Chapter 54: Mid-Autumn Festival

August 15, the Mid-Autumn Festival.

Not long after dawn, the market streets and alleys grew utterly lively; from the distant streets came the sound of gongs and drums:

"Dong dong qiang, dong dong qiang..."

Xie Jinhuan, with Meiqiu, sat at the mutton shop at the alley entrance, as usual ordering three bowls of soup and three steamed buns; around them were constables driven frantic, speaking listlessly:

"It's the great demon from Mount Zihui again, it's the mad corpse-flower Li family again, and now three red-robed plague gods are dead too. We are human; even if we grew eight legs, we couldn't run fast enough..."

"To hell with those plague gods. Their ferocious reputation was so great before, yet when they were butchered, not a single message got out. Even if they wrote a few words before dying, there would be a way to investigate..."

Seeing the government office brothers' legs were nearly broken from running, Xie Jinhuan felt much relieved.

Although killing three Red Scale Guards had brought considerable pressure on the government office brothers, he had no choice.

Zhou He and the others were already prepared to cut the weeds and dig up the roots; if he did not kill them, the trouble would be endless, and killing just these three was not enough.

Han Jingchuan, the Thousand-Household Commander of the Wangjing Thousand-Household Office, had used his father as a scapegoat; he probably already knew the news that his son was still alive.

Now that three subordinates had suddenly died violently, even if he truly did not kill them, Han Jingchuan would be alert; with the Red Scale Guards' style, they would likely cut the weeds and dig up the roots to prevent future trouble, and this wave of attack was unknown when it would come.

So Han Jingchuan too must be killed to cut the weeds and dig up the roots.

However, Han Jingchuan was hiding in Jingcheng, with no immediate opportunity to strike; the primary task for now was still to survive and leave Danyang City!

While thinking thus, before the three bowls of soup and three steamed buns were finished, several familiar figures appeared at the street corner.

Looking up, the leader was the cold, glamorous, stunning Miss Mo Mo, her white skirt like snow, brimming with immortal aura.

On her left and right were the two generals, Yang Dabiao and Liu Qingzhi, exchanging words as they walked:

"Is this never-ending? Only a few days have passed, and how many cases have occurred? The great demon from Mount Zihui, Dongcang Street, Sanhe Tower, Fu Dongping, the corpse pit, the live burial of gamblers, the Red Scale Guards—each is a major murder case; who knows what nonsense will happen today..."

"The corpses in the morgue were almost all sent in by Brother Xie single-handedly. Dabiao, do you think Brother Xie brings you bad luck? Since Brother Xie arrived..."

"Nonsense! The great demon from Mount Zihui and the Red Scale Guards have nothing to do with Jinhuan. If not for Jinhuan rushing around to put out fires and investigate cases, we wouldn't even have recovered the current evidence... Lord Linghu, should we call Jinhuan over?"

"No need. Jinhuan accompanied the Princess last night drinking; let him rest well today..."

Xie Jinhuan watched from the shop; he saw the leading Miss Mo Mo, who sped up as she passed the entrance of Qingquan Alley, as if afraid he would see her.

However, this acceleration brought her directly to the mutton shop's doorway.

Meiqiu, who was eating, saw this, leaped out the window, and landed on his shoulder:

"Guguji?"

Linghu Qingmo's steps suddenly halted; she glanced into the shop, spotted the familiar figure, then turned her gaze elsewhere, adopting an aloof, otherworldly demeanor.

Yang Dabiao saw the big Meiqiu and knew Xie Jinhuan, that accessory, was nearby; he immediately called out:

"Jinhuan, just having breakfast? Did the Princess scold me last night?"

Xie Jinhuan saw the three had no intention of eating, so he stood up, paid, and stepped onto the street:

"No. The Princess feared I would get into trouble, so she didn't let me accompany the investigation."

Yang Dabiao came forward, raised his hand, and patted Xie Jinhuan's shoulder:

"The Princess is proud by nature; few people catch her eye. You have this opportunity; you must accompany her well. Later, when we two brothers get promoted and gain titles, it will all depend on the Princess..."

Liu Qingzhi noticed the boss was acting strangely today and hurriedly reminded the tactless Yang Dabiao:

"Ahem—"

Yang Dabiao's words halted; he turned and began discussing the case with the constable at the mutton shop; Liu Qingzhi followed along.

?

Linghu Qingmo, carrying Meiqiu, walked ahead; noticing her attendant had suddenly run off, her heart naturally stiffened; she turned to walk over as well, but collided squarely with Xie Jinhuan.

"Good morning, Miss Mo Mo."

