Половины жизни, посвященной музыке и макияжу

Глава 4

For the next while, none of them spoke. Only the Seventh Princess kept serving food to Xiao Duan, occasionally whispering a few words. Xiao Duan responded while finishing all the food the Seventh Princess served him, and in the process, he drank two jugs of Broken Jade wine, which made the Seventh Princess frown. This Broken Jade wine was clear in color, fragrant and refreshing, but it was also considered a relatively strong wine. Xiao Duan basically drank a bite of food followed by a sip of wine, sometimes even emptying a cup before taking a bite of food. Xiao Duan was the kind of person who didn't blush when drinking, and the more he drank, the paler his face became, his pink lips gradually turning a rosy hue, while his clear, cold phoenix eyes became even brighter.

The Seventh Prince quietly picked at his food, occasionally glancing up at Xiao Duan, his expression remaining cold. Zhao Ting was usually a man of few words and disdained any attempt to smooth things over. Although the atmosphere at the table had been somewhat tense, he didn't seem uncomfortable, continuing to drink and eat as usual. However, his gaze towards Xiao Duan held a deeper thoughtfulness. Zhan Yun, usually good-tempered, eloquent, and adept at reading the room and adjusting the atmosphere, dared not speak freely in front of Xiao Duan today. His previous words had either embarrassed him or offended others. Young Master Xingzhi lowered his eyes in self-reflection, wondering when he had become so offensive…

Xiao Duan picked up the handkerchief handed to him by a maid, thanked her softly, and wiped his mouth. He put down the handkerchief, stood up, and bowed to the Seventh Prince: "Thank you for lunch, Your Highness. It is my honor to share a meal with you all. I have some matters to attend to, so I will take my leave now." Then, he turned to the Seventh Princess, a slight smile playing on his lips: "Princess, take care."

The Seventh Princess hurriedly stood up, but quickly slumped back down, her delicate brows furrowed, one hand gently rubbing her left ankle. The Seventh Prince, on the other hand, put down his chopsticks, his dark eyes looking at the Princess with concern: "Be careful. It's not a serious twist, but it'll take at least ten days to half a month to fully recover." The Seventh Princess nodded gently, smiling somewhat embarrassedly, "I'm getting old; I'd forgotten I'd just twisted my ankle. Please forgive me, Young Master Duan."

Xiao Duan paused slightly, pursed her pink lips, and said softly, "I wonder if Your Highness would mind if I could take a look for you."

The Seventh Princess straightened up, looked up at Xiao Duan, and smiled slightly with her rosy lips: "Okay."

Xiao Duan moved the chair he had been sitting on to the side, lifted his robe, squatted down, and said softly, "Excuse me." Then, he carefully lifted the princess's foot with one hand, reached for her ankle with the other, gently touched it, and carefully rotated the foot with the other hand, while softly asking the Seventh Princess if she felt any pain or discomfort.

Without looking up, Xiao Duan examined the ankle but didn't put the princess's left foot down. He gently pressed several acupoints on her calf, causing the Seventh Princess to cry out, her delicate brows furrowing and her pearly white teeth biting her red lips. On the other side, the Seventh Prince frowned, about to lash out, but Xiao Duan had already carefully lowered the princess's foot, stood up and sat down in a chair, saying, "It's not a serious sprain. Just rest carefully." He paused slightly, then asked again, "Does Your Highness often experience leg swelling and have trouble sleeping at night?"

The princess nodded, glanced at her husband, then turned back to look at Xiao Duan, a hint of helplessness in her smile: "It's an old ailment. I've seen some doctors and taken some medicine before, but it never seems to get better. Anyway, it's not a serious illness, so I'll just let it be."

After a moment's thought, Xiao Duan said softly, "I have a prescription that specifically treats leg swelling. Many people have tried it and say it's quite effective. If Your Highness doesn't mind, I'll write it down, and you can send someone to the pharmacy to get a few doses to try..." As he spoke, Xiao Duan's expression was rather indifferent, clearly waiting for someone to say something; if the person was unwilling, he would pretend he hadn't said anything.

The Seventh Prince nodded to the servants standing to one side, and soon brush, ink, paper, and inkstone were brought over. Xiao Duan finished writing in no time and handed the paper to the Princess: "One bowl after lunch and dinner each day. Drink three doses in a row, and you should see results. Drink less water after 7 PM, and eat more red bean soup and winter melon soup." He then stood up, cupped his hands, and said, "Farewell." Before anyone could speak, he turned and ran towards the door.

