Standing there, a strong medicinal soup smell wafted out. He turned his head and saw—a medical clinic. Turning back, then again, he noticed the person inserting needles into someone’s head looked remarkably like Wei Linxia. Xi Zhaoting stepped back, hidden by an opening window, carefully peering through the crack. Yes, that forced smile and stature—what Huo Kingdom man looked like this?
Lowering his voice, Xi Zhaoting called out “Wei Linxia.” Sure enough, the person inside looked up, laughing unnaturally before quickly composing herself.
Ah, Wei Linxia, you dare to show your face in public? Daring to be so intimate with a man? Hmph, that must have been from a man! I’ll tell your father to punish you by kneeling, and I’ll inform Grandmother Wang about your misdeeds.
Xi Zhaoting reconsidered—Master Wei’s family discipline is strict and involves multiple layers of restrictions. While this might be possible for a day or two, daily occurrences don’t make sense. He recalled hearing about her wooden puppet incident with that disabled prince. Could she be practicing on people here? An attendant called him, and Xi Zhaoting looked up—the funeral procession had passed, leaving scattered paper money. He mounted his horse, deciding to investigate again tomorrow.
On that side, Wei Linxia was preparing the needles, slightly nervous when someone called her name. She looked around, seeing only scattered paper money and the usual crowd, including a fruit vendor’s cart from the countryside. There were no suspicious people. Had she misheard? It was possible; many people shared the surname Wei, and Linxia was not an uncommon name.
The next day, Xi Zhaoting sent his trusted eunuch Deng Ping to investigate, ordering him to keep it quiet. When Deng Ping reported back in the evening, he noted that the acupuncturist at the clinic was a 22-year-old male from Yangliu Lane in the southern part of the city. This made Xi Zhaoting suspicious, but considering Wei Linxia’s careful nature, it made sense to him.
