83: Prince Fu arrives

The signboard of the Xuanji Tower on the roadside was large and conspicuous enough for passersby to see, and people entering and exiting the door were in an endless stream, even livelier than a vegetable market. This naturally attracted Qi Huaiyi's attention, and what made his eyes narrow was that a team of Xuanwu Guard was walking towards him, seemingly escorting someone towards the Xuanji Tower!

The Black Tortoise Guard captain leading the team suddenly saw Qi Huaiyi, nodded quickly, gestured with his eyes to the rear, and then continued forward. As he passed by him, he transmitted a message to him: "Prince Fu is behind!"

"Prince Fu?! Why is he here?" Qi Huaiyi was startled. This guard captain's name was Wang Zhen, and he was one of his good friends in the Southern Division. The two had once worked together to solve several major cases and had frequent interactions, so they were both colleagues and friends.

"Yes, I'm unlucky. Director Yu just conscripted me to attend to him!" Wang Zhen said with a worried expression.

"Haha, then you should serve him well. This is a good opportunity for you to get close to royalty! But it's also strange, why would Prince Fu, who should be enjoying his blessings in Nanyue City, suddenly come to Yingtian Prefecture, and to this Xuanji Tower?" Qi Huaiyi laughed. He was actually stirred, because he and Yu Xun had previously speculated whether Long Yuan might be Prince Fu's illegitimate son, and that investigation was currently underway.

"How would I know? In any case, it won't be anything good!" Wang Zhen sighed.

"That's natural..." Qi Huaiyi said with deep understanding.

Without even turning their heads, the two quickly exchanged a few words through sound transmission in the instant they passed each other, and then naturally separated...

Qi Huaiyi walked to the side, watching the team of Xuanwu Guard stop at the entrance of the Xuanji Tower, setting down the sedan chair in the middle, tilting the sedan poles, and lifting the curtain... Finally, a plump figure stepped out of the sedan chair. It was Prince Fu, Zhu Jifu, of Great Ming!

Just by looking at Prince Fu, Qi Huaiyi could estimate his weight to be at least six hundred catties, his eyes almost narrowed into slits!

Prince Fu, dressed in a red and imperial yellow casual outfit, was surrounded by four of his manor guards. The five of them walked directly into the Xuanji Tower...

The other Xuanwu Guard remained outside the door, their faces solemn, standing in Formation and waiting...

People entering and exiting the Xuanji Tower fell silent at such a sight. The clever ones quickly slipped away, and those guests who were originally inside the building also left after hearing the news. Only a few slow-reacting individuals remained inside...

Seeing this, Qi Huaiyi suddenly understood. He didn't dare to linger too long either. After some thought, he saw a teahouse across from the Xuanji Tower, so he walked over, drinking tea while observing the movements on the other side...

"Prince Fu actually appeared?!" Long Yuan, who was training at the Fengyang No. 1 High School selection camp, was also a bit stunned by the key information given to him by the Heavenly Dao Eye. He quickly began to pay attention while practicing, and at the same time added Prince Fu to his list of key targets to track.

It is said that Prince Fu, Zhu Jifu's, current incognito trip was one of his more low-key actions, but with his entourage arriving at the Xuanji Tower, this news would likely spread throughout the entire Southern Capital in no time, and even people in the Northern Capital would soon know. Therefore, if he truly wanted to conceal his whereabouts, then traveling like this would certainly not achieve his goal. It's just that his status was too high, and he was used to being high-profile, so no matter how much he streamlined things now, it was impossible for him not to bring even a basic guard team. So there was no other way; in a word, he was merely deceiving himself and burying his head in the sand. As long as he thought others didn't know, then others didn't know...

Upon arriving inside the building, Sabado, the owner of Xuanji Tower, had already heard the news and brought people to greet him. Seeing Prince Fu, he was about to salute and offer greetings, but Prince Fu waved his hand, gesturing towards the interior of the building. Sabado immediately understood and quickly led Prince Fu inside, soon disappearing from the sight of others...

Entering Sabado's secret room, he quickly saluted Prince Fu and said: "I did not know Your Highness Prince Fu would grace us with your presence. I failed to welcome you, I deserve to die! I deserve to die!!!"

"Dispense with the formalities, rise!" Prince Fu snorted.