The Seventh Princess wanted to persuade him to stay, but then she thought that the child had left in such a hurry that he might really have something to do. She had already kept him waiting for quite a while because of her ankle injury, so she couldn't very well ask him to stay. Turning her head, she saw the Seventh Prince staring intently at the prescription in her hand. He pursed his rosy lips and thrust the prescription forward, saying, "See! You've driven him away. What's so interesting about staring at a piece of paper!"

The Seventh Prince actually reached out and took the paper. On the light yellow paper, several lines of Liu-style small regular script were written, sparse and vigorous, with distinct edges and corners, subtly revealing the style of Gongquan. The Seventh Prince's sword-like eyebrows furrowed slightly. One could not possibly write such a style without more than ten years of hard work. However, the writer did not seem to care whether his style resembled Liu's or not. Occasionally, there was a free and unrestrained air in the strokes, revealing a bit of a free and unconventional flavor.

On the other side, Zhan Yun looked at the Seventh Prince with his crescent-shaped eyes and asked loudly, "Your Highness, may I have a look at Xingzhi?"

Zhao Ting glanced at him sideways, then took the paper from his father and placed it between the two of them. Zhan Yun lowered his head to carefully study the prescription on the paper. Zhao Ting glanced at the handwriting, his deep eyes narrowing slightly. "Quite beautiful handwriting! It really does resemble that person—aloof and aloof, with a touch of arrogance, elegant in every gesture, yet unintentionally revealing a hint of carefree unruliness." As Zhao Ting pondered, he turned to Zhan Yun: "What do you think?"

Zhan Yun picked up the paper, bowed slightly, and handed it back to the Seventh Prince, nodding as he said, "This prescription is excellent!"

Everyone knew that Zhan Yun had some knowledge of medicine, so upon hearing this, they couldn't help but show surprise. Zhao Ting thought, "How come this kid is good at everything!" First of all, he's quite handsome. Then, he solves cases quickly, has excellent light-footed skills, a high alcohol tolerance, beautiful handwriting, and is quite knowledgeable about medicine. The Seventh Prince took the paper, frowning and remaining silent. The Seventh Princess, with a smile, snatched the paper from her husband and carefully folded it: "This was written for me by someone else's child, and you're still holding onto it!" The Seventh Prince sighed; he was thinking about serious matters.

As they were talking, a servant came running in from outside the door and announced loudly, "Your Highness, Your Highness, that young master has returned!"

Everyone was startled. The Seventh Princess was about to jump up excitedly, but the Seventh Prince pressed her down: "Be careful with your feet. We'll just go outside and take a look."

Zhao Ting and Zhan Yun had already gotten up and left, but before the prince could get up, the two returned one after the other, both with a hint of disappointment on their faces. Zhao Ting, who was walking in front, was carrying a long, light blue cloth bag with a note attached to it.

By this time, the servants had already cleared away all the cups, plates, and bowls from the table, and wiped the table clean. Zhao Ting placed the cloth bag in front of the princess: "The person left long ago; I asked them to give this to you."

The Seventh Princess picked up the note and examined it. Then, she unwrapped the cloth bundle layer by layer, revealing finely ground medicinal herbs inside. The note listed the names of the herbs and instructed her to wrap them up, shake them evenly, and use them to make a small pillow for sleeping, as it would be very effective for insomnia and excessive dreaming. The Seventh Princess carefully wrapped the bundle, watching Zhao Ting standing before her, frowning at the blue cloth bundle with displeasure. She couldn't help but smile. This child—how many years had it been since she'd seen him like this? This little Duan is truly a formidable character…

Author's Note: The next chapter will delve into the first case.

This week I had my thesis defense, plus my parents forcibly dragged me home, so I can only manage daily updates.

Holding Xiao Qing's hand, I pray to the Great God~ Great God JJ, please bless Xiao Xue Luo~

6

Chapter One: Bloodshed on the Broken Bridge • Reunion...

Late spring, March.

Hangzhou Prefecture.

As dawn broke, the wonton stall at the east alley entrance was already set up. The wontons were sold by a grandfather and granddaughter; the old man cooked the wontons and steamed the buns in the back, while the little girl, around thirteen or fourteen years old, helped carry the bowls, the steamer, and collect the money.

A large bowl of wontons costs seven coins. The fragrant, piping hot chicken broth contains large wontons filled with shiitake mushrooms and pork, and is sprinkled with seaweed, dried shrimp, finely chopped scallions, and fresh cilantro. A sip of the soup warms you right to the core, and a bite of the thin-skinned, generously filled wonton is so delicious you'd almost swallow your tongue.

