Cang Ye glanced at Su Wan, nodded, and smiled.
“Fine, I’ll listen to you. I’ll spoil my disciple a little, too.”
“Let’s go!”
Su Wan paid little attention to Cang Ye. Instead, he led him out of the room and toward the apprenticeship hall in the front courtyard.
…
They hadn’t walked far when they approached a wooden door.
On the other side, they could hear the noisy chatter of guests.
The maid leading the way stopped in front of Su Wan and Cang Ye and reminded them, “It’s just ahead. This servant will go inform the Master first.”
“Mm.” Cang Ye nodded and glanced at the wooden door to his right.
As soon as Cang Ye nodded, the maid opened the door and slipped inside.
Less than a minute later, the voice of the Su Family Patriarch rang out from behind the door.
“All right! All right! Today’s main guest, Master Cang, is about to arrive. He’s already brought my worthless son and is waiting outside. I ask all the guests to welcome him together with this old man!”
“Good! Good!”
Several young male guests shouted enthusiastically, giving the Su Family Patriarch plenty of face.
The older guests and those with higher status also nodded and stroked their beards, looking forward to Cang Ye’s entrance.
After all, he was someone the Su Family Patriarch favored. Perhaps he really did possess some abilities.
They were also willing to get acquainted with him and see how things went.
If he proved capable and impressive, they wouldn’t object to taking him as their master. They had suitable children they could send to study under him and build connections.
Behind the wooden door, Cang Ye watched as the maid hurried out and bowed, inviting them inside to attend the banquet.
“Let’s go.” Cang Ye nodded at Su Wan and said, “Besides the ordinary guests, we also need to entertain those friends.”
“Those friends?” Su Wan murmured, recalling the Zhen Mo Si that Cang Ye had mentioned earlier.
He nodded, then took Cang Ye’s left hand and followed him through the door.
After entering the hall, Su Wan followed Cang Ye through the formalities, performed the apprenticeship ceremony, and listened as the people around him discussed the reason for his apprenticeship.
After the tea was served, Su Wan was just about to sit down with his Master, Cang Ye, when someone standing at the edge of the gathering suddenly burst into loud laughter.
“Demons and evil spirits? What a false accusation! These are merely strange occurrences caused by feng shui or even man-made disasters. And yet you blame demons and evil spirits for them?”
The Su Family Patriarch frowned, just about to reprimand the man for ruining the occasion.
However, the man who had spoken announced his identity before the Patriarch could say anything.
“I am the Deputy Director of the Inspection Bureau, responsible for inspecting local speech. Do you all know that what you’ve said today has already broken the law?”
“This… Someone from the government?” someone whispered with a frown.
“It’s actually the Deputy Director…” a Master from another family murmured.
“The Inspection Bureau is responsible for monitoring speech throughout the land and has the authority to execute first and report afterward. We mustn’t provoke them.”
“The Inspection Bureau?” Su Wan frowned and looked toward Cang Ye.
Cang Ye smiled and explained, “The talk about strange powers and chaotic spirits is just a cover. This is probably the Zhen Mo Si.”
“Probably?” Su Wan asked with a frown, wondering whether his Master was unreliable.
Cang Ye nodded confidently.
“In any case, the inspection and detection array has already been set up, covering the entire Su Family residence. I don’t recognize this person, and I’ve never seen him before. I’ve only encountered other people from the Inspection Bureau. As long as he isn’t an impostor, he’s most likely genuine.”
While Cang Ye was explaining, the Deputy Director glanced at him.
Then the Deputy Director approached Cang Ye, Su Wan, and the Su Family Patriarch.
Ignoring the Patriarch, he addressed Cang Ye directly.
“Which family’s Daoist priest are you, and which sect’s feng shui master?”
“Feng shui master?” Cang Ye smiled. “That description isn’t wrong. I can adjust feng shui. As for my background… I’m afraid it’s inconvenient to disclose.”
Cang Ye wasn’t lying. As a member of the Demon Race, it really was inconvenient for him to reveal his identity.
“Mm.” The Deputy Director nodded and addressed everyone. “Since you admit that these are merely family troubles caused by feng shui, you should also stop spreading rumors and clarify the matter.”
“Being able to deal with hidden feng shui dangers is also a Master’s ability, isn’t it?” the Deputy Director asked, turning back to Cang Ye.
Su Wan lowered his head and thought.
‘A family problem caused by feng shui? That’s right. Feng shui problems are different from demons and evil spirits. Demons and evil spirits are “people” who can move around. A feng shui problem, on the other hand, can be limited to a single family and cause trouble there. This makes the matter seem much less serious.’
‘It also leaves room for Daoism and Buddhism to preach and earn money. It’s killing two birds with one stone. Just like that old monk from before, who was also a genuinely capable expert.’
“Naturally.” Cang Ye smiled.
The Deputy Director continued, “In that case, I shall issue an order on behalf of the court in my capacity as a director of this bureau. None of you are allowed to spread rumors about this matter anymore. Everything is simply a feng shui problem. Do you understand?”
“There has never been any such thing as a demon. These are merely strange occurrences caused by a family’s feng shui. If any family encounters similar problems in the future, they may visit the Inspection Bureau or seek an expert at a Daoist temple or Buddhist temple. Do you all understand?”
