Chapter 29: Walls Have Ears

  "Yunniang, you...you've finally arrived." Looking at the mysterious woman in front of him, Cao Hu, who was used to grand scenes, stuttered and became tongue-tied. This appearance didn't resemble that of an arrogant and formidable captain, but rather a young man on his first date, with a red face and a racing heart, completely flustered.

  Although Li Yunniang was wearing a headscarf and covering her face, hiding her beautiful appearance under the veil, Cao Hu still recognized her at a glance from her familiar footsteps and those eyes that had met countless times.

  "Cao Hu Tou, you're too reckless! I'm a married woman now, and you still ask me to come to this kind of place. Isn't that leading me into immorality?" Li Yun Niang saw Cao Hu, although she was happy in her heart, but her words were not polite at all.

  It's now the sixth day of the year, and many people are visiting to pay their respects. As the county magistrate of Jiangyou, Chen Gui has even more social interactions. Cao Hu is a loner with no parents above him and no children below him, so he can go wherever he wants. But for Li Yunmang, the third wife of the Chen family, it's not easy to slip away from home at this time, especially since she had once been engaged to someone else, and now her heart is filled with resentment.

  A woman's heart is like a needle at the bottom of the ocean. It was clear that she had hinted in her letter that they should meet here, but when they met, she said it was all his fault. If someone else had spoken to him like this, Cao Hu would have probably given them dozens of slaps, and if he was in a good mood, he would have made them wear a cangue as punishment, and if he was in a bad mood, he would have thrown them into the county prison to feed the mosquitoes, so they would know that Cao Lao Hu is not someone to be trifled with. But these words came from Yun Niang's mouth, and Cao Hu didn't get angry at all. On the contrary, he thought that Yun Niang was still as proud and strong-willed as before, and he felt a kind of joyful feeling in his heart.

  "Yes, yes, Yunniang, it was my fault for not considering the date when I asked you out." The man thought that since he loved her, he should be able to take a beating and swallow his pride. Cao Hu thought that Yunniang wanted to save face, so he immediately apologized and gave her an excuse to step down.

  Not to mention this little grievance, as long as Yunniang speaks up, even the greatest sacrifice is worth it.

  Li Yunniang was somewhat angry and wanted to scold him a couple of times, but when she saw Cao Hu's happy face, she forcibly endured it. She looked around and didn't see any outsiders, only the old monk in the temple who had been working in the vegetable field with a hoe before she entered the temple, seemingly ignoring her. Only then did she put down her hanging heart and said somewhat shyly: "Cao Hu, you're looking for me..."

  As soon as the words fell, Cao Hu interrupted: "Yunniang, there are no outsiders here. Although we have a fate but not a relationship, we can be considered acquaintances. Do you have to be so estranged?"

  "No, Yunniang I..."

  "Just call me as before." Cao Hu said domineeringly.

  Cao Hu said, his eyes gazing at Yun Niang with deep affection, the kind of scorching gaze that made Yun Niang feel a mix of delight and inner turmoil. For anyone who has been in a romantic relationship, most people still hope that their former partner will retain some longing or nostalgia for them after a breakup, and Yun Niang was no exception. Seeing Cao Hu's passionate stare, time seemed to rewind back to when they were still lovers, and the feeling of being cherished like a precious gem made her secretly enthralled. However, reason told her that she was now a married woman, and the three obediences and four virtues could not be violated. Torn between gain and loss, advance and retreat, she found herself in a difficult predicament.

  Brother Tiger

  Li Yunniang still called out, firstly because there were no outsiders here, and secondly because the emotions they had shared in the past were deeply etched in their hearts, pure and true, without any private thoughts or exchange of interests, and not a bit fake.

  "Good, good!" Cao Hu said excitedly "I can wait for a long time for this one call."

  Cao Hu, despite having read books, had limited talent and couldn't even pass the imperial examination for children, which is why he ended up becoming a low-ranking constable. At his core, he was still an unrefined person, perhaps due to shouting orders as a squad leader too many times, his voice became loud. Li Yunmang "accepted the invitation" to come, originally thinking it was a shameful matter, otherwise she wouldn't have come alone, wearing a hood and veil to cover her face, feeling anxious and flustered inside. Hearing Cao Hu's unbridled laughter, she was startled and hastily said: "Tiger brother, speak softly, be careful of eavesdroppers."

  Still shy, it's just right. Cao Hu hurriedly stopped laughing and lowered his voice to say: "Yunniang, I know the host abbot here, it's not convenient to talk here, let's go to the back garden's pure room to discuss, this way we can guarantee no one will hear."

  "No, that's... if it gets out, even washing with water won't clean it." Li Yunniang hastily refused.

  "But can you be cleared of suspicion just by being discovered here and spreading it around?"

  "This..." Li Yunniang glanced at the old monk who was busy in the vegetable garden, and she was a little afraid that he would finish the vegetable garden and come back. She was hesitant in her heart. When she inadvertently saw several women accompanying each other from the foot of the mountain to climb up, it seemed that they were coming to burn incense at that time, and her expression became even more flustered. Cao Hu had been a catcher for many years, and he had seen countless people. How could he not see through Li Yunniang's thoughts? He opened his mouth and said, "Yunniang, don't you still trust my character? You can rest assured, I just want to say a few words, and there is no ulterior motive."

  It's not good and it won't do, although they differ by only one word, the meaning is quite different. Li Yunniang just said it wasn't good, she didn't say it wouldn't do. Cao Hu immediately distinguished between them and hastily spoke out to persuade her.

