"It's alright, Miss Zhao, let's hurry," Bai Guangnian said.
Zhao Yan looked at the young man walking at the front and asked, "Who is he?"
Bai Guangnian explained, "Oh, he's our eldest disciple, Guan An. Miss Zhao, as you know, in our line of work, we respect those who are more skilled."
"Although our eldest disciple is young, he joined the sect before us. We only started our apprenticeship in our twenties, while our eldest disciple was taken in by the Master when he was a child."
Zhao Yan nodded in understanding. She didn't care if anyone else joined, as long as they didn't take her share of the money.
"Wait a moment, I want to bring Liu Tan along," Zhao Yan said.
Since she had taken on Liu Tan's father's case, she had to bring Liu Tan with her.
This way, once Liu Tan's soul was found, it would be convenient to re-enter his body.
With Liu Tan brought along, there were five of them, just enough to fit into one car.
Guan An, sitting in the passenger seat, glanced back at Zhao Yan and Liu Tan before closing his eyes.
Bai Guangyue was driving, Zhao Yan sat by the left window, Liu Tan in the middle, and Bai Guangnian sat by the right window.
Since the car ride was long, Zhao Yan took the opportunity to draw talismans.
To save time, the food they brought consisted of bread, and they ate it in the car.
Bai Guangnian and Bai Guangyue took turns driving.
This rush shortened the travel time by more than half, and they arrived at Liushui Village in just over a day.
"Miss Zhao, we'll claim to be a lion dance troupe, specializing in performances for both joyous and somber occasions."
Zhao Yan nodded, "Understood."
Bai Guangnian handed a lion head to Zhao Yan.
Zhao Yan lifted the lion head, put her head inside, and made the lion head dance. Its eyes blinked, and the lion head's eyes blinked in response.
After dancing for a bit and feeling a little tired, she glanced back at the car's trunk. She hadn't expected the props to be so complete.
The large bag on the roof, which she hadn't inquired about before, now seemed to be for the lion dance.
Thinking about it now, Bai Guangnian had put in a lot of effort.
After all, lion dances were common at both happy and solemn events, and most importantly, they were down-to-earth, which wouldn't arouse too much suspicion.
If they had announced themselves as investigators from a certain department upon arrival, they wouldn't have been able to investigate anything.
"Miss Zhao, we're entering the village. The road ahead is a dirt path, and the car can't go any further. We'll have to walk," Bai Guangnian said to Zhao Yan.
Zhao Yan shouldered the lion head and walked into the village.
The path was flanked by farmland on both sides.
The villagers, busy with their work, stopped what they were doing as soon as they saw Zhao Yan and the others enter the village, staring intently at them.
Zhao Yan had visited Bailiu Village once before with the old man, but that was when she was thirteen.
Bailiu Village was nestled within several mountain ranges and had over fifty households.
The villagers spoke Mandarin, but not very fluently. If one didn't listen carefully, it was hard to understand.
Bai Guangnian said something to a young man, who then ran off. After a while, an older man arrived.
As they chatted, Zhao Yan learned that this elder was the village chief of Liushui Village, Liu Xi.
"Village Chief, our car has broken down. We've called our companions, but they won't arrive for several days. Could we stay in the village for a few days?" Bai Guangnian asked.
Liu Xi looked at the large lion head on Zhao Yan's shoulder and said, "You've arrived at the perfect time. Our village is holding a grand clan ceremony. If you perform a lively lion dance for us, we'll arrange accommodation for you, and you'll even receive red envelopes."
Bai Guangnian smiled, "Oh, that would be wonderful! We'll definitely put on a great performance for you."
"Good, then please come into the village," Liu Xi said softly.
Zhao Yan frowned behind them. She didn't know how to perform a lion dance.
Before Zhao Yan could say anything, Bai Guangnian walked behind her, holding his phone.
"Miss Zhao, I've already downloaded a tutorial video for you. Just watch it and dance however you like," Bai Guangnian handed her the phone.
Good heavens, the video was already cached.
"I'll be the head?" Zhao Yan asked doubtfully.
"You're light, so you can be the lion's head," Bai Guangnian said softly.
Zhao Yan agreed, watched the tutorial carefully, and practiced as she walked.
With her existing martial arts foundation, after more than ten minutes, she was dancing somewhat like a professional.
She certainly couldn't compare to the experts, but at most, she could manage without looking too awkward.
Seeing the stilt poles that Bai Guangnian and the others had set up, Zhao Yan couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat.
"They're so high, can we climb them?" Zhao Yan whispered.
The first stilt pole was one meter high, and the second was about two meters.
"Miss Zhao, we believe in you. If we don't show some impressive moves, people might not believe us," Bai Guangnian said.
Zhao Yan hummed in agreement, that made sense.
If there were truly any supernatural occurrences in this village, a fake performance wouldn't pass muster.
Taking a deep breath, Zhao Yan had no choice but to practice.
"I'm here to catch demons and ghosts, why should I be the one doing such public performances?"
"Oh, eldest disciple, my brother has a bad backside, could you take his place?" Bai Guangyue pleaded.
Bai Guangnian looked at Zhao Yan apologetically.
"Please forgive my eldest disciple, Miss Zhao. He has the skills, but he's too arrogant, and the Master spoils him too much," Bai Guangnian said with a wry smile.
He could only reluctantly take on the role of the lion's legs.
Zhao Yan glanced at Guan An and shook her head, "It's fine, the earth won't stop spinning without him. The three of us can practice."
"Brother Bai, if you can't handle the lion's legs, tell me, and I'll help you out."
Bai Guangnian thanked Zhao Yan, "Thank you, Miss Zhao. We really couldn't do it without you."
"It's alright, I'm also doing this for myself," Zhao Yan said softly.
At the same time, she asked Bai Guangyue to help her bring Liu Tan out of the car, put him in a snakeskin bag, and carry him to the guest room prepared by the village.
Lifting her leg and flipping over, Zhao Yan practiced with great proficiency.
They arrived at Liushui Village around 3 PM. After practicing in Liu Xi's backyard for over three hours, it was now close to 7 PM.
Zhao Yan had been here before with the old man, but she hadn't seen Liushui Village hold a grand clan ceremony.
She hadn't expected this clan ceremony to be so lively. Every village was decorated with red lanterns.
Around 7 PM, firecrackers began to be set off.
The crackling sound was incessant. Even before they reached the entrance, they could hear many festive sounds.
"Miss Zhao, it's time for us to go too," Bai Guangnian knocked lightly on the door and said from the entrance.
Zhao Yan put on the lion dance costume and picked up the lion head, saying, "Coming."