Chapter 65: Chopped Chili Fish Head (Part 16)
Jing Yi felt the dazed sensation that had just subsided turn around and come rushing back.
He could clearly feel his already elevated body temperature rising further after that handstand episode. Now, after two consecutive bouts of confusion, his mind was buzzing incessantly, completely unable to function properly.
Jing Yi took a step back and leaned loosely against the wall, massaging his throbbing temples while recalling everyone he knew who held grudges against the Jing family. "You mean... the Jing family and the Cheng family from Suzhou?"
Leng Yue didn't answer, instead reaching out to touch Jing Yi's forehead. It was burning hot to the touch.
"Stop thinking," Leng Yue said softly as she bent down to pick up the incense burner from the floor, her voice gentler now. "I'll take Hua Mei back to Sparrow Nest Brothel first. You go rest for a while, we can talk more later."
As Leng Yue turned to leave, Jing Yi weakly tugged at her sleeve. Though the gesture was feeble, Leng Yue still stopped in her tracks.
"I need to bathe and perform incense rituals later," Jing Yi said, pulling a helpless smile. "I have to start copying scriptures after noon... Let's finish discussing the important matters first."
Leng Yue pulled her sleeve from his grasp and gave him a lukewarm glare. "Nothing is more important than your health right now."
If she had known that making him do a handstand would make him suffer like this, she would never have put him through it...
But no sooner had she freed her sleeve than he grabbed it again.
"I've told you everything you wanted to know. You promised you'd kiss me."
"Hmm..." Leng Yue pulled her sleeve free once more, holding the incense burner with one hand while patting Jing Yi's shoulder with the other. "This matter was an assignment from the Prince. Since you helped me complete it, I won't take credit for it. I'll go report to the Prince later and request rewards for you. As for when and how the Prince will kiss you, you can discuss that with him yourself."
"..."
Leng Yue lied to Hua Mei, saying she hadn't found Jing Bai and that they should drop the syphilis investigation for now, advising her to take care of herself. Hua Mei expressed profuse gratitude. When Leng Yue blindfolded her again and returned her to Sparrow Nest Brothel, Xiao Zhao Ye was still lying unconscious on the ground. Leng Yue pinched his philtrum to wake him up, then with an official demeanor, detailed how he had been knocked out by a mysterious figure in black and how Hua Mei had urgently sought her help. Hua Mei kept nodding vigorously beside them.
Since Xiao Zhao Ye had been knocked out facing away from Leng Yue, he hadn't even seen a strand of her hair. Now, having been forcibly awakened by Leng Yue, his mind was completely muddled. He didn't suspect anything at all and, in his confused state, cooperated fully through what appeared to be a proper interrogation before being personally escorted back to the Prince's mansion by Leng Yue.
By the time Leng Yue secretly returned to the temple, it was already time for the monks' midday meal. Jing Yi was curled up on the bed in his clothes, eyes tightly closed but clearly sleeping restlessly.
The moment Leng Yue touched his forehead, Jing Yi groggily opened his eyes. In that instant, before he could compose his expression, Leng Yue clearly caught a flash of wariness in his gaze, making her heart ache with a faint sting."I..." Leng Yue touched his increasingly feverish forehead, pulled the quilt over his curled-up body, and couldn't help chiding softly, "Couldn't you pick a better time to be lazy... You're so cold you've shrunk into a ball, yet you didn't even think to cover yourself with the quilt?"
Jing Yi's feverish gaze lingered on Leng Yue's concerned face for a moment before he managed to respond with a warm, dazed smile.
"Just resting my eyes for a bit... No need for covers. I'll go bathe and prepare for scripture copying soon."
"No need to go." Leng Yue ruffled his smooth hair twice and said casually, "I'll tell Wang Tuo later that Buddha needs you for something, so you can't make it. He can find someone else."
Jing Yi looked at his wife, who had mastered the art of playing the bodhisattva role, with both amusement and exasperation. Then he saw his bodhisattva wife produce a food container from somewhere, taking out a braised pork hock made by the old chef from Sparrow Nest Brothel, a plate of sautéed daylily flowers from Jiang's Restaurant, along with a bowl of soup and rice, all still steaming as she arranged them on the bedside table.
"You didn't eat all day yesterday, and skipped breakfast this morning too. You must be starving, right?"
Her words made Jing Yi realize that despite the bitter taste in his mouth from the fever, he was indeed ravenous.
Seeing him climb out of the blankets without hesitation, Leng Yue handed him a bowl and chopsticks. Jing Yi cheerfully picked up a piece of pork hock, holding it with his bowl, but instead brought it to Leng Yue's lips.
Leng Yue was taken aback and instinctively said, "You... you should eat it. I've already eaten."
Jing Yi smiled gently, making Leng Yue slightly flustered.
She knew exactly what that smile meant. She must have been running around so much that she'd become foolish - how could she tell such an obvious lie in front of him...
Feeling embarrassed, Leng Yue had no choice but to let Jing Yi feed her the piece of meat.
Before she could even swallow the first bite, Jing Yi already had a portion of daylily flowers waiting at her lips.
"You should eat first. I'll eat after you're done... otherwise the food will get cold."