  "Alright, alright." Li Yunniang also trusted Cao Hu's character. In fact, Cao Hu had several chances to get close to her, but he gave them up, saying they would wait until their wedding night. Thinking about it now, if Cao Hu had been more decisive at the time, she wouldn't have had to marry into the Chen family either. Besides, with someone here now, Li Yunniang was like a startled little rabbit, feeling as though everyone was staring at her, and there were eyes and ears of Chen Gui all around. After struggling internally for a moment, she finally agreed.

  Cao Hu saw Yunniang agree, and his heart was overjoyed. He thought to himself that Yunniang still had feelings for him, she wasn't a person who coveted wealth and status. Upon hearing this, he immediately led the way in front, bringing Li Yunniang, whose heart was filled with anxiety, to the purification chamber behind Guanyue Temple.

  "Tiger... Brother Tiger, what are you looking for? Speak up." Li Yunniang stepped into the room and stood behind the door, her face alert as she stared at Cao Hu, her posture tense, as if ready to pounce at any moment.

  "Yunniang, it's been so long since we last met, are you planning to meet me with a veil covering your face?" Cao Hu suddenly said with some sadness.

  Li Yunniang hesitated for a moment, then untied the muffler and gently placed it on the table, saying softly: "No, that's just something I used to keep warm on the road."

  "Come on, let's have some tea first and then we can catch up properly." Cao Hu said as he picked up two cups and poured a cup of tea for Li Yunniang and himself.

  Looking at that once extremely familiar face, it was a once purely genuine smile, it was a face that only belonged to oneself. Unfortunately, the peach blossoms remain, but the person's face is no longer the same. Cao Hu felt a thousand emotions in his heart, with many things he wanted to say, but seeing the person in front of him, he suddenly didn't know what to say, and could only use drinking tea as an icebreaker.

  This old fellow is quite clever, Cao Hu thought to himself with a nod. Seeing that the person had arrived, he quickly took his hoe and slipped away, so as not to embarrass Yun Niang. The room was not only spotlessly clean, but also had tea water ready, and even some fruit and pastries were laid out. Not bad, the five taels of silver hadn't been wasted.

  "Thanks, Brother Tiger." Having walked such a long way, Li Yunniang was indeed thirsty. Seeing Cao Hu drink down that cup of tea in one gulp, she didn't suspect anything and also drank the tea in her cup in one swallow.

  After drinking, Li Yunniang frowned and said: "This tea tastes a bit strange."

  "Uh, it's a bit." Cao Hu quickly agreed: "That old monk said so, it's coarse tea. This Guan Yue Temple is deserted and has few believers, it's already good that it can be maintained. The tea water must not be as fine as what we usually drink, Yun Niang, just make do with it."

  "Uh-huh"

  After a cup of tea, Cao Hu felt a warm feeling in his stomach, as if there was a surge of energy rushing through his body. Li Yunmang's beautiful face seemed even more lovely and charming, and he couldn't help but say: "Yunmang, you're really beautiful."

  Li Yunniang suddenly felt a bit hot and dry, but still cautiously said: "Tiger brother, what's the point of saying these now? You, you're looking for me, what's the matter?"

  It's already like this, and you're still pretending? This woman, no wonder she's weak. At a time like this, she's still concerned about her dignity. However, Cao Hu didn't care about these things. Upon hearing this, he looked worried and said: "Yunniang, I heard that you've been treated poorly in the Chen household. That beast Chen Gui isn't satisfied with having you, and he's also taken three concubines. The legitimate wife, Chen Zhangshi, is from a large local family, so she has a higher status than you. Before Chen Gui became successful, they provided him with a lot of financial assistance. She's a sharp-tongued and cruel person... how have you been treated?"

  "Brother Tiger, I'm doing all right, no need for you to worry." Yunniang said unintentionally.

  "Are you still deceiving me?" Cao Hu suddenly stood up and said loudly: "Last Mid-Autumn Festival, Chen Zhangshi slapped you three times, don't you remember?"

  "How did you know?"

  .......

  A pair of old lovers were reminiscing in the house, talking until they cried, but they didn't think that on the other side of the wall, two people were eavesdropping on their whispers.

  Walls have ears.

  "Never mind," Lu Haoshan said in a low voice. "These nauseating words are not worth listening to. Jinzhu, get ready!"

  "Shan Ge, don't worry, it's all taken care of early on. The tea has medicine in it, specially prepared. The pastries and cakes are also coated with it. Even if she's a very chaste woman, the medicine will still take effect. And even if he's a strong man, he'll still surrender. Haha, I, Liu Jinzhu, love doing this kind of thing. Absolutely no problem."

  This game was set up by Lu Haoshan, everything is under his control. Upon hearing this, he nodded and said: "Alright, you listen, call me again when the time is almost up."

  Others may find it fascinating to listen in on the wall, but for Lu Hao Shan, who had traveled through countless islands and vast lands, it was extremely boring. Moreover, leaning sideways to eavesdrop was tiring, so he decided to take a rest and let Liu Jin Zhu keep watch instead.

  "Alright, Shān Gē."

  Before long, the sound of something falling to the ground came from the next room, followed by a woman's scream and the sound of fabric tearing. After a while, the air was filled with the sounds of men and women indulging in carnal pleasures. About half a minute later, Liu Jinzhu lightly patted Lu Haishan and said, "Brother Shan, it's time to catch them in the act."

  Lu Haoshan was lying in bed, but the noise from next door was too loud, and he could guess what position they were in without Liu Jinchu's reminder. Upon hearing this, he suddenly sat up and said with a sly face: "Wrong, I'm just saying hello to Captain Cao."