Chapter 178: The Art of Hospitality
Calling someone by their full name is very useful, especially for those who don't use their full name often. However, sometimes it can have the opposite effect.
Suddenly hearing a cracking sound, Wuqing was jolted awake and realized that his gaze had been lingering on her face for a long time. It was understandable; conversations always require focused attention, and it was perfect for a constable to observe a prisoner's reactions and the details of a case. Wuqing had always done this, and when he closely observed Xie Huailing, he had the same intention. His gaze stemmed from this purpose, and there was nothing excessive about it.
But in the moment of his merciless awakening, amidst an indescribable hesitation, he realized that it wasn't like that. Snow freezes into ice without one noticing; even if one is still wearing the outer layer of snow, its essence is already different, and they cannot be compared.
Therefore, the fact that he gazed at her face while thinking becomes illogical.
Needless to say, after realizing this, the name she called out was like a tiny current, or a small hidden weapon, piercing him and rushing past.
He felt somewhat embarrassed and guilty, and it became difficult to reply to her. Before Xie Huailing could call his name a second time, he spoke up without hesitation. He couldn't explain himself, his throat was dry, and he couldn't tell a lie to cover up his true feelings: "...It was my rudeness that offended Miss Xie."
Xie Huailing let him go without pressing the matter, perhaps thinking that finding out something would only cause more trouble, or perhaps simply being lazy and uninterested: "It's nothing, nothing to be ashamed of. What does the Chief Constable think of my suggestion just now?"
"No problem at all. Thank you for your kindness, Miss. I won't refuse." Regardless of what she was thinking, business came first. She quickly switched to a businesslike tone and listened attentively.
Xie Huailing, however, was not in a hurry to get to the point. Instead, she chatted with him casually and slowly brought up the subject, asking, "Chief Constable, you've heard of the name 'Sword Immortal' Ye Gucheng, haven't you? He's one of the best swordsmen, the city lord of Baiyun City, and the teacher of the Prince of Nan. He has several titles."
When she brought up seemingly unrelated people again, Wuqing was no longer surprised. She recalled Ye Gucheng's reputation in her memory, and then seized on the news of the Prince of Nan's serious illness: "I've heard about it. Miss Xie, please speak frankly if you have something to say."
Xie Huailing, however, was different. She could ignore anything she didn't want to hear and brought up another person: "Ye Gucheng is famous, but the other person I'm going to talk about is not like him. Princess Zhao Mengyun of the Southern Prince's Mansion, the Chief Constable probably hasn't heard of her."
She sipped her tea with a relaxed air, and then casually recounted the collaboration between the Southern Prince's Mansion and Shi Guanyin.
Starting with the arrival of Tianfeng Shisilang, she talked about Shi Guanyin's past, Wuhua and Nangong Ling's background, and the Nanwang Mansion's ambition to replace the crown prince with a cat... She casually manipulated these stories and stirred up these storms, showing them to Wuqing as if sharing a small matter. Perhaps, to her, it was the same thing, and Wuqing had this misconception.
The truth is revealed up to the death of Shi Guanyin and the arrival of Su Mengzhen, which marks the end of the story. There will certainly be other developments in the ending, but that's the story of the Southern Prince's Mansion, while the Beggars' Sect case ends with the death of Shi Guanyin.
Only after all this has been said can we bring up the second game. The address was already written down, saving Xie Huailing from having to say anything more, but the handwriting on the letter she took out was no longer familiar.
Wuqing stared intently, still unable to discern whose handwriting it was. The characters on the paper were exceptionally neat and elegant, the ink strokes delicate as flower branches, the lines orderly and full of scholarly air. He could tell it wasn't Su Mengzhen's, and beyond that, he couldn't find any other clues about who wrote it. There was nothing to worry about; Xie Huailing didn't necessarily require Su Mengzhen to write. She probably just had whoever she met write for her, it was just that she used to spend a lot of time with Su Mengzhen.
That's right. When Xie Huailing went out, Su Mengzhen was taking a nap, and she couldn't find Bai Feifei who had gone out on fieldwork. As a result, she didn't ask anyone to write down the address. The address on the paper was written by someone she was supposed to meet after she arrived at the karaoke bar.
Wuqing accepted the letter. The address wasn't far from the brothel, just a turn or two away. It seemed Xie Huailing wanted him to go as soon as possible, and perfect timing, he had a whole day free.
After confirming the itinerary, it was time to say goodbye to Xie Huailing. Wuqing put down his teacup, and Xie Huailing, seeing his intention to leave, took the teacup and placed it on the tea tray to the side.
She didn't put away her own teacups, but instead took a new one from the tea tray, so there was still a pair of teacups on the table. She then poured tea into the cups. This didn't seem like she was leaving, but rather like she was waiting for someone, or that there was another meeting.
Without asking any further questions, he simply said goodbye. He noticed the faint color under her eyes, which was deeper than the fragrance, as if it had smeared two specks of dust on her face, making her gaze seem droopy and slightly weary, completely unsuitable for her.
