"So, you’re saying you were bewitched by that little girl?" The man raised his eyebrows, his tone tinged with amusement.
Zhu Yue responded in a defeated manner.
Nangong Yi rubbed his chin, starting to laugh, "That little girl is getting craftier!"
His laugh gradually turned bitter and he concluded with a sigh.
"Since she resents the Dark Guards, you should then protect her openly."
Zhu Yue’s body stiffened for a moment, his drooping face turning green. He muttered, "Yes!"
Cai Wei gradually woke up, no longer feeling cold, and her mind was much clearer. As she opened her eyes, she saw the contrasting faces of Chang Mei and the white-striped tiger, filled with worry and anxiety, anxiously watching her.
"Master, thank heavens you’re awake. You scared us to death."
Seeing Cai Wei awaken, Chang Mei immediately began to complain.
Cai Wei’s eyes moved slightly, and with a hoarse voice, asked, "Where’s Brother Ying? How is he?"
At her words, both Chang Mei and the white-striped tiger fell silent, looking gloomy.
Anxious, Cai Wei urged, "What happened to him? Why won’t you speak?"
As she spoke, she struggled to sit up to see Brother Ying.
"Master, maybe you shouldn’t go now."
The white-striped tiger’s giant paw gently held down Cai Wei, who was about to get up, his voice heavy, "Brother Ying is not in danger, but... but..."
"But what? Speak up!"
As the white-striped tiger stuttered, Cai Wei grew even more frantic, knowing that something must have gone wrong with Brother Ying.
Urged by Cai Wei, the white-striped tiger finally spoke up.
"He was poisoned by the Gu. He’s been sealed by the Great Immortal Turtle."
As his words fell, the room became instantly silent.
Brother Ying was poisoned by the Gu? How could that be? Isn’t Tianjizi a cultivator? How could he know about Gu poison? Could he also raise Gu? How many despicable means does that shameless old demon still have hidden?
After a long silence, Cai Wei calmed down and asked in a gentle voice, "What kind of Gu did he ingest? Can it be cured?"
The white-striped tiger said, "He was poisoned by the ’Soul-absorbing Gu’. His life is not in danger, but the poison has no cure unless the one who laid the Gu dies. Otherwise, he will remain a loyal henchman of that person for the rest of his life."
Hearing this, Cai Wei closed her eyes and took a deep breath, saying firmly, "I will kill the one who poisoned him. I will help Brother Ying get rid of the poison!"
While they were speaking, Master Tortoise slowly entered the room, carrying a bowl of soup medicine. He stopped beside Cai Wei and said, "It was a close call for our master today. Luckily, the poison was mild, and it was detected in time, preventing her from being poisoned by the Gu. Otherwise, who knows what would happen to our Fu You Island!"
Upon hearing this, Cai Wei felt a chill run down her spine. If she had been poisoned by the Gu, wouldn’t she have obediently handed over Fu You Island to that old bull-nosed Tianjizi, and remained under his control for the rest of her life, living a life worse than death?
The old turtle, white-striped tiger, and Chang Mei were all worried. Tianjizi was a powerful man, proficient in dark arts, and he was obsessed with claiming Fu You Island to aid his immortality cultivation. This obsession had already turned into a decades-long fixation, and he would certainly not give up.
It seemed a bloody storm was about to sweep over the island. But, what would be the outcome?
Cai Wei drank the soup medicine given by Master Tortoise, gradually regaining her strength. As she was concerned about her family, and unsure if that damn Tianjizi had deployed any corrupt elements to harm her family, she got up as soon as she felt slightly better. After saying goodbye to the spiritual beasts, she left the Space.
At that moment, the horse was still in the same place, lazily wandering around. The area where Brother Ying had shredded Little Ghost had turned pitch black, as if burned by fire. Fearing that the charred black land would cause some sort of epidemic, Cai Wei used water from the Lingxi River, brought from the Space, to flush the area multiple times until it returned to normal. Then, she began her galloping journey back home.
Along the way, her heart was filled with anxiety. Each time she thought of her family being harmed, her heart clenched in pain. Fortunately, when she got home, everything was normal. Her dad was watching some carpenters repair the restaurant door, and her mom, teamed up with Auntie Liu and Auntie Zhang, was busy steaming dumplings and buns. Cai Fei was sitting by the window on an embroidered stool, working on tassels. Wen’er and Wu’er were studying; one was practicing characters and the other was pretending a long bench was a horse.
Seeing everything at home was normal, Cai Wei’s tense heart relaxed, and she was filled with satisfaction.
"Elder sister is back!"
Seeing Cai Wei, Wu’er abandoned his ’horse’, running towards her with joy, throwing himself into her arms.
Cai Wei picked him up, kissed his chubby face, and asked with a smile, "What did you do today, Wu’er?"
With his big eyes blinking, Wu’er said in a daze, "Listening to stories."
Cai Wei laughed and said, "What kind of stories did you hear? Tell your sister."
Cai Fei looked up and chuckled, "It’s not a story; it’s real. Didn’t you hear that the Lü Family got robbed while you were out all day?"
Cai Wei said, "I did hear something about it, but I don’t know what happened afterward."
"The thief escaped. His accomplice was incredibly skilled in martial arts. He brazenly broke into the Lü Mansion and kidnapped someone right under everyone’s noses."
Wu’er suddenly joined the conversation, his eyes full of admiration as he narrated the incident.
Upon hearing about the kidnapping at the Lü Mansion by the thief’s accomplice from a young boy named Zhu’er, Wu’er’s desire to practice martial arts increased even more. He even secretly vowed to ask Cai Wei’s master to take him as a disciple the next time they met. Her master, who seemed gentle and polite, would likely agree if he came forward sincerely.