"Your Highness usually enjoys your blessings in Nanyue City. I wonder what wind blew your esteemed self here today?" Sabado said, observing his expression.

"This..." Prince Fu hesitated, looking around...

"Your Highness, rest assured! This is my secret room, protected by a Formation. No one can spy on it!" Sabado said with a smile.

Upon hearing this, Prince Fu couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief, nodding and saying: "I heard that the Tower Lord possesses vast Divine Ability. Seeing it today, it is indeed extraordinary..."

"Oh, no, no, just a trivial skill! It's not worthy of Your Highness's attention! Your Highness, please take the seat of honor, and I will personally brew tea..."

After speaking, he conjured a set of exquisite tea utensils from his storage ring and placed them on the jade platform. He then took out a tea stove and a teapot, began to boil water, gently opened a jade jar, took out two spoonfuls of tea leaves, and gently poured them into the tea bowl. Next, he took out a clean white cloth and carefully wiped each cup one by one...

Sabado, with his beautiful face like a flower, graceful figure, hair like a waterfall, pleasant voice, and gentle movements, captivated Prince Fu, who watched in a daze, his small eyes gleaming. He almost forgot the purpose of his visit and that Sabado was originally a man...

After a moment, the teapot began to bubble and make noise. The water wasn't fully boiling yet, but steam overflowed, forming wisps of light smoke that drifted about, as if Sabado, this beauty, was twisting and turning above the teapot. The steam gradually intensified, and when the water stopped making noise, it meant the water was boiling!

With a snap of his fingers, Sabado paused the tea stove. With his slender jade hand, he lifted the teapot and held it slightly above the tea bowl, gently pouring water into the bowl until the water covered the tea leaves. At this point, the aroma of the tea leaves began to waft out. This aroma wasn't strong, but it was very concentrated and not loose. Anyone who understood tea would know that these tea leaves were definitely good tea!

Because the tea aroma brewed with boiling water is only superficial. If the aroma initially smells strong but quickly dissipates, it indicates that such an aroma belongs to a floating fragrance, or a scattered fragrance, which can at most linger in the nasal cavity but cannot enter the oral cavity!

But if this aroma is condensed and does not disperse, it can pass through the nasal cavity, enter the oral cavity, penetrate the base of the tongue, and even, if it is an even better tea, its tea aroma can go directly into the throat cavity!

The so-called lingering sweetness in the throat refers to this level of tea aroma!

So, is there a better tea aroma than this lingering sweetness in the throat? The answer is, of course, yes. Truly good tea, its tea aroma can follow the tea liquid directly into the intestines, bursting forth in sections within the body, perfuming the entire inner world!

The tea aroma that penetrates deep into the intestines is the truly top-grade tea aroma!

When encountering such good tea, one might as well drink a few more cups and enjoy it thoroughly, provided one actually encounters it. Generally speaking, ordinary people cannot encounter and enjoy such exceptionally good tea...

Sabado put down the teapot, his left hand supporting the rim of the bowl, his right hand pinching the bowl lid with two fingers, the other three fingers slightly curled into an orchid shape, gently and elegantly scraping off the foam from the surface of the tea liquid. Then he poured the tea water into a drain on the tea table to flow away. This operation is called "washing the tea."

He picked up the teapot again with his right hand, gently rinsing off the foam clinging to the bowl lid. After cleaning it, he continued to pour water into the bowl. The tea leaves tumbled and swirled with the force of the water, like a storm, which was quite beautiful!

Once the water covered the tea leaves, he covered the tea bowl. At this point, he waited a few breaths for the tea leaves to gradually steep. During this time, he used boiling water to rinse the cups, simultaneously preheating them to keep them warm. Then, holding the bowl with one hand, his ring finger and pinky supporting the bottom of the bowl, and his thumb, index, and middle fingers holding the rim, he tilted it slightly and poured the tea liquid into the teacups...

At this point, one should note that serving wine to the brim shows respect to guests, but serving tea to the brim insults guests. The most appropriate amount of tea liquid is always eighty percent full!

Sabado, naturally, was well-versed in the Dao of tea. Both teacups were filled to exactly eighty percent, and the tea liquid in the tea bowl was just completely poured out! A master of the Dao of tea would not allow the tea leaves to continue steeping in the tea bowl...

Sabado picked up a tea tray, presented a cup of tea to Prince Fu, and smiled: "Your Highness—please!"

......