had noticed Xichi’s vigilance toward Qingli during the day but hadn’t expected this.

Looking at Qingli, Jiang Lan sent a silent message, “You’re a tree spirit with three hundred cultivations. You didn’t sense anyone approaching you?”

Qingli felt wronged. “That Xichi isn’t human, you know? She moves so quietly, sometimes not making a sound all day, like a stone. Even her senses are unusually weak and imperceptible. How could I notice such things?”

Besides, it was late and quiet; she’d been sent by you to watch over Min Zhe. Who knew she’d turn back midway and get caught like this?

Jiang Lan raised an eyebrow, sending another silent message, “Explain yourself. With this appearance, I can’t publicly defend you. Hurry up and think of an excuse.”

Seeing Xichi’s gaze shift upward, Jiang Lan frowned and spoke firmly, “This matter is serious. We must get to the bottom of it and cannot just listen to one side.”

Xichi lowered her head. “You’re right, Master.”

Jiang Lan turned to Qingli. “Now, what exactly were you doing in the woodshed?”

“Well, um…” Qingli hesitated, clearly troubled.

Jiang Lan cleared her throat. Qingli glanced at her master, then noticed three fingers raised. She quickly said, “Actually, the Three-Eyed Taoist isn’t my cousin.”

Xichi looked back at Qingli. “You…”

“You misunderstand. The Three-Eyed Taoist pretends to be my cousin for convenience in the martial world. Actually, I am his senior apprentice sister,” Qingli explained.

Xichi looked at Qingli’s appearance. “You’re at most seventeen or eighteen, and that Three-Eyed Taoist looks to be in his thirties. How could he be your senior brother?”

Xichi turned to Jiang Lan. “Please judge this matter fairly, Master.”

Jiang Lan nodded, reassuring Xichi, then asked Qingli, “Anything else to explain?”

Qingli slumped to the ground and said to Xichi, “In our sect, we judge seniority by when one entered, not age. Though the Three-Eyed Taoist is older, he joined after me. By rank, he’s my junior apprentice brother.”

Xichi pressed further, “Then what were you doing with the corpse in the woodshed?”

“Well, um…” Qingli looked at her master. “What were we supposed to be doing?”

Jiang Lan cleared her throat, feeling a sharp pain in her throat.