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墨書 Inktalez
This is truly a moment to witness a miracle.
As the fox's hand brushed over the plate of sesame oil stir-fried pig liver, Xing Ruyi no longer saw a dish that could stimulate appetite, but rather a plate of Guanyin soil.
"Is this magic? How incredible!" Shengzi picked up the plate, looking left and right, unable to believe that this plate of soil was what he had brought over in the basket.
"Hurry and take it back. Brother Chang should still be waiting for you. Tell him that the sesame oil stir-fried pig liver from that restaurant was made from this stuff. Guanyin soil, though it bears the name Guanyin, does not save people from suffering but instead directly leads them to the Western Paradise."
"The Western Paradise of Buddha?" Shengzi cautiously placed the Guanyin soil back into the basket. "Though I don't worship Buddha, I know that Guanyin is under Buddha. Given this, the name Guanyin soil seems quite fitting."
"You still have the mood to quibble over words with me? Hurry back; it's already bright." Xing Ruyi said, yawning again. "In the middle of the night, something strange happened at Lord Xie's residence—a concubine was struck dead by lightning. I was busy all night and just returned, planning to catch up on some sleep, but here you are with a plate of Guanyin soil stir-fried pig liver. Now that I've helped and seen the dish, can I go back to sleep?"
"My Ruyi, my good girl, at this hour, can you still sleep? Brother Chang asked me to find you; it must be for more than just letting you see this dish. Those customers who ate the Guanyin soil are still waiting for you to save them. Moreover, we can't be at ease with what’s in that restaurant. What if there are other dishes made from this soil besides the sesame oil stir-fried pig liver?"
"After such a major food incident, does the owner really think they can continue operating?" Xing Ruyi stretched lazily and barely lifted her eyelids. "Even if they have powerful backing, they should close down for a while to sort things out. In my opinion, everything in that restaurant should be replaced. As for when to restock, it can wait until they are ready to reopen. By then, if I'm in a good mood, I might even go help check things out. But let me be clear: this service will come with a fee.
As for those customers who ate the Guanyin soil—if they're going to die, they won't last long anyway; if they don't die, they won't owe me any time for my nap. Just look at my heavy eyelids and those dark circles under my eyes; given my current state, do you think I'm fit to assist with any matters?"
Having said this, Xing Ruyi yawned and went back into her room, then closed the door decisively in Shengzi's expectant gaze.
Shengzi sighed and bid farewell to the fox before preparing to return to the scene of the incident. Due to the large number of people affected by poisoning, multiple government offices in the city had been alerted—not only those responsible for investigating cases but also those in charge of grain and livestock had sent people over. At this moment, it was likely that Chang Tai's side was also in chaos.
Stepping out with his right foot and lifting his left foot only to let it drop again, Shengzi turned around and looked at the fox, asking curiously: "Young Master Yin, what is a food incident?"
"It means someone died from eating!"
"Oh, look at my foolish head; isn't it just that someone died from eating? It's just that 'food incident' sounds a bit fresh; I rarely hear people say it like that. And what does 'closing down for sorting' mean?"
"It means temporarily closing the restaurant to check everything inside and ensure there is no more Guanyin soil before reopening to customers."
"Now I understand what closing the door for a tidy-up means. I know about closing the door, but tidying up requires a proper arrangement. This term is quite fresh." After finishing, Shengzi thanked the fox according to etiquette and then left, swaying with a basket of vegetables.
The fox didn't even lift its eyes and went straight to Xing Ruyi's room. Pushing the door open, it saw an extremely ungraceful sleeping posture. It shook its head, walked over, picked her up, and relocated her to a more comfortable sleeping position. Just as it was about to let go, it heard Xing Ruyi mumble softly beside its ear, "Fox, it's so nice to have you!"
"Only now do you realize!" the fox replied, releasing its grip and covering her with a quilt. Xing Ruyi was afraid of the cold; it was just early February, and she was already dressed thicker than common people. Feeling her hand, which was somewhat cool, it guessed she had gotten up in the middle of the night and caught a chill. Xing Ruyi mumbled, turned over, shifted closer to the inner side of the bed, and then mumbled indistinctly, "Get in bed! So cold!"
The fox thought for a moment; since there was nothing much to do, it took off its outer garment and shoes, lay down on the bed, and wrapped Xing Ruyi in its arms. Xing Ruyi nestled closer and found a more comfortable position as her breathing turned into soft snores.
The fox looked down at her and contentedly closed its eyes.
Xing Ruyi slept until the afternoon. When she opened her eyes, the fox was gone, but she could hear two men deliberately lowering their voices outside in the yard. It was Chang Tai and the fox. In between their conversation, there were occasional sounds of Yin Yuan munching on chicken legs.
Rubbing her eyes and stretching lazily after a simple wash-up, Xing Ruyi changed into another outfit, opened the door, and stepped outside. Hearing the noise, Chang Tai looked up at her and asked, "Did you sleep well?"
"Not bad; I felt a bit dazed while sleeping and kept thinking I might have missed something," Xing Ruyi replied with a smile.
Chang Tai chuckled as well: "You did miss something! You promised Shengzi that once you woke up, you'd go check on those guests who dined at the restaurant. I just received news that another person has died; Lord Xie is under great pressure and sent me here to wait."
