Chapter 25: Loquat Syrup

The prison was undoubtedly one of the last places anyone would willingly step foot in.

It was dark, damp, and filled with a stench that never seemed to dissipate, with only rats and vicious criminals for company.

Xu Maocai had never imagined that one day he, too, would end up in such a place.

But now, he had been staying in the prison of the Kaifeng Prefecture for many days, almost getting used to it.

Still, the food was as unpalatable as swill, and the straw mat beneath him had become increasingly damp, causing him to develop many painful sores that itched unbearably, making sleep difficult every night.

When Xie Yu entered, Xu Maocai was leaning against the wall, stretching his hand out as far as he could, greedily reaching toward a beam of moonlight that filtered through the small window.

To prevent prisoners from escaping, the foundation of the prison was dug deep into the ground, with half of the cell underground and the window extremely small, making it hard for any light to enter.

Hearing someone approach, Xu Maocai didn’t change his posture, only turning his head slightly to glance over, somewhat surprised. “What wind blew you here, Minister Xie?”

He had already been transferred to the Ministry of Justice, and since he had not yet been sentenced, he was temporarily detained here. In theory, he no longer fell under Xie Yu’s jurisdiction, so why had Xie come here?

Xie Yu looked at his rough, dirty fingers weaving through the moonlight, saying nothing.

After a long silence, Xu Maocai finally couldn’t help turning around. “What brings you to this humble place?”

His son was as good as dead, and half of his heart had died with him, leaving him with a strange sense of detachment. Facing Xie Yu, he was far less respectful than before.

Xie Yu stood with his hands behind his back, watching him with an expression that was half-smile, half-indifference, saying nothing, merely pacing slowly, as if he had some news but deliberately refused to share it.

The two stood facing each other across the prison bars for a long time, until Xu Maocai’s casual expression began to crack under the pressure, instinctively calculating:

Why is he here?

Why is he looking at me like that?

Why won’t he speak?

Has he found something out?

Xie Yu paced back and forth in front of the cell, never taking his eyes off Xu Maocai.

Since childhood, Xie Yu had discovered that he was actually quite skilled at reading people.

It wasn’t because his life had been particularly difficult. On the contrary, his maternal uncle was the emperor, and his mother was a princess. Most of the world’s sufferings were far removed from him.

He had seen too much flattery, where people spoke beautifully but schemed in their hearts, like living in a shell with two souls inside.

Xie Yu, who hated deception and manipulation, quickly discovered his talent and used it to great effect.

Almost no one could lie to him.

The prison was stuffy and humid, and with every step Xie Yu took, his shoes made a faint tearing sound against the ground.

This sound seemed to echo directly in Xu Maocai’s heart, making him feel disoriented.

No, perhaps he knows nothing and is just trying to trick me.

“Liuzhou,” the other suddenly said.

Xu Maocai’s heart, which had just begun to settle, leapt again.

Why bring up that place specifically?

Xie Yu stared at him for a moment, then suddenly smiled.

Xu Maocai’s reaction was quite interesting.

When he heard “Liuzhou,” the muscles around his eyes twitched ever so slightly for a moment, a subtle sign of shock and fear.

This proved that Xu Maocai’s impression of Liuzhou was extremely deep, and that the memory was likely unpleasant.

It seemed his suspicions were correct; something had indeed happened there years ago.

Objectively speaking, Xie Yu’s smile was truly captivating, but at this moment, Xu Maocai felt nothing but a chill run down his spine. He wanted to say something but held himself back.

Don’t speak, or you’ll fall into his trap.

Xie Yu stepped closer, staring directly into his eyes. “Minister Xu, do you still remember Fan Shixi?”

Xu Maocai’s left hand, behind his back, clenched tightly, but he didn’t deny it. “I once served with him in Liuzhou. What of it?”

“Excellent memory,” Xie Yu praised. “Minister Xu, having served in various posts over many years, must have had hundreds of colleagues. Yet you immediately recalled this event from nearly twenty years ago when I mentioned it.”

If they hadn’t been in frequent correspondence, then something must have happened that left an indelible mark.

Xu Maocai shrugged it off. “Liuzhou was a harsh and cold place in the northwest. Serving there together was a rare bond. We shared hardships and joys, a bond far deeper than those who served in more comfortable regions. It’s not something one easily forgets.”

That explanation was barely acceptable.

Xie Yu nodded, then suddenly changed the subject. “Four years ago, Fan Shixi retired. Last year, his grave was dug up, his decaying bones hung from a tree, and a blood-stained banner was placed in front of him, reading…”

He stopped abruptly, leaving Xu Maocai hanging, unable to resist asking, “What did it say?”

Xie Yu turned the question back on him. “With such deep camaraderie, shouldn’t Minister Xu be concerned about who did this?”

Xu Maocai tightened his grip on the bars but replied, “This is a matter for the court to handle. In my current situation, even if I asked, what could I do?”

