Chapter 24 – Children of the Zheng Clan (Part 1)

"Boss!"

Xia Hei looked up and saw Lao Qi's pale expression as he rushed into the study. He quickly reported his finding to Xia Hei. After hours of fruitless search, they only found traces of blood and a broken arrow, but there was no sign of the woman they were looking for. Xia Hei frowned as he tapped his fingers on the desk in deep contemplation.

"What if… she did not make it?" Lao Qi asked fearfully.

This woman was the one Jing Yun Sheng had been searching for all these whiles. Now that they had found her, they might have accidentally killed her. What should they do if Jing Yun Sheng decided to pursue this matter? The more Lao Qi thought about it, the more restless he felt.

"Don't speak nonsense. She must have been taken away by her accomplices."

Lao Qi looked at Xia Hei with renewed hope. What Xia Hei said was absolutely possible because they did not find her body. The thought of it made him breathed out in relief but then he jumped up anxiously again, as he began to stutter.

"Our, our arrows…!"

Xia Hei raised his hand up impatiently to shut him up. He knew very well what Lao Qi wanted to say. Seeing his grim expression, Lao Qi did not dare to utter any sound anymore. Xia Hei rubbed his temple wearily to dispel the incoming headache, as he said with his eyes closed, "To be able to extract her out from my territory… these people are not that simple. I want you to further investigate this matter. Go through the entire guest list again and see if there is anything suspicious."

"Boss… do you think this could be a trick from Jing Yun Sheng?"

Xia Hei did not reply. Of course, he had thought about this possibility as well. With all these coincidences, how could he not think of this? After all, it was well within Jing Yun Sheng capabilities. Still, he cannot be sure. Why would Jing Yun Sheng do this? What was his motive?

No, it did not make sense at all. Jing Yun Sheng was earnestly seeking for this person. Xia Hei could tell from their interaction. With his current status and power, he would not resort to make a deal with him in the first place if he was not desperate. Who was this woman? Was she really the legendary beauty or had he mistaken her identity?

"Investigate every main clan of the Mo Empire, especially the Yang clan eldest daughter, Yang Yi. If Jing Yun Sheng is really playing us like a fool, then I will definitely make him pay."

***

It was nearing dawn. The sky was still dark, and the streets in the capital city were extremely quiet. At the Silver Sky Mansion, the front gate opened and a servant came out with a broom to begin his daily chores. As he was busy sweeping the dry leaves scattered around the street, the sound of turning wheels gradually grew louder, and attracted his attention. As he looked up, he saw a horse carriage surging toward him at full speed.

He shrieked in alarm and stumbled backward, falling on his back as the driver manage to make a sharp turn, narrowly missing him by a few inches. There was a loud screech followed by a loud thump, before the carriage sped off without even stopping to see if anyone was injured by his careless driving.

The other servants who heard his cries quickly rushed out.

"Blood! Blood! A lot of blood!" One of the maids screamed in horror as soon as she saw the pool of blood on the floor. Mu Yin who heard the commotion also dashed out, and the first thing she saw was a bloody body lying lifelessly on the ground, near the servant who was almost hit by the horse carriage. She immediately went forward to examine the body and was stupefied when she identified that person.

"Meng Yu?" She gasped in surprise and quickly checked her breathing. It was very weak but she was definitely still breathing.

Without hesitation, Mu Yin immediately instructed the servants to carefully carry her back into the mansion, as she sent someone to notify Zheng Qing Yao.

The atmosphere in the Silver Sky Mansion was tense, as the master of the house did not step out of the mansion for two days and two nights since that morning. No one was allowed to leave the mansion during these periods, and all the guests were turned away no matter how prestigious or noble they were. Even when the royal guard from the palace came to invite the imperial physician Zheng to the palace, he rejected with the excuse of being down with a cold.

Finally on the third morning, Mu Yin who was walking toward the main courtyard saw Xiao Yun waiting anxiously outside of the room. Her face was pale, and her eyes were red from crying nonstop. She sat at the corner, hugging her knees as she watched the door intently. Every time someone came out, she would look up hopefully, but when she did not see the person she was hoping for, her head would drop down again in disappointment.

Xiao Yun had been crouching at the same spot, unmoving since early morning. In fact, every day she would come dutifully, and waited from dawn till dusk in the same spot persistently. Mu Yin gently called out to Xiao Yun. The little girl slowly lifted her head to look at Mu Yin. Seeing the rimmed red eyes, Mu Yin lightly patted her head as she said, "Don't wait here. Go back to your room."

