If Five of the original seven leaders of the Liu Sect have appeared in Yuzhou City, what about the other two?
The guard continued his report, “This servant wanted to continue eavesdropping, but Li Mingzhou pulled Yun Tongyang into his room, so we could only leave empty-handed.”
Isn’t that even more suspicious?? What secrets lay between Li Mingzhou and Yun Tongyang? Jing Rong had no idea, but perhaps this was another clue. As he unconsciously moved to discuss this with Ji Yunshu, he realized that she would immediately begin pursuing the case again instead of resting like she should. He immediately let go of this plan.
That exact moment. Ji Yunshu was pacing up and down in her own room, glancing at Shi Zijin from time to time. Shi Zijin was standing right in front of the doors, obeying Jing Rong’s command to the letter. Ji Yunshu massaged her brows as she sighed; all she could think of was the case!
She could not stay still any longer and headed for the exit, only to find Shi Zijin blocking her path, “Teacher Ji, His Highness has ordered for you to rest quietly.”
“There’s only two days left. I can’t just sit here and do nothing.”
“You can’t leave.”
“Zijin, I’m really not tired. I’ll be bored to death if you watch me like His Highness ordered.”
“But…”
“No more ‘buts’. I’m going to see Advisor Wen now and ask him for some case details.” Ji Yunshu gently pushed Shi Zijin away, heading down the corridor towards Wen Lingyang’s study..
Wen Lingyang was writing fervently, but put down his brush upon seeing Ji Yunshu enter. He quickly rose, “Teacher Ji, why have you come here?”
“I was wondering if there were any details I might have missed among the case documents you previously showed to me.” She explained the purpose of her visit.
Wen Lingyang handed over a notebook that he kept on himself at all times, “Case details are usually recorded in the official case documents, but these notes were recorded by myself at the scene. Have a look, Teacher Ji, it might be useful.”
“Many thanks.” She carefully received it and took a seat next to him. She flipped through the pages without once looking up, “Advisor Wen need not pay any attention to me. Please continue what you were writing.”
Wen Lingyang nodded. The two of them engrossed themselves in their work; she read her notes, while he wrote what he wished!
About half a stick of incense’s time later, she finally closed the notebook and walked over to the desk where Wen Lingyang was. She carefully observed his work – each stroke was clean and powerful!
‘To watch a dark reflection,
To wait for one’s uprising,
To return to where one was,
To finally meet those missed.’
Ji Pei had taught her many poems when they were younger; and her level of ‘cultural appreciation’ wasn’t considered so low that she could not produce few meaningful lines of prose, but… “What do these four lines mean, Advisor Wen?”
Wen Lingyang placed his brush down on its ivory stand, looking up to meet Ji Yunshu’s gaze, “Teacher Ji is well-versed and talented, surely you would know what these verses mean.”
“This one is not as learned as you imagine!”
He chuckled, “Actually, these four lines aren’t difficult to decipher. If the Teacher were to spend a little more time thinking about it, I’m sure you’ll be able to figure it out.”
“Is that so? Then, this one will memorise these lines. When the case is over, I’ll take my time with them.”
“So be it.” They smiled at each other simultaneously.
Ji Yunshu placed his notebook on his desk, pushing it towards him, “Many thanks, I’ve finished perusing it.”
“Did you find anything useful?”
“Not at the moment.”
“Then what does the Teacher wish to do next?”
Ji Yunshu was stumped herself. She shook her head, her gaze coincidentally landing on a ornately carved, brick-red box next to his ivory brush stand. The box was three-layered with a small metal ring on the top, likely for it to be hung from. The box did not look like it matched everything else in the room, but neither did it look like it belonged to a man like Wen Lingyang. Ji Yunshu’s curiosity was piqued. “This box looks nice – does it belong to Advisor Wen?”
He unexpectedly nodded!
“Oh? Does Advisor Wen store the four treasures of the study 1 in this exquisite box?” She stared at it with interested.
Wen Lingyang smiled. He opened up the first layer of the box without hesitation, showing its contents to her. Four brushes were lined up immaculately inside, “I saw that Teacher Ji had an ornate sandalwood box with you when you were examining the corpse at Chang Estate. This one has a similar habit as well. I bring this out with me in case Lord Fang’s brush breaks while he is recording a case, and I’m already so used to using my own brushes that I can’t use someone else’s.”
“So that’s it, then what about the second layer?”
He opened the next layer. Inside, about twenty-odd scrolls of paper were neatly arranged inside, each one secured with a thin rope, “This is also for emergency purposes, in case I run out of paper while recording, especially when there are many important details to note down. Looking for paper in the wilderness is a difficult thing, so I always prepare my own.”
