After returning, Cheng Qingyan told Ye Lingyu about it. Ye Lingyu frowned, seemingly lost in thought.
After dinner, Ye Lingyu called Ruan Banxia away and sent Meng Chuying and Jiang Jiang away.
A night breeze blew, bringing a touch of coolness.
Ye Lingyu and Ruan Banxia stood by the pond in the courtyard, and she looked up at the stars in the sky.
Those who took the medicine could live if they stayed, but if they left, they would have to be handed over to the government.
After a long pause, she asked, "Banxia, has Li Sizhu's kung fu recovered?"
"No, but if I want him to recover, I'll give him some medicine."
"Well, let Wen Heicheng and the others recover as well."
"Okay, sister-in-law, I'll go and brew their medicine now."
After Ruan Banxia left, Ye Lingyu stood alone by the pond for a long time.
She was a little tired and conflicted.
She didn't even realize Cheng Qingyan was standing next to her until he came looking for her.
"Wife, what are you thinking about here? Why didn't you answer me when I called you?"
Cheng Qingyan's voice pulled Ye Lingyu from her wandering thoughts into reality, but she couldn't hide her unusual behavior.
"Ayan, why are you out here?"
Cheng Qingyan fanned her with his fan, saying, "I saw that you hadn't returned to your room for a long time, so I naturally came out to look for you."
“Even if you have the mosquito repellent medicine prepared by Dr. Ruan, you can’t stand by the water for too long.”
"You know, mosquitoes near water are the fiercest. One bite and the itching is unbearable!"
Ye Lingyu took Cheng Qingyan's hand and walked back, but after a few steps, she stopped again.
Turning back to look at Cheng Qingyan, after hesitating for a long time, she finally decided to make things clear with Cheng Qingyan.
If I keep this from her, she might get really angry, and I've already promised to discuss things with her when something happens.
She looked into Cheng Qingyan's eyes. In the moonlight, though backlit, she could still see the clear look in Cheng Qingyan's eyes.
For a moment, she felt that what she had done was somewhat defiled.
She reached out and covered Cheng Qingyan's eyes; she didn't want to see disappointment in those innocent eyes.
Especially my disappointment in her.
Cheng Qingyan stood obediently, letting Ye Lingyu cover her eyes with her hand.
Even though it was completely dark, she knew Ye Lingyu was right in front of her, and she didn't feel scared at all.
After a moment of silence, Ye Lingyu finally spoke: "Ayan, I had Banxia prepare medicine for Li Sizhu and Wen Pingcheng to restore their strength."
The hand in front of him hadn't been lowered yet, and Cheng Qingyan didn't nod. Instead, she asked, "And then?"
Then she heard Ye Lingyu sigh: "There are internal disagreements among the eight of them. They may have enemies coming after them in the future, so they have to settle things once and for all."
Nothing can keep a secret better than a dead man.
As for how to end it, Cheng Qingyan suddenly paused, "End it...?"
Is it what she thinks? Will someone definitely die?
Dead man...
It's not that she can't understand, it's just that so far, no one's death here has anything to do with her.
"My lady, must we do this? It's because I want to keep them here—"
Ye Lingyu moved the hand that was covering her eyes down to cover her mouth, silencing her before she could finish speaking.
“Ayan, remember this, this matter has nothing to do with you.”
Cheng Qingyan's mouth was covered. She blinked and nodded.
Ye Lingyu sighed again: "I didn't want to tell you about this, but I promised you I wouldn't hide it from you. But please don't overthink it."
Cheng Qingyan took Ye Lingyu's hand off her mouth and held it in his hand: "Wife, I am not a three-year-old child. I know what is good and what is bad."
"I know that even if you're keeping it from me, it's for my own good."
"But, my wife, I still want to thank you for telling me this."
"Moreover, how this matter is handled is none of our business; it's their own affair."
"Think about it, if we hand the three of them over to Officer Nie tomorrow and they aren't sentenced to death, or if the sentence isn't too severe, they might be free soon."
"When the time comes, the enemies who are meant to come knocking will still come knocking."
"Let those who live in the martial arts world handle their own affairs."
Fearing that Cheng Qingyan might overthink things, I didn't expect her to be even more open-minded than I thought.
Ye Lingyu asked her with a smile, "So, do you want it like this, or how do you want it to be done?"
Cheng Qingyan thought for a moment, then said to Ye Lingyu, "To be fair, let's restore them all and let them resolve this fairly."
"As for their solution, we will not interfere."
"For people in the martial arts world, surely fighting to the death isn't the only solution?"
Ye Lingyu thought about it and realized that made sense. Let them handle their own affairs.
As long as Cheng Qingyan and the others aren't implicated, it doesn't really matter to them how much trouble they cause.
After Ruan Banxia finished brewing the medicine, she saw that Cheng Qingyan and Ye Lingyu were still in the courtyard, so she took the medicine over to them.
"Still awake? Waiting for your medicine?"
Cheng Qingyan smiled and got up, then went with Ruan Banxia to the area around the cloth.
This time, Cheng Qingyan didn't let Ye Lingyu and Ruan Banxia speak, and put the medicine bowl aside.
"For those of you who want to stay here, we are not in a master-servant relationship. When you want to leave, you can ask me for the antidote. Until then, you will not be paid for your work for the next six months. Let's make that clear in advance."
Li Sizhu and Wen Hesheng, along with the others, expressed no objection and all nodded in agreement.
Cheng Qingyan continued, "Let's make it clear first, wages will be calculated starting in six months, of course, if you can stay until then."
"I won't charge you for food and lodging, since you still have to help me with the work."
Ruan Banxia covered her eyes, indicating that she really couldn't bear to look at Cheng Qingyan.
Are they obsessed with money?
Then, Li Sizhu and the others still expressed no objection, so Cheng Qingyan continued, "The most important point is that you should resolve your own affairs in the martial arts world."
"Whether it's past grievances or anything in the future, we must not be involved."
Li Sizhu and his companions said they had no problem at all; they would just consider this place a place to stay and would no longer be江湖人士 (jianghu figures, people of the underworld).
"Alright, drink this medicine. After you drink it, you'll have energy again in a few hours."
"As for those of you who are leaving, I hope you can wait until the officers come tomorrow to take you back to the yamen."
"If not, then Li Sizhu, you can figure it out yourselves and solve it yourselves. I don't like troublesome things."
Li Sizhu and Wen Hecheng exchanged glances and each poured themselves a bowl of medicine from the medicine pot.
As for what would happen next, Cheng Qingyan did not intend to ask, nor did she allow Ye Lingyu and the others to ask.
The choice has been given to them, so they can solve the problem themselves.
If you don't want to be solved by problems, you have to solve them.
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