"What?"

  Hua Rou and Yu Er stared at each other in shock.

  "This is impossible!" Yu'er hastily rushed to Hua Rou's side and shouted at Tang Lei: "Hua Rou is a disciple of the Poison House, I also used to stay in the Poison House, let us identify whether there is poison on the flag or not! Now saying what doesn't exist, this must be someone who has tampered with it and switched it during the chaos..."

  Tang Lei suddenly raised his hand and slapped Yu'er in the face with a loud slap, knocking her to the ground, blood flowing from the corner of her mouth.

  "You're dead! Without any evidence, how dare you slander our family's reputation?"

  Yu'er covered her face wanting to retort, but Hua Rou crouched beside her and pulled her back, shaking her head at her.

  "Master of the house..." Mu Jun was about to speak up, but an even louder voice overpowered him: "Is the master confused!"

  It's Tang Xiao!

  His loud voice caused everyone to turn their heads, and Tang Feiyan quickly approached him, pulling on his arm: "Xiao Ge..."

  Tang Xiao put down the lacquer box and pulled Tang Fei Yan's hand away, then picked up the entire lacquer box again and walked to Hua Rou and Yu Er's side, stopping in front of them and slamming the lacquer box on the ground.

  Mo Jun looked at Tang Xiao for a moment, then his gaze fell on the lacquer box.

  "Just now, the poison master said clearly that the yama's evil spirit that can kill people is only effective when the arsenic paste and rice fragrance on the mask are superimposed. If there is no arsenic paste on the mask, the rice fragrance on Huajou's body will not work either, so the person who should be held accountable now is not Huajou, but me."

  Tang Xiao finished speaking and turned to face Nai Nai: "I am responsible for the new person's mask. This time, there was a mistake, I should take responsibility alone, please punish me, Nai Nai."

  Tang Xiao finished speaking and knelt down on one knee.

  Admiring you, I looked at Tang Xiao and slowly shook his head.

  With a good heart and justice, unfortunately, the method is wrong...

  Tang Xiao took the initiative to take responsibility and put himself in the front, Grandma looked at Tang Xiao kneeling on the ground, angry with her eyes wide open, but under the gaze of everyone, she couldn't openly favor him, so...

  "This is the punishment, but also need to investigate the matter clearly first! Today is the grand ceremony of Menqing's ancestor worship, can't be delayed! Come on, put Tang Xiao, Hua Rou and Yu'er separately in the dungeon, and thoroughly investigate after the ceremony!"

  Xing Tang's disciples stepped forward at his command, while Tang Shi Qi and Tang Lei exchanged a glance but remained silent.

  "Brother Xiao..." Just as Tang Xiao and the others were about to be taken away, Tang Feiyan rushed forward in anxiety, but Tang Shiqi pulled her back and shook his head to stop her.

  "Mother..."

  "Shut up!" Tang Shiqi shouted softly and pulled her to one side with force.

  "Jiuer!" Grandma said with a serious face: "Take these poisonous objects away and keep them safe first."

  "Yes."

  Tang Jiuer and Linlin exchanged a sentence, then turned around to pick up the mask and the skirt with the sachet, while Linlin picked up the lacquer box that Tang Xiao had closed, and the two of them left the square at a distance from each other.

  Tang Liu stretched out his hand and pulled Mu Junwu, saying in a low voice: "What to do?"

  He scanned Tang Lei and Tang Shiqi with his eyes, but did not speak. At this moment, he was secretly thinking: This round of linked sets, is it aimed at me or Huajiao? Or... Tang Xiao?

  ……

  Tang Xiao, Hua Rou, and Yu Er were locked up in a dark prison, but they weren't put in the same cell. They were separated not only by distance, but also by stone walls, so no one could see anyone else.

  After the prison gate was locked, the disciples of Xing Tang left. Tang Xiao immediately shouted loudly: "Hua Rou, don't be afraid, this matter will be investigated clearly."

