The "Drunken Healer" Bai Hua intervened, temporarily suppressing the snake venom in Su Qingcai's body. During this time, Su Xiaoning searched everywhere for an antidote, traversing Carp Village and several surrounding towns, but found no effective solution.
At her wits' end, Su Xiaoning had no choice but to ask Bai Hua for help.
"Didn't you say you were following me to repay a debt of gratitude? I don't need you to do anything for me, I just beg you to save Su Qingcai, I'm willing to pay any price!"
Su Xiaoning looked anxious, tugging at Bai Hua's sleeve and looking at him pitifully. Her moist, doe-like eyes were so captivating that no one could bear to refuse her.
Bai Hua was silent for a moment, then sighed softly, "Since you asked me to, I should have saved him, but..."
He hesitated for a long time before finally speaking, "But I've never seen this poison before, and the antidote is quite troublesome. More importantly, I need a medicine subject to test the medicine on repeatedly in order to find the antidote. Where am I going to find such a person..."
As soon as Bai Hua finished speaking, Su Xiaoning's eyes lit up, and she said eagerly, "I can be the one to test the medicine for him!"
"You?" Bai Hua glanced at Su Xiaoning with a hint of hesitation. "Do you know how dangerous drug testing is? A slight mistake could cost you your life, which would be a huge loss."
Bai Hua used a potent drug, and this trial could easily result in someone's death. He didn't want his closest friend, Su Xiaoning, to put herself in such danger.
Su Xiaoning understood Bai Hua's meaning, but she had no other choice.
She turned her head and glanced at Su Qingcai, who was lying unconscious on the bed, and said firmly, "It's okay, just use me to test the medicine. I was the one who saved him before, and I'll see it through to the end. He still has an unfinished mission to complete, unlike me."
Su Xiaoning insisted on testing the drug for Su Qingcai, and Bai Hua remained silent, but in the end, he could only agree.
Over the next few days, Bai Hua personally brewed various medicinal soups for Su Xiaoning to drink, and every few hours he would administer acupuncture. Su Xiaoning didn't know what these medicines were; she could only feel intense abdominal pain after each dose, and each acupuncture felt like it was piercing her bones, causing her excruciating pain and almost making her vomit blood.
In just a few days, Su Xiaoning seemed to have experienced several years. Her complexion visibly deteriorated, but even at this point, she gritted her teeth and did not reveal a single word to Su Qingcai.
Su Qingcai's mental state was also not good, and his thinking was much slower, but even so, he gradually noticed that something was wrong with Su Xiaoning.
Just as Su Xiaoning was rushing over to deliver the medicine and preparing to leave again, Su Qingcai grabbed her arm and asked in a deep voice, "You don't look well lately, has something happened?"
Su Xiaoning was taken aback and denied it outright: "No, the village is very peaceful. I just ran around to several towns to find the antidote for you and that's why I'm tired. I just need to sleep for a while and I'll be fine."
She appeared perfectly normal, even managing a smile at Su Qingcai. If one ignored her ashen complexion, she seemed no different from usual.
Su Qingcai glanced at Su Xiaoning suspiciously. He knew he probably wouldn't get anything out of her, so he didn't say anything more and let her leave, but he was still full of doubts.
Fine, if Su Xiaoning doesn't want to say, then just ask Bai Hua, who's always by her side now.
Su Qingcai dragged his weak body out of bed. He found Bai Hua and asked bluntly, "Su Xiaoning hasn't been acting right lately. Do you know what's wrong with her?"
Bai Hua paused in her grinding of medicine, her deep eyes turning to Su Qingcai.
It seems Su Qingcai has already discovered this, and it's probably impossible to keep it a secret any longer.
Bai Hua was silent for a while, then said with some difficulty, "There is no antidote for the snake venom in your body. In order to save you, she was willing to test the medicine herself. She must be in great pain now."
Upon hearing the words "drug trial," Su Qingcai's head buzzed. Without thinking, she grabbed Bai Hua by the collar, her eyes blazing with anger.
"You actually let her test the drugs?!"
“This is her own choice, and I didn’t want her to do this.” Bai Hua frowned, glanced into Su Qingcai’s eyes, and easily pushed Su Qingcai aside.
As he straightened his collar, he said in a low voice, "She doesn't want to talk to you because she doesn't want you to worry about her. Now that things have come to this point, why do you have to ask?"
"She's suffering because of me, do you expect me to stand idly by?" Su Qingcai gritted her teeth, turned around, and was about to rush out the door. "I'm going to find her and stop the drug trial!"
"No!" Bai Hua exclaimed in surprise and hurriedly dragged Su Qingcai back.
He gripped Su Qingcai tightly, his face stern, and said, "Once the drug trial begins, it cannot be stopped. If you try to interrupt the process now, you'll be putting her life in danger! She's done so much for this; do you want to waste all her hard work?!"
“But…” Su Qingcai’s face turned pale, and even her voice began to tremble, “Am I just supposed to watch her suffer…”
Bai Hua lowered her eyes and nodded almost imperceptibly.
Su Qingcai almost collapsed to the ground, his face full of dejection, his heart filled with a deep sense of powerlessness.
...
Su Qingcai ultimately listened to Bai Hua's advice. He did not stop Su Xiaoning, but after each acupuncture treatment, he would stumble and run to her room to see her.
After the acupuncture treatment, Su Xiaoning was always not very conscious. She would either writhe in pain on the bed or stare blankly like a puppet, never responding to Su Qingcai's heart-wrenching cries.
Every time Su Qingcai saw Su Xiaoning in so much pain that she couldn't breathe, he felt a dull ache in his chest. He silently stayed by Su Xiaoning's side every day, hoping that this damned drug trial would end soon.
And so, a few days later, the crucial moment of the drug trial finally arrived.
That night, the moon was dark and the wind was high. Su Xiaoning was extremely weak. Her face was pale, and she was lying on the bed, barely able to breathe.
Su Qingcai stayed by Su Xiaoning's side, his heart aching, while Bai Hua, standing nearby, also nervously observed Su Xiaoning's condition.
Success or failure, it all depends on this day.
Meanwhile, in the capital city...
Su Qinghe invited the old man to the palace again and asked anxiously, "You predicted that today would be the day of low tide, and also the time when Su Xiaoning's momentum would be at its weakest. Can you now perform a ritual to retrieve the koi carp mark?"
"Your Highness, rest assured, I will do my best!"
The old man's eyes gleamed, and he got into position to begin his ritual.
The calm sea outside Carp Village suddenly began to stir, as wave after wave of tide receded, leaving behind a patch of wet sand.
At the same time, Su Xiaoning, who was lying on the bed, suddenly cried out in pain.
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