Chapter 89: Wei Nian's Death, the Wei Family's Secrets

Wei Nian,

He died.

Dead, completely dead.

He vomited blood on the spot, succumbing to the poison, and passed out before he could even utter a final word. Wei Xun frantically ordered people to save him, even feeding him the antidote that Cheng had just given him. In his panic, he even sought out Lin Fanxiang—

As a doctor, Fan Xiang did not hesitate and immediately took the pulse to diagnose the condition, but could only shake his head helplessly.

His poison was strange; it seemed to have been hidden in his meridians for a long time, and then suddenly erupted. When he vomited black blood, his meridians were already completely rotten. Almost instantly, he lost his life.

It's too late; even the most potent antidote is useless now.

Wei Xun forced himself to remain calm. When the young man turned around again, Wei Nian was already lying on the ground. The sand platform had been kicked down at some point, and yellow sand was scattered all over the ground. Not far away, Yuwen Lan and Duan Jue sighed and shook their heads, feeling that today's ceremony was like a joke.

Amidst the blood-soaked sand and the chaotic commotion of the panicked crowd, Wei Feng, veins bulging, looked up and revealed an extremely forced and strange smile.

"The ceremony is suspended today. My elder brother, Wei Nian, has been poisoned and is in a coma. This is strange. Gentlemen, I'm afraid we will have to stay in Jinsha City for a while longer."

"Wei Xun! I respect your lineage and have traveled a long way to congratulate you on becoming the city lord. The ceremony was a joke, but now you suspect that we are the ones who harmed your elder brother!"

Yuwen Lan glared at him angrily, feeling that this Wei Xun had no sense of responsibility whatsoever. He always judged people by their first impression, and for some reason, he just couldn't stand this kid!

Duan Jue also said, "Young Master Wei, today's matter is due to the Wei family's poor handling of the situation. If it were any other day, it would be fine, but with the New Year approaching, it's not good for you to force people to stay."

Yuwen Lan thought about it and realized it was true. He had brought his wife and daughter with him this time, and if he didn't count his youngest son, he would have a complete family. Duan Jue, on the other hand, had only brought his eldest son and youngest daughter. His wife and youngest son were still in Shangyun City, so he was in a hurry to go back for the New Year.

Many people in the banquet hall were in the same boat. Traveling in the sandy land was already difficult. It was fine for the locals of Jinsha City, but for those from Shangyun and Liangzhou, it would take more than ten days to get back.

Duan Jue's words caused quite a stir. Qing Yu and Fan Xiang had somehow walked up to Wen Chuan and the others. They stood together and watched quietly. Zhang Xuan even asked Fan Xiang a question in private. Fan Xiang frowned, shook her head slightly, and indicated that they would talk about it later.

Amidst the noise, a firm yet gentle voice rang out—

"What Patriarch Duan said makes sense. But as you all can see, the fact that someone from my Wei family was poisoned on such a day shows that the murderer had malicious intentions and deliberately disrupted our Golden Ceremony."

"We hope everyone will stay so that the murderer can be found as soon as possible, which is also for everyone's safety."

"After all, today is the day the city lord takes office, and it is an ancient ceremony of the Liujin clan. How could we possibly want trouble to happen today?"

Madam Wei spoke again, her words sincere and earnest, her tone gentle yet persuasive. She also invoked the name of the Liujin Clan, her words both reasonable and persuasive, which reassured many present.

To everyone's surprise, despite his understanding wife speaking to him, Wei Xun remained expressionless. He strode forward, picked up Wei Nian from the pool of blood, and left the main hall.

Wei Nian was clearly dead, yet Wei Xun insisted he was unconscious. How truly...

...

Finally, after being persuaded by Madam Wei, Duan and Yuwen agreed to stay for another five days. After five days, regardless of whether they could find the murderer, they would leave, and the others would follow their decision.

The stone path in the backyard of the city lord's mansion.

The midday chaos caused an eerie silence to descend upon the city lord's mansion. Yet, the sunlight was exceptionally bright, warming people and even the ubiquitous dust motes in the air seemed to be quietly enjoying it.

Qingyu and Xiao Enci walked side by side, bathed in the beautiful sunlight, yet the atmosphere remained calm and serene.

Xiao Enci laughed, "The sandstorms in the Northwest are really annoying, no matter what the weather is like."

Qingyu walked slowly, the girl slightly raising her eyes to feel the air around her. She chuckled softly.

"Madam, don't you like it here?"

Xiao Enci smiled upon hearing this. She was only a few years older than Qingyu and had a cute, round face, but she possessed an elegant demeanor and was always polite and well-mannered, making people feel that she was an excellent adult.

"I liked it at first, but my sister always writes to me, saying where she was yesterday and where she was today... I stay here every day, reading her letters, and I can't help but feel a little lonely."

