Thinking too much
“Pig food? In two more days, we won’t even have rotten cabbage leaves!”
The bookstore assistant couldn’t swallow this affront, glaring and arguing with the Second Prince.
“Taijing has been under lockdown for nearly three days now, outsiders can’t get in, and those inside can’t get out. Our Peony District doesn’t have any rice, vegetable, or fruit shops. Now, every household can only eat the big cabbages from their cellars. Fengxing Pavilion has many people and consumes a lot. If it weren’t for the formidable reputation of your master, those five ounces of silver wouldn’t even fetch a rotten leaf!”
The Second Prince was scolded until his gaze became vacant.
Instinctively, he wondered, my master, who is that?
Fortunately, he quickly realized the assistant was referring to Meng Qi.
The Second Prince couldn’t help feeling annoyed. Why claim he was a follower when he clearly was a patient of the doctor, following Mo Li and Meng Qi for treatment?
But once words are spoken, they’re like water spilled, impossible to take back.
The Second Prince snorted coldly, and being truly hungry, decided not to stoop to the assistant’s level, picking up his chopsticks to fill his stomach.
Under the assistant’s strange gaze, the unfortunate prince stopped his action, squeezed out a stiff and painful smile, and handed the chopsticks, which hadn’t yet touched the plate, to Mo Li.
“Doctor, there’s not much good food here, make do with what we have.”
Lu Min felt his sacrifice was significant, dizzy from hunger yet still thinking to maintain the lie—he was a follower, and how could a follower possibly eat before his master and the master’s friend?
Lu Min believed he had disguised himself well, but the reality was different.
Peony District had all sorts of people, and with Fengxing Pavilion dealing in information, the assistant, though not highly skilled in martial arts, had seen many people and could tell at a glance that Lu Min was not just a follower.
Not only was he not a follower, but he might also be from a very high-ranking family.
Yet, there was a carefree, resigned aura about Lu Min, not putting on airs or caring about face. This was peculiar, as the more a noble family fell, the more they cared about face. Lu Min leaned towards neither, embodying a self-destructive and indulgent air, which made the assistant uncontrollably curious about Lu Min’s true identity.
Unfortunately, as the food arrived, to avoid angering the distinguished guest, the assistant couldn’t keep standing there to observe.
No sooner had the assistant left than Meng Qi took the chopsticks from Mo Li’s hand and stuffed them back to the Second Prince, disdainfully saying, “Eat up, lest you starve to death.”
“Wait.” Mo Li stopped him, amused and annoyed.
He was about to suggest the Second Prince first drink some noodle soup to soothe his stomach before eating, only to find the Second Prince had already started eating methodically, avoiding any frantic devouring.
In truth, only with meat could it be called a “meal.”
Since there was none, it couldn’t be considered a meal. The Second Prince, feeling completely justified, set aside manners, not at all as disdainful of the poor food as he claimed. If not for the fear of eating too quickly, Mo Li suspected the Second Prince would have cleared the table.
“Hm, aren’t you eating?” the Second Prince asked in surprise.
Mo Li silently bowed his head to drink soup.
Honestly, the food in Fengxing Pavilion wasn’t bad.
Of course, it wasn’t good either, due to the lack of seasoning.
Mo Li could still stomach it, but Meng Qi, smelling the cabbage, showed a conflicted expression.
—In the sand mouse’s view, it was no different from gnawing on cabbage stalks directly.
Meng Qi looked at Mo Li, who was sitting upright, eating slowly, and felt an inexplicable heartache. Sand mouse gnawing on cabbage stalks was one thing, but a fish eating vegetable leaves?
Seeing the Second Prince eating happily, Meng Qi couldn’t help but grind his teeth.
“Kid, you really can endure hardship.”
“Of course.” The Second Prince accepted the praise without looking up, saying, “Actually, the imperial kitchen’s food isn’t much better, some are even worse than these rotten cabbage leaves.”
