After the ghost-hunting master descended the mountain, his fame spread throughout the capital.

The next day at noon, the autumn sun shed the chill of the morning and spread out lazily with a touch of warmth.

Sunlight streamed into the new house through the half-open window, casting dappled shadows on the walls.

On the carved bed, the brocade quilt formed a raised outline.

Jiang Dusheng clearly had no intention of getting up, and was too lazy to even move.

She simply turned over groggily, burying her face deeper into the pillow, trying to block out the light that was disturbing her peaceful sleep.

Her long hair was spread out on the pillow, and with her movements, large expanses of snow-white skin were revealed.

Above, especially on the sides of the neck, collarbone, and even lower down, there were ambiguous red marks that were faintly visible among the scattered strands of hair.

In front of the stone table in the courtyard, Xie Jinchen sat upright, with a pot of tea in front of him. The tea was fragrant and wafted out, but he did not touch it for a long time.

Wang Dazhuang has recently acquired a new body meticulously tailored by Master Xuanji. He is now lovingly trying out this new body, walking around in the courtyard.

Perhaps they were tired from walking.

He suddenly stopped, sat down opposite Xie Jinchen, pinched a delicate piece of hibiscus cake with his paper fingers, brought it to the nose drawn on the paper, and began to suck on it with great seriousness.

With a look of pure bliss, its paper-like mouth even made a couple of exaggerated smacking noises.

Xie Jinchen's gaze drifted to the tightly closed door. Finally, he coughed lightly, breaking the tranquility of the courtyard. He spoke to Wang Dazhuang in a casual tone:

"Dazhuang, it's almost noon. Go knock on the door and ask if Sheng'er wants to get up for lunch."

Upon hearing this, Wang Dazhuang paused in his smoking, looked at Xie Jinchen, and said, "Young Master Xie, do I look like a fool?"

Although Xie Jinchen had been granted the title of Duke by the new emperor, Wang Dazhuang was used to calling him Prince Xie and couldn't change it immediately.

Xie Jinchen was taken aback by the question, a hint of unease flashing across his face. He subconsciously raised his hand and gently tapped his brow with his knuckles to hide his slight guilty conscience.

Last night... things did get a bit out of control.

The picture book… well, it was just too novel, and he couldn’t resist for a moment.

She recalled how he carried the exhausted Jiang Dusheng out of the bath last night, and as soon as she touched the bed, she rolled into the quilt, leaving him with only her back and a weary "Don't touch me."

If she hadn't been so tired that she couldn't even move her fingers, and hadn't happened to have no talismans in her hand, Xie Jinchen had no doubt that she would have been covered with all sorts of immobilization talismans, silencing talismans, and possibly even talismans for calming the mind and reducing desires.

Although Wang Dazhuang is simple and honest, he still has some sense of observation.

He noticed Xie Jinchen's guilty conscience and a gloating expression appeared on his face:

"Oh, I see! You angered the master! Was it last night... hehehe!"

Xie Jinchen's ears burned slightly at his laughter, but he maintained his composure, even giving him a nonchalant glance:

"I'm afraid that my baby will be grumpy in the morning and disturb her sleep."

Wang Dazhuang didn't believe his nonsense at all, shaking his head like a rattle drum, "Anyway, I'm not going. You can go and call your wife yourself."

Upon hearing this, Xie Jinchen sighed softly. How did Wang Dazhuang suddenly become so intelligent?

He then stood up, deliberately straightening his already impeccably dressed clothes, and decided to go and call for them himself.

He had only taken two steps toward the main house when he heard a rustling sound behind him, which he thought was being discreet.

Xie Jinchen didn't turn his head, his voice low but carrying a clear warning: "Wang Dazhuang."

He paused, his tone calm, yet sending chills down the spines of those who heard him, "If you dare to eavesdrop, I won't hesitate to tear up this new body that Master Xuanji made for you and cut out an even more unique one."

Wang Dazhuang, who was about to approach, suddenly froze, as if he had been burned, and sprang back more than ten steps, instinctively covering his chest with his hands and shaking his head repeatedly.

"I won't eavesdrop! Absolutely not! Thank you, Your Highness, please! I'll be going now!"

Just kidding, he hasn't had enough of this new body yet.

Handsome and imposing, with flexible joints, he was practically at the pinnacle of ghostly existence; he couldn't bear to trade him.

Xie Jinchen smiled with satisfaction, walked to the door of the new house, and pushed it open to enter.

After a while, the door opened.

Wang Dazhuang still couldn't figure out how Xie Jinchen managed to coax Jiang Dusheng, who was clearly grumpy from his mornings, out of his room.

In short, when the two stepped out of the bridal chamber together, Jiang Dusheng's exquisitely beautiful face clearly displayed the words "Keep Out."

She had changed into a simpler smoky blue dress, her long hair loosely tied up with a jade hairpin, and without any makeup, her skin appeared even more radiant. However, the coldness in her eyes could almost freeze any living creature three feet away.

Wang Dazhuang wisely shrank his paper neck, and without saying a word, he quickly darted out of the courtyard and headed straight for the carriage waiting outside the mansion gate.

He climbed onto the carriage using both his hands and feet and sat obediently next to the guard.

Eyes fixed on the nose, nose focused on the heart, the paper-thin body stood ramrod straight, resolutely refusing to glance around, striving to minimize its presence.

The new emperor, Chu Jingyu, being considerate, had already issued an imperial edict exempting Xie Jinchen and Jiang Dusheng from the tedious rituals of coming to the palace to express their gratitude, saying only, "We'll talk again when the matter in Qingzhou is settled."

Jiang Dusheng and Xie Jinchen were happy to relax and, after packing up, planned to set off directly for Qingzhou.

However, as soon as the two stepped out of the Duke's mansion, they were blocked by a group of people.

It was the lingering ghosts of the Jiang family.

Leading the group were still Jiang Dusheng's biological mother, Song Suya, and his biological father, Jiang Mao.

Song Suya had clearly dressed up carefully today, but the haggardness and sorrow in her eyes lingered. As soon as she saw Jiang Dusheng, tears streamed down her face before she could even speak, and she kept wiping the corners of her eyes with her embroidered handkerchief.

Jiang Mao stood half a step behind her, his face showing a mixture of embarrassment and urgency. He rubbed his hands, wanting to step forward but seemingly too proud to do so.

Jiang Wanqing stood next to Song Suya.

Compared to the last time they met, Jiang Wanqing seemed to have lost some weight. She was wearing an elegant dress, biting her lip, and looking at Jiang Dusheng and Xie Jinchen walking side by side with a complicated expression.

There was envy, disappointment, and a hint of inexplicable grievance in his eyes.

Xie Jinchen frowned almost imperceptibly, a hint of impatience and coldness flashing in his eyes.

He raised his hand, put his arm around Jiang Dusheng's waist, and without stopping, was about to lead her directly around to the side, completely ignoring her.

"Wait a moment," Jiang Dusheng suddenly spoke, his voice calm.

She stopped and looked at Jiang Wanqing's face. Then, she walked towards the direction where Jiang Wanqing was.

They had only taken two steps.

"Watatsuki!"

Like a startled rabbit, Song Suya rushed forward and stood in front of Jiang Wanqing, her face still wet with tears, her voice urgent:

"Dusheng, we have come today truly to see you..."

Before he could finish speaking, Jiang Dusheng interrupted him with a cold laugh, "What about me?"

She spoke slowly, her voice laced with sarcasm, "A chat about family? A reunion about kinship?"