The news of the Zhang family, the largest medicinal ingredient merchant in Changping County, disappearing overnight spread like wildfire throughout the town. No one knew what had happened. All that was found were empty shops, not a single shop assistant in sight, with counters wiped clean, leaving only some medicinal ingredients that seemed to have been left behind in haste.
Some rival pharmacies or bandits took the opportunity to loot several shops clean, and no one stopped them.
It was only when a neighbor accidentally saw people moving things out of the Zhang family's warehouse and reported it to the authorities that constables sealed the warehouse, putting an end to the farce.
Suddenly, the streets were filled with whispers. Some people wanted to visit Master Zhang's residence, only to discover that Master Zhang himself was already dead. Such a wealthy merchant, whose fortune was immense, had his empire collapse in an instant. It was truly a strange occurrence, even more baffling than the disappearance case from before.
Zhang Chu hastily opened a case, demanding that the constables thoroughly investigate the matter, giving them three months. Those who failed to find anything would be severely punished.
However, there was no clue to be found. There were no signs of a struggle in the shops, nor were there any reports of suspicious individuals entering. It was as if they had vanished into thin air on their own.
The constables lamented their predicament, cursing the mastermind behind this incident.
Meanwhile, the masterminds, Xia Yunting and Chu Qing, were helping Rong Zhi prepare the antidote.
Xia Yunting grabbed the sides of the pot with his bare hands and lifted the scalding hot iron pot, seemingly unfazed by the heat. He poured out the viscous medicinal paste inside and left it to dry in the courtyard.
Chu Qing sorted the various medicinal ingredients brought from the Zhang family, keeping them for future use. The work was done in an orderly fashion, indicating that this batch of pills should be completed soon.
Rong Zhi fanned herself, stirring the medicinal liquid in the earthenware pot.
"Others treat illnesses to make them better, but you deliberately made people go mad." Chu Qing teased.
"It was a roundabout way. Who knew Tang Yuanjiang would think it was a side effect of the antidote? If I had produced a perfect antidote immediately, wouldn't that have exposed me?" Rong Zhi chuckled, recalling the rumors from outside these past two days, and asked with some curiosity, "How did the Zhang family's shop assistants disappear into thin air? Why was there no commotion at all?"
When this was mentioned, Chu Qing paused, his gaze subconsciously drifting to Xia Yunting. He seemed to recall something, a hint of unnaturalness appearing on his face, and he didn't answer.
It was Xia Yunting who spoke, "The Zhang family has been completely taken over by the Blood Drinking Pavilion. To avoid detection, they infiltrated many of their own people. The real Zhang family shop assistants are few."
"So, all those people were... by you..."
"Killed," Xia Yunting replied calmly, as if he had just crushed an ant.
"That's not right. If they were killed, there should be bodies left behind. Why are there no bodies at all?"
At this moment, Xia Yunting's gaze fell on Chu Qing. Chu Qing seemed reluctant to bring up the matter, but under the scrutiny of Rong Zhi and Xia Yunting, he could only mention "corpse dissolving water."
"Oh."
She had almost forgotten. Chu Qing was also a physician. He could develop such a solution. Dissolving the bodies with corpse dissolving water and then masking the smell would leave no trace.
"Then how many people did you kill?"
"One to two hundred." Xia Yunting answered casually, startling Rong Zhi.
One to two hundred? In one night? And without attracting anyone's attention!
Seeing Xia Yunting's matter-of-fact expression, as if it were nothing, Rong Zhi couldn't help but be amazed. Just how capable was Xia Yunting?
Chu Qing continued to focus on his work, unwilling to talk about it. It was too bloody, too bloody indeed!
Moreover, neither the authorities nor the Blood Drinking Pavilion could find any trace, indicating that the deed was done flawlessly. It could only be said that both Xia Yunting and Chu Qing were truly talented individuals.
Perhaps because the Blood Drinking Pavilion was wholeheartedly investigating this matter, no suspicious lookouts appeared outside the mass grave anymore, and Rong Zhi's medicine-making proceeded smoothly.
After successfully producing the first batch of pills, Rong Zhi asked Chu Qing to deliver them to the Zhang family residence for testing, to gauge their efficacy. Of course, the test results were bound to be unsatisfactory; there was no need to even consider otherwise.
As expected, a few days later, Chu Qing returned with news that Tang Yuanjiang was very dissatisfied and wanted them to continue producing.
"Understood," Rong Zhi replied indifferently, not taking it to heart.
"Why isn't Xia Lei home again?" Chu Qing looked around, noticing Rong Zhi but not Xia Yunting, and his expression turned suspicious.
"He went to gather information on the Blood Drinking Pavilion," Rong Zhi replied.
Chu Qing opened his mouth, as if he wanted to say something but hesitated due to some reservations, and swallowed his words.
"Is there something you want to ask me?" Rong Zhi noticed his hesitation.
"Mm..." Chu Qing sat down hesitantly opposite Rong Zhi. After much thought, he decided to be direct.
"What is Xia Lei's relationship with Xia Yunting?"
He had learned some news during his visit to the Zhang residence. The Blood Drinking Pavilion had been searching for Xia Yunting's whereabouts. It seemed Xia Yunting had appeared frequently recently, and the pursuit had become almost an open spectacle. However, each time they failed, returning with nothing.
Hearing this news, his first reaction was surprise.
He had been skeptical of the rumors circulating outside, thinking that the mastermind behind the Blood Drinking Pavilion was Xia Yunting. But now, with the Blood Drinking Pavilion pursuing Xia Yunting, the previous rumors were debunked.
