Hidden moth

Chapter 274: Seeing Shadows, Drawing Shapes, and Drawing People

The man was saying, "Brother Li, don't miss this opportunity! Take the children to Qiyuan right away and live in Zhima Apartment. Ideally, the ninth floor of Building 1."

Li Gongcheng: "Brother Haixiu, is the news accurate?"

He Kao actually "knew" this person in his dream, because he was Liu Haixiu, a disciple of Danding Sect and a third-level Yin-Yang master. Liu Haixiu's master, Zhao Huai'en, was Li Gongcheng's father-in-law, so the two had a close relationship.

Liu Haixiu replied, "Of course the information is accurate. Deacon Xianrui told me this privately. She also said that the clan law hall has issued a gag order because they don't want anyone to disturb Elder Mei's cultivation."

Li Gongcheng: "If the two of us take our child with us, wouldn't that be a violation of the clan's taboo?"

Liu Haixiu held up his wine glass and shook his head, saying, "No, no, no, you don't know Elder Mei, and Elder Mei doesn't know you either. You can find a normal excuse and go to Qiyuan in a logical way.

Your child wants to study art? He'll take the college entrance exam next year, so he should enroll in an art training class. What good classes can you find in a small place? If you want to go, go to a big city like Qiyuan, near Zhima Apartment.

When we get there, we'll pretend we don't know Elder Mei. We don't know each other anyway, so we can just treat each other as neighbors..."

Having said that, he sipped a glass of wine, put down the glass and continued, "I even specifically asked Deacon Xianrui why Elder Mei went to Qiyuan. Could it be that she knew the whereabouts of Yin'e and wanted to contact Yin'e?

Deacon Xianrui said she didn't know the details; it was Master Mei's own decision, without consulting anyone. But she speculated that the Master might have decided to travel the world.

As for traveling in the world, those who understand will understand that there is a concept of forging connections. Either it is to make friends with fellow Taoists, or to discover successors, and the other is to follow various fates. If you only practice in the cave, you will not have these experiences.

Elder Mei's destiny is also your destiny! Apart from anything else, as long as we establish a good relationship as neighbors, we will benefit greatly in the future..."

After this long speech, Liu Haixiu finally stopped to eat a bite of food. Li Gongcheng put out his cigarette and quickly filled his glass with wine. "Thank you, brother, for thinking of me when you had such a good thing!"

Liu Haixiu: "Deacon Xianrui, I, your family, and I are all from the same family. We are not outsiders... If Xiaoliang becomes successful in the future, I will also be able to benefit from it."

Li Gongcheng: "Then, what else should I pay attention to?"

Liu Haixiu: "Keep it a secret, absolutely keep it a secret! You and sister-in-law must agree on a good statement. Don't even tell the child, and don't tell my master.

No matter who asks in the future, even if it is Deacon Xianrui or I myself who ask them in person, you must firmly state that you accompanied your child to the cram school in Qiyuan.

You don’t know Elder Mei at all, but you just happen to be his neighbor. This is fate.

Even if someone asks me in the future, I will not admit that I said these words today, let alone admit that Deacon Xi Rui revealed them.

Li Gongcheng nodded repeatedly: "I understand, I understand, how could I not understand this principle..."

Unlike the previous dream, this dream was so clear that He Kao could even smell the aroma of wine and food and see the details of Liu Haixiu's expression.

It seems that this is a memory that left a very deep impression on Li Gongcheng, and Elder Li's spell guidance was very successful, causing this scene to reappear in his dream.

After He Kao regained consciousness, only three or five seconds had passed when he felt a little drunk and quickly cast a spell to remove the effects of the alcohol.

However, because he was drunk, he used the spell incorrectly. It was not that his body had actually drunk the alcohol, but that his soul seemed to be infected by the alcohol... He then held the beast claw in his hand and cast the spell again, and only then did he truly sober up.

He Kao's face looked a little unhappy, because the result of the dream investigation not only involved the disciples of the Shu Sect, but also the deacon of the Danding Sect, Xiong Rui.

Zhang Jingui was once pulled into a chat group by the enemy forces of the Shu Sect. One of the group members had the online name "AI Qingfeng". As far as Mr. Li Xiuyuan knew, Xianrui had also used the same online name more than ten years ago.

This wasn't substantial evidence, but a clue warranted investigation. Elder Li, of course, preferred to trust the Shu Sect's deacon, so he approached Xianrui to inquire about the matter.

That night, He Kao followed Elder Li's instructions and floated over Xianhu Village in the state of a wandering Yin spirit, observing the area for any unusual movements. As a result, he accidentally landed on a Tiangong curtain.

