“Da xiaojie!” Both Si Qiang and Yize exclaimed as Su Jing Fei exited the wagon. They both noticed the child in her arms and gave a look of surprise.

“Is that the child of the Guo family you met yesterday?” Yize asked frantically, a worried look on her face. “Is he alright?”

“Yes, he’s fine. He’s just unconscious,” Su Jing Fei replied, moving back towards their carriage. She struggled carrying Mingyu a little bit because the young boy was heavy and her body was still the weak body of a young girl, but luckily, Si Qiang noticed this and gladly offered to carry him. Carefully, Si Qiang moved into the carriage to lay Mingyu on the cushioned seats. Yize stood by the carriage door, looking worriedly inside.

Su Jing Fei stood aside, feeling like something was off. The skin on the back of her neck tingled slightly as it caught a cold breeze, and the trees rustled quietly. Ominously. Though Su Jing Fei was no martial arts expert, she was very perceptive and had quite a keen eye as well; this had helped her with her job in her previous life, and her intuition had also saved her a few times from trouble. From the corner of her eye, she caught a small movement from the trees. Her gaze flew to its direction, staring at the edge of the forest. Was it just the movement of the rustling leaves in the wind? Or possibly a small animal scurrying up a tree? The brief moment of fear she had felt caused her senses to heighten, but her figure remained relaxed, calm.

Si Qiang stepped out of the carriage and helped Su Jing Fei onto it. As the carriage door closed behind them, Su Jing Fei gave a clear order. “We must quickly get to Fuo Lan!” The carriage jolted forward again. The path was slightly rocky at first because they had to go around the wagon carriage blocking the path, but they quickly moved past and headed towards Fuo Lan without another moment wasted. Sitting in the carriage, Su Jing Fei had Mingyu’s head resting on her lap, and she felt a sense of guilt looking down at his innocent face. They still didn’t know where his parents were, but she knew they couldn’t linger there either. Whoever had attacked them were probably still searching for Mingyu. They hadn’t been attacked by any ordinary bandits… The troubles that lied ahead caused Su Jing Fei to furrow her brows in thought. There were too many unknowns, too many variables, too many questions, and not enough answers. She could only wait and see what the best course for action would be after reaching Fuo Lan.

Unfortunately, even though they had moved faster than usual, Fuo Lan was still too far away, and they had to make a detour to a small town due to Mingyu developing a fever. They entered the small town, settling into the only inn available. It was a small town with rarely any travelers, so they were able to secure rooms with no trouble.

“Si Qiang, come with me to take Mingyu up to the room. Yize, take this and ask the innkeeper to call for the nearest doctor available!” Su Jing Fei handed over some silver taels and a small silver plate bearing the identification of the Su family to the young yatou; it had also come with the gifts from Su Lao Furen.

Yize nodded and left quickly. Si Qiang followed Su Jing Fei up to the rooms and entered a small bedroom, placing the child carefully on top. “Get the innkeeper to prepare two towels and a bowl of cold water!” She ordered Si Qiang with a wave of her hand. He obliged and left quickly, returning with the aforementioned items within a few minutes. Soaking the towels in cold water, Su Jing Fei wrung out one of them before placing it on Mingyu’s feverish forehead. Her thoughts were racing a mile a minute, trying to find the best course of action. Travelling while Mingyu was this ill… would be dangerous and detrimental. They would have to stay here at least for the night. “Si Qiang, how far is Fuo Lan from here?”

“About two hours, da xiaojie,” Si Qiang answered promptly.

They had travelled a considerable amount, but there was still so much distance! But time couldn’t be wasted. “Si Qiang, take the healthiest horse and ride to Fuo Lan as fast as you can. The Guo family needs to be informed about Mingyu being in our care as well as the situation we found him in. Take the Guo family identification plate with you as well and get the Su family’s plate from Yize on your way out!”

“Yes, da xiaojie!” Si Qiang bowed respectfully before leaving quickly.

She was glad for Si Qiang’s obedience but also made a mental note to keep an eye on him. After all, he was still a servant of Su Lao Furen. She didn’t have time to worry about it now though, as her mind became occupied with taking care of the sick and feverish child on the bed.

“Da xiaojie, this lowly one has returned with the town doctor!” Yize’s voice rang out, pulling Su Jing Fei’s attention back to reality.