Mo Li stopped his chopsticks at these words, while Meng Qi’s expression was indescribable.
“In the palace, everyone is adept at gauging the situation before taking action.”
He muttered, before taking another bite of his cabbage. He continued resentfully, “I’m not the crown prince, one ear can’t hear, and I often anger the emperor. Those eunuchs who follow my father around don’t take me seriously. Anyway, it doesn’t matter who ascends to the throne in the future; it won’t be me. The dishes from the imperial kitchen are never warm by the time they reach me, everything tastes like stew, the meat is so tough I can’t chew it, and the vegetables are too mushy to eat… They’re even worse than these leafy greens that haven’t had any oil added; at least they don’t form clumps of grease when they cool down.”
Mo Li shook his head, “You’ll understand after eating dishes without oil for three months.”
In Zhushan County, many families were so poor that they couldn’t even afford to use salt in their cooking, let alone oil.
The second prince had been tormented enough by the imperial kitchen’s dishes. Initially, he found these bland meals without oil or salt to his liking, but he knew this sentiment wouldn’t last.
“Don’t compare things that taste bad; they’re all bad, just to different degrees,” Meng Qi said irritably.
“…But not eating would mean starving to death.”
The second prince didn’t look up; as he ate, he suddenly realized something was off in the atmosphere and stopped his chopsticks, confusedly meeting Mo Li’s and Meng Qi’s complex gazes.
Lu Min didn’t understand what this meant and buried his head to continue slurping his noodle soup.
Mo Li moved his lips, whispering through a secret transmission, “Brother Meng, I always feel… like I’ve picked up a wounded squirrel from the mountains.”
It’s the kind that’s silly enough to forget where it buried its things and nearly gets carried off by a leopard. You worry about whether it can survive and if it has the potential to turn into a daemon.
If Lu Min were a bit smarter, perhaps the crown prince wouldn’t be so worried.
Come to think of it, was the second prince hit on the head by Lu Zhang when he was young?
Mo Li almost wanted to use his internal energy to check the second prince’s head, while Meng Qi’s dissatisfaction with Lu Min grew, whether he was feigning stupidity or genuinely foolish, it wasn’t worth the effort for the doctor.
“Did you not say that Yan Cen might be Lu Zhang’s son?” Meng Qi suggested excitedly, “We could take the second prince to Shimo Mountain and leave him in Yan Cen’s care. Although they are brothers who have never met, they should share the same attitude towards Lu Zhang. It’s also safer for the second prince, now a wanted criminal of the Qi dynasty, to hide in the mountains where there are plenty of medicinal herbs.”
Mo Li thought carefully and realized it was a good idea.
Unaware that he was about to be delivered into the hands of bandits, the second prince restrained himself with great willpower after eating his fill and went to change clothes, yawning.
The people from Fengxing Pavilion had not only brought food but also a few sets of clothes.
However, Mo Li needed hot water, which was unavailable because heating water wasted too much firewood.
After eating, the second prince began to feel sleepy, his eyelids as heavy as if they weighed a thousand pounds. He had changed half of his clothes and leaned against the screen when he fell asleep. It was Mo Li who, hearing something amiss, went over to pull him up.
Lu Min groggily stood up, walked a few steps, and then collapsed onto the carpet in front of a low table.
This time, Meng Qi, annoyed, threw him onto the small couch. Initially, Meng Qi had thought the bed was for Doctor Mo, and this small couch was his; the second prince wasn’t even supposed to enter the door.
But an ordinary person without martial arts skills sleeping on the ground could directly drink medicine the next day, especially at night when it was still chilly. The second prince’s battered body was like a gourd ladle full of holes, appearing robust but probably would fall over with a gust of wind, followed by a serious illness.
After changing his clothes, Mo Li came out to see Meng Qi’s displeased expression.
“What are you still sitting there for?” Mo Li asked in confusion, “You may not want to eat, but you need to rest.”
“…”
Meng Qi was stunned for a moment, then suddenly looked towards the low bed.
