Ning Shuang hurriedly packed the glass bottles into his shoulder bag before opening the door and stepping out of the room.
He had just turned to head downstairs when he collided head-on with Ji Huaizhi, who was on his way to the bathroom. The two of them each took half a step back, and Ning Shuang quickly reached out to grab Ji Huaizhi’s hand.
So cold. That was Ning Shuang’s first impression.
Ji Huaizhi’s long hair draped loosely over his shoulders. Seeing how neatly dressed Ning Shuang was, a flicker of purple light passed through his eyes.
“Sorry, I didn’t see you,” Ning Shuang said as he let go.
Ji Huaizhi shook his head and glanced at Ning Shuang’s tousled bedhead. “Are you heading out?”
There was no point in lying now, so Ning Shuang nodded and explained, “A friend’s condition at City Center Hospital seems to have worsened. I’m going to check on her.”
“Get some early rest. I probably won’t be back until tomorrow morning,” Ning Shuang added with a word of caution. He then sidestepped past Ji Huaizhi. A few steps later, he turned and descended the stairs.
Ji Huaizhi stood by the railing, his gaze lowered as he watched Ning Shuang change into his shoes and finally open the door to leave the house.
A frown creased his brow, his eyes holding a hint of resentment, though his expression remained exceedingly faint. In just a few seconds, Ji Huaizhi turned back toward his room and made his way to the balcony.
Tonight’s moon was exceptionally bright, a slender crescent hanging in the dark sky. Moonlight nearly illuminated every shadowy corner, and the night breeze carried a biting chill. After leaving the house, Ning Shuang stood at the courtyard gate and hailed a cab. Within two minutes, he was in the car and gone.
A small bird with pure white feathers soon flapped its wings and gave chase.
Ji Huaizhi’s hand tightened unconsciously on the railing.
~~~
The roads were nearly empty in the early hours of the morning, allowing Ning Shuang to reach the hospital without any delays.
While riding in the cab, he had already gotten the full story from Yang Mengqi via WeChat.
As soon as he got out of the car, Ning Shuang made a beeline for the inpatient building where Ming Qingning was staying.
The corridor lights had dimmed once more. Ning Shuang stepped out of the elevator, took a deep breath, and walked step by step toward Room 2109.
Looking down the row of rooms, only the light in Ming Qingning’s room remained on.
Ning Shuang knocked on the door.
Rustling sounds came from inside. A few seconds later, Yang Mengqi opened it for him.
“Ning Shuang.” Seeing him drenched in sweat, Yang Mengqi looked as though a savior had arrived. She quickly stepped aside to let him in. “Come on in.”
Ning Shuang nodded and followed her inside, walking right up to the bedside.
Yang Mengqi explained, “The doctor came by but still couldn’t figure out what’s wrong. They gave her a sedative and said they’d draw another vial of blood for testing tomorrow morning once it wears off. If they still can’t find anything, they’ll have to transfer her to a bigger hospital.”
Everyone had initially thought it was just a simple illness and hadn’t taken it too seriously, so they hadn’t informed Ming Qingning’s parents. Who could have known the doctors would be at a loss…
No wonder Yang Mengqi had been scared to tears.
“It’s okay,” Ning Shuang reassured her. “I’ll stay here with her tonight too.”
Ming Qingning was still deep in slumber, her breathing alternating between rapid gasps and slow draws. Her lips were so dry they had cracked. Ning Shuang leaned in closer to examine the bandage wrapped around her arm.
“You noticed it too, didn’t you?” Yang Mengqi said, her eyes rimmed red and her voice hoarse. “Her hand… it looks like it’s covered in fish scales…”
“It’s not fish scales—just a simple drug allergy,” Ning Shuang said gently, knowing how worried and frightened she was.
Yang Mengqi blinked, half-believing. “It’s really just an allergy…?”
“Yes.” Ning Shuang nodded, took hold of Ming Qingning’s wrist, and lifted it for a closer look. After a few seconds of silence, he stood and drew back the curtains.
