Minglong

Chapter 108 First Encounter in the Rain

As the sky gradually brightened, more and more people came to Xiaoyao Cave.

Linghu Qingmo stood at the entrance of the alley holding an oil-paper umbrella, occasionally turning his head to look deeper into the alley, his eyes filled with worry. He was afraid that something might happen to Xie Jinhuan in there, and he was also afraid that Xie Jinhuan would not be able to resist the temptation...

blah blah blah...

Thinking of the eager looks those five or six men had given Xie Jinhuan just now, Linghu Qingmo couldn't help but pick up the coal briquettes, his eyes serious:
"I asked you to find bandits, but what kind of place did you find? Are you planning to let Xie Jinhuan pick up customers?"

"Guji?"

Meiqiu's eyes were full of innocence, and he probably meant - what else?

Fortunately, it didn’t take long before Xie Jinhuan came out with a frown on his face.

Linghu Qingmo came over and looked at him suspiciously:
"You...are you done?"

"Um... ah?"

Xie Jinhuan was stunned, raised his hand and pinched Mo Mo's curious little face:
"What do you mean it's over? How can I do it so quickly~~~"

Stab la la——

When Linghu Qingmo was touched on the face, he immediately grabbed his wrist and lightning burst out, but when he thought of the bet of "don't be angry", he quickly stopped and then regretted it!

Xie Jinhuan naturally didn't care about Mo Mo's domestic violence and still held the umbrella over Mo Mo's head:

"This is the branch of the Blood Rain Tower. I'm a news dealer, and I also take on some jobs helping young masters beat people up. Nothing special."

"Does the Blood Rain Tower dare to open a branch in the capital?"

"What's that? The Southern Xinjiang Witch Alliance has a branch here, but it's just hard to find. The Blood Rain Tower is more informed, so put it aside for now, maybe it will be useful."

While Xie Jinhuan was speaking, he looked at the fur shop in the distance.

But I just asked someone to sell the stolen goods last night, and I think they are busy now. It would be more appropriate to come back in the evening to inquire about the news about Zui Gu Xiang.

The two of them walked back to the inner city. Halfway there, Linghu Qingmo suddenly noticed a bustle on the street. Many idlers gathered together, chatting about the strange things that had happened the previous night.

"Have you heard? The Thief Saint went to Eunuch Li's house yesterday..."

"Thief Saint? What did you steal?"

"Hey! Going to Eunuch Li's house to beg for money is called 'asking for the people', how can it be called stealing..."

"That's right, what did you ask for?"

"You should ask what's left! I heard that the entire house was just four walls and a roof. Even the maids and concubines were taken away. Li Gongpu was so angry that he vomited three liters of blood and fainted on the spot..."

"pretty……"

……

Linghu Qingmo slowed down his pace, listened attentively, and was filled with surprise:

"There's such a thing? Who is so powerful that he dares to rob Li Gongpu's family..."

"Guji~"

Meiqiu thought he had some insight, but unfortunately, before he could turn around, he was held down.

Xie Jinhuan looked normal and chuckled:
"The Li family is rich but unkind. I guess some knight-errant got angry and made a big deal out of it."

Linghu Qingmo was quite curious. He listened carefully and then hummed softly:

"Li Gongpu is a flatterer and a ruthless rich man. He deserves this retribution. However, this Thief Saint sounds quite powerful. Why don't we check him out?"

"?"

How could Xie Jinhuan possibly check on himself? He shook his head and said:

"This is a minor case, so the demon bandits should be dealt with first. You haven't slept all night, so go back and recuperate. I'll go to the East Market and come back later."

"Oh……"
-
Soon after, the palace.

In the early morning, the autumn rain fell inside the huge mansion. Countless maids in colorful clothes walked through the corridors, preparing meals for their masters.

In the outer house, Liu Qingzhi and Yang Dabiao were carrying a large iron pot and placing it in the courtyard, while they were still talking to each other:

"Old Liu, what does the princess mean? Are you going to kill a pig to celebrate your arrival in Beijing? I don't think you have any pigs at home..."

"How would I know? Just follow the princess's instructions..."

……

In the corridor of the guest house, Butler Hou stood at the door of Xie Jinhuan's room, fanning himself. He looked at the plaque that read "Upright Gentleman" with a shifty look of doubt:

"Da Que'er, why is my plaque placed in Xie's room?"

"Guji?"

"Haven't had time to deliver it yet? No problem, I'll take it back myself... Hey?"

"Chi chi chi chi..."

Coal Ball, who had just returned home, saw this shameless man trying to steal things, so he spread his wings and gave a "bird kick", chasing Butler Hou around everywhere.

The backyard is much quieter.

Several maids gathered together, whispering about the gossip about the 'original wife fighting the mistress', and the protagonists were naturally Miss Linghu and Doctor Lin.

Princess Changning, wearing a gold-threaded gown embroidered with a wine gourd, sat sleepily in front of the mirror, letting the lively Duoduo help her with her makeup. Duoduo was still saying:

"Mr. Xie is truly a loyal minister to His Highness. He's only been in the capital for a few days, but he's already making a lot of noise. The day before yesterday, he even helped His Highness win three thousand taels of silver at the Golden Tower. If we had known earlier, we would have come to the capital together. We've missed out on quite a few great events..."

Princess Changning looked at her face in the mirror, and there was actually a sense of pity in her eyes:
"There are so many things to prepare for the Empress' birthday, I can't help but arrive late. However, Xie Jinhuan hasn't even shown 30% of his true abilities. In the future, when this princess takes him around, there will surely be more opportunities for him to show his talents." "What other abilities does Master Xie have?"

"Ha~"

Princess Changning recalled the sexy and wavelike dance moves and even the "Daqian Electronic Music", and she missed that little enemy a little.

