Chapter 38 The Guest on the Beam "You mean, she didn't lose her memory, nor..."
"Reporting to Lord Xie, this young lady's pulse is stable. Apart from her unhealed external injuries and some fright, she is otherwise fine. As for losing her mind or memory, that is unlikely."
Ning Lu's figure disappeared into the depths of the winding path, and the doctor bowed and reported the truth.
"You mean, she doesn't have amnesia, and she's not mentally ill?"
Wei Zhan was puzzled.
"That's right. If it's forgetfulness or amnesia, it's usually due to deficiency of both heart and spleen, or blood stasis obstructing the orifices. If it's madness or mania, it's usually due to a slippery pulse. But this young lady's pulse is smooth and her liver qi is flowing freely, so it doesn't seem like she has any illness."
Wei Zhan looked at Xie Qinghe, and seeing that the man nodded, he ordered his servants to escort him out.
The pond was full of winter water, yet there was no ripple.
Wei Chun looked at the report that the Imperial Guards had sent today, which included the confession of the dungeon guards, detailing the past grievances between Pan Xingxue and Liu Yunying.
"Since Liu Yunying was coerced by Prince Jing for the sake of that Su Yun lady, she shouldn't be too involved."
"The jade pendant that was lost from the Prince Xian's belongings was related to important matters concerning the rebels. She stole it, so how can you say that she wasn't involved?"
Wei Zhan immediately retorted.
Wei Chun clicked his tongue and chuckled, teasing, "Guard Zhan, you can't take your anger out on this innocent girl just because the jade pendant was lost right under your nose and you were outmatched."
"Suspicion? The documents and handwriting are physical evidence, and Pan Xingxue, Zhao Yue, and the sir are witnesses. We have both witnesses and physical evidence."
"You say we adults are witnesses, but you still have to ask the master if he's willing."
Wei Chun stepped on his foot and whispered a reminder to him.
The two then fell silent and looked at Xie Qinghe.
The man seemed not to have heard their argument, and lowered his head to sip the cool tea in his cup.
Once the two had fallen completely silent, he slowly raised his head: "A few years ago, a crazy woman appeared at Yanchun Pavilion. Find out where she is."
"Yes, Master." Wei Chun responded and reported another matter: "Miss Ning has been inquiring about Lady Suyun's whereabouts recently."
The teacup fell onto the table.
Xie Qinghe nodded without saying a word, and casually picked up a document from the table.
The two men immediately understood, bowed, and took their leave.
As they walked outside the pavilion, they suddenly heard a soft admonition coming from inside.
"No one lives on the west side, so we don't need to be so vigilant at night."
Ning Lu locked herself in her room after returning from the courtyard, and didn't come out until dinner time.
She had tried to find out about Su Yun and Yan Chun Lou during this time, but it was as if the courtyard had a censorship function; if she wanted to know anything else, she could find out everything in half an hour.
Mention Yanchunlou and everyone seems deaf. It's hard not to suspect that Xie Qinghe is deliberately up to something.
This person is cunning and unpredictable, making them truly unfathomable.
It's too dangerous to stay around someone like that.
In the blink of an eye, the situation changed drastically.
Her current situation is no longer as carefree as living in a secluded bamboo hut; it's now a den of dragons and tigers, where every second feels terrifying.
Since she couldn't get any information about Yan Chunlou from others, she had to go and find out for herself.
As night deepened and the noise outside subsided, Ning Lu quietly changed her clothes and climbed out through the back window of the east wing.
These past few days, her daytime strolls haven't been entirely fruitless; she's gotten a pretty good feel for the inn.
The inn was designed with a courtyard and corridors, and the north building was the main house where Xie Qinghe lived.
She lived in the east wing and made patrols at least twice every night.
Ning Lu circled around the east and south corners of the wall several times but couldn't find an opening, so she was forced to go around to the west wing wall.
With such tight security, I wonder who they're trying to keep out.
"Even powerful ministers who have done too many bad things are afraid of ghosts knocking on their door."
She couldn't help but make a couple of sarcastic remarks.
Whenever she went west, she would inevitably have to pass by that guy's yard. She wouldn't take that risk unless absolutely necessary.
Fortunately, the brave are the ones who enjoy the world first, and she did manage to glimpse a glimmer of hope under the low wall of the west courtyard.
The defense here is noticeably lax in other areas, and the remaining few people are more than enough for her.
Ning Lu was overjoyed. After confirming that no one was watching her from all sides, she leaped out of the inn.
