Chapter 175: Revisiting the Old Case
"This is it. Miss Xie always requested this private room whenever she came last year. She probably thought it was quiet here. But I was just guessing. Don't forget to keep it in mind. Oh, right, I forgot to tell you. Miss Xie also bought the original copy of 'The Wandering Chronicle' in this building, but only the second half. If you want to know where the first half is, I'll ask the troupe leader."
After the waiter finished speaking, he brought up a pot of tea, thoughtfully closed the door, and dashed downstairs. Every word he said left a mark on Wuqing's heart, and every word was something he would discuss in detail with his junior brothers and Zhuge Zhengwo when he got back. But since he was here today, he could only put aside Di Feijing and the like and think about Xie Huailing's intentions first. What case did she want him to investigate by having him listen to this "Tales of the Wandering"?
In any case, with no other clues for the time being, the only option was to start listening to the first act of the ruthless story.
As mentioned earlier, he rarely attends operas or reads storybooks, which is a disadvantage in itself. Having never experienced the allure of tales of talented scholars and beautiful women, Wuqing naturally couldn't grasp the value of rarity, nor could he discern the extraordinary nature of "The Wandering Swordsman" by avoiding clichéd plots. It wasn't until after two acts, witnessing the protagonist's transformation after passing the imperial examination, that he suddenly understood why he had chosen this particular performance.
He didn't need to hear about such dramas in plays or read about them in books; during his many years at the Divine Marquis's Mansion, he had witnessed countless cases of ruthlessness firsthand. He was amazed by the vivid portrayal in the plays, but also somewhat silent—a silence that couldn't be expressed in words.
He had already foreseen the course of the story and all its endings.
Fallen flowers drift with the flowing water, sinking into the mud. No matter how many things are beyond our control or how many difficulties we face, in the end, they are all our own choices and our own mistakes.
Wuqing had already thought of some people in his mind, but he didn't know what their relationship was with Xie Huailing, who she was alluding to in the "Drifting Chronicles," or which one of them was related to the case she was going to give him.
Unable to figure it out and racking his brains, he took his silver and went to find the troupe leader's waiter, knocking on the door. The waiter didn't come in, but just poked his head in, smiling broadly. After all, for people in this line of work, a smile was the most important thing: "Esteemed guest, I've asked about the first half of 'The Wandering Chronicles' for you. If you'd like to know, just let me know."
Having no leads to explore further, and not caring about hearing just one more sentence, he ruthlessly let him in.
The waiter rubbed his hands together, not getting too close. He had made some money off Wuqing, but he also had other work to do. He said, "The troupe leader said that a few years ago, when 'The Tale of the Wandering Swordsman' had just been written and sold dozens of copies before a play was even made, a reader bought the first half of the original copy. Originally, everyone was supposed to buy it, but since the troupe leader was making a play, they decided to each buy half. Later, after the theater opened, the troupe leader remembered to buy the first half back, but when he inquired, guess what happened?"
He made a mysterious expression and said, "I don't know how the first half ended up in the hands of the former master of Wuzheng Manor. The troupe leader thought, how could we buy it back? So he gave up on that idea. Now the former master is dead, and Wuzheng Manor is gone. We have no idea where the first half went."
"Who?" Wuqing retorted.
The waiter thought he was standing too far away and Wuqing hadn't heard him clearly, so he stepped forward and repeated himself, louder: "The former master of Wuzheng Manor—"
.
"Yuan Dongyuan?"
Bai Feifei leaned against the red pillar, her arms half-crossed. Half of her face was hidden in the shadows, and the remaining half of her beautiful face was also shrouded in gloom, but her delicate beauty made her difficult to notice.
After listening to Xie Huailing's words, she asked her in return, "Why do you insist on having the people from the Divine Marquis's Mansion investigate the Wuzheng Manor again? It happened last year, and in the end, the Divine Marquis's Mansion made its own conclusion. What doubts could possibly need to be brought up again?"
“Of course there are many suspicious points.” Xie Huailing yawned and slumped weakly against a pillar, sliding to the side until she landed on Bai Feifei’s shoulder. She said calmly, “Because if you think about it carefully, I was the one who lured Yuan Dongyuan to his death, I forced him to his death, and last year I treated the Divine Marquis’s Mansion like fools.”
