Chapter 73: Chopped Chili Fish Head (Part 24)
Although Jing Yi had a penchant for writing scripts, he was born into an official’s family and served as a court-appointed officer. It was absolutely unthinkable for him to personally stand in a teahouse or tavern, holding a teapot in one hand and a fan in the other, to perform storytelling. Moreover, given Jing Yi’s far-reaching reputation as a “charmer,” even if he wanted to, no establishment would dare let him perform. After all, no shopkeeper in the capital was confident their premises could withstand the onslaught of women crowding in to see him.
Jing Yi was well aware of this. Although Leng Yue had heard storytellers in teahouses perform scripts written by Jing Yi, she had never heard him tell a story himself. The temptation of being the first to experience the Fourth Young Master Jing’s storytelling was simply too great. It was so compelling that she temporarily set aside the other matters she had intended to discuss with him, deftly pushed the clutter on the table to one side, crossed her long legs, and settled in. Jing Yi stood up to pour her a cup of tea, which Leng Yue held in her hands, looking even more like an eager listener.
“Once upon a time,” Jing Yi began, lightly tapping the brush holder on the table as if to mark the start of his performance. Adopting the distinctive tone of a storyteller, he continued with flair, “there was a mountain, and in the mountain stood a temple. In the temple lived an old monk.”
“…”
Before Leng Yue could slam her cup down in protest, Jing Yi quickly added, “The old monk took in a young novice and gave him the monastic name Shenxiu.”
Leng Yue was taken aback. Was Jing Yi about to tell her Shenxiu’s story?
Before she could fully brace herself, Jing Yi went on, “One day, the old monk told Shenxiu a story: Once upon a time, there was a mountain, and in the mountain stood a temple…”
“…”
Leng Yue thumped her cup onto the table. Jing Yi immediately doubled his pace, “In the temple lived an old monster!”
“…An old monster?”
Jing Yi nodded with a serious expression. “The old monster took in a little monster…”
Leng Yue’s brow twitched. She raised an eyebrow and interjected dryly, “And the old monster gave the little monster the monastic name Shenxiu?”
Jing Yi seemed completely unfazed by her sarcasm. A smirk tugged at his lips as he leaned forward and planted a loud kiss on Leng Yue’s smooth forehead.
“You’ve hit the nail on the head, dear guest.”
“…”
It was only after Jing Yi moved his beaming face slightly away that Leng Yue grasped the implication of his words.
She frowned slightly. “Are you saying Shenxiu was adopted and deliberately sent to Anguo Temple to become a monk?”
Jing Yi’s smile deepened. A breeze seemed to stir, and in the blink of an eye, Leng Yue felt the warm press of his lips against her forehead once more.
“You truly are the cleverest listener in the world, dear guest.”
“Heh heh…” Leng Yue’s face flushed as she narrowed her eyes and glared at Jing Yi, who was now inches away. “Well, what can I say? My husband happens to be the most infuriating storyteller in the world.”
Wearing a roguish grin that was utterly unapologetic, Jing Yi leaned even closer, wrapped his arms around Leng Yue’s waist, and embraced her fully.
“You’re right… Shenxiu’s monastic name was decided by the old monster. The old monk was merely relaying it to him. Even what he was to do after becoming a monk and how to do it were all instructions given by the old monster to the old monk.”Leng Yue was hearing storytelling in such a manner for the first time. The storyteller's orchid-like breath gently brushed against her cheeks, making her heartbeat quicken incessantly, as if all the strength in her body had been given to her heart to leap about, leaving her mind too exhausted to even turn over a thought.
It wasn't until quite some time after Jing Yi's voice had faded that Leng Yue finally reacted, "The old monk is also a monster?"
With an approving smile, Jing Yi planted a deep kiss on Leng Yue's enticingly red cheek, signifying "well said."
Leng Yue poked a finger into his belly, pushing him a bit farther away from herself before she could barely catch her breath. Her face stiffened into a solid red, and she spoke with the same exasperated tone one might use when interrogating an uncooperative suspect, "Which temple do these monsters belong to?"
"Pray guess, honored guest."
"..."
Leng Yue wasn't particularly keen on guessing, because guessing wrong would be embarrassing, and guessing right might be even more mortifying...
But the sight of Jing Yi pursing his lips and blinking made Leng Yue feel an irresistible urge to throw caution to the wind and risk a major embarrassment.
Jing Yi seemed to read her thoughts and thoughtfully extended a finger straight upward as a hint.
Leng Yue glanced up at the roof beam.
Someone capable of taking both the abbot and Shenxiu as disciples certainly wasn't as simple as a roof repairer. Thus, when a capital official who had grown up under the emperor's watchful eye pointed upward, the most likely meaning was that one.
Leng Yue was slightly taken aback and lowered her voice a few degrees, "From the palace?"
No sooner had the words left her mouth than Jing Yi kissed her firmly.
This shock was far more powerful than Jing Yi's warm, lingering kiss. Even after he released her, Leng Yue remained immersed in the astonishment brought on by her own answer.
"Really from the palace?"
"No."
"..."
The corner of Leng Yue's mouth, which had just been lingered over by Jing Yi's warm, moist lips, twitched involuntarily. The man before her still pursed his lips and blinked under the dim yellow glow of the lamp, as if nothing had just happened.
"If not... then why did you kiss me?!"
"Felt like it." As he spoke, Jing Yi swiftly pecked Leng Yue's brightly red cheek again, happily narrowing his clear, fox-like eyes as he watched his wife bury her head as if searching for a crack in the ground to slip into. "Otherwise, should I only kiss you if you guess right? Hmm... so that's why you were guessing so seriously?"
