Minglong

Chapter 54 Mid-Autumn Festival
August 15th, Mid-Autumn Festival.

Soon after daybreak, the streets and alleys became bustling with activity. From the distant streets came the sound of gongs and drums.

"Dongdongqiang, Dongdongqiang..."

Xie Jinhuan took the coal briquettes and sat in the mutton shop at the corner of the alley. He ordered three bowls of soup and three steamed buns as usual. He was surrounded by busy servants who were talking listlessly:

"There's the Purple Emblem Mountain monster again, the Li family's crazy corpse flower, and now three red-robed plague gods have died. We're human too, and even if we had eight legs, we can't outrun them..."

"Fuck that plague god! He was so notorious in the past, but he couldn't even send a message after being murdered. Even if he wrote a few words before dying, there would be ways to investigate..."

……

Xie Jinhuan felt much more at ease when he found out that his brothers in the yamen were running themselves to death.

Although killing three Chilin Guards brought a lot of pressure to the brothers in the yamen, he had no choice.

Zhou He and others were ready to wipe out the roots. If he didn't kill them, there would be endless troubles, and killing these three alone would not be enough.

Han Jingchuan, the captain of the Wangjing Thousand Households Unit, made his father a scapegoat. He probably already knows that his son is still alive.

Now that three of his men have suddenly died, even if he really didn't kill them, Han Jingchuan would be alert. Given the style of the Chilin Guards, they would probably cut the roots to prevent future troubles, and it's unknown when this wave will come.

So Han Jingchuan had to be killed to eliminate the root of the problem.

However, Han Jingchuan is hiding in the capital and has no chance to leave. The most important thing now is to leave Danyang City alive!
While he was thinking about this, before he had finished his three bowls of soup and three steamed buns, several familiar figures appeared at the street corner.

Looking up, I saw that the leader was the cool and charming Da Momo, wearing a white dress as white as snow, full of fairy spirit.

On the left and right were the two generals, Yang Dabiao and Liu Qingzhi, who were talking to each other as they walked:

"Isn't it over yet? It's only been a few days, and how many cases have happened? The monster on Zihui Mountain, Dongcang Street, Sanhe Building, Fu Dongping, the corpse pit, the gambler buried alive, the Chilin Guards, each one of them is a major murder case, and who knows what will happen today..."

"Brother Xie almost single-handedly sent all the bodies to the morgue. Da Biao, do you think Brother Xie is unlucky for you? As soon as Brother Xie arrived..."

"Nonsense! The Purple Emblem Mountain demon and the Red Scale Guards have nothing to do with Jinhuan. If it weren't for Jinhuan's constant investigation and rescue efforts, we wouldn't even be able to recover all this evidence... Lord Linghu, would you mind calling Jinhuan?"

"No need. Xie Jinhuan drank with the princess last night, let him have a good rest today..."

……

Xie Jinhuan was watching from the shop and saw that Miss Momo, who was leading the way, even sped up when she passed the entrance of Qingquan Alley, as if she was afraid of being caught by him.

However, with this acceleration, they arrived directly at the door of the mutton shop.

Meiqiu, who was eating, saw this and rushed out of the window and landed on his shoulder:
"Goojigji?"

Linghu Qingmo suddenly stopped, glanced into the shop, saw a familiar figure, and turned his gaze away, putting on a cold and aloof attitude.

When Yang Dabiao saw the big coal ball, he knew that Xie Jinhuan was nearby and quickly called out:

"Have fun, then have breakfast? Did Her Highness the Princess not scold me last night?"

Seeing that the three of them were not planning to eat, Xie Jinhuan stood up, paid the bill and went out to the street:
"No. Her Highness the Princess didn't let me accompany her on the investigation because she was afraid I'd get into trouble."

Yang Dabiao came up and patted Xie Jinhuan on the shoulder:

"Her Royal Highness is an arrogant person, and there aren't many people she'd like. You have this opportunity, but you have to play well. Our future advancement will all depend on Her Royal Highness..."

Liu Qingzhi noticed that the boss was not right today, and quickly reminded Yang Dabiao, who was not very perceptive:

"Cough-cough-"

Yang Dabiao paused, turned around and started discussing the case with the constable from the mutton shop, and Liu Qingzhi followed.

?

Linghu Qingmo was walking in front carrying a coal briquette. When he found that his follower suddenly ran away, his heart froze. He turned around and wanted to walk over, but he bumped into Xie Jinhuan.