He feigned outrage. “We once served together in the court. How could I not be furious at such a fate befalling him? Who could be so heartless and cruel?”

“In your current situation, even if you asked, what could you do?” To his surprise, Xie Yu echoed his words back at him.

Xu Maocai was momentarily at a loss for words.

This kid was just as stubborn as his father!

He hated both father and son equally!

“Betrayal of trust,” Xie Yu said slowly and deliberately, ignoring Xu Maocai’s changing expression. “Worse than pigs and dogs.”

That was what the blood-stained banner had said.

Xu Maocai’s eyes widened in shock.

Xie Yu lightly rubbed his fingers, deciding to press harder.

“First Fan Shixi, then you, and the others won’t be far behind,” he said, shaking his sleeves meaningfully. “The things you’ve done…”

Xu Maocai’s face had already turned pale.

The things we’ve done…

So someone is after me!

But who?

Was it from back then… No, the Yanmen should have been wiped out!

He tried to read something from Xie Yu’s expression, but the other man had mastered the art of concealing his emotions to perfection, showing not the slightest hint.

Xie Yu said no more, only giving him a meaningful look before leaving the prison.

Of course, it wouldn’t be that easy to get answers.

As he turned the corner, he suddenly seemed to remember something. “Minister Xu, your elderly parents are still alive, and you have two brothers back home, right? And a few nephews and nieces…”

Xu Maocai’s head buzzed. “What do you want to do!”

His son was already gone, and his only hope was his blood relatives. Was this a move to completely eradicate the Xu family?

Without looking back, Xie Yu walked away.

War is deception.

The real clues he had gathered were almost all extracted from Xu Maocai through deception. If he pushed too hard, the other might become suspicious.

He had only one chance; a single misstep would mean all his efforts were for nothing.

The best approach was to probe bit by bit, keeping Xu Maocai guessing about how much he actually knew.

Men who had served in official posts were usually quite clever, because the bureaucracy required intelligence. Those without depth or calculation skills often died quickly.

But sometimes, that very cleverness could be their downfall.

Those who swim well often drown in water. Smart people tend to overthink. Just give them a loose thread, and they will follow it, without needing any encouragement, pulling it apart themselves.

Now, Xu Maocai was the one pulling at that thread.

Summer had just begun, and the days were already noticeably longer.

When Xie Yu stepped out of the prison, it was still early, but the sky was already showing the first hints of light. The eastern horizon was tinged with a pale white, and distant roosters crowed faintly.

A cool morning breeze blew gently, and the white mist was like a swaying veil, contrasting with the orange-red dawn, giving it a soft and charming beauty.

As he walked out, Xie Yu exhaled slowly several times. The cool breeze helped dispel some of the heaviness that had been clinging to him.

What had happened in Liuzhou back then?

Fan Shixi and Xu Maocai must have conspired together, but back then they were merely county magistrates. What major crimes could they have committed?

There must have been others involved.

Xu Maocai had been in prison for many days, but the information he had provided was far from explaining the vast wealth found in his home and the disappearance of the money. He still held his tongue, hiding who knows how many secrets and fearing whom?

First Fan Shixi, then Xu Maocai—who would be next?

There had been hundreds of officials in Liuzhou at the time, and Xie Yu couldn’t immediately distinguish among them.

But if his suspicions were correct, then Xu Maocai’s downfall was no coincidence.

Someone had used the only son, Xu Lang, to bring him down.

In that case, the still-unidentified source of the wu shi san became critical again.

Wu shi san…

Xie Yu paused on the steps, suddenly reluctant to continue thinking.

His suspicion and sharpness seemed to have pulled him into a bottomless pit, surrounded by darkness, unable to see the path he had taken.

“Minister Xie?”

Speak of the devil. Xie Yu was slightly startled, then looked up.

Indeed, it was Ma Bing.

She was wearing a gray-blue short-sleeved outfit, with no excessive embroidery on the fabric, only dark-colored edging. Her long hair was tied up high at the back, looking very neat and efficient.

Seeing the faint bloodshot in his eyes, Ma Bing couldn’t help but express surprise. “You didn’t sleep all night?”

Only then did Xie Yu realize the delayed fatigue, raising a hand to pinch the bridge of his nose.

Recently, there had been many affairs at the Kaifeng Prefecture, and preparations for the spring sacrifice outside the city were also underway. He needed to coordinate with the imperial guards for the security along the route. With no time during the day, he could only visit Xu Maocai at night.

“Where have you been, not sleeping all night,” Ma Bing clicked her tongue. “You can’t keep this up. Your health will suffer.”

Xie Yu noticed that her shoes were muddy and her hair seemed to be covered in a thin layer of mist, clearly having just returned from outside. He couldn’t help but smile.

“Then where have you been?”

