Chapter 182 Arson and Murder

"Mmm," Jiang Ran replied slowly.

Si Jiliang's face darkened, and he quickly said, "What medicine? I'll go find out."

“Bamboo Leaf Blue,” Jiang Ran said slowly.

Upon hearing this, Si Jiliang frowned slightly. Bamboo leaf blue was extremely rare, but it shouldn't be impossible to find it on the market.

Since she's turned to me for help, she must have run out of options.

"Don't worry, I have some connections in this area because of the old man's illness. I'll go and inquire about it."

"Okay, sure." Jiang Ran pursed her lips slightly and replied softly. After hanging up the phone, Si Jiliang immediately set about handling the matter, but the result was exactly the same as Jiang Ran's: the drug was out of stock on the market.

Jiang Ran was unaware of the inside story, but Si Jiliang, being friends with the boss, was surprised to learn that someone had pre-ordered to buy out this type of medicine at a high price.

Upon hearing this, Si Jiliang's expression turned cold, and his face became ugly.

What a coincidence! This kind of thing happening under these circumstances is clearly intentional.

Thinking of this, Si Jiliang's eyes turned cold. Family members should not be implicated. No matter the reason, involving the old man had crossed his bottom line.

So they immediately sent people to secretly investigate the person behind it all.

On the other side, a few days after Jiang Ran told Si Jiliang that she was looking for medicine, she received a message from an unknown phone number.

Aside from providing an address, there was nothing else written above.

"A traditional Chinese medicine shop?" Jiang Ran murmured, her eyes lighting up as soon as she finished speaking.

A surge of hope immediately rose in his heart. Could it be that Si Jiliang had found the place and sent it to him on purpose?

Aren't herbal medicine shops just places that sell Chinese herbal medicines?

Thinking of this, Jiang Ran quickly called Si Jiliang to verify, but received a busy signal.

Desperate for the medicine, he went online to check the location, but found no information at all.

After much effort, the trustee sent someone to investigate and verify the information from multiple sources, and only then did they get a general location.

I hurriedly drove to my destination, only to find that the road ahead was too narrow for vehicles to pass through, so I had to walk. I parked my car on the side of the road and got out to walk over.

Upon reaching a deeper point, they discovered it was a dead end. Realizing they had taken the wrong path, they quickly turned back, only to find themselves back where they started several times.

Jiang Ran's eyes narrowed, and she immediately realized that this was no ordinary place. She calmed her mind and spread her senses around, but she could not sense the presence of any Yin energy.

Therefore, it is clear that it was not caused by evil spirits.

Her expression changed abruptly. She didn't have the Bagua compass in her hand, and the situation was unfavorable to her.

Jiang Ran's heart sank, and she decided to go back first to prepare fully before coming back. Just as she was returning the way she came, an old man who was making silverware suddenly appeared by the roadside, and Jiang Ran looked surprised.

She looked around, a sense of doubt rising on her face. If she remembered correctly, there should have been no one here just now.

His gaze narrowed slightly, and seeing someone appear was a rare treat. A glimmer of hope rose in his heart, and he quickly stepped forward to ask, "Old man, do you know where the traditional Chinese medicine shop is?"

The old man paused in his silver-tasting motion, then slowly nodded.

Seeing this, Jiang Ran quickly continued, "Then can you tell me the exact location?"

The old man remained silent, so Jiang Ranfu spoke up again, explaining, "Someone in my family is sick and urgently needs a certain medicine. I heard that it can be found there."

Upon hearing this, the old man slowly shook his head again and replied in a low voice, "Not necessarily."

As he spoke, he paused slightly, but still pointed and reminded her, "Go forward, turn left at the end, and the place you are looking for is at the deepest part."

"Okay, thank you very much." Jiang Ran quickly thanked him, then turned around and left, walking in the direction he pointed.

After she left, the old man looked up at her retreating figure, his eyes filled with an unreadable expression, and murmured in a deep voice, "Good fortune may be a misfortune, and misfortune may be a good fortune."

"Our connection, spanning past and present lives, can be considered a karmic bond..."

After saying that, he lowered his head and continued with what he was doing.

Jiang Ran followed the road to the end and indeed found the small traditional Chinese medicine shop hidden in a corner.

His face lit up with joy, and he hurried inside, only to find it empty.

A look of doubt flashed across Jiang Ran's face, and she couldn't help but ask, "Is anyone there?"

Is anyone home?

With no one responding for a long time, Jiang Ran walked to the counter and looked at the Chinese herbal medicines labeled on the outside.

