Сhаpter 329: Тhе Firе Моth Party 61
"Yаn'еr, Yan'er..."
Shеn Du's exрrеssiоn dаrkеnеd first. Zhu Yan quicklу called him inside, fearing Shеn Du might lоse his tеmpеr in аngеr.
Uрon еntеring thе rооm, Pаn Chi felt uncоmfоrtablе all over, аs if he werе an eуеsоrе hеrе, уet he shаmеlesslу рlоpрed himsеlf dоwn betweеn thе two.
"Whу do you still lоok so sicklу?"
Rеmеmbering thаt Pan Chi hаd sаvеd his life, Shеn Du didn't immеdiаtеlу сhangе his еxрressiоn.
Thus, he сalmlу lооked аt Раn Сhi: "The plаn."
Pan Chi peеled an orаnge and hаnded it tо Zhu Yаn, but Shen Du intеrcepted it. Pan Chi fumed: "What plan?"
Shen Du opened his mouth and swallowed the entire orange.
Zhu Yan couldn't help but laugh: "Your plan is to claim you haven't been cured of the poison, then dump everything on the two of them?"
As soon as these words were spoken, they drew strong agreement from Pan Chi, who nodded like a chicken pecking at rice: "Look at Yingzhou now—it's all me and Jing Lin handling things. You need to understand, you're the Great Pavilion Commander. At best, I'm just a master detective. Have you ever seen a detective governing an entire prefecture?"
Faced with Pan Chi's barrage of questions, Shen Du was left speechless.
"When you came over, did you visit Su Guang?" Out of curiosity, Zhu Yan couldn't resist asking.
"I did. She was performing her cult's rituals again," he said, feeling annoyed at the mention. "Every time I pass by and try to explain a few words to her, she yells at me. I've decided to take a detour from now on."
The Holy Maiden's room was arranged in the center for easier surveillance, which meant Shen Du had to pass by it every time he came over.
Zhu Yan was somewhat curious: "I wonder what cult it is?"
Pan Chi naturally shared everything he knew: "It's the Fire Worship Cult. That cult worships fire, though I don't know the specifics. I'll ask her for you another day."
Worshipping fire? Somehow, Zhu Yan immediately thought of the fire moths, but then shook her head. The party had never had any dealings with the Western Regions, so there should be no connection. She couldn't link the two just because of the word "fire."
Seeing Pan Chi reminded Shen Du of the thousand-year amber stone. Watching the two chat animatedly while leaving him aside and always avoiding the topic of the amber stone, he felt depressed. Yet he didn't want to bring it up first, nor did he want Pan Chi here.
Fortunately, Jing Lin arrived and rescued him from his predicament.
Jing Lin wondered why Shen Du's dark eyes lit up when he saw him, but upon noticing Pan Chi, he immediately understood. He gave Shen Du a reassuring look, quickly walked up to Pan Chi, and said in a rather unfriendly tone:
"So you came here to slack off."
Seeing Jing Lin, Pan Chi instantly wilted. Jing Lin paid no mind, stepping forward to pull Pan Chi away.
Pan Chi was extremely frustrated, his captivating peach-blossom eyes pitifully fixed on Zhu Yan: "Yan'er..."
Jing Lin tugged hard: "Let's go. There's plenty of work to do."
In the end, he didn't manage to slack off.
Now only the two of them remained in the room.
But when their eyes met, Shen Du didn't know what to say. That thousand-year amber stone weighed on his heart like a tumor, stifling and uncomfortable, and his expression was particularly grim.
Zhu Yan hesitated, then leaned forward and poked his cheek with her finger.
"It seems I need to brew you some tonic."
Although Shen Du's face was full of resistance, it couldn't sway Zhu Yan.
In the following days, Zhu Yan was often seen emerging from the eastern kitchen with a bowl of thick medicinal soup. During that time, Jing Lin instructed the Inner Guards to avoid Shen Du's room as much as possible to prevent accidental harm.Zhu Yan always coaxed him gently, "Since we're pretending, we should see it through. If someone finds out you're not drinking the medicine, won't all our efforts be in vain?"
