I'm Ximen Qing, living in a ghost story!

Lanruo Temple is not far from Guobei County.

Almost the instant Ximen Qing and his men attacked, the county government had already discovered the matter.

Nie Yunhai's face turned ashen, and he cursed, "What is the Ximen family up to? Is this some kind of rebellion? And that Qing Songzi, how could Daoist Guyun have such a disciple! He's even conspiring with Ximen Qing to cause trouble!"

"Your Excellency, I suggest we close the city gates. What if that scoundrel Ximen Qing leads his bandits into the city...?"

The speaker was Constable Zhou, oh, the same constable who had met Ximen Qing once at the poetry gathering.

Because Constable Xu led most of the county government's archers away to suppress the Naked Cult, he is currently in charge of the county government's defenses.

However, he no longer had much desire to improve.

The world is changing too fast; he can't keep up.

Why is it that Ximen Qing, who was praised throughout the county as a "prodigal son who has turned over a new leaf" that day, now dares to gather a group of people and openly storm Lanruo Temple!

terrible!

"No! Father! I don't think Ximen Qing is the type to indiscriminately kill innocent people. Why don't we wait and see?"

At that moment, a clear female voice suddenly came from the back room.

Nie Yunhai looked behind him and saw Nie Xiaoqian walking out dressed in men's clothing.

"Nonsense! This county is holding a meeting; how dare a young woman enter the official hall!"

How could Nie Yunhai show favoritism in front of Constable Zhou? He immediately cursed.

However, Nie Xiaoqian ignored Lao Deng's complaints and instead firmly said, "As far as I know, the young Taoist priest Qingsong from Laoshan Temple in the city also went to Lanruo Temple. Could it be that Laoshan Temple and Ximen Qing are both making trouble? There must be something we don't know. Please calm down, Father. If something really happens, I still have a marriage contract with Ximen Qing, which can help us out."

When it came to her marriage, Nie Xiaoqian's face showed no change whatsoever, as if it were an insignificant bargaining chip.

Actually, she didn't want to stand out, but she couldn't resist the influence of her sister, Sister Ji, in the backyard.

Although we don't know what exactly went wrong with Ximen Qing, judging from his reputation, he might be a womanizing scoundrel, but it's unlikely that he made these accusations without any basis.

Furthermore, after what happened with Sister Ji, Nie Xiaoqian herself didn't have a good impression of Lanruo Temple, and at this moment she was secretly applauding Ximen Qing.

"you!"

Faced with his beloved daughter's support, Nie Yunhai couldn't say anything.

Moreover, Xiaoqian's words make sense; nominally, he and Ximen Qing are still father-in-law and son-in-law.

Outsiders might even think that Ximen Qing's actions were at his behest.

At this time, we must not act rashly.

Just as Nie Yunhai was struggling with his thoughts, he heard a series of exclamations from outside.

"What happened?"

Constable Zhou opened the door and asked the constables outside.

"Boss! Your Excellency! Something terrible has happened! The entire mountain near Lanruo Temple is on fire!"

"what?"

Nie Yunhai suddenly stood up. Things had gotten so big, how was he going to explain this to Monk Yuantong?

I can't take it anymore!

"Officer Zhou, you immediately take the remaining archers to put out the fire. Also, bring Ximen Qing and Qing Songzi back to this county! If they dare to resist, arrest them on the spot!"

"Huh? Me?"

Zhou, the head constable, looked completely bewildered and rubbed his ears.

I will capture Ximen Qing and Qing Songzi?

I'm just an ordinary constable! Sir, are you serious?

But seeing Nie Yunhai's serious expression, Zhou, the head constable, could only swallow hard, nod, and walk stiffly outside.

Perhaps Heaven heard his heart's desire, for before he could gather the constables and archers in the yamen, another announcement came from outside:

"My lord! Ximen Qing has returned with a group of women!"

"ah!?"

Nie Yunhai quickly came out.

Nie Xiaoqian followed her out, with Cui Ji behind her.

It was clear that Cui Ji had been eavesdropping from behind the hall the whole time.

However, at this moment, Nie Yunhai had no time to concern himself with such trivial matters.

He grabbed the messenger who had brought the news and demanded, "Where did this woman come from?!"

The constable was so frightened by the magistrate who was so close that he stood frozen in place.

Nie Yunhai pushed him away and walked straight out of the city.

Stepping out of the county government office, I found the streets already bustling with people.

Normally, people don't have much entertainment, but now such a big thing has happened outside the city, with the burning of Lanruo Temple and the scandalous Ximen Qing leading a large group of women.

Anyone would want to watch the show!

While instructing the constables and archers to maintain order, Nie Yunhai hurried outside. However, before he even reached his destination, he heard cries of anguish: "Little Wu! Isn't that Little Wu who was kidnapped by bandits a while ago?"

"And my niece! Didn't she go back to her hometown? What's she doing here?!"

"My Chun'er! What's wrong with you?"

People emerged from the crowd and went to their relatives.

Upon hearing the familiar call, the dazed women finally regained some composure, and someone burst into tears, followed by a chorus of sobs.

Ximen Qing stood beside the group, with two servants by his side, waiting for Nie Yunhai to arrive.

"Lord County Lord!"

"What's going on?"

Nie Yunhai's voice could be heard even before he arrived.

"This junior accuses Abbot Yuantong of Lanruo Temple of forcing women into prostitution and causing harm to the villagers; of colluding with the underworld to raise demons; of collecting living souls and manipulating ghosts! This junior accuses the entire Lanruo Temple of debauchery on this sacred ground, a crime deserving of death! I have dared to burn this den of demons to the ground, and now I have both witnesses and physical evidence; I humbly request Your Excellency to examine them!"

Ximen Qing cupped his hands in greeting and shouted loudly.

The sound reverberated in all directions.

Everyone at the city gate heard it clearly.

Nie Yunhai's eyes widened, his fingers trembled slightly, and his lips quivered.

But the surrounding people spoke up before he could—"Good for it!"

"Master Ximen! So righteous and benevolent!"

"Kill these bald thieves!"

Behind Nie Yunhai, Nie Xiaoqian, who had rushed over, stopped Zhou, the head constable, who was about to drive away the crowd. Her gaze toward Ximen Qing held a somewhat inexplicable look.

"Ahem! Ladies and gentlemen! If Lanruo Temple truly harbors filth and corruption, this county will not tolerate it!"

Nie Yunhai had no choice but to step forward and appease them, ordering the women to be taken away immediately. Only then did he approach Ximen Qing and ask, "What exactly is going on? Weren't they demons summoned by the Naked Sect? How could it be Master Yuantong?"

Ximen Qing shook his head: "Master Guyunzi noticed something was wrong long ago, which is why he left Brother Qingsong with me to investigate! Now, we've indeed found something amiss!"

"That……"

Looking at the burning Lanruo Temple in the distance, Nie Yunhai felt his mouth go dry and lowered his voice, saying, "What if Yuantong comes back for revenge?"

"That's exactly what I was about to say! Please, Your Excellency, write me a letter; I need to go to the prefectural capital to request Judge Yan to come out of seclusion!"

Ximen Qing looked at him and said emphatically.