Linghu Qingmo was obviously somewhat constrained; she stepped back one pace:

"Do you have something to report?"

Xie Jinhuan found this amusing: "I am not a government official; what is there to report? Does Miss Mo Mo have something on her mind?"

Linghu Qingmo had accidentally walked outside the city walls yesterday; she hadn't slept well at night; she certainly had something on her mind.

However, thinking of her master's style of handling affairs, she still pretended to be calm:

"You are still young; writing and drawing privately is understandable; I will not hold it against you. However... however, Physician Lin is your red-robe confidante; how can you write so beautifully about me yet treat her so perfunctorily?"

Xie Jinhuan had done it yesterday to stir up trouble; now his expression was normal as he explained:

"Miss Linghu and I are currently still friends; even in private evaluation, one must discuss matters on their merits; one extra bit is presumptuous, one less bit is disrespectful. But Miss Lin is different; she and I are old acquaintances; we joke and tease each other a bit, and she won't truly get angry..."

She isn't even angry?

I feel she's preparing to scratch me...

Linghu Qingmo did not believe this word for word, but Xie Jinhuan's explanation seemed to account for why the two love letters were so different.

She still wanted to ask Xie Jinhuan whether he truly had feelings for her, but this question was really hard to voice, so she suppressed her emotions:

"Three Red Scale Guards died yesterday; the killer is skilled with a left-handed blade, possesses high martial arts, and after the fact even paid compensation silver to the tavern; judging by the style, he is likely no ordinary person. I will go to the dock to inquire whether any powerful Jianghu blade masters have come to Danyang in recent days.

"Today is the Mid-Autumn Festival; you must accompany the Princess to the banquet tonight, so you need not run around the government office."

Xie Jinhuan knew Miss Mo Mo's trip was destined to be in vain; as the killer, he could not remind her, so he could only say:

"Aren't you going to Peony Pool tonight?"

At such an important occasion as the Mid-Autumn banquet, Linghu Qingmo would certainly accompany her close female friend; after thinking, she replied:

"The government office's official business is busy; we will see tonight. I will go first."

Saying this, she ran quickly toward the street corner and vanished in a whoosh.

Quite shy...

After Xie Jinhuan watched her from afar, Meiqiu also fluttered her wings and politely bid farewell:

"Gurgle~"

—

Shortly after, at the Lin Family Medical Hall.

On the Mid-Autumn Festival, Lin Wanyi also changed into a brand-new water-green skirt and blouse, her jet-black hair tied up with a jade hairpin, paired with exquisitely crafted gold-rimmed glasses; her temperament was intellectual and graceful, making her look like a plump, juicy young peony.

However, those beautiful autumn-wave eyes were not very happy at the moment; holding a teacup, she glanced at the warm autumn sun outside the window, pretending not to notice even Meiqiu, who was shaking her head and swaying beside her.

Xie Jinhuan sat on the other side of the tea table, leisurely helping to pour tea:

"We agreed it was just a performance; why did you take it seriously?"

After Lin Wanyi returned yesterday, she was so embarrassed she couldn't sleep all night; it would be strange if she could bear to see Xie Jinhuan now. With the look of someone who had been deceived, she complained without turning her head:

"You said only a few constables would come, but how many actually showed up?

"Now when I go out to buy buns, people keep saying I ran to Qingquan Lane yesterday to fight over a man, and I didn't even win!

"A daughter's reputation is greater than heaven; how am I supposed to get married after this?

"And that 'one bowl in the sky, one aunt on the ground' thing, hmph..."

She twisted her shoulders, turned her face toward the window, and presented the back of her head to the man.

Yesterday, to make Lin Wanyi's acting more realistic, Xie Jinhuan had written nonsense without telling her in advance; it seemed he had truly angered the glasses-wearing girl. He placed his teacup in front of him and said calmly:

"We aren't locals anyway; after we return to Jingcheng in a while, who will remember any of this? As for 'one bowl in the sky,' that's called dramatic conflict..."

"Understood. Is Miss Linghu a flower dan? She needs to be praised to the hilt. I'm the clown; I must be teased. I've heard plays before."

"With your natural beauty, who would dare treat you as a clown?"

Seeing that coaxing wouldn't work, Xie Jinhuan looked around, leaned in, and whispered:

"Last night, I talked with Princess Changning and asked her to lend me the Martial Arts Divine Scripture. Princess Changning agreed."

?

Hearing this, Lin Wanyi's anger dissipated by more than half. She pushed her gold-rimmed glasses and turned around:

"Really? Don't bluff me..."

"Why would I bluff you?"

