Chapter 146: Poisoning
Mengxi got off the car and followed Xiao Zongzi to the inner room. There were three people sitting in the room, one dressed as a doctor and two dressed as scholars. They were discussing something. When they saw Mengxi coming in, they all stood up. Xiao Zongzi simply introduced the two scholars to Mengxi:
"These two are my master's disciples. This one is Master Li, and this one is Master Qian."
"My two lords, this is the master's second brother, Master Li, the master of Yichun Hall."
After Xiao Zongzi finished his introduction, Master Li stepped forward and looked Mengxi up and down carefully. He was amazed and said in deep thought:
"I have heard of your great name for a long time. It is my great honor to meet you today."
Mengxi was not used to the polite greetings of the ancients, so she quickly bowed and said:
"Brother Li, thank you for your courtesy. I am not talented enough, thank you for your concern."
After Mengxi finished speaking, without waiting for Master Li to speak, she lifted her sleeves and strode towards Master Shangguan's bed. She was worried about Shangguan's illness and had no intention of making such corny small talk with these pedantic scholars.
When Master Li saw Mengxi for the first time, he was stunned by his jade-like face. Now he saw that he behaved generously and was not bound by conventional etiquette. He did not look like a worldly person at all. He secretly praised him:
"He is truly an otherworldly expert!"
If Mengxi knew what Master Li was thinking, she would definitely faint:
Shit! That works too.
When the man dressed as a doctor saw Mengxi coming, he quickly hid aside and gave up his bedside position. He wanted to see what kind of special skills the owner of Yichuntang had.
Mengxi came to the bedside and carefully looked at her elder brother whom she had not seen for several months. She saw that the man on the bed was no longer as charming and dashing as he was back then. His face was purple, his eyes were closed, his teeth were clenched, and he looked as if he was in great pain. His facial muscles were also tense. If two fangs were pressed against his mouth at this moment, he would definitely look like a zombie.
Seeing this, Mengxi felt a pang of pain in her heart. She stepped forward and sat on the chair beside the bed. She took Shangguan's hand and felt his pulse for a long, long time, so long that everyone in the room was about to fall asleep. Mengxi put down Shangguan's hand, stood up, opened Shangguan's eyelids, looked carefully again and again, and finally sighed softly.
"Mr. Li, how is my master? Can he be saved?" Xiao Zongzi asked hurriedly when he saw Mengxi stand up.
Mengxi was about to open her mouth, but then she looked at the people around her and stopped talking. She looked at Xiao Zongzi. Xiao Zongzi was the only person she knew here.
When Xiao Zongzi saw this, he immediately understood what Mengxi meant and said hurriedly:
"Mr. Li, please feel free to speak. These people are my master's confidants."
After hearing this, Mengxi nodded and said:
"According to my observation, Big Brother is not sick or poisoned, he is poisoned."
"Gu!" This word was like a stone thrown into a calm lake. Everyone in the room became excited. The man dressed as a doctor stood up and said:
"Speaking of this Gu, I have studied it a lot in my life, but I have never seen it... The kind of Gu that you have been infected with has no signs of being infected at all. Can Master Li teach me something about it?"
"Master Li, this is Doctor Li, the best doctor in the palace. Thanks to Doctor Li's presence, the master was able to wait until Master Li returned to Pingyang."
When Xiao Zongzi saw Doctor Li talking, he hurriedly introduced him to Mengxi.
"Xiao Zongzi, you are too kind. You are so... Young Master, you have survived until today, all thanks to Young Master Li's Rejuvenating Pill. It is truly a miraculous medicine that can really bring the dead back to life. I also admire Young Master Li's medicine skills, which are rare in the world. One day, I will definitely ask Young Master Li for advice."
Mengxi bowed and said:
"Dr. Li, you are too kind. As the saying goes, everyone has their own expertise. The medical field is vast and profound. I only know the basics. Dr. Li, don't be too modest. You and I are just good at different fields."