"Qingyu Girl travels through Kyushu with her friends, so she naturally doesn't understand my troubles."

Qingyu smiled, a gentle breeze ruffling the hem of her crimson dress. The girl's eyes held an inscrutable emotion. "Madam, I have indeed traveled quite a distance over the years."

She paused, then looked at Xiao Enci, "But all I've been searching for is myself—"

"It's a bit confusing to say, but after seeing so much, I just feel that as long as I'm okay, everything else is okay."

"If your heart is not confined, you can go anywhere."

The sun was shining so brightly today that Xiao Enci could only see endless dust and sand floating in the air. She smiled silently.

"certainly."

That's what she's always thought, always has been.

She pursed her lips and lowered her eyes, but as she looked down slightly, she suddenly noticed the red hem of her dress swaying. When she looked up again, the girl winked at her and said something strange in a lively manner.

"Madam, I think you are really amazing."

"Really, that's amazing."

...

Suddenly, a servant rushed over to Madam Wei and Qingyu. He looked up at Qingyu with a troubled expression, and Qingyu smiled. She then looked at Xiao Enci.

"In that case, I won't bother you any longer."

Madam Wei pursed her lips, "Thank you for bringing me here, young lady. The things you requested will arrive in five days."

"I will serve it myself."

...

Evening, at the Gale Inn.

The banquet at noon today was a complete mess, and they didn't eat much, so they decided to stay at the inn and have a proper meal tonight instead of going out.

Qingyu held Caicai and fed it with great interest. Zhang Xuan sat opposite her and asked, "Why did you send Madam Wei back this afternoon?"

The banquet had just ended, and many things were piling up. Madam Wei greeted everyone as they left. Qingyu and the others were at the back when they ran into Shi Le from the Huangshi caravan. When they stopped to talk, Qingyu saw that Madam Wei was about to leave and offered to see her off for a while before leaving the city lord's mansion to meet up with them.

"It's nothing, I just need her to help me out."

Qingyu replied casually, still stroking Cai Cai's soft feathers. "This chicken has been plump and glossy lately, but the sandy ground is windy, and there's still sand hidden in the chicks' wings."

Zhang Xuan: "Busy? What's so busy about? I find this Liujin City Lord's Mansion very strange."

"Also, Sister Fanxiang, what exactly was the poison that Wei Nianzhong was poisoned with? How could he die without being able to say a word?"

Upon hearing this, Lin Fanxiang also said, "I've seen that poison in the Shangguan Poison Codex... it's Shadow Fragrance Poison."

Shadow Fragrance Poison is a strange, slow-acting poison. The victim must inhale the fragrance daily until the poison penetrates deep into the bone marrow, hiding in the meridians like a shadow. This poison is extremely insidious; initially, there are no symptoms, only a sudden and devastating attack at the final stage.

It appears to be a fast-acting, pungent poison, but in reality, it is a slow-acting poison that is carefully prepared every day.

"This Shadow Fragrance Poison will go unnoticed by anyone without a Heavenly-level cultivation level, from beginning to end."

Qin Tianshu sat in the middle of the table, while the scholar fanned himself thoughtfully.

“I think I came across this poison when I was reading that book before. I remember that it was too troublesome to use, requiring daily mixing of spices, so the Shangguan family had stopped using it for a long time.”

Lin Fanxiang: "There is such a label, but we don't know where this poison came from. Now that the Shangguan family is dead, the person who knows this poison is either a fugitive or the poison was not created by the Shangguan family in the first place."

The poisons in the Shangguan Poison Manual were not all created by the poison cultivators of the Shangguan family. Many of them were either offered by other poison cultivators in the Nine Provinces out of admiration or were given to them under duress. Therefore, the true origin of many poisons is now unknown.

Zhang Xuan: "Then how can we solve this? Is there really no way at all?"

Lin Fanxiang thought for a moment and said, "No, it's just that it takes the same amount of time to remove the toxins. You can use medicinal fragrance, soup, or even pills and acupuncture. As long as you put in the effort to detoxify before the poison takes effect, it's fine."

"Speaking of which, that antidote pill was also miraculous, allowing Wei Nian to hold on for a few more breaths. Otherwise, he should have closed his eyes immediately after spitting out the poisonous blood."

Upon hearing this, Qingyu asked curiously, "Are the pills of the Cheng family of Liangzhou really that miraculous?"

Qin Tianshu: "We've been a family of alchemists for hundreds of years. Just speaking casually... Three hundred years ago, Cheng Linxi, an alchemist from the Cheng family, served as a military doctor for the Yan army, which was established by our ancestor Zhou when he settled the Nine Provinces. A hundred years ago, Cheng Jia, a disciple of the Heavenly Physician Elder, was also a famous alchemist in the Nine Provinces... And the current Demon Suppression Envoy of Liangzhou, Cheng Wanbai, also comes from the Cheng family."