“Advisor Wen sure is conscientious.” She praised him, but her gaze fell on the final, bottom-most third layer. With this, she was even more curious about what it contained!
Wen Lingyang could guess at her thoughts and did not mind indulging her. He reached out to open the last layer, when a man suddenly barged in, running right into a corner of his desk with a bang. “Evil spirits are here for your lives, evil spirits are here…” That man screamed as he hid himself under the desk, hugging his knees tightly as he curled up into a ball. His darting eyes were fixed on the floor as he muttered, “Evil spirits are here…”
Ji Yunshu and Wen Lingyang were both stunned at this development, only discovering that man hidden beneath the desk after a split second. The man who had barged in looked to be about forty years old, his hair dishevelled and looking like he had not shaved in years. Despite this, he was dressed in clothes made of fine brocade. His whole body was huddled into the shelter of the desk, shaking uncontrollably!
What in the world was happening? Ji Yunshu first caught Wen Lingyang’s eye, but he shook his head, implying that he did not recognise this man. Ji Yunshu then carefully walked over and squatted down, trying to meet that man’s gaze to no avail. She only saw a man scared out of his wits, as if shrouded in immense fear. Ji Yunshu asked him gently, “You are?”
“Vengeful spirits are seeking revenge, vengeful spirits are seeking revenge…”
“What vengeful spirits? Who’s seeking revenge?”
“Vengeful spirits! Vengeful spirits are coming!”
“Why would they do that? Who are you?”
“Vengeful spirits are seeking revenge…” That man repeated this phrase over and over again.
Ji Yunshu could not get a coherent response out of the man, leaving her with hundreds of unanswered questions. Just then, a yamen runner came scrambling in, slapping his thigh when he saw that man beneath the desk, “Aiyoh, why have you come here?” He came forth to pull that man away, but he refused to budge. The two of them remained at this tug-of-war, pushing and pulling until they were both sweating buckets.
Ji Yunshu stopped the yamen runner and questioned, “What’s happening?”
That yamen runner wiped the sweat of his forehead helplessly as he replied, “I don’t know either, Teacher Ji. I was going to leave from the back door to buy something when this mad man suddenly rushed in and disappeared in a blink of an eye. I searched high and low for him but didn’t expect him to be here.” Did he run in here himself?
…
Refers to the brush, ink, paper and inkstone (ink was made on demand, ground from solid slabs of ink and mixed with water in a depression of the inkstone)
If Five of the original seven leaders of the Liu Sect have appeared in Yuzhou City, what about the other two?
The guard continued his report, “This servant wanted to continue eavesdropping, but Li Mingzhou pulled Yun Tongyang into his room, so we could only leave empty-handed.”
Isn’t that even more suspicious?? What secrets lay between Li Mingzhou and Yun Tongyang? Jing Rong had no idea, but perhaps this was another clue. As he unconsciously moved to discuss this with Ji Yunshu, he realized that she would immediately begin pursuing the case again instead of resting like she should. He immediately let go of this plan.
That exact moment. Ji Yunshu was pacing up and down in her own room, glancing at Shi Zijin from time to time. Shi Zijin was standing right in front of the doors, obeying Jing Rong’s command to the letter. Ji Yunshu massaged her brows as she sighed; all she could think of was the case!
She could not stay still any longer and headed for the exit, only to find Shi Zijin blocking her path, “Teacher Ji, His Highness has ordered for you to rest quietly.”
“There’s only two days left. I can’t just sit here and do nothing.”
“You can’t leave.”
“Zijin, I’m really not tired. I’ll be bored to death if you watch me like His Highness ordered.”
“But…”
“No more ‘buts’. I’m going to see Advisor Wen now and ask him for some case details.” Ji Yunshu gently pushed Shi Zijin away, heading down the corridor towards Wen Lingyang’s study..
Wen Lingyang was writing fervently, but put down his brush upon seeing Ji Yunshu enter. He quickly rose, “Teacher Ji, why have you come here?”
“I was wondering if there were any details I might have missed among the case documents you previously showed to me.” She explained the purpose of her visit.
Wen Lingyang handed over a notebook that he kept on himself at all times, “Case details are usually recorded in the official case documents, but these notes were recorded by myself at the scene. Have a look, Teacher Ji, it might be useful.”
“Many thanks.” She carefully received it and took a seat next to him. She flipped through the pages without once looking up, “Advisor Wen need not pay any attention to me. Please continue what you were writing.”
Wen Lingyang nodded. The two of them engrossed themselves in their work; she read her notes, while he wrote what he wished!
About half a stick of incense’s time later, she finally closed the notebook and walked over to the desk where Wen Lingyang was. She carefully observed his work – each stroke was clean and powerful!
‘To watch a dark reflection,
To wait for one’s uprising,
To return to where one was,
To finally meet those missed.’
