Under The Power: Episode 8

Posted on 18/02/2022 by Autistic Goblin

After seeing the Emperor’s decree that the investigation is now under the authority of the Embroidered Uniformed Guards, the prison guard quickly leads Lu Yi and Jin Xia to the prisoner. Once in a dungeon like interrogation room, Jin Xia reads off Zhou Xianyi’s personal information as follows: Zhou Xianyi is 28 years old, from Wuxing, Zhejiang. He passed the national scholar exam in 21st year of Emperor Jia Jing and took the Household Procurator position in the 23rd year of Emperor Jia Jing. In the 37th year of Emperor Jia Jing he became the waterworks official in the Ministry of Works.

Jin Xia then reads off the charges which are that Zhou Xianyi was given 100,000 silver taels for river repair fund as ordered to repair the Yangzhou river embankment. However after coming to Yangzhou it was discovered that he had embezzled the funds, with evidence of the crime, he was arrested and put into jail. Jin Xia finishes reading the paper and Lu Yi asks if Sir Zhou has any objections to the statement. Zhou Xianyi doesn’t say anything so Lu Yi goes on to say that they meant once before 3 years ago. At that time, Zhou Xianyi was a household procurator, a nine grade official.

Lu Yi says that even though Zhou Xianyi was an imperial inspector, he was taciturn and had no special characteristics, however he left a deep impression on Lu Yi. There is a flashback of Lu Yi noticing him. In the present Lu Yi says what he noticed about Zhou Xianyi back then was his boots. In the cold December with the first snow most officials were wearing boots of either deerskin, sheepskin or at least cotton. Zhou Xianyi however, was wearing a pair of old, ripped leather boots. We get another flashback of Zhou Xianyi trying to warm himself by the fire. His boots desperately needed replacing.

Lu Yi says that everyone knows that regular officers are poor however most officials find other ways to get a bit of extra money, ones that are as poor as Zhou Xianyi were uncommon. That’s when Zhou Xianyi looks up and asks if Lu Yi is Field Commander Lu. Lu Yi asks Zhou Xianyi if he’s recognized him then, Lu Yi then says that if Zhou Xianyi feels that he’s been the victim on injustice then it can be reported to him as Lu Yi is in charge of the investigation now. Zhou Xianyi asks if Lu Yi would really believe him. Zhou Xianyi says that he did embezzle 10,000 taels of silver, but repaid it in full later. He also says that he has no idea where the money is now, would Lu Yi believe him?

Zhou Xianyi says that day he had ordered the guards to leave so he could sneak into the storage, in the end he didn’t use the 10,000 taels of silver because of reasons and went back to return the money. When he returned the money, all the rest of the money was still there, he’s sure of it. Zhou Xianyi couldn’t believe that when the Mayor went down to do inventory that all the money would be gone. Jin Xia then asks him why he stole the 10,000 taels of silver, Zhou Xianyi responds that it was for a very important reason and that he couldn’t help it.

Jin Xia says that if it was important then it’s all the more reason that Zhou Xianyi should tell them so that they can help him prove his innocence. Lu Yi says that they have both evidence and witnesses, based on Zhou Xianyi’s story alone, they can’t come to a conclusion. Zhou Xianyi says that everyone knows that the Embroidered Uniformed Guards are ruthless and that the punishments in the Zhao prison are particularly diverse. Zhou Xianyi says that Lu Yi was willing to listen to his story, and didn’t use torture, he’s extremely grateful for that. (It looks like the other investigators before him did though).

Lu Yi says that’s just a rumour and that the Embroidered Uniformed Guard isn’t brainless, they can determine when to let prisoners go and when to punish them. Lu Yi suggests that maybe whatever Zhou Xianyi is not telling them, may be the key to the case. A little while later, Jin Xia and Lu Yi are leaving the prison. Jin Xia asks Lu Yi if he believes the story Zhou Xianyi told them. Lu Yi turns it around asking if she believes him. Jin Xia says that many people can lie without blinking, so she only believes in the evidence. Lu Yi says that Constable Yuan is a sensible person. Lu Yi says that the Yangzhou silver storage isn’t far from the prison so they should go check it out next. Lu Yi walks off, Jin Xia smiles to herself at the compliment while he can’t see her, before following him.

