The frail counselor you said, you fight against three heroes alone?

Several other Taoist priests also nodded. For a moment, discussions broke out in the hall. Everyone expressed their opinions. Most of them felt that it was too frivolous to convict someone based solely on the dog's reaction.

Taoist Qingfeng frowned even more when he saw this. He raised his hand to signal everyone to be quiet, and then said seriously: "Everyone, I understand your doubts. Although this method is novel, it is also a helpless move. After all, it is really difficult to find other clues at the moment. The dog barked at Wuji, but it may not be concluded that he was the one who did it. It's just that he may have a scent related to the lost things. That's why we need to further inquire and verify. I hope everyone will not jump to conclusions too early, and listen to us to get to the bottom of the matter."

After hearing what Taoist Qingfeng said, although everyone stopped talking, there was still suspicion on their faces, and their eyes kept looking at the little Taoist Wuji from time to time.

Wuji stood there, feeling so aggrieved that tears were welling up in his eyes. He felt anxious and angry, but he didn't know how to prove his innocence.

At this time, Guanglingzi slowly stood up and said solemnly: "Master, although this method was used by the Prime Minister before, we all know that the Prime Minister is very smart and capable. But even so, it does not mean that everything the Prime Minister does is right. Investigating a case and judging right and wrong must rely on real evidence. It is really unfair to accuse Wuji of stealing just based on the reaction of a dog. I hope the two masters will not use this method to wrongly accuse others again."

After hearing this, everyone nodded in agreement, and many people echoed, "Yes, it's not appropriate to draw conclusions so easily.

After listening to what everyone said, Qingfeng couldn't help but turn to look at Mingyue, as if asking what to do next.

Mingyue frowned slightly, and after a moment of silence, she said, "Everyone, although what you said seems to make some sense, I believe in the Prime Minister from the bottom of my heart. Many of the Prime Minister's brilliant plans have been effective in the past, and this method must not be groundless."

As she spoke, Mingyue's eyes suddenly became sharp, and she looked straight at the little Taoist Wuji, and continued in a serious tone: "Besides, Wuji, I have been keeping an eye on you just now. Ever since the dog approached everyone, you looked a little strange, and the panic on your face didn't seem to be fake. Last time, I seemed to have seen you near the crime scene. You'd better confess quickly, and don't wait until we have verified it. By then, it won't be so easy to talk to you."

When Wuji heard this, he turned pale with fear, his legs went weak, and he knelt down with a plop. He cried and said anxiously, "Master Mingyue, I am really innocent! The dog suddenly barked at me just now, and I was scared. It is normal for me to panic. You can't conclude that I am a thief just based on this!"

When the people around heard this, they began to discuss in low voices. Some felt that Taoist Mingyue was very observant and Wuji's behavior was indeed suspicious.

Some felt sorry for Wuji and still believed that he was wronged. After all, it was too far-fetched to convict him based on his facial expression and a chance passing by.

Luo Xiaoyu watched from the side with mixed feelings. He originally thought that his grievances could be cleared as the dog pointed its finger at someone else, but now the situation has become a mystery again. He secretly wondered whether Wuji was really involved in the case, or was he just implicated by coincidence.

Xiao Hong muttered quietly: "Brother Xiao Yu, this matter seems to be getting more and more complicated. I don't know who to trust."

Guanglingzi then looked at Wuji with a serious expression, his eyes were full of scrutiny, and he asked slowly: "Wuji, think about it carefully, is it you who did it? If so, if you admit it now, maybe Master will see that you took the initiative to confess and give you a lighter sentence. But if you insist on hiding it, once the truth is completely revealed, the consequences will be serious."

Wuji heard this and shouted, "It really wasn't me at all! I swear to heaven, if I did such a thing, I will be struck by lightning and die a miserable death! I was really wronged!"

Taoist Mingyue's face darkened when he saw this. He snorted coldly, "Humph, it's already this late, and you're still not honest? Your panicked look makes anyone suspicious. Since you're unwilling to confess, don't blame me for being rude!"

As he spoke, Taoist Mingyue took a few steps forward, as if he wanted to use some means on Wuji to force him to tell the truth.

Wuji shrank back in fear, shouting "it's unfair" over and over. Some of the people around him looked pity-stricken, thinking that perhaps the little Taoist boy was really wronged.

Some thought that he must have something to hide since he was denying it, so they all watched quietly from the sidelines, wanting to know how the situation would develop next.

Guanglingzi quickly reached out to stop Taoist Mingyue and advised, "Wait a minute, we need to think about this matter again. If Wuji is really wronged, it will be inappropriate. Let's find other evidence and don't act hastily based on appearances alone."

Taoist Mingyue frowned. Although he was stopped, he still said angrily: "Guanglingzi, don't protect him anymore. All these signs show that he is highly suspicious. If we let him go at this time, how can we investigate this case?"

The two men each held a different view, and the atmosphere in the hall suddenly became tense again. No one dared to speak casually, but just watched the development of the situation nervously.

On the other side, Xi Yu, who had taken a nap in the cave, slowly got up, feeling his body a little weak. After all, the environment in the cave was really bad, it was gloomy and cold. Not only did he fail to relieve his fatigue after taking a nap, but it made him feel uncomfortable all over.

