Xu Qi'an rode a horse, while the old agent drove the carriage. In the carriage were Xu Lingyue and her aunt, as well as Xu Lingyin, who excitedly stuck her head out of the window.
Because Dalang was accompanying them, there was no need to bring maids and servants. Too many people would be a hindrance.
On the way, they bought some food for Xu Lingyue and Xu Lingyin. Xu Qi'an said to the window, "Aunt, do you want it?"
His aunt refused.
When they arrived at the house, they got out of the car. Xu Qi'an saw his aunt wiping the corner of her mouth.
"The location is not bad. It's not far from the downtown area. There's even a river by the side..." His aunt commented with satisfaction. She stood at the door of the house and frowned.
"Why does it look a little shabby?"
"How can it not be shabby? This is a haunted house..." Xu Qi'an thought to himself. He signaled the old agent to open the door.
His aunt brought her two daughters into the house. What they saw was a desolate and dilapidated scene. It was obvious that it had been deserted for many years and no one had taken care of it.
She frowned. "That's it?"
"This house has not been lived in for many years. There's no one to rent it. The broker felt that it could be sold for four thousand taels. But the owner did not agree... "
Four thousand taels? His aunt squinted and asked casually, "How much is this house?"
"Five thousand taels." The old agent said.
His aunt did not say anything. She began to tour the house with her daughters, picking out thorns wherever they went. The old agent was also an experienced person. He was thick-skinned and let the wind blow.
Seeing this beautiful mature woman and the elegant and refined young girl walk into the inner courtyard, the old agent was shocked and looked at Xu Qi'an.
"It's okay." Xu Qi'an said.
It should be okay in broad daylight... The old agent looked at the beautiful woman's back. Her swaying hips were especially attractive.
"Sir, do you really want to buy this house?"
"Yes."
She was really not afraid of death. The old agent did his best and no longer tried to persuade him. He asked, "These two are..."
Xu Qi'an joked, "What do you think?"
This made the old agent silent. He was a little embarrassed. Mother and sister? No, they were not that young. And they did not look like a mother and a son.
Married couple? Hmm, that young girl might be this master's wife, and the beautiful woman is his mother-in-law … Then what about the yellow-dressed girl from yesterday?
The old agent was experienced, but he couldn't figure out the relationship between the two.
"The older one is my aunt, and the younger two are my sisters." After Xu Qi'an finished speaking, he saw the old manager's surprised expression. He smiled and said, "What's wrong?"
The old agent shook his head, thinking that he had never seen anyone buy a house with his sister and aunt.
This was because the aunt was definitely the wife of the uncle or uncle, a member of the clan, not a family member. He had never seen someone bring his aunt and cousin to look at a house together.
…
Although his aunt's words were harsh and sarcastic, she was actually very satisfied in her heart. It was also a large mansion with three entrances, but the area was much larger than the Xu Mansion in the outer city, and the layout was also incomparable.
The layout of the Xu Manor was that of a commoner, so it was not as luxurious and classy as this place. If one had to make a distinction, it would probably be that it was a homestead in the countryside and a high-class villa in the city.
Although they were both single-family houses with several floors, the class was not the same.
After an hour, they looked through the entire house in detail. Both his aunt and Xu Lingyue were very excited, and the latter even secretly decided on her own house.
His aunt probed, "I'm afraid five thousand taels can't buy a house in this area."
She was nitpicking to lower the price, but after looking around, she suddenly realized that five thousand taels was too cheap. The intelligent aunt sensed that something was wrong.
Xu Qi'an pointed at the well not far away, "There was a ghost in the well, yes, there really was a ghost. Lady Caiwei and I have already verified it."
With two exclamations, Xu Lingyue and his aunt were so scared that they retreated behind Xu Qi'an, the former's small hands tightly holding onto her brother's sleeves.
Ghost?
Xu Lingyin was also very scared, and ran with her short legs to hide under her brother's crotch. Then, she looked at the well and swallowed her saliva in fear.
His aunt's pretty face was somewhat pale, and she didn't want to stay a moment longer, "I'm not buying, let's go back."
She held her daughter in each hand and quickly walked out of the house. Because she walked too fast, her body swayed.
The old broker looked at Xu Qi'an with a frown, "Are you making fun of me?"