Xian Rui, of course, denied having anything to do with the matter. She didn't even know about that chat group, not even heard of it... Elder Li couldn't do anything about it.

However, the clues he found in his dream today directly pointed to Xirui deliberately violating the clan law hall's gag order. Although dreams could not be used as evidence, it was impossible for Elder Li not to investigate thoroughly.

After listening to He Kao's retelling, Li Xiuyuan's face darkened as he said, "I asked Xianrui in person last time if she had violated the clan hall's gag order.

She only admitted that she might have accidentally leaked Master Mei's whereabouts, but she firmly denied any intentional leaks. If Deacon Xianrui was truly at fault, it would be a serious matter!
I need to investigate this matter immediately and secretly arrest Liu Haixiu for questioning, trying not to alert anyone... so I need you to do me a favor."

Elder Li just arrived in Qiyuan tonight and will leave tomorrow night, but he still needs to make some arrangements before leaving, such as making a public appearance to make people mistakenly believe that he is still in charge of Qiyuan.

He Kao must cooperate with Elder Li to keep the secret. If there is any unusual movement in Qiyuan, he must notify Elder Li in time. If the situation is urgent, he can even "take" him over.

If He Kao cannot contact Elder Li for the time being, then he can contact Mei Wenhua, the owner of the noodle shop at the gate of Sesame Apartment.

Mei Wenhua is a fifth-level lover of Xingshen Sect, but he has never served as a deacon and has never held an office in the sect. He has always been practicing in seclusion and is very low-key. Not to mention other sect disciples, even the disciples of his own sect rarely know him.

That's why Elder Li specially transferred Mei Wenhua to Qiyuan this time. Except for a few people like Qian Guran, no one else knew his identity, and many people even mistook him for Elder Mei.

When Elder Li was away, Mei Wenhua was the chief of the Shu Sect in Qiyuan, and he also commanded the investigators sent by the Zongfa Hall. The information He Kao had seen was collected and compiled by Mei Wenhua and his men during this period.

After Elder Li left, the "number one expert" left in the Zongfa Hall in Qiyuan was only the fifth-level sorcerer Mei Wenhua.

He Kao couldn't help but ask, "Where are the other elders of the clan hall? Why are you the only one running around?"

Li Xiuyuan sighed, said nothing but sent out a divine thought.

The Zongfa Hall has seven elders, the heads of the seven major sects. The second elder, Zong Zheng, is in charge of Fengwei Township and handles daily affairs. He can't leave easily. Any movement he makes will attract everyone's attention.

Elders Kang Rulin and Ye Fenghuang, who had originally been responsible for handling the Huiming Shi family's affairs, were now also responsible for the subsequent consequences of this matter, and they had secretly left for overseas.

A branch of the Shi family has moved their assets overseas, and the Xiaoyaoke Alliance, where Fabre is located, should also have its base overseas.

Since they were able to cause trouble for the Shu Sect, there was no reason for them to remain in contact, so the two elders also tracked them overseas. Doing so was actually very dangerous, as they couldn't bring too many people and were in someone else's sphere of influence.

As for Elder Jiang, Lingxi Sect's members were few and far between, and he was currently guarding the retreating Wei Luo in Jinghua Cave, so it was not convenient for him to leave. The only elders still able to move freely in the Sect's Law Hall were Li Xiuyuan and Gu Chun.

Gu Chun has always been the mobile force among the elders to deal with emergencies. He travels around the world to monitor the movements of the disciples of the sect. He will not stay in one place for a long time, and no one knows his exact whereabouts.

The investigators at the clan law hall haven't been idle either. From the end of last year until now, they've uncovered quite a few clues. Some of these clues may be of great importance. Elder Gu is also busy with these matters and can't possibly stay in Qiyuan.

Are there any other Grandmasters in the Shu Sect? Although there aren't many, there are some, such as Qi Nansheng, the former head of the Danding Sect and the Grand Elder, and Guo Qianhuai, the Grand Elder of the Ruwei Sect and Zou Tianjin's master.

These people are equivalent to retired cadres. They are either enjoying their old age or devoting themselves to cultivation, and no longer worry about many other things.

The sect might still have some seniors with higher cultivation levels still alive, but no one knew where they were in seclusion, and even the clan law hall didn't have accurate information. Unless the sect was at a critical juncture, these people would not show up.

There were also some words that Elder Li expressed in a more tactful way.

Mei Guyu's going to Qiyuan to "work" was, after all, just her personal behavior, related to her personal practice, but had nothing to do with the affairs of the sect.

