Chapter 1116: Because duty calls (1/2)
After bidding farewell to Pill Furnace Master and Ye Xiao, Long Feiye and the rest galloped away madly towards the north. None of them brought up Han Yunxi’s pregnancy again, nor did Long Feiye blame Gu Beiyue for hiding the truth.
When people left things in their hearts, there were usually two reasons. One was to allow the facts to ferment before an explosive reaction one day. The other was because there was no need to discuss it any further as long as everyone was on the same page. For these men, it was probably the latter.
Aside from making time, they did nothing else during the trip. Gu Qishao led the group in the very front through shortcuts connecting Medical and Medicine City. He had taken these paths since he was a child countless times. Occasionally, he’d glance back at Long Feiye--one because he was puzzled as to how the man could shoulder such heavy swords, and two because of the Moye sword. Since the Ganjiang sword had returned to Long Feiye’s side, it was likely he’d be stuck following the guy until the Moye sword spirit was moved into its new blade. Of course, no one cared about things like that at a time like this, but if Poison lass was here, she’d probably be laughing at him by now.
If Poison lass is pregnant, will she lose her appetite and not eat well?
Just where did they lock her up? Can she sleep well there?
And what about those signs of miscarrige? Will it affect her health in any way?
Gu Qishao’s mind was filled with questions as he looked at Long Feiye and wondered what he could be thinking about? Over the past three months, Gu Qishao had not only ran all over the place looking for Han Yunxi, but also tracked down some Qimen Dunjia masters to study the art himself. He’d like to see how Bai Yanqing would try to trap them again. Although similarly possessed of an immortal body, he was at least younger than the other guy. He was waiting to fight him face to face! Even if Gu Beiyue couldn’t promise that Fourth Young Miss Ren was in Bai Yanqing’s hands, this was still a clue.
Compared to the fruitless search of the past three months, this was a great piece of news. Still, none of them had time to celebrate while they rushed on the road. They just wanted to reach Medical City faster and start searching from there. They were so preoccupied by the fact that none of them thought to send a letter to Ning Cheng in Northern Li about the update. Meanwhile, the letters that Ning Cheng mailed to Tianan would have to make a few more rounds until they reach Gu Beiyue’s hands. For now, he was in the battlefield of a small skirmish. Despite this, he had to endure the worry in his heart and work himself to the bone to kill his enemies.
Mu Linger was away in the distant Tang Clan, looking after little Tang Tang. She too, was worried and anxious, but she listened to Lady Tang’s coaxing and didn’t leave the mountain to cause a ruckus. Her paltry martial arts skills would already be a hassle against Bai Yanqing’s poison guards, to say nothing of the man himself. Mu Linger wasn’t just worried for her big sis, but also Gu Qishao. She knew Qi gege had to be running around Cloud Realm Continent for the past three months. A few days ago, the Di Clan’s Myriad Merchant Hall’s Fifth Elder wrote to ask about transferring a shipment of medicinal ingredients for urgent use in Ning Cheng’s army. Mu Linger thus remembered Jin Zi as well.
Even now, Jin Zi had never contacted her, much less ask her to return. One year ago, he had kept to his promise. Mu Linger would sometimes ask herself if she was the same as well. Little Tang Tang wasn’t an infant in swaddling clothes anymore, but someone who could lift her head and even sit up. Her eyes were extremely big and glowing with health and vigor, a lively pair of pupils. Lady Tang thought they resembled Tang Li’s, but Mu Linger felt they looked more like Ning Jing’s. Everyday, she would go with Lady Tang and little Tang Tang to sit outside in the mountains for a bit. Although she knew the baby’s parents weren’t coming back anytime soon, she still persisted in the daily ritual of waiting for their return. To Lady Tang, this was probably the sole highlight of her days.
“Lady Tang, will Tang Li take a concubine if he returns?” Mu Linger had been wanting to ask this question for a while now, for Ning Jing’s sake.
Lady Tang paused for a long while before she remarked, “This isn’t something for me to decide.”
Mu Linger immediately understood. She suddenly wished that Tang Li and Big Sister Jing didn’t come back. Instead, she wanted Tang Li to rescue Ning Jing and go far, far away. She’d be in charge of smuggling their daughter down the mountain and into their arms! Tang Li already knew that Ning Jing was incapable of bearing any more children, so he should be clear on the consequences if he brought her back to the Tang Clan.
Seeing Mu Linger fall silent, Lady Tang patted her on the shoulders and added, “Don’t think so much. As long as they can return safely, my little granddaughter will be stronger than anything with her father and mother behind her!”
“Yes!” Mu Linger nodded earnestly.
Little Tang Tang seemed to sense their grief, because she pursed her lips and suddenly burst into tears. Lady Tang quickly picked her up to coax her, her face wreathed with pain.
While the ignorant continued to wait anxiously for news, those with an inkling were even more tense. A few days later, Long Feiye’s group arrived secretly in Medical City. He had already instructed the shadow guards to spread false news beforehand that they were in Jiangnan. If Bai Yanqing was hidden in Medical City, then the fake news should dull his senses to them for a bit.
Upon their arrival, Long Feiye’s first task was not to start a wife-hunt because Fourth Young Miss Ren had only sent out a single clue. Where there was a first, there’d sure to be a second. Long Feiye knew Han Yunxi well enough to trust that she could use the shortest possible timeframe to send out decisive details within the prescriptions. Thus, they would secretly stand guard and wait to avoid startling the snake in the grass. Meanwhile, they’d encircle all of Medical City and the most suspicious Poison Sect’s forbidden grounds in case Bai Yanqing sensed something amiss and escaped.