Zhou Yi led Liu Ming'an through the streets and alleys, chatting with him about various aspects of the Capital City along the way.
They discussed which districts were home to the nobility, which streets had the best scenery, where one could listen to storytellers, and where to watch opera performances... all rather trivial matters.
The Lantern Festival had passed, but the lanterns on the streets hadn't been taken down yet. However, they didn't look particularly impressive in broad daylight.
As the two were walking down a certain street, they noticed a large crowd gathering ahead, chattering excitedly with a mix of fear and excitement on their faces.
Liu Ming'an glanced around at the surroundings and realized this was Jinse Street, the place where he and Jiang Ning had been cornered by those three servants yesterday.
"Hey, what's all this commotion about?" Zhou Yi asked Liu Ming'an curiously, noticing the crowd.
"I have no idea," Liu Ming'an replied, his expression somewhat unnatural.
Zhou Yi, being the type who loved to join in on excitement, said, "Let's go check it out!" and promptly headed in that direction.
Liu Ming'an lowered his gaze and remained rooted to the spot.
A moment later, Zhou Yi returned with his eyes gleaming, and whispered to Liu Ming'an: "Brother Liu, it's a murder case!"
Liu Ming'an's eyes flickered, and Zhou Yi continued mysteriously: "The deceased seems to be someone with connections. Even Master Lou from the Ministry of Justice has come to the scene personally."
Just then, the crowd suddenly parted in the middle as several officials held them back. A man with an upright posture emerged from the alley.
"Look! That's Master Lou," Zhou Yi said, nodding towards the man.
Liu Ming'an looked over and found Master Lou somewhat familiar. After careful consideration, he realized it was the grandson of the old lady from yesterday.
"Is Master Lou skilled at solving cases?" Liu Ming'an turned to ask Zhou Yi, with a hint of barely noticeable worry in his eyes.
"How would I know? I'm just a merchant; I don't have much to do with officialdom," Zhou Yi replied.
Seeing that they had witnessed enough of the commotion, Zhou Yi pulled Liu Ming'an along as they continued walking, casually sharing what little he knew.
"But this Master Lou is exceptionally brilliant! He was the top scholar in the imperial examinations in the Fifth Year of Chongming. His father is the Grand Preceptor, and his grandfather was the former Grand Preceptor. A family of important court officials. Although he's only the Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Justice now, he's bound to take over his father's position sooner or later."
At this point, Zhou Yi looked around cautiously, and seeing no one nearby, he boldly continued: "People say that as long as the Emperor of Great Liang bears the surname Yuwen, only members of the Lou family will sit in the position of Grand Preceptor."
As they talked, the two arrived at a place that was very familiar to Liu Ming'an — Jinse Lake.
"Brother Zhou, is this where you brought me to fish?" Liu Ming'an asked, looking at the vast Jinse Lake before them.
Last night, this place had been packed with people, the bustling scene still vivid in his mind. After one night, apart from the trampled lanterns on the ground, only a few people remained.
"That's right!" Zhou Yi nodded affirmatively, leading Liu Ming'an to a familiar spot with stone slabs. He sat down, lifting his robes, and started to bait his fishing hook.
Liu Ming'an smiled at Zhou Yi's eagerness and mimicked his actions. After they both cast their lines into the water, he casually asked, "Brother Zhou, tell me about Prime Minister Nangong."
"Prime Minister Nangong?" Zhou Yi asked in surprise. "Why are you asking about Prime Minister Nangong? Do you want to become his disciple?"
No, I want to be his son-in-law! Liu Ming'an thought to himself.
But he couldn't say that out loud, so he made up an excuse: "The Prime Minister and the Grand Preceptor are both heads of the civil service. You just mentioned Grand Preceptor Lou, so I was curious about Prime Minister Nangong."
"Oh, I see." Zhou Yi didn't suspect anything and tried to recall what he knew about the Prime Minister, but after racking his brains, he could only come up with some street gossip.