Doctor Li was one of the most famous doctors in Pingyang and he always thought highly of himself. It was only because he saw the medicine of Yichuntang that he became interested in the owner of Yichuntang and looked at him differently. When he met him today and heard what he said, he did not show any arrogance or youthful arrogance, which made him even more impressed by his broad-mindedness. He had already agreed that Mr. Li was a close friend in the same industry.
I secretly praised this Master Li for his bright future and said I would always speak well of him in front of the prince. This is a story for later.
Mengxi saw Doctor Li nod and continued:
"The Gu that infected my eldest brother is a rare species from the Western Regions. The larvae of this Gu are snow-white all over, and the mother Gu that grows up to be dark red. They form a pair, one male and one female, and feed on human blood and sperm. The person who casts the Gu has a male Gu planted in his body, and then the female Gu is planted in the body of the person who is cast. The female Gu sucks the blood and sperm of the person who is cast, and gives birth to larvae. The larvae remain dormant in the body of the person who is cast, and do not cause any harm to the person who is cast. However, when the person who casts the Gu thinks the time is right and activates the male Gu in his body, the female Gu in the person who is cast will be stimulated, thus activating the larvae, and sucking the blood and sperm of the person who is cast. The person who is cast will die of blood loss after ten days or half a month."
Mengxi saw that several people were looking at him stupidly, so he coughed and continued:
"Looking at your condition, it seems that you have been poisoned for more than a year, but it was only recently triggered. If it was a month ago, I would not have been able to identify it. Fortunately, I got a strange book a few years ago, which specifically described various poison techniques in the Western Regions in detail. Only then was I able to identify this poison today."
"Master Li, do you have any way to get rid of this poison?"
After hearing Mengxi's words, Doctor Li realized that they matched Shangguan's symptoms in recent days and was already convinced, so he asked about the treatment method.
"This kind of Gu is cultivated with rare flowers from the Western Regions. Different pollens are selected to feed it according to the preferences of the person who casts the Gu. When activating the Gu worm in the future, the scent of the flower selected at the beginning is used as bait. If you can find the flower that feeds this Gu, or find the person who casts the Gu, you can force the Gu worm out of the body."
It was useless to say that. Shangguan only had two days left to live . Finding the person who cast the Gu within two days was difficult.
For a moment, the people in the room breathed a sigh of relief, but then they breathed a sigh of relief again. The air suddenly became heavy and it was so quiet that only the sound of Mengxi's gentle footsteps could be heard.
After a long while, Xiao Zongzi knelt down at Mengxi's feet with a plop:
"Please, Master, think of another way to save my master. I kowtow to you. Master Li, even if we know who harmed my master, the other party is too powerful. It is difficult to catch him and interrogate him without real evidence. It will be difficult to find the person who poisoned the master within two days. Even if we can find the flower that feeds the poison, my master may not live to wait! Master Li, if you can save my master's life, I will be willing to work like a cow and a horse to repay you in the next life. In the future, besides my master, my life belongs to you!"
After Xiao Zongzi finished speaking, he kowtowed repeatedly. Mengxi couldn't bear it, so she pulled Xiao Zongzi up and said:
"You get up first. My brother and I have kowtowed to each other. As long as there is a glimmer of hope, I will not give up. Even if I have to go to the eighteen levels of hell and meet the Lord of Hell, I will take back my brother's life."
Everyone in the room was moved by Mengxi's sincere feelings, and no one said anything for a moment.
Walking to the window, Mengxi looked at the swaying shadows of the trees outside and thought to himself:
"Brother, I knew you were poisoned, but I couldn't save you. Are we destined to be brothers in this life and be separated forever? If I didn't know, it would be fine, but now that I know, I can't accept it!"
As he thought of this, his chest felt hot and a mouthful of blood spurted out, scattering on the snow-white blouse, blooming into plum blossom dots.