Moonlight poured in, cascading over the bed and draping the figure on it in a silver veil.
Ming Qingning’s breathing steadied almost instantly.
Ning Shuang’s suspicions had been correct after all. Those scale-like patches were the scales of Thousand Silk Cicada Insects, meaning the gu afflicting Ming Qingning came from the ashes of burned Thousand Silk Cicada Grass.
This gu did indeed enhance bodily functions, and when mixed with ordinary herbal powders, it could pass for weight loss pills—small doses posed no real problem. However, the sample Ning Shuang had taken home clearly contained an excess of Thousand Silk Cicada Grass. Ming Qingning’s current state was likely the result of overdosing.
Because her body hadn’t had time to fully digest the excess grass, it had built up inside her, drawing in the Thousand Silk Cicada Insects that subsisted on it. Once the gu insects entered her system, they had practically merged with her body, which explained why the hospital tests had turned up nothing.
The Thousand Silk Cicada Insects shunned sunlight but craved moonlight, just as she did now.
After a moment’s thought, Ning Shuang turned to Yang Mengqi. “Senior Sister, could you fetch some hot water? I don’t know where to get it.”
Yang Mengqi nodded tearfully. “Sure.”
She grabbed the thermos from the cabinet and left the room, closing the door behind her.
Ning Shuang glanced at the surveillance camera in the far corner, circled to the other side of the bed—facing away from it—and retrieved a transparent glass vial from his shoulder bag. It contained a fluorescent blue liquid.
All things considered, he just needed to kill the insects inside Ming Qingning’s body.
Ning Shuang picked up the porcelain cup from the bedside table and poured a small amount of the liquid into it. The fluorescent blue turned clear the instant it hit the cup.
It was now indistinguishable from ordinary drinking water.
He pulled out a handkerchief and pretended to wipe Ming Qingning’s face. A fresh scent wafted into her nostrils. The woman on the bed suddenly coughed a few times, and seconds later, her heavy eyelids slowly fluttered open.
“Ning Shuang? How are you here…?” Ming Qingning had been unconscious for the past two days; even when she briefly woke, her mind had been foggy and amnesiac. Now, with her thoughts clearing at last, the first person she saw was him.
Her eyes reddened. Before she could voice her gratitude, Ning Shuang spoke up. “Senior Sister Yang Mengqi has been taking care of you the whole time. I only just got here—she went to get you some hot water.”
“Mengmeng…” Ming Qingning murmured. Ning Shuang’s reminder jogged her memory; she vaguely recalled hearing Yang Mengqi’s voice amid her haze.
Ning Shuang nodded and raised the head of the bed slightly to make it easier for her to sit up and talk with them.
Just then, Yang Mengqi returned with the hot water.
Seeing Ming Qingning awake, she rushed to the bedside, set down the kettle, and grasped her hand. “Qingning, you’re awake? Do you feel uncomfortable anywhere? Does it hurt…?”
“No pain. I’m fine—don’t cry.” Ming Qingning lifted a hand to wipe away her tears.
Yang Mengqi sniffled. “This is weird. They gave you a sedative, and it’s not even been an hour. How are you…?”
Her puzzled question trailed off as Ning Shuang interjected from the side. “She should drink some water. Senior Sister’s been asleep for so long—she needs to rehydrate.”
“Right, right. You wouldn’t drink any water while you were out.” Yang Mengqi nodded hurriedly.
Ning Shuang bent down, poured some hot water from the kettle into the cup, then added a bit of cold water from the bedside teapot to temper it. He handed the cup of warm water to Yang Mengqi.
“Thanks,” she said, taking it and carefully feeding Ming Qingning the entire cup.
Watching her drain it, Ning Shuang let out a breath of relief. Good—this matter was settled.
Luckily, he had come prepared with the Gu-Dissolving Medicine. Once it took full effect inside her, she would be on the mend.
