Ning Xiao felt that the person in front of him was a little familiar, but at this moment, he couldn’t remember where he had met him. But since this person was carrying all these nonsense on him, it was better to send him off as soon as possible to be on the safe side. He put the talisman in the Taoist's hand and said coldly, “Take it away. He doesn’t need it.”
The Taoist priest didn't get the desired result. He sighed ruefully on the inside and said, “I’m giving it to you. You don't have to pay me.”
Ning Xiao’s voice sounded even colder. “He doesn’t need it.”
The Taoist couldn’t help but look at Qi Le and said, “It’s free. Don’t you want it?”
Qi Le had long been stunned by Ning Xiao’s actions. In theory, this person shouldn't know the truth, but judging from his reaction, it didn't look like he didn't know anything. It was really strange. After thinking for a while, he felt that he couldn’t make the mistake of admitting without even being threatened. He held out his hand. “I do.”
Ning Xiao grabbed him by the wrist and pulled him aside before the Taoist could hand him the talisman. His voice was laced with anger. “Are you stupid?!"
Qi Le rolled his eyes. “To ward off evil.”
Ning Xiao watched his attitude and raised his eyebrows slightly. “You need to ward off evil?”
Qi Le was quiet as he pretended to be calm. Then, he asked tentatively, “I'm a human being, why not? Or do you think that it doesn’t work on people with multiple personalities?”
“Multiple personalities… Do you believe this?” Ning Xiao pulled him aside, looked down at him and lowered his voice, “There's no need to test me Qi Le.”
Qi Le widened his eyes in shock, opened his mouth but he couldn’t say a word. Fuck! So this guy actually knew! How the hell did he find out? Did he somehow give himself away?
Ning Xiao had no evidence at all, but seeing Qi Le's expression at the moment, he was sure that he was right. His gaze was complicated as he said softly, “It is you.”
Qi Le took a second to respond, then immediately regained consciousness. He looked dumbstruck. “What did you just say? Who did you say? My God-like friend?”
“It’s a bit late for you to play dumb.” Ning Xiao kindly reminded and then recalled the words this man had said about Qi Le. His lips twitched a little but it wasn't obvious.
Qi Le, “……”
Seeing that the two had suddenly stepped aside, began to talk in a low voice and ignored himself, the Taoist priest thought that it was so difficult to give gifts these days. He leaned over and said, “Here’s your talisman. I’m leaving.”
Qi Le casually took it. “Take care.”
“Mmm.”
Ning Xiao thought that he wouldn't take it again after he had cleared things up. But who knew that he still wanted it. He immediately frowned. “You…”
Qi Le’s mind was working really quickly right now. He was trying hard to think about how to solve the problem of exposure. When he heard this, he casually replied, “It’s okay, it's fake.”
Ning Xiao froze. Before he could speak, he saw the Taoist, who had already taken two and a half steps forth, look at them calmly and solemnly. “My stuff is real, and the patterns on it are all painted with vermilion, which really wards off evil spirits.”
Qi Le’s pursed his lips. “Aren’t you leaving?”
The Taoist repeated in all seriousness. “It’s real.”
“Yes, I know. You can go.” Qi Le waved but suddenly stopped him after a brief pause. “By the way, didn't you say that your lab teacher constantly revolves around your senior?”
The Taoist nodded.
“I’ll give you a good idea. If you want to pass your lab at the end of the term, you should try to hug your senior's thighs from now on and try to get on well with him,” Kyle said. “Trust me. I'm definitely right.”
The Taoist priest was silent for a moment before reminding him. “My senior is a murderer.”
Ning Xiao, “…”
Ning Xiao felt that the topic had suddenly turned strange. He began to think about whether there was something wrong with this person’s brain. Then, he froze slightly and remembered where he had seen him. What's more, this person was one of the two mental patients there when Qi Le had been hospitalized. He nodded to himself and concluded that the talisman was fake.
“What’s wrong with a murderer?” Qi Le patted him on the shoulder. “You have to ease up. If you want to pass your exam, you have to be unafraid of death. You're both students and are also that… Yes, you know what I mean, so he should understand you. If not, you should wear more talismans to keep yourself safe.”
The Taoist priest remained silent for a longer period of time and sighed heavily. “That thing doesn’t work.”
Qi Le, “……”
Ning Xiao, “…”
The Taoist priest glanced at their faces and calmly added, “I mean, if he's determined to kill me, it definitely won't work.”
“Be good. No need to explain. I understand.” Qi Le patted him, his own lips twitching. He encouraged him, “It’s just holding his thighs. I don’t think he will kill you. Look, your teacher has been pestering him for so long but he didn't kill him, did he?”
The Taoist priest thought for a moment. “That's true.”
“Well, I've pointed out a way for you. Whether you want to go down this path or not depends on what you want. Go back to school lad. A beautiful future is waiting for you!”
The Taoist nodded somberly, thanked him and turned to leave.
Ning Xiao watched him walk away and turned to look at Qi Le. “What are you talking about? Is there really a murderer?”
“It's nothing.”
“Oh.”
The two looked at each other in silence. Qi Le hadn't thought of a good strategy and didn't know what to say. Ning Xiao raised his eyebrows slightly. “Shall we have a chat?”
“…Mmm.”
Ning Xiao took the lead, He turned the corner and walked along the main road towards the pond. One area of the pond was covered with a large spread of lotus leaves. The lush greenery was beautiful. Above that was a wooden pathway that zigzagged across the pond and led to the path on the side. On one side of the pathway, there was a fountain that splashed clear droplets of water into the air. He glanced at it briefly and walked around the gravel path to get to the pathway.
Qi Le followed him, quickly going through the recent events in his mind. He then remembered that this man had stopped him one afternoon and said he wanted to talk to him. Had he already found out his identity at the time? He frowned slightly and began to think about the dialogue during that day. Then, he remembered the rumor of him having a threesome and immediately froze. Did he investigate him and found out that it was his father, so he guessed that he was Qi Le? He was a little too careless!
He pursed his lips and glanced at the person in front of him. Seeing that he didn’t mean to stop, he resigned himself and slowly followed, still deep in thought. He already knew the truth. What did he want to do… He suddenly froze and burst out in cold sweat. Only then did he remember that Ning Xiao seemed to be rather close to Wan Lei. Since he knew, did Wan Lei also know? If so, the man might tell the doctor and his older brother. Then, his brother-in-law, Shen Shu and Baby Face would all find out. Although he didn’t like how crazy they were, he had a rather good impression of his older brother. The man had been very caring towards him and had never despised him. He wasn't sure what his older brother's reaction would be when he found out that Zheng Xiaoyuan's body had long been replaced with a different soul.