Su Jing Fei didn’t waste another moment, greeting and thanking the doctor for coming at such short notice before immediately guiding him to Mingyu’s bedside. She watched as he took a pulse, furrowed his eyes, and examined a bit more of the child’s physical appearance. After a few minutes, the doctor turned to Su Jing Fei and spoke to her respectfully. “There is nothing wrong with this child. He is physically fine. However, when the mind is troubled, the body can react to the ill thoughts. This is merely a fever of the mind, and he should be better by tomorrow. However, to increase his mental strength and cleanse his internal energy, use these herbs to cook a simple soup for his meal after he awakens.” The doctor placed a bottle of herbs on the bedside table.

Su Jing Fei thanked the doctor for his service, and with a touch of gratefulness, she even personally saw him on his way out. However, when she returned to the room, Su Jing Fei picked up the bottle of herbs, staring at it intently. “Yize, do you know anything of medicine?”

Yize blinked, surprised at her master’s odd question. “Unfortunately no, da xiaojie. This lowly one was not taught in the ways of medicine.”

Su Jing Fei guessed as much, but continued to ask another question. “Do you recognize these herbs?”

Yize squinted her eyes, staring at the bottle. “No, this lowly one doesn’t recognize the herbs, but also this lowly one has little experience with herbs.” The young yatou was feeling suspicious at her master’s questioning. However, Su Jing Fei didn’t give her a chance to speak before a command followed shortly after.

“Take these to the innkeeper and ask him to prepare a simple soup with half of each of these herbs.” Su Jing Fei handed a few silver taels to Yize along with the bottle of herbs from the doctor.

“But aren’t these herbs for young master Mingyu?” Yize asked questioningly, confused at her master’s command. The young yatou knew her master cared for the Guo family’s young child, so why would she use these herbs herself?

Su Jing Fei sighed, settling down at Mingyu’s bedside again to change the towel on his forehead. “We don’t know this doctor, and I don’t want to take any chances. The Guo family has just been attacked, and his parents are still missing. Who is to say that these people aren’t our enemies? We must stay vigilant. Although I also cannot guarantee this innkeeper’s innocence, so that is why you will personally stay with the cook to watch them prepare the soup.” She was being overly suspicious of course, but it was better to be alive and suspicious than dead and ignorant.

Yize’s eyes widened at her master’s deep thinking as though she had just been awoken to reality. Her master was really sharp! Those thoughts hadn’t even crossed her mind, and so the young yatou could only gain more respect for her master. However, she had also realized that her master had intended to take the danger for herself! If the herbs were poison, wouldn’t her master be poisoning herself by eating the soup?

As the young yatou was just about to say something, Su Jing Fei held up a hand to silence her. “Do as I say, Yize. Remember what I told you earlier? You must trust in me as I trust in you.”

With those words, Yize could not refute them. The young yatou bit back her argument and bowed respectfully before quickly leaving the room.

Su Jing Fei let out a small sigh, feeling a small headache jumble her thoughts. She’d been on guard for the entire day, and it was exhausting to always be thinking ahead, trying to see the moves of enemies before they took place. It also didn’t help that she had a small inkling, deep in her gut, that they had been followed by someone. And that someone had followed them from the forest all the way to the town with no trouble… they had to be skilled in martial arts! Could it be the famed flying leap, where martial artists can traverse many miles on foot with a few leaps? She couldn’t know for sure. The rules and science of martial arts were always a mystery to her. What she did know was that that someone had no ill intent for now or else they would’ve been dead long before they reached the small town. But now, it was late, and the sky had long ago turned dark. She returned her attention to caring for Mingyu and didn’t give it another thought. The leaves of the trees from outside the room’s window rustled slightly in the wind.

It was a while before Yize returned with a few servants carrying dishes. They carefully set the array of dishes onto the table and then respectfully bowed before Su Jing Fei. She dismissed them with a wave of her hand and a quick thanks before they left the room. Yize stood at the table explaining the dishes to Su Jing Fei. “This lowly one was permitted to accompany the cook after expressing to the innkeeper about master’s... picky eating habits.” The young yatou’s cheeks reddened a bit after explaining her lie to get into the kitchen. Su Jing Fei smiled but didn’t interrupt as Yize continued explaining. “With the herbs, a simple vegetable chicken soup was made. The innkeeper included a few side dishes to help complement the soup as well as cleanse the palate.”

