Princess, she is the one who facilitated the extradition.

"When can you help me catch the demon?"

Upon seeing Gui Yao, Du Lingxi asked this question.

Gui Yao was going upstairs when he stopped halfway up and looked at her.

Du Lingxi's fingers, which were behind her back, clenched unconsciously.

Just now, she witnessed a person who was on the verge of death suddenly recover, and saw the light shining in the eyes of the people around her.

The light gave her hope, so she came without waiting to go home.

"Have I passed your test?"

"Yes."

Du Lingxi tilted her head back and said, "That's why I'm here to make this request."

Gui Yao smiled and said, "Xuanji Tower also has its own rules. No tricks are allowed. When I ask you about related matters, you must answer without hesitation."

Although she gained a lot of spiritual power today, she also gave away a lot of it. Since her employer was hiding something, she had to expend more spiritual power to investigate.

Du Lingxi hesitated for a moment.

But the pain in her legs made it impossible for her to refuse.

In the morning, she was discovered by a monster, and if she hadn't run fast, she might have already lost her life.

"Okay, I promise you, but you also have to promise me that you'll kill that monster."

Gui Yao then leisurely descended the stairs and led her to sit down at the white jade table. "Tell me in detail why you believe there are monsters in the mansion."

Du Lingxi rolled up her trouser leg, showing Gui Yao her bloodied and mangled knee.

"The monster wanted to eat me, and I fell and injured myself while running away."

Gui Yao glanced at the injury; although it looked gruesome, it was only a superficial wound. "You know martial arts, or perhaps lightness skills?"

Du Lingxi shook her head.

Gui Yao ran her fingers over the wound. "That monster couldn't even catch a child?"

"It's a monster."

Du Lingxi felt that Gui Yao did not believe her, and just as she retorted, she suddenly realized that her knee no longer hurt. Looking down, she saw that the broken skin had healed.

"Your magic is amazing!" she exclaimed in surprise.

Gui Yao healed her wounds, and she suddenly felt embarrassed for being harsh with her. She softened her tone, sounding slightly stiff, and said, "That really was a monster."

She repeated it again.

Gui Yao nodded. "What are the characteristics of a monster, and what evil has it committed?"

"she……"

Du Lingxi clenched her fists, seemingly overwhelmed with emotions, unsure of what to say next.

There was no rush to return; I picked up my teacup and sipped it slowly.

After a long while, the little girl lowered her head and said, "My mother was controlled by a monster."

She is no longer herself. Before, Mother loved Father and I, but now she doesn't love Father anymore...

Her voice, which had been tinged with arrogance, suddenly choked up, "You've seen my wounds too, and she doesn't love me either."

In the past, she was playful and would get a small scrape, which would make her mother cry with heartache.

But in the morning, she fell to the ground covered in blood, and her mother showed no mercy.

She held onto hope and couldn't help but glance back as she ran away. Her mother stood with one foot on the ground stained with her blood, licking her bloodthirsty red lips, her eyes devoid of any pity.

"Besides her change in temperament, what other behaviors of hers are like those of a demon?"

Gui Yao asked her, "Does your father know?"

"She...is good at pretending; she acts the same as before in front of Father."

Du Lingxi sniffed. "As soon as Father leaves, she'll..."

She bit her lip. "She would call the male servant to the room. My mother is well-educated, dignified, and virtuous. She would never do such a thing."

At first, I thought my mother was possessed by an evil spirit, and I tried all sorts of Buddhist and Taoist methods to exorcise it.

I even changed my name to Yaksha and had people shout "Yaksha" in front of my mother to scare away evil spirits, but it was no use.

She still frequently mingled with men, but her body was still my mother's.

Gui Yao understood. "Your wish is for me to kill the monster and turn your mother back to her former self?"

The girl nodded. "Yes."

Gui Yao thought for a moment, then asked, "But what if there's no monster at all, and your mother's personality has drastically changed? What would your wish be?"

If she were to form a pact, she would have to follow Du Lingxi's wishes, but Gui Yao seemed unlikely to be a demon.

Du Lingxi insisted, "It's impossible for there to be no monsters. They're in storybooks. Female demons live by sucking the life essence of men."

Nowadays, mothers can't be without their husbands every day.

She would rather it be a demon than have her mother become so wanton.

Gui Yao decided not to form a contract yet, saying, "I'll go see your mother myself tonight."