This was something Bai Feifei didn't know. Xie Huailing rarely mentioned her achievements, but at first glance, Bai Feifei didn't see anything wrong with it. So what if she was driven to death? It was just that—driven to death. To Bai Feifei, that was actually quite kind: "So you're planning to tell them and let them come and settle accounts with you?"
"No." After saying it, Bai Feifei rejected it herself. She was a very smart person. She pondered, "The Divine Marquis's Mansion won't come after you. They will speculate about your intentions, the Golden Wind and Fine Rain Pavilion's intentions, and what Su Mengzhen is really trying to do by blatantly absorbing Wuzheng Manor without giving anyone a reason to criticize you. Since you can fool them all, unless you take the initiative to expose them, they will never find out the clues in their entire lives. So the important thing is not settling scores."
Faced with Bai Feifei's question, Xie Huailing kept her eyes half-closed. Work was still too tiring; she felt like all her bones had been removed, and all she wanted to do was sigh and say, "I came here to rest, do you really want to torture my brain again?"
The next glance, however, carried a hint of resentment.
Bai Feifei had seen how busy she had been these past few days. This person was still on Xie Huailing's side, so even if she wanted to ask, she would think that if there was something for her to do, she would arrange it, so she put aside her curiosity and let Xie Huailing lean on her shoulder and turn halfway to touch her forehead.
"I don't have a fever," Xie Huailing said, clearly dissatisfied.
"I didn't mean you were too tired to think straight." Bai Feifei could easily read her meaning. She probed slightly, "Why don't you share some of your work with me?"
"You're not any easier than me. We're both spinning tops, so let's not talk about speeding up." Xie Huailing brushed aside Bai Feifei's offer.
She came to see Bai Feifei just to have a casual chat and relieve the boredom that had numbed her work life. She was determined to skip over these topics and instead said, "Zhu Qiqi wrote to me again, worried about my situation and asking about your recent situation. Do you want to write back to her?"
Bai Feifei thought for a moment, writing a letter wouldn't take much time: "Just have Shaman come to my room to get it, I'll write it when I have time. What did she ask about my recent situation?"
Xie Huailing's eyes were completely closed: "It's just some worries. You know her personality. She probably thought you had just taken over and weren't used to big events. This silly girl."
"Is there anything else in the letter?"
"Yes, Shen Lang also mentioned some things. He said Zhu Qiqi wants to come back, and he's been stopping her, but stopping her isn't a solution. He hopes I can make a decision soon. If I want her to come back, I should tell her; if I don't want her to come back, I should write it down again in the letter to make her give up. Of course, his suggestion is..."
"I want you to write it down so he can keep his men quiet."
"Wrong, his suggestion was to come back."
Xie Huailing said calmly, "In Shen Lang's view, killing Fu Zongshu was something he did, and he has nothing to hide. He's just afraid of causing some trouble. He also understands that even if the Divine Marquis's Mansion knows what he and I did in Fu Zongshu's death, it won't be detrimental to either of us. What the Divine Marquis's Mansion wants is just the truth, the truth about whether a conspiracy has taken place in places they can't see."
"From this perspective, the concerns and intuition of the Divine Marquis's Mansion are quite reasonable. Cai Jing's order for Fu Zongshu to search for Wang Yunmeng, and the things in Wang Yunmeng's possession, can indeed cause great turmoil. And almost all of these are things that Shen Lang is unaware of, as well as things that I did behind their backs. It is only natural that he sees through it all and is not worried. As for Zhu Qiqi, she is only worried about the timing of her return, and some other things, such as friendship."
Xie Huailing didn't think so. But in Shen Lang's eyes, they already were friends.
Therefore, he could do things for her, take risks, and choose to trust her directly without expecting anything in return. There are many things Shen Lang wouldn't do for himself, but he would do for Zhu Qiqi and for his friends.
From this perspective, Shen Lang is somewhat similar to Chu Liuxiang and Lu Xiaofeng. Chu Liuxiang said that people judge by actions, not intentions, and he only looked at what she did. She was also compassionate. Lu Xiaofeng, out of friendship with her, could overlook her identity and the many suspicious points about her involvement in the Beggars' Sect.
