HMIME Chapter 37: Breakfast in Vain

Content warning:  Graphic or explicit violence/death on page;

Bai Lu’s actions were swift and decisive. That night, he stealthily entered the palace, scaling the walls of Donghua Pavilion in the darkness. From his pocket, he produced two stones the size of apricots and peered inside. He noticed that several rooms were dark, and even the lanterns in the courtyard were extinguished.

By modern standards, it was only around 9 p.m., not even close to curfew. Did Mei Fei usually sleep so early? Did she not engage in the poetic pursuits depicted in television dramas, reading by candlelight to refine her sentiments?

Bai Lu didn’t dwell on these thoughts. He raised a stone, intending to smash a window, but suddenly heard a creak. The door of the main house was pushed open from inside.

In the dim moonlight, Bai Lu saw the maid, Bi Tao, emerge and walk to the well in the northern part of the courtyard to fetch water.

Bai Lu guessed she was waiting for her mistress to fall asleep so she could wash her hair and body. He planned to wait until she finished fetching water before continuing his revenge.

However, to his surprise, after Bi Tao finished, she turned around and spotted his silhouette against the wall in the moonlight. Her face drained of color, and she cried out, “Who’s there?!”

Bai Lu cursed inwardly, realizing he had been discovered. He reluctantly gave up, climbed down the wall, and swiftly fled.

Although he didn’t break the window, Bai Lu didn’t feel too disappointed. As long as he didn’t encounter Mei Fei while sneaking around the palace, he was content.

He began to think that being confined wasn’t so bad after all. At least he could enjoy a few days of peace and quiet.

The only downside was the increasingly hot weather. However, inside the palace, it was bearable. Not only did the buildings shield them from the scorching sun, but each room in Bailu Palace was equipped with ice mirrors.

These devices were truly remarkable. They were filled with ice bricks of various sizes, emitting a cold chill that dispelled the heat and could even be used to chill fruits, rice wine, and milk, making them invaluable.

In the past, ice blocks used in summer were collected during winter and stored deep in cellars. However, they often melted significantly by summer, resulting in high losses.

Then came Chu Ya, a talented scholar, who taught people how to make ice using saltpeter. This mineral was widely distributed, easy to extract, and absorbed a large amount of heat when dissolved in water, enough to freeze the surrounding water.

With this method, not only could the royal family and nobles enjoy ice in summer, but even slightly wealthier commoners could afford it. There were even vendors selling ice products on the streets—like shaved ice with milk and fruit—similar to modern shaved ice.

Although it was pleasant to stay near the ice mirrors, it wasn’t the same outdoors. The sun was scorching, and Bai Lu’s navy blue guard uniform felt like a solar heater, absorbing the relentless sunlight.

Chu Ya probably hoped Bai Lu would give up being a guard and opt for a relaxed administrative position in the cool study. So, he watched the situation unfold with indifference.

Despite the discomfort of patrolling in hot attire under the sun, Bai Lu still refused to give up and become a deserter, fearing ridicule from Chu Ya.

So, he changed into loose, light white silk clothes, poured himself some cool rice wine, and headed to the guard station as usual.

That day, he sat under a big tree in the garden with Geng Qing, chatting. They talked about Geng Qing’s younger brother, Erhua, who couldn’t stand the heat. “Erhua can’t stand the heat. Nowadays, he stays indoors all day, hugging the ice mirror and won’t let go. He even lays a mat by the ice mirror when he sleeps.”

Taking a sip of his cool rice wine, Bai Lu nodded in agreement. “It’s so hot; I don’t feel like going out either.”

“Now the innkeepers are trying to make iced milk tea. They add red beans, green beans, and other ingredients, and surprisingly, it sells well.”

“Of course, any way you make milk tea, it’s refreshing.”

He paused suddenly, sniffing the air. “Do you smell something strange? It’s awful…”

“Really?” Geng Qing sniffed too, then frowned. “This smell… it’s like something’s rotting. Let’s hurry and look around. If it’s an animal carcass, it could attract maggots if we leave it.”

They quickly put down their cups and searched the garden, eventually pinpointing the source to the artificial mountain in the center of the pond.

The pond was large, and the mountain in the middle wasn’t small either, adorned with various caves, all beautifully crafted.

Bai Lu and Geng Qing took off their shoes, rolled up their pants, and waded through knee-deep water to the mountain.

As they approached, Bai Lu immediately caught a strong smell, reminiscent of several pounds of pork left to rot in a power outage, its juices mixing and festering for days. Flies buzzed around, and Bai Lu had a bad feeling; this couldn’t be a stray cat or dog’s carcass.