“Do you understand?!” the Deputy Director shouted again, and a ball of red light gathered in his hand.
“An immortal… This Director is an immortal!” one of the guests immediately exclaimed.
“We respectfully obey the Director’s orders!” the Su Family Patriarch said first, bowing to the Deputy Director in agreement.
“We will certainly comply!” the Master of another family added with a frown, thinking that ordinary people shouldn’t fight the authorities. Whether the cause was demons or feng shui, it was enough to follow the Inspection Bureau’s orders.
Besides, if demons really existed, they could always seek help from the Demon Suppression Bureau later.
“Hmph!”
Seeing everyone agree, the Deputy Director’s expression improved somewhat.
He looked toward Cang Ye again, once more ignoring the Su Family Patriarch, and addressed Cang Ye directly.
“Fellow Daoist, please tell us the details of what happened here previously. We’ll record everything in the archives. Even if there are lingering feng shui problems, this place is still part of our Great Yu Kingdom’s territory. My Inspection Bureau must fulfill its duties.”
“Naturally!” Cang Ye smiled, then asked, “Did the Inspection Bureau send only you this time, Fellow Daoist?”
The Deputy Director shook his head.
“Of course not. There’s also…”
He hesitated before continuing, “You’ll find out when the cleanup begins.”
The Deputy Director looked around again and asked, “Which one of you is in charge of the Su Family residence? Arrange lodging for me. Don’t send one of those women. I don’t want anyone disturbing my peace.”
“Ah, ah! Director, sir, it’s me! It’s me!” The Su Family Patriarch hurried out from Cang Ye’s left side, wearing an ingratiating smile.
“I’ll personally lead you there…”
“No need!” the Deputy Director interrupted. “Just assign any maid. No, him.”
The Deputy Director suddenly pointed at Su Wan, who had been watching the spectacle nearby.
“Me?” Su Wan pointed at himself, puzzled as to why he was once again being assigned to guide someone and arrange their accommodations.
He was a young master, not some servant of the Su Family residence whose job was to lead people around.
The Su Family Patriarch was just about to agree when Cang Ye suddenly smiled and spoke.
“Sorry, but he’s my disciple, not a servant who leads people around. He still needs to accompany me and enjoy himself.”
“Enjoy yourselves?” The Deputy Director looked astonished.
Cang Ye smiled and explained, “We’ll stroll through the entertainment district and listen to some music. I wouldn’t dare do anything else.”
“This… him?” The Deputy Director glanced at Su Wan, then looked contemptuously at his lower body.
That single glance made Su Wan grit his teeth in anger.
Cang Ye glanced at Su Wan and noticed that he was unhappy, particularly with the Deputy Director.
Cang Ye frowned, then thought of a solution.
“My disciple is unhappy. He dislikes you. Please put away that contemptuous gaze. Also…”
Cang Ye continued, “I want to beat you up to make him happy. Happy, I mean, by sparring with you a little. I wonder if the dignified Deputy Director of the Inspection Bureau dares to step outside?”
“This will also allow everyone to witness the strength of the Inspection Bureau. Otherwise, if every matter is dismissed as a feng shui problem, won’t the Inspection Bureau become nothing more than a decoration? Will you have to rely entirely on Daoist priests and monks to handle everything?”
“Hm?!”
“Hm?!”
The Deputy Director frowned, surprised by how much Cang Ye cared about his newly accepted disciple. He glanced at Su Wan as well.
Su Wan had still been unhappy moments earlier, but now he was suddenly surprised and became interested in Cang Ye.
Previously, when the Cat Demon and the monk had fought, Cang Ye had merely talked big and couldn’t be bothered to act himself.
But now, simply because the Deputy Director had offended him and made him unhappy, Cang Ye was willing to fight on his behalf?
No, the real question was whether Cang Ye, as a member of the Demon Race, was willing to risk exposing his identity by offending the Deputy Director of the Human Race’s Zhen Mo Si.
Thinking of this, Su Wan hurriedly tugged at Cang Ye’s sleeve.
“There should be a limit to how much you spoil someone!”
“Is that so?” A smile appeared at the corner of Cang Ye’s mouth. “But there’s no limit to how much I’ll spoil you.”
“Hm?!” Su Wan suffered a tiny critical hit and felt a little surprised.
Meanwhile, in a corner of the banquet hall, Su Wan’s mother sat at the women’s table in a secluded spot.
As a concubine, she wasn’t seated among the more prominent guests. At that moment, she frowned and muttered, “Stealing my cub again, hmph!”
She stuffed a chicken leg into her mouth, tore off a large chunk, and chewed fiercely.
Beside her, Wang Ling glanced at her.
Her left hand was still wrapped in cloth. She had just been about to reach out with it to get some food, but she sighed, relaxed her left hand, and gave up.
“What are you angry about? In a hundred years, there’ll be nothing left. What’s there to be angry about?”
Hearing Wang Ling’s words, Qian Yue became even more unhappy.
‘No, I want him to become a long-lived being. Otherwise, what a waste it would be! I gave birth to such an adorable little cub for nothing. But… it seems impossible. I could discuss it with the Tree Demon.’