Five Years After My Death, the Mad Emperor Still Summons My Spirit

This was, of course, excellent calligraphy, though it was somewhat different from Ming Lingyi’s own ethereal yet sharp style.

Ming Chengyu’s characters were lean and hard, like hardy plums in winter or sturdy bamboo. The ink strokes were light, but the structure was clear and severe, like the placid surface of autumn waters hiding a vast expanse beneath. His brushwork showed no hint of contention, only a calm and easy grace, like an upright gentleman—open and honest, with an inviolable integrity.

Seeing her brother’s handwriting again, Ming Lingyi couldn’t help but exclaim, "Such fine calligraphy!"

’With her brother’s calligraphy as a backdrop, the three poems seem even more extraordinary,’ she thought.

Hearing her, Ming Chengyu turned back. "I figured since I’m a teacher hired by your restaurant, I can’t just eat and not do any work. So I took this task upon myself. It seems the boss is quite satisfied?"

Ming Lingyi laughed out loud. "Satisfied, very satisfied."

Her brother was not only skilled at calligraphy but also at painting.

Below these poems, he used just a few strokes to bring the burgeoning vitality of spring to life on the restaurant’s wall.

It complemented the poems above it perfectly.

"With this wall of calligraphy alone, in my humble opinion, this restaurant could raise its prices by another tier."

Just as the siblings were busy with the side wall, a man’s voice came from behind them.

Ming Lingyi turned and saw a man dressed in white robes, looking like a scholar.

She didn’t recognize him.

But Ming Chengyu, standing beside her, stepped forward, walked right up to the newcomer, and gave him a punch on the shoulder.

"Huiya, how did you find me here?" The sheer surprise in Ming Chengyu’s voice was unmistakable.

The man called Huiya gave him a somewhat helpless look. "Yesterday, you had someone send a message to my residence saying you were staying at the Yunlai Inn. I went today, but you were gone. The shopkeeper there said you checked out yesterday and he didn’t know where you went. I had no choice but to check your family’s old estate first. When I didn’t find anyone, I came to Ming’s Restaurant. And sure enough, here you are! You really made me look for you!"

As he spoke, he gestured accusingly at Ming Chengyu, as if to say the latter was extremely unreliable.

Ming Chengyu gave an apologetic laugh. Then, as if just remembering that his sister didn’t know who this was, he took the initiative to introduce them.

"Yuan Niang, this is Huiya. Or perhaps you’re more familiar with his other name, Zhang Sifan."

Ming Lingyi let out an "Ah!" and looked at the white-robed gentleman before her. "So you’re one of the Capital City’s Twin Jewels," she said with a smile.

The two founders of the Xianyun Liushui Pavilion were now both standing before her.

Five years ago, after returning to Shangjing, Ming Lingyi had gone straight to the palace and never had the chance to meet this good friend of her brother’s.

Now, she finally had.

Zhang Sifan clasped his hands in a fist-and-palm salute toward Ming Lingyi. "My respects, Lady Ming."

"Alright, you two, stop with the formalities. Come on, let’s go inside and talk," Ming Chengyu said.

Once inside the restaurant, Ming Chengyu didn’t hesitate to extend an invitation to Zhang Sifan. "Yuan Niang’s restaurant is holding that poetry event again today. Do you want to join as a reviewer?"

Zhang Sifan: "???"

Ming Chengyu pretended not to see the astonishment on his friend’s face and turned to ask Ming Lingyi, "Does your restaurant pay the reviewing teachers you hire on a temporary basis in silver?"

The question also caught Ming Lingyi by surprise. After all, whether it was Lord Gongsun, Jiang Yuchuan, or Li Yun, she hadn’t actually spent any silver on them. At most, she had just waived their dining fees.

But then again, those three weren’t short on silver. It wasn’t that she had paid to invite them, but rather that she had called in favors.

"Well, if Mr. Zhang is willing to be a reviewing teacher for our restaurant, then of course we will meet any request he has. After all, it’s not every day you can invite one of the Capital City’s Twin Jewels," Ming Lingyi said with a cheerful smile.

Hearing this, Zhang Sifan quickly shook his head. "Even if I don’t come, I imagine there will be plenty of people who want to be a reviewer for the restaurant." Zhang Sifan glanced in Ming Chengyu’s direction. "I already visited Ming’s Restaurant after receiving Chengyu’s letter. I was there when the results of the competition were announced that day. It was incredibly lively. At the time, I was thinking how great it would be to be a reviewer here once, hahaha. What a bustling event. I never thought I’d get the chance now. It seems I’m using Chengyu’s connections."

As Zhang Sifan said this, he raised his tea cup to Ming Lingyi as if it were wine, making a toast in her direction.

Ming Lingyi was surprised. "You were there that day, Mr. Zhang?"

She had no impression of it at all.

Zhang Sifan said sheepishly, "At Chengyu’s request, I originally wanted to get a closer seat, but I didn’t expect..."

He didn’t expect that there would be so many people at Ming’s Restaurant. Even though he had gone quite early, by the time he arrived, there wasn’t a single empty seat left.

He had no choice but to settle for the next best thing and sit in the teahouse across the street.

When the people hired by the Wangxian Building were causing trouble for Ming’s Restaurant, Zhang Sifan had actually been preparing to stand up and speak for Ming Lingyi, if not for the swift arrival of the Black Armor Guards.

After all, his good friend, from whom he hadn’t heard in the years since he left the capital, had written him a letter and rarely asked for a favor. He had to make sure she was looked after.

Only today did Ming Lingyi realize that her brother had already asked someone to help her in secret long before.

Ming Chengyu felt Ming Lingyi’s gaze on him and smiled. "Well, once I heard the news, true or not, I was concerned. If it was true, I wanted Huiya to help look out for you, to avoid any regrets later. If it wasn’t, that’s fine too. We could just consider it fostering some goodwill."

But at that moment, Ming Lingyi felt her eyes grow hot and sting.

"But what’s this about the Wangxian Building causing trouble? Why didn’t you mention it before?" Ming Chengyu asked.

Ming Lingyi gave a dry laugh. When she saw her brother, she had only wanted to tell him about her "glorious achievements" and all the things that would make their family proud and relieved. Why would she voluntarily bring up something worrisome?

"It was nothing, really..." Ming Lingyi tried to brush it off, but under her brother’s intense gaze, she had to confess.

Ming Chengyu’s brows were already furrowed. "The Xie family has gone too far!"

’If our Ming Family hadn’t moved away from the Capital City,’ he thought, ’if the Xie family knew that Lingyi was the legitimate daughter of the Yongxing Square Ming Family, would they have dared to use such dirty, underhanded tricks? They’re clearly bullying her because they think she’s just a lone, helpless girl in Shangjing City. That’s the only reason they’d be so shameless.’

"How was the matter handled in the end? Did the Jingzhao Mansion get involved?" Although Ming Chengyu wasn’t an official, he knew it wouldn’t be easy to get the Jingzhao Mansion to punish the Xie family.

After all, they were a deeply rooted and influential aristocratic family in Shangjing City.

’Could Li Yun have just stood by and watched her get bullied?’

Ming Chengyu thought without hesitation that if Li Yun had done nothing about this, he would definitely have to have a serious talk with him.