Función clerical

Capítulo 5

Oh, right.

Shen Zhili hooked Su Chenche's chin with her finger and said in a flirtatious tone, "Beauty, I came here to kill you, but now I've changed my mind." She licked her lips, "I've taken a liking to you."

Su Chenche blinked twice.

Shen Zhili blinked twice as well.

With his eyes curving into crescent moons, Su Chenche easily tossed the knife aside from Shen Zhili's hand, wrapped his arms tightly around her, and said with undisguised joy, "Since you like me too, what are we waiting for? A long night can lead to many unforeseen events, let's get married quickly..."

Shen Zhili: "..."

What's going on here?!

Master Qing, this wasn't included in what we were talking about!

Chapter Five

"Master Shen, I am Zhai Feng, the head of the Twelve Nights Flower Hall. My ignorant master has really caused you trouble."

The woman, dressed in a light blue floor-length gauze dress, covered her lips with her sleeve, and the golden phoenix hairpin on her head swayed with her movements, making her look extremely beautiful.

Zhai Fengjiao pushed a blue satin brocade box in front of Shen Zhili and said with a smile, "This is just a small token of my appreciation. I hope Valley Master Shen won't mind."

Shen Zhili stared blankly as he shifted his gaze from the woman's snow-white skin, past her proud breasts and slender waist, and finally to the brocade box in her hand.

Unable to resist looking down at herself, Shen Zhili felt a surge of inexplicable grief and indignation.

Although Shen Zhili never thought she was ugly, compared to others...

Before Shen Zhili could react, the woman had already pulled open the brocade box with her slender fingers. A fist-sized luminous pearl was emitting a soft, faint glow and conveying a message of "I am very expensive, I am very expensive."

Shen Zhili stared intently at the luminous pearl, and said insincerely, "How could I possibly accept this..."

Zhai Feng generously replied, "There's nothing to be embarrassed about. Valley Master Shen has taken care of our master for many days; this is a token of our gratitude."

Qingxing, who was standing to one side, couldn't help but interject, "The master said about that betrothal..."

Zhai Feng suddenly turned around and said coldly, "Bride, bride, bride, what are you talking about? Anyway, I have no money. If you want a bride price, you can use it as your underpants!"

Qingxing was speechless for a moment, but still said, "But the lord said..."

"The Lord says, the Lord says, how can you only know what the Lord says? Don't you have any opinions of your own? Are you even a man? No wonder you're so old and still can't find a wife!"

So sharp, so venomous!

Shen Zhili suddenly realized that she had been too kind all the time.

Just then, Zhai Feng turned to Shen Zhili and gave him a charming smile: "I wonder how my master is recovering, and when he can return with us?"

Shen Zhili weighed the luminous pearl in her hand and smiled in response: "Anytime is fine."

Zhai Feng turned to Qing Xing and said fiercely, "Then what are we waiting for? Let's go!"

Just as Qingxing was about to say something, a girl in purple rushed in, her face filled with panic: "Valley Master, Valley Master, something terrible has happened! Young Master Twelve Nights is in trouble..."

Shen Zhili hurriedly followed the girl to Chunxiang Pavilion, where Su Chenche lived.

Amidst the lingering aroma of medicine, Su Chenche kept his eyes tightly closed, his face deathly pale, and his lips turning purple—clearly symptoms of poisoning.

There was an empty medicine bowl beside the bed, and Shen Zhili could tell something was wrong as soon as she smelled it, her fingers still covered in some medicine residue.

Who gave him this medicine?

The girl in purple trembled slightly and said, "It's me."

"Did you brew this? Did you leave the medicine unattended during the process?"

The girl in purple clenched her fingers tightly, desperately trying to recall, "It seems like it was around this time that I heard someone calling me outside while I was brewing medicine, so I went out to check, but when I found no one there, I came back..."

"Alright, I understand," Shen Zhili said. "You may leave now."

It's obvious who did it, even if you don't want to.

Is the feud between the Demonic Sect and him really that deep, or is it because of that Left Protector Ye Qianqian...?

Qingxing helped Su Chenche up, raising his arm. Shen Zhili took his pulse, her brows furrowing deeper and deeper.

"Valley Master Shen, what kind of poison has my master been poisoned with? How is he?"

Shen Zhili pursed her lips and said, "It's troublesome. He hasn't been poisoned for long. Let's try lavaging his stomach first. If that doesn't work, I'll look for an antidote..."

Just as she was about to get up, she suddenly realized that her arm had been grabbed by Su Chenche without her noticing, and she couldn't break free no matter what she did.

Helpless, Shen Zhili said to the maid Dieyi, "Go and prepare the things needed for stomach lavage."

She was interrupted before she could finish speaking.

"Wait a minute." Zhai Feng glared with her arrogant phoenix eyes and pondered, "Isn't this a bit too much of a coincidence? Of all times, he was poisoned, but of all times, right when I was about to take him back. Valley Master Shen, don't you think there's something wrong with that..."

******************************************************************************

Reminded by Zhai Feng's words, Shen Zhili quickly checked his pulse again and murmured, "But he really is poisoned." After a pause, she asked incredulously, "Could he have poisoned himself?"

As they were talking, another person came in.

"Master Zhai, we just caught a suspicious person."

Two men in black were pinning down a young boy in blue clothes with a bruised and swollen face. One of them said, "We saw him wandering around and he looked strange, so we detained him. But he struggled so much that we caught him and found this on him."

The other person flipped his hand over, revealing a packet of white powder.

Shen Zhili took the powder and examined it, then immediately said, "This is the poison your master has been afflicted with."