Su Jing Fei nodded, looking at the dishes approvingly. Everything truly looked delicious, and Su Jing Fei’s stomach protested a bit from hunger at the sight of the meal. With self-restraint, Su Jing Fei sat at the table but didn’t begin eating. Instead, she took out one of four small silver darts she had taken from the Guo family’s carriage wagon. Carefully, Su Jing Fei dipped it’s thin bladed edge into the soup and held it there for a few seconds. Then she lifted it out and examined its tip. It still retained its sharp silver edge. Not a trace of the black.

“Da xiaojie, is there something wrong with the soup?” Yize asked nervously, unsure of what her master was doing but knowing that it had to do with testing for poison.

“No. For now, it seems to be safe.” Su Jing Fei responded truthfully. She knew that the trick of using silver to test for poison was merely a misunderstood concept in ancient medicine, but it couldn’t hurt to try. In her previous life, she had been quite intrigued by ancient medicine and poisons after learning a bit of history for her job, so she had done a bit of reading. The herbs themselves could become poisonous after being grown in soil containing high amounts of arsenic. It just so happened that the soil containing arsenic most likely contained sulfide as well. It was the sulfide that could turn silver into black. At least, with this test, she had ruled out something, but she could not protect herself against other poisons with the limited knowledge she knew.

Carefully, she picked up her plate and placed a small portion of everything onto it. With long strides, she made her way to the window and opened it, placing the food out onto the windowsill. She stepped away, settling back into the chair and faced the window to watch. When they had arrived, she’d noticed something odd about the inn, and while she hoped that she was right, there was still a bit of uneasiness settling in her heart.

“Da xiaojie, what are we waiting for?” Whispered Yize anxiously at Su Jing Fei’s side.

“Be patient, Yize.” Su Jing Fei spoke softly.

They sat there for a few minutes. Yize was unsure of what thoughts were running through her master’s mind, but Su Jing Fei was as calm and undisturbed as ever. It wasn’t long before a small rustling from the trees caught Yize’s attention. “Da xiaojie!” The young yatou exclaimed, grabbing her master’s arm before the danger could present itself.

Su Jing Fei quickly shushed the girl, taking ahold of the young yatou’s hand. “Watch.”

With those words, Yize pursed her lips and kept silent. From the tree outside the room, a small shadow emerged. It had light steps, gracefully traversing across the branch and pouncing onto the windowsill. The stray cat had its eyes glued to the plate, but for a brief moment, it seemed to consider Su Jing Fei and Yize’s presence with a glance. They kept still, afraid to scare it with their movements. Yize held her breath as they watched the cat carefully begin eating from the plate. Su Jing Fei hoped she’d been wrong about the food.

The stray cat was oblivious to their worries though as it happily and quickly finished the plate of food. For now, there didn’t seem to be any problems. Su Jing Fei breathed a sigh of relief. With no more food, the stray cat mewed loudly, as if in thanks, before jumping away and back into the darkness of the trees. “Cat,” Yize spoke the word with a bit of relief and confusion. “How did master know there was a cat in the tree?”

“I didn’t,” replied Su Jing Fei truthfully. “When we had arrived, I had noticed the small dishes placed outside. Someone here has a heart for stray animals and must’ve been feeding them.” Thus, she knew that as long as she placed a dish out, a stray animal would soon appear. They would be conditioned to taking food from the plates left out from them.

The moment of danger had passed, and Su Jing Fei turned back to the table of food before her. “Come, let us eat, Yize. It’s been a long day.” Yize refused at first, since it was improper to eat at the same table as one’s master, but Su Jing Fei insisted. They compromised by having Yize eat at a smaller table near the other bed with a few of the side dishes. Once their evening meal finished, the servants were called to clear away the dishes. As the night continued on, Si Qiang still did not return, so the only thing they could do was wait. Yize prepared the other bed for Su Jing Fei and also remembered to apply the medicine to Su Jing Fei’s head wound before she settled down. Luckily, it was on the back of her head, so it could be covered up by her hair without people needing to know of her injury. And Su Jing Fei was already accustomed to sleeping on her side anyway. As Yize doused the candlelight, Su Jing Fei let herself fall into a comfortable sleep.