Gu Qianying and Su Cheng, while examining the painting, did not forget about little Yi Hao.
Su Cheng held little Yi Hao’s hand tightly, to prevent any accidents befalling the child. He and Gu Qianying could face one unexpected event after another, but they could not bear to accept any mishap happening to little Yi Hao.
Ever since leaving the inn, little Yi Hao had been following Gu Qianying and Su Cheng everywhere. They had saved people, trekked through mountains, faced malevolent spirits, and walked the bone stairs.
After these few arduous experiences, little Yi Hao’s energy had reached its limit. The child was currently leaning against Su Cheng’s arm, his breathing shallow and steady, having fallen asleep standing up.
Su Cheng looked down, noticing that little Yi Hao had fallen asleep, his eyes softening. He extended the hand not being leaned on by little Yi Hao and gently yet firmly scooped the child into his arms.
In his sleep, little Yi Hao felt the surrounding environment become warmer and more comfortable. He unconsciously shifted slightly, adjusting himself into a comfortable position, and continued to sleep.
Gu Qianying noticed the movement beside her. She lifted her head from the scroll and looked at little Yi Hao, sleeping soundly in Su Cheng’s embrace, a sense of peace and warmth filling her heart.
“He’s asleep.”
Gu Qianying gently stroked little Yi Hao’s small head.
Su Cheng held little Yi Hao, watching Gu Qianying’s tender gesture.
A faint smile touched his lips.
For some reason, at this moment, looking at little Yi Hao, Gu Qianying, and himself together, he felt truly happy.
Then, Gu Qianying and Su Cheng continued to study the scroll that had been unfurled on the table.
Gu Qianying meticulously observed the details of the scroll. Combining this with Wu Xiaolan’s collapsed state earlier, she deduced that the scroll likely contained a potent poison.
Gu Qianying leaned closer to the painting, studying it carefully. She suspected that the potent poison was contained within the ink used to create the artwork.
Gu Qianying spoke softly, informing Su Cheng of her discovery: “The ink used to paint this picture contains a potent poison, but I cannot yet determine what kind of poison it is. I will need a little more time to ponder and identify it.”
To save Wu Xiaolan, they needed to understand the nature of the poison to administer the correct treatment and achieve a full recovery.
Su Cheng listened to Gu Qianying and nodded gently, speaking in a low voice: “Alright, be careful. Do not touch the ink on the painting.”
Gu Qianying was touched and replied, “Mm, I will.”
Then, she became fully engrossed in studying the ink on the painting, trying to identify the type of poison it contained.
Su Cheng held the sleeping little Yi Hao, standing beside Gu Qianying and watching her as she studied intently, not moving an inch, a protective presence at her side. At the same time, Su Cheng couldn’t help but fix his gaze on Gu Qianying.
This brave, resolute, yet also adorable and kind, beautiful woman had experienced so much with him. Through these experiences and their time together, their feelings for each other had grown deeper. Su Cheng thought that if he were with Gu Qianying, he would fear no difficulty. Love could overcome all hardships.
While Gu Qianying was busy researching the type of poison, little Yi Hao was sleeping soundly, and Su Cheng’s thoughts were focused on Gu Qianying, they failed to notice that Wu Xiaolan, who should have been unconscious on the bed due to the poison, had disappeared.
At this moment, the bed in the small thatched hut was empty of the woman’s presence; only a blanket remained on the bed, solitary.
Meanwhile, Gu Qianying pondered meticulously but still could not identify the type of poison.
However, as she observed the patterns on the scroll, she made an unexpected discovery.
Gu Qianying looked at the flow and trajectory of the ink on the scroll and realized that the Fallen Goose painting was not only incomplete but also missing several parts.
In a corner of the painting, there were faint colors that differed from the canvas and the ink.
Gu Qianying narrowed her eyes slightly, looking at that particular section. Seeing Gu Qianying’s action, Su Cheng also leaned in to examine it closely. After a period of contemplation, they began to discuss their findings.
Gu Qianying said to Su Cheng, “Did you notice? Do the unusual marks on this painting resemble a human figure?”
Su Cheng nodded slightly and replied, “Yes, and it seems to be a woman’s figure.”
Gu Qianying was pleased that Su Cheng had discovered the same thing and reached the same conclusion, indicating their tacit understanding and telepathic connection. She continued to say to Su Cheng, “Look closely, this woman seems to be performing an action.”
Following Gu Qianying’s guidance, Su Cheng looked around the marks on the painting, inferring the figure’s actions based on the area surrounding this differently colored mark on the scroll.
“It seems… like a young lady sitting at a table, doing something?”
After Su Cheng shared his thoughts, Gu Qianying was inspired and continued to explore along this line of reasoning.
“Yes, you’re right. It should be a young lady sitting cross-legged at a table. And with this posture… it seems she is playing a musical instrument.”
Su Cheng nodded in agreement after hearing Gu Qianying’s description: “Exactly, that’s it. You are so clever.”
Gu Qianying felt a little embarrassed by Su Cheng’s praise. Moreover, she genuinely believed that without Su Cheng’s presence, she would not have made such discoveries so smoothly.
“It’s fortunate. Without discussing it with you, it would have been difficult for me to make such discoveries.”
After speaking, Gu Qianying prepared to trace the marks on the scroll, to recreate the missing parts of the painting.
Su Cheng brought the inkstone, brush, and ink slab from the table to Gu Qianying and then gently used his internal energy to clean the thin layer of dust from them. Of course, there was no need to bring out Xuan paper at this moment, as Gu Qianying intended to paint directly on the scroll.
However, Gu Qianying glanced at the three treasures of stationery that Su Cheng had brought and said to him, “Please hand me a sheet of Xuan paper. I’m worried that painting directly on the scroll might lead to errors, and if we fail, we might not be able to bear the consequences.”
Upon hearing this, Su Cheng felt that Gu Qianying was right and that his earlier decision not to bring Xuan paper was indeed too hasty. With a slight sense of shame and admiration for Gu Qianying’s meticulous and thoughtful nature, Su Cheng quickly reached for the Xuan paper and spread it out before Gu Qianying.
Gu Qianying looked at the marks on the painting and began to conceptualize on the Xuan paper, envisioning what kind of painting it would be – a lady playing a musical instrument.
Before long, Gu Qianying finished her drawing. Su Cheng looked down at the painting Gu Qianying had created and carefully compared it with the marks on the scroll, finding them to be almost identical.
“Qianying, you are truly amazing. If you paint like this on the scroll later, you will definitely succeed in completing the painting.”
Seeing the high degree of similarity between the painting in front of her and the marks on the scroll, coupled with Su Cheng’s support, Gu Qianying gained confidence.
She dipped her brush in ink and, lifting it, completed the Fallen Goose painting, depicting a beautiful young woman playing a musical instrument.