Once outside, she nimbly jumped onto a building facing the street, overlooking the entire Changzhou.
Last time I escaped from Yanchun Tower, I almost crossed most of the town. A few days ago, I also got a lot of information from Qingzhi, so confirming my current location wasn't difficult.
She was injured and her legs were weak, so it was already late at night when she arrived at Yanchun Tower.
It was precisely the time when the red-light district was at its liveliest.
Unfortunately, the room of Su Yun Niangzi, the most beautiful courtesan at Yan Chun Lou, was closed, and the room was deserted.
Ning Lu poked a hole in the window paper and looked inside. It was pitch black, let alone the shadow of Su Yun.
She's thought about a lot of things these past few days, and this is what she's most worried about.
If Pan Xingxue uses her as leverage to kidnap Su Yun, it would be a huge loss for him.
Moreover, others have said that Liu Yunying and Pan Xingxue have a history of conflict.
Ning Lu slipped into Su Yun's room, silently apologized, lit a tinderbox, and began searching briefly.
There is nothing that is clearly related to Liu Yunying.
Outside the door, people were chatting and laughing. Ning Lu originally intended to climb out the window and return to the inn.
Before leaving, I remembered that crazy woman again...
After so many years of exam-oriented education, if there's anything she can't do, it's using search engines to gather exam strategies—that's what she excels at.
If you can't find the answer using simple methods, try changing a few keywords; you might get some unexpected results.
Let's get right to it.
Having suffered a great loss last time, I will not act rashly this time.
It just so happened that Su Yun had two sets of men's clothing, and she chose the one that was obviously too small to wear.
It fits perfectly!
Pretending to be a patron, he strolled around Yan Chun Lou, thoroughly examining both the front and back courtyards.
Su Yun was nowhere to be seen, nor was that madwoman.
Just as she was about to leave, Ning Lu caught a glimpse of a wine shop across from Yan Chun Lou, where several tables of people were drinking and already slightly tipsy.
After a moment's thought, he immediately changed direction, using the same witty banter he used with the neighbors in Zhujia'ao, and squeezed his way into their midst.
As they drank and mingled among the crowd, she actually managed to find out some things.
"To be honest, this so-called Censor isn't that powerful. He only got a few beatings, right? It's us who suffer the physical pain, going hungry and cold, aren't we?"
"Didn't they say they were already investigating the grain tax issue?"
"Officials protect each other; who knows what's true and what's false?"
"I heard that Lord Pan had his eye on Lady Suyun of Yanchun Pavilion. Since Lord Pan can't come, can we ask Lady Suyun to sing a song?"
Ning Lu poured a glass of wine and handed it to the most talkative man, making a gossipy face.
As expected, the man clicked his tongue, waved his hand, and patted her shoulder.
"Brother, you must be from out of town?" The man tilted his head back and finished a cup of wine. "Half a month ago, Lord Pan came to Yanchun Tower and encountered an assassin. He was injured. People say that the assassin was Su Yun Niangzi's lover."
"Lord Pan was furious. He ordered Yanchun Tower to close to all guests and took Lady Suyun back to the governor's mansion. She has not been released since."
"They were taken to the governor's mansion?"
"Yes, Su Yun is quite strange. What does a courtesan need a reputation for? She even said she wanted to redeem herself a few years ago, but it didn't work out, did it?"
"She was a courtesan; the money to redeem her must have been expensive, right?"
"Well, I've heard it's at least this number."
One of the drunk men held up two fingers and swept them across the crowd's eyes.
Ning Lu was surprised: "Two hundred taels?"
"two thousand!"
"Without Hongyu, the entire Yanchun Pavilion relies on Suyun Niangzi's revenue, so two thousand taels is not unreasonable."
Everyone clicked their tongues in amazement.
Ning Lu then realized that what Su Yun meant when she told her by the window that she couldn't leave that day was this.
She wanted to ask some more questions, but then she heard Kang Mama's loud and excited voice coming from Yan Chun Lou behind her. Everyone looked in the direction of the voice and saw several familiar figures walking in arm in arm.
Before Ning Lu could even recognize him, someone at the table immediately identified him: "Isn't that Lord Wei, the young master beside Lord Xie?"
Which Wei is Xiao Wei?
Ning Lu glanced sideways and saw that it was Wei Chun.
That man is glib and full of tricks; it's not surprising that he would come to a place like this.
