Chapter 257

After Aman received Ye Chutang’s assurance, the sorrow clouding her expression vanished completely.

She summoned a gu worm the size of a fingernail from her longevity lock and placed it on Xi Ze’s hand.

The gu worm bared its fangs and sank them into the back of his hand.

Its black body soon turned blood-red.

At the same time, Xi Ze’s pale complexion visibly regained its healthy color.

The gu poison had been neutralized.

Aman took back the gu worm and returned it to the longevity lock.

Then she went back to her room, picked up her bundle, and said, “Let’s go. We need to detoxify Brother Qi.”

On the way to the inn, she asked Ye Chutang about Qi Yanzhou’s current condition.

When she learned that he was unconscious in bed, clinging to life only because of the golden needle technique, she was filled with regret and guilt.

“I was too willful. I shouldn’t have forced him with the matter of taking me as his secondary wife. I caused a delay of one whole day.”

Now that she had calmed down, she felt both foolish and ridiculous.

Ye Chutang shook her head.

“It’s not your fault. Qi Yanzhou brought this upon himself, and he even implicated me by making me use my vital energy to perform acupuncture on him.”

As husband and wife, they should be honest with each other.

She disliked well-intentioned lies and deceit born of self-righteous assumptions.

If Qi Yanzhou had told her about Aman’s condition right away, the fire poison would have been cured long ago.

After hearing Ye Chutang’s explanation, Aman asked earnestly, “You really don’t blame me for forcing Brother Qi to divorce you and then forcing him to take me as his secondary wife?”

She suspected that Ye Chutang did not care about Brother Qi.

If it had been her, she would not only have blamed the woman trying to steal her man—she would have fought her!

Nan Xiao and Xi Ze craned their necks to listen in.

With their hearing, they could hear every word effortlessly. There was no need for them to look so furtive.

Looking at Aman, who seemed to have uncovered some earth-shattering secret, Ye Chutang could not help laughing softly.

“I care about him, and I trust him even more.”

“So you think Brother Qi could never be stolen from you?”

“Yes.”

Aman’s competitive spirit was instantly roused.

“Hmph! Just wait until I steal Brother Qi away. Don’t regret it then!”

Looking at the adorable Aman, Ye Chutang raised a hand and flicked the bell hanging between her brows.

The bell swayed lightly, producing a clear, pleasant chime.

“If that day ever comes, I’ll prepare ten miles of bridal gifts for you and send you off in style.”

After saying that, she added, “Aman, no matter whom you marry in the future, my promise still stands.”

Of course, it wasn’t because she had money to burn. She simply wanted to learn more about gu worms from Aman, just in case.

Aman disdainfully wiped the bell Ye Chutang had touched.

“Hmph! I don’t need it!”

She had hands and feet. She could earn money and prepare her own dowry.

Following the two women, Nan Xiao and Xi Ze felt as if they were watching two sisters interact.

The two exchanged a glance, and both saw admiration for Ye Chutang in the other’s eyes.

Before ​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‍long, the four of them arrived at the inn.

Old Madam Qi, who had been waiting anxiously, immediately came forward and took Ye Chutang’s hand.

“Tang’er, why did you take so long? Where’s the medicine you bought?”

As soon as she finished speaking, she noticed Aman, who was dressed in strange attire.

“This is…”

She had only gotten halfway through the question when realization struck her. Her eyes widened.

“Is she the shaman-healer who can cure Zhou’er’s gu poison?”

Ye Chutang nodded. “Yes. This is Aman, the Southern Frontier shaman-healer who once saved Azhou’s life.”

Then she introduced Old Madam Qi to Aman. “Aman, this is Qi Yanzhou’s mother. You can call her Old Madam.”

Aman immediately performed a Southern Frontier salute to show her respect.

“Greetings, Old Madam.”

“Good, good. Miss Aman, you traveled all the way from the Southern Frontier without rest. It must have been hard on you.”

She poured Aman a cup of water and handed it to her.

“You must be parched after rushing here. Have a drink and wet your throat.”

Her Zhou’er finally had hope of being saved!

Hearing this, Aman felt deeply ashamed.

She accepted the cup and found it as heavy as a thousand pounds.

If Old Madam Qi knew that she had arrived in Jizhou City that morning but had refused to come and cure Brother Qi, she would surely be furious.

Ye Chutang noticed Aman’s discomfort and said, “Miss Aman, I know the journey was exhausting, but Qi Yanzhou’s condition cannot wait any longer. Once you finish your tea, we’ll go upstairs and begin the detoxification.”

Aman had not expected Ye Chutang not only to refrain from exposing her, but also to help her out of the awkward situation.

Gratitude rose in her heart, but she quickly suppressed it.

She nodded and drained the warm tea in one gulp.

“Thank you for the tea, Old Madam. It was delicious.”

Old Madam Qi noticed that Ye Chutang had addressed her son by his given name and sensed that something was amiss.

But this was not the time to ask questions.

With a beaming smile, she took the empty cup from Aman.

“If you like it, Miss Aman, come downstairs and have a few more cups after you finish detoxifying Zhou’er.”

“All right.”

After answering, Aman followed Ye Chutang up to the third floor, to the room reserved for honored guests.

Ye Chutang looked at the group following them closely and said, “Xi Ze, come with us. Everyone else can wait downstairs.”

Although Old Master Qi was extremely worried about his son, he obediently stopped.

He nodded. “All right. We won’t go up and disturb you.”

Old Madam Qi could not resist asking, “Tang’er, it will soon be time for dinner. When should I start cooking?”

Her unspoken question was: How long will the detoxification take?

Ye Chutang thought for a moment before replying, “We’ll come downstairs for dinner in an hour.”

“Good, good. Hurry along, then.”

The three of them went upstairs.

Ye Chutang had prepared everything needed for the detoxification long ago.

She asked Xi Ze and Aman, “Do you both remember all the details of the procedure?”

Some time ago, she had asked Qi Yanzhou to write a letter to Xi Ze, describing the precautions for the detoxification in detail.

She had done so to ensure that Aman would memorize every detail and prevent any mistakes.

Xi Ze and Aman stared at Qi Yanzhou, who lay on the bed with fiery red hair and a face flushed the color of pig liver, and nodded firmly.

The fire poison and the gu poison had to be removed at the same time.

If even the slightest mistake occurred, Qi Yanzhou would lose his life.

This man was the person they cared about most.

That was why they had long since engraved every detail of the procedure into their minds.

Once Aman was ready, Ye Chutang said, “I’m beginning.”

As with the previous detoxification, they first had to draw out the fire poison completely.

Earlier, she had used silver needles to restrain the fire poison. Now, she used them to provoke it.

Qi Yanzhou’s hair turned a dazzling crimson. His body temperature rose rapidly, every muscle in his body tensed, and his veins bulged.

Suddenly, his eyes flew open.

His bloodshot eyes looked like those of a demon from hell, crimson and ice-cold.

Ye Chutang swiftly removed his upper garment, exposing his strong, burning torso.

Aman immediately looked away, so embarrassed that she stammered, “How… how can you…”

Ye Chutang tossed the garment aside and said to Xi Ze, “Come over here and hold him steady.”

Qi Yanzhou was conscious, but his entire body was burning hot and weak. His head throbbed as if it were about to split apart.

His blood boiled and surged through his veins, as though it were about to tear him to pieces.