The rest of the family members also looked in the direction Hu Jiuyuan was pointing.

But they were even worse than Lin Ziqiu; they couldn't see any flaws at all.

Even Lin Wanyue looked at Hu Jiuyuan, waiting for him to answer her questions.

"Look." Hu Jiuyuan didn't keep him in suspense and said directly, "Look at the red blood vessels under the whites of his eyes, aren't there always some small spots?"

As the sky outside gradually brightened, Lin Weiming and the others brought over candles, making it even clearer for everyone to see.

Normal people naturally have bloodshot eyes, but those who stay up all night and cry often have more noticeable bloodshot eyes due to excessive eye strain.

Lin Zhongyuan, who was lying in bed and had not yet woken up, was just like those other people, with noticeable red blood vessels in his eyes. They hadn't thought there was anything wrong with it before.

But now, after Hu Jiuyuan pointed it out, they looked at it more carefully and actually noticed some differences.

The bloodshot veins in Lin Zhongyuan's eyes resembled a branching tree, winding and twisting, with a small red fruit at the end of those red branches.

The fruit was also extremely small; if Hu Jiuyuan hadn't had such sharp eyes that he could spot the problem at a glance, they definitely wouldn't have been able to tell.

"Really!" Xuefu immediately asked, "Dr. Hu, what does this mean? What illness does Zhongyuan have? When will he wake up?"

Her question was also the same one that everyone else in the family wanted to ask, so they all silently looked at Hu Jiuyuan, waiting for his answer.

“This…” Hu Jiuyuan stroked his beard and said, “Actually, I’m not too sure about this either. It looks a bit like the Gu poison from the Southern Frontier.”

In his youth, he traveled the world, without parents or children, truly free, going wherever he pleased. He even dared to venture into the southern borderlands in order to pick some rare medicinal herbs.

You should know that place was notoriously poor and desolate in the Great Yan Dynasty, especially since the people who used Gu poison were extremely cruel and could even turn living people into corpse Gu.

"..." Xuefu looked bewildered, and after hesitating for a moment, she asked, "What kind of illness is it? Dr. Hu, can it still be cured?"

News from the southern border region is scarce, and very little information about them reaches outside the region. Especially for ordinary people like Xue Fu and Lin Weiming, who have lived in small southern villages for many years, they have never even heard of what Gu is, and probably think it is a disease similar to a cold.

Only Lin Wanyue's expression changed upon hearing the word "Gu," and she once again thought of Liu Shuhua's matter.

Could it be that my brother's sudden and severe illness was also caused by someone behind the scenes?

That guy finally couldn't hold back and made his move!

But I never expected him to attack his own family.

Lin Wanyue gritted her teeth inwardly.

She was determined to find the audacious mastermind behind this; how dare they use a curse on her brother? They were asking for it!

"This..." Hu Jiuyuan hesitated and then had Lin Ziqiu look at Lin Zhongyuan's entire body again. He didn't dare to make a promise as usual that he could definitely cure him.

Liu Junlan and Xue Fu, being observant, could tell from his appearance that his illness must be very serious, otherwise Hu Jiuyuan wouldn't be in this state.

The two men immediately became anxious. One rushed to his son's side in a panic, while the other asked Hu Jiuyuan with a serious expression, "Dr. Hu, can you think of a way? Is his illness really incurable?"

The ghosts in the house also came over. Seeing Lin Zhongyuan lying unconscious on the bed, even Hu Jiuyuan, who looked like he didn't know what to do, became anxious as well.

Lin Xiangwu said to Hu Jiuyuan, "Old Hu, everyone says you're the most skilled eccentric doctor in the martial arts world. Do you really have no way to treat this?"

"I've read about this in books before. I've heard that Gu is the most poisonous insect in the world! What kind of heartless bastard dares to use Gu on my student? If I catch him, I'll skin him alive and eat him alive! I'm so angry!" Master Cui was almost going crazy with rage.

After so many years of hard work, he finally raised such a well-behaved, sensible, and talented student. In just a few months, he will be able to take the autumn imperial examination and perhaps even become the top scholar, fulfilling his lifelong dream.

But at this critical juncture, someone actually tried to sabotage him, casting a spell on his prized student.

As for Laifu... his whole family had already chased him outside, for fear that even a trace of his bad luck might fall on Lin Zhongyuan.

Lai Fu: "..."

Lai Fu: "(╯‵□′)╯︵┻━┻"

Laifu felt bitter inside, so he could only sprinkle more sugar into his mouth.

Hu Jiuyuan agreed with Master Cui's words, "That's right, most Gu are indeed the most poisonous and ferocious insects, but in reality, the sources of Gu are abundant. As long as the Gu master's skills are high enough, anything can be made into Gu, including living people. As for the Gu on Zhongyuan's body right now, I reckon that the insects are still parasitizing his eyes."

Hu Jiuyuan gave a brief explanation of what Gu was, which startled most of the family members.

"Master Hu, so you mean there are bugs in my brother's eyes?" Lin Zihan asked tremblingly.

Even the usually strong and healthy second brother, Lin Zheyun, who was always at the forefront of fights, was now filled with fear.

They are all children who grew up in the countryside. They wouldn't be too afraid of ordinary snakes, insects, or ants; they would just stomp on them and kill them.

But what Hu Jiuyuan is saying now is that the insect is not only the most poisonous and ferocious, but it is also currently parasitizing his elder brother's eyeball, and there are probably several more!

Doesn't that sound terrifying?

Hu Jiuyuan nodded.

Xuefu finally broke down in tears, asking in a sob, "What can we do? Doctor Hu, you have to help Zhongyuan! What can we do? How could someone possibly cast a spell on this child?"

Lin Weiming patted his wife on the shoulder, unsure of what to do after hearing the news.

Xuefu wiped away her tears, turned to him and said, "It's almost dawn now, you should go to court quickly, don't be late."

"With Zhongyuan in such a state, how can I possibly attend court? I think I should go and inquire around; perhaps there are people from the Southern Frontier in the capital. If we could get them to help us out, that would be great," Lin Weiming said anxiously.

Everyone in the family thought this was a good approach, and Xuefu's eyes lit up; she was just about to nod in agreement when Liu Junlan said, "Weiming, you should go to court; it's something that can't be delayed. As for inquiring about the people of Southern Xinjiang, you won't be able to find out anything even if I ask you; I'll have Wang Youcai do it."