The clan hall issued a gag order to those who knew about the situation, so that they could practice without being disturbed as much as possible, and also to protect their safety... This was actually enough.

Mei Guyu himself did not ask the clan hall to provide additional protection, and he should not have made such a request.

Jiang Daozhen had been practicing in seclusion in Pugang Town for more than 20 years. Gu Chun and Li Xiuyuan's secret protection was actually a private act, not a sect affair.

The main reason why Jiang Daozhen did not make a fuss was that he hid it very well. No one else knew about it except Li Xiuyuan and Gu Chun, so there was no need for the clan hall to issue a gag order.

But Mei Guyu ran out to work, and chose to come to Qiyuan, and joined the company where He Kao worked. This made it too easy to expose his whereabouts.

Elder Li sent an investigation team to Qiyuan, nominally not for Mei Guyu's personal affairs, but because someone violated the clan hall's gag order.

The investigation into this matter is the serious sect affairs.

As more and more clues need to be investigated, the staff of the Zongfa Hall is becoming increasingly short-staffed, and it is impossible for them to all stay in Qiyuan to serve as bodyguards for Mei Guyu.

Mei Guyu has to bear the corresponding risks for her personal decisions.

Of course, from a personal perspective, Elder Li does not want anything to happen to Mei Guyu. This time when he is leaving Qiyuan, he will try his best to make arrangements.

After finishing his instructions, Li Xiuyuan waved his hand and said, "Go back and rest first."

He Kao: "What about you, old man?"

Li Xiuyuan: "I'm waiting for Mei Guyu. We need to talk to her. We need to discuss with her, the head of Danding Sect, how to deal with some internal matters of Danding Sect.

She's already on her way home from get off work. If you go downstairs now, you might just run into her at the gate of the complex and say hello."

He Kao knew from hearing this that what they were discussing was related to Xian Rui. In Mei Guyu's absence, the daily affairs of Danding Sect were divided among three deacons, but now it was Deacon Xian Rui who needed to be dealt with, so the Sect Master had to make the decision.

Upon hearing this, He Kao went downstairs on purpose, and sure enough, he met Mei Guyu outside the gate of the community.

Mei Guyu was slightly surprised to see He Kao, and nodded and said hello, "You're still out so late, are you going out for a midnight snack? I'll treat you to barbecue?"

This seemed quite enthusiastic to her, and she even had a small smile on her face.

He Kao quickly said, "I'll treat you another day. A leader wants to see you. Just wait upstairs."

"Leader?" Mei Guyu was a little puzzled. He looked up at Building No. 1 in front of him, then nodded and said, "Okay, another day!"

The next day, veteran artist Li Xiuyuan appeared on the streets of Qiyuan again, still with a little fan girl to sketch. This time the little fan girl next to him was a different person, but she was still very pretty.

He chose the entrance to the Zhima community as the sketching location and drew several pictures that day, including the silhouettes of the five high-rise apartment buildings, the community gate and the trees outside the gate, as well as a sketch of a busy noodle shop.

Li Gongcheng and Zhao Qingfang enrolled their son, Xiaoliang, in an art exam training course, with classes in the afternoon and evening. Every afternoon, Xiaoliang would go home for dinner and a short rest before going to class.

When Xiaoliang and his mother came back in the afternoon, they happened to see Li Xiuyuan sketching. Xiaoliang stopped to watch for a while, and became more and more engrossed in his work. He didn't even hear his mother urging him to go home quickly.

Li Xiuyuan put away his brush, turned around and said with a smile: "Child, do you know how to draw?"

Xiao Liang replied, "I know a little bit. I came to Qiyuan to attend the art exam class."

Li Xiuyuan: "Since you're so eager to learn, why don't you take some time to learn from me?"

Xiao Liang was about to speak when his mother pulled him away and said, "Hurry home and have dinner, or you'll be late tonight."

Xiao Liang entered the elevator still muttering, "Mom, I really want to learn from that guy. I just watched him draw, and when the pen touched the paper, I felt something inexplicably special..."

Zhao Qingfang: "If you want to learn, you have to go to a proper place and find a proper teacher. We are training you to be an artist in the future, not a street performer."

Xiao Liang: "How do you know he's not an artist?"

Zhao Qingfang: "I don't think he's a good person. The way he's dressed doesn't look like one, and the girl next to him doesn't look like she's from a good family!"

Xiao Liang: "How can you tell that?"

Zhao Qingfang: "You have no social experience, but you will understand it in the future. How can your mother lie to you?"

Li Xiuyuan outside the community gate sighed slightly, and it was hard to tell whether he wanted to cry or laugh.

**
(End of this chapter)