Xu Qi'an waved his hand, "Don't talk nonsense, go to the broker house to pay the deposit."
He didn't say that he killed the female ghost, because he was afraid that the broker house would raise the price. Before he got the house deed and the land deed, this was still a haunted house.
The carriage stopped outside the broker house, and his aunt and two sisters were sitting in the carriage. Hearing that Xu Qi'an went to pay the deposit, his aunt was very angry.
"I won't live here, let him live alone in the haunted house. The little bastard just doesn't want us to take advantage of him." His aunt said angrily.
"Big brother is not like that." Xu Lingyue shook her mother's arm.
As they were talking, Xu Qi'an came out and jumped into the carriage driver's seat. He opened the curtain and stuck half of his head in, "It's almost noon, let's go to Osmanthus Restaurant for lunch."
His aunt turned her face away.
Xu Qi'an explained, "The female ghost in the house has been killed. You don't believe me, but the warlock of the Celestial Commissioner should believe me, right?"
Xu Lingyue nodded sweetly.
Auntie was shocked. She stared at Xu Qi 'an and asked, "Really?"
"Why would I lie to my aunt?"
They drove to Osmanthus Restaurant and asked for a private room. Xu Qi'an took out a small jade mirror and sent a message, "Number Two, I remember you said that you are investigating the mastermind behind the bandits in Yunzhou."
After sending the message, he put the mirror upside down on the table and lowered his head to eat. After a while, a message came.
"Two: Yes, in the process of suppressing the bandits, I found that there are a lot of supplies stored in each stronghold. These things can't be obtained by mountain bandits. I suspect that there is a force behind them. "
Xu Qi'an nodded slightly. The so-called supplies were military supplies, including equipment, equipment, and so on.
This topic aroused the interest of Number Four. As a former official of Daibun, he was more concerned about the situation of the Daibun Dynasty.
"Four: You can try to start with the local government in Yunzhou. Oh right, I remember that Yunzhou has a vassal king."
"Two: Your king is just a king without real power. I have investigated him, there is no problem."
"Three: How did you investigate him?"
"Two: Send someone to monitor the mansion."
… You call this an investigation? It's too crude. Xu Qi'an complained in his heart and sent a message, "I know the behind-the-scenes supporter of the bandits in Yunzhou."
“？？？”
A series of question marks flashed in the minds of Number Two and Number Four.
What information did Number Three get? Why could Number Three always get so much information? The news from the capital was fine. After all, it was his "territory". But Yunzhou had nothing to do with him.
I have been investigating for so long and still have no clue. How could he know the behind-the-scenes supporter of the bandits in Yunzhou … Number Two knew Number Three well and always thought that he was a noble scholar. He didn't question him but sent a message solemnly.
"Two: What's going on? Well, Number Three, tell me the inside information. I owe you one."
"Three: Oh, no need. I admire your character. This information is free."
When the relationship was not deep, it was necessary to make a deal. After getting familiar with each other, it was necessary to develop the relationship and reduce the transaction of interests between each other.
Free information was the most expensive because the thing that replaced the transaction was the relationship. When the relationship between each other became deeper, the free thing would appear … No, how could it be free between friends? It was helping each other.
This time, Number Two got his information for free. Tomorrow, he could get Number Two for free.
"Three: It's the Witchcraft Religion in the northeast. The Witchcraft Religion is the behind-the-scenes supporter of the bandits in Yunzhou. Well, my information is not necessarily accurate. Number Two, you can use it as a reference. "
Even if the Witchcraft Religion was not the behind-the-scenes supporter of the bandits in Yunzhou, they were probably involved. Xu Qi 'an wanted Number Two to investigate this matter.
The Witchcraft Religion is the behind-the-scenes supporter of the bandits in Yunzhou? Number Two stared at the text in the small jade mirror and was silent for a long time. "How did you know? How did you get it? Well, I'm not testing you. I just want to know the authenticity of the information. "
"Three: It's okay. Last night, the night watchman found a stronghold of the Witchcraft Religion in the capital. They have close contact with the Minister of the Ministry of Works …"
He roughly told the story without too much detail. After all, he was a student of the Yunlu Academy, not a night watchman who participated in the case. The main point was that the Minister of the Ministry of Works provided the Witchcraft Religion with cannons, weapons and other military supplies.