The man noticed the gaze behind him and turned to look back. Ning Lu immediately dodged to avoid being discovered.
After leaving the restaurant, Ning Lu inquired about the location of the governor's mansion and took a detour to get there.
From a distance, the mansion appeared to be much larger than the inn and was heavily guarded.
Her movements were not as nimble as usual, and the memory of the torture she had endured in the dungeon was still fresh. That's why she didn't dare to rush in and only observed carefully.
There were guards at both the front and back gates, and constant patrols inside and out, as well as shadow guards lurking around her that she couldn't see but could vaguely sense.
Ning Lu didn't have much practical experience, but she could still make a rough judgment.
She couldn't just barge into the governor's mansion; she needed to find another, more convenient way.
It was already past midnight when we returned to the inn.
Ning Lu landed lightly, but even with the soft ground beneath her feet cushioning the impact, her injuries still throbbed faintly.
I've been running around all day, and I just had a couple of drinks. I just hope the wound won't get worse tomorrow and ruin her plans.
The cat waited in the bushes until the soldiers finished their night patrol and changed shifts before revealing herself and preparing to return to the east wing.
Halfway along the base of the wall, you can see that the main house to the north is brightly lit.
Thinking of that guy's unfathomable appearance during the day, Ning Lu couldn't help but shudder and ran away.
They had only gone a few steps when they abruptly stopped.
When he lived in the thatched hut before, that guy always went to bed early and didn't have the habit of turning off the lights.
I suppose the truth should be as it is now.
If he's asleep, perhaps she could go and see if he's found any clues about the original owner of this body?
Or, if we could obtain some token from Xie Qinghe, it might be easier to enter the governor's mansion openly and legitimately.
Wei Chun is currently at Yan Chun Tower, guarding that killing god...
It's not a very detailed idea.
Let's get right to it.
A shadow flashed and disappeared into the night.
Ning Lu tiptoed onto the roof and squeezed through the window crack when the guards at the door weren't looking.
Is no one in bed?
She paused, then heard a faint cough coming from the direction of the study.
This time would be at least 1 a.m. in modern times.
Is he still working overtime?
Before Ning Lu could even finish calculating the score, she was already on the roof beam above Xie Qinghe's head.
Looking down from above, Xie Qinghe was seen wearing the same dark-patterned satin robe he wore that afternoon, with a silver fox-trimmed cloak loosely tied around his shoulders.
A black jade thumb ring adorned his slender fingers, which accentuated his snow-white complexion and distinct knuckles.
The crimson stain on the table wasn't ink, but rather cinnabar.
He stood by the desk, his eyes lowered as he flipped through the memorials, quiet and focused, like an ink painting.
His writing is sharp and decisive, each word like a blade.
Ning Lu was so engrossed in watching that she shifted to a more comfortable position and lay down on the beam.
The candlelight slanted through, and with his movement, the cloak on his shoulder slipped open slightly, revealing the white silk undergarment beneath.
Beneath the slightly open collar, the strip of cloth still covered with medicine was clearly visible on his chest.
His injury hasn't healed yet.
She remembered how he casually said "okay" that afternoon, and she actually believed him.
Ning Lu frowned subconsciously, and a strange dull pain began to ache in her chest.
Just then, the man's upright figure swayed slightly, and ink splattered on the paper.
Xie Qinghe's shoulders trembled, and he slowly pressed his hand to his chest.
His knuckles were white, and his breathing was extremely light, as if he was enduring pain.
Ning Lu held her breath and looked outside.
The surroundings were deathly silent, and his breathing was disordered and shallow. The guards outside could not detect anything unusual about him.
The candlelight flickered, and Xie Qinghe struggled to support himself on the table, staring at the swaying light and shadow on the paper, his expression unreadable.
Serves them right.
Serves them right.
Serves them right.
Ning Lu bit her lip, reminding herself that the character she was playing was a thief, and the person in front of her was not the harmless Ji A'ming from the bamboo garden.
A fall into a pit, a gain in your wit; one must not stumble again because of recklessness.
Seeing that the man could barely stand, she became anxious and looked outside again, unable to help but curse him inwardly for the negligence of the men in the courtyard.
This patient, who stayed up most of the night, was left unattended.
Their wages should be deducted.
"Ning Lu, please help me up."
A faint, intermittent voice came from under the beam. The worry in her eyes turned into horror, and she looked down at the person.
He was still leaning against the table, barely able to stand, his knuckles white, his posture and breathing unsteady.
Is he calling her?
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com