Regarding the matter of Shi Qiu, Ren Daoyuan already knew the whole story through the Time - Retracing Mirror.
For the people in the Xuanmen, dealing with various living and dead creatures was a common occurrence. It was not unusual for his disciples to occasionally bring back some spirits or demons for exorcism or containment.
"Dean, should we send someone to check it out?" a attendant disciple asked softly.
Ren Daoyuan just waved his hand. "Since it's a good deed, let them be." His gaze was far - reaching. "The cause and effect in this world have their own fates. We should follow the will of heaven and do good deeds."
He turned around and stepped into the pavilion, leaving only a faint sigh in the air.
This sigh contained both pity for the sufferings of all sentient beings and relief for the growth of his disciples.
...............
Not long after, the case of An Peng killing and burying the body was made public. It was like throwing a boulder into a calm lake, causing huge waves.
When the news spread, the court and the common people were in an uproar!
All those who had participated in the bullying and helped hide the body back then, including the already insane An Peng, were arrested one by one. These people were no longer the ignorant teenagers they used to be. Now they all had their own families and businesses, but in the face of the solid evidence from the Ministry of Justice, they turned pale and confessed their crimes.
The inside story of how An's father had bribed officials with a large amount of money to cover up his daughter's crime was also exposed. He was immediately dismissed from his official post and taken to prison for trial. The seemingly glorious An family collapsed overnight...
Zhang Yushu, as An Peng's husband and someone who had come into contact with Shi Qiu many years ago, was naturally taken away by the government for investigation.
However, Zhang Yushu fell ill during the interrogation and had a high fever that wouldn't subside. In his dreams, all he saw was Shi Qiu's pale face and Xiaoxiao's empty eyes...
After lingering in bed for several days, Zhang Yushu managed to write a letter of divorce. After a thorough investigation, the government confirmed that he was indeed unaware of the case and released him without any trouble.
But that home was no longer the same. All that was left was the cold emptiness of the room and the grief and guilt that had nowhere to go...
When the dust settled, the carriage of Wansxiang Academy set off on its way back. The wheels creaked, and the atmosphere was pleasant.
Different from when they came, there was an additional quiet and petite figure in the returning team.
She no longer went by the name "Xiaoxiao" but reclaimed her own identity - Shi Qiu.
Shi Qiu was wearing the ordinary cloth clothes prepared for her by the academy disciples. She sat in the corner of the carriage and often stared blankly at the scenery flashing by outside the window.
The sun shone on her still slightly pale face, but it no longer brought pain. Instead, it brought a long - awaited warmth.
The future was still uncertain, but at least the heavy burden that had weighed on her for seven years had been lifted.
...........
When the disciples returned to the academy, they were pleasantly surprised to find that their rankings on the Wenshi List had increased significantly!
The points of Shen Cuiyu's group had grown rapidly, and now they were in the middle of the list!
More and more people knew the names of the four - person group, and even the teachers began to pay attention to them during class.
However, during this period, it seemed that the palace had urgent matters to recall him, and Pei Yu left the academy again.
The days in the academy were peaceful and fulfilling. But one day, a half - true and half - false piece of news suddenly came from the General Knowledge Talisman, and it immediately caused an uproar in the whole academy!
[Do you know? The swindler Liu Ruyan, who was exposed during the Heaven - Worshiping Ceremony not long ago, has actually been acquitted!]
The matter of Liu Ruyan's swindling had been the biggest topic of discussion in Wansxiang Academy in recent years. As soon as this news spread, everyone started to discuss it.
There were all kinds of rumors, and it was still unknown whether they were credible or not.
Shen Cuiyu naturally heard about this, but before she could verify it, Shen Mu'an sent her a letter.
Shen Cuiyu originally thought it would be the usual care and rambling, but when she opened it, it was actually about Liu Ruyan!
The feud between Shen Mu'an and Liu Ruyan probably started when he learned that Liu Ruyan had pushed Shen Cuiyu off the attic.
Since then, Shen Mu'an had paid more attention to Liu Ruyan's news than Shen Cuiyu herself. As soon as there was any sign of trouble, he would immediately become vigilant.
After reading just two lines, Shen Cuiyu couldn't help but twitch the corner of her mouth with amusement.
There was no other reason. Shen Mu'an's letter was as lively as he was.
Just by looking at the words, Shen Cuiyu could imagine Shen Mu'an's expression and tone when he said these things...
'Strangely enough, Liu Ruyan had only been doing rough work in the palace laundry for less than a month when she started secretly telling fortunes for the palace servants. The palace rules were strict, and such divination was strictly prohibited. However, she was extremely accurate in her predictions and often hit the mark. Gradually, her reputation spread among the lower - level palace servants. Later, somehow, she even started to tell the fortunes of some out - of - favor concubines.'
'But her crime was ultimately judged by the emperor and the queen. Even if other nobles believed in her, they didn't dare to pardon her rashly. But the strange thing was that she not only got away scot - free but also became a favorite of the queen. She was extremely popular.'
The letter ended abruptly here.
Shen Cuiyu gently stroked the letter paper with her fingertips, her eyes narrowing slightly.
Although Shen Mu'an didn't say it explicitly, his meaning was clear - the only one who had the power to ignore the judgment, pardon Liu Ruyan, and promote her was the queen.
However, Liu Ruyan had messed up the Heaven - Worshiping Ceremony, which was a serious crime that could shake the foundation of the country. If it hadn't been for Ren Daoyuan's strong protection, she would have lost her head.
Now the queen was actually able to persuade the emperor to pardon her. What exactly had Liu Ruyan promised the queen?
She was a person who had lost her spiritual power and was a criminal. What kind of bargaining chips did she have to make the queen spare no expense?
All these doubts piled up in Shen Cuiyu's mind. She couldn't help but think of Pei Yu. He had been back in the palace for a long time, and there had been no news from him. This was unusual.
Could there really be some changes in the palace, and were they related to Liu Ruyan?
As if to confirm her suspicion, just two days later, a notice issued by the palace was posted all over the major towns and naturally reached Wansxiang Academy:
The palace issued an imperial edict announcing the upcoming restart of the once - every - four - year Xuanmen competition - the "Tianshu Ceremony".
This time, it was led by the queen, and the Imperial Astronomical Bureau and Wansxiang Academy were jointly responsible for organizing it, aiming to select the most talented people in the world.
The rewards were as follows. Firstly, the winner could obtain the treasured ancient Xuan - technique fragments. Secondly, they could get the peerless spiritual materials for drawing high - level talismans. Thirdly, they would be given a real position by the court, be able to access some confidential astrological records and strange event files from various places, and enjoy the court's support. Fourthly, the sect to which the winner belonged would be granted a gold plaque inscribed with the words "Authentic Xuanmen" by the emperor himself.
The rewards were so generous and the conditions so attractive that they were enough to make any Xuanmen person's heart flutter!
Looking at this notice, a glint of understanding flashed in Shen Cuiyu's eyes.
Liu Ruyan had no spiritual power left in her body, but she could make accurate divinations. Now she was holding a competition with such heavy rewards.
The "Tianshu Ceremony" was probably a game set up from the very beginning to allow Liu Ruyan to regain her fame and status "fairly and squarely"...