Xiao Jin Yu looked at Tang Yan, who was nearly doubled over with laughter, his expression slightly darkened. "I've avenged your old friend's grievance. Are you satisfied now?"
Tang Yan clasped his hands in an exaggerated salute. "Wang Ye is most wise!"
Xiao Jin Yu raised a hand to massage his throbbing temples, too weary to engage with him further.
Only when Tang Yan had finally laughed his fill did he speak again. "Wang Ye, I've already informed Old Ji. Feel free to make use of him as needed. He won't bother you unnecessarily, so you can rest assured staying here. I'll return to the capital now to handle your affairs."
"Good." Xiao Jin Yu lifted his gaze to this subordinate who treated him both as master and child, his look carrying profound meaning. "Do not forget... every task I assign you is of utmost confidentiality, with grave implications. Exercise extreme caution."
Tang Yan stiffened, his sword-like brows furrowing. He could tell this was no ordinary admonition from Xiao Jin Yu, yet he couldn't fathom what he might have done to warrant such words. "Wang Ye, please speak plainly."
Xiao Jin Yu imperceptibly frowned as Tang Yan watched him retrieve three booklets from a small bundle. Opening one to a specific page, he placed it before Tang Yan. After merely glancing at it, Tang Yan's face darkened like the bottom of a pot. "Wang Ye, what is this nonsense?"
"A storyteller's script—'Legends of the Nine Great Arresters of Six Doors.'"
"This... impossible!" Tang Yan protested urgently, his dark face flushing crimson. "I swear by my sect's reputation—I haven't breathed a word about the tasks you assigned me, not even to anyone in Prince An Manor, let alone some damned storyteller!"
Xiao Jin Yu coolly interrupted him. "I don't suspect you. I only urge increased vigilance... This contains not just the cases you handled, but several recent cases involving the other eight from Prince An Manor, plus two that I personally oversaw. Aside from the substitution of martial arts aliases for real names, the details are remarkably accurate."
"Where is this storyteller from?"
"Chu Shui Town, Zizhu County, Suzhou—Fragrance Adding Teahouse."
Tang Yan paused. "Isn't that... Miss Chu's hometown?"
"These three booklets are what she transcribed after listening to the storytelling there."
"Wang Ye," Tang Yan's expression and voice grew graver as he looked at Xiao Jin Yu, "I heard this marriage was something Miss Chu requested from the Emperor, this trip to Suzhou was her suggestion too, and now these scripts are hers..." He was reluctant to believe the young girl—who had specially borrowed a kitchen to steam egg custard for Xiao Jin Yu's comfort—could be scheming, but as an investigator, evidence outweighed all.
Xiao Jin Yu faintly frowned and shook his head. "No ordinary person could uncover such intricate details, especially for cases scattered across the nation. I've roughly deduced who it might be. Judging by the length of these scripts... this person has been waiting for me in Chu Shui Town for some time."
"Regardless, it was that girl who lured you to Chu Shui Town." Tang Yan suddenly recalled something, staring at Xiao Jin Yu's deathly pale face. "Wang Ye, your sudden illness—so severe you can't even push this chair—is that related to her too?"
Xiao Jin Yu hesitated briefly, then let out a soft sigh with a faint, bitter smile. "She said she couldn't sleep with the lamp on at night..."
Tang Yan nearly leaped up. "So you spent the night outside in this bitter winter?!"
"No... I was in the carriage."Tang Yan gripped his sword, clenching his jaw to suppress the vulgar slang popular in the martial world. After a long moment, he spoke with barely concealed irritation, "Wang Ye, do you know why I didn't send you a birthday congratulatory letter this time?"
Xiao Jin Yu frowned. Why had the conversation suddenly turned to birthday greetings?
Before Xiao Jin Yu could respond, Tang Yan couldn't help but continue, "When Jing Yi sent word to investigate Miss Chu's background, I happened to be in Suzhou. I took an evening to look into it and found that the woman claimed to be Miss Chu's mother died during childbirth while delivering the Chu family's eldest son, Chu He. After that, Chu Chu's father, Chu Ping, never remarried. Then one day, a baby girl suddenly appeared in the Chu household. The Chu family works in the coroner profession and doesn't interact much with others. When the family claimed she was their daughter, the neighbors assumed she must be an illegitimate child from Chu Ping's affairs."
Xiao Jin Yu suddenly understood the "bad luck" Chu Chu had mentioned earlier. His heart clenched. The daughter of a coroner's family, and an illegitimate child of unclear origins - even in relatively open-minded capital cities, she would have endured scorn since childhood, let alone in a remote town...
"I thought Chu Ping seemed like an honest man who wouldn't do such things, but I was in a hurry to get to Hangzhou at the time. Jing Yi only said she was a coroner, so I didn't pay much attention. But now you want to make her your princess consort - that's no small matter... Last night at the inn, she seemed normal enough, but given these circumstances, Wang Ye, we must be cautious."
Xiao Jin Yu seemed to digest this information for a while before sighing softly, "I understand..."
Seeing that Xiao Jin Yu didn't seem to take his words seriously, Tang Yan said coldly, "Wang Ye, if you insist on putting a blade to your own neck, none of us can stop you."
Xiao Jin Yu looked calmly at Tang Yan, who was struggling to control his temper, and smiled faintly, "Didn't you once hold a sword to my neck?"
In his anger, Tang Yan blurted out, "That was different! At that time, I had Wu Jiang's blade at my own neck too! Besides, you didn't blush back then..."
Xiao Jin Yu shot him a glare, and Tang Yan abruptly cut himself off.
He suddenly remembered that although the man before him could barely stand steady, provoking him was far more dangerous than angering a nest of martial arts masters.
Under Xiao Jin Yu's cold, sharp gaze, Tang Yan swallowed hard. "Well, uh... the weather doesn't look good, it's going to rain. I should make my escape... I mean, I should be on my way. Take care, Wang Ye!"
As Tang Yan vanished like a shadow, Xiao Jin Yu slowly leaned his nearly exhausted body against the chair back. His gaze, now devoid of its sharpness, fell upon the three notebooks before him, and he smiled bitterly in silence.
If that's really how it is, then why did you...
☆、26 Sweet and Sour Ribs (Six)
Only when Chu Chu arrived at the Prefect Magistrate's Office did she understand that "bringing the body back" meant retrieving the same food box that Tang Yan had brought and taken away the previous night.
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