Climbing on the Sparrow Branch – CH 480

Chapter 480: Dejected

An Zhi and the others needed to keep An Xu’s true condition a secret. Only the people in the room knew the details; they couldn’t tell the truth to their father and stepmother because they were too easily tricked.

Huiping’s eyes stung from crying. Looking at An Zhi earnestly, she said, “I’m not as smart as you, so I’ll do whatever you say. Regardless of whether others are involved or not, Yun Shengxing has to suffer first.”

“That’s for sure.” An Zhi also hated Yun Shengxing. Thinking of her brother lying in bed, she wanted Yun Shengxing to experience that feeling too.

After the two women comforted each other for a while, a middle-aged male poison master named Cheng Gang emerged from the inner room. He had a thick beard, and He Xun had said that Cheng Gang knew all the poisons in the world.

Cheng Gang looked at Huiping and said, “General An is poisoned by a poisonous herb from the Southern Frontier. This herb grows deep in the mountains and is extremely rare. However, the poison is not difficult to cure. As long as we find the herb, we can extract the antidote.”

An Zhi excitedly asked, “Do you have this herb?”

Cheng Gang shook his head and said, “As I just said, this herb is extremely rare. Even my young master doesn’t have any in stock. But since an antidote exists, there is hope for a cure.” He then turned to Pei Que. “Moreover, with the Pei family’s strength, finding an herb is possible; it’s just a matter of time.”

The Southern Frontier was not the territory of the Jiuyi tribes. Its customs were complex, and it was rife with all kinds of poisons. Ordinary people who entered the Southern Frontier would either be killed by the locals or poisoned by the local insects, snakes, and rats.

But as Cheng Gang said, the Pei family had a slight connection with the King of Southern Xinjiang, so getting the King to agree to send people into the mountains to search for medicine wasn’t difficult. The real challenge was finding the poisonous herbs amidst the complex terrain of Southern Xinjiang.

However, having a goal was better than having none.

Huiping didn’t yet understand how difficult it was to find medicine in Southern Xinjiang. She only heard there was hope for overcoming the addiction. “Master Cheng, before my husband’s poison is cured, will he need to take other medications? Will his body change?”

“General An has a good constitution; six months shouldn’t be a problem,” Cheng Gang said. “But if it goes on too long, the toxins will damage General An’s body. If the detoxification isn’t timely, General An might lose some of his senses and awareness.”

Six months wasn’t a long time, considering it took more than half a month to travel from the capital to Southern Xinjiang.

Huiping’s newly ignited hope now felt like a huge boulder was pressing on her chest.

An Zhi also felt considerable pressure. “Then I’ll trouble Poison Master Cheng to help my brother recover. We will find the poisonous herb as soon as possible.”

“Madam, you’re too kind. You’ve helped my master, so naturally I will wholeheartedly help General An.” Cheng Gang bowed to An Zhi and the others. “Please rest assured, we won’t utter a single word that shouldn’t be said. In the coming days, please move General An to a quiet courtyard. Firstly, it will be easier for us to care for him, and secondly, there are indeed too many people coming and going here.”

Now, Huiping was willing to do anything that was good for An Xu. “That’s easy. I’ll have someone clean the courtyard right away.”

Hearing this, An Zhi asked about her brother’s throat. Cheng Gang said the throat problem wasn’t caused by poisoning and that the imperial physician would have to come. So Huiping hurriedly returned to her parents’ home.

An Zhi stayed behind to look after her brother, telling Pei Que to go back first. “You have many official duties to attend to. I’ll manage here. I’ll return to the manor after my sister-in-law returns.”

Pei Que knew there was nothing for him to do here, so he nodded in agreement. “If anything happens, have Fusheng come to the Ministry of Public Works to find me. You need to take care of yourself; don’t forget you’re pregnant.”

An Zhi glanced down at her belly. It was indeed better not to tell her about her brother’s poisoning beforehand; otherwise, she would have worried day and night, and might be extremely weak by now.

After seeing Pei Que off, An Zhi asked Binglu to prepare some snacks. Now that there was progress in her brother’s situation, she should eat something.

However, before she could even take a couple of bites, she heard her father’s wailing.

Due to official business, An Chengye had gone to a county near the capital a while ago. After receiving a letter that An Xu had been sent back, he hurried back but still missed the morning’s pickup at the city gate.

“My poor son!” An Chengye cried out loudly, his voice so loud that the neighboring courtyard could hear him. He tripped over the threshold as he rushed in, falling hard.

An Zhi, hearing her father’s cries, almost choked on her snack.

After taking a sip of tea, she turned to look at her father.

An Chengye entered with a pained expression and asked An Zhi, “Zhi’er, how is your brother? Where is he?”

An Zhi hushed, “Please be quiet. Brother just fell asleep.” With a sigh, she continued, “Brother isn’t doing well. We’ll have to wait for the imperial physician to arrive to find out.”

“How could this happen?” An Chengye despaired.

Although An Chengye and his eldest son had a distant relationship, An Xu was still his son. When An Xu was appointed general, many people gave him face when he was away.

Now, he was paralyzed. What future could he have?

An Chengye’s thoughts grew increasingly desperate. Seeing his daughter frown, he slammed the table and said, “If I find out who’s behind this, I’ll report him to the government office!”

“Then go ahead. I’m just worried about how to report Yun Shengxing. Since you’re so righteous, go and seek justice for my brother,” An Zhi said earnestly, looking at her father.

At the mention of Yun Shengxing, An Chengye instantly wilted.

“Was it Minister Yun… no, Yun Shengxing who did this to your brother?” An Chengye asked, confirming.

“He contributed in part, anyway.” An Zhi picked up a piece of pastry but didn’t eat it. “Father, please keep this a secret about my brother. I don’t know how many people are watching him right now. If you let anything slip, our entire family’s heads will be in tatters.”

Hearing this, An Chengye immediately rubbed his neck and assured, “Don’t worry about this. The people in our mansion are still the same ones you had when you got married. We know them all. I’ll have someone guard the courtyard later and won’t let anyone take advantage. But… is your brother’s illness really that difficult to cure?”

An Zhi didn’t intend to tell her father about how to cure her brother’s poison. Since it was a show, she had to be authentic. Her father would be cautious out of fear of death, and he would also be forced to reveal things out of fear of death. In short, he was unreliable.

An Zhi looked troubled. “I heard Captain Tu say it’s indeed difficult to cure, but the conditions in the northwest are poor, and the doctors there are certainly not as good as the imperial physicians. There’s still hope.”

An Chengye’s heart skipped a beat. He felt it was unlikely to be cured. This meant he would no longer have a strong support system.

“Then…what will your sister-in-law say?” An Chengye asked worriedly. “If your brother can’t be cured, your sister-in-law previously said she’d give birth to a son to be adopted by the Grand Princess. Now she’s not even going to give birth. Will the Grand Princess force your brother to divorce her?”