Chapter 54: Censor Qian makes great contributions

"Come! Immediately take Court Judge Xu to a side hall for isolation and keep him under strict guard! Pass on my order that the Imperial Hospital be temporarily sealed off immediately. No personnel are allowed to enter or leave without permission until questioning! State Master Chu, I leave Court Judge Xu's illness in your care."

Chu Xuanyi nodded solemnly: "Don't worry, Your Majesty, I will do my best."

Chu Xuanyi immediately set about exorcising the poison from Xu Yuanpan.

This "Withering and Flourishing Gu" was even more insidious and overbearing than described in ancient texts, and was extremely difficult to remove. He expended considerable energy and precious medicinal herbs before he could barely suppress the Gu's activity and began attempting to force it out of his body.

Xiao Yu personally took charge and directed the imperial guards to conduct a carpet search of the Imperial Medical Bureau. He also screened and interrogated all the imperial doctors, female doctors, and even servants one by one, and traced the people and things that Xu Yuanpan had recently come into contact with, trying to find clues about the "Dry Vine Cult" and the person who put the curse.

After working for most of the day, Chu Xuanyi finally returned to the Imperial Master's Mansion exhausted in the evening.

Because Ajiu had "accomplished merit" again, although the process was a bit thrilling, the result was good. Chu Xuanyi still squeezed out a word of praise from between his teeth and rewarded her with a large string of candied haws he had just bought.

"However," Chu Xuanyi rubbed his aching temple and added weakly, "From now on, don't go to the Imperial Hospital and point at people and say they have worms! Got it? What if you scare the old man or make a mistake? How embarrassing!"

Ah Jiu licked the candied haws while nodding vigorously and said vaguely, "I know, sir! I'll tell you secretly next time!"

Chu Xuanyi: "..." He felt even more tired.

Xiao Yu then also came to the Imperial Master's Mansion and had a secret conversation with Chu Xuanyi in the study.

"How confident are you in removing the poisonous insect from Xu Yuanpan's body?" Xiao Yu asked.

Chu Xuanyi sighed, "This Gu is called the 'Withered Bloom Gu' and is extremely toxic. For now, we can only suppress it. To completely eradicate it, we need to find an antidote to the 'Soul-Eating Flower' that controls its origin, or... find the 'Withered Vine Cult's' secret method of controlling it. Furthermore, I'm worried that this is just the tip of the iceberg."

Xiao Yu's expression darkened. "This is what I think too. The Chief Medical Officer of the Imperial Hospital was secretly poisoned with a Gu. Are the other important officials in the palace, even... even the masters in the palace..."

He didn't dare say any more.

"Your Highness, the most urgent task is to quickly find the lair of the 'Withered Vine Cult' and their method of refining and controlling the 'Withered Glory Gu'," Chu Xuanyi said in a deep voice, "Otherwise, there will be endless troubles."

"I have already dispatched additional personnel to fully investigate the Black Bone Tribe, based on the clues previously discovered at the Royal Farm. Also, have you made any further discoveries regarding the Soul-Eating Flower?"

Chu Xuanyi shook his head. "Records of the Soul-Eating Flower in ancient texts are scarce, and most are vague. Finding a way to control it might be difficult. Perhaps... it requires some special opportunity."

He subconsciously thought of his elusive master, Xuanxu Zhenren. If his master were here, perhaps he could find a way. However, the old charlatan's whereabouts were always elusive, and finding him was harder than climbing to heaven.

In the backyard of the Imperial Master's Mansion, Ah Jiu was squatting in the corner, whispering to a passing ant: "Little ant, little ant, do you have any black spots on your body? If so, I'll help you catch them, but I won't take your candied haws..."

A passing sparrow was frightened and flew away.

Chu Xuanyi, who was passing by, discovered that Ajiu could "communicate" with plants, which was a pleasant surprise.

"Ajiu, ask the old locust tree again, besides the 'Concentrating Spirit Grass', does it know if there are any other plants nearby that 'smell weird' or 'make it uncomfortable'?" Chu Xuanyi squatted down and tried to guide Ajiu.

