Chapter 201: Chapter 200: The Poisonous WomanSang Yan and He Ying had rushed to the He Family Clinic when they arrived, it had already been mostly burned down.


    The bystanders who were putting out the fire were still shaken, and upon seeing them arrive with soldiers, they became agitated, talking over each other and gesturing wildly:


    "It’s too big! The fire is too big!"


    "It suddenly started burning."


    "Ah, it’s terrifying."


    "It must be divine punishment! Everything is burned down!"


    ...


    They didn’t know about the grievances and animosities of the He Family, and they didn’t realize it was arson.


    Yet, the instigators of this disaster had obviously gotten ahead of them again.


    Sang Yan looked at the ruined walls and the rubble on the ground, and said angrily, "They haven’t escaped too far! Xinyuan, immediately have people search the area for suspicious individuals! He Hongzhao has excellent medical skills and might know the Disguise Technique, but he can’t hide his frail constitution. Make sure they especially look out for people who are weak and sickly!"


    "Alright!"


    He Ying agreed with her idea and turned to Lu Zijin, saying coldly, "Did you hear what Lady said? Thoroughly check for suspicious individuals around the He Family Clinic, especially the frail and sick, even if their faces don’t match, arrest them first!"


    Lu Zijin nodded in response, "Yes!"


    He immediately took the soldiers to conduct the search.


    After two days of searching, they had arrested many weak and sick individuals.


    Unfortunately, after verifying their identities, none of them was He Hongzhao.


    He returned to report, his face full of shame and embarrassment, "The docks, the post stations, and the inns in the city, I’ve searched them all, and still, I found no trace of He Hongzhao."


    "Useless!"


    He Ying erupted in anger, grabbing the teacup in his hand and throwing it.


    "Bang!"


    The teacup shattered near Lu Zijin’s feet.


    The Emperor was furious.


    The servants in the room all knelt down at once.


    The atmosphere became tense and stifling.


    "The entire Quanzhou is only so big, and you can’t even find one person?"


    He Ying looked at Lu Zijin with disappointment.


    This was his most trusted Guard Captain.


    Being played once by He Hongzhao was enough, but now failing to find even a frail woman, how could he not be angry?


    Lu Zijin knelt on the ground, his back straight, not uttering a word.


    He didn’t offer any excuses for himself.


    Indeed, he hadn’t handled this matter well.


    Irrefutable!


    "What are you still kneeling for? Get out! Continue searching! If you can’t find him, then you need not continue being Guard Captain!"


    He Ying pointed towards the door, ordering everyone out.


    "The Emperor can rest assured, I will continue the search with my men!"


    Lu Zijin said as he stood up, bowed in farewell to the two, and then walked out.


    Sang Yan spoke up, reminding, "Don’t overlook Cangcui Mountain and the He Family Clinic. Check them again for any hidden passageways or traps."


    "Yes. Thank you for the reminder, Lady."


    He didn’t say he had already checked.


    As a servant of the state, failing in his duties pointed to his own inadequacy.


    The Emperor trusted him so much.


    Yet he had failed his trust time and again.


    He Ying erupted into a violent cough, his right hand pressed against his chest, his fair face reddening from the cough, clearly angered.


    Sang Yan quickly handed him a cup of water then, patting his chest, helped him calm his breath, "Imperial Doctor Liu said you shouldn’t get angry. Have you forgotten, or are you deliberately trying to upset me?"


    She rested her chin in her hand, her bright eyes carrying a trace of feigned displeasure.


    He Ying’s heart stirred, and before his brain could respond, he blurted out, "Of course I didn’t mean to upset Ah Yan."


    How could he dare upset her?


    Not to mention whether he would dare, whether he could bear to was another matter.


    Sang Yan, hearing this, felt pleased and her smile widened, "Although Lu Zijin is the Guard Captain, he is still young, having always been in the Imperial Palace, how could he compare to the cunning minds of Wuya and He Hongzhao? Don’t be too hard on him."


    She seemed to be pleading for Lu Zijin, but in reality, she was also consoling him, urging him to be less angry.