For hundreds of years, the Cheng family of alchemists has been famous throughout the land, but the most famous and admirable of them all is Cheng Linxi, the alchemist of the Yan Army three hundred years ago.

Her story is roughly about a woman with top-notch talent in alchemy who bid farewell to the peaceful life of the Cheng family head, packed her alchemy furnace and medicine chest, and plunged into the chaotic world to become a military doctor in an unnamed army.

Finally, step by step, she descended from the high platform of the top alchemists, her eyes filled with the intent of researching how to produce the most abundant, fastest, and most effective pills to stop bleeding and heal wounds for the soldiers. Then, she watched intently as their Yan army marched step by step to the ranks of the Nine Provinces Royal Army—

Who says this can't be the pursuit of alchemy practitioners?

...

Lin Fanxiang nodded in agreement. As a medical cultivator, she naturally knew more about this matter. "The Cheng family's alchemy practitioners are arguably the most prestigious in the Nine Provinces today. Every generation has been refining pills and learning formulas in the yellow sands of Liangzhou. Their pills are not only priceless but also highly sought after by thousands."

It's a pity that the Cheng family didn't attend the succession banquet this time. Otherwise, there might have been a way to treat Wei Nian's poison. Even if it wasn't an antidote, it would have been good to save his life.

Zhang Xuan: "What a pity... I don't know why they didn't come this time."

"Sigh," Qingyu tilted her head slightly, the girl closed her eyes and yawned silently.

"Why bother with all that? No matter what, the poison was administered by someone from the City Lord's Mansion, and has nothing to do with the people who recently came from Jinsha City."

Regardless of the source of the poison, how the murderer knew about it, or how they used it, the poison had to be hidden in the spices every day. No one but their own people had any chance of doing that.

After saying that, she opened her eyes and looked at the wooden beam above for a few seconds, her tone normal and natural, "That butler did have a fragrance on him, but more than that, I remember, was Wei Xun."

The incense sticks had already been lit, but Wei Nian suddenly became poisoned, causing everyone to panic and forget about the already lit incense sticks.

When Fan Xiang stepped forward to take Wei Nian's pulse, Qing Yu accompanied her. Amidst the fragrance, Qing Yu noticed a lingering scent on Wei Xun, a trace that only someone who regularly burns incense would have.

"That incense stick...it seems that Wei Nian was poisoned just the instant it was lit."

Wen Chuan, who hadn't said much, thought for a moment and said that he was in a position where he could see Wei Xun lighting incense. It was at that moment that he felt the spiritual energy of the stars, and the next second, Wei Nian collapsed to the ground.

Zhang Xuan: "So, in the end, it was the incense lit by Wei Xun that harmed Wei Nian?"

"More or less,"

Qingyu casually pointed at Wen Chuan's hand and said, "Give me a bowl of soup."

The soup was far from her, and she was too lazy to reach for it. Wen Chuan pursed his lips upon hearing this, reached out and took a bowl to serve her a bowl of vegetarian soup, a quiet yet casual intimacy.

Zhang Xuan turned his head and smiled at Lin Fanxiang, "Sister Fanxiang, would you like a drink?"

Lin Fanxiang: ...Do you want to see if this soup is closer to you and closer to me?

Qingyu smiled, and taking advantage of the brief moment, she explained why she had wanted to walk alone with Madam Wei for a while.

"The 'spirit' of Sands Cotai Central seems a bit strange,"

"It should have appeared in the city lord's mansion the moment Wei Xun lit the incense, but the incense broke and the ritual failed, and the star's spiritual energy suddenly disappeared."

Qin Tianshu: "Perhaps this star has been in the Liujin Clan for a long time, so it has been tainted by the aura of their Wei Clan, and it needs certain specific circumstances to emerge."

Qingyu nodded, "That should be the case, so I asked Madam Wei some questions... I don't know why, but I always felt that Wei Nian's death was related to her, and she also said in the end that she knew what we wanted."

Lin Fanxiang frowned for a rare moment upon hearing this, "Are Wei Nian and Wei Xun really brothers...?"

When she stepped forward to take his pulse, she seemed to see tears welling up in Wei Xun's eyes, as if he was about to cry. Wei Nian was the same; he couldn't speak, and in the end, he held Wei Xun's hand tightly. The two of them...

Qingyu smiled, coughed a few times, glanced at the three teenagers present, and finally settled on Qin Tianshu.

Qin Tianshu: "..."

Qingyu: "Brother, you've traveled a lot and seen a lot. Why don't you tell me about it?"

Qin Tianshu: "...I'm just guessing...the two of them...should, it seems, probably...be lovers?"

Cai Cai: "Coo coo coo coo".