A few more days passed, and Qing Chen arrived at Li Muyun's residence.
After only a brief wait, he saw Li Muyun stride out from inside.
His face was wreathed in smiles, and he reached out to tug at Qing Chen's sleeve:
"Ah, Brother Qing, you finally came! Any longer, and this ailment weighing on my heart would have sunk into my very marrow, beyond all cure!"
Qing Chen smiled faintly, unobtrusively slipped free of Li Muyun's grasp, and lowered his voice:
"Recently, bandits have been running rampant around Ford City. There have been far too many robberies, and they've been targeting ordinary civilians exclusively.
It was originally a trifling matter, but they happened to kill one of my medicinal suppliers, cutting off my supply.
Now every cry of a crane on the wind sets off alarms, and every tree and blade of grass looks like an enemy soldier. Inspections are strict, and government troops patrol the roads. I had to try several places before I could gather everything."
At the words "gather everything," Li Muyun's eyes instantly lit up, though he still shook his head regretfully:
"Unfortunately, today is an odd-numbered day, and my wife is home. It's inconvenient to indulge myself. I'll come find you first thing tomorrow!"
As he spoke, he reached out and patted Qing Chen's shoulder, without any measure of restraint in his strength. Clearly, he was frantic.
Qing Chen took the opportunity to sigh and deliberately rubbed his stomach:
"Exactly. As soon as I found everything, I rushed here without even having a hot meal, afraid you'd be kept waiting too long."
"Oh! How remiss of me!"
Li Muyun slapped his thigh and pulled Qing Chen inside. "Perfect timing. We were just about to have lunch. Come join us for a simple meal, and don't turn your nose up at the humble fare in my residence."
Qing Chen made a show of declining. "That wouldn't be right. I shouldn't disturb your wife."
"Disturb her? What's wrong with that?"
Li Muyun glanced back and glared at him, though a smile lingered at his lips. "You're now an assistant military commandant of the Subordinate Seventh Rank, a man of high standing and great authority. Are you looking down on your older brother? You won't even share a meal with me?"
Qing Chen shook his head. "How would I dare? I'm merely overwhelmed by your kindness. Since Brother Yun has invited me so warmly, it would be disrespectful to refuse."
He followed Li Muyun through the courtyard.
Several peach trees grew there, their fallen petals carpeting the ground. A young maid was sweeping them up with a broom. Seeing the two men approach, she hurriedly stopped and stood to one side with her head lowered.
Upon entering the main room, he saw that dishes had already been laid out on the square dining table:
A plate of glossy braised pork, a bowl of egg drop soup sprinkled with chopped scallions, and a dish of cold dressed cucumber. In the center sat a plate of ants climbing a tree, its glass noodles coated with minced meat and still steaming...
A married woman sat beside the table.
She wore a slate-blue outer jacket embroidered with subtle patterns, with a little of her moon-white inner garment showing at the collar. Her hair was gathered into a round bun and secured with a pure gold hairpin, and two eastern pearls hung from her ears;
-it was none other than Zhao Ningyi.
Although she was nearing thirty, she still retained the charm of a noblewoman, with an extraordinary bearing.
When Qing Chen and the noblewoman first caught sight of each other, ripples stirred in both their hearts. Her gaze fixed directly on Qing Chen's face.
The noblewoman had meant only to cast a casual glance, yet that single glance threw her heart into turmoil.
"You... who are you?" Zhao Ningyi asked in shock, her voice carrying a trace of trembling.
At that moment, her heart and mind were both shaken.
Over these past days, she had tossed and turned, unable to forget the handsome, masculine man from that night.
When she had felt most empty, Qing Chen's embrace had let her experience a masculine presence unlike anything she had known before.
Qing Chen had also seen every part of the side of her unknown to others, a side even her husband had never seen.
She should have been angry, yet every time she recalled it, she found herself somewhat entranced.
Although the man that night had worn a mask.