As the master and servant were chatting, they saw a white shadow walking in.

Princess Changning thought Xie Jinhuan had come, and she quickly turned her head to look, but in a blink of an eye, she found that it was her best friend, and immediately lost interest:
"Why did you come back alone? Where's Xie Jinhuan?"

Linghu Qingmo didn't dare to say that he and Xie Jinhuan had stayed out all night together, so he responded:
"I went to investigate a case last night. Xie Jinhuan wasn't with me. Uh...it seems he went to spend time with his confidante."

Princess Changning stood up and put on her wide-sleeved coat, her eyes filled with a look of disdain:
"Following the man here, you are actually busy investigating the case?"

Linghu Qingmo couldn't show off the kisses to her bestie, so she frowned slightly.

"if not?"

"..."

Princess Changning was too lazy to talk about her workaholic bestie and asked:

"Are you also investigating Li Gongpu's case?"

Linghu Qingmo entered the room and put down his sword, he was slightly startled:
"Did Li Gongpu really get taken care of by the Thief Saint?!"

Duoduo nodded enthusiastically:

"It's absolutely true. The person I admire most in my life, besides Master Xie, is this great thief.

"I heard that the Li Mansion claimed to have lost only over two hundred taels of silver, but in reality, the entire study and bedroom were emptied out. Now the Chilin Guard, the Imperial Observatory, and the county government are all watching the joke, and Li Gongpu has refused to allow the government to investigate..."

Linghu Qingmo was indeed interested in this matter and came over to help with her hair:
"When something was lost, why didn't Li Gongpu let the government investigate?"

Princess Changning snorted softly:
"Li Gongpu is not some incorruptible official. If he showed the list of lost items, I think even His Majesty would be shocked. How could he dare to openly invite an investigation?"

"Too……"
-
The imperial capital was shrouded in smoke, and the huge city was outlined by the autumn rain into a watercolor painting.

In the streets of the outer city, many pedestrians walked back and forth, some holding umbrellas and some wearing hats. From a high vantage point, they looked like lotus leaves floating on the long ink-and-wash street.

Xie Jinhuan walked along the street holding an umbrella. Fine raindrops hit the umbrella, making a rustling sound. His eyes scanned the people coming and going.

Because he arrived too early, most of the shops on the street were not open yet. He wanted to go directly to the East Market, but when he walked near the gate, he found a woman standing in a shop that had just opened on the street.

The shop was a store selling musical instruments, with zithers, pipa, and other instruments displayed inside. A woman in black was standing among them, wearing a black gauze hat on her head and carrying a sword on her back.

Although from a distance she looked like a common female hero in the martial arts world, her aura was like that of a banished immortal who had fallen into the mortal world. Being in the mortal world, there was something that isolated her figure from the earthly world.

Hmm... a woman with a very special temperament...

Xie Jinhuan subconsciously took a few glances at her and felt that the woman in the black dress was very special, but he couldn't tell what was special about her.

The ghost wife who was always following him was also reminding him:

"This female warrior is not simple. She seems to be carrying a high-quality magical weapon that can shield her energy, so her inner self cannot be seen."

"Oh?"

This was the first time Xie Jinhuan had seen someone who couldn't see through the ghost wife, so he asked:

"Very powerful?"

Although Ye Hongshang couldn't survey the interior, he could still observe external details such as the aura and the movement of surrounding Qi:

"She's probably only slightly more advanced than you, not quite as impressive as you are. She's tall and has a big butt, and looks like she's fertile. Do you dare to approach her?"

"?"

Xie Jinhuan had no such plan, but how could he tolerate Apia questioning his courage?
Yang's Pharmacy was not open at this time yet, so it wouldn't waste any time to research the background of this female hero. After thinking about it, Xie Jinhuan turned around and walked to the outside of the musical instrument shop, putting away his oil-paper umbrella.

The shop owner was an old man wearing reading glasses. He sat behind the counter and repaired the piano with tools.

Judging from the goods displayed in the shop, they were all good stuff, but the shopkeeper was not very polite in treating customers. When he saw Xie Jinhuan coming in with weapons, he muttered:
"It's so early in the morning, why are all the people here from the martial arts world? They don't sell magic weapons here."

"Haha, I just want to take a look."

Xie Jinhuan didn't care about the old shopkeeper's attitude and came to the side of the black-clad woman. As a result, he was surprised to find that this black-clad woman was almost the same height as him, with a figure comparable to a supermodel, but not skinny or frail, but tall and plump, with big ups and downs, which looked like she was wasting energy...

As they were strangers, Xie Jinhuan didn't pay much attention to the other person's figure. He first looked at the musical instruments by himself, and then his eyes fell on the seven-stringed zither that the other person was studying:
"This zither is quite good. It's made of paulownia wood from Fengzhou. The climate there is dry, and the wood is used to make the zither's base. Its sound is as quiet as the gurgling of a spring, and as dynamic as thunder..."

As he spoke, he pressed the strings with his hands and plucked them lightly with his right hand.

Ding buzz buzz~~~
The rich and sad melody echoed in the musical instrument shop.

The old shopkeeper who was repairing the piano raised his reading glasses when he heard the sound, his eyes filled with surprise:

"Asking the Moon on Lonely Mountain", I didn't realize you're such an expert."

"I know a little bit, but I'm not an expert."

Xie Jinhuan smiled modestly, looked at the woman in black beside him, and prepared to chat for a while.

As a result, the woman in the veil hat reacted very coldly. She didn't even look at him and walked to the other side of the shop to pick out other musical instruments.

"..."

It seemed that this was the first time that Xie Jinhuan was ignored by a girl, and he felt a little embarrassed.

The old shopkeeper shook his head and smiled, then continued to repair the strings...

(End of this chapter)