    He Ying understood, took a few sips of tea, put down the cup, and holding Sang Yan’s hand, asked in a lighter tone, "In your heart, am I such a temperamental and erratic person?"


    Sang Yan: "..."


    How was she supposed to answer that?


    When she had first arrived, wasn’t he exactly a temperamental and erratic person?


    She pressed her lips together in a smile, not answering, and slightly tilted her head to look at him.


    The coy movement made He Ying chuckle with laughter.


    He truly had no way to handle Sang Yan.


    "Lu Zijin is young and has always been by my side, I regard him as a confidant, and because he is a confidant, I do not allow him to make mistakes—even more strictly so. He is someone I value, and he must possess true skills. Otherwise, he himself would find it difficult to convince the crowd." sea??h thё N?velFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    "Oh, so you were pushing him."


    Sang Yan’s smile grew even more wicked: "Hitting is intimacy, scolding is love, it seems I was just worrying too much."


    He Ying heard her teasing.


    He was also happy to play along, giving Sang Yan a bow with a smile, "How could that be? A wife worrying for her husband is something the husband should be grateful for."


    Sang Yan: "..."


    Alright then!


    She couldn’t win against this man!


    *


    The night was gloomy.


    He Family’s Ancestral Tomb.


    Han Chen activated the mechanism and entered the tomb chamber.


    As soon as he entered, he heard He Hongzhao’s intense coughing.


    He frowned and hastened his steps, walking over: "Are you alright?"


    He Hongzhao lay weakly on the bed, her complexion deathly pale, with blood dripping from the corner of her lips.


    "As you can see, not good."


    She coughed up blood, half-dead yet still smiling: "But, I won’t die just yet."


    Han Chen was not in the mood to indulge her madness and handed her the food box: "Make do and eat something. Quanzhou is under martial law right now, we can’t leave."


    He himself had no problem leaving.


    But those inspecting were particularly watchful for the sick, and with He Hongzhao looking like this, even with a disguise she would be caught the moment she went out.


    Who knows who had this terrible idea, damn it, to indiscriminately capture the sick!


    He Hongzhao opened the food box, it contained a bowl of warm Yangchun noodles and an egg.


    She ate without taste, took a few bites, then vomited them out.


    As she vomited, her body leaned to the side, knocking down the medical book she had been looking at.


    And it just had to land in her vomit.


    "Pick it up!"


    She commanded Han Chen: "Mr. Jiu would like it."


    Han Chen: "..."


    For Mr. Jiu, he would sacrifice anything.


    Thus, he closed his eyes, held his breath, and picked up the medical book.


    Indeed, this book was hard to find from He Family Clinic.


    Mr. Jiu would certainly like it.


    "Cough cough—"


    He Hongzhao paid him no mind and continued to eat.


    Her body was too weak, she couldn’t eat anymore.


    But she had to eat.


    She needed to stay alive to reach Beiqi.


    She wanted to see Qi Wuya once more.


    "Cough cough cough, vomit—"


    "If you can’t eat, don’t force it."


    Seeing her vomit and eat simultaneously irritated Han Chen; the smell of vomit was unbearable!


    He held his breath, put down the medical book, and started cleaning up.


    It took a while but after she managed to eat half a bowl of noodles, she seemed to gain some strength; he quickly asked, "Do you have another plan to leave the city? This tomb chamber isn’t necessarily safe. We need to leave as soon as possible."


    He Hongzhao had long known the tomb chamber was no place to stay and had been thinking of strategies.


    At this moment, she caressed the Snow Monkey gently, yet her words carried a chilling, bloodthirsty tone: "Since they are capturing the sick, then let there be more sick people."


    Han Chen: "..."


    He understood the meaning behind her words.


    Even though he had killed many, he was still shocked: Indeed, a woman’s heart is most venomous.


    He wondered why Mr. Jiu wanted him to save such a venomous woman!


    Suddenly, he thought of Sang Yan.


    That kind of woman was better.


    Soft and weak, pretty even when crying, and fundamentally kind-hearted, with an occasional attack of cuteness.


    If Mr. Jiu had to choose a woman, then it should be Sang Yan.


    Otherwise, he could be so worried for Mr. Jiu that he couldn’t sleep all night.