He stretched and walked out slowly.

As soon as I walked out of the cave, I saw Cai Wenshuang sitting quietly knitting a sweater. Her movements were skillful and gentle. The wool in her hands seemed to have life, gradually interweaving into beautiful shapes.

All around, the secret guards stood tall, paying vigilant attention to the movements around them, guarding the safety of this area at all times.

Xi Yu looked at what seemed to be a men's sweater knitted in Cai Wen's hands, and thought to herself, it seems that this is knitted for her father, Old Cai. Thinking of this, his eyes stayed on the sweater for a few more seconds.

Cai Wenshuang noticed Xi Yu's gaze and looked up at him. The two looked at each other for a moment. Finally, Cai Wenshuang slowly lowered his head and continued knitting, but a trace of loneliness and hatred inadvertently revealed between his eyebrows.

Suddenly, a hurried sound of footsteps was heard. Everyone looked in the direction of the sound and found that it was Lao Cai who came with his secret guards.

Old Cai's face was filled with excitement, as if he had won a prize. He walked quickly over and said loudly, "Hard work pays off! I finally found the medicine that the Prime Minister mentioned."

Everyone's eyes were immediately focused on the old woman's hand, where she was tightly holding a small bottle filled with some unknown medicinal powder.

Seeing this, Xi Yu stood up quickly, his eyes lit up instantly, he took a few steps forward to take a closer look, and couldn't help saying, "Yes, this is exactly the kind that Song Shuwen painted. I didn't expect to find it here. Now there is hope."

Cai Wenshuang also put down the knitting work in his hands, stood up, his face full of surprise. He walked to the old lady and looked at the medicine curiously.

Xi Yu was so happy at the moment that his eyebrows danced with joy. He looked at Lao Cai with a smile on his face and said, "Old lady, you have really made a great contribution this time. The punishment I gave you before has been lifted. You don't have to worry about this matter anymore."

When Mr. Cai heard this, he was immediately delighted and nodded repeatedly to express his gratitude.

Cai Wenshuang also had a look of joy on his face, and asked, "Prime Minister, will this medicine really work on that maid?"

Xi Yu nodded slightly, with a firm look in his eyes, and said, "I believe in Song Shuwen's arrangement."

Afterwards, Xi Yu called on the secret guards to prepare to leave together.

At this moment, Old Cai hurriedly stepped forward, with a bit of hesitation on his face, but he still spoke: "Master Prime Minister, I have an unreasonable request. My daughter Wen Shuang has always thought of you and has always wanted to marry you. As a father, I see her love and hope to fulfill her wish."

As soon as Old Cai said this, Cai Wenshuang's face turned red. She felt embarrassed and anxious, and quickly pulled Old Cai's sleeve, scolding him: "Daddy, please stop talking. It's so embarrassing."

She looked like she wanted to find a hole to crawl into. She blamed her father for speaking her mind so bluntly, but she was also afraid that Xiyu would be annoyed with her because of it. Xiyu frowned slightly, his expression became serious, and he said slowly: "Old Cai, no matter how much your daughter values ​​me, I have made up my mind. I will never agree to this marriage. Please don't say these things here in the future, so as not to embarrass everyone."

When Old Cai heard this, his face was suddenly filled with disappointment, and the expectant look in his eyes dimmed. He opened his mouth, as if he wanted to persuade Xi Yu a few more words, but when he saw Xi Yu's determined look, he swallowed his words back.

Seeing this, Xi Yu did not soften his tone and continued, "You have already made a mistake. I have forgiven you because of our past friendship. I have done my utmost. You should stop having wishful thinking and just do your duty."

Cai Wenshuang felt as if her heart was stabbed when she heard Xi Yu's merciless words. Her eyes suddenly turned red and tears welled up in her eyes, but she stubbornly refused to let them fall.

She bit her lip and said with a trembling voice: "Prime Minister, I am too high-class. I will know my limits in the future and will not embarrass you again."

Old Cai felt distressed when he saw his daughter like this, but he didn't dare to say anything more to Xi Yu. He could only sigh helplessly, bowed to Xi Yu, and said with a bit of bitterness: "Prime Minister, we were rude, I hope you don't blame us, we will be careful in what we say and do in the future."

Xi Yu nodded slightly, without saying anything more, just waved his hand, turned around and left with the secret guards, leaving Lao Cai standing there, looking at the direction they left, full of helplessness and melancholy.

Cai Wenshuang complained to his father angrily, his eyes red, and said with a bit of grievance: "Dad, why do you say nonsense? Now I am too embarrassed to see anyone. How embarrassing."

"My daughter, this is all for your own good. Since you like the Prime Minister, I have to give you a chance. Otherwise, am I going to watch you keep your feelings to yourself and regret it for the rest of your life?"

Old Cai sighed and continued, "You don't know that Daddy admires the Prime Minister from the bottom of his heart. Even if he is not the Prime Minister, Daddy still hopes that you can marry him and have a good home. Who would have thought that he is the Prime Minister and has a noble status? Maybe we are indeed marrying above our station."