Xiao Yun shook her head bitterly as she replied shakily, "No, I must wait here. This is all my fault… if not because of my carelessness, I would not be kidnapped, and then Sister Meng will not be in this state…"

She was on the verge of tears as soon she finished her sentence. Mu Yin lowered her eyes to avoid Xiao Yun's gaze. This was because she did not tell Xiao Yun the whole story, thus she really thought she was kidnapped because of her carelessness.

"Don't speak nonsense. This is not your fault at all. Meng Yu, she… is very strong. She will be alright." Mu Yin comforted gently.

"Really?" Xiao Yun asked hopefully. Mu Yin nodded affirmatively, as she helped her up. Whirling around, she looked at the other girl who had came with her. She was a young lady with bright and intelligent eyes, Ye Rong.

"Ah Rong, accompany Xiao Yun back to her room. Take good care of her."

Ye Rong lightly nodded as she led Xiao Yun away. After sending the girls off, Mu Yin saw two maids carefully carried a basin of water and a medical box out of the room. When they saw Mu Yin, they quickly greeted her. Mu Yin nodded in reply and proceeded to enter the room. When she walked in, her eyes fell onto the untouched dishes that were displayed neatly on the table. Frowning, she walked toward the connecting side room, and saw Zheng Qing Yao sitting by the bedside. His brow was knitted deeply as he checked the pulse of the other person lying on the bed in deep coma.

After a long moment, he gently placed down her wrist, and stood up. He walked out from behind a silk screen and saw Mu Yin. The two of them exchanged gazes but did not speak until they walked back to the main room.

"The dishes are cold. Let me reheat them." Mu Yin said when she saw Zheng Qing Yao taking a seat.

Zheng Qing Yao shook his head as he proceeded to pick up the chopstick and bowl on the table. He was never a picky person, and disliked making things complicated, thus Mu Yin also did not insist further. She walked up to him and diligently served his meal.

"How is she?"

"Her condition is more stable now…"

Despite not showing a lot on his face, Mu Yin could sense his exhaustion and seemingly troubled mind. Normally the first two days were the most critical moment, and since Meng Yu's condition had stabilized, she did not understand why he still sounded unsettled? Sensing something amiss, she asked again, "What is it?"

Qing Yao placed his chopstick down and rubbed his temple wearily. Mu Yin did not rush him as she stood patiently by his side. "She is poisoned…" He finally replied in a low voice. Mu Yin was taken aback. Ever since she grew up in this household, she have had some basic knowledge in both medicine and poison. And yet, she did not detect anything weird when she first found Meng Yu a few days back.

"The symptoms are not obvious, but I am sure. This kind of poison is slow to take effect, thus it is harder to detect." Qing Yao explained.

"Then we should still have time to find the cure?"

Hearing her question, Zheng Qing Yao shook his head in resign. "The problem is I cannot identify the poison, so it will be difficult to get the right antidote to cure her."

Zheng Qing Yao might be young, but he started practicing medicine when he was only a few years old. He had followed his father to travel to many places and treated many patients of different illnesses. He had vast knowledge in both medicine and poison, and was considered as one of the best physician in the Yin Kingdom, yet he had actually never encountered this kind of situation before.

Mu Yin did not speak further as she knew there was nothing she could do in this situation. Zheng Qing Yao picked up his chopstick again to continue with his meal. His appetite was not good, so he only took a few more bites before rinsing his mouth with tea. As a physician, he knew he needed to take care of his own health before he can save another's life.

When he was done, Mu Yin instructed the servants to clear the table, as Zheng Qing Yao headed back inside to check on Meng Yu's condition. Mu Yin followed him in later, and when she walked closer to the bed, she realized the complexion of the person lying on the bed did not look very good. Her forehead was drenched in cold sweat, her lips were bloodless, and her body was shivering nonstop. Zheng Qing Yao had placed an extremely thick blanket over her while using a wet towel to wipe her forehead.

"Look at her nails." Qing Yao pointed to her.

Mu Yin sat down at the other side of the bed and raised the blanket. Her eyes widened in surprise when she saw the nails on all five fingers were turning to color of dried blood. When she held Meng Yu's hand, she could feel the icy cold touch on her skin. She was freezing! Mu Yin raised her head to look at Qing Yao worriedly.

"Her body is very cold but she is burning internally." He replied solemnly.

"What is your plan now?"

Qing Yao placed the towel down and stood up.

"I need you to help me look after her while I go out."

"Where are you going?" Mu Yin stood up too.

"To meet the one person who can tell me exactly what had happened."

Before Mu Yin could follow up with another question, their conversation was interrupted by a knock on the door. A servant came in to inform them of the arrival of a guest. Zheng Qing Yao was not in the mood of meeting anyone, and dismissed the servant quickly, until he was informed of the identity of the guest.

"The Empress is already on her way to your courtyard now."