“Me?” Ma Bing blinked, then raised the basket in her hand to show him. “I went to buy some loquats early. Later, I’ll mix them with tangerine peel and honey to make loquat candy. Everyone can have a few pieces during breaks. It’s good for the throat.”

Recently, the weather had been unpredictable, and many people in the Kaifeng Prefecture had caught coughs, with constant “coughing” sounds throughout the day, quite annoying.

By coincidence, Ma Bing had just returned from visiting Lady Zhao yesterday. Thinking that her appetite wasn’t great, she worried that if she took the Er Chen Tang, she wouldn’t be able to eat properly. So she decided to make some loquat candy that wouldn’t take up much stomach space, both tasty and medicinal.

The loquats sold outside were from merchants who transported them by water from Dongting, far inferior to those sent by Princess Changde. They were smaller and uneven, with many having bruises on their skins, making them less appealing.

But their effects were the same, and they were cheaper.

Ma Bing got up early today, tasted them, and found them good, so she bargained with the vendor, getting a penny off per jin, and bought the entire batch.

This was just a small basket of the better ones, intended for herself as a treat. The rest, the misshapen and damaged ones, would be made into loquat paste, and the vendor would deliver them after finishing his sales.

After she explained, Xie Yu also felt a slight dryness and itchiness in his throat.

Ma Bing smiled and picked out the most beautiful-looking loquat from the basket. She wiped off the dust on the skin with her handkerchief, carefully peeled it, and handed it over. “Staying up late might have made you feel nauseous. Here, it’ll help settle your stomach.”

Loquats had the effect of moistening the lungs and relieving nausea, making them perfect to eat now.

The peeled loquat looked juicy and moist, the yellow flesh trembling slightly on her snow-white fingertips, like a snow lotus trembling in the cold wind—pitiful and adorable.

Xie Yu hesitated slightly, then reached out to take it.

The flesh was soft and juicy, not as sweet as the ones his mother sent, but the slight sourness was particularly refreshing and appetizing.

Good-looking people eating was also a pleasure to watch, so Ma Bing couldn’t help but peel one for herself too.

An early-rising constable happened to pass by, paused for a moment, then walked on while muttering softly, “So early in the morning, they’re secretly eating loquats over there…”

Is it really that good?

Darn it, now I want to eat some too.

After eating the loquat, Ma Bing wiped her hands with a smile. “Feeling better? Go back and rest. I have to go get busy. I’ll bring you a jar when it’s done.”

Her smile curved her eyebrows and eyes, her thick lashes casting shadows like a crescent moon hanging in the sky at dusk, making the onlooker feel happy too.

Xie Yu slowly wiped his hands, his tone slightly teasing, “Two taels?”

Ma Bing: “…Hmph!”

Ungrateful! I won’t give it to you for free anymore!

She was a bit embarrassed and angry, turned her head up high, and walked away, her hair swaying behind her.

After a few steps, she could still hear the soft laughter from behind.

Ma Bing hummed again, thinking about the scene just now.

Although Xie Yu didn’t answer where he had been, she had clearly smelled a faint musty odor from him.

That was a smell unique to closed, dark environments, such as cellars or…

Her gaze passed over the overlapping eaves, finally settling on the northwest corner of the Kaifeng Prefecture, where the prison was connected.

Xu Maocai must be locked up there.

Although he hadn’t slept all night, he had long passed the time when tiredness would set in, so now Xie Yu wasn’t sleepy at all. He returned to his room to bathe and change clothes, preparing to go directly to his post.

“Minister Xie?” A clerk from the accounting office knocked on the door. “Oh, good that you’re here. This is your salary for this month. Please sign and stamp here so I can go to the next place.”

In addition to silver, the salaries of capital officials also included cloth, grain, summer ice, and winter charcoal, making the process quite cumbersome.

Xie Yu was impatient with such matters and, since the Princess’s mansion and the palace regularly sent him good things, he had everything converted into silver.

Xie Yu went to collect the money. As the clerk was about to leave, Xie Yu suddenly remembered something. “By the way, has Ma Bing’s salary been paid?”

The clerk shook his head. “It’s distributed according to rank. The staff in the herbal garden are clerks and come later.”

Xie Yu took out a white silk-wrapped silver ingot worth two taels from his money pouch and handed it over. “From now on, every month you take two taels from my salary and add it to hers. Just tell her it’s double payment for her work, and don’t let others know.”

“This…” The clerk looked at him in surprise, not daring to ask too many questions, but hesitated. “How should I record this?”

Officials who had imperial assignments could receive double pay, but clerks had no such privilege!

“Just record it as usual. Consider it as doing something for me.” Xie Yu said indifferently.

Since the main person himself said so, and it didn’t cost him any silver, after a slight hesitation, the clerk bit the bullet and agreed.

But he couldn’t help but secretly wonder in his heart, what exactly was going on between Minister Xie and Miss Ma?