"I see, I see …" Number Two clenched his fists excitedly and sent a message. "This information is very important to me. It confirms one of my previous guesses. Thank you. I'm suddenly annoyed that the Jinlian Taoist priest didn't pull you into the Heaven & Earth Society earlier. "
"Nine: Let's talk about business. Don't threaten me."
After a pause, the Jinlian Taoist priest sent a message. "Nine: But the Witchcraft Religion secretly supports the bandits in Yunzhou. It doesn't mean much to them."
"Four: Yes, Yunzhou is in the southeast, and the Witchcraft Religion's territory is in the northeast. The two places are thousands of miles apart."
Whether it was a military alliance or trade contact, it was not realistic.
"This is also my doubt …" Xu Qi 'an sent a message. "Number Two, you can try to investigate. I believe that with your ability, you will definitely find out the truth."
At this time, the peeping Number One jumped out. "The matter about the Assistant Minister of the Ministry of Works reminds me of a detail in the Sampo Case.
"The gunpowder was secretly buried in the Mountain River Temple in Yongzhen by the former Ministry of Rites through Baihu Zhou and taking advantage of his position in arranging the ancestral worship ceremony. So, who lit the fire?"
"Two: The imperial guards?"
"Three: It's not the imperial guards. If it was the imperial guards, the person who made the night watch would have been found out. All the patrollers that night were killed, and those who didn't have an alibi … Moreover, the Minister of the Ministry of Rites can't order the imperial guards around. "
"Two: Why?"
"One: This is a secret of the imperial court."
"What secret of the imperial court? Isn't it just that the Yuanjing Emperor would ask the Celestial Commissioner to interrogate the imperial guards once a month …" Xu Qi 'an complained in his heart.
His heart skipped a beat. Some clues suddenly connected, as if he had opened the governor and conception vessels. "Does Number One mean that the people of the Witchcraft Religion ignited the explosives in the Mountain River Temple in Yongzhen?"
"One: Yes."
"Nine: It's a paper figurine, right?"
"One: Daoist priest, why are you so sure?"
"Nine: Heh, the Paper Figurine Technique was passed down by the Daoists, so I naturally know about it. The paper figurines are weak and are only slightly stronger than ants. They can hide from a warrior's perception. It's not difficult to sneak into the Mountain River Temple in Yongzhen silently. However, the paper figurines can be used as a medium to ignite the gunpowder. "
"One: In other words, the demons and the Witchcraft Religion were involved in the Sampo Case. Then, the Qi Party must know about this as well? "
"Three: That can't be right. The Qi Party and the Witchcraft Religion are only partners, not superiors and subordinates. It's impossible for the Witchcraft Religion to tell the Qi Party everything."
"One: However, there's one thing that can be confirmed. The Witchcraft Religion is in cahoots with the demons."
The demons blew up the Sampo Case for the Sealed Artifact, so what was the Witchcraft Religion's goal? It shouldn't be because of Monk Shenshu's severed arm. Otherwise, if there was a conflict of interest, both parties would have fought … As Xu Qi 'an thought, he reached out with his chopsticks to pick up some food, but he missed.
There wasn't much food to begin with, but the mother and daughter had already finished it. The little bean's face was glowing.
"… You're just like Chu Caiwei." Xu Qi 'an cursed and called for the waiter to add more food.
After the meal, they left the Osmanthus Restaurant. His aunt and Lingyue entered the carriage first. Xu Lingyin saw someone selling maltose across the street. She tugged at her brother's trousers and pitifully begged him to buy it for her.
Xu Qi 'an held her hand to buy it. He had a sharp tongue but a soft heart. He threatened, "The maltose is too hard. Be careful not to break your teeth."
The little bean was an expert in the field of eating, so he wasn't afraid at all. "It's fine. I'll eat it hard."
Upon hearing that, Xu Qi 'an laughed. "Eat it hard if you're capable."
The little bean admitted defeat. "I'm not that capable … Brother, can you?"
"Big Brother, you can't. But a good troublemaker can eat maltose from soft to hard, and from hard to soft."
"Troublemaker? Can Sister and Mother? "
"I refuse to answer that question."
"Why, Brother?" Xu Lingyin blinked innocently.
"Don't ask why. Lingyin, why do you always force me to drive?"
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