Xie Huailing had repeatedly said that she could never become that kind of person, but she liked that kind of person. This world needs, and has always needed, this kind of person.
Bai Feifei noticed something else and asked, "What do you think? Do you need them to come back? If you agree, it's possible that more than just Zhu Qiqi and Shen Lang will come back."
Xie Huailing knew, of course. She knew even better who Bai Feifei was talking about.
Since returning to Bianjing, they had never mentioned this person again. She would think of him occasionally, but that was all. Thoughts could not control Xie Huailing, nothing could control Xie Huailing, just as she did not regret all that she had lost, nor regret all that she had never possessed, nor regret all the decisions she had made.
He simply became something she had to face.
Xie Huailing is not lacking in courage, even the kind of courage that forces him to force himself.
"Whether it's someone or not, whether they come back or not is not entirely up to me," she said.
Her eyes remained closed. For some reason, she felt a sense of reminiscence at this moment, a sense of déjà vu, like moonlight. He seemed to have become a part of her past, a person from her past, but that wasn't real. After all, he hadn't died; only the version of him remained, forever in the spring: "The only thing that can be decided is whether the circumstances are suitable."
Xie Huailing didn't look up at the sky; it was clear and sunny, with sunlight piercing through the clouds.
She didn't want the sunlight to shine into her eyes, so the sunlight could only continue to run, running for miles, dozens of miles, to places beyond the city walls that she would not visit.
The gray-walled courtyard was bathed in golden sunlight, turning the gray into white. The boy's face was also warmed by the lingering sunlight. He didn't look away, but instead raised his head slightly and then lowered it again, his hands hidden in his sleeves, unconsciously clutching something.
In a room not far away, Zhu Qiqi was still sulking. She had a fight with Shen Lang and wanted to go back to Bianjing. Thinking of this, the young man suddenly wanted to laugh, but he didn't understand why he wanted to laugh.
The person who was supposed to try to comfort Zhu Qiqi was kicked out. Helpless, he touched his face, gave a bitter laugh, and then saw him leaning against the window. For some reason, Shen Lang didn't continue trying to coax Zhu Qiqi; instead, he turned around and walked over.
Wang Lianhua looked over, and Shen Lang asked him, "I need to write another letter to Miss Xie. She wants me to send that jade pendant back to her. Do you remember where you kept the jade pendant?"
"How would I know?" Wang Lianhua smiled, her eyebrows relaxed, and she looked extremely kind. "Her things are missing, why are you asking me? If I took them, they're just lost, there's no need to look for them anymore."
The strange and sarcastic tone was still quite strong. Shen Lang glanced at it, then his gaze shifted to the medicine bottle beside Wang Lianhua. He and Xiongmao'er had saved someone today, something that was very different from his usual style. Although his actions were still ruthless and wicked, Shen Lang knew perfectly well what had happened.
He sighed, and Wang Lianhua knew that Shen Lang had seen it. So he said to Wang Lianhua, "Then I'll go look again."
Then he forgot to leave, looked at the medicine bottle, and saw Wang Lianhua's face again.
After a certain person, Wang Lianhua began to dislike intelligent people, especially those who were smarter than him, because these people seemed to see things more clearly than he did, telling him things he didn't want to see clearly.
Shen Lang saw through his facade and said sincerely, "Saving people is a good thing, there's no need to hide it. If one day you encounter things different from before in your experiences, that would be even better. Life must go on forever."
He added, "When that day comes, it won't just be me and Qiqi who will be happy for you."
This sentence can be interpreted as Wang Lianhua's interpretation: it refers to a panda, a dead person, or a living person who will not return.
Wang Lianhua sometimes wanted to laugh, and sometimes couldn't. She just watched Shen Lang and watched him leave.
He raised his hand, and once the sleeve was no longer concealing it, the jade pendant he was caressing was revealed. It was intricately carved with flowers, and the center was hollowed out, containing a silver ball.
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Because the name Wang Baochuan is really interesting, I'm bringing up Young Master Wang for a bit. Ninth Young Master is almost here too; we'll all have to wait for the progress of the Divine Marquis's Mansion.
And Shen Lang knew where the jade pendant was, which was giving him a headache.
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