A young girl in red placed a bowl of wontons in front of a young man, biting her bright red lips and staring intently at him. The man took a pair of chopsticks from a bamboo tube on the table, glancing at the girl with a cold, aloof look that made her shrink back. A slight smile played on his lips: "Thank you."

The little girl shook her head repeatedly, her two tall braids swaying back and forth. She bit her lower lip and finally mustered up the courage to speak. Her delicate voice, like a lark in spring, made one's heart melt: "Young master, is one bowl of wontons enough for you?"

For three days in a row, this man only ordered one bowl of chicken soup wontons each time. Other men would eat at least three bowls to feel full, or they would order two more steamers of xiaolongbao (soup dumplings) and a dish of sweet pickles. This young man was quite handsome, and although his blue robe was made of ordinary material, he didn't look so poor that he could only afford a bowl of wontons! The young girl frowned slightly. Moreover, the wontons and buns weren't expensive at all. Compared to other places, the portions were large and the prices were fair. Many people would rather walk several blocks to eat at "Li's Wontons."

The man replied softly, "That's enough. Thank you for your concern, young lady."

"Little girl, your grandpa's calling you to serve the wontons!" A customer called out with a smile, teasing the girl, "Don't let the handsome young man's chatter distract you from our wontons and buns!"

The other people sitting nearby waiting for their wontons laughed and chimed in, "That's right, little girl, one bowl is enough for that guy, but I ordered three!"

"The young lady has reached the age to find a husband and knows how to keep an eye on men!"

"Hey Old Li, is your daughter engaged yet? I heard the tofu seller's son next door has his eye on her! Maybe I can play matchmaker for him sometime?"

The little girl blushed, glared at the group, and with a sway of her waist, ran off to the back to get the wontons.

Old Li ladled out a bowl of wontons, exactly ten, no more, no less, then added a little broth. With his other hand, he scooped some scallions and cilantro from a bowl and sprinkled them into the bowl, and the wontons were ready. He put a few more wontons into the pot, then, holding a thick cloth in one hand, he took several steamers of xiaolongbao (soup dumplings) from the top and handed them directly to the customer who had been teasing the little girl, saying with a chuckle, "The little girl is shy, don't tease her like that. She'll cry to me when she gets home."

The group of regulars, all of whom were munching on steamed buns, nodded repeatedly, saying how much the old man doted on his granddaughter. Old Man Li chuckled and went back to cooking wontons, leaving the group to chat idly. A young man who looked like a scholar joined them, holding a large bowl filled only with wonton soup. He chuckled twice to get their attention, then lowered his voice mysteriously and said, "Hey! Have you heard? Those two young ladies who died a few days ago, after the coroner examined their bodies, they were so terrified they ran to our prefect's office, crying and screaming, saying they'd seen a ghost in broad daylight!"

"How come I've never heard of it!" Another man curled his lip, as if to say, "You're only just hearing about this now? I've heard about it. It's all because of water ghosts, they only target pretty girls!"

An older man sighed, "Alas! What a tragedy! That Zhou family's daughter is not only beautiful and gentle, but also a renowned talented woman in Hangzhou. I heard she was betrothed to the son of the prefect of Huzhou just a few months ago. What a tragedy..."

Another customer, upon hearing this, rubbed the back of his neck and said, "Hey you guys, can't you stop talking about such unlucky things so early in the morning? It's giving me the chills..."

At another table, a young man spat out, "What water ghosts and vengeful spirits? I don't believe it!" The people at the same table quickly tugged at his sleeve, "Don't say that! It really is a vengeful ghost! I heard even our prefect was terrified and stayed in bed for two days..."

The people at several tables were arguing animatedly about the matter, but the man in blue quietly ate his wontons without saying a word. After finishing the last sip of soup, he wiped his mouth, counted out seven copper coins from his waist, placed them on the table, and got up to leave.

The man walked all the way to the Hangzhou government office. Just as he stepped onto the stone steps, he saw several constables rushing out of the office, followed by a middle-aged man in gray carrying a wooden box. The man in blue stepped aside to let them pass, then reached out and tugged at the sleeve of the last man in the row: "Brother Jiang, what happened?"

The man tilted his head: "Xiao Duan? Great! Come with us right away!" His handsome face showed signs of fatigue. He called out to the men walking ahead: "Wait a minute, let Xiao Duan come with us." The constables were a little impatient. The leader glanced at Xiao Duan, nodded, and then walked quickly forward.