The young man didn't seem to catch the irony in Liang Hui's words, continuing to say to himself, "This time it is indeed a misunderstanding. We will leave now."
Liang Hui stared at the bulging pouches in the chests of several constables, his gaze growing even deeper.
Pointing at those constables, he spoke in a low voice, "Those items in their bosom, are they also a misunderstanding?"
At this point, the young man Hwu Miao also revealed an awkward smile. He chastised the men behind him, "Put down the things in your bosom. None of these are clues to the case; don't take them recklessly."
"Yes, Captain."
The constables, who were obviously there to make a quick buck, also felt the atmosphere was amiss.
They immediately took out the items they had grabbed on a whim from the house and placed them on the ground.
"Since the misunderstanding has been cleared up, we shall take our leave now."
After Hwu Miao finished speaking, without waiting for Liang Hui to reply, he led his group of constables toward another direction of the street.
Liang Hui watched the backs of the leaving constables with a grave and deep gaze, murderous thoughts churning in his heart.
The actions of these constables were somewhat abnormal. They shouldn't have investigated the case of the exterminated leather shop in such depth.
Was it to extort a bribe, or did the constables genuinely find something in the leather shop?
'You should count yourselves lucky. I carry all the valuable items on me; otherwise, none of you would leave alive.'
Liang Hui muttered to himself.
His chaotic thoughts gradually calmed, and he ultimately did not act to keep the men.
Looking at the messily arranged items on the ground, he slowly stepped forward, picked them up, and walked towards the courtyard.
Looking at the now disarrayed courtyard, as well as the bedrooms and kitchen tossed into disarray.
Suppressing the anger in his heart, the Great Zhou was indeed as dark as those memories suggested; nine out of ten officials and petty clerks were greedy like wolves.
The female emperor, who undertook the usurpation, founded the Great Zhou on tainted ground that inherited the maladies of Great Tang, and even exacerbated them, completely lacking the integrity of a founding dynasty.
After arranging the items from his bosom, Liang Hui began to tidy up the rooms.
Knock! Knock!
The door being knocked on made Liang Hui stop his actions.
He walked out of the bedroom and saw a delicate woman standing at the threshold, knocking on the door.
"Are you alright? Just now, a big group of constables broke open your door and barged in."
Shu Yu asked with a concerned expression.
Hearing this, the expression under Liang Hui's mask softened.
In such a scene, for the woman to come and see him, her neighbor, she must indeed be kindhearted.
"It's nothing serious. Those constables got the wrong person."
"It's just that my home has been thrown into a bit of disarray."
Liang Hui gestured towards the living room, responding with a gentle tone.
Shu Yu followed the direction of Liang Hui's hand, seeing the extremely messy floor come into view.
Then she glanced at the shattered ceramics on the kitchen floor, hesitation in her eyes, but she still said:
"I see the kitchen is also in a mess, and it's getting late, why don't you come over to my place for lunch?"
"No need, I can make do with something at home, or I could go to a restaurant," Liang Hui declined. They had met only twice including this time and he wasn't about to impose for a meal.
"Eating out costs money, and your house needs new furniture, it's better to save some," Shu Yu said gently, extending the invitation again.
Under these circumstances, Liang Hui found it hard to refuse.
"Then I shall impose. I'll bring some ingredients from the kitchen."
As he spoke, he entered the kitchen, took some unspoiled ingredients, and walked out.
"Let's go."
"Okay."
Walking side by side down the street, Liang Hui faintly smelled a delicate fragrance.
However, he didn't pay much attention to it, his thoughts instead wandering to where he should visit that afternoon.
If he couldn't find suitable Martial Arts Classics, he might as well go to the blacksmith and get a weapon made.
Lost in thought, they had already reached the neighboring courtyard.
The courtyard was arranged with exquisite detail, with stone chairs and tables, and even a cool pavilion.
Off to the side, there was a small fish pond, housing various colored ornamental fish.
"You rest for a bit, I'll go cook now. My dad will be back soon, and we can eat together," Shu Yu said with a gentle voice.
"Let me help you, the chunks of meat are too big, and they're hard to cut," Liang Hui, holding a piece of meat, suggested as he looked at the girl with the sickly complexion.
Shu Yu had been planning to refuse, as it wasn't customary for guests to cook when invited for a meal.
But glancing at the large chunk of meat in the man's hand, she found herself unable to utter a word of refusal.
"Then let's do it together, you can cut the meat," she conceded.
"Alright."
As they spoke, Liang Hui and Shu Yu both walked into the kitchen.
Soon, the robust sounds of chopping meat and stir-frying emanated from the kitchen.
After a short while, the entire courtyard was filled with the aroma of food.
Creak!
An elder pushed open the courtyard gate and was greeted with the scent upon entering.
"Shu Yu, the meal today looks plentiful."
"Ah! Dad, you're back. The meal will be ready soon, just wait a moment."
"No rush, take your time."
The elder was smiling as he walked toward the kitchen.
At this moment, Shu Yu and Liang Hui came out of the kitchen one after the other, carrying dishes.
"Why is he here?"
The elder's eyes widened in disbelief as he pointed at Liang Hui.
"Dad, I invited him over for a meal," Shu Yu said with a light chuckle.
She circled around the elder and came to the pavilion, placing the dishes on the stone table.
Liang Hui nodded at the elder and followed the girl, also placing the dishes on the stone table.
Afterward, they both stood shoulder to shoulder in front of the elder.
With a faint smile playing on her lips, Shu Yu said, "This is my dad; you can call him Elder Shu or Uncle Shu."
She paused, turning to introduce Liang Hui, but then she realized she didn't know the name of the man behind the mask.
Liang Hui, noticing the girl's embarrassment, spoke up in a gentle tone,
"Uncle Shu, my name is Tai Yi. Due to some issues at home, I'm unable to cook for myself, so I'm intruding."
Uncle Shu now grasped the situation and scrutinized the masked man before him.
After a moment, he responded, "You're not intruding; you're a guest, please take a seat!"
"Shu Yu and I will manage the serving."
After saying this, Uncle Shu, not waiting for Liang Hui to respond, pulled the still-standing Shu Yu with him into the kitchen.
Liang Hui watched the two enter the kitchen, hesitated, but decided not to follow.
He had no choice but to thick-skinnedly take a seat by the stone table.
He didn't have to wait long, as the stone table was soon laden with a hearty meal.
Elder Shu and his daughter also sat down.
Speaking softly, Shu Yu said,
"Tai Yi, try my cooking."
Liang Hui nodded; by now, he was quite hungry and didn't stand on ceremony.
He reached for the mask on his face, ready to take it off.
At this moment, both Shu Yu and Uncle Shu stopped what they were doing and focused their gaze on Liang Hui.
Their eyes were filled with unabashed curiosity.
The wooden mask slowly came off.
Dark eyebrows slanted upwards, like two swords positioned above his eyes, which shone like bright stars, large and full of light, spirited and lively.
A handsome young man with sharp eyebrows and starry eyes appeared before them.