Chapter 171: Chapter 85 Threatening Him_2
Perhaps people who have lived with fear for a long time have an instinctive intuition about danger. Or maybe Duan Xiaoyan’s tracking methods were too green, and his gaze too intense, making it difficult to ignore even if one tried.
Almost immediately, she noticed the gaze following her.
Lu Tong’s eyes moved to the space between Duan Xiaoyan’s elbow.
On the young boy’s arm, blood dripped continuously, and within the blurry stain of red, the sharp points of two fang marks were visible.
They were the bite marks of a snake.
In the market, she felt a gaze on her back, someone closely following her, never leaving for a moment, yet making no other moves, as if waiting for something.
The follower didn’t act, so she changed her plans.
Lu Tong bent down, and amidst the astonished gaze of the boy, picked up the soft, limp worm in front of the door.
The snake was already dead, its dark corpse winding around her pale yellow silk sleeve, like a dead vine climbing a fresh flower, all while emitting a dark and cold luster.
Duan Xiaoyan watched it and felt the arm that was bitten earlier begin to swell and ache once again.
Lu Tong reached out her finger, brushing it over the rough snakehead, and spoke softly.
"This is called Seven Steps Death, I had someone look for it for a long time before finding it. I just put it in this morning, and I hadn’t thought that Young Master Duan would come across it," she said.
She glanced at the wound on Duan Xiaoyan’s arm, her expression hesitating as if she wanted to say more.
Duan Xiaoyan, feeling creeped out by her gaze, couldn’t help but ask, "What is Seven Steps Death?"
"Doesn’t Young Master Duan know?" she asked.
"Seven Steps Death is a highly venomous snake. Anyone bitten by Seven Steps Death will surely be dead within seven steps."
Upon hearing this, the room fell silent for a moment.
Soon after, Duan Xiaoyan turned white and stuttered, "You, you’re joking, right? Doctor Lu, don’t deceive me."
Lu Tong chuckled.
"Why is Young Master Duan so scared? There’s no snake in the world that can take down a person within seven steps," she said.
Duan Xiaoyan, relieved by her words, was about to crack a smile when he heard her continue to speak.
"One hour," she said.
He blankly asked, "What?"
Lu Tong looked at him, the smile on her face fading as she spoke in a calm and unrippled tone.
"One hour after the bite takes effect."
"Without the antidote within one hour, Young Master Duan, not even Yama can save you," she said.
...
The night wind was chilly, and under the lamplight at the eaves, a black dog lay in the courtyard, blending into the darkness of the night.
When Pei Yunmeng returned to the Palace Marshal’s Mansion, it was almost Hai Hour.
Throughout the office, vases were filled with freshly cut osmanthus, filling the hall with the fragrance of the flowers. Tomorrow was the fifteenth, and the office had a day off; many of the Imperial Guards had left.
Early today, he entered the palace. The case of the male corpse on Mount Wangchun wasn’t big, but it wasn’t small either. Stuck in the contribution case of the Ministry of Rites, it inevitably gave those with ulterior motives something to write about.
Without mentioning the delicate relationship between the three yamen, the Privy Council would certainly not miss such an opportunity. Fortunately, the emperor was currently too preoccupied to pay attention to the Palace Front Office, so the matter was considered over.
Pei Yunmeng sat down in the room and poured himself a cup of tea from the pot on the table.
The tea was warm and slightly bitter. After a couple of sips, not hearing the usual clamor, he asked the guard Qingfeng at his side.
"Is Duan Xiaoyan not here?"
Qingfeng replied, "Responding to Master, Duan Xiaoyan left early in the morning, saying he was going to stroll around the market."
Pei Yunmeng paused in his tea-drinking.
After a moment, he asked, "When did he leave?"
"Near Si Hour."
Pei Yunmeng slightly furrowed his brows.
Duan Xiaoyan left at Si Hour, and it was close to Hai Hour now. Six hours had passed, and tomorrow being a holiday for the fifteenth at the office, he was supposed to return for roll call, but there was still no sign of him.
Seeing the concern, Qingfeng asked, "Does Master sense that something is amiss?"
After meditating for a moment, Pei Yunmeng said, "Did he say anything before he left?"
Qingfeng shook his head, "Nothing. He just seemed less enthusiastic, perhaps bothered by the male corpse case on Spring Mountain."
Spring Mountain...
Upon thinking of something, Pei Yunmeng’s eyes narrowed.
Outside the window, the night sky was low, and the breeze made the courtyard’s paulownia trees rustle.
He suddenly stood up, grabbed the silver knife from the table, and marched towards the door.
...
The night grew deeper.
In the bushes of the small courtyard, a few crickets chirped quietly. The night-lights hung by Ah Cheng under the eaves had dimmed, and only the silver Wind Chime underneath spun in the wind.
The flickering lamp struggled against the night wind, as if it might go out at any moment. The mottled light and shadow fell on the face of the person sitting at the table, making her distinct facial features appear even softer.
The youth sat motionless on the ground, stiffly watching the person at the table grinding medicine calmly and unhurriedly.
She didn’t find anything amiss; after informing him that he was poisoned, she simply sat down at the table, picked apart the dried herbs from the bamboo tray as if nothing had happened, and attended to her work as usual.