Pulling at a clerk passing by, Fan Xian looked at the man's lifeless face, feeling a mix of nervousness and familiarity, as if he'd found that unique flavor of old Fei Jie. He greeted with a sweet smile, "Hello."

The owner of the lifeless face, like everyone else in the Imperial Censorate building, looked at Fan Xian with a peculiar gaze. After a long while, he said, "Hello."

The two words were spoken a bit stiffly.

Fan Xian swallowed and asked with a smile, "Forgive my intrusion, but... why is everyone staring at me?"

The man laughed, revealing pale teeth. He found this young man with a shy smile quite interesting and countered, "If a stranger suddenly appeared in a place where no stranger has ever entered, don't you think everyone would stare at him?"

Fan Xian had a sudden realization, followed by confusion. He asked, "Isn't this the Imperial Censorate? A government institution. Don't strangers come to handle official business?"

The man pointed outside, kindly explaining, "Take a look over there."

Fan Xian glanced and saw that there were few people near the Imperial Censorate's entrance. Those walking on the street skirted far to the other side.

The man laughed, his smile looking a bit terrifying, the old skin on his cheeks wrinkling together. "The people of Kyoto have always avoided our office. As for official business, the Imperial Censorate never handles official business, only Censorate affairs. And by the Emperor's decree, no other six ministries are allowed to be involved in Censorate affairs, so we've never had much contact with other offices."

Fan Xian said with a wry smile, "I see. It seems I really am an impetuous trespasser."

The man asked curiously, "Don't you know what the Imperial Censorate does?"

Fan Xian replied, "I know a little." After all, he was a disciple of Fei Jie of the Third Bureau of the Imperial Censorate and knew something about the Censorate's duties.

"And you still dared to barge in like this?" The man shrugged. "Most people see this place as Hell on Earth."

Fan Xian said with a helpless smile, "Maybe it's because I saw the King of Hell when I was very young?"

The man laughed and patted him on the shoulder, "Very good, very good."

Fan Xian felt goosebumps rise on the skin of his right shoulder under his clothes. The man's tone sounded like Sun Erniang patting the guys on the chopping board.

"Is there anything I can help you with?" the man asked with a smile.

Fan Xian immediately felt that the man had transformed into a hotel receptionist speaking foreign languages from his previous life. He shook his head, dispelling this inappropriate distraction, and slipped a piece of silver from his sleeve, asking politely, "Is Fei Jie here?"

The man was stunned, opening his mouth, but he couldn't say anything for a long time. Then, Fan Xian noticed that the man's expression was no longer the previous indifference, but became respectful with a hint of fear. "You're looking for Lord Fei?"

As he said this, he flicked his finger with exquisite skill, returning the piece of silver that Fan Xian had slipped to him. Fan Xian raised an eyebrow, knowing that the man's seemingly simple move was actually very impressive. He must have immersed himself in hand skills for more than ten years to be so accurate. Only then did he realize that this seemingly ordinary Imperial Censorate official was actually a deeply hidden master.

Fan Xian nodded, admitting that he had come to find Fei Jie, and then noticed that the man was vigorously wiping his right hand that had patted his shoulder.

"Lord Fei is not here." The man replied very politely, retreating a few steps discreetly to put some distance between himself and Fan Xian. "Lord Fei has gone to the border regions to supervise."

Fan Xian slapped his forehead, finally remembering that Teng Zijing had said that the Director of the Imperial Censorate would need at least three months to return home for family visits. Given Fei Jie's lazy nature, with his only superior away, he would naturally slip away as well.

He apologized for the intrusion and prepared to leave. Before leaving, Fan Xian suddenly asked with a smile, "What's your name?"

"This humble official is Wang Qinian." This Imperial Censorate official named Wang Qinian saw that this young man with a shy smile dared to come to the Imperial Censorate alone and even directly call Fei Jie by his name, thinking that the other party must be extraordinary, so he called himself "humble official".

Fan Xian knew that the other party, upon hearing that he was looking for Fei Jie, had subconsciously associated himself with dangerous existences like poison, which was why he was wiping his hand and retreating. He smiled and looked at Wang Qinian, "If Lord Fei returns, please let him know that... his student has come to Kyoto."

Fei Jie's student? At this time, Wang Qinian had the urge to chop off his right hand, cursing his habit of touching everything. He coughed twice and agreed.

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Walking out of the Imperial Censorate's gate, the sunlight shone down through the tall trees on both sides of the road, and the shadows of countless leaves enveloped Fan Xian's entire body. He walked west for a while, sat on the railing next to the stream, propped his hands beside his body, and looked at the passing crowd, not knowing where to go for a moment.

He didn't want to go back to the Fan residence. Although there was a gentle and amiable younger sister there, the thought of Liu Shi, his father, and that little fatty who should be happily studying every day but was now forced to compete with him made him feel uncomfortable.

He was willing to fight for what belonged to him and would not give up.

But Fan Xian really wasn't sure what truly belonged to him in this world. After all, he had experienced another life, and there was always a sense of distance between him and this world.

He had kept his father in the dark about coming to the Imperial Censorate to find Fei Jie. Although his father certainly knew that Fei Jie was his teacher, he always felt that Fei Jie was more trustworthy. This was probably due to the closeness brought about by following Old Fei around the morgues soon after he came to this world.

The fact that Fei Jie was not in Kyoto caused a small problem with Fan Xian's plans before entering the capital. So he was thinking about what he should do next.

While thinking about these things, he had already jumped off the railing and began to walk back subconsciously. When he passed the Imperial Censorate again, he noticed that the pedestrians on the road were indeed walking on the right side of the street, avoiding the Imperial Censorate's gate, as if they were afraid of the sinister aura emanating from the building.

He squinted his eyes and looked at the entrance. The thin clouds in the sky suddenly scattered, and the clear light of the sky shone down, but his eyes were dazzled by a golden light.

Rubbing his eyes, he looked towards the golden light and realized that there was a wide stone tablet at the entrance of the Imperial Censorate, crouching on the ground like a crouching tiger. Some words were written on it.

Fan Xian frowned, feeling that these words looked a bit familiar, as if he had seen them somewhere, but he couldn't find the source even after racking his brains. His gaze moved down, and then he saw the signature.

That somewhat unfamiliar, yet incomparably intimate name.