Holding his breath, he climbed the mountain quickly and looked into the largest cave. His face turned pale, his pupils contracted, and he froze in place.

Geng Qing struggled to climb up and, seeing Bai Lu’s stunned expression, asked in confusion, “What’s wrong?”

Following Bai Lu’s gaze, Geng Qing’s whole body tensed. “What… what is this?!”

Inside the cave, lay the corpse of a woman.

It seemed she had been dead for a long time. Her skin was a dull greenish-blue, covered in deep purple bruises, with some areas even showing signs of flesh separation. The skin on her hands looked like thin film hanging over her flesh.

Her eyes and mouth were open, her pupils dilated, and flies crawled over her eyeballs.

It was impossible to identify her because her body had swollen twice its size due to the gases of decay. Her limbs were swollen, her belly protruding as if pregnant, and her face so swollen that her features were indistinguishable, recognizable only by her clothes and hair, indicating she was a woman.

The stench overwhelmed them. Geng Qing, unable to bear it, turned away and vomited, expelling his breakfast.

Bai Lu’s stomach churned violently, but with the experience of watching suspenseful movies in his past life, he barely managed to keep it down.

“What the hell… who is this?!” Bai Lu forced down his nausea and found a clean spot to stand several steps away from the corpse, examining her clothing.

The embroidery on her clothes was exquisite, and the jewelry on her head was expensive. She was definitely not an ordinary palace maid.

Bai Lu began to suspect, but shouldn’t she have been under house arrest? How did she end up dead here? And from the looks of it, she had been dead for several days. With so many maids and eunuchs in the palace, didn’t anyone notice?

Geng Qing, covering his nose, approached, his brow furrowed. “I say, don’t get too close. The body has swollen so much; it might… explode…”

Before he could finish his sentence, the body suddenly twitched a few times, and the pressure from the decaying gases caused her abdomen to swell even further, until the skin finally burst open with a loud pop. Pus and putrid flesh splattered in all directions, drenching Bai Lu and Geng Qing.

“Gah…”

Bai Lu’s vision darkened, his throat spasmed, and finally, he couldn’t hold back anymore. He ran out of the cave and collapsed by the water, trembling all over, emptying his stomach of everything he had eaten that morning.

Geng Qing, in an even worse state after vomiting once already, was on the verge of retching his gallbladder out, his face as pale as a ghost.

After the incident was reported to the guard station, many people arrived to cordon off the area around the pond.

In the palace’s bathhouse, Bai Lu stripped off his clothes and tossed them outside, then stood on the wooden floor, pouring bucket after bucket of hot water over himself until he felt clean. Only then did he relax a little and step into the bath a few meters away.

The bathwater was infused with herbs to soothe muscles and relieve fatigue, and fragrant flower petals floated on the surface, somewhat comforting Bai Lu’s shocked heart.

When Chu Ya entered, he saw Bai Lu half-lying in the bath, his head resting on the wooden pillow on the edge, looking exhausted. A droplet slid down his face, resembling a tear.

Concerned, Chu Ya squatted beside Bai Lu and massaged his shoulders. “Are you okay, A-Bai?”

Bai Lu opened his eyes, speaking listlessly, “I think I’m going to have psychological trauma. I’m getting PTSD from kitchen pork.”

Chu Ya gently smiled, “Let me join you.”

As he began to undress to enter the water, Bai Lu hurriedly stopped him, stuttering, “You… I might not have washed properly. I’m a bit dirty…”

“It’s okay, you’re always clean.”

Chu Ya undressed and entered the bath, then hugged Bai Lu and kissed his cheek reassuringly, saying, “There, do you feel a little better now?”

Bai Lu understood his intention but felt a bit awkward. He turned his head slightly away. “It’s… okay, I guess…”

As Chu Ya embraced him in the warm bath, Bai Lu suddenly felt the water temperature rise, and being held naked by Chu Ya made him feel feverish all over. He quickly changed the subject, “Did they find out who the corpse was?”

Chu Ya, with a seemingly calm expression, replied, “I had Ling Feng investigate. We confirmed the body was Mei Fei from her clothing.”

Chu Ya’s expression was too calm, as if he had expected such a turn of events.

Bai Lu scrutinized him suspiciously, feeling a chill creeping up his spine. He withdrew from Chu Ya’s embrace slightly, drifting a bit farther away in the water. “Did you… ?”

Chu Ya looked at the empty space in his arms and chuckled wryly, “No, am I such a ruthless person in your heart?”

Bai Lu pondered for a moment, realizing that the young man who had been busy cooking in the kitchen for him didn’t seem like a killer. But he still asked again, “Really wasn’t you?”

Chu Ya sighed helplessly, “Really wasn’t me.”