Lotus Pavilion cured the poisoning of green tea using modern medical techniques.

Chapter 95 The Vanished Blue Head

Li Lianhua and Su Xiaoyong sat facing each other at opposite ends of the chessboard, while Wu You moved a small stool and sat between them.

"Let's begin."

Su Xiaoyong, holding the black pieces, made the first move, followed closely by Li Lianhua, who played white pieces.

Wu You only knew how to play Go; he didn't understand Go himself and couldn't tell who was winning or losing on the board. So after watching for a while, he got bored.

Playing Go can indeed take a long time; one game can easily last half an hour.

Clearly, Li Lianhua was more skilled, and Su Xiaoyong was defeated.

"I never expected Dr. Li to be such a skilled chess player. I have made a fool of myself."

After playing a game of chess, Su Xiaoyong gained a better understanding of Li Lianhua.

"Not at all, Brother Guan's skills are also quite good," Li Lianhua praised.

"Youyou, why don't you go and treat Guan Xiaoyi? I'll watch from the side."

"I...you're not mistaken, are you?"

Wu You was genuinely surprised. Li Lianhua knew herself well; with that level of skill, how could she possibly be presentable? Was she trying to embarrass her in front of others?

"Miss Wu, do you also know how to play chess? Why don't we play a game?"

Su Xiaoyong tried to persuade her from the side.

"You're just sitting around bored, might as well use your brain for a bit."

Li Lianhua did not change her story despite Wu You's doubts.

It seems they really want to embarrass me. If I determine the rows and columns on the chessboard by counting, will I be laughed at?

No, since it was Li Lianhua who said it, Wu You believed he wouldn't embarrass himself. Then, presumably, Guan Su Xiaoyong's chess skills aren't very good either, perhaps like his own?

I just saw Su Xiaoyong scratching her head, but she couldn't possibly be as bad as me.

Li Lianhua argued with her for almost half an hour. What was it for? Was it to save face for Su Xiaoyong?

Since both of them had said so, Wu You sat down at the chessboard that Li Lianhua had given up.

However, to avoid revealing that he didn't know how to play Go, Wu You directly taught Su Xiaoyong how to play Gomoku (Five in a Row).

"Doctor Guan, so you understand the rules now?"

"I understand, I understand. I never thought there was such a way to play this game. This kind of Gomoku is faster and more intuitive. Actually, I don't really like playing Go."

Su Xiaoyong sighed. She herself only knew how to play Go, and apart from Guan Hemeng and her grandfather, no one else knew. Now, two more people knew.

Now that I know a simpler way to use the pieces, I'm afraid I'll never touch Go again.

"Come on, now that we know, let's play a game and see."

Wu You urged him on, placing his piece first. Seeing this, Su Xiaoyong quickly followed suit.

The two played back and forth, placing their pieces without hesitation, creating quite a lively scene.

By the time their milk tea and snacks on the table were almost gone, the two had already played more than ten rounds. They had both won and lost, but the conversations they had shared had brought them closer together.

It was late at night, and after Su Xiaoyong took her leave, Wu You also offered to see her off with Li Lianhua. There was no other way; it was better to be cautious in this unfamiliar place.

Unable to refuse, Su Xiaoyong went along with the two.

After seeing Su Xiaoyong into the courtyard, Li Lianhua and Wu You said goodbye and left.

The moon was high in the sky, and all around was quiet except for the rustling of the trees in the wind. The moonlight cast long shadows of the two people.

"Why are you so kind to Doctor Guan, and even went to the trouble of bringing her over to play chess?"

Li Lianhua had been curious about this for a long time, but since Su Xiaoyong was always there, she couldn't ask.

"What else could it be? It just catches my eye."

Wu You has no intention of telling Li Lianhua about Su Xiaoyong or anything about Nan Yin right now. He might be able to guess a little, but it's just guessing after all.

If he didn't have that identity, perhaps his life would be much easier.

Li Lianhua stopped in her tracks and refused to move forward.

Seeing that Wu You had suddenly fallen behind, Li Lianhua, who hadn't followed, became somewhat curious.

"Why aren't you leaving? You need to go back to sleep quickly, I'm getting sleepy."

He even yawned after saying that.

"Let me say a few words first, Youyou."

“Okay, go ahead.” Wu You turned around to face Li Lianhua.

"She said some unpleasant things to me this morning, and you immediately retorted, clearly indicating that you didn't find her agreeable."

“Youyou, I know you don’t feel safe here, and everything you’ve done is for my own good. But I don’t want you to suffer for me, nor do I want you to venture into dangerous places for me.”

“I don’t know how you know those hidden things, but I hope you will tell me what you want to do for me so that I can do it.”

"I want you to feel that this place also belongs to you. Beside me, you don't need to feel lost or helpless, as long as you are willing to trust me."