Ah Jiu closed her eyes seriously, mumbling something to herself. After a while, she opened her eyes and pointed to a patch of weeds at the corner of the wall outside the Imperial Master's Mansion. "Grandpa Huaishu said that outside the wall, among the messy grass, there are several small blades of grass that make it uncomfortable. They look droopy and lifeless, and they also emit a foul odor that makes it sneeze."

Chu Xuanyi's heart trembled, and he immediately took Ah Jiu out of the house and searched carefully in the weeds. Sure enough, under Ah Jiu's guidance, they found a few more inconspicuous plants, but they also emitted a faint and dark aura.

These plants are not "Concentrating Spirit Grass", but another kind of "Hidden Soul Grass" recorded in ancient books, which can enhance the toxicity of "Soul-Eating Flower" and make it easier for it to hide!

"Great! This 'Withered Vine Cult' is truly pervasive!" Chu Xuanyi's face turned pale. These "Hidden Soul Grasses" had clearly been spread here intentionally or unintentionally, with the obvious purpose of subtly influencing the surrounding environment, even... the people within the Imperial Master's Mansion!

Fortunately, Ajiu's "dog nose" and "plant translation" abilities discovered the clues in time!

After Censor Qian's failed attempt to "subdue the demon" at the Imperial Hospital, he turned his attention to the major pharmacies in the capital. Evil spirits inevitably need some kind of "medium" to harm people, and medicinal herbs are the first choice.

So, he took his "demon-subduing outfit" and "inspected" every house, making the owners of major drug stores miserable, but they did not dare to offend this "stubborn" censor.

One day, he was on patrol at a small pharmacy in a remote alley. The shop wasn't big, and business seemed quite slow. As soon as Censor Qian stepped into the shop, his nose twitched, and he immediately shouted, "Evil spirit! The evil spirit is so strong here!"

The shopkeeper, a thin, middle-aged man, was startled by him, thinking he was looking for trouble. He quickly smiled and said, "You are joking, sir. Our shop only sells legitimate medicinal herbs. How can there be any evil spirit?"

"Hmph! How could my discerning eyes be wrong!" Censor Qian placed one hand on his waist and pointed his mahogany sword at a row of medicine cabinets. "Quickly bring out all your herbs so I can examine them one by one!"

The shopkeeper had no choice but to put out some common medicinal herbs. Censor Qian picked up a packet of angelica and sniffed it, then picked up a packet of astragalus and sniffed it. Finally, his eyes fell on a packet of licorice that looked ordinary.

He picked up the bag of licorice, put it to his nose and took a deep sniff. Then his face changed drastically and he took three steps back, exclaiming, "That's it! There's an extremely sinister aura mixed in this licorice! Shopkeeper, where did you get this licorice from?"

The shopkeeper was so frightened by him that he stammered, "This... this was sold to me at a low price by a peddler from out of town a few days ago. He said it was top-quality licorice..."

After receiving the secret report, Xiao Yu and Chu Xuanyi also brought people to the pharmacy.

Chu Xuanyi took the bag of licorice and carefully examined it. As expected, he smelled a very faint scent similar to the "Soul-Eating Flower" powder, and it was also mixed with the scent of "Hidden Soul Grass"!

"Search!" Xiao Yu made a prompt decision.

The Imperial Guards immediately turned the small pharmacy upside down. Sure enough, in a dark room in the backyard, they found a large amount of unprocessed "Soul-Eating Flower" powder, prepared "Hidden Soul Grass," and some tools and semi-finished products used to refine "Withered Seeds." There was even a torn booklet containing some of the secrets of Gu-refining!

The thin shopkeeper was the person in charge of a stronghold of the "Dry Vine Cult" lurking in the capital!

Caught the criminal red-handed!

Upon seeing this, Censor Qian was immediately elated, puffing out his chest and saying, "See?! I've long said that evil has nowhere to hide! Your Highness the Regent, Master Imperial Preceptor, if it weren't for my keen observation, I'm afraid these treacherous individuals would have gotten away with it again!"

Xiao Yu and Chu Xuanyi looked at each other. Although they were speechless about Censor Qian's "shitty luck" and self-boasting, they had to admit that this time he had indeed achieved a great success by accident.

Xiao Yu rarely argued with him, but simply said, "Yushi Qian has done a great job this time, and I will remember it."