Bad Omens

The women set out in a carriage for the Sun's bakery after lunch. They took with them one maidservant each, along with a male attendant who sat with the driver.

The Suns were very excited to see Lulu, with Mrs. Sun and her son, Sun Xiao Gan, giving her hug after hug. The ladies were offered tea and pastries and had a nice long visit. Xiao Chu decided not to ask them any questions about Lulu so as not to spoil the visit even though Lulu specifically told her she could if she wanted to do so.

Afterward, Lulu and Xiao Chu decided to do some shopping to prolong their outing and were perusing the various shops down the street from the Sun's bakery. Both maidservants were walking closely behind them, with the male attendant following a few paces behind. The driver had stayed with the carriage near the Sun's bakery. Xiao Chu had just bought a hair accessory for Lulu, against Lulu's objections, and they were walking away from that stall about to turn down a different street. They had reached the corner when Lulu felt something that she could only describe as a bluish fog drape over her brain, causing her to suddenly feel dizzy. She immediately fell to her knees, her fingers at her temples. At almost the same moment that Lulu fell, the maidservant behind her collapsed.

Xiao Chu let out a startled cry and looked back and forth between the two women before going to help Lulu. Just as fast as the cloudy sensation had come in, however, it lifted, and Lulu instantly felt better. She got up, with some help from Xiao Chu, and then looked at where her friend's gaze had turned to. With eyes that expressed both shock and concern, she went to the maidservant to see how she could help. Holding the woman's head in her lap, she felt helpless as she looked around without being able to ask for help. A crowd had started to gather around them and out of that group emerged a man wearing a straw hat that hid his face. "Let me through, I am a physician," he commanded with a deep voice.

He gently pushed Lulu aside so that the maidservant was flat on the ground. The man then examined her for a few minutes, checking her pulse and feeling for her breath. He also started chest compressions and breathing into the woman's mouth. The crowd was stunned by his actions. No one had ever seen anything like it before and they started whispering amongst themselves that he was going to kill her and that it was highly inappropriate to put his mouth on hers. Lulu, on the other hand, didn't seem phased by it and looked on with hope.

After a few minutes, the healer got up and said, "There's nothing that can be done for now. This woman has been poisoned, but it doesn't appear to be the kind that kills. I found it in her neck." He held up a thin needle. There were several gasps from the crowd, including from Lulu and Xiao Chu. "Still, she needs treatment. You should also wait here for the authorities," the doctor indicated. Then, he turned to head back through the crowd, stopping briefly to hand someone the needle before he disappeared. The whole time he was there he had been looking down so no one got a good look at his face. One thing was for certain, however: he wasn't there by accident as he was wearing the same clothes as the man who had been following Lulu the day she had been taken in by the Tangs.

Further away, another man watched the scene unfolding and rubbed his face in frustration. His associate, the one who had shot the needle was long gone so he didn't have anyone to blame for the mistake that just occurred. "What luck that woman has," the man thought to himself, wondering how she had miraculously escaped the poison that was meant for her. He thought for sure this plan would work. Incapacitating her would have made her abduction much easier. As it was, he'd have to think of some explanation for the man who had hired him. Perhaps he should just run away? His neck was on the line after all, and he did not want to take the chance to see whether the boss would cross that particular line.

Lulu wanted to wait for the authorities as the physician had advised, but Xiao Chu shook her head. She knew her brothers would not want anyone involved in this and had the male attendant carry the maidservant back to their carriage.

Once home, she found Tang Mei in his room reading. He seemed annoyed to be interrupted, but immediately jumped up from his seat when he heard what had happened.

"Where is the maid right now?," he asked.

Xiao Chu shook her head and answered, "We called for a physician so he should be here shortly. In the meantime, she is in one of the guest rooms lying down. Lulu is with her."

Tang Mei nodded, "You were right not to let her stay in the servants' quarters. Too many eyes. But why is Lulu waiting there?"

"I don't know, but she seems quite upset," his sister replied. "Maybe it's because she knows the poison was clearly meant for her and not the servant?"

"Indeed," Tang Mei agreed. "Whoever did this almost harmed Lulu so from now on we need to be extra careful. Have someone alert me as soon as the doctor arrives. I assume you already posted people discreetly to block access to the room?"

Xiao Chu gave her brother a look that indicated, "Of course. Who do you think I am?"

Tang Mei nodded again, then became pensive, glad that his brother wasn't around.

Unaware of what was happening back home, Tang Jing was away near the main fishing village that had complained about unlucky omens and bad fishing of late. When he began his survey of the residents, several reported witnessing strange lights over the river. Others told him that on at least three occasions, the river had become unexpectedly choppy even though there was no bad weather or anything else they could pinpoint as the cause. A particularly strange report involved a boat that appeared and then disappeared, but it was unlike any vessel they had seen before. Finally, one woman noted that something similar had taken place a couple years ago, but it did not seem to last as long as the current happenings. When someone finally came to investigate their reports, there was no evidence of anything at all and fishing had gone back to normal at that point. She complained that because fishing seemed to be going back to normal now, once again their reports would likely be ignored. Tang Jing assured her that that would not be the case this time, even though he knew it would have to be.

He made sure to write down every detail, including the exact locations at which the various sightings had occurred. He spent several days riding up and down the riverbanks, trying to find clues, but came up empty. Knowing that Lulu was found by a riverbank, he was certain this had something to do with her. He just needed to confirm exactly where she washed ashore.

He also needed to come up with a story to tell the villagers. Perhaps something having to do with unusual weather patterns? Whatever story he came up with, it would also have to be convincing enough for the palace. "The emperor is already suspicious of me, so I can't afford to let Lulu be discovered," he thought.