Li Lianhua spoke in a serious tone, and Wu You, unsure of what to say, replied perfunctorily, "Okay, okay, I'll tell you. Let's go back to sleep first."

Wu You turned and walked forward, but after taking two steps, he didn't see Li Lianhua follow.

Turning around, he saw that Li Lianhua was still standing in the same place, so he turned around, walked to Li Lianhua's side, and pulled Li Lianhua's arm to walk forward.

"We can talk about this another day. It's too late today, and I'm really tired. Shall we go back to sleep first?"

Seeing that Wu You was indeed sleepy and had yawned several times, Li Lianhua followed her lead and walked forward, never pulling her hand away.

The two walked quietly hand in hand towards the courtyard, leaving the moon, which had been chasing after them, behind and shutting it out the door.

The next morning, Wu You was still lying in bed, not fully awake, when he was woken up by a cacophony of footsteps and shouts outside the door.

It was too noisy outside, and it was impossible to go back to sleep, so Wu You got up and went outside to check.

"What happened? Why is it so noisy outside?"

Fang Duobing ran in from outside the courtyard: "Quickly, you all pack up quickly. We heard that Jin Mantang, the owner of Yuanbao Manor, has gone missing. Let's go and see him."

Now that they were here, they figured they should be on the front lines to see what was going on. Wu You quickly tidied himself up and headed towards Jin Mantang's room with Li Lianhua and the others.

Upon arriving outside Jin Mantang's courtyard, they found many people already gathered inside. Gongyang Wumen, Su Xiaoyong, and Jian Lingxiao were all present.

Meanwhile, the steward of Yuanbao Manor kept calling out from outside, "Master, Master, Master!"

However, there was no sound coming from inside the house.

"what's the situation?"

"Master hasn't come out yet!" Butler Jin said anxiously.

Fang Duobing looked around and said, "The Thousand Bell Formation is still open and intact. Master Jin should be inside."

"Master Jin, please turn off the Thousand Bell Array," Fang Duobing called out into the house, but no one responded.

"what happened?"

Zongzheng Mingzhu then approached with the people from the Censorate.

"Lord Zongzheng, the patriarch has kept the doors and windows closed. We've been shouting for ages, but there's been no response."

Butler Kim recounted the matter to Jong-jung Myung-joo once again.

Li Lianhua suggested, "Fang is ill and has ruined the Thousand Bell Formation. Let's go in and take a look."

"Alright." Human life is of utmost importance, and Fang, despite his illness, said no more.

Fang Duobing stepped forward, stood in a specific position, and touched the suspended wire. The wire quickly contracted, and Fang Duobing hurriedly spun around to avoid it. Before long, the wire returned to the specific mechanism box.

"The mechanism has been unlocked; you may go in now."

Fang, who was ill, took the lead and pushed open the door to enter.

The group entered Jin Mantang's room and searched the place, but found no one. Even when they called out, no one answered.

"The doors and windows were all locked securely from the inside, so how did the person get out?"

"Since the doors and windows are still locked and the Thousand Bell Array is still open, it's impossible for Jin Mantang to leave the room."

"Butler Kim, where is the secret room in this house?"

"A secret room? I have no idea about that."

Butler Jin seemed puzzled.

Upon hearing this, the people inside the house began searching for the secret mechanisms within the room, conducting a thorough search.

Li Lianhua, however, discovered something different about it.

"Master Jin is known for his extravagant spending, so why would he keep a comb with broken teeth? This comb must be something special, right?"

"Is this the key?" Fang Duobing guessed.

Now that they had the key, the search for the lock became much more focused.

After searching, they found the lock cylinder behind a vase. Fang Duobing inserted the key, turned it gently, and heard the sound of the door opening.

Not knowing what the secret room was like, the group carefully entered with torches.

Just a little way inside the secret room, everyone present saw Jin Mantang lying on the ground, his life hanging in the balance.

"Master, Master!" the butler rushed forward, calling out in alarm.

After waiting for a long time without any response from Jin Mantang, the butler knelt on the ground and pleaded, "Dear doctors, please save my master quickly. Master."

Those present were all knowledgeable in medicine, and upon a glance, they realized that Jin Mantang had been dead for quite some time, so they made no move.

The group walked into the secret room, and only when they got closer did they discover that there was another corpse near the inside, though they didn't know when it had been there.

Butler Jin stepped forward and recognized her at a glance: "It's Dong Ling."

"Golden Antelope Sword Dong Ling?"

"That's right, it's him."

How did he get here?

The clerk from the Censorate carried the two corpses together, and Jian Lingxiao went forward to examine them and drew a conclusion.

"Jin Mantang was strangled to death. He was not poisoned and had no other external injuries."

Li Lianhua picked up the arrowhead from the ground and examined it closely: "This arrow is poisoned."