After saying that, Lao Cai walked to the wine table with a lonely face, picked up the wine pot, poured a glass of wine, and drank it in one gulp, as if he wanted to use the wine to extinguish the boredom and loss in his heart.

Cai Wenshuang silently sat back in her original position and continued knitting a sweater mechanically, but her face looked distraught and her eyes were empty, completely losing her previous concentration. Her mind kept recalling Xi Yu's decisive words, her heart was filled with bitterness, but she didn't know how to relieve it.

Xi Yu rode his horse quickly away from the extremely cold place. Along the way, the horse seemed to be shivering from the cold. Its hooves stepped hurriedly on the snow, and its breath instantly turned into white mist.

After finally arriving at an inn, Xi Yu quickly dismounted and hurriedly walked into the inn. As soon as he entered, he quickly found a place near the stove and went over to warm himself by the fire. His body was still shivering and it took him a while to recover.

The innkeeper was busy greeting guests. When he looked up and saw Xi Yu looking so cold, he couldn't help but walk over curiously and asked, "Sir, what's wrong with you? You look so cold."

Xi Yu rubbed his hands, took a deep breath, and said slowly: "Boss, I just came from that extremely cold place, and I was frozen to death."

When the shopkeeper heard this, his eyes widened and he said with admiration, "My dear, that extremely cold place is not something that ordinary people dare to go to. You are really amazing. You can actually come back safely from there. This courage and ability are really unmatched by ordinary people."

Xi Yu smiled slightly, waved his hand and said, "I had to go there, but it was really cold there, and my hands and feet haven't warmed up yet."

The shopkeeper said enthusiastically, "Sir, please warm yourself by the fire. I will make you a pot of hot tea to warm you up."

Having said that, he turned around and walked quickly towards the kitchen, ready to treat Xi Yu well.

While Xi Yu was roasting the fire, he said to the shopkeeper, "Shopkeeper, please help feed my horse. The horse has been running around with me outside and hasn't eaten for a long time. Don't let it starve."

The innkeeper smiled and said, "Don't worry, sir. We have enough horse feed in this inn. We will make sure your horse is well fed."

After a while, Xi Yu still felt a little worried. After all, he was worried about the condition of the horse, so he got up and left the warm house and walked straight to the stable.

As soon as he entered the stable, he saw his horse standing in the corner, looking quite miserable.

Xi Yu hurriedly walked forward, gently stroked the horse's mane, and said with heartache: "You have suffered a lot this time, you have worked hard, you should eat something and take a rest."

The horse seemed to understand his words. It rubbed Xiyu's hand gently and neighed softly, as if responding to his comfort.

Xi Yu carefully checked the horse to see if there were any injuries. After making sure that it was nothing serious, he breathed a sigh of relief and continued to stay with the horse in the stable for a while before turning around and going back to the inn.

Xi Yu returned to the inn. Not long after he sat down, the innkeeper came over with a steaming hot meal and said with a smile, "Sir, you must be starving after such a long journey. Eat something while it's hot to warm yourself up."

Xi Yu thanked him and started eating. While eating, he asked the shopkeeper about the surrounding situation.

The shopkeeper was quite enthusiastic and introduced everything he knew, including where the lively markets were, which roads were closer, and whether there was anything special happening nearby recently.

As they were talking, the door of the inn was pushed open, and several people dressed in martial arts clothes came in. Each of them looked tired, with swords on their waists and a fierce look in their eyes.

They found a seat and sat down, shouting loudly for the shopkeeper to serve wine and food.

Xi Yu raised his eyes to look at them, then continued to talk with the shopkeeper, but he also paid attention to the movements of those people.
After they had a few drinks, they started talking about some rumors in the martial arts world, such as which sect had a new powerful rookie, or which hero had recently taken on a difficult mission.

As Xi Yu listened to these anecdotes about the martial arts world, he became interested. He thought that although the martial arts world was different from the court, it was also exciting and full of various variables and stories.

After finishing his meal, Xi Yu got up and prepared to go back to his room to rest. After all, he was a little tired after tossing around in that extremely cold place.

He walked up the stairs. When he passed by the tables of the gangsters, one of them seemed to be drunk. He tilted his body and almost bumped into Xi Yu. Xi Yu slightly turned sideways to avoid him, but the gangster refused to give in. He glared at him and shouted, "Hey, you, why are you hiding? Do you look down on us men?"

Xi Yu frowned slightly and said calmly, "Brother, you've had too much to drink. I just stepped aside. I didn't mean any other thing."

But the gangster, under the influence of alcohol, reached out to grab Xi Yu's collar, and the other people came over when they saw him, and the atmosphere became tense for a moment.

Seeing the other party being so unreasonable, Xi Yu's eyes instantly turned cold. He did not move, but just slightly turned his body to cleverly avoid the hand extended by the man. At the same time, he stretched out his hand and gently pushed. The originally aggressive man staggered and took several steps back before he stabilized his body.

Seeing this, the faces of the surrounding people changed. They drew their swords and pointed them at Xi Yu, cursing, "You are such a fool, you dare to fight back. I will teach you a lesson today!" (End of this chapter)