Sure enough, there were some that were not very common, but after scanning around, I did not see the name of the herb, Bamboo Leaf Blue.

A glint of doubt flashed in his eyes, followed by a moment of self-comfort.

Perhaps because it's not available on the market recently, it wasn't displayed in public, but rather placed in the back.

Thinking about this made me feel a little more at ease.

Just then, a faint rustling sound came from outside the door. Jiang Ran looked up, thinking that someone was returning.

Unexpectedly, she heard the sound of a lock being put on and the sound of gasoline coming from her nose, and Jiang Ran's expression changed drastically.

He hurriedly got up and opened the door from the inside, but the outside was blocked.

Jiang Ran's expression suddenly changed, and she hurriedly pounded on the door, shouting for help.

There was no response from outside, which meant that someone had locked the door from the outside and deliberately kept him inside, indicating that they intended to harm him.

Especially since this traditional Chinese medicine shop is hidden deep in an alley with no other shops around, by the time someone comes to find it, the shopkeeper will probably already be dead inside.

The surrounding area was built with wood, making it incredibly convenient to ignite with gasoline.

He quickly took out his phone to call for help, only to find that there was no signal at all. This was clearly what the man had expected; he had deliberately trapped him there.

He cried out to heaven and earth, but received no response.

Flames roared into the sky outside, and Jiang Ran was completely surrounded. She tried to escape through the window, but it was blocked.

Reaching out, he realized he had come in such a hurry that he hadn't brought any talismans with him.

A quick calculation revealed nothing. Jiang Ran's heart tightened. Although her metaphysical arts could see the past and future and predict fortune and misfortune, they were still ineffective.

But there's nothing I can do about this man-made disaster. Am I really going to lose my life here?

"Cough cough—" The choking smoke was suddenly inhaled into her nasal cavity, making her feel like she couldn't breathe.

He quickly covered his nose with his hand, trying his best to prevent the thick smoke from entering.

As the fire grew larger, Jiang Ran felt her eyelids become heavy, her vision gradually blurred, and she collapsed to the ground uncontrollably.

Just when she thought she was doomed, the door was suddenly slammed open from the outside. Jiang Ran struggled to open her eyes, but she couldn't see the person's face clearly, only a blurry figure.

Driven by her survival instinct, Jiang Ran quickly reached out for help: "Help me..."

He murmured softly, his voice hoarse from the thick smoke.

Si Yanxiao glanced around and looked into the room, where he saw Jiang Ran lying weakly to the side, on the verge of death, clearly unconscious.

Seeing this scene, for some reason, my heart suddenly trembled, and a barely perceptible trace of panic flashed through my mind.

He quickly walked a few steps toward her, reached out and picked her up by the waist.

In her dazed state, Jiang Ran felt herself being saved. She couldn't see who was in front of her, but she vaguely remembered that only she and Si Jiliang knew about this place.

In a daze, he murmured, "Si Jiliang?"

Upon hearing this, Si Yanxiao's expression suddenly turned cold, his hands froze, and he forcibly suppressed his intention to throw her out of his arms, suppressing the anger in his heart.

He replied coldly, "What? You really want it to be him? Too bad, by the time he comes to save you, you'll already be dead."

Having said that, he strode quickly outside.

Seeing this, and noticing Si Yanxiao's displeased expression, Gu Nan quickly prepared to take it from him.

Unexpectedly, Si Yanxiao dodged to the side, avoiding his touch.

Seeing this, Gu Nan reluctantly withdrew her hand and then complained, "You too, you rushed in before we even got to the fire station."

"Aren't you afraid something unexpected might happen?"

Who would have thought that when Si Yanxiao arrived and saw this scene, he suddenly seemed like a completely different person. His usual composure vanished instantly, and he couldn't wait for the rescue team to arrive.

He kicked the door open and rushed into the fire all by himself.

Gu Nan still feels lingering fear when she recalls what just happened.

Si Yanxiao realized he had been too rash just now, and a hint of unease flashed across his face, but he still explained awkwardly with a cold expression: "Don't overthink it, it's a matter of life and death."

After saying that, he changed the subject and coldly instructed, "You are in charge of cleaning up the mess and you must find the real arsonist."

“Okay.” Gu Nan’s eyes darkened, and he readily agreed.

Si Yanxiao carried Jiang Ran and walked quickly out of the alley. Her condition was not optimistic, and she needed to be taken to the hospital for treatment immediately.