Chapter 8

Suddenly, the strange appetite that appeared made Qin Shaoyou feel uneasy.

He no longer had the heart to eat the noodles, put down the bowl, and turned his head to look at the scholar Zhu.

At first, Zhu didn’t take it seriously, discussing the past caravans and beauties with his colleagues while eating his noodles.

But Qin Shaoyou’s gaze was too eerie, making him feel uneasy, and he had to ask, "Sir, why are you staring at me? Is there something wrong with me?"

"Nothing, just keep eating your noodles."

Qin Shaoyou moved his gaze and began to observe Ma Heshang and the others.

After a moment, everyone felt a chill down their spines and a coldness in their buttocks.

Qin Shaoyou, however, let out a long sigh of relief, secretly rejoicing, "Thank goodness, it’s not my problem. I haven’t turned into a monster that wants to eat people."

It turned out that he had been staring at everyone to confirm whether he really had developed an appetite for humans.

The result proved that it wasn’t the case.

No matter whether he looked at his subordinates or the people on the street, he didn’t have the thought, "This person should be very tasty."

On the contrary, because he had stared at Zhu and Ma Heshang for too long, it affected his appetite, and he lost his hunger.

"Since it’s not my problem, then there must be something strange about the young lady in the carriage! Is she a monster? Did she lift the curtain to look at us to remember our appearances and guard against us? Or is she planning to harm us?"

At this thought, a cold light flashed in Qin Shaoyou’s eyes.

He felt that this matter had to be clarified, so he quietly instructed Zhu, "Investigate the background of that caravan and the details of each person. Investigate secretly, don’t let them notice."

Zhu, holding the bowl of noodles, asked with a mischievous smile, "Sir, are you interested in the young lady in the carriage?"

"Go and investigate if I tell you to, no nonsense."

Qin Shaoyou didn’t tell Zhu that he was investigating the caravan not because he was interested in the young lady in the carriage, but because he wanted to eat her.

Even if he said this reason, Zhu and the others would probably misunderstand the meaning of "eat."

"Yes, I’ll go and investigate."

Seeing Qin Shaoyou’s serious expression, Zhu guessed that the matter was not as he thought, so he put away his smile, put down the bowl, and quickly walked out of the noodle shop, disappearing around the corner.

Qin Shaoyou then returned to the Demon Suppression Bureau with Ma Heshang and the others.

Because he had been busy all night the previous day, Qin Shaoyou divided his subordinates into two groups to take turns resting, while he continued to guard the erotic book, waiting for the ghost in the painting to appear, and practicing his lightness skills.

Half an hour later, Zhu returned to the Demon Suppression Bureau and reported to Qin Shaoyou:

"Sir, the previous caravan was for the opening of the Fragrant Breeze Courtesan House in the city. They spent a lot of money to invite famous courtesans from the state capital to create a buzz..."

"Famous courtesans?"

"Yes. The beautiful young lady we saw is the top courtesan from the Spring Fragrance House in the state capital, named Ruan Xiangxiang. The other people in the carriages are also top courtesans from various courtesan houses in the state capital."

"Ruan Xiangxiang? I can smell the fragrance, but I wonder how soft she is?"

The several strongmen looked forward to it.

But it was just a fleeting thought. The cost of courtesan houses was very high, and trying to experience the fragrance and softness of a top courtesan would cost a fortune.

They absolutely couldn’t afford it.

Ma Heshang recited a Buddhist chant, shook his head, and sighed, "In this world, many people can’t even afford a meal, yet there are still courtesan houses opening, and with such a grand ceremony..."

"Exactly, aren’t they afraid of losing money?" a strongman chimed in, "Inviting so many top courtesans must cost a lot of money. How many sand dances could that money buy?"

Ma Heshang looked surprised; he wasn’t lamenting about the cost.

"You don’t understand, do you? The worse the times, the better the business for courtesan houses."

Zhu sneered, "No matter how good or bad the times, the common people always suffer. The saying goes, 'The rich have leftover dog meat, while the poor freeze to death on the streets.'"

Qin Shaoyou frowned and interrupted, "Don’t complain about these things. If someone with ill intentions hears you, you won’t have a good outcome."

Zhu’s face changed slightly, and he hurriedly said, "Sir, you are right. I only dare to complain in front of you and the brothers. I would never say such things in front of outsiders."

Qin Shaoyou nodded slightly and didn’t continue the topic.