At the silver storage the pair look at the evidence. Jin Xia reports that the footprints are very messy with all the people coming and going, however all the footprints are from government officials. Jin Xia says that if all the footprints belong to government officials then perhaps Zhou Xianyi’s story is true. Jin Xia says that if Zhou Xianyi has stolen the 100,000 taels of silver by himself, it would have taken a lot of time and effort to do it by himself. Lu Yi points out that Zhou Xianyi had admitted to stealing 10,000 taels of silver, so that proves that he has the ability to move the money. Jin Xia has been making faces and is trying to suppress her hunger but Lu Yi notices. Lu Yi says that if they want to prove Zhou Xianyi’s innocence then they have to figure out why he stole the 10,000 taels of silver to begin with, he then tells her they have to go. Jin Xia asks where they are off to now, so Lu Yi says that they are going to get something to eat, as he is hungry.

Jin Xia and Lu Yi are sitting at table and she asks him if he always gets by with such a simple meal. Lu Yi says that food is just for filling the stomach, does she have a problem with that? Jin Xia says no but she thought that dignitary officials like him, must be picky with their meals, she wonders if he can eat street food. Lu Yi says something that looks good isn’t always yummy, and something that looks gross can be quite yummy. The vendor brings over their bowls of shrimp dumpling noodles. Lu Yi says that the smaller the vendor, the more authentic the taste so he tells her to eat up as it’s a local delicacy.

The bowl of noodles is so good that Jin Xia orders another bowl from the vendor before Lu Yi finishes his. Jin Xia’s sees Lu Yi’s look and quickly says that she has always eaten fast even when she was a child, she tells him not to mind her and enjoy his own food. Blossoms from a nearby tree start to fall and Jin Xia does her best to shoo them away. She disturbs Lu Yi while he’s eating when she catches one near his head. She quickly tells him that she was just concerned that there would be extra ingredients in his food. However when she does it again, Lu Yi gives up on his food and leaves money for the vendor before leaving. Jin Xia asks him to wait as her other bowl of noodles hasn’t arrived yet, she promises just two bites and she’ll be right there.

Lu Yi goes back to his room and Jin Xia catches up to him there, then pours herself a cup of tea and gulps it down.. wiping her hand against her mouth as she finishes. Lu Yi just stares at her (breach of etiquette, I think) then she pours him a cup of tea. Luckily Yang Yue runs up with a report for Lu Yi. Yang Yue reports that after Zhou Xianyi received 100,000 taels of silver, he gave it to the Wu An Gang to escort the shipping of funds therefore, when the silver went into storage both Shangguan Xi and Xie Xiao were there. Jin Xia says that’s odd since no civilian shoe prints were found inside the storage area, however using the Wu An Gang to transport the money seems to be against the rules.

Lu Yi says that clearly Zhou Xianyi was afraid of the money going missing before it reached Yangzhou, so he hired the Wu An gang to make sure it arrived safely. Jin Xia says that there are many civilian companies to choose from yet, Zhou Xianyi chose the Wu An gang to transport the money. She says that it’s clear that the relationship between the two parties is complicated. The group heads over to Wu An gang to make inquiries.

Shangguan Xi greets Lu Yi and says that he came without prior notice or she would have greeted him earlier. Lu Yi tells her that she is too courteous. Shangguan Xi guesses that Lu Yi is there because of the Zhou Xianyi case. Lu Yi says that since she is so straightforward he won’t beat about the bush either. He admits that they came because of the Zhou Xianyi case. Lu Yi asks if the Wu An Gang were the ones to escort the money to the silver storage. Shangguan Xi admits that they did escort the money there, but government officials inventoried and transferred it, none of the gang members stepped inside the silver storage. Shangguang Xi says that once the escort was over the gang left right away.

While Shangguan Xi is talking, Jin Xia notices a blue pouch hanging from her robes, a flashback reveals an identical pouch being worn by Zhou Xianyi during their interrogation. Shangguan Xi asks Lu Yi if he is suspicious of the gang. Lu Yi replies that until the case has been solved, anyone that touched the money is a suspect. Xie Xiao takes offence at being blamed for the money going missing when they performed the escort, and all the money was there. Jin Xia smiles and tells Xie Xiao to be calm as they are only following orders, they have to investigate everyone that had a hand in dealing with the money. When Jin Xia walks by Shangguan Xi, her eyes indicate the pouch to Lu Yi.

