Case Two: A Dream of Splendor
The next day.
Zhong Li wrote down the details of the Jinzhou case and sent them to the post station.
She had not expected that a small case of a double homicide in a flower bed would lead to such significant developments. The Yue family was thoroughly investigated, along with Yue Tianping, who was still crying injustice, and the Hongyun Teahouse in Jincheng.
The Dali Temple had given Zhong Li half a month to solve the case. To everyone's surprise, she concluded it in just three days.
Logically, she could have spent this time sightseeing in Jinzhou. However, considering the exorbitant prices of the guesthouses in Jinzhou and the pile of unresolved old case files at the Dali Temple, she had already packed her belongings, ready to hire an old horse-drawn cart back to Jincheng as soon as dawn broke.
Knock, knock, knock.
Just as Zhong Li placed the two taels of silver she was about to return to Lu Wuxie on the table, a series of knocks echoed from outside the door.
She glanced out the window. It was only the hour of Mao (5-7 AM), just as dawn was breaking. The roosters had not yet crowed. Who could be at the door?
Zhong Li gathered the scattered silver from the table and opened the door.
Lu Wuxie stood at the doorway with his hands clasped behind his back.
"Your Highness, why are you at my door?" Zhong Li's face clearly showed surprise. They had sat at the guesthouse quite late yesterday. She assumed that with Lu Wuxie's penchant for sleep, he should still be snoring in his bed by now. How could he be at her door?
"Are you leaving?" Lu Wuxie glanced at the packed luggage on the bed inside, then met her gaze. The dark circles under his eyes, slightly sunken, seemed deeper than usual.
Zhong Li did not answer his question but retorted, "Did you have another nightmare, Your Highness?"
Lu Wuxie's lips twitched slightly. He casually took a small bottle from his embrace and said, "The pure dew that you gave me last time has been used up."
"I happen to have brought some with me. I'll go and get it for Your Highness right away." Zhong Li casually took the bottle and turned towards the medicine chest.
"Li'er," Lu Wuxie suddenly called out to Zhong Li, as if afraid she would leave. He instinctively reached out and grabbed her arm.
Zhong Li lowered her gaze, looking at her arm being held with a sense of confusion.
Even through the layers of her sleeve, she could feel the chill from Lu Wuxie's hand seeping into her skin.
She unconsciously looked out the window. A carriage was parked outside the Jinzhou guesthouse. Lin Jin stood by the carriage, sword in hand. Lu Wuxie was wearing a fur coat designed for cold weather, so he should not have been exposed to the wind on the journey. Why were his hands so cold?
Just as Zhong Li was about to turn and pull Lu Wuxie inside to warm himself, he applied a slight force, pulling her closer to him and saying, "You can't leave!"
Zhong Li stiffened, her eyes filled with shock and bewilderment as she looked at Lu Wuxie.
Lu Wuxie gazed at her, his thin lips parting and closing several times before he said, "I have already sent word of the matter concerning the 'Qia Te Cao' via express messenger to the imperial palace in Jincheng. This matter is now crucial. To avoid further complications, the people behind it will surely cause trouble. I am worried about you going back alone."
Upon hearing his explanation, Zhong Li's lips curved into a faint smile. "I appreciate Your Highness's concern, but the matter in Jinzhou has concluded. My staying here would be a waste of time. The year-end is fast approaching, and the Dali Temple is exceptionally busy. Commander Lan cannot be spared, so I must return to assist."
Saying this, she gently pulled her hand away from Lu Wuxie and walked into the adjoining room.
When she emerged, the bottle in her hand was full. A faint scent of lavender filled the space between them.
Zhong Li placed the bottle into Lu Wuxie's outstretched hand and said, "I smelled this bottle just now. It's completely dried out; the pure dew must have run out long ago. From now on, if Your Highness needs any, please don't hesitate to ask Zhong Li."
With that, she casually took two pieces of silver from her waist and placed them into the palm of the man opposite her. "This is all the silver I have. It's barely enough for three days' lodging. The meals will be on credit, and I will repay Your Highness later."
Lu Wuxie gazed at the silver in his hand, feeling an inexplicable sense of suppression. Before he could say anything, something else was placed into his other hand.
It was warm and gentle.
He looked down and saw it was a hand warmer, about the size of his palm.
This hand warmer was rather special. The owner had apparently attached a pocket to the outside of it to prevent burns. This pocket had something like a sleeve, allowing one to slip their hand through, placing the hand warmer on the back of their hand. This way, it could warm the hands without hindering activities.
Lu Wuxie found it interesting and looked up, intending to ask about it, but Zhong Li was already standing at the doorway with her baggage on her back.
She said, "When we came to Jinzhou, I noticed Your Highness seemed to be afraid of the cold."
Zhong Li recalled the charcoal fire in Lu Wuxie's carriage and the warm hot water bottle he always kept nearby. She continued:
"Seeing your hands were cold just now, I remembered a small hand warmer I had a blacksmith make for me in Anding County. It might not be much, but it's better than nothing."
Afterward, she tightened the pack on her back and the medicine chest on the other side, cupped her hands in a gesture of farewell, and prepared to leave.
Lu Wuxie lowered his gaze to the two items in his hands. He tightened his grip on the hand warmer and said, "Li'er, I have something to tell you. Could you..."
"Ah... fire! There's fire outside!"
"Heavens! What place is that? It's on fire!"
"Quick! Quick! Go and put out the fire!"
Just as Lu Wuxie was about to speak, the guests in the other rooms and on the first floor of the guesthouse, who were having breakfast, suddenly cried out in alarm.
Zhong Li, having not heard his words, with her baggage on her back, returned to the room and hurried to peer outside.
As the others had said, thick black smoke was rising from the end of Yonghua Street, soaring towards the clouds.
She squinted her eyes, staring intently at that location. For some reason, she found the place very familiar.
Not good!
Zhong Li's heart skipped a beat. She turned to Lu Wuxie and said, "Your Highness, quickly! That looks like the Xie mansion."
Upon hearing it was the Xie family, Lu Wuxie swallowed the words he had intended to say to Zhong Li and rushed to the window to look as well.
Zhong Li had sharp observation skills. As she had said, the location was indeed the Xie family's residence. Lu Wuxie's brows furrowed slightly. He turned and ran downstairs.
Zhong Li also dropped her baggage, slung her medicine chest over her shoulder, and followed him towards Lin Jin's carriage.
The carriage sped down Yonghua Street. Although Xie Xu had resigned from his post, the Xie family in Jinzhou held considerable prestige. In the blink of an eye, many people were already carrying buckets and water, rushing towards the Xie mansion. Among them were constables from the Jinzhou prefect's office.
The fire had not started in the outer halls of the Xie mansion but in the back courtyard.
As all the Xie family servants were busy fighting the fire, Zhong Li followed Lu Wuxie, who had unimpeded access, to the origin of the blaze.
Zhong Li had never been to the Xie mansion before, but based on the courtyard's layout and style, she could still deduce that it was a small guest room connected to the Xie family's study that had caught fire.
"Where is grandfather? Where is grandfather?"
The courtyard was already filled with members of the Xie family. Lu Wuxie scanned them, his expression darkening. He grabbed the anxious steward, Steward Zhang, who was fetching water, and asked.
Upon seeing Lu Wuxie, Steward Zhang's face fell. "Your Highness, the master is... in the study!"