"Good morning, Miss Momo."

Linghu Qingmo was obviously a little reserved and took a step back:
"Do you have something to report?"

Xie Jinhuan was a little amused: "I'm not an official, what do I have to report? Miss Momo, is there something on your mind?"

Linghu Qingmo accidentally walked out of the city yesterday and didn't sleep well at night. He must have been worried about something.

But thinking of her master's way of dealing with things, she pretended to be calm:
"You're still young, so it's understandable that you write and draw privately. I won't take it to heart. But...but Doctor Lin is your confidante. How could you write so well about me and yet be so perfunctory towards her?"

Xie Jinhuan was trying to stir up trouble yesterday, so he explained with a normal expression:
"Miss Linghu and I are still friends. Even if we're discussing things privately, we have to stick to the facts. Any more would be rude, and any less would be disrespectful. But Miss Lin is different. We're old acquaintances, and she wouldn't really get angry if we joked with each other..."

She's not angry yet?
I felt like she was about to tickle me...

Linghu Qingmo didn't believe it at all, but Xie Jinhuan's explanation seemed to explain why the two people's love letters were different.

She wanted to ask Xie Jinhuan if he was interested in her, but it was difficult to ask, so she suppressed her thoughts:
"Three Red Scale Guards died yesterday. The killer was skilled in wielding a left-handed sword and possessed considerable martial arts prowess. He even paid compensation to the tavern afterwards. Judging by his demeanor, he's no ordinary person. I'll go to the docks and ask if any powerful swordsmen have arrived in Danyang in the coming days.

"Today is Mid-Autumn Festival. You have to accompany the princess to a banquet tonight, so you don't have to run around with the government office."

Xie Jinhuan knew that Mo Mo's trip was doomed to be in vain. As the murderer, it was not easy to remind him, so he could only say:
"Aren't you going to the Peony Pond tonight?"

The Mid-Autumn Festival banquet was such an important occasion that Linghu Qingmo had to accompany her bestie. After thinking for a moment, she replied:

"The government office is busy. I'll see you later tonight. I'm leaving now."

As he said this, he ran quickly towards the street and disappeared in a flash.

Quite shy...

After Xie Jinhuan watched them go from afar, Meiqiu also shook his wings and said goodbye politely:
"Guji~"
-
Not long after, Lin Family Clinic.

During the Mid-Autumn Festival, Lin Wanyi also changed into a brand new aqua green skirt. Her jet-black hair was tied up with a jade hairpin and paired with exquisitely crafted gold-rimmed glasses. She had an intellectual and graceful temperament, and looked like a plump and juicy young peony.

However, those beautiful eyes did not look very happy at the moment. Holding a teacup in her hand, she glanced at the warm autumn sun outside the window, pretending not to notice the coal ball shaking its head beside her.

Xie Jinhuan sat on the other side of the tea table, slowly helping to pour tea: "We agreed to just play along, why did you take it so seriously?"

After Lin Wanyi came back yesterday, she was so embarrassed that she couldn't sleep all night. It was strange that she could even see Xie Jinhuan. Now she looked like she had been deceived and complained without even turning her head:
“You said only a few officials would come, but how many people actually showed up?
"Now, when I go out to buy buns, I hear people saying that I went to Qingquan Lane yesterday to compete for a girl, and I still haven't won!
"A girl's reputation is more important than anything else. How can I get married in the future?

"And that 'a bowl in the sky, an aunt on the ground' thing, humph..."

She twisted her shoulders, turned her cheek toward the window, and turned the back of her head toward the man.

In order to make Lin Wanyi's acting more realistic, Xie Jinhuan wrote something yesterday without informing her in advance. It seems that this has really irritated the girl with glasses. He put the teacup in front of him and said calmly:
"We're not locals. Who would remember this when we return to the capital after a while? As for the bowl in the sky, that's called a dramatic conflict..."

"I see. Miss Linghu is a Hua Dan, so you should praise her as much as you can. I am a clown, so I should tease her. It's not like I haven't heard opera before."

"You are so naturally beautiful, who would dare to treat you as a clown?"

Seeing that he couldn't coax her, Xie Jinhuan could only look around and whispered, "
"I talked to Princess Changning last night and asked her to lend me the Divine Martial Arts Codex. Princess Changning agreed."