He had inquired carefully about when Xia Yunting arrived in Changping County, and it was around the same time that they had sought his medical help. Moreover, Xia Lei had been going out frequently recently, coinciding with the frequent incidents outside. The timing was too coincidental to not arouse suspicion.
He had originally intended to ask Xia Lei, but the matter of Xia Lei single-handedly eliminating all the Zhang family's shop assistants from the Blood Drinking Pavilion the other night had left too deep an impression on him. After much deliberation, he decided to ask Rong Zhi.
Unfortunately, Rong Zhi did not answer directly, only saying, "I believe if a renowned general of the imperial court were to come to Changping County, he would bring a group of followers, not a wife."
This statement, while seemingly a denial, answered nothing.
Chu Qing saw that she did not want to answer and did not press further, but his suspicion grew.
Rumor had it that Xia Yunting was poisoned by the Seven-Day Fiend Poison, and this woman named Lin Mo happened to be able to detoxify it. If Xia Lei was indeed Xia Yunting and had also come to investigate this matter, then they were on the same side. Should he hand over the evidence he had gathered over the years to them now?
Ultimately, Chu Qing abandoned this thought. That evidence was the only thing that could prove the Blood Drinking Pavilion's crimes; it could not be surrendered so easily.
A few days passed peacefully. Suddenly, there was a knock at the door.
Rong Zhi and Xia Yunting, who were busy, were both surprised. Chu Qing went to open the door and found Li Zhao outside, accompanied by a group of constables.
"Routine investigation." Li Zhao flashed his official token and entered to begin his inspection.
During the process, they saw the large pot placed in the center of the courtyard by Rong Zhi and Xia Yunting. They peered inside but, being unfamiliar with medicine, could not discern anything.
"What is this?" Li Zhao pointed at the large pot and asked Rong Zhi.
"For the medicinal ingredient merchant, the Zhang family. You can ask the Zhang family's steward," Li Zhao's expression changed, and he asked no further questions.
After a thorough inspection, they found nothing but strangely shaped medicinal ingredients, powders, and liquids. One constable was startled by the skeleton that Chu Qing had collected.
Li Zhao took one last look around and waved his hand to his constables, "Let's go!" It was clear that their visit this time was merely a formality.
After the group left, Rong Zhi remarked, "It's been almost half a month, and they still haven't found anything."
"It would be strange if they did," Chu Qing's tone held a hint of pride. Although the efficiency of that night was largely due to Xia Lei's exceptional martial skills, he had also contributed.
Seeing that the constables had gone far away, Chu Qing was about to close the door when he suddenly shouted, "Who's there!" and lunged to the side.
Rong Zhi and Xia Yunting exchanged glances, their expressions showing no concern. They had heard footsteps earlier; their clumsy concealment indicated they were not from the Blood Drinking Pavilion.
As expected, after a short while, Chu Qing's exasperated voice could be heard.
"What are you doing? Stay away from me! Don't come any closer!" Chu Qing ran back as if fleeing for his life, searched the courtyard for something to hide behind, and finally hid behind Xia Yunting, poking his head out to watch the entrance warily.
Xia Yunting's expression turned cold, and he stepped forward, increasing the distance between them.
"Divine Doctor Chu, I mean no harm. I just wanted to see what you were busy with. Is there anything I can help with? Oh, Divine Doctor Lin, you are here too!" Zhang Yajing's face lit up with surprise upon seeing Rong Zhi. She seemed even more delighted to see her fanning herself by the fire.
"Are you brewing medicine? Let me help you! I'm very strong!" She flexed her arm, volunteering to help, as if the presence of Rong Zhi and Xia Yunting gave her confidence, and she wasn't worried about being thrown out by Chu Qing.
"Divine Doctor Lin," Cui Xi followed closely behind, smiling apologetically at Rong Zhi, as if to say: I couldn't stop her!
Rong Zhi shifted slightly to the side, not rejecting Zhang Yajing's offer, but turned to give Chu Qing a look – the peach blossom you attracted, you deal with it.
Chu Qing frowned, his expression displeased.
"Young Lady, we are doing serious work. Can you not come to disrupt us?"
"I'm not here to disrupt, I'm here to help," Zhang Yajing said earnestly. Looking at the large pot before her, she couldn't help but exclaim, "Such a large pot, it must require many hands. Divine Doctor Chu, don't worry, I won't cause you any trouble."
She nudged Cui Xi beside her, who then echoed, "Yes, Divine Doctor Chu, we won't cause you any trouble."
Chu Qing felt a headache coming on.
Although Zhang Yajing was not from the Blood Drinking Pavilion, her presence here made many of their actions inconvenient. Furthermore, this young lady had poor health, and he couldn't speak too harshly. If he inadvertently triggered her symptoms, it would be his fault.
It seemed he couldn't drive her away for now. Chu Qing pondered for a moment, "Alright, then you can stay here."
"Really? That's great!" Zhang Yajing was overjoyed, never expecting Chu Qing to agree. She had intended to be persistent for a while longer.
"Quick, Cui Xi! Go home and get my bedding, my change of clothes, my jewelry, and my defensive weapons! Bring them all!"
Cui Xi's smile was a little strained. "Miss..." This was, after all, where Divine Doctor Chu lived. Was it appropriate for an unmarried young lady to stay here?
"What are you waiting for? Hurry!" Zhang Yajing urged again.
Cui Xi glanced at Rong Zhi, comforting herself. At least Divine Doctor Lin was here, so it should be alright. Besides, she couldn't argue with the young lady, so she agreed and hurried back to her tasks.
Rong Zhi looked at Chu Qing questioningly. He was looking down, his mind seemingly elsewhere, indicating he hadn't devised any good ideas.