Chapter 3

New book! Please collect! Please recommend!

Xu Ziyyan had just steadied herself, but the young girl's cultivation was clearly higher than hers. Xu Ziyyan had no time to dodge and, lacking any combat experience, she stood there in a daze, watching the slap about to land on her face. The young boy suddenly stepped forward, grabbed the girl's wrist, and pulled her back. He smiled at Xu Ziyyan and said:

"Let it go, Xi Mei."

After saying that, he released the girl's wrist and walked away. The girl glared fiercely at Xu Ziyyan, about to take a step, but then a twelve- or thirteen-year-old boy collided with her and ran off quickly.

"Looking for death!"

The girl vented her anger on the boy, lifting her foot and kicking him in the buttocks, sending him sprawling on the ground. The boy flipped over without a word and ran off with his head down.

This kick seemed to dispel her anger, and the girl no longer looked at Xu Ziyyan, but instead went straight to chase after the boy she called Lin Ge.

Xu Ziyyan shook her head, not wanting to cause trouble, and not having the qualifications to do so. She reorganized her thoughts, gathered her courage, and began to look at each shop, hoping to buy cheap materials for alchemy and talisman making.

Wandering aimlessly, Xu Ziyyan entered another shop. As soon as she stepped in, she heard a voice with a crying tone:

"It's you! You still dare to come here? Uncle Si, it was her who stole the talisman from me!"

Xu Ziyyan was startled and looked up, feeling angry. The one shouting was the girl who had tried to slap her, with tears still on her face. The boy she called Lin Ge was not there.

"Uncle Si, it's her, it's her who stole the talisman from me!"

The middle-aged man called Uncle Si looked at Xu Ziyyan with a suspicious gaze. Xu Ziyyan was confused, looking at the girl, but when she heard the girl say she had stolen something, she became furious, her face turning red as she shouted:

"You're lying! What do you have that's worth stealing?"

"You stole my talisman!" the girl said angrily.

"Xi Mei, be quiet!" Uncle Si shouted, then turned to look at Xu Ziyyan seriously, his tone softening a bit: "Miss, do you have any explanation?"

"Explanation? Why should I explain?" Xu Ziyyan, feeling wronged, her eyes brimming with tears, said angrily.

"Uncle Si, she's guilty of theft," the girl said through gritted teeth.

"What theft? When did I steal from you? What did I steal from you?"

Xu Ziyyan had just arrived in the capital city, everything was still unfamiliar, and after walking all day without finding what she needed, she was already exhausted. Now, being falsely accused, her委屈 (grievance) was evident, but she stubbornly held back her tears, not letting them fall.

"It was you and a twelve- or thirteen-year-old thief. You deliberately bumped into my Lin Ge, and then the thief took the opportunity to bump into me and steal the talisman I was delivering to Uncle Si. Sob..." As she spoke, the girl started crying.

Hearing this, Xu Ziyyan immediately remembered the twelve- or thirteen-year-old boy who had bumped into her and was kicked by her. She thought it was likely that the boy had stolen the talisman. Feeling a bit relieved, a smile of mockery appeared on her lips. Uncle Si had been watching Xu Ziyyan's expression, and seeing the change, he was almost certain she was not involved. However, seeing Xi Mei's distressed and panicked look, he felt a bit sorry for her, knowing that the family would not let her off for losing so many talismans, and that he and her father were very close. He sighed inwardly, thinking that he had to pin this on the girl in front of him, even though it would mean her certain death. But it was better for someone else to die than for a member of his own family. Besides, from her appearance, she didn't seem to have any background, and her cultivation was only at the first level of the Qi Condensation stage. If she died, so be it. With this thought, he put on a cold face and said:

"Miss, you'd better have an explanation, or I'll have to take you to the family's punishment hall."

"Wherever you take me, I didn't steal anything." Xu Ziyyan's heart sank. From her experience, she could see that Uncle Si was determined to pin this on her, but she couldn't fight back. With her current cultivation, fighting would only lead to a quicker death.

"Fine!" Uncle Si's eyes were icy cold, and he said calmly: "Someone, tie her up."

Two people immediately rushed over and bound Xu Ziyyan's hands behind her back. Xu Ziyyan had thought about resisting, but Uncle Si suddenly released his aura, pinning her down so she couldn't move an inch.

Just as she was feeling angry, Xi Mei suddenly rushed to her, slapped her in the face, and shouted:

"You bitch, let's see where you run now!"

Xu Ziyyan bit her lip, staring at Xi Mei, a trace of blood appearing at the corner of her mouth.

"Take her to the punishment hall." Uncle Si said coldly.

"What's going on to need to involve the family's punishment hall?"

With these words, a man in a blue robe walked in, smiling at Uncle Si.

"Second Brother, what brings you here?"

"Hehe, nothing, just passing by and thought I'd come in and take a look."

"Second Uncle, greetings." Xi Mei said timidly.

"Oh, it's Xi Mei. Why are you still here? Where's your Lin Ge?" Second Uncle teased.

"Lin Ge went to catch the thief."

"What thief?" Second Uncle asked, puzzled.

"The thief's accomplice." Xi Mei pointed at Xu Ziyyan and said hatefully: "She and the little thief stole the talisman from me, and Lin Ge went to catch the little thief."

"You lost the talisman I asked you to deliver to the shop?" Second Uncle's tone turned cold.

Xi Mei's face turned pale, and she "thud" knelt on the ground, lowering her head and not daring to speak.

Second Uncle snorted coldly, turned to look at Xu Ziyyan, his gaze sharp like a knife, making Xu Ziyyan feel as if her skin was being cut.

"Did you steal the talisman from Xi Mei?"

"I didn't steal it." Xu Ziyyan stubbornly met Second Uncle's gaze.

"Little girl, you probably don't know the value of talismans." He took out a talisman from his pocket, laid it in his hand, and showed it to Xu Ziyyan, saying calmly: "This talisman is worth five hundred taels of silver. You stole fifty talismans. Just give them back to me, and I won't make things difficult for you."

He then fixed his cold gaze on Xu Ziyyan.