Hidden Shadow – CH 086

Chapter Eighty-Six: A Difficult Choice (1)

“Why did you come?” Lou Xiaowu asked.

Before An Jiu could answer, Lou Xin’s voice came from inside the door, “Settle her in first.”

“Alright,” Lou Xiaowu readily agreed, eagerly leading the way for An Jiu.

Lou Xiaowu had an almost blind admiration for the strong. Being able to distinguish friend from foe was already her limit. Her particular interest in An Jiu stemmed not only from An Jiu’s superb archery skills but also from the difference between An Jiu’s spiritual power and internal strength.

Others might not be able to ascertain An Jiu’s strength, but Lou Xiaowu could sense it. In this respect, they were kindred spirits. Lou Xiaowu, due to premature birth, had a weak constitution from birth. She had gradually recovered somewhat, but a serious illness a few years ago damaged her foundation, so her spiritual power had always been far superior to her internal strength.

Upon arriving at the mansion, Lou Xiaowu took the initiative to arrange for An Jiu to stay in her courtyard.

“The mansion is so big; can I not stay somewhere else?” An Jiu stared at Lou Xiaowu, who was lingering in her room, and began to feel dissatisfied with this arrangement. Her switching places with Mei Jiu was no longer an open secret, but she still wanted to keep it from those who did not need to know.

“Our family is all women; we rarely have guests staying in the mansion,” Lou Xiaowu said, feeling rejected. She pouted. “Besides, everyone’s infected with the plague; we do not know if it is contagious. We have many empty rooms, but we cannot just assign you one.”

An Jiu was usually powerless against the weak, but for some reason, she felt nothing for Lou Xiaowu’s pitiful appearance. “If there’s nothing else, you can leave.” An Jiu had narrowly escaped death, had not slept at the Konghe Army’s stronghold, and after returning to Mei Mansion, had come straight to the Lou Mansion. Now she was exhausted and just wanted to find a secluded place to take a nap.

“Fine.” Lou Xiaowu reluctantly stood up and moved to the doorway.

An Jiu closed the door and lay down on the soft couch, fully clothed.

The fire crackled softly beside them, and her tense muscles slowly relaxed.

“Lady Lou is so pitiful,” Mei Jiu could not help but mutter under her breath.

“You think everyone’s like you!” An Jiu snapped, threatening before Mei Jiu could speak. “Say another word, and I will chop you up!”

This threat was empty words, but An Jiu’s slight ruthlessness immediately deflated Mei Jiu’s anger.

The Lou family was practically wiped out, yet Lou Xiaowu remained composed and methodical. She was either heartless or incredibly capable. An Jiu’s powerful mental strength gave her a keen intuition; Lou Xiaowu appeared harmless, but in reality, her will was incredibly strong, far surpassing Mei Jiu’s by a significant margin.

The room was warm and cozy, and An Jiu and Mei Jiu quickly fell asleep.

This was the deepest sleep An Jiu had had in many years. The night was dark and dreamless; she did not know how much time had passed before she was awakened by a rapid knocking on the door.

The sound was not from this door, but An Jiu still got out of bed and went to the door, peeking through the crack.

A middle-aged woman stood anxiously in front of Lou Xiaowu’s room. The door opened, and Lou Xiaowu, rubbing her eyes, asked, “Nanny Ling, what’s wrong?”

“My Young Lady, hurry to the council hall! Second Madam and the Divine Physician have come out and rescued the Sixth Elder,” Nanny Ling said.

“Really!” Lou Xiaowu’s sleepiness vanished instantly. She hurried out.

Nanny Ling quickly went inside to fetch a fur coat and followed, saying, “My Young Lady, be careful not to catch a cold.”

Seeing the two leave, An Jiu hesitated for a moment, then put on her cloak and went out.

Lou Xiaowu and Nanny Ling were long gone. But the faint light from the council hall guided her, preventing her from getting lost.

The night wind whipped up the accumulated snow, and the twilight deepened. The rugged mountain path, covered in snow, was extremely difficult to traverse for those without internal energy. By the time An Jiu arrived… Everyone, whether standing or sitting, wore somber expressions. No one spoke, save for the sound of Mo Sigui tapping his folding fan against his palm.

Hearing footsteps, everyone looked up. Mo Sigui leaned back in his chair, tapping his fan idly. He glanced at An Jiu, then lowered his eyes again, lost in thought. Suddenly, he jumped up, glaring at An Jiu, and exclaimed, “Fourteenth Young Lady! What brings you here?”

“Is there a problem?” An Jiu asked. “Or is my presence inconvenient for everyone?”

“It’s alright,” Lou Mingyue said softly. “Please sit, Fourteenth Young Lady.”

An Jiu unceremoniously found a secluded spot to sit.

“Divine Physician Mo,” Lou Mingyue said, her face ashen and her voice weak, “is Sixth Elder truly beyond saving?”

If Elder Qi were here, saving four or five more would not be a problem, but Mo Sigui had exhausted his true qi and would not recover for a day or two.

Mo Sigui, temporarily preoccupied with other matters, sat back down and replied, “The light in the ice cave is dim, and their blood vessels are frozen, so I cannot accurately determine the severity of their poisoning.”

He could only guess by observing their complexions, but after becoming ice people, even their complexions were unusual, making it even more difficult to discern.

If the Sixth Elder had stayed in the ice cave for another three days, Mo Sigui could have treated her once his true qi recovered to eighty percent. Unfortunately, he could not accurately assess the situation at the time.

That was the reality; even if other physicians came, they could not have done better than him. Mo Sigui did not feel guilty; he was only dissatisfied with his medical skills not being refined enough.

“Then what about the Sixth Elder?” Lou Xiaowu remembered Mo Sigui saying that corpses were the best breeding ground for these plague gu, so they had to be dealt with alive.

Everyone stared at Mo Sigui, waiting for his answer. He slammed his folding fan heavily against his left palm, gripped it tightly, and uttered a few words from his thin lips, “Best to burn her alive.” Lou Xiaowu trembled and turned to look at Lou Mingyue.

Lou Xin’s lips were pressed into a thin line, her brows furrowed, and she looked at Lou Mingyue with a complex expression.

They regarded her as the new head of the Lou family, and everything depended on her decision.

However, even if it was a predetermined decision, it would be too cruel for her to say it herself. Moreover, the statement that the Lou family members were beyond saving was only from Mo Sigui; whether to believe it entirely was another matter.

The room was deathly silent.

After a long while, Lou Mingyue finally said, “Let me think about it.”

She slowly got up and left.

Lou Xiaowu’s eyes were slightly red. “Brother Mo, Nanny Ling roughly knows the order in which everyone contracted the disease. Could you try to treat those with milder symptoms?”

“Yes,” Mo Sigui agreed, but in his heart, he knew the hope was slim. He paused, then said to Lou Xin, “The Mystic Ice can indeed suppress the poison to some extent, but it is not a long-term solution. Furthermore, not everyone can withstand the domineering power of the Ancient Mystic Ice. I am certain someone in the ice cave froze to death. Even the nutrients from a corpse are useless in the ice cave.”

“If that’s the case…” Lou Xin thought for a moment, realizing that those lacking internal energy were mostly servants. “Physician Mo, can you distinguish the dead? If you can, cremate the body first.”

“I can try my best.” Mo Sigui loved challenging himself, so he was very enthusiastic.

The excitement flashing in his eyes was glaringly obvious to Lou Xin.