Merit-based card draws, quickly become a Heavenly Emperor

Before they could think any further, a row of lights approached from afar; it turned out that the night patrol officers had arrived.

The constable in charge, holding a torch, shouted, "Why are you wailing here!"

Fang Zheng stepped forward and said, "I am Fang Zheng, a student who passed the imperial examination."

"A malevolent spirit attacked us here. To save us, the benevolent Li perished along with the spirit."

Upon seeing the corpse on the ground, the constable's expression changed drastically.

Li Yuanshan had done good deeds for many years and was quite well-known in the county. His death was no small matter.

Judging from their clothing, the other corpses should be Cao family servants. The sudden death of three of them is a huge problem.

He sent someone to the county government for help while simultaneously notifying the Cao family.

What outsiders don't know is that the young master of the Cao family was also killed by evil spirits earlier tonight.

Soon, the constables and the Cao family members arrived.

The head constable, Chen, questioned each of the neighbors present. The neighbors did not have the ability to see ghosts, did not understand ghost language, and did not know the identity or origin of the evil spirit.

Based on their description, the details of this case of a demon attacking people have become clear.

Cao family servants harassed Fang Zheng late at night, but suddenly encountered an evil spirit and were killed by it.

Li Yuanshan came to the rescue, but ultimately perished together with the evil spirit.

With the evil spirit vanquished, Constable Chen breathed a sigh of relief, intending to close the case. However, the Cao family refused to let it go.

The Cao family steward's cold gaze fell on Fang Zheng.

This student is the only survivor of the trouble caused by the young master; perhaps he can guess something.

Furthermore, the master is furious about the loss of his beloved son, and this person is the perfect scapegoat for him.

Thinking of this, he looked at Constable Chen and asked, "Constable Chen, why did my servant die in front of this scholar's door?"

I suspect that the evil spirit was summoned by the scholar, and that the human and the ghost conspired to harm people.

"Please take this scholar back and interrogate him thoroughly to give the Cao family an explanation."

Officer Chen remained silent.

The Cao family was the most prominent family in Yongqing County, and even the county magistrate was the son-in-law of the Cao family.

He's just a constable; you can't afford to offend him.

However, arbitrarily arresting students who have passed the imperial examinations can easily lead to trouble.

While he was hesitating, the neighbors around him were already indignant.

They shielded Fang Zheng behind them and shouted, "Your Cao family is really going too far!"

You guys already broke Fangzheng's head, and now you're harassing him in the middle of the night.

"When encountering evil spirits harming people, they actually want to throw dirty water on Fang Zheng?"

"Yes, yes, so many of us are watching!"

To save us, Fang Zheng threw an inkstone at the evil spirit. Otherwise, if Li Gong had arrived in time, he would have almost been harmed by the evil spirit as well.

How could such a kind and virtuous scholar possibly collude with evil spirits to harm people!

Seeing that these peasants dared to rebel, Steward Cao was furious and ordered his servants to teach these unruly people a lesson.

At this moment, Fang Zheng pushed through the crowd and looked coldly at Steward Cao.

"You are neither an official nor a rank, just a lowly servant, yet you dare to smear the reputation of a mere candidate?"

Believe it or not, I'll report you to the magistrate and get you a beating!

Butler Cao's face immediately turned ashen. "You!"

"What do you mean, 'you'?"

I would like to ask you, where is Liu Qingyu, the female candidate on the imperial examination?

"You members of the Cao family harassed the top student in the street; shouldn't you give an explanation?!"

Upon hearing this, Butler Cao shuddered and looked at Fang Zheng with suspicion and uncertainty.

What Fang Zheng said was exactly what the Cao family was most worried about.

The young master, lusting after a beautiful woman, drove a female student to her death, and was subsequently killed by the red-clad evil spirit she had transformed into.

This is an absolute taboo, and this matter must be covered up no matter what.

Now that the female scholar who passed the imperial examination is dead, and his young master and servants are also dead, the only one who knows the reason for this is Fang Zheng.

Fortunately, he was just an ordinary scholar and should not know that Liu Qingyu had been forced to death, nor that the evil spirit tonight was Liu Qingyu in disguise.

Thinking of this, Butler Cao forced himself to remain calm and said, "What do female students have to do with my Cao family?"

Don't talk nonsense here.

