Sixty-three ignite fire

  Gu Man glanced at her with a hint of mockery and smiled, then walked over to pick up a soybean and examined it.

  She turned around and threw the yellow bean into the cliff, then she lay on her stomach at the top of the cliff to look down.

  The wind blew her hair all up in the air, and her clothes were filled with wind, as if she was about to fly away at any moment.

  Gu Zhaozheng got off the car and saw the situation, so he shouted loudly: "A Man! What are you doing?"

  Nothing was done, just wanted to see how far away Death God is.

  This is the last time, Liu Liuniang, I've run out of patience with you.

  Soon you will know what it means to be hoist by your own petard.

  The cliff was very high, and from her angle, it seemed to stretch on endlessly without a bottom in sight. She thought back to the perilous scene just now and looked at Gu Yan with deep meaning, smiling: "Nothing, just feeling sentimental. Sister, if we were the ones who fell down, then we would truly be reduced to nothing but bones."

  The smile on her face didn't match what she was saying at all, and both Gu Zhao and Gu Yan felt a chill run down their spines.

  Gu Man didn't wait for anyone else's persuasion and stood up by herself, retreating step by step.

  Never again put herself and her family in such a dangerous situation, where one wrong step could lead to an irreparable life, she had had enough!

  She slowly turned her head and found that apart from Gu Zhao and Gu Yan, there was a boy who was one head taller than herself staring at her intently.

  The young man was dressed in finery, with a crystal-clear jade pendant at his waist, his hair combed back and tied up with a jade ribbon, looking every inch the elegant young noble.

  Gu Yan and Gu Zhao exchanged a glance and both of their faces turned red.

  Strangers on the road are like jade, and handsome young men come fluttering by.

  It's probably like that too?

  Gu Man smiled generously at him with a hint of playfulness and said: "Young Master Ouyang, are you here to see us off?"

  Madam Ouyang said little boy, could it be this son?

  But he looks like a thirteen or fourteen year old, and having him escort so many people is also a bit too childish.

  The young man bowed and made a gesture of invitation: "I am Ouyang Can. My mother has asked me to escort you ladies up the mountain, please get in the carriage."

  After Gu Man and the others got on the carriage, Ouyang Can turned his head to take a look at the road that had been cleaned up spotlessly, and slightly narrowed his eyes.

  He beckoned his attendant, Ping An, to come over and whispered to him, "I don't think this is an accident. If it's not an accident, the murderer may still target those girls. Since Mother has taken them under her wing, we can't let anything happen to them."

  "It's all right, let's just agree to it for now," he said, then asked him again: "We can't help each other for a lifetime, can we? These few young ladies are going to the Luoyun Temple, while we're staying at the Pujisi Temple. If something happens tonight..."

  Ouyang Can's hands were clasped behind his back, without the slightest hint of youthful awkwardness. His face was full of confidence and determination: "Then I'll see who can harm people under my watch."

  It's probably because there were many people escorting us that we finally arrived at Luoyun Temple safely.

  Luo Yun Temple was a nunnery, and the abbess had already led the nuns to welcome them at the gate, seeing that they were all somewhat disheveled. She asked: "Girls, what's going on..."

  Ouyang Can didn't wait for their response and threw his horse whip forward, walking towards the abbess and bowing: "Abbess, I apologize. Just now, the horses of these few young ladies were startled, and they themselves got a bit of a fright. Fortunately, there's no major harm done. We'd still like to trouble you, Abbess, to prepare some hot water for them. As for medicine for their injuries, we've brought our own."

  He spoke so intimately that the nun thought he was the brother of the young lady from the Hou Mansion. She hastily replied, "Alright, alright, I'll get someone to prepare it right away. The courtyard where you ladies will be resting tonight has already been cleaned and is very quiet. I'll take you there first. As for you, sir..."

  Ouyang Can smiled: "I'm not as particular as the girls, so it's fine if Master arranges a side room for me."

  Gu Zhao and the others all looked up at her with some surprise, even Gu Man found it a bit strange.

  It was clearly said that they would come down the mountain tomorrow.

  Besides, he's an outsider, and living with us women, isn't that going against the rules?

  Just as expected, Wang's mother opposed: "Master Ouyang... how can this be?"

  Ouyang Can turned his head to look at Wang's mother and said softly, "Don't worry, Mother. My father and Wang Shilang are close friends. I just want to help out. This journey is not very peaceful."

  Wang's mother hesitated and went to see Gu Zhao and the others, but saw that they all nodded.

  It's still unknown what will happen next, but having someone help won't be a bad thing.

  So it was settled. Ouyang Can instructed the abbot, "Then please trouble the abbot to take them to settle down first, I'll go out for a while and come back later."

  Ouyang Can rushed to the Puzi Temple, and excitedly entered the temple hall. He saw Madame Ouyang already kneeling in front of the Buddha statue, so he knelt down on a cushion as well, secretly opening one eye to glance at his mother while pretending to recite scriptures.

  Mrs. Ouyang felt both angry and amused, so she reached out to pinch his face: "You dare to be so unruly in front of the Buddha! I clearly told your brother to send it, how did you end up going yourself? What kind of weight do you think you have, daring to take on such a big task?"