Jin Xia then looks at Lu Yi expectantly. After a moment’s pause, Lu Yi asks Shangguang Xi where she and Xie Xiao were the night that Zhou Xianyi was arrested. He also asks her if there are any witnesses that can confirm their alibi. Shangguan Xi says that night they were doing an inventory at the dock, many members of the gang can vouch for them being there. Jin Xia then makes her focus on the pouch a little more obvious thinking that Lu Yi missed her first hint about it (he’s not stupid, he probably has a plan). Lu Yi smiles then says that since Shangguang Xi has given them an alibi, they will leave.

Shangguan Xi says that she won’t see them off and the trio (including Cen Fu) leave. After they leave Xie Xiao tells Shangguang Xi that he had warned her not to ship the government money as it has only brought them trouble. After the trio left, Lu Yi asks Jin Xia if she found something interesting on Shangguan Xi. Jin Xia says that her aromatic sachet is very similar to the one that Zhou Xianyi wears, even the scent is the same. Cen Fu says that they can’t infer much just because of the similarity of the sachets though. Lu Yi asks what’s so special about the sachets. Jin Xia says that both were made with fine stitches, and utilized a combination of ordinary colour, and carving embroidery techniques. Jin Xia says that the carving technique is the most difficult and unique.

Jin Xia says that the person that embroidered the sachets must be excellent in their needlework. She also says that the two sachets are also very similar in both needlework and style, so Jin Xia suspects that they were made by the same person. Lu Yi orders her to check on the origins of the sachets. Some time later, Jin Xia is bringing Yang Chengwan his medication while Yang Yue is making sure that his father’s bandage isn’t too tight. Jin Xia tells Yang Chengwan to drink his medicine while it’s still warm.

Jin Xia says that she’s been busy following Sir Lu around investigating the Zhou Xianyi case so she hasn’t been able to take care of her teacher, she asks how his leg is doing and if it hurts. Yang Chengwan says that it’s already been a few days so he’s fine. Yang Yue reminds Jin Xia of his father’s personality and that even if it hurts, his father wouldn’t tell them. Jin Xia smiles at the comment, then Yang Chengwan asks her how the investigation is going. Jin Xia tells him that Zhou Xianyi claims not to know where the 100,000 taels of silver has gone, but she suspects that it has something to do with the Wu An gang.

Yang Chengwan asks Jin Xia what makes her suspicious of the gang. Jin Xia states that Sha Xiuzhu and Xie Xiao had already worked together to steal the Major General of Protecting Nation’s birthday trunks so they have proven capable of stealing government property. She also says that since the Wu An gang was escorting the silver, they could have stolen it out of greed. Jin Xia also tells him that she discovered that the aromatic sachet worn by Shangguan Xi and Zhou Xianyi was made by the same person. Yang Yue asks if there could be collusion between the two of them but Jin Xia reassures him that it’s only speculation at the moment.

Jin Xia says that it’s hard because Yang Chengwan and Master Xie share a special relationship. Yang Chengwan tells her not to mind him, and do whatever she needs to solve the case. He says that if Wu An gang is at fault, then it should be handled according to the law. Jin Xia is relieved and because of her master’s words, she now knows exactly what to do.

Awhile later Jin Xia is staring hard at Xie Xiao over a table of food. Xie Xiao complains that there are so many appetizers available but she won’t eat any. When Jin Xia continues to stare at him, Xie Xiao jokes that he knew she liked him when they were children but there’s no need to stare at him like that. Jin Xia demands that he tell her the truth, did he steal the silver? Xie Xiao says that’s an insult to his character as he only stole from corrupt officials to help the poor. The silver they escorted was meant to help the people, he wouldn’t be stupid enough to steal it. Jin Xia asks him to swear that he didn’t take the money, so Xie Xiao does.

Jin Xia then reminds Xie Xiao that he owes her a favour after the Sha Xiuzhu incident. Xie Xiao is eager to repay the favour so Jin Xia tells him about Shangguan Xi’s aromatic sachet and the similarity to Zhou Xianyi’s aromatic sachet. Xie Xiao doesn’t understand since his Senior Sister never wore a sachet before, but he’s sure that she’s a good person. Xie Xiao promises to help Jin Xia look into the matter though and the mood is a lot happier after that was decided.

