The tea-serving maid was quickly brought over.
"Speak! Who poisoned the tea?" Zhou Feran asked in a cold voice.
"It was... the miss," the maid answered tremblingly.
Zhou Feran's expression froze, and a uncontrollable fury surged from within his heart, "Bring Yunyun here!"
When Zhou Yunyun learned that Song Yan Ning and her companions were not poisoned, she knew her attempt at poisoning had been discovered, "Brother, you have to save me."
"How could you be so foolish? You knew that father wanted to win those people over, and yet you still... Alas!" Knowing that Yunyun had put poison in the cup, Zhou Batian was both anxious and angry.
"But what's done is done, it's too late for regrets." She had no idea that Song Yan Ning and her people were so astute as to detect the poisoned tea.
Zhou Batian shook his head and saw that the butler was approaching, "All you can do now is go to father and admit your mistake, ask for his forgiveness." It seemed that father was truly infuriated this time, or he wouldn't have sent the butler to call for Yunyun.
"Brother, help me, I'm so scared!" Zhou Yunyun also saw the butler, her heart filling with dread.
Zhou Batian sighed, "Come, I'll go with you."
"I won't go, I'm afraid." Zhou Yunyun shook her head fiercely. Normally, her father doted on her, but when he got angry, she was truly frightened.
Zhou Batian took Zhou Yunyun's hand, "Scared or not, you must go, or father will be even angrier."
"Brother... Brother..."
But this time, no matter how much Zhou Yunyun pleaded, Zhou Batian did not let go, pulling her to the reception hall.
Zhou Feran's face was ashen as he watched Zhou Yunyun being dragged in by Zhou Batian, "You disgrace, kneel down!"
Zhou Yunyun did not dare to resist and quickly knelt down, "Father, I was wrong... Please forgive me this one time... It won't happen again..." She was full of regret for not having killed that maid earlier, for without her testimony, no one would have known that she was the one who had poisoned the tea.
"Do you realize that your actions could have endangered the entire City Lord Mansion?" Zhou Feran declared sternly. He had previously underestimated Song Yan Ning and her group, but after some interaction, he knew that their strength was definitely greater than he had anticipated. If they were provoked, they would surely annihilate his City Lord Mansion without hesitation.
"I really know I was wrong..." Zhou Yunyun trembled with fear, having never seen her father this angry before.
"Take her away and administer twenty strokes of the large plank, and she is not to step out of the City Lord Mansion for half a year, or she'll face severe punishment," Zhou Feran ordered.
"Father! Please spare me, I really won't dare again..." Zhou Yunyun cried and pleaded.
"Father! Yunyun knows her wrong," Zhou Batian also interjected.
But Zhou Feran was resolute, having no intention of forgiving Zhou Yunyun, "Take her away!"
Song Yan Ning was unaware of the happenings at the City Lord Mansion; at that moment, she was with her parents and brothers within Qin Yushen's Spiritual Realm. To enter the Black Thought Stone Mine, each person had to hand over ten thousand High-grade Spirit Stones, but they, having storage bags, naturally would not be so foolish as to pay such an excessive amount.
Qin Yushen approached the registration desk of the Black Thought Stone Mine and handed a Storage Bag to the steward, "I want to go mine Black Thought Stones."
The steward took the Storage Bag, glanced inside, and handed a Jade Token to Qin Yushen, "This is your temporary Identity Jade. Remember! Do not conceal any Black Thought Stones, or you'll face consequences you cannot afford."
Qin Yushen nodded, took the Jade Token, and turned to walk toward the Black Thought Stone Mine.