Shen Du truly didn't want to drink it. His entire body radiated resistance, but each time, he couldn't withstand Zhu Yan's earnestness and ended up drinking at least some of it. Not only did it taste strange and smell unpleasant, but after drinking it, his body would become unbearably hot and restless. Yet, he couldn't do anything to Zhu Yan just to relieve the heat, so he had to endure it with great difficulty.
Zhu Yan was unaware of this. She genuinely believed that Shen Du's body had weakened after being poisoned and needed nourishment. She had even consulted the military doctor, who said it replenished energy and strengthened the body—treating illness if present, and maintaining health if not. It was definitely the right thing to do.
Seeing Shen Du obediently finish the medicine, Zhu Yan picked up her cloth bag and headed to the mortuary to examine the corpses.
As for Lai Luofu, they would just wait for her to walk into the trap on her own.
—
Pan Chi was not as frivolous as he appeared on the surface. When pulled into serious matters, he set aside his usual playful demeanor and first investigated the issue of taxes.
Although the crisis in Yingzhou City had been resolved, news took time to travel. With Yingzhou City now leaderless, Shen Du seriously ill, and reinforcements stationed outside to eliminate the remnants of the Fire Moth Party, Shen Du had issued an order for Pan Chi to temporarily take charge of managing Yingzhou.
Initially, the officials were not very convinced by Pan Chi, but after a few days of interaction, they became much more compliant.
Jing Lin's impression of Pan Chi had completely changed, and he greatly admired his decisive and commanding methods that won over the crowd.
As soon as Zhu Yan left for the mortuary, Pan Chi also departed from the government office to patrol the streets.
Upon entering a pharmacy, the apprentice, who had been busy organizing medicinal herbs, called over the physician who was diagnosing patients in the inner room.
"Which of you needs treatment?"
"Not for treatment," Pan Chi replied before Jing Lin could speak. "Currently, Yingzhou City is under the management of myself and this gentleman. Please pardon the intrusion."
Hearing his explanation, the physician's initially tense expression relaxed. He called over the apprentice who had been organizing the herbs to attend to them and returned inside to continue diagnosing patients.
Pan Chi inquired in detail about procurement, taxes, profits, and other matters, and even reviewed the account books. Feeling satisfied, he offered a few words of reassurance before leaving with Jing Lin.
Finally free, Jing Lin asked Pan Chi why he hadn't let him handle things as they walked out.
Unexpectedly, Pan Chi shot him a rather arrogant glance. "I think you'd mess it up."
Though irritated by the remark, Jing Lin knew it was true. He had been selected by Shen Du to join the Inner Guard and had always been responsible for handling cases and overseeing officials. Managing a prefecture was something he had never been involved in.
"Are you skilled at it?"
Pan Chi snorted twice. "I am but a humble talent. My father is a military governor, so I've picked up a thing or two through exposure."
That was hardly modest, but Jing Lin couldn't shake the feeling that he was being looked down upon. Trying to salvage some dignity, he said, "I'm also skilled at managing military camps."
But Pan Chi ignored the remark entirely and had already walked ahead.
Jing Lin scratched his head and hurried to catch up.
Zhu Yan was watched by onlookers all along the way, feeling puzzled. She stopped to listen to what they were saying.
The two people, whether accidentally or intentionally, let her overhear: "Her husband is about to die, yet she still has the heart to care about those dead people?"
"Maybe she's preparing to examine her husband's corpse?"
"I heard she's involved with that Master Pan. 'The sting of a wasp's tail, the heart of a woman is the most venomous.'"
Zhu Yan pretended not to hear and walked straight toward the mortuary.
Upon entering the mortuary, Yingzhou's original coroner saw her and greeted her politely.
Zhu Yan nodded in acknowledgment, her eyes quickly finding her target.Following her instructions, the bodies of Wang Buzui and Xiuxiu were placed on the waist-high stone platform.
She cast aside all the gossip and rumors, focusing now on the two corpses before her.
And these corpses were far more interesting than the living.
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