wait a minute

Chapter 23 Mr. Corner

Boom, boom, boom—

The distant morning bell passes through the misty rain.

With the sound of bells, the hundreds of streets and alleys of the capital gradually rose with a few smokes, and the majestic imperial city in the north also opened its palace gates, and civil and military courtiers dressed in various official uniforms came in one after another from the Thousand Steps Corridor.

Dongfang Liren was wearing a silver apron embroidered with 'fat-headed dragon'. He stood behind a screen with open arms, and a maid was wearing a robe. His eyes crossed the screen and he looked at Miyagi at the end of his field of vision. A chariot surrounded by hundreds of people was moving around. Tai Chi Hall.

"The Holy Majesty got up late today for a cup of tea, why?"

The white-haired old woman stood behind her and responded respectfully:
"Last night, the Empress Dowager went to Yongle Palace and stayed overnight in the bedroom. The Empress Dowager likes to talk with people. The Holy Majesty may have come too late to chat with the Empress Dowager."

"Your Majesty takes care of so many things every day, and I'm already tired. How can I stand being pestered by the Queen Mother to do the housework at night..."

"Why don't you make some arrangements and bring the Empress Dowager to live in the palace for a few days?"

Dongfang Liren thought about it for a while, and nodded in agreement.

After the python robe and jade belt were put on, Dongfang Li came to sit down in the study on the top floor, opened the booklet that Heiya had sorted out, and checked the news reported from various places:

"Several incense masters in the Honghualou went out at the same time, and it seems that there is a big move... What is the Honghualou going to do? Come out with all their strength to destroy Shuiyunjiantan?"

The white-haired old woman pondered for a while: "Impossible, the old spearhead is here, and Honghualou still has the confidence to destroy Shuiyun Jiantan. Today's Honghualou depends on Shuiyunjiantan's face. The old man heard that Honghualou Hall masters from all over the world meet every year, presumably to discuss the future destination of Honghualou."

"The size of Honghualou's bright side is not small, and there must be more hidden in the secret passage. It can be called a rich Jianghu. If they can't get along in the Jianghu and want to be loyal to the king, you can give them a chance."

"Yes."

Dongfang Liren stopped paying attention to Honghualou, and continued to look at it:

"A caravan entered the customs from Liangzhou, and the 'Blood Bodhi' seems to be hidden in it... Who is the Blood Bodhi?"

"A killer who ran rampant in Tiannan rivers and lakes ten years ago, has a lot of blood and debts in his life. He once assassinated the prefect of Chongzhou, was hunted down by the court and even the rivers and lakes, and disappeared until now."

The white-haired old woman's eyes showed a look of solemnity: "This person's martial arts skills are unknown, he is good at concealing weapons, concealing disguises, and his patience is also amazing. He once lurked near the sect for nearly a year in order to assassinate the head of Qixuanmen, and passed by many times. Take a shot, until the opponent completely relaxes his vigilance, then kill him with one blow and flee away. Now that he reappears, he may be recruited by the 'green bandit'."

When Dongfangli heard this, his brows were furrowed:
"The purpose of the green bandit's recruitment of such a top assassin is either the court's important minister or the king. Let the black yamen pay attention to the people who came from Liangzhou recently..."

Speaking of this, Dongfang Liren suddenly remembered Ye Jingtang who had just entered Beijing from Liangzhou.

But Ye Jingtang is talented, and his age is not right, so after thinking about it, he dispelled his doubts.

After learning about the news sent by Hei Ya, Dongfang Liren got up and went to the terrace to look at the situation inside and outside the imperial city.

But not long after paying attention, he found his eldest cousin Wang Chihu, holding something in his arms, sneaking away from Heiya.

Dongfang Liren frowned and asked:
"What is Wang Chihu planning to do?"

"Last afternoon, Ye Jingtang visited the door. He was going to catch the wingless owl. He asked the yamen to help him. He asked Wang Chihu to borrow something."

Dongfang Liren didn't think that Yejingtang was capable of catching the wingless owl, so he was naturally interested in it, and turned around and asked:

"What did he borrow? Cartilage incense, Soul-Living Needle?"

"Uh……"

The white-haired old woman was a little hesitant, but she couldn't deceive Prince Jing, so she walked up to Dongfang Liren and whispered a few words.

