Xu Yiwei remained unmoved by reason, and although he seemed to have his reasons, Yan Liang was helpless as long as he didn't reveal them. Bai Yutang went to Sishui, and Zhan Zhao, a proper civil servant, also had official duties of patrolling the streets to arrest criminals, so Yan Liang suddenly had nothing to do.

"Boring. Utterly boring."

Yan Liang sighed deeply.

Pang Yu was more than willing to agree; he was practically going crazy from being cooped up for so long. These past few days he'd been holed up in Kaifeng Prefecture, his only activity area this courtyard, waiting for people to come and play with him. He couldn't go out himself, which was driving the wild Pang Yu, who was used to being out and about, incredibly restless. He couldn't wait to urge Judge Bao to solve the case quickly.

—But I have the desire to steal, but not the courage; I can only dream about it.

Yan Liang stroked his chin, frowned, and pondered for a moment before slamming his hand on the table, ready to stir up trouble.

"I'll be right back."

Leaving these words behind, Yan Liang waved his sleeves, picked up the fortune-telling banner, leaving Pang Yu, who was utterly shocked, lamenting that he had met the wrong person and had been abandoned by his companion.

"Go quickly and come back quickly—"

Pang Yu shouted, then realized he sounded like a resentful woman confined to her chambers, and felt a chill run down his spine, his whole body going numb.

Yan Liang had just turned a corner when he heard this, so he stuck his head out and gave Pang Yu a complicated look, saying, "Don't rely on me too much, just play by yourself for now."

Pang Yu was stunned. Only after Yan Liang's figure disappeared did he realize what was happening. His innate ability to roast him kicked in, and he mentally screamed, "Who's relying on you?! Didn't he have a lot of fun on his own when you went out to investigate the case?!"

Afterwards, Pang Yu felt a little melancholy. Yan Liang was a whimsical person; being around him brought nothing but joy and a subtle sense of exhaustion. If possible, Pang Yu hoped to remain friends with Yan Liang forever.

Yan Liang headed towards the back gate of Kaifeng Prefecture—he had been using the back gate for the past few days. Along the way, he encountered several maids and greeted them with smiles. The maids knew he was involved in the case and, moreover, got along very well with Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang, so they were very kind to him. They smiled in response and then blushed as they ran away.

Besides the people of Kaifeng Prefecture, only Bai Yutang and Yan Liang can come and go freely in Kaifeng Prefecture.

Both of them were approved by Lord Bao, and the yamen runners only nodded when they saw Yan Liang as a greeting.

The back gate of Kaifeng Prefecture was next to a small alley. One of the people who had been secretly watching Yan Liang as he came out hurriedly went to report the news. Yan Liang put his fist to his mouth and walked through the alley with his head down.

The person keeping an eye on Kaifeng Prefecture was Zhao Lu's man. After receiving the news, he prepared to meet this brilliant but crippled master.

Yan Liang carried his fortune-telling banner, and people came to him for fortune-telling along the way. He walked and stopped, telling the whereabouts of an old lady who had lost her gold jewelry, giving a lucky charm to an old man who had been having bad luck recently, and giving advice to a young man with a bad temper. He "coincidentally" met Zhao Lu while he was giving advice to the young man.

"Judging from your appearance, you are kind-hearted and gentle, a diligent and down-to-earth person. However, your superior is too strict and has extremely high demands on his subordinates. Young man, you should talk less and do more, and let your abilities speak for themselves."

Yan Liang spoke earnestly and sincerely.

The young man: "..."

Who's the younger brother? Didn't you see he's older than you? And are you addicted to fortune telling or what? He clearly didn't come to you for fortune telling, so how did you manage to bring him along?

Zhao Lu's carriage was parked to the side, and he heard Yan Liang's words clearly. After getting off the carriage, he first looked at the young man who had been caught for fortune-telling, and his smile deepened.

The young man shuddered, and after receiving a look from Zhao Lu, he laughed it off with Yan Liang and quietly left.

Yan Liang smiled and looked up at the young man walking towards him, saying, "Young master, would you like your fortune told?"

Zhao Lu examined the fortune-telling banner that Yan Liang was holding, but didn't say anything after hearing this, just left him standing there.

Yan Liang glanced at him, remaining calm and composed.

Why should he speak if you don't speak up?

silence.

Zhao Lu: "..."

Still, silence.

Since his opponent wasn't playing by the rules, Zhao Lu couldn't bring himself to speak, so he coughed and said to Yan Liang, "I've met you once before, do you remember me?"

Yan Liang smiled and said, "Of course I remember. Young Master, you are an extraordinary person with a handsome appearance. Once you've seen me, you won't forget me."

Looking into Yan Liang's sincere eyes, Zhao Lu couldn't tell whether the man was genuinely praising him or just being polite.

"Um, my name is Zhao Lu."

Yan Liang smiled and introduced himself, saying sincerely, "It is fate that we have met. What troubles you, young master? Why don't you tell me? Perhaps I can help you."

Zhao Lu thought to himself, what troubles could he possibly have? Now, all the troubles he's facing are because of you.

Despite his thoughts, Zhao Lu couldn't very well point his finger at the man and yell at him. So he said, "I've been running into walls everywhere lately, and things haven't been going well for me. Do you have any ideas on how to get rid of this?"

Yan Liang's smile deepened. He calculated with his fingers and said in a deep voice, "What you have been doing has taken a lot of time and energy to do. You are currently encountering setbacks everywhere because you are overworked. You will be fine after a few days of rest."

"Ha, that's easy for you to say. He wouldn't be so tired if it weren't for you." Zhao Lu sneered inwardly, but his face still wore a warm, spring-like smile.

