With a soft sigh, Mingyi stood up and bowed to Yan Xiao. "My apologies, my lord."
"It's nothing... but why him?" Yan Xiao was puzzled. This girl was clear-headed, not the type to be swayed by mere looks.
"Yes, why him indeed." Mingyi pondered with a troubled expression. "Perhaps it's because I was born owing him."
The odd statement made even Granny Xun's heart ache. "Miss, you shouldn't drink anymore. Let's return to the manor first?"
"When the lord says to wait for him, who dares disobey?" She blinked. "Though resting in the adjacent chamber would be acceptable."
"Very well, this old servant will make arrangements immediately."
What should have been a joyous Combatant's Tryst turned into an unhappy spectacle. After settling Mingyi, Yan Xiao and the others left first with Liang Xiuyuan. Mingyi sat on the Imperial Concubine Couch in the side chamber, watching the sky gradually darken from bright daylight to dusk.
"The lord says he won't be returning tonight," Granny Xun reported hesitantly upon entering.
Mingyi froze momentarily before lowering her long lashes. "Liar again."
"Don't take it to heart, miss. Perhaps there's urgent business at the Academicians' Court."
What business could there be on opening day? No doubt he'd been waylaid by some beauty's charms and gone off to enjoy himself elsewhere.
Very well. Seizing the opportunity, she collapsed against Granny Xun in feigned sobs.
Granny Xun immediately comforted her: "Don't cry, miss. You're different from those outside—this old servant has never seen the lord show anyone else such leniency."
"You'll see it soon enough," she sniffled dramatically. "If he can treat me this way, naturally he'll do the same for others."
"How could that be? The privileges you enjoy were earned with genuine sincerity, unlike those scheming climbers."
"Granny admits I had to exchange sincerity for this," she continued whimpering. "But look—the lord knows everything about me, while I still know so little about him."
Her delicate frame trembled like bamboo leaves when she cried, tugging at one's heartstrings.
Granny Xun hastily said, "Let's return first. Whatever you wish to know, this old servant will tell you."
Still sniffling, Mingyi murmured, "Someone like the lord—with profound Essence Power, medical skills, and silver-tongued charm—no wonder he attracts so much competition."
As she helped Mingyi downstairs to the beast-drawn carriage, Granny Xun sighed. "All that was paid for with his life. The Essence Power goes without saying—he's mentioned that before. As for the medical skills, do you think the lord learned them properly from a master?"
"He didn't? Last time during Lord Yan's conversation, they said the lord's medical skills surpassed even his."
"You misheard, miss. It wasn't medical skill but poison identification where the lord slightly outshines Lord Yan." Unable to think of better comfort, Granny Xun could only highlight her master's suffering, hoping Mingyi might reconsider abandoning him in disappointment.
At the mention of poison identification, Ming Guniang's tears stopped instantly. She blinked her clear eyes curiously. "Poison identification... how did he acquire that?"
After a hesitant pause, Granny Xun answered gravely, "The Slave Arena overseer wanted to control the lord for his own purposes. For an entire year, he tested countless poisons on the lord, seeking one only he could cure that wouldn't cause immediate death. Thus the lord endured ten thousand poisons—and learned to identify them all through sheer survival."
Mingyi was stunned, then her expression darkened. "Where is that overseer now?"Seeing that she still cared about the master, Granny Xun sighed in relief and smiled. "Naturally, he met a bad end. When the master left the Slave Arena, he died by the poison he had sought himself."
"Did he not find the poison he was looking for?"
"He found it. He found it when the master was ten years old. But later, the master stopped being under his control, and the poison was neutralized."
Mingyi let out a relieved breath, then clenched her fists. "That poison is truly vile. It shouldn't be allowed to remain in this world."
Granny Xun gave a bitter smile. "How could it not remain? Such a remarkable poison was once worth a fortune in the main city. It only gradually disappeared after the master personally killed the overseer."
Mingyi lowered her eyes. "Has it completely vanished now?"
"I don't know about other cities, but there's none left in Star Yearn City. Even the master only has one antidote bottle left, kept for emergencies."
As she spoke, Granny Xun glanced at her curiously, probably thinking she was too concerned about the poison.
Mingyi quickly took the initiative. "The master has only just risen to prominence, hasn't he? How do you know so much about his affairs, Granny?"
He only settled in the main city at the beginning of the year. Could the servants in this mansion have been with him since the Slave Arena?
The beast-drawn carriage came to a stop, and Granny Xun immediately lifted the curtain to step out. "Miss, we've arrived," she said to her.
It seemed she had no intention of explaining further.
Mingyi didn't press the matter. Pretending to be drunk, she staggered out of the carriage and made her way unsteadily back to the Lord of Flowing Radiance's residence. As soon as she entered, she collapsed onto the bed in deep sleep.
Granny Xun watched her for a while, confirming she was sound asleep, then covered her with a blanket and left.
Not long after she left, Mingyi got up and leaped into the backyard.
Twenty-Seven passed by silently, only to hear her say, "The antidote is in this mansion. Help me find it."
"I've already searched. It's not in the study or the hidden chamber."
"What about the Cyan Tile Courtyard?"
"My Essence Power isn't strong enough to go there."
Mingyi clicked her tongue and gestured to him. Twenty-Seven immediately cleared the way for her and kept watch.
Buxiu was with Ji Bozhai and wouldn't be back for a while. Granny Xun had also had some wine and was likely asleep. The two of them easily bypassed the guards and reached the Cyan Tile Courtyard.
Though most of Mingyi's meridians were destroyed, her Essence Power remained at its original purity, allowing her to lift Ji Bozhai's Essence Power net without leaving a trace. Twenty-Seven, on the other hand, was most skilled at finding things. Before long, he emerged with an armful of medicine bottles.
"All the ones with medicinal scents are here."
She looked down and—good heavens—there were about a hundred bottles of various sizes. How was she supposed to tell which one was the antidote? She didn't even know what it looked like.
Taking them all would leave nowhere to hide them, but leaving them behind would be a shame.
After sniffing a few uncorked bottles, she asked Twenty-Seven, "Are there any poisons in here? If not, I could try each one."
Twenty-Seven's brows furrowed deeply. "Your body can't take any more strain. That's not a good idea."
Right. Mingyi smacked her forehead. She was so desperate she’d even considered such a foolish plan. With this many bottles, she might as well be eating a meal. Only an idiot would...
"Let me try them for the master," Twenty-Seven said, taking the bottles from her.
Mingyi gasped. "No! Your Essence Power is stronger than mine now. It'd be a shame if it were ruined.""My Essence Power was also taught by you, Master. Returning it to you is only right." He swallowed the contents of over a dozen medicine bottles in one gulp without even blinking.
As the evening glow faded, the Cyan Tile Courtyard darkened. Mingyi could no longer clearly see Twenty-Seven's face, but the image from many years ago surfaced vividly in his mind.
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