Zhai Feng flipped her beautiful leg, hidden under her long skirt, and kicked the boy in blue to the ground, saying, "Who sent you?"

The boy in blue, lying on the ground, suddenly rolled his eyes, foamed at the mouth, and began to convulse. Zhai Feng was shocked and released her leg to take a closer look, but the boy in blue twisted his body and slipped away from her as if his feet were greased, darting out the door like the wind.

They chased after him, but the figure in green was nowhere to be found.

"Damn it," Zhai Feng cursed fiercely.

Shen Zhili gazed at the direction where the child had disappeared, feeling that this move seemed somewhat familiar.

Qingxing helped Su Chenche up and asked, "Is that person from the Demonic Sect?"

Shen Zhili nodded and said, "It looks like it should be... Dieyi. There's no need to pump her stomach. It shouldn't be difficult to find an antidote since she's been poisoned."

“Not necessarily.” Zhai Fengfeng’s eyes shifted to Su Chenche, who was unconscious from poisoning with his head tilted to one side. “I suspect that even that person from earlier was designed by the Master.”

"Didn't he have amnesia...?"

Zhai Feng said decisively, "Even if you have amnesia, some instincts will still be there."

Shen Zhili, holding the poison powder, couldn't help but ask, "...Hall Master Zhai, was he always like this?"

Zhai Feng gazed into the distance against the light, a look of pity on her face: "He's much better than before..."

...How terrifying Prince Twelve Nights must have been before!

As they were talking, a huge rumble interrupted their conversation, followed by a series of sounds of rocks falling to the ground. The overlapping sounds were extremely shocking.

Shen Zhili was about to go and see what had happened when she was surprised to find that Su Chenche's hand was still holding hers.

After a flurry of footsteps, two guards, their faces covered in blood, rushed in.

"Valley Master, it's terrible! Someone blew up the valley entrance, and the entire entrance has collapsed!"

"Valley Master, a lot of people from the Demonic Sect are rushing in!"

Shen Zhili's expression immediately changed.

Since she came to Huichun Valley, let alone anyone daring to blow up the valley entrance, very few people have even dared to force their way in.

The entrance to Huichun Valley is unique; it is a steep and difficult-to-walk stone staircase. Often, before the other party arrives, the guards of Huichun Valley have already used the traps on the stone staircase to capture them.

...But someone actually dared to blow it up!

Zhai Feng and Qing Xing exchanged a glance. Zhai Feng then drew a bright red leather whip from her waist, flicked it lightly to make a whistling sound, and charged out first.

Qingxing rested Su Chenche's head on Shen Zhili's shoulder and said solemnly, "Valley Master Shen, we'll go out and hold off the Demonic Sect members first. We'll leave the Master to you for now."

Almost before Qingxing left, a sound amplified by internal force echoed throughout the entire Huichun Valley.

"I'm back."

The simple four words were imbued with a chilling coldness that sent shivers down one's spine. The slight tremor at the end of the word was like a knife about to fall, lodged right next to the heart.

Shen Zhili suddenly understood why the people from the Demonic Sect dared to risk offending Huichun Valley and break in.

Poison Demon Hua Jiuye's medical skills are no less than those of Huichun Valley, and her poison skills are undoubtedly the best in the world.

Damn it, how did you get here so fast...?

Ignoring everything else, Shen Zhili whispered to Dieyi, "The Demonic Sect's target is Young Master Twelve Nights. Help me support him and throw him into the secret passage."

Dieyi responded, and the two of them half-supported and half-carried Su Chenche around to the waterside pavilion in Shen Zhili's courtyard.

Fortunately, everyone's attention was drawn to the valley entrance, and few people noticed.

Shen Zhili tapped her fingers on the stone table in the waterside pavilion. With a loud bang, a hole large enough for one person to pass through was revealed in the pavilion, which was covered by light gauze curtains. Shen Zhili estimated the depth and raised her foot to kick Su Chenche down.

Outside the courtyard gate, a mocking yet cold voice rang out: "Junior Sister Zhili."

Why did he head straight here as soon as he arrived?

I really don't want to see him at all right now!

Shen Zhili was filled with grief and indignation, and her gaze slowly turned to Dieyi.

Dieyi understood and grasped Shen Zhili's hand, nodding with a look of grim determination, "Miss, you should go downstairs quickly. Leave the rest to me!"

The next moment, Shen Zhili felt her body lighten and landed heavily on the ground. The mechanism above her head closed, and all she could see was darkness.

Fortunately, he was not injured, because there was a fleshy cushion pressing down on him from behind.

Although Shen Zhili is known as a miracle doctor, she is actually a doctor who can't even lift a chicken. She carefully climbed off Su Chenche, only to find that the hand that was holding her was still there... Unexpectedly stubborn...

However, the fact that he still has strength probably means he hasn't died from the fall...

Shen Zhili carefully turned Su Chenche's shoulder and, sure enough, saw his face covered in blood. She ran her fingers over his body a couple of times... Oh no, his newly healed ribs seem to be cracking...

With all their might, they dragged Su Chenche deep into the secret passage. Inside was a small stone cave containing some commonly used medicinal herbs and enough dry rations for several days. A crystal-clear stream flowed gently beside it.

The medicinal herbs in the cave were not enough to detoxify Su Chenche, but they were sufficient for simple treatment.

Shen Zhili used all the available medicinal herbs to treat Su Chenche's wounds, and then fetched water to wipe away the blood and dirt. After finishing all this, Shen Zhili was exhausted and covered in sweat.

The secret passage remained dark, and no sounds could be heard from outside. Shen Zhili had no idea how much time had passed.