Yan Liang added, "Besides, life is a long journey, and it's inevitable to experience great ups and downs. Young Master Zhao, it's perfectly fine to relax occasionally."

The gray-robed youth spoke with a smile, but Zhao Lu frowned after hearing it. Whether it was his imagination or something else, he felt that there was something more to Yan Liang's words.

“I can also tell some other things, young master, why don’t you ask me?” Yan Liang said with a smile. “Five coins a divination, cheap and reasonable.”

"Do you... know who I am?"

Zhao Lu probed with his words.

"Your Highness is joking," Yan Liang chuckled. "You just told me your name. Wouldn't it be quite strange if I didn't know your identity?"

That's true.

Zhao Lu recalled that when he tried to talk to Jinmaoshu, Bai Yutang ignored him, probably because he knew that he was the heir of the Prince of Xiangyang. He thought that perhaps he shouldn't have introduced himself right away.

"Does Your Highness have any more questions?" Yan Liang pointed to his fortune-telling banner and smiled. "One divination costs five coins, and Your Highness has asked two questions so far."

Zhao Lu: "..."

Is this person saying that if there are no problems, they should hurry up and pay?

"What's the rush? I'm not short of your money. But since we've met, it's fate. I'll treat you to dinner tonight."

Zhao Lu invited Yan Liang to dinner. He hoped to extract some information from Yan Liang, such as Xu Yiwei's situation in the Kaifeng Prefecture dungeon and the Kaifeng Prefecture's understanding of the Chenzhou case.

Being able to get a free meal was a pleasant surprise, and Yan Liang happily agreed.

Still at Wangxianlou.

Here, Bai Yutang met Xu Yiwei, and now Yan Liang and the Prince of Xiangyang are dining face to face here.

It's no coincidence that things happen; fate is truly a capricious little devil.

Yan Liang sighed during his meal. Zhao Lu, holding his chopsticks, watched the young man across from him eat. Although he didn't wolf down his food, his movements were fluid and effortless, clearly indicating his extensive experience.

...How unpalatable must the food in Kaifeng Prefecture be for this guy to eat like a starving ghost?

Unaware that Yan Liang was like this, Zhao Lu developed some subtle misunderstandings about the kitchen of Kaifeng Prefecture.

During their meal, Zhao Lu tried several times to find out where Yan Liang lived. Although he knew Yan Liang lived in the backyard of Kaifeng Prefecture, he couldn't continue asking without bringing up the topic. However, Yan Liang first changed the subject, and when Zhao Lu brought it back, he casually mentioned staying in brothels and entertainment venues, refusing to reveal his actual residence.

This made it impossible to continue the conversation. Unable to do anything else, Zhao Lu turned the topic to Marquis Anle, Pang Yu, and gave Pang Yu a righteous and eloquent critique. Yan Liang wholeheartedly agreed with Zhao Lu's critique.

Zhao Lu: "..."

The heir of the Prince of Xiangyang wants to overturn the chessboard again.

Completely oblivious to the other person's increasingly dark expression, Yan Liang put down his chopsticks and pushed his bowl away after finishing his meal, then respectfully took his leave with a smile on his face.

"Your Highness, until we meet again."

Zhao Lu stared at the limping figure downstairs, gritting his teeth.

He didn't find out anything at all, and even wasted money treating this person to a meal!

Seeing that Yan Liang had returned from his stroll with light steps and a smile on his face, Pang Yu said, "What good thing happened to you? Your smile is a little creepy."

Yan Liang put away the fortune-telling banner, glanced at the book in front of Pang Yu, and said, "You met an interesting person and had a lot of fun. Also, where did you get this book? Why are you suddenly reading?"

Pang Yu sighed, "I'm so bored. I asked Brother Zhan to help me borrow a copy of the Analects from Master Gongsun. That's all I can do to pass the time now."

"Where did you carry it to?"

Yan Liang sat down on the stone bench, looked at the open book, and read out the words on the top line.

"In dealing with friends, one should be trustworthy."

Pang Yu nodded and added, "Actually, I used to memorize them. My dad forced me to memorize them, but it's been many years, so I can only remember the general outline."

Yan Liang stroked his chin and smiled, "Actually, I've forgotten most of it too."

The two exchanged a glance, revealing smiles typical of those who don't study hard.

"If you want to pass the time, wouldn't it be better to read some storybooks?" Yan Liang added.

“…I would like to see those things, but Mr. Gongsun certainly won’t have them.” Pang Yu said, feeling frustrated. “Besides, I don’t dare to bring it up.”

"How about I go out and buy some for you tomorrow?" Yan Liang suggested.

“Okay!” Pang Yu nodded vigorously.

Although Grand Tutor Pang would occasionally send people to visit Pang Yu, Pang Yu was always uneasy, since he couldn't talk to anyone in Kaifeng Prefecture.

Although Zhan Zhao is a good person and approachable, Pang Yu is probably just naturally incompatible with the people of Kaifeng Prefecture, just like his father.

Pang Yu was even afraid that one day he might accidentally say the word "Bao Heizi" while talking to Zhan Zhao, which would be truly embarrassing.

Moreover, he almost let it slip a few times, even in front of Judge Bao.

It wouldn't matter if I let it slip in front of Yan Liang, but I'm afraid of saying it in front of Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang, since both of them greatly admire Lord Bao.

Pang Yu admitted that Judge Bao was a good official, and now he also had to rely on the Kaifeng Prefecture to solve the case and clear his name. However, once a habit is formed, it is difficult to change, so he could only try to avoid it.

Author's Note: I'm here!

Good evening, everyone!