Jing Yi kept holding the chopsticks steady, shaking his head with a faint smile. "If it gets cold, I won't let you eat it. Cold food would be perfect for reducing my fever."
Leng Yue had no choice but to accept this bite too. As soon as she took it, Jing Yi had another portion ready.
She hadn't intended to eat with Jing Yi, having brought only one set of utensils. But if she refused, Jing Yi would just keep smiling and waiting. Helpless, Leng Yue ate bite after bite until Jing Yi estimated she was full, then finally contentedly lowered his head to finish the remaining food.
Though they hadn't shared many meals over the years of knowing Jing Yi, Leng Yue was well aware that this man, accustomed to luxury since childhood and further spoiled by imperial kitchens during his palace years, was extremely particular about food. While he wouldn't throw chopsticks or complain about unsatisfactory dishes, even slight changes like food cooling and affecting the texture would make him take just a few bites before refusing to eat more.Fortunately, Jing Yi had always been unresistant to her cooking—even if it was undercooked or burnt, he would always finish it clean. She had originally intended to cook for him herself, but she had been delayed a bit too long at Xiao Zhao Ye’s place. No matter how she calculated the time, it was already too late. She could only bring a few dishes she was certain he liked, hoping he would eat a bit more so his lingering injuries and illness would heal faster.
Yet now, the famously picky Fourth Young Master Jing was savoring these leftover dishes that had long gone cold...
Only when Jing Yi finished eating and looked up did he suddenly realize Leng Yue had been crying her eyes out at some point, her hands tightly covering her mouth without making a sound.
"Don’t... don’t cry, please don’t cry..." Startled, Jing Yi hastily put down his bowl and chopsticks, gently pulling the trembling figure into his arms. Assuming she was worried about his fever, he softly coaxed, "It’s just a fever—a good night’s sleep will fix it. It’s not like it’s going to kill me..."
Leng Yue buried herself in his abnormally warm embrace, her arms tightly wrapped around his waist as if trying to squeeze him directly into her very bones.
"Don’t you dare try dying!"
"I wouldn’t dare, I wouldn’t..."
"You jerk!"
"I’m a jerk, I’m a jerk..."
Jing Yi continued to soothe her gently for a while until Leng Yue finally wiped her tears and snot on his shoulder, raising her red-rimmed eyes. "I’m warning you... if the Cheng family ever storms the Jing residence someday, you are not allowed to stand in my way!"
Jing Yi found this both amusing and exasperating. While wiping her tears, he reassured her, "Fine, all the killing and arson will be your job—I’ll just assist... But I’ve been thinking it over carefully. The Cheng family holds no grudge against ours. Their business has thrived in the capital largely thanks to the Old Master. Even if they show up at our doorstep, it’ll be to deliver gifts, so don’t worry."
Leng Yue sniffled, furrowed her brows, and shook her head, instantly shifting from a tear-streaked mess to her official demeanor. Her voice lowered slightly, "Impossible... Before I subdued their steward, he stared at Feng Si’er’s corpse and howled, ‘This wretched woman and the Jing family’s lackeys are birds of a feather—she deserved to die!’ If there were no past grievances or recent conflicts, who would say something like that?"
Jing Yi was taken aback. "Wretched woman," "Jing family’s lackeys," "birds of a feather"—the underlying meaning behind these three phrases connected together sent a chill down his spine.
This person hated Feng Si’er, hated everyone in the Jing family, and specifically hated what Feng Si’er and the Jings had in common. The only connection between Feng Si’er and the Jing family was...
Leng Yue lowered her voice and added, "Do you think Cheng Xun’s appointment to the Dali Temple and Feng Si’er’s marriage to Cheng Xun were also arranged by the Crown Prince?"
At the mention of "Crown Prince," Jing Yi couldn’t suppress a shiver.
"I don’t know," Jing Yi frowned slightly and shook his head. "The Crown Prince has no particular preference for tea—I’ve never heard him mention the Cheng family.""Jing Yi..." Leng Yue lowered her voice further, though her brows furrowed more deeply. "I suspect something is wrong with the Cheng family's business. Ever since Feng Si'er passed away, I've been thinking—the Cheng family deals in tea. With Cheng Xun already dead, aside from business matters, their steward would have no reason to trouble a seriously ill woman. So I requested some of their finest tea from the Cheng family and brought it to Hua Mei at the Sparrow Nest Brothel, asking her to sample it for me. After tasting it, Hua Mei said that tea was worth at most thirty wen per liang."
Jing Yi pursed his pale lips slightly and turned to look at the teapot on the table, nodding slowly. "You heard what Hua Mei said. This pot that Shenxiu brewed but didn't drink is exactly..."
Before Jing Yi could finish, Leng Yue suddenly stiffened and raised a hand to signal him to be silent. The moment Jing Yi closed his mouth, the outer door creaked open, and Shenxiu's footsteps approached without any attempt at concealment.
Seeing Leng Yue in the room, Shenxiu appeared completely accustomed to her presence. He didn't show the slightest surprise even at the sight of her tear-streaked face, as if he expected her to be crying at this moment.
Shenxiu smiled faintly and pressed his palms together in greeting. "Benefactor Leng... Since you happen to be here, there is an urgent matter. This humble monk will speak plainly—perhaps you can help my junior brother overcome this trial."
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