The bed was finely made, but its flaw was its size.
So Meng Qi had never considered sharing the bed with Mo Li; it would be awkward to be face to face, and it wasn’t the right time.
Now, was the opportunity suddenly presenting itself?
No, he couldn’t get too excited too soon.
Meng Qi tentatively asked, “This bed is too small, why don’t you rest here?”
“Where else can I go in such a small room?” Mo Li asked back, puzzled.
Meng Qi looked at Mo Li expressionlessly, thinking something was definitely wrong!
Either this doctor was an imposter, or he was setting him up to become a sand mouse, but it definitely wasn’t as he expected.
“Doctor, now is not the time, it’s not appropriate,” Meng Qi said earnestly.
They were in Fengxing Pavilion’s territory, an organization that thrived on selling information. Everyone there had a keen eye.
The disappearance of Master Meng without a trace was one thing, but for someone who traveled with Master Meng to suddenly have a sand mouse in their possession would be suspicious, wouldn’t it? No, it was too risky! Just look at Fengxing Pavilion’s manager, who could sift through vast amounts of information to find two related incidents and accurately deduce the truth, guessing with high accuracy.
The body of a sand mouse could do nothing but eavesdrop.
The dragon vein of Taijing suddenly began to dislike its sand mouse appearance.
“Lu Zhang is injured, and the court officials are all making their moves. I expect the lockdown to be lifted tomorrow, and I need to go out and gather information.”
Meng Qi said, making up an excuse and posing as if he was very familiar with the streets of Taijing.
Without allowing Mo Li to object, Meng Qi quickly activated a mechanism and slipped out, leaving only his silhouette behind, too fast to be followed.
Mo Li: “…”
Doctor Mo turned to look at the low bed, not understanding why practicing internal exercises in meditation together was a bad thing. Martial arts experts could just meditate to regulate their breath when there’s no bed available in the capital, and after thirty-six cycles of internal energy circulation, it would be dawn.
Although the bed was small, two people could still sit on it!
Thinking too much
“Pig food? In two more days, we won’t even have rotten cabbage leaves!”
The bookstore assistant couldn’t swallow this affront, glaring and arguing with the Second Prince.
“Taijing has been under lockdown for nearly three days now, outsiders can’t get in, and those inside can’t get out. Our Peony District doesn’t have any rice, vegetable, or fruit shops. Now, every household can only eat the big cabbages from their cellars. Fengxing Pavilion has many people and consumes a lot. If it weren’t for the formidable reputation of your master, those five ounces of silver wouldn’t even fetch a rotten leaf!”
The Second Prince was scolded until his gaze became vacant.
Instinctively, he wondered, my master, who is that?
Fortunately, he quickly realized the assistant was referring to Meng Qi.
The Second Prince couldn’t help feeling annoyed. Why claim he was a follower when he clearly was a patient of the doctor, following Mo Li and Meng Qi for treatment?
But once words are spoken, they’re like water spilled, impossible to take back.
The Second Prince snorted coldly, and being truly hungry, decided not to stoop to the assistant’s level, picking up his chopsticks to fill his stomach.
Under the assistant’s strange gaze, the unfortunate prince stopped his action, squeezed out a stiff and painful smile, and handed the chopsticks, which hadn’t yet touched the plate, to Mo Li.
“Doctor, there’s not much good food here, make do with what we have.”
Lu Min felt his sacrifice was significant, dizzy from hunger yet still thinking to maintain the lie—he was a follower, and how could a follower possibly eat before his master and the master’s friend?
Lu Min believed he had disguised himself well, but the reality was different.
Peony District had all sorts of people, and with Fengxing Pavilion dealing in information, the assistant, though not highly skilled in martial arts, had seen many people and could tell at a glance that Lu Min was not just a follower.
Not only was he not a follower, but he might also be from a very high-ranking family.