After finishing the water, Yang Mengqi asked if Ming Qingning wanted to sleep more. She shook her head. “I’ve slept plenty. I’m not tired at all now.”
Ning Shuang took a seat on the chair by the bed, gazing at her face with evident concern. “Senior Sister, how are you feeling?”
“Much better. Not so uncomfortable anymore,” Ming Qingning replied honestly.
Ning Shuang nodded, and Ming Qingning added, “Thank you and Mengmeng for taking care of me.”
“I’ve only just arrived. It was Senior Sister Mengqi looking after you—no need to thank me.” Ning Shuang waved it off.
“Qingning, no more of those weird weight loss pills from now on,” Yang Mengqi said, torn between anger and heartache. “You’re not even that heavy to begin with. Just exercise properly—you had us terrified these past couple days.”
Ming Qingning smiled faintly. “I won’t.”
Ning Shuang eyed the scales gradually fading from Ming Qingning’s arm. “Senior Sister, once you’re better in a couple days, your weight might rebound a bit. Try not to take it to heart.”
She was noticeably slimmer now compared to before, but she exuded an aura of illness—pale and frail. It hardly counted as healthy.
“It’s fine. I’ve come to realize that now—honest exercise it is,” Ming Qingning said. The pain had given her plenty of time to reflect.
Ning Shuang asked, “Since it’s the weight loss pills causing this, Senior Sister, why not consider reporting it to the police?”
“Because there’s no evidence…” Of course, Ming Qingning wanted compensation. “The place where we made the deal had no cameras, and I never even saw what he looked like. He just hid the pills somewhere and sent me the location on WeChat for me to pick up myself.”
“So how did you get in touch?” Ning Shuang frowned tightly.
Ming Qingning reached for the phone on the bedside table. “I asked someone else to push their WeChat to me.”
Ning Shuang took the phone and flipped through their chat history. The other person had been very privacy-conscious, revealing almost nothing to Ming Qingning. Later, after Ming Qingning’s incident, when she messaged them again, she discovered they had blocked her WeChat.
They were just someone from outside the school anyway, and Ning Shuang had no connection to them. He handed the phone back. “Where did you hear that his medicine was so effective?”
“Everyone’s been talking about it.” Ming Qingning’s expression was full of regret and sadness.
Ning Shuang sighed and comforted her. “It’s okay, it’s okay. The doctor will check you again tomorrow. I think you’re already looking much better—maybe you’ll be fine by then.”
“Yeah, Qingning, I think you’re in a much better state now too,” Yang Mengqi chimed in with a nod.
Ning Shuang bent down and slowly lowered the bedside rail. “Senior Sister, get some more rest. The doctor will come by in the morning, and tonight, Mengqi Senior Sister and I will stay with you.”
“Thank you both.” Ming Qingning said gratefully.
Yang Mengqi stood up to tuck her in properly, then turned to Ning Shuang. “You should sleep on the accompanying bed for a bit. I slept a lot this afternoon.”
Ning Shuang also stood. “I’m not sleepy right now. I’ll step out for some fresh air and be back before dawn. You and Senior Sister Qingning get some good rest.”
“Alright then.” Seeing how determined Ning Shuang was, Yang Mengqi didn’t push further.
Before leaving, Ning Shuang turned off the lights in Room 2109.
After stepping out of the room, Ning Shuang lay down on the long bench right outside the door. He pillowed his head on his hands, with his jacket underneath as padding. There were only four or five hours until dawn, and the weather wasn’t too cold, so he could make do here.
He stared blankly at the ceiling.
His mind was still on the matter.
No wonder the police couldn’t do anything—there was no transaction footage, and no one had seen the seller…
If it was all about making money, they shouldn’t have added an overdose of gu to the pills. Or did they have some other purpose?
The ban on gu definitely wasn’t something all the clansmen were happy with. Were they trying to blow the whole thing up to force the higher-ups to lift the ban and let them return to Miao Village?
