Chu Chu sat directly across from him, propping her chin in her hands with a beaming smile. She watched him with rapt attention, as if enjoying a grand theatrical performance, leaving him utterly speechless.
This girl challenged his mind more than all the cases in the entire kingdom combined. He could almost hear the strained threads of his thoughts groaning under the burden.
What else could he do...
Xiao Jin Yu leaned helplessly against the tub and closed his eyes. When the pounding of his heart no longer seemed so deafening, he suddenly remembered something. Furrowing his brow, he opened his eyes and asked, "Earlier... what did you want from me?"
Chu Chu was taken aback, then sprang up with a start. "Oh! I almost forgot! I made you Lotus Root and Pork Rib Soup. It's probably gone cold outside by now!"
Xiao Jin Yu seized this lifeline. "I have stomach troubles—I can't drink it cold."
"Alright, I'll heat it up for you whenever you want some."
"I want it now," Xiao Jin Yu said, trying his best to look both eager and sincere. "I'm hungry."
Chu Chu paused in surprise. It was the first time she had ever heard Wang Ye say he was hungry. For a patient to have an appetite was often a sign of recovery, and her heart blossomed with joy. "Great! I'll go heat the soup right away and make you a few more dishes!"
Xiao Jin Yu let out a slow, relieved sigh. "Thank you..."
By the time Chu Chu returned cheerfully carrying the food box, Xiao Jin Yu had already left the bath, fully dressed and seated in his room.
"Huh? You're already done bathing?"
"Mmm..."
As she unpacked the dishes from the food box, Chu Chu glanced at Xiao Jin Yu with a mix of curiosity and doubt. "Did you call someone to help you?"
"Mmm..."
Pursing her lips, she pressed in a hushed tone, "A woman?"
"Mmm... Huh?"
Merely under her gaze, Xiao Jin Yu felt his cheeks burning. He hadn't clearly heard what she said, only that her tone this time sounded different from before.
Chu Chu had no intention of waiting for him to repeat his answer. "Well... you should eat quickly. It'll get cold again if you wait." She hastily set the bowls and plates on the table, grabbed the empty food box, and made for the door. "I'm returning this to Feng Yi."
Chu Chu hurried out of the room and didn't slow her pace until she was quite a distance away.
Hearing Xiao Jin Yu admit that a woman had assisted him left her feeling strangely unsettled. It was as if she had eaten a plate of Hot and Sour Cabbage without any rice—her throat and stomach were left with a sour, burning sensation. The discomfort made her want to cry, yet she couldn't understand why.
Ever since meeting Wang Ye, nothing but odd things kept happening!
Lost in these gloomy thoughts, she ambled toward the kitchen. Before she could reach it, Ji Dong He came jogging up from behind and called out to her.
"Miss Chu... Miss Chu, Wang Ye needs to see you."
Chu Chu looked at Ji Dong He, whose forehead was beaded with fine sweat. "What for?"
"Well... this humble official doesn't know. Wang Ye only said he'd like to ask for your help."
At the mention of help, that sour, burning feeling surged up again. Chu Chu pouted. "If he had a maid to help him bathe, why does he need me for his meal? He can just ask that maid again..."
Ji Dong He's sweat seemed to cloud over with confusion. What in the world was she talking about? "Miss Chu, the sedan chair is waiting outside the manor gates."
"Sedan chair?" Chu Chu was taken aback. "Are we going out?""Yes... His Highness has already gone ahead and ordered this official to accompany Miss Chu."
Chu Chu frowned, looking at the food box still in her hand. Didn't he say he was hungry? How could he have run off again after eating for such a short while? "Did he find more body parts?"
Seeing the food box and hearing the word "corpse," Ji Donghe's stomach churned violently, his face instantly paling a shade. "This official... this official truly doesn't know. Please make haste, Miss Chu!"
Chu Chu blinked. "Alright then."
"Miss Chu, just leave the food box by the roadside. The servants will take care of it when they see it."
Chu Chu hugged the food box to her chest, smiling brightly. "I'll keep it with me. I think it would be very convenient for holding dismembered corpses!"
"Fine... fine..."
Chu Chu and Ji Donghe waited in the Prefect Magistrate's Office for nearly half an hour before Xiao Jinyu finally entered from outside. Only one of his two guards had come, silently pushing his wheelchair behind him. Following them, Tan Zhang led a group of subordinates escorting five prisoners who were making a noisy procession of shouts and curses.
"Your Highness."
Seeing Xiao Jinyu enter, Ji Donghe quickly stood up and bowed respectfully. When he raised his head, he unexpectedly met Xiao Jinyu's profound gaze and froze in surprise. By the time he collected himself, Xiao Jinyu had already averted his eyes.
The guard settled Xiao Jinyu's wheelchair beside the tea table and naturally took his place at Xiao Jinyu's side. Before standing firm, he also cast an inscrutable glance toward Ji Donghe.
Ji Donghe felt extremely uncomfortable under their scrutiny, but one was the Prince and the other was the Prince's guard. Being a grown man, he couldn't just ask why they were looking at him without reason. He could only steel himself and retreat to the side, pretending to be composed.
Before Chu Chu could decide whether to go stand by Xiao Jinyu, she heard him say to Tan Zhang, who had just stepped through the doorway, "Lord Tan, take the suspects into custody for now... Chu Chu, go with Lord Tan immediately to conduct the corpse examination."
Chu Chu's eyes lit up. There really was a corpse!
Tan Zhang mustered all his strength to plaster a smile on his green-tinged pale face. "Your Highness, rest assured... Miss Chu, if you please."
Chu Chu glanced at the expressionless Xiao Jinyu, gritted her teeth, and pouted at Tan Zhang. "I am Wang Ye's wife. You should address me as Imperial Concubine."
Tan Zhang and Ji Donghe both froze simultaneously, turning together to look at Xiao Jinyu with confused expressions.
Hadn't the Prince told them to call her Miss Chu? He even said the Imperial Concubine didn't like being addressed that way in public...
Heaven knew Xiao Jinyu was many times more bewildered than either of them. Wasn't this what she had requested of him herself?
OpenNovel