His figure, his eyes, and that distinctive air about him had been branded deep into her mind.
She had privately dispatched more than a dozen people, sparing no expense, to secretly investigate a man named "Ximen Qing."
Yet several days had passed without the slightest news.
She did not know how many times she had waited expectantly for the moment when a wooden stick would tap the hidden mechanism in the study, but there had never been a response.
Now, suddenly seeing Qing Chen, she could not help feeling an inexplicable flutter in her heart.
Just then, Li Muyun had his back to Zhao Ningyi as he chatted and laughed with Qing Chen, and he failed to notice her slight loss of composure.
Qing Chen hurriedly lowered his head and cupped his hands. "I am Qing Chen. My respects, sister-in-law."
Li Muyun noticed nothing unusual about either of them. He simply pulled Qing Chen over to sit down and introduced him with a smile. "Oh, Ningyi, this is Qing Chen, the assistant military commandant at the west city gate. He's a good brother of mine."
Zhao Ningyi smiled faintly, but a hint of teasing colored her words. "Oh, Qing Chen, Ximen Qing... Chen. Why do I feel this assistant military commandant ought to have the surname Ximen instead?"
She cast Qing Chen a somewhat reproachful glance, as though there was something more behind her words.
Hearing this, Li Muyun immediately grew serious. "Ningyi, don't be rude. Brother Qing here is a good brother of your husband.
Back during the battle at Northern Mang Mountain, we fought shoulder to shoulder and entered the mountain together to wipe out the bandits. Our bond runs deep."
Qing Chen scratched his head in feigned embarrassment, his gaze darting away, not daring to look at Zhao Ningyi. "You jest, sister-in-law. My surname is Qing, and my given name is simply Chen."
"All right, all right, sit down!"
Li Muyun patted Qing Chen's shoulder and pressed him into a chair. "Coming to my home is just like coming to your own! My wife is your sister-in-law. You're making things seem rather distant between us."
Li Muyun patted Qing Chen's shoulder and laughed heartily, displaying his forthright spirit to the fullest.
Although Qing Chen was quite thick-skinned, at that moment he could only nod repeatedly in agreement, his words seeming a little clumsy.
Qing Chen had only just sat down when Zhao Ningyi picked up her silver chopsticks, took a serving of ants climbing a tree, and placed it in his bowl.
Tilting her wrist slightly, she smiled and said, "Little brother, try this ants climbing a tree. Once this dish enters your mouth, it gives you a feeling like something clawing at your heart and scratching at your liver."
Qing Chen looked down at the glass noodles in his bowl and only murmured, "Thank you, sister-in-law."
Li Muyun could no longer restrain himself. He pulled a jar of wine from beneath the table and broke open its clay seal. A rich, mellow fragrance instantly wafted out.
"This is wine aged for thirty years!"
He filled a cup for Qing Chen, then poured himself a bowl. "This is wine aged for thirty years! If Brother Qing weren't here, I really wouldn't bear to bring it out.
Brother Qing, if you get drunk, rest here at my residence this afternoon. It won't be too late to return tonight. Come, come, let's drink this cup together!"
Amid the passing cups and lively drinking, Zhao Ningyi also seemed different from usual. "My husband is happy today. A few more cups won't hurt."
Li Muyun's heart blossomed with delight at her words, and he said repeatedly, "My wife truly does care for me!"
With that, he raised his wine cup and drained it in one gulp.
Over the next hour, Zhao Ningyi repeatedly urged him to drink. Li Muyun took one cup after another, until he was swaying and almost completely drunk.
"Husband, fill another cup. Your capacity today is as vast as the sea. What a heroic spirit!"
After finishing this cup, Li Muyun finally could hold out no longer. His head fell, and he went to sleep.
Zhao Ningyi hurriedly supported him. Only after confirming he was drunk did she signal the maid beside her with a glance. "Help the master back to his room. Gently, don't wake him."