Yet, there was a carefree, resigned aura about Lu Min, not putting on airs or caring about face. This was peculiar, as the more a noble family fell, the more they cared about face. Lu Min leaned towards neither, embodying a self-destructive and indulgent air, which made the assistant uncontrollably curious about Lu Min’s true identity.
Unfortunately, as the food arrived, to avoid angering the distinguished guest, the assistant couldn’t keep standing there to observe.
No sooner had the assistant left than Meng Qi took the chopsticks from Mo Li’s hand and stuffed them back to the Second Prince, disdainfully saying, “Eat up, lest you starve to death.”
“Wait.” Mo Li stopped him, amused and annoyed.
He was about to suggest the Second Prince first drink some noodle soup to soothe his stomach before eating, only to find the Second Prince had already started eating methodically, avoiding any frantic devouring.
In truth, only with meat could it be called a “meal.”
Since there was none, it couldn’t be considered a meal. The Second Prince, feeling completely justified, set aside manners, not at all as disdainful of the poor food as he claimed. If not for the fear of eating too quickly, Mo Li suspected the Second Prince would have cleared the table.
“Hm, aren’t you eating?” the Second Prince asked in surprise.
Mo Li silently bowed his head to drink soup.
Honestly, the food in Fengxing Pavilion wasn’t bad.
Of course, it wasn’t good either, due to the lack of seasoning.
Mo Li could still stomach it, but Meng Qi, smelling the cabbage, showed a conflicted expression.
—In the sand mouse’s view, it was no different from gnawing on cabbage stalks directly.
Meng Qi looked at Mo Li, who was sitting upright, eating slowly, and felt an inexplicable heartache. Sand mouse gnawing on cabbage stalks was one thing, but a fish eating vegetable leaves?
Seeing the Second Prince eating happily, Meng Qi couldn’t help but grind his teeth.
“Kid, you really can endure hardship.”
“Of course.” The Second Prince accepted the praise without looking up, saying, “Actually, the imperial kitchen’s food isn’t much better, some are even worse than these rotten cabbage leaves.”
Mo Li stopped his chopsticks at these words, while Meng Qi’s expression was indescribable.
“In the palace, everyone is adept at gauging the situation before taking action.”
He muttered, before taking another bite of his cabbage. He continued resentfully, “I’m not the crown prince, one ear can’t hear, and I often anger the emperor. Those eunuchs who follow my father around don’t take me seriously. Anyway, it doesn’t matter who ascends to the throne in the future; it won’t be me. The dishes from the imperial kitchen are never warm by the time they reach me, everything tastes like stew, the meat is so tough I can’t chew it, and the vegetables are too mushy to eat… They’re even worse than these leafy greens that haven’t had any oil added; at least they don’t form clumps of grease when they cool down.”
Mo Li shook his head, “You’ll understand after eating dishes without oil for three months.”
In Zhushan County, many families were so poor that they couldn’t even afford to use salt in their cooking, let alone oil.
The second prince had been tormented enough by the imperial kitchen’s dishes. Initially, he found these bland meals without oil or salt to his liking, but he knew this sentiment wouldn’t last.
“Don’t compare things that taste bad; they’re all bad, just to different degrees,” Meng Qi said irritably.
“…But not eating would mean starving to death.”
The second prince didn’t look up; as he ate, he suddenly realized something was off in the atmosphere and stopped his chopsticks, confusedly meeting Mo Li’s and Meng Qi’s complex gazes.
Lu Min didn’t understand what this meant and buried his head to continue slurping his noodle soup.
Mo Li moved his lips, whispering through a secret transmission, “Brother Meng, I always feel… like I’ve picked up a wounded squirrel from the mountains.”
It’s the kind that’s silly enough to forget where it buried its things and nearly gets carried off by a leopard. You worry about whether it can survive and if it has the potential to turn into a daemon.
If Lu Min were a bit smarter, perhaps the crown prince wouldn’t be so worried.
Come to think of it, was the second prince hit on the head by Lu Zhang when he was young?
