Chapter 13 The Amazing Lychee Garden (Thirteen) She seemed to want to snuggle into his arms. ...
The sun shone brightly on the eaves, and Jiu Li stood proudly before the King of Wu. Back in their turbulent days, Yu Qi had considered abandoning her, and even selling her, but ultimately, he hadn't done either. He had gone from unwilling to willing, bringing her step by step back to their hometown and raising her to adulthood. Now, she was certain she wouldn't let her suffer even the slightest hardship.
That's good. As long as he gets involved himself, there's no reason for her to meddle.
"Hey, hey, what are you doing?!"
Just as she was making her plans, Yu Qi grabbed her arm and dragged her into the house. He threw her onto the couch, not mentioning the case beforehand, but instead looked around the room and smiled coldly, "People say that outsiders shouldn't easily enter a young lady's boudoir, but you've pulled a man into the room and closed the door to talk. Is this how Grandma and Mama Feng have always taught you?"
The old lady and Mrs. Feng loved to chatter on and on, and after a while, she simply stopped listening to a word they said.
She braced herself on the edge of the couch, twisting her legs and shuffling them on the floor tiles. She kept her eyelids up, her eyes darting left and right. "Du Zhong was in the room when we were talking."
"And where are the others right now?"
Jiuli smiled and said, "I told him to go find someone to go home and get the pills."
Yu Qi laughed angrily, "Hmph, you won't be done until you've ruined your family and business."
"Two pills can ruin your family fortune? Your family fortune must be too meager. Besides, these pills aren't given away for free. Sister Rouge may say some harsh things, but she genuinely pities little Ajin. If she saw me give the medicine to little Ajin and really saw something that night, she'll testify for me and Du Zhong. Otherwise, you'd be wasting your time asking her anything; she still won't say anything."
Yu Qi stood sideways, his hands clasped behind his back, and glanced at her. Perhaps it was hereditary, but she was born with the ability to read people's minds. Whenever he was about to abandon her on the road, she would behave exceptionally well that day, without crying or making a fuss. Even when her feet were blistered, she would not utter a sound, but would just jog and follow closely behind him.
When he turned around and saw the tiny child, who couldn't speak clearly, couldn't walk steadily, and staggered when running, with tears welling up in his big eyes, he bit his lip and refused to let them fall.
On that misty, drizzly morning, he involuntarily stopped to wait for her. His plan to leave her behind failed once again, and he finally admitted that there is indeed an unbreakable bond between people.
He sighed and looked around the room. He had asked a few yamen runners to set it up, but he had never come to see it. He wondered if she would be comfortable living there. He went inside the screen, touched the quilt, and pressed the mattress.
Jiuli walked to the screen, leaned her back against the edge of the ice-cracked screen, and quietly looked at him. Her house in the countryside was large, with heavy curtains. When he came into the house as a child, he would pace around and talk to her, as if he were playing hide-and-seek with her. His figure would appear and disappear between the curtains. She would feel lost when she couldn't see him, and immediately giggle when she could.
She muttered, her chin lowered, "If he doesn't come into this room, I'm afraid you won't come in either."
Yu Qi didn't hear her clearly, so he turned around and scrutinized her, pressing his forehead against his hand. "What are you muttering about?"
"It's nothing." She rolled her eyes, pushed against the screen door with her hand behind her back, straightened up, and twirled her skirt outside. "Who do you think killed Lin Mo? Who did he make enemies with in this garden?"
He strode out, "How can you be so sure it was someone from this garden who did the killing?"
"Of course, he hasn't left the garden. The gates are heavily guarded, and outsiders can't get in—"
"Then how did you get in that day?"
Jiuli suddenly realized, turned around abruptly, bumped into his hard shoulder, rubbed her forehead and looked up at him, "That's right! Before the murder occurred, the guards guarding this garden weren't the same people as now. That day, I came in with Du Zhong, my face covered, and the gatekeeper just asked me a couple of questions and let me in. If I could come in so easily, others might not be able to either."
He brushed her hand away from her forehead and saw that her forehead was a little red from the bruise. He then held her shoulder with one hand and pressed her forehead in a circular motion with the other. "Although there were yamen runners guarding this place before, it was only to prevent sick people from going out. Who would come here for no reason? Everyone was afraid of catching a disease, so they didn't check people who came in very carefully."