"Let me take the test."

Gongyang Wumen took out a potion he carried with him from his pocket, put the arrowhead into it, and in an instant, the arrowhead turned bluish-green.

Gongyang Wumen examined it carefully: "It is bitter tongue orchid. The poison of bitter tongue orchid can cause suffocation, nausea, and paralysis of the limbs."

"But Dong Ling actually died from a head injury and excessive blood loss."

Li Lianhua pointed to the bloodstain on the wall and the pool of blood on the ground.

"Could it be that Dong Ling was poisoned, lost control of her body, and died from a head injury?"

Fang Duobing guessed, and others also thought this guess was very likely.

"Could he be the one who threatened Jin Mantang?"

"But Jin Lingjian has always had a good reputation in the martial arts world, and I have never heard of him having any connection with Jin Mantang."

Some people made speculations, while others raised questions.

Later, the group discovered that Dong Ling suffered from tree-person syndrome, which led to other speculations.

While everyone was discussing the Tree Man Syndrome, Butler Jin ran to the side, picked up a box from the ground, examined it carefully, and shouted, "The Blue Head! The Blue Head is gone!"

This item was a valuable treasure that these outsiders were interested in, and upon hearing the call, they hurriedly headed towards Butler Jin.

"This must be why Dong Ling came to Yuanbao Manor. But if Dong Ling is here, where did Bo Lan's head go?"

"Everyone, stop pretending. I'm sure you all know that the Bolan people, who can cure all diseases, are hiding inside this Yuanbao Manor. Aren't you, all of you renowned doctors, curious about this?"

Wow, Su Xiaoyong's single sentence has labeled everyone as suspects.

"Butler Jin has always stayed within Yuanbao Manor and has never ventured into the martial world. How could he recognize Dong Ling, the Golden Antelope Swordsman, at a glance?"

Li Lianhua was even more curious about this.

Everyone present focused their attention on Butler Kim.

"Yes, I recognize him. I would recognize him even if he turned to ashes. Half a month ago, Dong Ling came to see our master. I heard him shouting from afar that he wanted Bo Lan's head."

"What is the Bolan Head? It's a priceless treasure. I've hardly ever seen one in my entire life. Can I give it to him?"

The butler's tone was very excited.

"and after?"

“A few days later, Dong Ling, holding his Golden Antelope Sword, pressed him relentlessly. My poor master, left with no other choice, wounded him with a hidden arrow and drove him out.”

"A hidden blade? The one that was poisoned earlier?"

"Yes. That's the master's personal protective item."

"Dong Ling, having failed to obtain Bo Lan's head, attempted to steal treasure from a secret chamber, only to be discovered by Jin Mantang. Dong Ling, a master of martial arts, strangled Jin Mantang to death. In his dying struggle, Jin Mantang shot out a poisoned hidden dagger."

"With witnesses and physical evidence, the case is closed."

Zongzheng Mingzhu settled the matter with a single sentence.

Although everyone present felt the case was closed somewhat hastily, they didn't say anything.

Subsequently, Zongzheng Mingzhu claimed that Yuanbao Manor had sought help from the imperial court first, and that the supervisors were handling the aftermath, so he wanted to expel everyone.

Li Lianhua stopped them, saying, "Wait! No one here can leave. What if the murderer gets away?"

"Now that Dong Ling is dead, the case should naturally be closed."

"Since Dong Ling came to steal the treasure, and those two are dead, where did the treasure go? The box that contained the head of the Bolan was empty just now."

"unless......"

“Unless there is a third person, that third person is the murderer. He killed someone and stole the head of the Bolan people.”

Fang Duobing echoed Li Lianhua's words.

Li Lianhua then raised her doubts, and someone suggested a possibility, but Li Lianhua questioned it.

The loopholes were too great, and Zongzheng Mingzhu couldn't close the case directly. So he gathered everyone in the hall and asked them to collect any doubts about the case.

After a quarter of an hour of heated debate, it was discovered that everyone present was a suspect, including Wu You and Di Feisheng, who had been standing silently to the side.

In the end, Zongzheng Mingzhu decided that whoever found the Bolan head would be the murderer.

However, despite searching the entire Yuanbao Manor, the head of Bo Lan could not be found.

...............................................................

Lotus Tower Small Theater

Wu You: Afei, watch out, a fight is about to break out.

Flying Flute: What? The treasure is about to appear?

Wu You: Uh... that's right, be careful not to let someone take advantage of the situation.

Flute's Voice: If I don't have any fish, I'll just grab other people's. Even if they end up in someone else's bucket, they'll eventually end up in my stomach.

Fang Duobing: What kind of bandit theory is this?

Li Lianhua: We call this sitting comfortably on the fishing platform.

Flute Flying Sound: This is called one willing to hit and the other willing to be hit.