Di Renying had horses prepared for Long Fei and Wang Xiaoya, and together they rode through the snow back to Chang’an City.

They chatted leisurely along the way.

In this world, the Dali Temple is similar to the ancient time of Long Fei’s small world, both places responsible for investigating and adjudicating criminal cases.

Di Renying had just graduated from Chang’an Academy and immediately joined as a young minister, a respectable starting point.

It’s equivalent to graduating from university and directly entering the Supreme Court for work.

The Dali Temple and Ministry of Punishment had recently received cases of missing persons near the Shangbai Sect, all occurring around the Capital City.

Each case was investigated and today they happened to trace it to this teahouse.

Di Renying took out a leather wine jug, drank a sip, and handed it to Long Fei, saying, "Try the wine from my hometown, it’s hard to find in this Capital City."

Long Fei tilted his head and took a sip; the wine was fragrant, soft on the palate, with a hint of sweetness.

He handed the wine sack back to Di Renying, smiling, "Is this Fenjiu?"

Di Renying was surprised, "Brother Dao really is well-informed, this is indeed Fenjiu from my hometown."

He collected the wine sack, growing increasingly familiar with Long Fei, as if he had seen him somewhere before.

After entering the city, he instructed his subordinates to first deliver the corpse to the Dali Temple for the conclusion of the case, then he cupped his fists and asked Long Fei, "May I know your honorable name, brother? Have we met somewhere before?"

Long Fei shook his head, "My name is Long Fei, from Shu State. This is our first meeting."

Di Renying slapped his thigh, "Ah, so you are the National Protection Great Mercy and Virtue Dharma Master personally appointed by the Empress Dowager. My apologies, Di was disrespectful."

"You’re too polite, Brother Di."

Long Fei and Wang Xiaoya chuckled, surprised that his reputation was so famous in the Capital City.

Di Renying, seeing his idol, invited Long Fei and Wang Xiaoya, "Do you have a place to stay in the Capital City? Would you care to visit my residence? I have some matters to inquire of Brother Long!"

"Sure!"

Long Fei smiled, "My wife and I don’t have a place to stay, so we shall impose on Brother Di."

Di Renying gestured, "Brother Long, this way please!"

He led Long Fei and Wang Xiaoya through the Capital City, taking quite a while to reach his mansion.

Despite the curfew, it’s evident that nightlife in Great Tang is vibrant.

The streets are paved with bluestone, with red lanterns hanging at the door of every household.

The lanterns containing Light Gathering Stones, the night remained bright.

Armored soldiers patrolled the streets continually. Di Renying had a token from the Dali Temple, allowing him to pass freely in the streets.

Ordinary people without any token would be detained by these soldiers instantly.

On the way, he introduced Long Fei and Wang Xiaoya to the situation in Chang’an City.

Chang’an has two markets, and Three Thousand Six Hundred Alleys.

The two markets are East and West districts; East Market is affluent, home to Princes and Dukes.

West Market is bustling, a place for common people’s business and living.

The Imperial Palace faces south, with the north and south sides being royal forbidden lands.

Di Renying’s residence was in West Market, although the streets were empty, every household and tavern was very lively.

Wang Xiaoya teased Di Renying, "With your position at the Dali Temple, how come you didn’t reside in East Market?"

Di Renying laughed, "East Market is nice, but lacks the liveliness of West Market. Living in West Market lets me interact more with the people and understand their hardships."

"Then you must be a good official."

Wang Xiaoya commended him with a laugh.

He waved his hands repeatedly, modestly saying, "I dare not call myself a good official, but a true man living between heaven and earth should be upright. What I do pales compared to the remarkable feats of both in Shu State; it’s like a Great Witch meeting a Divine Detective."

Long Fei and Wang Xiaoya laughed heartily, finding him very congenial.

They returned to Di’s residence, a simple house with two sections, a courtyard for Di Renying himself and another for servants.

Inside, he had only two servants, an old house manager, a cook, and a young maid.

Di Renying welcomed Long Fei and Wang Xiaoya into the living room, immediately instructing the girl at the door, "Little Wan, quickly brew a pot of finest tea, today I entertain honored guests."

"Understood!"

The maid smiled sweetly, wearing plain cotton clothes, but her figure was excellent.

Wang Xiaoya curiously asked, "Brother Di, is she your wife?"

Di Renying shook his head, waving his hands hurriedly, "Misunderstood, Madam. She’s an orphan I picked up on the road years ago and raised; she’s only sixteen this year."

"I see!"

Wang Xiaoya smiled, stood up, "I’ll go help her, you two chat!"

Di Renying stood quickly, "Madam, visiting for the first time, how can I let you do such work?"

Wang Xiaoya replied, "Just making tea, not considered hard work. Don’t call me madam, makes me sound old. I’m Wang Xiaoya, call me Sister Little Ya next time."

"Isn’t that inappropriate?"

Di Renying touched his head, a bit embarrassed.

Wang Xiaoya laughed, "Nothing to be embarrassed about, calling me sister is me taking advantage. You, dear friend, are destined to be Prime Minister in the future."

"Ah?"

Di Renying’s face puzzled, not yet processing, Wang Xiaoya already walked away.

Long Fei called out with a smile, "Come drink, Brother Di, let the women busy themselves."

Di Renying chuckled awkwardly, returned to his seat, and took out from his Storage Ring a set of wine pots and cups, immediately filling up a cup for Long Fei.

He took out an oilcloth package, unwrapped it to reveal several pounds of loose beef.

He apologized to Long Fei, "Due to curfew, it’s difficult to get food outside at night. This is Sunx Family’s famous signature braised beef from West Market, try how it tastes?"

Long Fei grabbed a piece directly, tasted it, nodded, "Not bad, though braised, it’s fresh and carries a floral scent. This shouldn’t be ordinary beef?"

Di Renying toasted and drank with him, nodding, "Indeed, this is the peony beef raised by Sunx Family in suburban areas outside the city. They say it’s raised eating peony flowers from a young age, hence the floral scent."

"Cow chewing peony, interesting."

Long Fei laughed, shared a drink with Di Renying, and asked, "What did you want to ask me, Brother Di?"

Di Renying wiped his mouth, hastily saying, "It’s like this, we recently handled several cases. Victims were found emaciated, seemingly devoured by demons, with not a drop of blood left. Furthermore, they weren’t ordinary people; all seemed to be cultivators recently arriving in Capital City according to investigations. Brother Long, you are knowledgeable, do you know which Demon Clan would do this?"

Long Fei thought for a moment, "Not all those who siphon human blood and Essential Qi are demons. Some who walk the Heterodox Path have such techniques, draining others’ essence blood to improve their cultivation level. Besides, Demon Clan consuming human essence blood usually eats the flesh and bones altogether, wouldn’t leave a corpse behind."

"Exactly."

Di Renying appeared enlightened, frowned and sighed, "Lately, serious cases frequently emerge, our Dali Temple bears great pressure. It’s unknown who spread the rumors that an immortal opportunity appeared in the Capital City, causing cultivators from all over to gather here. We catch one, another pops up, feels like my bones might fall apart from fatigue."

Long Fei laughed, drank some wine, and asked him, "You say the talk of the immortal opportunity is false?"

Di Renying replied, "It seems to be false for now. Chang’an City lacks any Daoist Blessed Land, at most Mount Hua to the north and Zhongnan Mountain to the south have some Daoist fate. In such a mundane place, how could there be any immortal opportunity?"