Her skin was under his palm, and that sense of security returned, making her feel so at ease that she wanted to doze off. She pressed her forehead against his palm even more. "Then it's very likely that they are Lin Mo's enemies outside. It will take a lot of effort to investigate them. I think someone like Lin Mo is used to bullying others by relying on his power, and he probably has a lot of quarrels and enemies with people."
The hot forehead nuzzled against his hand, as if trying to snuggle into his arms. It was too close, so he had to pull his hand back, walk to the bed, and sit down with his knees on his hands. He was backlit and his eyes were half-closed. "I didn't say it was necessarily an outsider who came in to seek revenge. Lin Mo came in because of a serious illness. An ordinary enemy would think, maybe he died here. Why bother killing him?"
"But wasn't he much better that day?"
"He's much better, but not completely cured. If you're his enemy, why not be patient and wait a little longer? Wouldn't it save you some trouble if his condition worsens again?"
That's true. Ordinary grudges aren't worth taking this risk for.
After thinking for a moment, Jiuli bent down in front of him, placed her hands on her thighs, and smiled, "So, after all this talk, you're planning to get involved in this matter?"
"If I don't take care of you, who knows what kind of trouble you'll get into."
Her curiosity was inextinguishable; if he didn't ask, she would naturally pester Qi Xubai for answers.
As for Qi Xubai—it's hard to say, but he didn't really like him. He always felt that Qi Xubai's refined demeanor was tinged with coldness, and his kind eyes concealed a hint of cunning, the kind of composure typical of those in power. He couldn't let Jiuli get too close to him, so he had to meddle in this "other people's business."
He stood up and glanced around again. "Why is it a bit cold in this room?"
“It’s been uninhabited for a long time, but if it stays for a few more days, it will feel lively.” Jiu Li circled around him, seeing him off with great interest.
Just as the door opened, Du Zhong happened to be standing in front of it, and he spoke furtively, "I've had someone fetch the pills. It's settled, Master will ask about it later—"
He looked up and saw Yu Qi walking out from the side, startling him. A small brown paper package was right in front of Yu Qi's eyes. He didn't know whether to take it or throw it away, so he could only smile awkwardly.
Yu Qi didn't scold him much, but just laughed sarcastically, stepped out of the door and said, "Since you've already stolen it, give it to whoever you want to eat it. Go and come back soon."
Jiuli stamped her foot inside the threshold, shouting, "Who stole it?!"
Without turning his head, he said, "If stealing from your own family isn't stealing, then what is it? Is it cheating?"
As Du Zhong watched him turn away down the corridor, he quietly asked Jiu Li, "What does Master mean by this? Is he abandoning us?"
"No, he's going to take charge."
He was even more confused. "What do you mean, 'mind'?"
"It's about handling cases, huh?" Jiu Li winked and smiled. "Just now, Magistrate Wang and the Lin family came by. Magistrate Wang ordered that the real culprit be found within a month, or we will still be brought to court for questioning."
Du Zhong observed her expression and asked, "Why do you seem so happy?"
"Nonsense, if the authorities take this seriously, do you think my uncle would just leave us to fend for ourselves?"
"Master also has the ability to catch criminals and thieves?"
Jiuli smiled at him, "Uncle has many skills, you just don't know them."
"You know? Then tell me, tell me quickly—"
Jiuli ignored him, snorted, snatched the small brown paper packet from his hand, stuffed it into her pocket, and went out.
Du Zhong hurriedly followed, feeling a little sorry for the two pills. "Are you really going to give them away for free? They're worth a tael of silver. Even if we don't make a profit, we should at least recoup our costs."
Just then, Xu Bai and Zhang Da returned from escorting Lord Wang back, and saw the two figures, one tall and one short, chasing each other on the Nine-Bend Bridge. Spring was still young, and the willows were just beginning to sprout. One wore a pine-green gauze robe, and the other wore a pale yellow silk skirt. They frolicked and played like birds, adding a touch of life to the desolate landscape.
Xu Bai stopped at the bridgehead, clasped his hands behind his back, and asked, "Don't they look like siblings?"
Zhang Da was taken aback by the question, "Didn't you say that Miss is of the Yu family bloodline, and Du Zhong is just an apprentice taken in from outside?"
"Don't worry about what others say, just tell me if they look alike or not?"
Zhang Da stared at them for a while, then shook his head. "Although both of them are outstanding in appearance, they don't look very alike to me."
Xu Bai nodded and was lost in thought for a moment. After a while, he laughed, called out "Little Fish," and walked towards them. Hearing that they were going to Rouge's room to deliver medicine, he went with them.
A note from the author:
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Thank you for reading.
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