"I think it's not just Lord Xie's pressure that's heavy but rather that of Luoyang City. Think about it: before this Lord Xie took office, although there were some bizarre cases throughout the year, they were no more than a handful. But now that he has just arrived in Luoyang City for only two days, two incidents have occurred consecutively. I can't shake off this feeling that there are some hidden dangers lurking in Luoyang City."
"It is indeed somewhat frequent!" the fox chimed in.
"Frequent? I just went out for a stroll and didn't see a single one! Could it be that those monsters are hiding from me?" Yin Yuan complained while gnawing on his chicken leg, feeling quite frustrated about the lack of monsters in Luoyang City. He had only encountered a few scattered ones before being ordered by Fox Demon’s mother not to eat them; just look at his face—he was starving.
Yin Yuan remained angry but failed to notice Chang Tai's expression darkening as he looked into Xing Ruyi's eyes with an unusual displeasure for the first time. He asked, "You let Yin Yuan go out? He's only three years old; no matter how much he looks like an adult, he is still not one. Luoyang City may not be as chaotic as outsiders describe it, but there are indeed hidden talents among us—there are also many criminals. The recent case of missing children is still fresh in our minds; how can you be so careless? Is it just because this child was picked up by you from outside?"
"I—" Xing Ruyi initially wanted to argue that although Yin Yuan appeared to be only three years old physically, he was actually much stronger than herself. Not only humans but even those Evil Spirits from the armory had been completely devoured by him. However, she swallowed her words instead. She understood that even though Chang Tai had encountered Evil Spirits before, he remained fundamentally a kind-hearted human being; his criticism and concern stemmed from instinct rather than malice.
Recalling her own astonishment and fear when she first crossed into the Golden Tang Dynasty and discovered her ability to see ghosts and even possess ghostly powers, she realized that Chang Tai's words were already considerate of her feelings. Thus, she lowered her head and responded very politely: "Brother Chang is right; it was Fox Demon’s oversight. I always felt that Yin Yuan is different from others and more independent; therefore, I didn’t pay much attention to his actions. Besides, Li Mao is with him."
"Since there was someone following Li, I must have wronged you, Fox Demon. Brother Chang apologizes to you!"
The fox watched from the side, feeling displeased, but after a thousand years of cultivation, it had not wasted its time; it still controlled its emotions very well.
The three chatted casually for a while longer. Chang Tai, feeling anxious, urged Xing Ruyi to go with the fox to the Yamen to take a look. However, in just one day, they had gone to the Yamen repeatedly, which made Xing Ruyi feel somewhat strange. Places like the Government Office were generally avoided by ordinary people. Firstly, those who went there usually had no good news, and secondly, the Yamen had a heavy aura of misfortune; if one was not someone who worked for the government, it could be quite overwhelming.
On the way, Chang Tai did not delay and briefly explained the whole situation to Xing Ruyi. The tavern had been operating in Luoyang for many years and had managed to maintain its presence despite turmoil. Besides the skilled family members who had inherited it over generations, it also benefited from the craftsmanship of their masters. The current head of the tavern was named Hao; he was the second son-in-law of the original owner and originally came from a cooking background. It was said that he had learned his trade in the palace years ago. He was honest and straightforward and had not offended anyone in daily life.
In the time surrounding the incident, the tavern's operations remained normal. Even those customers who had eaten food containing Guanyin soil reported that they did not notice anything unusual during their meals. In the back kitchen, those responsible for daily purchases were also long-time employees of the tavern; they knew the farmers and butchers they bought from for many years, so there were no issues with supply channels. Therefore, after a thorough investigation, Chang Tai and his companions found nothing.
"You just mentioned that this current head of the tavern, Hao, is the second son-in-law of the original owner, which means there is at least one more elder son-in-law in their family. What kind of person is that elder son-in-law? Does he have any thoughts on running the tavern? Also, how do these two sons-in-law get along? If it's not an outsider causing trouble, then it must be someone from within."
"The old owner had three daughters and one son. The son was born late in life and is still young; he cannot take on the tavern's operations nor participate in any disputes over it. As for the elder son-in-law, he is a frail scholar who has read so much that he has become foolish. He is often seen holding a worn-out book. After taking the imperial examination for over ten years, he has yet to achieve any success. If he were living alone, he would be quite destitute; however, he often receives support from the second son-in-law. For the second son-in-law, running the tavern might be a career opportunity, but for the elder son-in-law, it is merely a means to fill his stomach; thus, he would not engage in actions that harm others without benefit to himself.
The Three Sons-in-Law are also involved in business; their trade is mostly in the north and they are considered prominent merchants of that region. Since marrying off their third daughter, she has only returned once with her husband. That visit caused quite a stir in half of Luoyang because of how lavishly the Three Sons-in-Law spent; everything they brought back was either valuable or rare. Although business at the tavern is good, to them it is merely a small matter and hardly worth their attention.
Additionally, I have investigated that the old owner married three wives throughout his life. His first wife died due to postpartum complications; she gave birth to his eldest daughter. The current wife is a secondary marriage and has given birth to two daughters since entering his household. The concubine is newly taken; she seems to follow rules and focuses on raising her children and does not appear to be ambitious. Moreover, her child causing trouble at this time seems to bring her no benefits."
"After a year of experience, I didn't expect you to be so familiar with family disputes! Now that we have clarified all these relationships, we should start investigating from the dishes served. The choice of sesame oil stir-fried pig liver might have some hidden meaning."
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