Ji Pei had taught her many poems when they were younger; and her level of ‘cultural appreciation’ wasn’t considered so low that she could not produce few meaningful lines of prose, but… “What do these four lines mean, Advisor Wen?”
Wen Lingyang placed his brush down on its ivory stand, looking up to meet Ji Yunshu’s gaze, “Teacher Ji is well-versed and talented, surely you would know what these verses mean.”
“This one is not as learned as you imagine!”
He chuckled, “Actually, these four lines aren’t difficult to decipher. If the Teacher were to spend a little more time thinking about it, I’m sure you’ll be able to figure it out.”
“Is that so? Then, this one will memorise these lines. When the case is over, I’ll take my time with them.”
“So be it.” They smiled at each other simultaneously.
Ji Yunshu placed his notebook on his desk, pushing it towards him, “Many thanks, I’ve finished perusing it.”
“Did you find anything useful?”
“Not at the moment.”
“Then what does the Teacher wish to do next?”
Ji Yunshu was stumped herself. She shook her head, her gaze coincidentally landing on a ornately carved, brick-red box next to his ivory brush stand. The box was three-layered with a small metal ring on the top, likely for it to be hung from. The box did not look like it matched everything else in the room, but neither did it look like it belonged to a man like Wen Lingyang. Ji Yunshu’s curiosity was piqued. “This box looks nice – does it belong to Advisor Wen?”
He unexpectedly nodded!
“Oh? Does Advisor Wen store the four treasures of the study 1 in this exquisite box?” She stared at it with interested.
Wen Lingyang smiled. He opened up the first layer of the box without hesitation, showing its contents to her. Four brushes were lined up immaculately inside, “I saw that Teacher Ji had an ornate sandalwood box with you when you were examining the corpse at Chang Estate. This one has a similar habit as well. I bring this out with me in case Lord Fang’s brush breaks while he is recording a case, and I’m already so used to using my own brushes that I can’t use someone else’s.”
“So that’s it, then what about the second layer?”
He opened the next layer. Inside, about twenty-odd scrolls of paper were neatly arranged inside, each one secured with a thin rope, “This is also for emergency purposes, in case I run out of paper while recording, especially when there are many important details to note down. Looking for paper in the wilderness is a difficult thing, so I always prepare my own.”
“Advisor Wen sure is conscientious.” She praised him, but her gaze fell on the final, bottom-most third layer. With this, she was even more curious about what it contained!
Wen Lingyang could guess at her thoughts and did not mind indulging her. He reached out to open the last layer, when a man suddenly barged in, running right into a corner of his desk with a bang. “Evil spirits are here for your lives, evil spirits are here…” That man screamed as he hid himself under the desk, hugging his knees tightly as he curled up into a ball. His darting eyes were fixed on the floor as he muttered, “Evil spirits are here…”
Ji Yunshu and Wen Lingyang were both stunned at this development, only discovering that man hidden beneath the desk after a split second. The man who had barged in looked to be about forty years old, his hair dishevelled and looking like he had not shaved in years. Despite this, he was dressed in clothes made of fine brocade. His whole body was huddled into the shelter of the desk, shaking uncontrollably!
What in the world was happening? Ji Yunshu first caught Wen Lingyang’s eye, but he shook his head, implying that he did not recognise this man. Ji Yunshu then carefully walked over and squatted down, trying to meet that man’s gaze to no avail. She only saw a man scared out of his wits, as if shrouded in immense fear. Ji Yunshu asked him gently, “You are?”
“Vengeful spirits are seeking revenge, vengeful spirits are seeking revenge…”
“What vengeful spirits? Who’s seeking revenge?”
“Vengeful spirits! Vengeful spirits are coming!”
“Why would they do that? Who are you?”
“Vengeful spirits are seeking revenge…” That man repeated this phrase over and over again.
Ji Yunshu could not get a coherent response out of the man, leaving her with hundreds of unanswered questions. Just then, a yamen runner came scrambling in, slapping his thigh when he saw that man beneath the desk, “Aiyoh, why have you come here?” He came forth to pull that man away, but he refused to budge. The two of them remained at this tug-of-war, pushing and pulling until they were both sweating buckets.
Ji Yunshu stopped the yamen runner and questioned, “What’s happening?”
That yamen runner wiped the sweat of his forehead helplessly as he replied, “I don’t know either, Teacher Ji. I was going to leave from the back door to buy something when this mad man suddenly rushed in and disappeared in a blink of an eye. I searched high and low for him but didn’t expect him to be here.” Did he run in here himself?
…
Refers to the brush, ink, paper and inkstone (ink was made on demand, ground from solid slabs of ink and mixed with water in a depression of the inkstone)
