Madam Xie’s house was not far from where they were.


    Even going by her slow walking pace, it did not take more than five minutes for them to arrive.


    Surprisingly, this old lady was staying in a rather large compound – almost half as big as the inn that the Mystic Cavalry was staying at.


    Zhao Yunxiao saw Madam Xie all the way to her door, which had apparently been left unlocked as she just pushed it open without issue.


    “I shall take my leave and not disturb you from taking a rest then,” Zhao Yunxiao said. “Take care.”


    Madam Xie turned around to look at him, then beckoned to him with a deep frown.


    “Are you inviting me in?” Zhao Yunxiao was rather surprised.


    Judging from Madam Xie’s earlier behaviour, he had imagined that she would be a very grumpy and negative person.


    Therefore, he was already surprised enough that she had not been opposed to him helping her home.


    For her to invite him into her house was truly beyond his expectations.


    In fact, had she not been an ordinary villager, Zhao Yunxiao might even be worried that she was trying to set a trap for him here!


    “I shall impose for a while then,” Zhao Yunxiao accepted the invitation.


    He had time to spare anyway, so there was no harm in spending some time here if it could make this grieving old lady feel better.


    “Sorry to disturb!” Zhao Yunxiao deliberately said it out loud as he entered the house.


    If there were other occupants in the house, they would probably show their faces upon hearing him.


    As he had suspected, Madam Xie was likely to be staying alone.


    And that assumption was further corroborated by what he saw upon entering the house.


    It was a large place with decent furnishings, but it was also poorly maintained.


    Who knew how long it had been since someone last cleaned the house?


    If there was anyone else staying here with Madam Xie, then surely they would have done something about this?


    But if Madam Xie was truly staying here alone, then it was not a surprise that the house had ended up like this, considering her current mental state.


    The only problem was that, no matter how curious he was, it was inappropriate for a guest to just start looking around the house without permission.


    Thankfully, he was a cultivator.


    Zhao Yunxiao casually extended his spiritual sense to examine the house.


    It was still rather inappropriate to do so, but the curious Zhao Yunxiao tried to justify his actions by thinking that at least this was not the house of any young maidens.


    It was just a quick look to satisfy his curiosity, and it was not like Madam Xie would ever find out that he had inspected her house in such a manner!


    There were numerous rooms in this large house.


    As he scanned through them one by one, Zhao Yunxiao saw that these rooms were just as neglected as the front hall.


    Was that where Madam Xie kept her secret stash?


    Upon returning home, the old lady headed straight into the room with the floor compartment and put the rattle toy down on the dressing table.


    One might mistake this as Madam Xie’s room due to that, but that could not be the case either.


    That was because only one room in the house had a bed that was not covered in dust, and this was not it.


    If she had been sleeping in the bed every night, there was simply no way that this much dust could accumulate on the surface.


    Unless Madam Xie usually slept on the floor?


    Zhao Yunxiao would not put that past her, especially given her current mental state.


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    “May I have a seat?” Zhao Yunxiao called out.


    Madam Xie had ignored him after inviting him in, so Zhao Yunxiao had just been awkwardly standing at the door ever since entering the house.


    Seeing that there was no response, Zhao Yunxiao simply walked to the table.


    But before he had time to take a seat, Madam Xie reappeared from within the room, beckoning to him once again with a frown on her face.


    “You want me to go over there?” Zhao Yunxiao asked.


    Madam Xie responded by beckoning to him with larger movements, almost as though she was irritated that Zhao Yunxiao had not gotten it the first time.


    Despite feeling slightly confused by Madam Xie’s actions, Zhao Yunxiao went along with it, entering the room that Madam Xie was in.


    Once Zhao Yunxiao came over, Madam Xie moved aside and pointed to an empty spot on the floor.


    Zhao Yunxiao instantly knew what she was pointing at.


    That empty spot on the floor was exactly where he had detected the small compartment in the floor earlier.


    He had to admit that this floor compartment was very well constructed.


    Even with his enhanced senses as a cultivator, it would be almost impossible to distinguish it from the rest of the floor with just his bare eyes.


    “...What is it?” Zhao Yunxiao asked hesitantly, not wanting to immediately expose the fact that he knew about the floor compartment.


    “Below,” Madam Xie answered.


    Right, she could speak.


    Madam Xie had been silent ever since she left her usual seat in the bamboo chair out on the streets, so Zhao Yunxiao had almost forgotten that she was capable of speech.


    “


    “


    “


    “


    “


    The stack of paper appeared to be something like a diary, recording incidents that had happened in the past.


    These records had been lighthearted and joyous so far.


    But as Zhao Yunxiao read on, they slowly began to take a turn for the worse...