This request was reasonable, and Du Lingxi could not refuse. However, she instructed, "You must keep this a secret and not let anyone else know, especially my grandfather and father."

This time, Gui Yao didn't ask any more questions. She took the initiative to say, "My mother was an orphan, and my grandfather was not very satisfied with her background."

If he knew what she had done, he would surely drive her out of the Duke's mansion, or even kill her.

My father loves my mother more than life itself. If he knew that my mother had betrayed him, I fear he would collapse and never recover.

This is why she secretly came to Xuanji Tower alone.

Gui Yao promised her, "Xuanji Tower will not reveal the employer's secrets."

But she felt that Du Lingxi might be being too optimistic. "Did your mother only hire male servants from the manor?"

Du Lingxi nodded.

Gui Yao lowered her gaze and took another sip of tea.

Du Lingxi's father was the third son of the Duke of Ningguo, and he became the Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review at the age of twenty.

If what Du Lingxi said is true, her mother often had sexual relations with the male servants in the mansion. Could someone like her father really have been completely unaware of this?

I'm afraid things are much more complicated than this child thinks.

Du Lingxi then asked Gui Yao curiously, "What is my reward for you?"

Gui Yao glanced at the intense power of her will surrounding her, "It seems you don't know me that well either."

Du Lingxi blushed slightly, thinking back to her first visit to Xuanji Tower and how she had put on a show of bravado.

He muttered to himself, "I'm just a kid. If I'm not mature enough, it'll be hard for me to talk. What if you lie to me?"

But now even her grandfather has come in person to invite her back, and the people are privately praising her as a living bodhisattva. Such a person would not deceive a child like her.

"What exactly do I have to give up?"

Gui Yao glanced at her. "No rush. I can ask you for payment after I've seen your mother."

The night was as dark as ink. Gui Yao arrived at the Ningguo Duke's Mansion and first walked around the mansion, but found no evil aura or lingering yin energy.

Finally, the scent of the concealed presence landed in the room of Du Lingxi's mother, Madam Du the Third.

She saw the "demon" that Du Lingxi had mentioned, dressed in a white dress with long hair flowing like a waterfall, embroidering shoes with her head down.

Judging from the size of the shoe, it belongs to a seven or eight-year-old girl and should have been made for Du Lingxi.

Perhaps because she had been doing needlework for a long time, she raised her head and stretched her neck, and Gui Yao saw a very classically beautiful face.

Although she has aged quite a bit, time has not left any marks on her face.

She stroked the crabapple blossoms on the shoe, a gentle smile playing on her lips, her eyes filled with tenderness.

Gui Yao recalled that on both occasions when she saw Du Lingxi, the clothes she wore were embroidered with begonia patterns, and the embroidery was the same as that on her shoes, indicating that it was made by Madam Du.

Does a mother who can make shoes for her daughter with such a loving smile really not love her daughter?

Gui Yao watched with suspicion, remaining expressionless.

Not long after, footsteps sounded outside. Gui Yao saw Madam Du's expression stiffen for a moment, but she quickly regained her composure, and the smile on her lips disappeared.

"Ah Shan".

The man pushed open the door and entered, smiling as he took the needle and thread from Madam Du's hands. "Lingxi has no shortage of shoes. It's late, so keep your eyes open."

He is Du Lingxi's father, Du Shao.

"Whether she needs it or not, I'd still want to make it for her."

The woman, Du, reached out her hand to him. "Give it to me. Even if I work non-stop, I can only do it for her for three years at most."

Du Shao's smile froze. He handed the needle and thread back to her. "Ah Shan, trust me. I'm trying to figure something out. I won't let anything happen to Ling Xi."

"Um."

Madam Du replied casually, but then put down her needlework and said, "I'm sleepy, I'm going to sleep."

In front of her husband, she took off her clothes, revealing the marks on her neck.

Du Shao glanced at it once, then looked away, blew out the light in the room, and said, "Go to sleep, I'm going to rest too."

From the darkness came a cold, mocking laugh from Madam Du.

Gui Yao understood perfectly well that Du Shao indeed knew, but pretended not to. Why?

Before she could figure it out, she heard rustling sounds coming from the bed, which quickly turned into soft, seductive music. Gui Yao realized that Du Shao was making the first move.

Puzzled, Du Shao wondered why he would have sex with his wife knowing she was having an affair.

Don't men all care about this?

Gui Yao was genuinely curious. He had just poked his head out, and before he could see anything clearly, he was pulled away from the eaves by a force...