Leng Yue felt a bit like going mad, wanting to strip him bare and gnaw him down to the last bone fragment.
As soon as this thought arose, Jing Yi comprehendingly spread his hands and stood obediently, smiling with the radiance of spring, clearly presenting a "pray pluck more" demeanor.
"...Are you going to tell me or not?!"
"Tell, tell, tell..." Seeing Leng Yue reach for her sword, Jing Yi hurriedly straightened up and, in the blink of an eye, reverted to his serious storyteller demeanor. Picking up the brush holder, he tapped it on the table once more and softly uttered five words, "Imperial City Investigation Bureau."
Imperial City Investigation Bureau...
In her astonishment, Leng Yue's red face instantly turned pale.
This was one of the many government offices in the court. Not many knew of this bureau; Leng Yue had heard of it from Prince An, but only in passing.This was an office that answered only to the current emperor. As its name implied, its primary duty was investigation. Any matter occurring within the imperial domain, if the emperor wished to know of it, this office would uncover every detail for him. As for where this office was located, who managed it, or who carried out its tasks—no one knew besides the current emperor, and no one dared to find out.
From nobles and high officials down to common citizens, anyone who managed to identify a member of the Imperial City Investigation Bureau among the vast sea of people, whether intentionally or accidentally, would inevitably face grave misfortune. Similarly, if an Investigation Bureau agent had their identity exposed, they would quietly vanish from the world without a trace.
No wonder the abbot had meticulously arranged Shenxiu's residence to appear completely devoid of human presence.
Back when Prince An explained this office's rules to her before she began working at the Ministry of Justice, he did so precisely because he feared her tendency to investigate matters thoroughly. He worried she might inadvertently uncover things she shouldn't understand, potentially causing irreparable disasters.
Having spent considerable time in palace circles, Jing Yi's knowledge of the Imperial City Investigation Bureau's existence was hardly surprising. However, the Bureau's rules made no exceptions for anyone—even the Crown Prince kept his distance from such matters. How could Jing Yi dare to speak of it so calmly without changing expression?
Leng Yue stood with her back ramrod straight, feeling slightly stiff, her brows furrowed as she stared at the still-smiling Jing Yi. She desperately searched his composed face for even the slightest hint of jest, but found absolutely none.
"You... stop talking nonsense," Leng Yue said sternly, her face hardening. "How dare you speak such words so casually? Do you value your life so little?"
"I do," Jing Yi's smile deepened slightly, "but I want yours first."
Leng Yue froze. "Mine?"
The corners of Jing Yi's mouth still curved gently, his clearly amused eyes holding an indescribable tenderness. "Don't I know your temperament? If their identities remain unclear, you'll surely feel unbearably restless. It's just the two of us here. If I explain everything to you, you won't need to investigate. If anything unfortunate should happen later and the Emperor demands accountability, I can take the blame alone..."
Before Jing Yi could finish, Leng Yue covered his mouth with her palm.
Jing Yi clearly felt that the hand covering his mouth was somewhat cold and trembling.
"Listen carefully, I'll only say this once. When you make mistakes and get punished later, don't come crying and wailing to me... From the day we married, there's no longer such a thing as 'you alone' in this lifetime. Good things belong to both of us, and troubles belong to both of us too. If you think you'd be more comfortable living alone, then you'd better write a divorce letter now. I'll roll away as far as I can, and won't return even in our next life."
Leng Yue spoke each word with a dark expression but slightly reddened eyes. She felt the mouth beneath her palm tremble slightly, while the fox-like eyes visible above her hand showed a faintly diminished smile but increasingly profound tenderness—as rich as old hen soup simmered all night long, capable of warming a chilled body from the inside out with just one small sip.
Only when Jing Yi nodded gently did she remove her hand from his mouth, wrap her arms around his waist, and bury herself tightly in his embrace.Jing Yi lived with meticulous care. His clothes were always scented with incense after washing before being folded and stored in the wardrobe, so he always carried a faint fragrance about him. Now, wearing such plain monastic robes without any trace of incense, only the subtle scent emanating directly from his skin remained—real and grounding.
With a bitter smile, Jing Yi gently patted the trembling figure in his arms, coaxing softly, "Don't worry, I didn't uncover this matter through investigation—I guessed it. I'm about ninety percent certain, and besides you, I won't speak of it to anyone. It wasn't mentioned in the report submitted to the prince either. That 'just in case' scenario I mentioned was made up—it's nothing... The story isn't finished yet. Do you want to hear the rest?"
"Yes."
"Then get up first..."
Not only did Leng Yue not let go, but she burrowed deeper into Jing Yi's embrace. "I'm not covering your mouth. Just keep talking."
"Alright..." Jing Yi patted the person in his arms apologetically—the one he had frightened from a tiger into a kitten with just a few words. After a moment's thought, he continued from where he left off, "The young monk was raised by the old monk and worked alongside him for the old monster. Perhaps due to the nature of their tasks or other reasons, the old and young monks also carried out another assignment under the command of a dragon's son."
This dragon's son naturally referred to Prince Hui, Xiao Zhao Ye. These lines weren't hard to understand, and Leng Yue nodded silently.
Feeling the nod against his chest, Jing Yi added, "No one can know about the work they did for the old monster—it cannot be spoken of. The tasks they performed for the dragon's son, you already know and need not be repeated. Only one matter related to tea, though the young monk spoke of it himself, was conveyed very obscurely due to his position. Since you'll likely encounter this matter again in Suzhou, it's worth mentioning."
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