He turned and called to his servants, "Take these bodies back, let's go!"

Having said that, he left in a sorry state, not daring to mention the matter of having the officials arrest and interrogate Fang Zheng.

After the Cao family left, Constable Chen naturally led his men away as well.

"Fearless of powerful forces, adapting to circumstances, intelligence +1."

"Five virtues grow, card slots are activated."

Fang Zheng glanced at the prompts on the panel and knew that the Cao family's matter was not yet over.

They have a guilty conscience and will not let themselves off the hook.

After putting aside his thoughts, Fang Zheng bowed to the neighbors to thank them for speaking up for him.

The neighbors waved their hands and said, "Fangzheng, we raised you, why are you being so polite with us?"

The Cao family is arrogant and domineering; sooner or later, they will be punished by Heaven.

The most urgent task now is to ensure that the philanthropist Li is laid to rest!

With their help, Fang Zheng carried Li Yuanshan's body back to the Li residence.

This is a small courtyard with blue tiles, not far from the Fang family's residence.

The neighbors carried out the thin coffin that Li Yuanshan had prepared from inside the house, collected his body, and placed it in the grave dug under the locust tree in the courtyard.

Fang Zheng paid his respects to the grave repeatedly, and then, in accordance with Li Yuanshan's last wishes, asked the neighbors to leave.

The crying gradually faded away. He calculated the time and filled the last handful of soil at the third quarter of the hour of Zi (11:45).

Then, a strong, eerie wind arose.

Fang Zheng squinted, then opened his eyes and looked again. The courtyard was now filled with a huge crowd of people, or rather, ghosts.

The leader was a Yin official dressed in white robes, with a somewhat ferocious appearance.

Behind them were two rows of ghostly soldiers carrying a blue sedan chair.

Only Fang Zheng, who possesses the ability to see into the underworld, could witness this scene.

On the other side, in front of the tomb, Li Yuanshan's soul had already left his body and was standing there.

The white-robed underworld official in the lead held a decree in his hand and began to read it aloud.

"Li Yuanshan of Yongqing County accumulated good deeds and virtues throughout his life, and performed many unseen good deeds."

Now that his merits have been fulfilled, he is hereby appointed as a seventh-rank official in the underworld, and shall assume office immediately.

After saying this, the underworld official put on a smiling face, bowed to Li Yuanshan, and said, "This humble official congratulates Lord Li and invites Lord Li to accompany this humble official to take up his post in the underworld."

Li Yuanshan, in his ghost form, accepted the appointment letter and said, "Thank you for your hard work."

At this moment, he turned his head and glanced at Fang Zheng, and found that Fang Zheng was staring at him, which made him quite pleasantly surprised.

Upon seeing this, the white-robed underworld official laughed and said, "It's truly rare. This young master actually possesses the ability to see the underworld, allowing him to see our every move."

Fang Zheng's suspicions had now been confirmed.

Li Yuanshan was so happy before his death because he would become a ghost official after death and receive a great blessing from heaven.

If there are ghosts in this world, there is naturally also the underworld, which is also incorporated into the imperial system.

Although the officials of the underworld are slightly inferior to the officials of the mortal world, they are still dignified seventh-rank officials, comparable to the magistrate of Yongqing County.

It's like rising to the top in one step!

At this moment, Li Yuanshan cupped his hands towards Fang Zheng and said, "Fang Zheng, I owe my success to you for sealing that evil spirit."

I will do my best to find a solution for you in the underworld.

Tonight I will appear in your dreams, and if all goes well, perhaps a special opportunity awaits you.

After saying that, he turned and got into the sedan chair.

The next moment, a gust of cold wind rose, and the group of ghosts in the courtyard vanished without a trace in the blink of an eye.

The system notified me.

"Upholding the established rules and regulations, the order and discipline remain intact, and the rites are increased by 1."

"Protecting benevolent ghosts leads to enlightenment and official positions, Ash Merit +10."

With everything settled, Fang Zheng let out a sigh of relief, only to find that every part of his body ached.

The biting coldness of his left palm, in particular, made him wary.

Before his death, Li Yuanshan bequeathed all his books to him, including a set of Linghua Dao cultivation techniques.

Now is the perfect time to go and observe; if we can gain something from it, it might solve his immediate problem.