“Night Shadow, do I look like such a foolish person?” Chu Mingxuan said speechlessly.
Then, he walked up to Murong Ziyi and said with a smile, “You’re Ziyi, right? I’m a good friend of your elder brother. You don’t need to be afraid.”
“I’m not afraid!” Murong Ziyi replied in a low voice.
He was originally a chatterbox and a very mischievous little boy, but due to his experiences in recent years, his personality had become introverted.
But Murong Ziyi knew that Chu Mingxuan and the others wouldn’t harm him, so he proactively extended his hand for Chu Mingxuan to feel his pulse. Chu Mingxuan smiled at him and also extended his fingers to carefully feel his pulse.
However, as soon as Chu Mingxuan touched Murong Ziyi’s pulse, his expression changed drastically. “Night Shadow, when did you discover his abnormality?”
“When I was in the same carriage with him just now, I accidentally noticed a very faint red line on his arm. But his complexion looked very normal, and the consort was busy saving people, so I called you to take a look at him,” Night Shadow carefully explained the reason.
“He should have been poisoned by a蛊, but I can’t figure out what kind of 蛊 it is for the moment. I need to go back and check the medical books,” Chu Mingxuan said with a serious expression.
“What? He, he was actually poisoned by a 蛊?” Night Shadow was full of surprise.
Chu Mingxuan closed his eyes and nodded slightly.
“You should inform your consort about this matter as soon as possible. I can’t determine the exact location of the 蛊 within him right now.”
Chu Mingxuan said with a tone of shame.
Night Shadow glanced at Chu Mingxuan, then at Murong Ziyi, and asked, “Ninth Prince, do you know when the red line on your hand first appeared?”
Upon hearing this, Murong Ziyi tilted his thin face and recalled the rainy night two years ago. As he thought, he recounted the events to Chu Mingxuan and Night Shadow.
“That night, Aunt Lei Yan and I were eating in the house. A group of masked men in black unexpectedly broke into their room and interrupted our meal. Aunt Lei Yan immediately picked me up, pressed a mechanism under her dining table, and rushed out through the window. That mechanism was designed to defend against enemies. Aunt Lei Yan had only installed it for two months, and I didn’t expect it to be used so soon.”
“After we escaped the house, Aunt Lei Yan pulled me along and we kept running. We unknowingly ran into a dense forest, trying to find a place to hide.”
“However, those masked men in black were highly skilled and numerous. They quickly caught up to us, and before long, they defeated Aunt Lei Yan and took me away after knocking me unconscious. After an unknown period, when I woke up again, I found myself locked in an iron cell, and a faint red line had appeared on my arm.”
Upon hearing this, Chu Mingxuan and Night Shadow exchanged glances, both wondering: Why would those people expend so much effort to capture a mere prince?
“Then how did you escape later?” Chu Mingxuan asked, puzzled.
“Aunt Lei Yan rescued me. I don’t know how she found my whereabouts, but she secretly sneaked into the iron cell and risked her life to save me.”
“Those bad guys kept chasing us and forced us to the edge of a cliff. Aunt Lei Yan jumped off the cliff holding me. Unexpectedly, a large bird swiftly flew over and saved us.”
“The black bird took me to the bottom of the cliff. Those people probably thought Aunt Lei Yan and I were dead and stopped searching for us. At that time, Aunt Lei Yan stayed with me at the bottom of the cliff for a few days. Later, after we emerged from the mountains, we went into hiding in many places.”
“Later, Aunt Lei Yan heard that my third imperial brother had arrived in Tianwu Capital. So, Aunt Lei Yan brought me to the capital. However, we didn’t know anyone in the capital, and we couldn’t find my third imperial brother. Moreover, we had no money, so we had to live in a small village…”
Murong Ziyi spoke a great deal to Chu Mingxuan and Night Shadow in one breath. He should have been a carefree little prince, but he had experienced tragic events that ordinary people would never encounter, which also caused his personality to become introverted and precociously mature.
“Alright, Ninth Prince, don’t dwell on the past. King Leng Jun Mohan is your third imperial brother’s senior disciple. If you stay at King Leng’s manor, with King Leng protecting you, no one will harm you,” Chu Mingxuan said, comforting him as he gently patted Murong Ziyi’s head.
Murong Ziyi nodded silently after hearing this.
In fact, when Murong Ziyi was very young, he had heard from his third imperial brother that he had taken a master to learn martial arts on the mountain, and that he had two senior disciples who had also taken the same master. However, he had not told Murong Ziyi their identities, so he and Aunt Lei Yan did not know to seek help from King Leng.
“Night Shadow, there’s no time to delay. You must quickly inform your King and Consort about the Ninth Prince’s situation, especially the matter of the Ninth Prince being poisoned by 蛊. You must explain it to them in detail,” Chu Mingxuan said with some urgency.
He had a bad feeling seeing the red line on Murong Ziyi’s hand. To avoid any accidents, he needed to be cautious and meticulous.
Afterward, Night Shadow hurried out of Murong Ziyi’s room and rushed towards Jun Mohan’s study.
A moment later, Night Shadow gently knocked on the door of Jun Mohan’s study.
“Knock, knock, knock!”
“Knock, knock, knock!”
Leng Ruoli and Jun Mohan had just emerged from the spatial realm.
“Is something the matter? Speak!” Jun Mohan asked sternly upon hearing the knock.
“My Lord, your subordinate has something to report!” Night Shadow said respectfully, cupping his hands.
“Come in!” Jun Mohan said indifferently.
Immediately, Night Shadow pushed open the door to Jun Mohan’s study, entered, and bowed to Jun Mohan and Leng Ruoli.
“Your subordinate pays his respects to My Lord and My Consort!”
“You may be excused. What is it? Just say it,” Leng Ruoli said to Night Shadow.
“My Lord, My Consort, on the way just now, your subordinate discovered a red line on the Ninth Prince’s hand. Thinking he was ill, your subordinate invited Divine Doctor Chu to examine the Ninth Prince’s body. To our surprise, Divine Doctor Chu informed your subordinate that the Ninth Prince had been poisoned by 蛊…”
Night Shadow recounted everything that Chu Mingxuan had said and what Murong Ziyi had said to the King and Consort Leng.
“Alas, I didn’t expect Murong Ziyi to have gone through so much after disappearing back then,” Leng Ruoli sighed.
“Yes, your subordinate also feels that the Ninth Prince is quite pitiful,” Night Shadow chimed in.
“Hmph! Compared to what I went through back then, his experiences are nothing! Stop being so sentimental, both of you. As a member of the royal family, Murong Ziyi’s experiences can be considered fortunate. Throughout history, countless royal descendants have perished in court conspiracies and power struggles.” Jun Mohan said indifferently.
“Oh, this feudal society is truly too cruel. For power, status, and money, they disregard human lives,” Leng Ruoli lamented.
After her words, Jun Mohan and Night Shadow: “……”
Then, the master and subordinate asked in unison: “Lier (Consort), what is a feudal society?”