novelhk Chapter 118: Poison
Chapter 118: Poison
Lan Fenghuang steadied herself, quickly pushed Zhao Yu's hand away, and whispered reproachfully, "What are you doing? Why won't you let me walk by myself?"
"Shh." Zhao Yu made a shushing gesture, then pointed to several places around him.
"There, a swordsman is hiding; over there, an archer; and over there, there are people everywhere. If you were to walk alone, you'd probably be discovered before you'd even taken two steps."
Blue Phoenix looked in the direction he pointed, focused her senses for a moment, and indeed detected several faint auras.
"So many hidden sentries? No wonder you wouldn't let me walk by myself."
Zhao Yu didn't speak. He walked to the center of the roof and carefully lifted a glazed tile.
Through the gaps in the tiles, one can clearly see the scene inside the heated pavilion.
A thin man lay fast asleep on the couch; judging from his appearance, he should be the current Jiajing Emperor of the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Houcong.
Although Zhao Yu did not recognize him, as an emperor himself, he could still distinguish which items were reserved for the emperor.
"Alright, we can get started." Zhao Yu turned to look at Lan Fenghuang. "Do you have any Gu worms that aren't fatal, but can cause immense suffering, and whose cause ordinary doctors can't detect?"
"You have a lot of demands."
Lan Fenghuang glared at him, but there was a hint of smugness on her face: "But it's lucky it's me. If it were someone else, they might not have this thing."
As she spoke, she carefully took out a white jade bottle from the small pouch at her waist.
I opened the bottle and poured out a tiny, black insect egg, about the size of a grain of rice, and placed it on my fingertip.
"This Gu is called the Dream-Startling Gu."
Blue Phoenix lowered her voice: "At noon on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month each year, when the yang energy is at its peak and the yin energy begins to emerge, seven newly emerged night moths must be collected from a damp valley. Then, mix in three drops of toad venom and three coins' worth of Dream Soul Grass that grows on grave mounds."
"Put everything into a black earthenware jar, seal it with wax, and bury it three feet underground. After forty-nine days, take it out, and you will get the insect eggs. Place the eggs on a dried lotus leaf in the shade, and feed them with morning dew for three days before using them."
"Those afflicted by this Gu will be plagued by nightmares every night, suffer from palpitations and night sweats, and be unable to sleep peacefully. During the day, they will be restless and unable to sit or stand still. Over time, their temperament will also become irritable and easily angered. The most wonderful thing is that this Gu is not fatal. As long as the afflicted person does not commit suicide, the Gu worm will dissipate on its own after half a year, leaving no trace. Even if Hua Tuo were to be reborn, he would not be able to find any cause of the illness."
Zhao Yu exclaimed sincerely, "Truly impressive! The Miao Jiang Gu technique lives up to its reputation."
"You don't need to tell me that." Blue Phoenix proudly raised her chin.
"Alright, let's get started," Zhao Yu said.
Blue Phoenix nodded.
She bit the tip of her middle finger and dripped a drop of blood onto the black insect egg.
The blood dripped onto the insect eggs and was instantly absorbed.
The previously still insect egg suddenly twitched slightly, and then a gray moth smaller than a mosquito hatched from the shell.
Blue Phoenix muttered incantations as it looked at the moth.
The little moth flapped its wings and silently flew down through the gaps in the glazed tiles.
It bypassed the lights and flew straight towards Zhu Houcong, who was lying on the couch.
As the moth flew into the curtain, Lan Fenghuang clapped her hands: "It's done. The Gu will take effect in three to five days. Then, you can do whatever you want with it."
"Thank you, Master Lan." Zhao Yu clasped his hands in thanks to Lan Fenghuang.
"Just a simple thank you?"
Lan Fenghuang stretched, revealing her slender waist. She leaned closer to Zhao Yu, her breath sweet as orchids, and said, "I risked my life to help you with this task, and you just dismissed me with a single sentence?"
"Of course not." Zhao Yu smiled generously. "Killing Dongfang Bubai is Ren Yingying's reward. As for your reward, Leader Lan, I've already prepared it. However, this isn't the place to talk. Let's leave here first."
"That's more like it." Blue Phoenix nodded in satisfaction.
She leaned against Zhao Yu's chest, wrapped her arms around his neck, and said with a coquettish smile, "Then, little prince, I'll trouble you to take me out one more time."
Zhao Yu smiled and shook his head, then reached out and put his arm around her waist.
He carefully returned the glazed tiles to their original positions, then used his lightness skill to leave the Qianqing Palace silently with Lan Fenghuang.
The two stealthily made their way out of the Forbidden City and returned to the Yuelai Inn.
Qianqing Palace, West Warm Pavilion.
After an unknown amount of time, Zhu Houcong suddenly sat up abruptly from the dragon throne, drenched in cold sweat and panting heavily.
"Help! Help!" he shouted.
"Your Majesty."
Zhu Houcong's trusted eunuch, Huang Jin, rushed in, pushing open the door: "Your Majesty, what's wrong?"
"What time is it now?" Zhu Houcong asked, still shaken, as he touched his wildly beating heart.
"Your Majesty, it is already past midnight."
"It's past 1:00 AM..."
Zhu Houcong muttered to himself, "I suddenly felt a chill all over my body and my heart was pounding. Could it be that I caught a cold?"
Huang Jin quickly said, "Should I go and summon the imperial physician to take His Majesty's pulse?"
Zhu Houcong hesitated for a moment, then shook his head: "No need, I feel fine. Bring me a few golden pills first, so I can take some to calm my nerves."
"Yes," Huang Jin replied quickly.
He turned around, took a few golden pills, placed them on a jade plate, and handed them to Zhu Houcong.
Zhu Houcong picked up a pill, put it in his mouth, and swallowed it with warm water.
The pill melted instantly upon entering his mouth, and a warm current slid down his throat, spreading throughout his body in an instant. Only then did his tense nerves relax a little.
"Alright, you may leave." Zhu Houcong waved his hand. "I'll sleep a little longer."
"Yes, Your Majesty, I will wait outside the door. Please give me your orders at any time."
Huang Jin bowed respectfully, turned and left, gently closing the door behind him.
Zhu Houcong lay back down on the couch and closed his eyes.
He tossed and turned for a long time, and only when it was almost dawn did he finally drift off to sleep.
Three days have passed in the blink of an eye.
Over these three days, Zhu Houcong's condition worsened day by day.
Contrary to Lan Fenghuang's expectations, for an ordinary person, it would probably take several more days for the Gu worms to take effect, but Zhu Houcong had been taking the pills for a long time, and his body was already overburdened.
An ordinary person in good health can withstand seven days before the symptoms appear, but for Zhu Houcong, he couldn't even wait until the fifth day; he showed symptoms on the third day.
Since that night, Zhu Houcong has been awakened by nightmares every night and has been unable to fall asleep again.
During the day, he is also absent-minded, restless, and easily angered by the smallest things.
The eunuchs and maids in the palace lived in constant fear, terrified that they might lose their heads at any moment.
All the imperial physicians in the Imperial Medical Academy took turns examining Zhu Houcong's pulse, but none of them could find a solution.