zChapter 1088 - An ending like this
Chapter 1088: An ending like this
Manager Jin said, “Jun Yixie, I heard Bai Yuqiao say you spent years to subjugate these white tigers. Heheh, I only used three days to completely tame all six. I am the direct bloodline descendant of the Black Clan.”
His words made everyone else give him questioning looks. Did this fellow discover his origins long ago?
Jun Yixie’s eyes widened as he stared at Manager Jin, unresigned and unaccepting. Even a direct bloodline descendant of the Black Clan wasn’t guaranteed to tame a white tiger. Things such as innate talent were impossible to predict.
What right did Manager Jin have to negate him?
But Manager Jin then added, “The Black Clan’s direct bloodline has always lived in seclusion within the Wintercrow Country and never stepped foot into Northern Li. They’ve long lost interest in ruling the world. Jun Yixie, I don’t know who you are, but I can tell you now, the Black Clan’s direct bloodline has no wastes like you! At most, you’re only a common clan member.”
Jun Yixie seemed deeply shaken by these words. He stared blankly at Manager Jin as fresh blood poured from his mouth. Soon enough, his head dropped to the ground. His death was a slow one that left his eyes open with discontent. Never could he have thought that he’d end up like this.
No one was surprised by Jun Yixie’s death. When they came to rescue the hostages, they knew it’d either be him or them. They were more curious about Manager Jin’s words.
“Just who are you?” Long Feiye asked him coldly.
“Nothing but a slave. Han Yunxi, give me back my indenture agreement!” Manager Jin said crossly. He didn’t seem to like them much.
Actually, that was just his usual personality: chilly and impatient towards everyone he met.
“Who are you in the Black Clan?” Han Yunxi asked.
“I said already, I’m just a slave. Haven’t you all looked into my origins long ago?” Manager Jin asked.
“But just then, you said…” Mu Linger couldn’t help speaking up.
Manager Jin looked at Jun Yixie’s wide open eyes and said frostily, “It was for revenge. I said that on purpose!”
Now everyone looked at him with new respect. They realized that he was sinister and ruthlessly cruel man. However, Gu Qishao ended up laughing out loud. “Nice one! This old man likes it!”
As Gu Qishao saw it, Jun Yixie would’ve died too easy without Manager Jin provoking him. Of course, his admiration for Manager Jin was mixed with wariness. How could someone so insidious and vengeful catch the attentions of his family’s little lass? Besides himself, that little lass never acted so carelessly with anyone else!
At this point, Gu Beiyue broke in to say, “Princess, take a look at Ning Cheng first. We also need to treat everyone’s wounds quickly.”
Han Yunxi finally remembered Ning Cheng’s poison and had Gu Beiyue set him down so he was lying flat. Ignoring her own injuries, she knelt next to him and started a deep-system scan with the detox system since she was finally close enough. Soon enough, she exclaimed in horror, “Hurry, search Jun Yixie’s clothes for the antidote! Quick!”
No one knew what was going on. Couldn’t Han Yunxi make up an antidote for Jun Yixie’s poison? Wasn’t she always quick to the chase for such things? Despite this, they all hastened to search. Long Feiye soon found a small bottle of pills and handed it to Han Yunxi. She dumped it all out and picked one of the bunch. Long Feiye then helped to pry Ning Cheng’s chin open so she could stuff the pill into his mouth. Ning Cheng was still unconscious, but still swallowed instinctively.
Only then did Han Yunxi exhaled in relief.
“What’s wrong?” Long Feiye asked.
Sighing, Han Yunxi said, “Mu Linger, how did Ning Cheng get poisoned? Why didn’t you mention it in your letters?”
Mu Linger was surprised. “Big sis, didn’t Ning Cheng tell you?”
Ning Cheng had written a letter to Long Feiye once explaining his situation with Jun Yixie. Mu Linger, Ning Jing, and Bai Yuqiao all assumed Han Yunxi already knew about his poisoning.
“He never did!” Han Yunxi was certain.
“This…what a big misunderstanding!” Mu Linger murmured. Han Yunxi creased her brows. It really was a big miss. Fortunately, they delayed the rescue operation and northern expedition; fortunately, Bai Yuqiao was exposed and forced them onto this path today. Otherwise, the original plan would have seen Ning Cheng dead without a doubt!
That plan involved Gu Beiyue rescuing Ning Cheng from the army barracks. His medical skills were superb, but his poison skills were weak. He would never be able to tell that Ning Cheng was poisoned until it flared up and killed the man!
Why did Ning Cheng never mention his poison in his letters?
Han Yunxi had no time to think. She quickly examined the rest of the antidote pills. Now she was certain that Jun Yixie was planning to turn Ning Cheng into a Poison Human.
“Big sis, Ning Cheng’s poison isn’t cured yet! I heard Bai Yuqiao say Jun Yixie gives Ning Cheng an antidote everyday, but it only lasts a day. It’s not a real cure!” Mu Linger reminded her anxiously.
Han Yunxi long knew that Ning Cheng would have needed to take daily antidotes to live. She said coldly, “This is both an antidote and a poison! Half of the pill’s used to treat the poison, while the other is a wholly new toxin. Poisons have the skill to suppress other poisons too. Jun Yixie wants to turn Ning Cheng into a Poison Human—or even a Poison Corpse!”
