Ji Lingchuan had long been certain that Song Yihuan was the little friend who had been separated from him for many years. However, why she had gone to the dilapidated temple outside the Imperial College remained a mystery to him.
At present, he felt as if a thick cloud had descended before his eyes, veiling his sight and making everything unclear.
Ji Lingchuan put away the scripture in his hand. He ordered the guards to return to the Changyue Nunnery to continue their duty. Then he mounted his horse, got back on the official road, and rode towards the main entrance of the nunnery.
Inside the Changyue Nunnery, Song Nanxin was in her meditation room at the moment. Leaning softly in Cui Ying'er's arms, she was reading a storybook with her. Then Granny Zhao knocked on the door outside and said,
"Miss, the case in the capital has been solved. The heir apparent has come to the nunnery in person to pick you up. He's waiting in the courtyard now."
Song Nanxin sat up straight, her face showing obvious surprise. "What? The heir apparent is here? He came to pick me up in person?"
She was so overjoyed that she didn't notice at all that Cui Ying'er's face instantly darkened behind her. But the next moment, Cui Ying'er smiled again and said to Song Nanxin,
"Everyone says that a short separation makes the heart grow fonder. It seems that the heir apparent misses you terribly, my lady. He couldn't wait to come as soon as the case was solved. It's obvious that he is deeply in love with you."
Only then did Song Nanxin notice that something was wrong with Cui Ying'er. She turned around and pinched the other's arm, scolding playfully, "What are you jealous of? Although he is my husband, I can't serve him in bed for now. You've taken all the advantages. What else are you not satisfied with?"
Cui Ying'er sighed. "I can touch but not taste. I'm no different from him."
Reaching out to touch Song Nanxin's face, Cui Ying'er murmured, "There's still half a month. It'll be half a month before you fully recover. Do you know how tortured I've been these days?"
Song Nanxin slapped away the hand on her face. "Alright, quickly help me get dressed and made up. Don't keep him waiting. He's very suspicious. Don't let him notice anything wrong."
It was already three incense sticks later when Song Nanxin walked out of the meditation room after having her hair done and her appearance tidied up.
When she reached the courtyard, sure enough, she saw a tall and straight figure standing under the tree. Ji Lingchuan's handsome and cold face made Song Nanxin lose herself for a moment. Regaining her composure, she lifted her skirt and walked gracefully towards Ji Lingchuan, bowing.
"My humble self pays respects to the heir apparent."
Ji Lingchuan's gaze swept across Song Nanxin's slightly flushed cheeks. He looked at the tall and short maid and the granny following behind her, and said indifferently, "Get up."
After Song Nanxin stood up, she intended to exchange a few words with Ji Lingchuan. After all, a short separation makes the heart grow fonder. She didn't want to miss this opportunity to strengthen their relationship. However, Ji Lingchuan said seriously, "Since you've packed your things, let's set off for the mansion immediately. Don't keep the princess mother waiting."
The flattering words got stuck in Song Nanxin's throat, making her extremely annoyed. In order to maintain her image in front of him, she couldn't show the slightest bit of it on her face. She had to swallow her grievance and reply, "Yes."
However, when she was getting into the carriage, Ji Lingchuan reached out to support her elbow, fulfilling his duty as a husband. This made Song Nanxin overjoyed, and she didn't mind his cold attitude anymore.
After the people inside the carriage were seated and the luggage was loaded, Ji Lingchuan bowed to the abbot of the Changyue Nunnery, then led the carriage back to the capital.
Inside the carriage, Cui Ying'er, who was pretending to be "Baishao", saw the girlish affection in Song Nanxin's eyes that she didn't know about. Song Nanxin kept mentioning the cold man outside. A glint of darkness flashed across Cui Ying'er's eyes.
...
After leaving Yongning Alley, Song Yihuan didn't return directly to the Prince Ning's Mansion. Instead, she went to the Western Market.
The yamen had posted the news that the culprit had been captured and the case had been solved, as well as the culprit's crime of murder on the bulletin board in the Western Market.
When she arrived, there was already a crowd of onlookers in front of the bulletin board, all pointing at the notice and discussing animatedly. Song Yihuan stood aside and listened for a while, then she roughly pieced together the intention of the culprits' murder.
Those culprits had helped the Ministry of Works build the water canal years ago. Unexpectedly, one of them was accidentally washed away by the water and disappeared. The government couldn't find his body no matter how hard they tried, so the matter was left unresolved.
But that person wasn't actually dead. After being washed away by the water, he fell into the moat outside the city through the canal and survived. It was because of this incident that he discovered that the water canal was criss - cross and that they, as dwarfs, could move freely inside.
Later, that person quietly returned to the acrobatic troupe and told a few dwarf brothers about this. After they discussed it, two of them "died of illness" one after another, and another two left the capital on the pretext of going home. In fact, they all quietly sneaked into the underground. Every night, when the families in the capital were asleep, they would sneak into other people's houses through the water canal to steal property.
The reason they decided to kill people was that they heard five women in the City God Temple mention their intention to commit suicide when they were offering incense. Thinking themselves omnipotent, they discussed and on a certain day, each of them sneaked into the houses of these women and killed them, claiming it was for the sake of justice.
After the case happened, the government couldn't find the culprits all the time. So they became arrogant again, killing two more people successively. They even provoked the yamen, saying that they would kill another person within three days.
That night, their real intention was to imitate the first time and kill five women at the same time, making a fool of the government. So all five of them showed up together. But they didn't expect that Song Yihuan had people burn thick smoke at all the canal entrances in the city. The thick smoke formed a net in the water canal, forcing them back to the City God Temple, where they were caught red - handed by the officers and soldiers guarding outside.
The bulletin board also stated that the yamen would reward those who provided clues and assistance in this case. There would also be a commendation order, which would be made public. Many common people slapped their thighs regretfully, regretting that they hadn't stood up to provide clues to help the yamen solve the case.
While everyone was discussing who would receive the reward, Song Yihuan quietly withdrew from the crowd in front of the bulletin board and started on her way back to the Prince Ning's Mansion.
It was already the afternoon when Song Yihuan returned to the Prince Ning's Mansion. Because her arm was sore and she couldn't copy "Yangshan Miscellany", she simply sat in the courtyard and embroidered. Song Yixuan sat beside her, obediently practicing calligraphy.
The siblings chatted from time to time, accompanied by the occasional teasing of the two maids. Life seemed to have returned to its former peaceful state.
Near evening, someone came outside Tinglan Garden. It was a little maid beside Song Nanxin from Shulan Courtyard. She said that Song Nanxin was returning to the mansion today and would arrive soon. She asked Song Yihuan and her younger brother to go out to greet her.
Song Yihuan had expected this. She put down what she was doing and took Song Yixuan's hand, walking towards the main entrance of the Prince Ning's Mansion.
The siblings stood outside the mansion for a while. Soon, they saw Ji Lingchuan riding a maroon horse, leading the carriage behind him, slowly approaching them.