?

When Lin Wanyi heard this, her anger immediately dissipated. She pushed her gold-rimmed glasses and turned around:
"Seriously? Don't try to scare me..."

"What am I trying to do to you?"

Xie Jinhuan held the teacup in his hand, pondering for a moment: "Princess Changning's status is there. As long as I serve her well, borrowing the martial arts canon won't be a big deal."

Serve?
Lin Wanyi blinked and said in disbelief:

"Did you sleep with Her Highness the Princess last night?"

Xie Jinhuan thought about his crazy appearance last night and felt that it would be better to sleep with the landlady. He sighed:

"That's not the case. But to please Princess Changning, I sang and danced, my stern image gone, and I even had to act like a lackey for her. This was all to help you get the Divine Martial Arts Codex."

Seeing that this look of regret didn't seem fake, Lin Wanyi didn't get angry anymore. She took out a cushion and placed it on the table, then began to check Xie Jinhuan's pulse.

"It's not like I didn't pay you. Don't you know how much a dragon blood pill costs? I get three taels of silver for each visit, and it would take me years to save up that much..."

Xie Jinhuan was drinking tea and quietly looking at the stunning girl with glasses opposite him.

But slowly, I suddenly found a warm current flowing in my lungs, and my mood became very happy.

Then the corners of his mouth slowly curled up uncontrollably, revealing a sunny smile.

?

Xie Jinhuan tried to suppress the corners of his mouth, but he couldn't help wanting to laugh. His heart was full of doubts, and he thought to himself:

Is this what love feels like?

No, this is more like taking drugs...

Lin Wanyi, who was well-mannered, was a little confused when she found that Xie Jinhuan had turned into a "sunny and cheerful big boy".

But soon she also had a similar situation, the corners of her mouth raised and then lowered. After two times, she realized that something was wrong and picked up the teacup and smelled it:

"Laughing all the time? Shiso——!"

Scolding in a tender voice.

Suddenly, the laughter of the 'poisonous medicine lady' could be heard from downstairs: "Haha... Aunt Wan, I saw that you were unhappy, so I wanted to cheer you up a little. Don't be angry, don't be angry..."

Then he ran away with a "dong dong dong" and disappeared without a trace.

"This dead girl!"

Lin Wanyi put her hands on her hips and tried to keep a straight face, but she couldn't help but smile, and the corners of her mouth twitched, which made Meiqiu stunned and wanted to take a sip from the teacup.

Xie Jinhuan held the coal ball and tried to suppress his smile, but it was completely impossible. Using martial arts to force out the poison was useless. He couldn't help but look surprised:

"This medicine is really powerful. No wonder it turned Master Tie into a fool."

Lin Wanyi must have been frequently attacked. She took out the antidote from her waist and put it into Xie Jinhuan's teacup:
"This girl is just like you. She has talents that others envy, but she doesn't follow the right path. She always makes things that look powerful but are of no use."

"That's not true. There are no useless techniques in the world, only people who don't know how to use them. This medicine should be very effective in treating depression..."

Although he praised her, Xie Jinhuan didn't want to become a "dashahuan". He drank the tea in one gulp and stood up and said:
"I have to follow the princess to the Peony Pond for a banquet later, so I'll be leaving now. You're going too tonight, right?"

Lin Wanyi heard from Xie Jinhuan yesterday that Zi Su also wanted to go and had already started preparing, but now she snorted:
"You have to accompany Her Highness the Princess. Doesn't it make any difference to you whether I go or not?"

"You and Zisu can go play on the boat. They're all girls, most of them know you."

Lin Wanyi obviously knew her reputation among the ladies and girls, and quickly shook her head:

"Eh~ I don't dare get on the princess's ship. It's said..."

Hesitant to speak.

Xie Jinhuan blinked his eyes:

"What is said?"

Lin Wanyi didn't dare to say it directly, so she just took out a small blue pill:

"This is something to wake you up. It's best eaten when you realize something's wrong. Otherwise, you might get drunk and do something bad on the boat, and get your legs broken by those rich masters."

Xie Jinhuan knew how crazy those girls were, so he just shook his head and smiled:
"Don't you know how strong my concentration is? Even when I was tied to a tree wearing my magical tools, I didn't..."

"Sigh~"

Lin Wanyi didn't dare to talk about such an embarrassing topic and quickly chased the man out...

(End of this chapter)