"Why did you come?" Lou Xiaowu asked.
Before An Jiu could answer, Lou Xin's voice came from inside the door, "Let's settle in first before talking."
"Alright," Lou Xiaowu replied cheerfully, eagerly leading the way for An Jiu.
Lou Xiaowu had an almost blind admiration for the strong. Being able to distinguish friend from foe was already her limit. What particularly intrigued her about An Jiu, aside from her exceptional archery skills, was the disparity between An Jiu's mental strength and inner force.
Others might not be certain of An Jiu's true capabilities, but Lou Xiaowu could sense it. In this regard, they were alike. Due to being born prematurely, Lou Xiaowu had inherently weak physical foundations. Though she had gradually recovered somewhat over time, a severe illness years ago had damaged her core, leaving her mental strength far surpassing her inner force.
Upon arriving at Lou Manor, Lou Xiaowu took it upon herself to arrange for An Jiu to stay in her own courtyard.
"Lou Manor is so big. Can't I stay somewhere else?" An Jiu stared at Lou Xiaowu, who lingered in her room without leaving, growing somewhat dissatisfied with the arrangement. The constant switching between her and Mei Jiu was no longer a well-kept secret, but they still had to conceal it from unnecessary parties as much as possible.
"Our household is full of women, and we rarely have guests staying in the manor," Lou Xiaowu pouted, feeling slighted. "Besides, everyone has been poisoned, and we don’t know if it’s contagious. Though there are many empty rooms, we can’t just assign you any of them."
An Jiu had always been defenseless against weak and pitiful things, yet for some reason, Lou Xiaowu’s pitiful expression left her completely unmoved. "If there’s nothing else, you can leave now."
Having narrowly escaped death, An Jiu hadn’t slept at the Crane Control Army’s outpost. After returning to Plum Blossom Village, she had rushed straight to Lou Manor without rest. Now, utterly exhausted, she just wanted to find a quiet place to nap.
"Fine," Lou Xiaowu reluctantly stood up and shuffled to the door.
An Jiu raised her hand and closed the door behind her, then lay down on the couch without removing her outer robe.
The faint crackling of the nearby fire filled the room as the tension in her muscles slowly eased.
"Lady Lou is so pitiful," Mei Jiu couldn’t help but murmur softly.
"You think everyone is like you?" An Jiu snapped coldly, cutting her off with a threat before she could say more. "Speak again, and I’ll cut you down!"
The threat was empty, but Mei Jiu immediately shrank back whenever An Jiu turned harsh.
The Lou family was now on the brink of annihilation, yet Lou Xiaowu still managed everything methodically. If she wasn’t utterly heartless, then she was remarkably capable. An Jiu’s strong mental strength gave her sharp intuition—Lou Xiaowu might appear harmless and delicate, but in truth, she had an iron will, easily surpassing Mei Jiu by miles.
The room was as warm as spring, and soon both An Jiu and Mei Jiu fell asleep.
It was the deepest sleep An Jiu had had in years—dark and dreamless. She had no idea how much time had passed before she was abruptly awakened by urgent knocking.
The sound wasn’t coming from her door, but An Jiu still got up and peered through the crack.
A middle-aged woman stood anxiously outside Lou Xiaowu’s room. When the door opened, Lou Xiaowu rubbed her eyes and asked, "Ling Gu, what’s wrong?"
"Young Lady, hurry to the council hall! The Second Lady and the Miracle Doctor have emerged and rescued the Sixth Elder!" Ling Gu said.
"Really?!" Lou Xiaowu’s drowsiness vanished instantly as she rushed out.
Ling Gu quickly fetched a fur coat and followed. "Young Lady, be careful not to catch a chill."Seeing the two leave, An Jiu pondered for a moment before donning her mantle and stepping out.
Lou Xiaowu and Ling Gu were already out of sight ahead. But with the faint glow from the council hall as a guide, she wouldn't lose her way.
The night wind swirled the accumulated snow as dusk deepened. The rugged mountain path, blanketed in snow, was particularly treacherous for those without Inner Force. By the time An Jiu arrived, everyone present—whether standing or sitting—wore grave expressions. The only sound was Mo Sigui tapping his folding fan against his palm.
At the sound of footsteps, heads turned. Mo Sigui, reclining in his chair, continued his absent-minded fan tapping. He glanced at An Jiu before lowering his eyes in thought, then suddenly leapt from his seat, staring at her in astonishment. "Mei Shisi! What are you doing here?"
"Is there a problem?" An Jiu asked. "Or does my presence inconvenience you all?"
"Not at all," Lou Mingyue said softly. "Please have a seat, Fourteen Lady."
Without ceremony, An Jiu found a shaded spot to sit.
"Miraculous Doctor Mo," Lou Mingyue's face was sallow, her voice weak. "Is Sixth Elder truly beyond saving?"
Had Elder Qi been present, saving four or five more wouldn't have been an issue. But Mo Sigui had exhausted his True Energy, and recovering fully would take at least a day or two.
Mo Sigui temporarily set aside his thoughts about An Jiu and returned to his seat. "The ice cellar's dim lighting and their frozen bloodstreams make it impossible for me to accurately gauge the depth of their poisoning."
He could only speculate by observing their complexions, yet their frozen state made even that unreliable.
Had Sixth Elder remained in the ice cellar for three more days—by which time Mo Sigui's True Energy would have recovered eighty percent—she might have been saved. Unfortunately, accurate assessment had been impossible at the time.
Given the circumstances, no other physician could have done better. Mo Sigui felt no guilt, only dissatisfaction with his still-imperfect medical skills.
"Then what about Sixth Elder?" Lou Xiaowu remembered Mo Sigui saying that corpses were ideal for nurturing Plague Gu—didn't that mean they had to be dealt with while still alive?
All eyes turned to Mo Sigui for an answer. His fan struck his left palm with a sharp crack before he clenched his fist tightly, uttering through thin lips, "Best burned alive."
Lou Xiaowu shuddered, turning to look at Lou Mingyue.
Lou Xin's lips pressed into a taut line, brows furrowed deeply as she too gazed at Lou Mingyue with complex emotions.
They regarded her as the Lou family's new head—the decision rested solely with her.
Yet even if this outcome was inevitable, forcing her to voice it was cruel. Moreover, Mo Sigui alone had declared the Lou clansmen unsalvageable—whether to fully trust his judgment remained questionable.
Dead silence filled the room.
After a long pause, Lou Mingyue finally spoke. "Let me think."
She rose slowly and left.
Lou Xiaowu's eyes reddened slightly. "Brother Mo, Ling Gu probably knows the order in which everyone fell ill. Could we attempt to treat those with milder cases?"
"Possible," Mo Sigui agreed verbally, though privately he held little hope. After a pause, he addressed Lou Xin, "Mystic Ice can suppress the toxicity to some degree, but it's no permanent solution. Moreover, ancient Mystic Ice's potency isn't something everyone can endure. I'm certain some in the ice cellar have frozen to death already. With corpses providing nourishment, staying in the ice cave is pointless.""In that case..." Lou Xin pondered for a moment, realizing those lacking Inner Force were mostly servants and maids. "Miraculous Doctor Mo, can you identify the dead? If possible, we should cremate the bodies first."
"I'll do my best to try." Mo Sigui, who always relished self-challenges, responded with enthusiasm.
Yet the excitement flickering in his eyes struck Lou Xin as rather unsettling. (To be continued...)
OpenNovel