Xie Jinhuan held his teacup and pondered slightly: "Princess Changning's status is right there; as long as I serve her well, borrowing the Martial Arts Divine Scripture is just a matter of a single word, isn't it?"

Serve?

Lin Wanyi blinked her eyes and said incredulously:

"Did you sleep with Her Highness the Princess last night?"

Xie Jinhuan recalled his crazy appearance last night and felt it would have been better to sleep with the landlady; he sighed:

"That's not quite it. However, to coax Princess Changning into a good mood, I sang and danced, my cool image completely vanished, and I even had to act as the Princess's lackey. All of this was to help you get the Martial Arts Divine Scripture."

Seeing that Xie Jinhuan's look of "regretting the past" did not seem fake, Lin Wanyi didn't get angry either. She fetched a soft cushion, placed it on the table, and began to take Xie Jinhuan's pulse for a checkup:

"I didn't fail to pay the reward. Don't you know how much silver a Dragon Blood Pill costs? I charge three candareens of silver per consultation; it takes many years to earn that back..."

Xie Jinhuan drank his tea, originally quietly observing the stunning glasses-wearing girl across from him.

But slowly, he suddenly felt a surge of heat flow within his lungs and heart, and his mood became extremely pleasant.

Consequently, the corners of his mouth, uncontrollably, slowly curved upward, revealing a bright, sunny smile.

?

Xie Jinhuan tried to suppress the corners of his mouth, but he just couldn't stop himself from laughing. His heart was full of confusion, and he thought silently:

Could this be the feeling of being in love?

No, this feels more like taking drugs...

Lin Wanyi, who was usually dignified and proper, found Xie Jinhuan had turned into a 'sunny, cheerful big boy' and felt a bit bewildered.

However, soon she experienced a similar situation; the corners of her mouth curved up and she suppressed them. After two times, she realized something was wrong, picked up her teacup, and smelled it:

"Smiling Powder? Perilla—!"

She scolded in a delicate voice.

Immediately, the laughter of the 'Poisonous Hand Medicine Girl' came from downstairs: "Haha... Aunt Bowl, I saw you were unhappy and wanted to cheer you up. Don't be angry, don't be angry..."

Then, with 'thump, thump, thump,' she ran away without a trace.

"That damn girl!"

Lin Wanyi put her hands on her hips, trying to keep a stern face, but she just couldn't stop smiling; her mouth twitched repeatedly. Meiqiu stared blankly at the sight and wanted to lean in and take a sip from the teacup too.

Xie Jinhuan held Meiqiu down, tried to suppress his laughter, but couldn't suppress it at all. Even forcing poison out with his cultivation technique was useless. His eyes couldn't help but show surprise:

"This medicine is indeed ruthless; no wonder it could turn Lord Tie into a big fool Zhang."

Lin Wanyi, who must have been poisoned frequently, took out her standby antidote from her waist and dropped it into Xie Jinhuan's teacup:

"That girl is just like you; her talent makes others envious, but she doesn't walk the right path, always making things that look powerful but aren't very useful."

"You can't say that. There are no useless cultivation techniques in the world, only people who don't know how to use them. This medicine should have a miraculous effect on treating depression..."

Although he praised her verbally, Xie Jinhuan didn't want to become 'Big Fool Huan.' After gulping down the tea with 'glug, glug, glug~', he stood up and said:

"I still have to follow the Princess to the Peony Pool banquet later; I'm leaving first. You're going tonight too, right?"

Yesterday, after hearing Xie Jinhuan mention it, Lin Wanyi knew Zisu also wanted to go and had already started preparing. However, at this moment, she snorted lightly:

"You have to accompany Her Highness the Princess. Whether I go or not, isn't it all the same to you?"

"You and Zisu can play on the boat; you're both young ladies, and most of them know you."

Lin Wanyi obviously knew her reputation among the circle of noble ladies and young ladies; she quickly shook her head:

"Eh~ I dare not get on the Princess's boat. It is said that..."

She stopped speaking halfway.

Xie Jinhuan blinked his eyes:

"According to what?"

Lin Wanyi dared not speak plainly; she merely took out a small blue pill:

"This is something to clear the mind. If you sense things are amiss, you had best take it. Otherwise, if you drink too much and do something on the ship, those noble lords will break your legs."

Xie Jinhuan knew how mad those Young Ladies could be; he shook his head and smiled:

"Don't you know my self-control? Even if I were tied to a tree with magical artifacts, I wouldn't..."

"Tch~"

How could Lin Wanyi dare discuss such an embarrassing topic? She hurriedly chased the man out...

(End of this chapter)