After Dongfang Liren listened quietly, his heroic cheeks blushed rarely, and he frowned and said:
"What's wrong with him?"

"Hey, His Highness shouldn't care about these little details..."

……
-
The light rain in early summer fell into the bluestone old alley, and the yellow wine streamers swayed silently under the eaves.

In the stable next to the wine shop, there was a fierce horse parked. It had just stopped after running, and it was still snorting heavily.

"Chee-chh-"

There was no one else in the wine shop, and two whispers came from the window:
"Did you bring something?"

"Brought it."

"what?"

"Mr. Angle."

"Horn...huh?"

In the wine shop, Ye Jingtang was dressed in a black robe and a bamboo hat, dressed as a knight-errant, and sat at the table, taking a red sandalwood box from Wang Chihu, with strange eyes.

Wang Chihu was probably afraid of ruining his reputation, so he was extremely vigilant. He used his body to block the sight of the shopkeeper, and said in a low voice:

"This object is carved from a whole piece of jadeite. The value of the bare base material is not less than a thousand taels. It was also made by a famous craftsman in the previous dynasty. The person who used it was either a princess or a first-grade imperial order. After the founding of the Great Wei Dynasty, this object was tossed and turned several times. Ding'an Marquis Mansion..."

Ye Jingtang looked at the beautiful rosewood box, but dared not open it:

"Brother Wang, I ask you to help find an object that is not on the table, this is too... too real, this thing..."

Wang Chihu looked serious: "You don't have to worry about these small details when you are doing things for the court. What else can brother Ye think of, which is worse than this?"

Ye Jingtang really didn't expect it, he thought it was outrageous enough to ask King Jing to borrow a gold silk bellyband, but he never expected that Wang Chihu could find something even more outrageous.

However, this thing is really not like the bait of the government. It is ugly enough to spread, but its value and origin can attract burglars such as wingless owls, so it is very suitable.

Ye Jingtang took a few glances at the wooden box and put it away:
"Brother Wang is really troublesome. I am determined to live up to my high expectations and capture the Wingless Owl."

"They're all doing things for the imperial court. There's nothing to thank. I've already let the hidden piles in the city spread the wind and stir up the flames. You can just go and sell the stolen goods. It depends on your luck. I'll go first and say goodbye... "

Ye Jingtang watched Wang Chihu sneak away, then looked at the red sandalwood box in his hand, hesitantly did not open it, wrapped it in black cloth, and left the shop.

It was raining lightly, and the streets were sparsely populated. Yejingtang walked around the street a few times, and after confirming that no one was following him, he came to an alley.

Luo Ning and Zhe Yunli waited in the alley with umbrellas, dressed like ordinary mother and daughter.

Niao Niao stood on the top of the wall and kept watch, paying attention to the movement around him.

Seeing Ye Jingtang come back, Zhe Yunli trotted forward and asked:
"What did Heiya give you as bait?"

Ye Jingtang got off his horse, and it was not easy to explain clearly, and handed the red sandalwood box wrapped in black cloth to Luo Ning:
"I haven't opened anything that is not very serious. It's best not to open it, so as not to get angry."

?

Luo Ning took the box and weighed it—it didn't look like a 'golden bellyband'.

"If you don't take a look, how will you sell the stolen goods later?"

As Luo Ning said, she raised her hand and scratched open the wooden box, but she was afraid of being cheated, so she went to Ye Jingtang again and asked him to look at it together.

Zhe Yunli heard 'not serious', couldn't bear the little girl's curiosity, and stuck to Luo Ning to look at it.

wow——

The red sandalwood box was opened, and the bright red cloth appeared in front of the eyes of the family of three.

Inside the box is a crystal-clear green jade article, with extraordinary carving skills and round and jade-like color, even a layman can see the value of this article.

As for the shape... thick and big!
Ye Jingtang blinked his eyes, not knowing what to say.

Zheyunli was taken aback for a moment, and looked closely:

"Wow! What a big... handwriting. I'm afraid this piece of jade is worth a lot of money, but the shape is a bit weird..."

He said he wanted to touch it with his hands.

Luo Ning didn't realize what it was at first glance, but when she looked carefully at the shape of the jade, she found that there were lifelike veins and turtle heads on the 'jade pillar'...

Snapped--

The box slammed shut, almost pinching Zheyunli's fingers.