Everyone was taken aback by her revelation. Gu Qishao picked up the contents of the pill bottle to take a sniff, then muttered, “I thought this stuff smelled familiar!”[1]
Jun Yixie had long switched the poison Bai Yuqiao used against Ning Cheng. Now it was apparent that he never meant to cooperate with Ning Cheng sincerely, either. While allying with the man on one side, he was secretly nurturing him into a Poison Human on the other. Once Ning Cheng’s transformation was completel, he would be completely thrall to Jun Yixie.
Mu Linger said viciously, “Serves him right for dying discontent. This is too hateful!”
“I only have one day to fully cure his poison. After that, he’ll have to take an antidote pill again, thus changing the composition of his poisons completely,” Han Yunxi said seriously.
Another dose of Jun Yixie’s antidote would cause reactions in the poisons inside Ning Cheng’s body, forcing her to renew her own antidote formula to combat them. This was what made Ning Cheng’s case so complicated. Right now, she could only rejoice that she had enough ingredients in her detox system to make something. If she hadn’t stocked up so much over the years, she’d never be able to make an antidote now, especially in one day in the middle of nowhere like here!
No one dared to disturb Han Yunxi as she instructed the detox system to analyze all existing poisons in Ning Cheng’s body while examining the medical properties of Jun Yixie’s multiple pills. She also took blood samples to manually monitor for changes and reactions. Long Feiye stood on one side, staring at the shoulder wound on Han Yunxi’s back. He wanted to speak multiple times, but still held back in the end.
“Your Highness, your wounds are serious,” Gu Beiyue reminded him softly.
Long Feiye could only turn around and let Gu Beiyue treat his injuries. Tang Li had already pulled Mu Linger aside to ask her all sorts of questions. Mu Linger told him a lot, especially how much Ning Jing had suffered while birthing little Tang Tang. If Tang Li hadn’t been holding the baby himself, Heaven knows what he would have done in that instant!
Gu Qishao ended up silently observing Manager Jin, who realized it but let him stare, too lazy to bother. Of all the people here, he held the greatest hostility towards Gu Qishao.
Soon enough, little Tang Tang began to wail again. Tang Li didn’t know how to coax children and tried to rock her, talk to her, and smile, but all to no avail. Feeling wronged and worried, he asked, “Linger, she…is she afraid of strangers?”
Mu Linger didn’t know how to rebuke him and only ended up taking little Tang Tang herself. “She’s hungry.”
Only then did Tang Li realize they didn’t have a wet nurse. What had little Tang Tang been eating in the past few days?
With no other choice, Mu Linger could only seek Manager Jin for help. She said, “Jin Zi, the baby’s hungry.”
She said it so naturally that it seemed like she and he were a couple, and little Tang Tang their child!
Manager Jin immediately summoned the mother tiger out, who had been hiding nearby. Only then did Tang Li realize his daughter had been drinking tiger’s milk for days. He looked at the baby suckling fearlessly at the tiger’s breast, eating her fill to satisfaction, and felt a pang in his heart.
If Ning Jing saw this, she’d definitely cry.
Naturally, Tang Li was anxious to find Ning Jing, but Han Yunxi was currently busy treating Ning Cheng’s poison, so he didn’t dare press them. All he could do was wait. Meanwhile, Gu Qishao had shifted his stare from Manager Jin to little Tang Tang as well.
If this little thing grows up drinking tiger’s milk, she’ll definitely grow into a tigress just like Ning Jing, right?
—
Two hours later, Han Yunxi finally ascertained her antidote formula and prepared all the necessary ingredients. Thank goodness she had the detox system to change all the raw components into pills and any external medicine packs. Otherwise, she’d be stuck with the same problem Mu Linger had to feed Jin Zi his medicine.
Next, Han Yunxi unrolled her pack of needles into a row. She glanced at Long Feiye and saw that his wounds were already treated. With Gu Beiyue here, she didn’t have to worry. “Gu Beiyue, help me out. Take off all of Ning Cheng’s upper robes. The antidote won’t get rid of all of the poison, so I’ll have to use my needles.”[2]
Before Gu Beiyue could assent, Long Feiye said, “I’ll do it.”
Actually, Long Feiye disliked Han Yunxi doing this kind of work, especially when it was Ning Cheng involved. Though he’d come for the rescue operation too and acknowledged Ning Cheng’s contributions to the East-West Qin alliance, those were public matters! When it came to private affairs, he didn’t want much interaction with Ning Cheng at all. But who told Han Yunxi to be a poisons doctor? Who told her to have such excellent skills? Who told Ning Cheng to get poisoned?
Gu Beiyue didn’t say much, but his lips were drawn into a helpless smile. Long Feiye quickly stripped Ning Cheng’s robes, revealing his injuries to the world. New and old scars alike from both blade and whip riddled his torso. Some were leftovers from an earlier time, while others were inflicted by Jun Yixie himself.
Han Yunxi didn’t pay attention to the wounds for long because she had to seize the time to treat his poison. Nothing could disturb her professional calm, but she soon grew distracted when she found…
1. And he would because he has an army of Poison Corpses himself, hurhur.
2. She’s learned! Remember when LFY used to holler at her for getting handsy with male patients herself? XD