Later that night, Jin Xia sneaks over to the Zhou Xianyi’s residence only to find the gate firmly secured with the door chained and padlocked. She looks around to find a way inside and even tries to jump and climb on the side of the building, which failed. She looks around to the other side of the building and finds a small hole, Jin Xia wonders if it might a dog hole. Jin Xia says that had she known she would have worked harder on her lightness skill (technique to make oneself lighter, so you can jump higher/farther). Since her lightness skill isn’t up to snuff, she looks around making sure no one can see her then goes part way through the small hole. However someone was there and kicks her butt so she falls through the hole into the other side.

It was Lu Yi of course, and he has cultivated his lightness skill so he just jumps over the wall to land beside Jin Xia. Jin Xia grumbles loudly until she realizes that it was Lu Yi, she then asks what he’s doing there. Lu Yi wonders where else should he be then? Jin Xia quickly says that she dare not guess his itinerary. Jin Xia then goes to leave back through the hole but Lu Yi tells her that since she’s there, she might as well help him to investigate. Jin Xia says that it wouldn’t be right since they are of different genders to be alone at night together.

Jin Xia then tries to leave but Lu Yi says that he will then have to talk to Head Constable Yang in the morning about not having her come along on investigations anymore, as for any monetary bonuses they will discuss that later. Jin Xia hurries over to him saying that she was just joking and will be happy to take his orders anytime. When Lu Yi repeats what she said about being alone with him at night and how it might damage his reputation, Jin Xia hurriedly back pedals saying that they are both government officials and shouldn’t differentiate on gender. She also assures Lu Yi that he is a gentleman, so even if he held a woman in his arms, there could be no rumours.

As the two wander around the outside, Lu Yi says that he wouldn’t be unaffected by holding a woman in his arms, when Jin Xia crosses her arms over her body, Lu Yi tells her that he has no interest in a woman like her. Lu Yi then uses his lightness skill to jump up to the second level of residence from the courtyard and tells Jin Xia to come up too. Jin Xia says that as government officials it’s not right for them to just barge into a private citizen’s residence. Lu Yi then asks why would she crawl through the dog hole if it wasn’t to look around? Or is it because her lightness skills are really that weak.. (ding ding!) Jin Xia claims that’s not true but then doesn’t jump up, so Lu Yi jumps down, grabs her and jumps back up.

Jin Xia thanks him then boldly claims that she could have jumped up there herself. Lu Yi says that Yang Chengwan’s lightness skills were something to be admired back when he was in the Embroidered Uniformed Guard, he never would have thought Yang Chengwan’s student would be so terrible at it. Jin Xia claims that her lightness skill isn’t that bad and blames the height of the pavilion instead for her failure. Jin Xia all of a sudden grabs Lu Yi’s arm and tells him to hurry and leave.. Lu Yi points out that it’s just a cat so why is she so scared? Sure enough a cat come out from behind a curtain. It’s only after she sees the cat that she calms down enough to realize that she grabbed Lu Yi pretty tight.

Jin Xia lets go of Lu Yi and tries to brush off his robe where she had grabbed it. She wonders why a cat would be there, is it Zhou Xianyi’s pet? Lu Yi however has moved on to investigate the home. Jin Xia hurriedly catches up to him and lights a nearby candle. Lu Yi has found a bit of parchment but Jin Xia grabs it from to read. It turns out to be poem that reads like a love letter so Jin Xia wonders if Zhou Xianyi had a lover in Yangzhou (Shangguan Xi perhaps?). They search a vase that was hidden under a cloth and find something gooey. Lu Yi says that it should have been stuffed with fragrant spices containing patchouli and cloves.

Lu Yi tells Jin Xia to search the nearby table, she comes back with a tray filled with ingredients. Jin Xia says that Zhou Xianyi must be a lovesick fool. Lu Yi wonders why she would say that and Jin Xia says it’s because the ingredients are required to make cosmetics. Jin Xia then describes the method to make red lipstick with those ingredients and that if they left out the one ingredient, it would also make a moisturizing face mask. Lu Yi smiles saying that Jin Xia knows a lot about it, Jin Xia says that she read it in a book as she had wanted to sell cosmetics. However the initial cost was too high, so she gave up. Lu Yi orders her to check the wardrobe next for evidence while he ponders what he has just learned.