Having already said goodbye and opened the door a crack, before leaving, he said, "Although you are busy with many things, Miss Xie, you should take good care of your health. Overworking yourself is not worth it."
Only then did the door close.
He didn't hear Xie Huailing's reply, which made sense; she must have heard it all before. Many people had already said similar words of concern to her, so one more from him wouldn't make a difference. He had only said it for no reason. After a brief moment of thought, Wuqing followed the musician leading the way down the path. The warm fragrance that enveloped him again was almost overwhelming, instantly washing away the aroma of tea. The image of the beautiful woman in his mind gradually faded as his thoughts wandered.
Until the next floor, when they reached a certain place, Wuqing seemed to sense something and raised his head again, looking up from below. He could see that the corridor upstairs was empty, with only singing girls carrying melons and fruits.
But someone should have passed by there; Wuqing wouldn't mistake him, and it was probably the guest Xie Huailing was waiting for.
Who is it?
There should be no doubt about this. He has always been a cautious person, and his curiosity comes without warning.
To put it more precisely, Wuqing realized that what he wanted to know was not the identity of the person who came, but Xie Huailing.
.
Moving from the chair to the soft couch brought a significant increase in comfort. She no longer saw indifference, nor did she need to sit rigidly; she could lie down more freely, her long, black hair flowing like a veil, her skin like white jade against it. Xie Huailing casually reached for the edge of the blanket, then forcefully pulled it over herself. She closed her eyes again; she hadn't been particularly sleepy initially, but now drowsiness suddenly overwhelmed her.
However, she couldn't sleep, so she ordered, "Bring me my tea."
Di Fei responded immediately. Before the young man had even sat down and taken a sip of his hot tea, he brought her tea and water and placed the teacup on a small shelf next to him where vases were kept.
Not content with such thoughtfulness, he reached for Xie Huailing's head, not wanting her to prick herself with a hairpin as she turned over. He removed one of her wooden hairpins, held it to her face, and said, "I ran into Wuqing when I came back. He didn't see me, but he must have noticed me."
The fact that she said she was coming back meant that Xie Huailing had come to the brothel today to see Di Feijing, and that calling Wuqing over was just a side effect. She was simply too lazy to walk any further, and the address she gave Wuqing was only given to her after she had met Di Feijing, and she asked Di Feijing to write it down for her.
"Whether you notice or not, it's the same." Xie Huailing didn't care much. "You might have to see him sooner or later anyway, so just assume he has good eyesight."
Even without opening her eyes, she could feel the young man's shadow still falling on her. He hadn't left the soft couch, and his voice, responding to her words, drew closer. He probably sat down on the couch, his fingers pausing slightly before placing them on her shoulders, gently massaging her. She could have refused; a single refusal would have sent him away. But she didn't. She just felt that thinking about it made her feel like she was wasting the tea he had so kindly poured for her.
Di Feijing said, "Okay."
In fact, they had already discussed most of what they wanted to talk about—the Seven Saints Alliance of the Bewitching Heaven. When Wuqing came, he said he would come back again, simply because he wanted to return. Since they had already embarked on a path of no return and decided to fight for it, they should do their best.
Xie Huailing was being pressed until she was drowsy. The dull ache in her skin prevented her from waking up, but she couldn't sleep either, which was incredibly annoying: "Tell me, when will Wuqing ask me to meet again?"
From the address, Di Feijing roughly guessed Xie Huailing's arrangement. He had recently learned Lin Shiyin's identity and thus understood why Lin Shiyin's hidden weapon was aimed at herself when she ascended the tower in the night rain. If she had taken the Golden Wind and Fine Rain Tower as her stance and been seriously injured in a situation involving six and a half halls, she could have indeed brought Lei Sun down with her.
He did some calculations and then said, "When he sees Miss Lin, the ruthless constable should understand. A day or two will be enough for him to get to the bottom of what happened before."
Xie Huailing sighed again, "It's good to be a smart person; smart people save trouble."
But that also meant that the next meeting wouldn't be so friendly. She said, "Then I'll have to bring someone next time. Shaman might not be able to, and Bai Feifei might not have time. I'll have to think about it some more—how's the cat doing lately? Has she successfully lost weight?"
Di Fei hesitated. He did dote on the cat, but there was more to dote on than dote. Xie Huailing wanted it to lose weight, so it definitely had to lose weight, but it wasn't going so smoothly: "There has been some progress, but its temper seems to have worsened. It's still not good for it to be hungry."
"It's even worse to be fat; it doesn't look like a kitten anymore." Xie Huailing got angry as soon as she brought it up, her parenting views on the cat being completely opposite to Di Feijing's. "By the way, you said last time that besides its formal name, it also has a nickname. I forgot to ask what its nickname is."
Di Feijing didn't speak at first, but after a second or two, he said in a low voice, "We can start another one."
Xie Huailing suddenly realized something and opened her eyes.
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