After a moment of thought, he made an arrangement: "You will go and keep an eye on the Fragrant Breeze House for the next few days. If anything unusual happens, inform me immediately."

"Yes." Zhu immediately agreed and then lowered his voice to ask, "Sir, do you suspect someone in the caravan? Is it Ruan Xiangxiang?"

Qin Shaoyou didn’t answer directly but said, "Just keep an eye on it. It’s best if there’s no problem."

"Understood."

Zhu nodded, didn’t ask any more questions, and picked out two clever strongmen to go with him, changing into plain clothes to stake out the Fragrant Breeze House.

Two days passed quickly.

During these two days, Qin Shaoyou remained cautious and vigilant, guarding against possible retaliation from demons and ghosts.

The Demon Suppression Bureau in Luocheng conducted a city-wide search for the Black Lotus Sect and the ghost in the painting.

Although they found a few followers of the Black Lotus Sect, they found no clues about the ghost in the painting.

At the Fragrant Breeze House, Zhu and the strongmen kept a constant watch, but the feedback was that everything was normal.

Whether it was Ruan Xiangxiang or the other famous courtesans in the caravan, they all stayed in the Fragrant Breeze House, never leaving the premises, with no abnormalities.

As for the escort team that accompanied the caravan, they left Luocheng on the same day.

Additionally, Xue Qingshan, who went to Fangting County to suppress the Black Lotus Sect, had not returned.

It wasn’t because of any accident; after eliminating the Black Lotus Sect in Fangting County, he went to the state capital to report to the Thousand-Man Commander of the Yizhou Demon Suppression Bureau.

That afternoon, Qin Shaoyou was practicing lightness skills on the training ground with his colleagues when one of his subordinates rushed over to tell him that Xue Qingshan had returned and wanted to see him.

When he saw Xue Qingshan, his brother-in-law looked wind-worn, clearly just returned from a journey.

After dismissing the others in the room, Xue Qingshan pulled Qin Shaoyou to sit down and praised him:

"I just heard about your achievements in the past two days. First, you killed the ghost in the painting, and then you uncovered the Black Lotus Sect’s infiltration into Luocheng. Very good! Now, no one will say anything bad about you."

Although Qin Shaoyou inherited his position according to the rules, he was still young and had low cultivation, which led to some gossip after he became a junior officer.

But because of Xue Qingshan, no one dared to give him a hard time.

"It’s all luck."

After a few modest words, Qin Shaoyou said regretfully, "Unfortunately, the demon behind the ghost in the painting has not been found."

"Don’t worry. I will arrange for experienced hands to investigate this case. The demon behind it won’t just give up. As long as it dares to come out and harm people again, we will find it and eliminate it."

With his brother-in-law’s assurance, Qin Shaoyou felt a bit more at ease.

Then, he reported the surveillance of the Fragrant Breeze House.

After listening, Xue Qingshan asked calmly, "Do you suspect someone in the caravan?"

"Yes, especially the courtesan named Ruan Xiangxiang."

"What’s your reason?"

Qin Shaoyou hesitated and said, "Intuition... does that count?"

He couldn’t say it was because of his appetite...

Xue Qingshan didn’t scold Qin Shaoyou for being silly but nodded and said seriously, "It counts!"

Warriors, due to their vigorous blood, often have a high sensitivity to danger and evil.

So in the Demon Suppression Bureau, intuition can indeed be a reason to start an investigation.

After some thought, Xue Qingshan said, "I will send someone to keep an eye on the Fragrant Breeze House. You don’t need to worry about it."

"Okay."

Qin Shaoyou was glad to have an expert take over.

But Xue Qingshan’s next words left him stunned.

"Put aside your current tasks. I have a mission for you. In the past few days, children have been disappearing in Mianyuan County, suspected to be the work of a demon. Take a team to investigate."

"Huh?"

Qin Shaoyou looked surprised.

What about the plan to develop me slowly? Why am I being pushed out? So, love does fade, right?

"Brother-in-law, didn’t you say you wanted me to stay by your side to learn? Why the sudden change of heart?"

Xue Qingshan spread his hands and said helplessly, "How was I to know that you caught the eye of a noble? When I reported to the state capital, the Left Thousand-Man Commander specifically mentioned that you are favored by a noble and asked me to give you more responsibilities and cultivate you well."

"A noble?"

Qin Shaoyou felt very strange.

He didn’t know any nobles.

So, where did this noble come from?

And favor him?

Is it real favor, or is there another motive?