Elsewhere Xie Xiao is having a drink with Shangguan Xi. Xie Xiao says that they haven’t had a good drink with each other in awhile. Shangguan Xi says that she remembers the last time that they shared it a drink, it was three years ago on the night he left her. Xie Xiao tells her that in 3 years she has managed the gang quite well, Shangguan Xi replies that since he’s home now it was all worth it. Xie Xiao then asks her about the pouch she’s wearing since she never wore one before. Shangguan Xi says that Zhai Lanye gave it to her. She says that Shou Zhai Lanye has a pitiful fate and if not for her advice, she wouldn’t have known what to do after Xie Xiao left.

Meanwhile back in Zhou Xianyi’s house Jin Xia brings over clothing from the wardrobe to Lu Yi. She notes that the official robes are all torn and comments that all of Zhou Xianyi’s money must have gone towards the cosmetic ingredients. Jin Xia says that it’s very thoughtful for Zhou Xianyi to make the cosmetics himself as it’s a tedious process and cosmetics are expensive. Jin Xia asks if Lu Yi thinks that Zhou Xianyi’s lover made the sachets. Lu Yi admits that it’s possible then reminds her that he ordered her to look into the sachets. Jin Xia says that she is working on it.

As they are leaving the house, the wind has picked up quite a bit which makes Jin Xia wonder if the place might be haunted. Some thunder and lightning scare her so she grabs Lu Yi’s wrist. However when she grabs Lu Yi, she knocks a unique bracelet off his wrist breaking it. Jin Xia quickly picks up the two pieces of the bracelet apologizing for breaking it when Lu Yi angrily tells her not to touch it and grabs it from her hand. Lu Yi walks off angrily with the bracelet while Jin Xia doesn’t understand what his problem is because it’s just a stupid bracelet. (Sentimental value maybe? By the anger level, I’m guessing it’s related to his Mom).

The next day, Jin Xia is with Xie Xiao at a restaurant while he tells her that Zhai Lanye made the sachets. Jin Xia is shocked to learn that her theory about Shangguan Xi and Zhou Xianyi being lovers and the sachets being tokens of love is just a tale. Xie Xiao tells her that Shangguan Xi doesn’t do needlework like most women do. Jin Xia then wonders who Zhai Lanye is and Xie Xiao says that she’s a friend of his Senior Sister. Xie Xiao says that Zhai Lanye used to live in Zhai manor to the east of Yangzhou but has since moved and he doesn’t know where she live know. Jin Xia asks where she might find Zhai Lanye and Xie Xiao says that she can be found at the boat house by the lake, as she’s a “skinny horse”**Escort**.

Jin Xia had heard of this kind of human trading in Yangzhou where young girls from poor families are adopted by the rich and taught skills (similar to a Geisha), they are also taught various sex stuff as well so that they can become concubines. Xie Xiao says that he doesn’t like that type of woman though. Jin Xia teases him by listing all the things that women learn then says that they also learn bed stuff from a pornographic novel. Xie Xiao is impressed that she knows so much and Jin Xia admits to having read the whole series of books. Xie Xiao says that he didn’t realize that she was into that.. and gets a smack to the head because Jin Xia claims she only uses it to help her solve cases. Xie Xiao says fine whatever she says, but that doesn’t mean she had to hit him. Jin Xia just eats a bit of food and smirks.

Xie Xiao then asks if there is anything else that Jin Xia wants to know. Jin Xia says that he seems to be full of information today. Jin Xia asks what else he found about Zhai Lanye only to have him respond that she had only asked him to look into the sachets and not Zhai Lanye. Jin Xia goest to hit him again, so he quickly tells her no then asks why she’s always hitting people, Jin Xia says it’s because she’s not that patient so he had better hurry up and tell her. Xie Xiao tells Jin Xia that a few months ago, Zhai Lanye and Zhou Xianyi met while boating on the lake and fell in love. Jin Xia wonders why Zhou Xianyi didn’t marry her if he loved her so much.

Xie Xiao says that Zhai Lanye is a top skinny horse so he would have had to pay the owner 10,000 taels of silver if Zhou Xianyi wanted to marry her (lightbulb!) and as an official he wouldn’t have been able to come up with that much cash so quickly.Jin Xia tells Xie Xiao that Zhou Xianyi had admitted to stealing 10,000 taels of silver but wouldn’t reveal the reason for the theft. Xie Xiao says that he told her so much information, how will she thank him? Jin Xia warns him that if he touches her, she will hit him again. She then tells him that when he learns how to thank her, he can come and find her, then she leaves.