"Well, Prime Minister Nangong is a good official. They say he and his wife are deeply in love and he's never taken a concubine. The Prime Minister's wife is probably from an official's family too. My father said she was a great beauty in her youth. They have a daughter, and Zhang Shun was fortunate enough to see her once. He said she was as beautiful as a goddess..."
"Brother Zhang has seen the Nangong young lady?" Liu Ming'an was startled.
"Yes, Zhang Shun's family has connections in official circles, and he said he had seen her."
Liu Ming'an understood that Zhang Shun must have seen one of Jiang Ning's sisters.
"Brother Zhou, is there any other information about Prime Minister Nangong?"
Zhou Yi furrowed his brow and thought hard for a while, but could only smile helplessly in the end. "Ah, Brother Liu, you've really stumped me. I'm not familiar with official circles at all. If Zhang Shun were here, he could tell you more details, but this is all I know."
Liu Ming'an nodded and didn't ask further. He turned his head to seemingly focus on the fishing float, but his mind was in chaos, unclear about what he was thinking.
Meanwhile, in the courtyard on Late Winter Road, not long after Zhou Yi had taken Liu Ming'an out, Jiang Ning also put on a veil and left the house.
She needed to make some preparations to try and resolve everything tonight.
She not only wanted revenge but also to clear Nangong Ling's name!
Jiang Ning first went to a clothing shop and bought a set of mourning clothes. The coarse linen garment, entirely in stark white, looked eerie.
Then she visited a shop selling rouge and powder, buying several boxes of brightly colored rouge and some tools for drawing eyebrows and applying lipstick.
Finally, Jiang Ning went to the market and bought a live chicken.
Returning home, Jiang Ning took the chicken to the kitchen, picked up a knife, and swiftly cut off its head, carefully collecting every drop of blood in a small bowl.
Carrying the chicken blood, Jiang Ning recalled her miserable state when she had first transmigrated here, and began smearing the blood on the mourning clothes, creating a blood-stained garment.
Next, Jiang Ning took up the pile of rouge, selecting a few to mix colors, and when satisfied, began applying it to her face. After finishing her face, she also decorated her exposed neck and hands.
As the time approached 5-7 PM and daylight began to fade, Jiang Ning disheveled her long hair, put on the blood-stained clothes, and entered her spatial ability, heading towards Wei Fangxiong's house.
Fortunately, Liu Ming'an had been called away by Zhou Yi today, otherwise Jiang Ning would have worried about frightening him with her "ghostly appearance".
She found it a bit strange, though. Given Liu Ming'an's personality, even if he was having a great time with Zhou Yi, he wouldn't forget to come home for dinner, would he?
There was no time to dwell on such thoughts now. Jiang Ning knew Zhou Yi was a good person, and the two of them might have gotten too engrossed in fishing and lost track of time.
Jiang Ning slowly made her way to the outside of Wei Fangxiong's courtyard using her spatial ability, just in time to see a middle-aged man step through the gate.
Behind the door, Wei Fangxiong greeted the man with a shifty smile, "Ah, Ma Steward, you're here... Ha ha... Right on time, ha ha..."
So this was Ma Steward.
Jiang Ning quietly observed him. As expected of the Prime Minister's household steward, he carried himself with a certain dignity, looking every bit like a master himself.
"Where's the jade gourd you mentioned? Where is it?" Ma Steward asked Wei Fangxiong impatiently as soon as he entered.
Wei Fangxiong, both nervous and embarrassed, could only laugh awkwardly and say, "Don't rush, don't rush, come with me," as he led the man inside.
Jiang Ning, meanwhile, waited leisurely outside the courtyard.
It was the sixteenth day of the month, and the moon seemed even fuller than yesterday.
Jiang Ning idly raised her head, looking at the large, round moon through the blood-red barrier of her spatial ability, her thoughts unconsciously wandering.
She wondered what Liu Ming'an was doing right now.