"Master, what are you doing?!"

Luo Ning's face turned red, and she threw the wooden box at Ye Jingtang:

"You little thief..."

Knowing this would be the reaction, Ye Jingtang firmly caught the red sandalwood box:

"This is public property for handling the case. If it breaks, you will pay for it?"

Zheyunli didn't know the purpose of the jade, so she asked like a curious baby:
"Master, why are you angry? What is this thing for?... Oops~"

The skull was knocked down by Luo Ning.

Luo Ning might be afraid that Zheyunli would be taken badly, so she explained in a soft voice suppressing her embarrassment:
"The things that men use in brothels are not clean, so don't ask too much."

Zhe Yunli blinked his eyes wide: "Such a big stick, wouldn't it be used to bully women? How should I use it... Hiss—"

Luo Ning is like a pure mother who can't bear it anymore. When facing a curious girl, she can only use the method of pulling her ears to reprimand:
"If you don't ask, don't ask, a girl, is it reasonable to ask these words?"

Zhe Yunli was in pain, and quickly raised his hand: "Okay, I don't ask. I also want to save the hero, help the staff...Then let's go to the black market to sell the stolen goods?"

Luo Ning held such an unclean thing, how could she carry Yun Li:

"Since you want to lure the snake out of the hole, the three of you will easily scare the snake together. You are so light, you can't help, so go back and stay well!"

Zheyunli was obviously not happy, but she couldn't say anything in front of the stern teacher, she could only sigh softly, turn around and leave every step of the way.

Ye Jingtang kept holding back his laughter, but as soon as Zheyunli left, Luo Ning's expression turned cold, and she glared at him:
"You are shameless!"

Ye Jingtang's smile froze, and he said inexplicably:
"Why am I shameless? This is an object given by the government. I told you not to look at it, but you insisted on looking at it. After reading it, you scolded me for being shameless. It's just a jade carving object. Is there a need for such a big reaction?"

Luo Ning, as a mature woman, even if she has never experienced the relationship between men and women, she has heard about the usage of such objects from some women taught by Ping Tian.

But the problem with this matter is not Ye Jingtang, Luo Ning suppressed her embarrassment after thinking about it, and said in a deep voice:
"Why is the imperial court so shameless that they let you use this thing..."

"It's fine if it's easy to use. If you were a wingless owl, would you be angry if you learned that you stole this kind of thing and sold it, and it was rumored to be the laughingstock of the world?"

Luo Ning thought about it, and said no more, but Ye Jingtang handed over the box again and asked her to hold it.

"what are you doing?"

"Hold!"

Ye Jingtang stuffed the red sandalwood box into the hands of Luo Nvxia who was very disgusted:

"I'm a man, the head of the family. Does it sound like I'm behind you with the box in my arms?"

"..."

Luo Ning secretly gritted her teeth, finally took the box and held it in her arms.

Ye Jingtang put Niao Niao on his shoulders, and led the horse out of the alley:
"The two of us pretended to be thieves traveling together. From now on, I will call you Ning'er, and you will call me..."

Luo Ning walked behind and said coldly:

"I call you 'Winged Owl'."

"What a joke."

Ye Jingtang turned his head to look at Luo Xia, who was dressed as a young daughter-in-law:

"Why don't you call me a husband? It's not easy for a young couple to arouse suspicion when they travel together in the rivers and lakes."

Luo Ning is definitely not happy, but other than this title, it has nothing to do with it. It can explain why lonely men and widows walk together in the rivers and lakes.She thought for a while and said:

"Xianggong and Husband are too serious, and people in the Jianghu don't usually call them that. Um... I call you Yelang?"

Yelang?

Yejingtang knew the allusion of 'Yelang is arrogant', so he naturally shook his head:
"Not very nice."

"That Tang Lang?"

"grumble?"

Niao Niao tilted her head and looked around, probably wondering—where is the praying mantis?

Ye Jingtang suddenly felt that the level of his adoptive father's naming was a bit unreliable, so what should his wife call him in the future?

After pondering for a while, Ye Jingtang recalled the title of 'Three Niangs', and simply said:

"Call it Shiro, um... surnamed Huang, Huang Silang."

"Huang Silang..."

Luo Ning felt that there was no problem, so she stopped talking...

(End of this chapter)