  Hua remained silent, biting her lip and pressing her head against the prison gate, her face gloomy.

  Unable to hear Huajou's response, Yu'er also became worried and shouted loudly while holding onto the door pillar: "Yes, Huajou, this must be their deliberate frame-up. Although they switched our flagpoles and we have no evidence, the poison is cumulative and the poison master will definitely investigate clearly."

  "Yu'er is right, this matter is so suspicious, Grandma will definitely investigate thoroughly and clear our names." Tang Xiao echoed, his words filled with concern: "Hua Rou, you mustn't lose heart!"

  "Tang Xiao, brother, Yu'er, I'm not afraid of being wronged or framed, but I just don't understand." Hua Rou's expression was sorrowful: "How could they harm others to frame me? Is a person's life really so worthless in their eyes?"

  Tang Xiao clenched his teeth and remained silent, both hands tightly grasping the doorpost.

  "When was our life ever important?" Yu'er smiled bitterly and said: "If the Poison Master hadn't treated me in time today, I'm afraid I would be a dead person by now."

  Tang Xiao furrowed his brow in contemplation, but Hua Rou suddenly lifted her head, a look of horror on her face: "I understand! From the beginning, they didn't want to... frame us, not just humiliate us, they wanted... us dead!"

  "That's right! You're dead, and I'll naturally be blamed for it!"

  ……

  The ceremony is a big deal, even if something unexpected happens, it can't be stopped, so what should continue will continue.

  Grandma recited the sacrificial oration on the high platform, no matter how much anger and discontent she had in her heart, she endured it and maintained the smooth progress of the grand ceremony.

  When the sacrificial ceremony ended, the remaining six house owners led dozens of disciples holding lacquered wooden masks to arrive under the high platform.

  A horn sounded, and the disciples put on their lacquered wooden masks. Zhou Feng and the master of the house exchanged a glance before donning the golden Vajra Guardian mask with its green face and sharp teeth that they held in their hands.

  The drumbeat starts, and the disciples wearing masks begin to dance the Nuo dance.

  Fireworks are bursting at this moment, displaying a dazzling array of colors.

  The disciples around looked up and gazed, immersed in the splendor, Tang Lei, the master of the house, took advantage of the chaos to get close to Zhou Feng with a green face and fangs, hastily said a word and quickly left.

  Zhou Feng danced the lion dance while slowly slipping away to the edge of the crowd. As a new round of fireworks exploded and everyone's attention was drawn again, he quickly exited the lion dance group, hastily threw his mask into a pile of miscellaneous items nearby, and slipped away silently.

  ……

  "They deliberately used Baibu Cai to trick me into going to Pei Mi Guo Xiang, the purpose was to wait for us to put on masks and then poison us to death."

  Hua Rou had already figured out the entire design and arrangement of the matter: "Me, Mu Da Ge, and also Liu Er Shixiong, Yu Er, they actually wanted us all to die..."

  Inside the bitter cage, Hua Rou's anger was extremely intense, and Yu'er and Tang Xiao also had unquenchable inner flames of rage. However, just at this moment, a thick smoke with a bewildering fragrance suddenly flew in from the air vent.

  Thick smoke spewed out, and instantly a chorus of coughing erupted from within the prison.

  Slowly, Yu'er's coughing sound disappeared, and she fainted in the bitter prison. In another room, Tang Xiao also knelt down with his hands on the doorpost, coughing, and then lost his voice.

  Hua Rou couldn't hear the two voices, she only saw thick smoke rolling in.

  "Yu'er? Tang Xiao Shixiong? What's wrong with you two?"

  She asked, but no one answered, and all the coughing sounds in the entire prison disappeared.

  "Hua Rou sniffed her nose: "Mihun San?""

  At this moment, someone covered his mouth and nose in the thick smoke and rushed to Hua Rou's face, unlocking it.

  Hua Rong's expression was one of caution and vigilance at first, but after seeing the person clearly, she suddenly changed to shock: "Mu Ge? How is it you?"