Chapter 29: Wariness: Ye Yunzhi’s Letter
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
“Eldest Miss, are Qing Hu and Qing Liu really poisoned?” asked Qing Mama in disbelief.
“Yes. They are poisoned with the Yin Yang Poison, which is colorless and tasteless. If it is used in isolation, it is not effective. However, if it is used on two people who not only interact with each other all the time but also eat and sleep together, its potency intensifies. When they die, they will die without exhibiting any symptoms. Even if a physician were to check on them, he would not be able to determine the cause of death.”
Ye Jiuge withdrew her hand. When she noticed how Qing Mama and the two maids’ faces were pale with shock, she consoled them, “Don’t worry. Although this poison is powerful, it’s not difficult to produce an antidote. Tomorrow, I will purchase two sets of medicine based on a prescription I have written and alchemize them. Everything will be fine.”
“That’s great.” Qing Mama breathed a sigh of relief. However, she still found the situation unbelievable. “Why would anyone poison these two maids without rhyme or reason?”
Their conflict with Qiu Mama should not intensify to the point that it endangered their lives.
“You will have to ask Qing Hu and Qing Liu.” Ye Jiuge’s beautiful eyes glinted as her gaze fell on the maids.
“Eldest Miss, we don’t know either!” Qing Hu and Qing Liu shook their heads in panic.
“Eldest Miss, they have only worked at the Qiu Shui Residence for ten days. Even if there is bad blood between them, it should not have escalated so quickly!”
Qing Mama had personally trained the two maids, so she was very familiar with their personalities. Qing Hu was a lively, sweet girl with an intelligent mind, while Qing Liu was very mature and steady as a person. They were not only tolerant of others but also very astute; therefore, how could they bring such misfortune upon themselves?
Ye Jiuge contemplated for a moment then asked, “Perhaps, the two of you saw something that you were not supposed to, so now someone wants to silence you?”
This was the most likely explanation she could think of, but Qing Hu and Qing Liu looked even more baffled. They had rarely ventured beyond the Qiu Shui Residence’s main entrance, so how could they have uncovered any horrifying secrets?
When Ye Jiuge saw that these two maids could not wrap their heads around the situation, she could only say, “Forget about it. You may leave now to get some rest. If you think of anything, come and report it to me!”
“Right.” Qing Hu and Qing Liu were indeed worn out from a distressing day. They saluted Ye Jiuge and left.
“Qing Mama, during this time, you must watch the Qiu Shui Residence more closely.”
Ye Jiuge had a premonition that the Qiu Shui Residence was about to experience some turbulence. Su Yufeng must be planning to dispose of Fifth Concubine and her daughter. This must be why she was in a hurry to drive Qing Hu and Qing Liu out of the residence.
“Noted,” Qing Mama replied, nodding solemnly. She agreed that what had happened to Qing Hu and Qing Liu was unusual.
From then on, Qing Mama personally kept tabs on the Qiu Shui Residence. She did not expect the days at the Qiu Shui Residence to be exceptionally peaceful. However, after Su Yufeng was released from confinement, she reverted into the kind, gracious Madame that she had pretended to be before. Not only did she send gifts to the Qiu Shui Residence often, but she also asked Ye Shanshan to visit Ye Ruyi personally to teach her about the basics of elixir production. The two sisters were getting along well.
Other than trying to entice Fifth Concubine and her daughter into siding with them, Su Yufeng and her daughter also conveyed their goodwill to Ye Jiuge repeatedly by sending over Zhi Hua laden with gifts. Although the presents were nothing valuable, they seemed to have some thought behind them and were prepared with the utmost care.
Ye Jiuge continued to accept the gifts with reticence. As soon as Zhi Hua stepped out of the door, she threw them away. She asked the servants to pay more attention to the food that was given to her. Ye Jiuge instructed them, again and again, to prevent any cat or dog from eating the food, so that poison would not destroy their innocent lives.
Initially, Ye Jiuge thought that her actions would anger Su Yufeng and her daughter. Most unexpectedly, Shuimo Garden did not respond at all and carried on sending her presents.
The longer Su Yufeng and her daughter acted this way, the warier Ye Jiuge became.
One evening, Ye Jiuge was alchemizing the antidote for the Yin Yang Poison in the Elixir Production Room. Qing Liu and Qing Hu were critically poisoned. They needed to ingest the antidote three times before the poison would be completely neutralized.