  Ouyang Can hugged Ouyang Furen's arm and walked out towards the wing room, saying: "Brother will probably arrive at dusk, it's better if I send him off first. Besides, although my martial arts are not as good as brother's, this brain is more useful than brother's, maybe I can even do a better job than brother!"

  Ouyang Can was clever since childhood, and people at that time all praised him for having eloquence at a young age.

  Madam Ouyang couldn't outtalk him, so she asked: "Are the girls settled in? It's really a wonder they made it through - I was on edge watching them. If they hadn't been so clever, they'd all be dead by now."

  Ouyang Can nodded, remembering the little girl who had climbed up the tree trunk and crashed into the mountain wall with all her might, and felt a pang of sadness. He vaguely heard someone call her "Jiuniang", it seemed that she was indeed Jiuniang.

  He said, "To say that the ninth girl is really different from all the girls I've seen. How can she be so capable at such a young age? If she didn't let one person jump out first and then lead people to jump out, the three of us would have fallen off the cliff. At that critical moment, we wouldn't have been able to save her even if we wanted to."

  Madam Ouyang turned around and poked his forehead, saying: "All you say are nonsense, how many girls have you seen, dare to say that she is different from all the girls?"

  Ouyang Can smiled and refuted her: "At least your sisters aren't this fierce."

  The sky was gradually darkening. Ouyang Can had just entered the gate of Luoyun Temple when he heard Ping'an, who had been staying at Luoyun Temple all along, report back: "Young master, I've found out one thing..."

  Ouyang Can's mouth curled up into a meaningful smile after listening, and he instructed Ping'an: "Go to my mother's place to get a maid, I have use for her."

  This naturally means going into the inner courtyard and chatting with Gu Man and the others.

  That clever and agile girl was none other than Li Guo, whom they had met just that afternoon. She looked at Gu Man's unsightly expression and asked, "The situation is urgent, Miss, what do you plan to do?"

  It turned out that Liu Pozi still had this mission, no wonder he wanted to follow himself up the mountain. Gu Man pulled a corner of his mouth and was slightly puzzled: wasn't this Liu Pozi someone from Gu Yan's side?

  She thought for a moment and then said to Li Guo, "You go see my eleventh sister for me and repeat what you just told me word for word. Let's see how she responds."

  Li Guo nodded and went to Gu Yan's room to tell him everything that had happened.

  But in just a moment's time, Gu Yan entered Gu Man's room with an unpleasant expression and stared into her eyes, saying: "This matter has nothing to do with me."

  Gu nodded: "I also know it's none of your business, who would be stupid enough to commit murder and risk their own life. I just wanted to ask about your thoughts."

  Gu Yan smiled coldly and said, "Of course I'll listen to sister. Now we're on the same road."

  That's great, exactly what I wanted.

  Gu Man turned around and instructed Li Guo: "Trouble sister to tell your young master, please ask him to send someone to keep an eye on the surroundings. If there's a fire at night, be sure to catch them in the act."

  So it was to set fire and burn yourself to death? This is a big deal, and the heart is ruthless enough. It's actually going to drag Gu Zhao and Gu Yan together to die at once.

  Li Guo agreed and went.

  It was just past the third watch at night, and Gu Man, Gu Yan, and Gu Zhao were all hiding in the darkness. They coldly watched as Liu Pozi, still with a wooden expression, led several people to secretly pour oil on the gate at night and lock it.

  As soon as the fire was lit, many lanterns around it brightened up. Liu Pozi was shocked and turned back to see that Gu Man and others were standing not far away, coldly staring at her.

  She knew what was happening and looked around, pushed someone out, and suddenly pulled her legs and ran wildly towards the dark place.

  But she had apparently become a turtle in someone's urn, and before she could run two steps, she was caught by someone. She looked up to find that it was the young master from daytime, who happened to be watching her with a leisurely expression.

  A fire that could have claimed lives was thus extinguished in a somewhat farcical manner. Gu Man pushed open the courtyard door, covering his nose to avoid smelling the intense smell of oil, and only then did he turn to the crowd behind him and say: "Apprehend them all, not one is allowed to escape. Tomorrow, take them all to see the official!"

  They didn't even give me a chance to explain, nor did they ask who had assigned the task to me. Those people were all in a panic, shouting for mercy in a flurry of voices.

  The groom of the horse carriage hurriedly shouted loudly at Gu Man and the others that it had nothing to do with him.

  Gu Yan and Gu Man exchanged a glance, then looked at the old woman Liu, only to find that she was silently standing aside with a wooden expression. Gu Yan felt anxious, pointing at her and asking: "Aren't you going to speak? Who gave you the guts to lay hands on us?"

  Liu's throat made a gurgling sound, she let out a few eerie laughs, and then suddenly collapsed to the ground with blood flowing from her seven orifices.

  The several servants who were originally holding her were shocked and let go of their hands, jumping a few steps back.

  Gu Zhao let out a soft cry and fainted into Hua Yan's arms, exhausted.

  It was Gu Yan and Gu Man who didn't seem surprised at all, without even a scream.

  Ouyang Can raised his head and glanced at them, then bent down and stretched out his hand to part Liu Baozi's hair.

  "Be careful!" Gu Man suddenly rushed up and pushed him away, then pointed at the ground for him to see.

  Suddenly, a milky white worm crawled out of Liu Baba's ear! (....)