Mo Li almost wanted to use his internal energy to check the second prince’s head, while Meng Qi’s dissatisfaction with Lu Min grew, whether he was feigning stupidity or genuinely foolish, it wasn’t worth the effort for the doctor.
“Did you not say that Yan Cen might be Lu Zhang’s son?” Meng Qi suggested excitedly, “We could take the second prince to Shimo Mountain and leave him in Yan Cen’s care. Although they are brothers who have never met, they should share the same attitude towards Lu Zhang. It’s also safer for the second prince, now a wanted criminal of the Qi dynasty, to hide in the mountains where there are plenty of medicinal herbs.”
Mo Li thought carefully and realized it was a good idea.
Unaware that he was about to be delivered into the hands of bandits, the second prince restrained himself with great willpower after eating his fill and went to change clothes, yawning.
The people from Fengxing Pavilion had not only brought food but also a few sets of clothes.
However, Mo Li needed hot water, which was unavailable because heating water wasted too much firewood.
After eating, the second prince began to feel sleepy, his eyelids as heavy as if they weighed a thousand pounds. He had changed half of his clothes and leaned against the screen when he fell asleep. It was Mo Li who, hearing something amiss, went over to pull him up.
Lu Min groggily stood up, walked a few steps, and then collapsed onto the carpet in front of a low table.
This time, Meng Qi, annoyed, threw him onto the small couch. Initially, Meng Qi had thought the bed was for Doctor Mo, and this small couch was his; the second prince wasn’t even supposed to enter the door.
But an ordinary person without martial arts skills sleeping on the ground could directly drink medicine the next day, especially at night when it was still chilly. The second prince’s battered body was like a gourd ladle full of holes, appearing robust but probably would fall over with a gust of wind, followed by a serious illness.
After changing his clothes, Mo Li came out to see Meng Qi’s displeased expression.
“What are you still sitting there for?” Mo Li asked in confusion, “You may not want to eat, but you need to rest.”
“…”
Meng Qi was stunned for a moment, then suddenly looked towards the low bed.
The bed was finely made, but its flaw was its size.
So Meng Qi had never considered sharing the bed with Mo Li; it would be awkward to be face to face, and it wasn’t the right time.
Now, was the opportunity suddenly presenting itself?
No, he couldn’t get too excited too soon.
Meng Qi tentatively asked, “This bed is too small, why don’t you rest here?”
“Where else can I go in such a small room?” Mo Li asked back, puzzled.
Meng Qi looked at Mo Li expressionlessly, thinking something was definitely wrong!
Either this doctor was an imposter, or he was setting him up to become a sand mouse, but it definitely wasn’t as he expected.
“Doctor, now is not the time, it’s not appropriate,” Meng Qi said earnestly.
They were in Fengxing Pavilion’s territory, an organization that thrived on selling information. Everyone there had a keen eye.
The disappearance of Master Meng without a trace was one thing, but for someone who traveled with Master Meng to suddenly have a sand mouse in their possession would be suspicious, wouldn’t it? No, it was too risky! Just look at Fengxing Pavilion’s manager, who could sift through vast amounts of information to find two related incidents and accurately deduce the truth, guessing with high accuracy.
The body of a sand mouse could do nothing but eavesdrop.
The dragon vein of Taijing suddenly began to dislike its sand mouse appearance.
“Lu Zhang is injured, and the court officials are all making their moves. I expect the lockdown to be lifted tomorrow, and I need to go out and gather information.”
Meng Qi said, making up an excuse and posing as if he was very familiar with the streets of Taijing.
Without allowing Mo Li to object, Meng Qi quickly activated a mechanism and slipped out, leaving only his silhouette behind, too fast to be followed.
Mo Li: “…”
Doctor Mo turned to look at the low bed, not understanding why practicing internal exercises in meditation together was a bad thing. Martial arts experts could just meditate to regulate their breath when there’s no bed available in the capital, and after thirty-six cycles of internal energy circulation, it would be dawn.
Although the bed was small, two people could still sit on it!
