Chapter 259: Chapter 109: Covering for Him_3
Shen Fengying pointed to a few other porcelain jars, "These as well?"
Lu Tong handed the oil lamp to Yin Zheng, then walked over to the other jars, lifted their lids, and gestured for Shen Fengying to take a closer look.
In the other jars were scorpions, centipedes, and toads in succession.
Shen Fengying stared at Lu Tong, speechless for a long time before he finally said, "Doctor Lu, are you trying to create a ’gu’ poison?"
As a man, even he felt uneasy and short of breath at the sight of these creatures, yet Lu Tong, a delicate young woman, seemed completely unfazed, almost as if she enjoyed dealing with these things.
If he didn’t know West Street well enough, Shen Fengying would have doubted whether he had walked into a clinic from the netherworld.
"Lord Shen may not know, but there are seven affections in medicine: solitary, symbiotic, commanding, antagonistic, contrary, and murderous."
"Those that are murderous counteract each other’s toxicity. Placed correctly, these poisonous creatures can also become a recipe for saving lives."
Shen Fengying, still puzzled, glanced again at the kitchen. Seeing nothing else suspicious besides the jars, he beckoned the Pawn Shop Soldiers behind him to exit first.
The soldiers followed Shen Fengying out of the kitchen and into the small courtyard, where a bitter north wind was blowing fiercely, sending flurries of snowflakes drifting onto their bodies.
As Shen Fengying passed the plum tree in the courtyard, he recalled his last visit, when he had searched the clinic high and low with great bluster, only to come up empty-handed. This memory brought a sense of unjustified guilt and a touch of embarrassment.
After all, he didn’t actually harbor any bad feelings toward Lu Tong.
During his last visit, Doctor Lu and the Commander of the Imperial Guards, Pei Yunmeng, had staged an elaborate play in front of the Military Inspection House in order to implicate Prince Wen’s Mansion. Shen Fengying knew about the aftermath: Pei Yunmeng’s sister—Princess Wenjun—successfully secured a divorce, left Prince Wen’s Mansion, and the consort who had hired the assassin, along with the empress in the palace, both fell into disgrace.
Shen Fengying was aware that he had been used as a pawn by Pei Yunmeng, and he was prepared to offend Prince Wen and eventually be ousted from the Military Patrol House. Surprisingly, after the incident, his superior personally sought him out to exchange pleasantries and thoughtfully expressed that the matter had been difficult for him to manage, but he handled it well. A promotion in the future seemed inevitable.
Whether the promised promotion would come to fruition remained to be seen, but at least it put Shen Fengying’s mind at ease for the time being.
He understood that it must have been Pei Yunmeng who had spoken to the Military Patrol Shop on his behalf to prevent him from being troubled by Prince Wen afterward.
With that, Shen Fengying’s dislike for Pei Yunmeng diminished significantly.
If it were not for an order from the City Guard tonight, he wouldn’t have come to trouble Lu Tong in the middle of the night.
While he was thinking, Lu Tong, walking ahead of him, suddenly paused and coughed twice.
Shen Fengying shuddered and quickly looked toward her.
Having come out in a hurry due to the late-night disturbance, Lu Tong was clad only in a thin outer garment over a plain white inner robe. Her hairpin had been removed, and her long black hair hung down to her chest. She looked frail and innocent, almost clueless, standing under the lamplight amidst the snow, like a snow-white magnolia blossoming against the wind, too fragile for the winter cold.
The sight of the ailing beauty immediately filled Shen Fengying with a sense of pity and guilt; he hurriedly said, "I apologize for the abrupt disturbance tonight, Doctor Lu. It was inconsiderate of me."
"Now that there’s nothing amiss here, I’m sorry. Doctor Lu, you should head back inside to rest." He waved his hand to signal his men, "Let’s go!"
The soldiers, just as hurried as when they had arrived, left the scene, leaving messy footprints in the courtyard’s snowy ground.
Lu Tong tightened the garment around her, holding the oil lamp as she watched the last of the Pawn Shop Soldiers leave the clinic. She then stood by the clinic’s door for a long while, until there was no more movement outside, before finally bringing the lamp to the small courtyard.
Yin Zheng stood at the doorway of the bedroom, glancing inside, then looked at Lu Tong with a worried expression, "Miss..."
"It’s okay. You stay inside the shop and keep watch. Be cautious in case someone comes over."
Still hesitant and worried about the possibility of people returning, Yin Zheng left with her lantern.
The orange light glowed faintly through the cracks of the latticed windows at the bedroom entrance.
Wind and snow outside, the warmth of the charcoal stove inside—a mere door separated the two, nestled as if in two different worlds.
Lu Tong stood at the entrance for a moment, then pushed the door open and entered.
Upon entering, a wave of warm air greeted her.
In a corner of the room, a brazier had been lit, the latticed window was half-open, and the rugged plum branches framed in the window view stood unmoved in the cold wind.
In the boudoir, Pei Yunmeng stood with his back to Lu Tong, in front of a small Buddhist shrine.
After Lu Tong closed the door behind her, she looked at his figure and said, "Lord Pei, everyone has left."
Pei Yunmeng turned around.
Before the small shrine, incense and candles had been lit, casting a dim glow in the room. His silhouette clad in black, with handsome features, he resembled a capricious and dangerous spirit that had suddenly materialized before the seat of Guanyin on this wintry night.
Seeing Lu Tong looking his way, he smiled and spoke, his tone laced with teasing.
"To be so easily fooled by you, it’s no wonder that the security in Shengjing has been worsening."