Chapter 119: Trouble

After saying this, Jingwu turned and left.

Yue Huai didn't say anything more and followed her back to the county magistrate's office.

After learning that the case was closed, Shao Chengrui and Yan Shengming packed their luggage and waited for the two of them to return so they could set off for the capital.

Seeing this, Jingwu went back to his room to pack his clothes, bid farewell to the county magistrate's wife, and then boarded the carriage to head to the capital.

Muyun County was very close to the capital. After traveling for five or six days, we saw the city gate.

Before the carriage even entered, a grand funeral procession came out.

The coachman decided to give way and spurred the carriage to the side of the road.

As the funeral procession passed by the carriages, the cries and mournful music mingled together, evoking pity in the hearts of the mourners.

Jingwu glanced through the curtain and the carriage entered the city in the next second.

The coachman stopped the carriage in front of the inn next to the examination hall, and everyone got off the carriage.

It was getting late, so after everyone entered the inn, they booked a few superior rooms and went back to their rooms to rest.

Jingwu's back ached from sitting in the carriage for the past few days, and he fell asleep as soon as he lay down.

The next day, before dawn, a commotion was heard.

Intermittent cries and arguments reached Jingwu's ears.

Unable to sleep due to the noise, she cast a spell and set up a protective barrier.

I tried to go back to sleep, but I tossed and turned and couldn't fall back asleep.

Jingwu sat up, rubbed his eyes with a headache, put on a coat, and went out to see what was going on.

As soon as I stepped outside, I saw Yan Shengming and Shao Chengrui, also wearing coats, leaning on the railing and looking down.

There were quite a few people standing in the corridor.

Jingwu yawned and walked over to his older cousin.

"What's wrong?"

When Shao Chengrui saw her come out, he immediately moved aside to make room for her.

He pointed to the young woman lying on the floor of the lobby downstairs, crying and shouting, and said, "Her husband was drinking at this inn a few days ago. He came home drunk and was killed on the way. The murderer was never caught, so she came to the inn to cause trouble."

Jingwu looked down at the scene below, his brows furrowed slightly. Just as he was about to speak, he was interrupted by a howl.

"Who are you trying to fool with ten taels of silver? That was a living, breathing person! If my husband hadn't been drinking here, how could he have been killed?" The woman brushed aside the silver the shopkeeper had brought and cried out loudly, "If you don't give me a satisfactory answer, I won't leave, and you can forget about doing business with me."

"Tsk, isn't this just plain extortion?" A guest nearby couldn't stand it anymore and muttered, "The person didn't die at the inn, how can they blame the inn for this?"

"Sigh, the man is dead, leaving behind only a widow and her children. It's understandable that she wants to earn some money to make a living. But I heard that her husband was a famous handsome young man in the capital. It's just a pity that he had such bad luck. He lost both his parents at a young age and grew up on the charity of others. He finally managed to settle down, get married, and have children, but then he was murdered."

Jingwu, with his sharp ears, heard these words and pondered them thoughtfully.

The next second, she suddenly felt a weight on her shoulder. Turning her head, she saw the sleepy-eyed boy draping a cloak over her shoulders.

"It's winter, why are you dressed so lightly? Be careful not to catch a cold."

Yue Huai's ears turned slightly red as he spoke with a serious expression.

Jingwu looked down at his thin coat, pursed his lips, and thought about saying that he wasn't cold, but he didn't say it.

Wrapped in the cloak, she immediately felt warm all over.

Shao Chengrui took in this scene and his opinion of Yue Huai changed a little.

"She carries such a heavy aura of resentment." The boy was so sleepy he could barely keep his eyes open, but the sight of the person kneeling at the bottom instantly perked him up.

“You noticed it too,” Jingwu added, then continued, “It’s not a living person, but there are no ghosts around her.”

"Hmm." Yue Huai thought for a moment, then said, "They should have been in contact with each other."

Jingwu nodded, his gaze falling on the woman's face, lost in thought.

Seeing that more and more people were gathering around, the shopkeeper had no choice but to swallow his anger and hand her fifty taels of silver.

“Mrs. Xu, fifty taels of silver is the most you can offer. Stop making a scene, or I will report you to the authorities.”

Xu looked at the fifty taels of silver and was about to say something, but when she met the shopkeeper's cold eyes, she shivered, took the silver, and quickly left.

Seeing that she knew when to stop, the shopkeeper's expression softened, and he then greeted the customers with a smile.

Seeing that there was no excitement to watch, many people went downstairs to eat or went back to their rooms to sleep, leaving few people on the railings.

Yan Shengming yawned widely and said to the others, "I'm going back to sleep some more, I'm just too tired."

Shao Chengrui nodded in response, then turned to the girl and asked, "Awu, what about you?"

Jingwu blinked and thought for a moment, then said, "I'll go back and sleep a little longer too."

"Okay." Shao Chengrui agreed, then added a few more words of advice, "Cover yourself well, don't catch a cold."

"Okay." Jingwu replied with a smile, then turned to look at the boy, who was also extremely tired, and said with a smile, "Why don't you go back and catch up on some sleep too?"

“Yes.” Yue Huai nodded with a smile.

Jingwu didn't say anything more after hearing this. He turned around, went into the house, lay down on the bed, and took another nap.

Yue Huai also went back to his room to catch up on sleep. Of the four, only Shao Chengrui couldn't sleep anymore, so he went downstairs and ate something.

He put down his chopsticks and was about to go upstairs to read when he saw a handsome man sit down next to him.

"Young master, you are very handsome."

Shao Chengrui was stunned for a moment upon hearing this, his ears instantly turning red, before he awkwardly laughed out, "Thank you for the compliment, you are also very handsome."

The man smiled broadly, his eyes fixed intently on the man's nose: "Especially that nose, so high and straight, a sign of good fortune. By the way, young master, where are you from?"

Shao Chengrui felt uncomfortable under his gaze and wanted to run away, but it would be impolite, so he replied vaguely, "I'm from Pingyao County, Jinzhou."

"Pingyao County, young master, you must be on your way to the capital for the imperial examinations." The man said with a smile, "I am the winemaker of this inn, my name is Ning Yi. What kind of wine would you like to drink?"

Upon hearing this, Shao Chengrui hesitated for a moment before saying, "I'm not much of a drinker."

"And what about the tea?"

"He doesn't really know how to drink tea either." Shao Chengrui found the person in front of him extremely strange, so he just laughed it off.

"I see." A glint flashed in Ning Yi's eyes. Seeing his discomfort, she stood up with a smile: "I have some things to do in the kitchen, so I'll be leaving now. You must try my wine when you have the chance."