Jin Xia is so excited to tell Lu Yi what she’s discovered, that she barges into his room without knocking. Lu Yi was in the process of getting dressed and hadn’t even fastened his under robe yet when she came in. She stares for a moment, but when Lu Yi asks why she came in without knocking, she snaps out of it and covers her eyes. Jin Xia apologizes profusely saying that she didn’t realize that he was in the middle of getting changed. Lu Yi walks away and Jin Xia tries to sneak a peek but Lu Yi went around a corner with a curtain to quickly finish changing. He comes out to ask her what’s so important.

Jin Xia quickly fills him in on why Zhou Xianyi required 10,000 taels of silver in order to marry Zhai Lanye. She also learned that Master Zhai makes Zhai Lanye go boating on the lake in order to lure a rich son-in-law. Lu Yi orders Jin Xia to arragne him a boat for boating around the lake and to spread rumours that he is a rich young master from the capital. He asks her if she knows what to do from there. Jin Xia admits that she does, they are using Lu Yi as bait.

Lu Yi also tells her to take Yang Yue with her tomorrow. Jin Xia then asks for money to rent a boat as she doesn’t have much but Lu Yi refuses to give her an advance and will settle the money after the case has been solved. Jin Xia complains that she can’t hire a boat without money, Lu Yi responds that with her ability, he’s sure that she can find a way. She reigns in her anger and thanks him for the compliment before leaving.

The next day Jin Xia and Yang Yue are on the deck of the boat, disguised as servants. Yang Yue is laughing at Jin Xia’s hairstyle saying that it looks cute. Jin Xia then sarcastically praises his outfit but Yang Yue wonders why he doesn’t feel good about her compliment, and why it feels like an insult. Jin Xia points out that his comment about her hairstyle wasn’t genuine either. Yang Yue looks confused because he meant it, so Jin Xia points out that she doesn’t look happy about it, she doesn’t hit him though, so he’s luckier than Xie Xiao.

Lu Yi is inside and can hear them squabbling. Lu Yi says that’s enough and orders some wine to be poured. Yang Yue tells Jin Xia to go pour the wine. Jin Xia does but Lu Yi has to dodge her hair while she pours. He tells her that when she’s disguised as a servant, she should act like one. Lu Yi warns her that if she acts so recklessly, then people will see through their act.

Jin Xia tries to act more servant like and asks Lu Yi if it’s better, Lu Yi tells her that her acting is “meh”. He then makes a comment about her hair but she says that it’s for the mission. Lu Yi mutters that he will make do with what he has. Jin Xia forgetting that she’s a servant starts taking food from his table and eating it. After some time (she’s still eating) she asks Lu Yi if Zhai Lanye will even go boating on such a rainy day, if she doen’t show up, it will be a waste of money. Yang Yue however runs into the room to say that he’s spotted Zhai Lanye’s boat heading toward them.

Yang Yue asks Lu Yi what they should do now. Jin Xia looks out and says that she’s heard that Zhai Lanye is really well versed in music and can play the flute pretty well. As the boat gets closer, Lu Yi orders Yang Yue to ram their boat into Zhai Lanye’s boat. Jin Xia immediately secures the table with all the food. Once the two boats make contact, a servant from the other boat demands to know who the owner of their boat is and who could be so reckless, they might have hurt her mistress.

Jin Xia runs out to apologize to the servant then says that her young master would like to apologize to the mistress himself. Zhai Lanye’s servant says that her mistress won’t meet with just anyone. Zhai Lanye’s voice drifts out from the boat telling her servant not to be rude and to invite the young master over to their boat. Jin Xia quickly runs back to Lu Yi to tell him that he was right, Zhai Lanye agreed to the meeting pretty quick. Lu Yi asks her if she’s learned nothing from working with the Six Doors Departemnt. He goes on to say that whose need to meet is greater Zhai Lanye to meet him, or he to meet her? Jin Xia says that’s a tough one, when Lu Yi asks her about it though she pretends she didn’t say it.

The trio boards the boat and Lu Yi apologizes to Zhai Lanye saying that he’s already punished the boatman for the error. He says that he’s visiting and came to view the lake scenery specifically when he heard her playing a musical instrument. Lu Yi praises her playing and asks her to play a song for them, which she agrees to do. Lu Yi listens to the song but he also checks the room out with his eyes.