When she was done alchemizing the poison, night had fallen. The corridors surrounding the residence were brightly lit with rows of lamps. Zhen Zhu was carrying a Lamp of Eight Treasures Palace as she kept watch outside. When Ye Jiuge saw her emerge from the room, Zhen Zhu moved forward to light the way. As Ye Jiuge walked back to her room, her heart lurched.
Someone was following her.
Ye Jiuge discreetly activated her Spiritual Eye. She pretended to sweep her gaze around her surroundings in a relaxed manner. However, she did not discover anything unusual.
Perhaps, it is merely her imagination?
She grew wary. Then, in her mind, she summoned, “Zi Shang, Zi Shang!”
Unfortunately, Zi Shang did not respond. After he had provided her with the technique to activate her Spiritual Eye, she had stopped hearing from him. He did not even claim his reward. This really did not seem like him. However, Ye Jiuge did not worry that he was in trouble. He was a powerful demon; even if everyone on this planet was wiped out, nothing would happen to him.
“Eldest Miss, there is a door ledge here. Please be careful!”
Zhen Zhu lowered the Lamp of Eight Treasures Palace and illuminated the threshold in front of them. As Ye Jiuge lifted her leg and stepped over it, she noticed a shadow flitting around the area where the lamp glowed—it was like a ghost.
Immediately, she was on her toes. However, her face remained calm. After she returned to her place, she drank a bowl of almond milk.
“Eldest Miss, I have heated up some warm water. Would you like me to attend to you now so that you can wash your face and rinse your mouth?” Zhen Zhu asked as she took the empty bowl from Ye Jiuge’s hands.
“I will do it later. I am a bit tired now, so I want to rest for a while!” Ye Jiuge refused Qing Mama and Zhen Zhu’s service and went back to her room by herself.
As soon as she stepped into her room, she immediately raised her hands and cast a purple Spiritual Light towards an empty corner to her left. The purple light contacted something, causing it to gleam. Ye Jiuge intensified the purple light coming from her hands. She was about to cast it again when she heard a clear, reluctant voice say, “Eldest Miss, how did you manage to see through my Invisibility?”
As the voice spoke, grey light flashed around the corner, and a gorgeous male face materialized. His black, ninja garb complemented his height, and his skin, which was similar to white jade, s.h.i.+mmered as if a lamp were s.h.i.+ning on it.
The red mole between his brows accentuated his attractiveness. It was Ye Jiuge’s male slave, the a.s.sa.s.sin Ye Yu.
“I will, of course, have my own way. On the other hand, you should have returned in plain sight. Why must you walk behind me in such a sneaky manner?”
When Ye Jiuge caught sight of Ye Yu, although she relaxed slightly, her words did not spare him, “You should be careful. I might mistake you as an a.s.sa.s.sin and kill you.”
“Eldest Miss, you have wronged me. I could not have appeared in front of your maid!”
Ye Yu had uttered a half-truth. Last time, after his tracks were easily detected by Ye Jiuge’s spiritual eye, he refused to acknowledge that she could see through his Invisibility. He felt that he could not perform well during the day, so he wanted to try to test her again at night. To his surprise, Ye Jiuge had seen through his Invisibility again. This time, even if he did not want to admit it, there was nothing he could do.
“You have been away for some time. Did you manage to find out anything?” Ye Jiuge sat down in front of the table. She poured herself a cup of tea and drank it.
Ye Yu had been gone for more than ten days without any news. She had feared that the Crown Prince and Su Junqin had caught him.
“I did find something.” With a serious expression, Ye Yu pulled a letter out of his sleeve and pa.s.sed it to Ye Jiuge. He said hoa.r.s.ely, “This letter was sent by my sister in secret. Please, have a look!”
“You found your sister?” Surprised, Ye Jiuge accepted the letter.
“I did not. I located an abandoned residence using the Ye Clan’s unique, secret code. However, the residence is uninhabited. I could only find this letter in a secret compartment.” Ye Yu shook his head.
When he had first discovered the secret messages, he had worried that they were a trap. Luckily, his sister had not disappointed him.
“What a pity.” Ye Jiuge shook her head before opening the envelope.
As she began to read, her expression changed considerably.