Chapter 189

The skin around the puncture was slightly reddened; because the two corpses had abundant underarm hair, if not carefully observed this point would not be noticed. Qin Yutong then used a silver needle to follow the puncture and stab into it, then placed the silver needle soaked with poison into a porcelain bottle for temporary storage.

Hu Xiaotian

Liang Da Zhuang

Before the two left, Hu Xiaotian instructed Zhu Yannian to directly drag the corpses to the potter's field and bury them; regarding his own autopsy, he must not mention it to anyone.

Leaving the Charitable Estate, Hu Xiaotian looked up at the brilliant sunlight, stretched his arms forcefully, and said: 'As I expected, it's poisoning!'

Sir

Hu Xiaotian laughed and said: 'Keeping the corpses is useless; you say they are evidence, but if others claim the bodies were stabbed after death, how would you refute that? To me, the truth doesn't matter; the result does.'

He brought Qin Yutong to his residence on Three Virtues Lane. Liu Kuohai had already returned; seeing Hu Xiaotian and Qin Yutong together, he felt quite surprised.

Hu Xiaotian had Liu Kuohai help brew tea, while he himself brought Qin Yutong to the Study, took out his surgical instrument case, opened it, and handed it to Qin Yutong for examination.

Seeing the dazzling array of instruments in the case, Qin Yutong's usually tranquil eyes rippled; she examined each one, showing deep involvement. She didn't even take the scented tea Hu Xiaotian had sent over, instead picking up a vascular clamp, opening and closing it, and softly asking about the tool's purpose. Hu Xiaotian hid nothing, fully explaining the function of each tool to her.

Qin Yutong looked at the instruments for a full half hour before finally setting them down, then went to the bronze basin to wash her hands. She took the scented tea Hu Xiaotian offered again, but did not drink it; instead she placed it directly on the tea table and said: 'Sir, where did you obtain these tools?'

Hu Xiaotian certainly wouldn't tell the truth; he couldn't say that he had designed them himself and then Li Yifeng of Easy Origin Hall helped forge them. He laughed: 'An old friend of mine gave them to me.' Because he knew Meng Zizai was the resident physician of Xuantian Guan, and Qin Yutong respectfully called him her uncle-master, he assumed she had close ties to Xuantian Guan; if he mentioned Easy Origin Hall, she might follow the clues and uncover his background. Qin Yutong had no intention of pressing further, and softly praised: 'These tools are exquisitely designed, surpassing nature's craftsmanship. If I'm not mistaken, they are all the work of the Heavenly Craft Workshop, the foremost workshop in the capital.'

Hu Xiaotian silently cursed his miscalculation—how could he be so careless? He had clearly considered Qin Yutong's connection to Xuantian Guan, yet overlooked this crucial point. One must know that the Heavenly Craft Workshop is the foremost workshop in the capital; all kinds of weapons and tools they forge bear their mark. If Qin Yutong were a member of Xuantian Guan, how could she not recognize the Heavenly Craft Workshop's mark? Now it's troublesome—if she follows this line of inquiry, she could easily uncover his origins without much effort. Damn, I was careless. After all, I was still careless. Hu Xiaotian decided to keep up the act of cluelessness: 'I don't know either; after all, it was a gift from a friend, and I never asked where it came from. Miss Qin, since you say so, I suppose you're right—your eye for detail is truly impressive. Are you familiar with the Heavenly Craft Workshop?'

Qin Yutong said: 'The Heavenly Craft Workshop's fame spreads far and wide; anything bearing those three words is a fine product. All of the young master's tools bear the Heavenly Craft Workshop's mark. From this, deducing their origin is not difficult.' Her remark seemed to have a double meaning.

Hu Xiaotian chuckled: 'Miss Qin, beautiful outside and wise within, your medical skill is superb. Since I left Black Stone Stronghold yesterday, I have never stopped thinking of you.' Actually, he could have simply said he admired Qin Yutong's medical skill, but he deliberately went around in circles, phrasing it like this **. This fellow has a mindset: the more you remain unmoved, the more he pushes your psychological limits.

Qin Yutong was practically an insulator; no matter how Hu Xiaotian spoke, she showed not the slightest change in expression.

Hu Xiaotian had never before encountered a woman like this; he had met those who admired him and those who despised him, but Qin Yutong's attitude toward him was as bland as water, giving him the illusion that, despite his stature, standing here he felt like mere air.

Three Virtues Alley

Random Burial Hill

Easy Origin Hall

Liu Kuohai

Hu Xiaotian said: 'I always believe that to treat people, one must first understand the human body; how can someone who doesn't even know human anatomy hope to cure others?'

Li Yifeng

Bai Qiu'en

Qin Yutong's gaze grew increasingly bewildered; what Bai Qiu'en, she really had never heard of.

Hu Xiaotian laughed and said, "Being by my master's side I just do odd jobs; he's not really a great master, and I haven't learned much from him. Even if I've cured a few, it's just a blind cat finding a dead mouse."

Qin Yutong naturally wouldn't believe Hu Xiaotian's words, and she said softly, "I've heard that Sir Hu treated the Wan Family's second young master, and I've also heard of Sir Hu's benevolent act in saving the Wan Family's eldest daughter-in-law—craniotomy, throat-slitting, opening the abdomen and gutting. If such a treatment method were told to people, it would surely be shocking and outrageous. If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn't believe it."

Hu Xiaotian said, "Even seeing it with your own eyes isn't necessarily true." He stared at Qin Yutong's eyes and said, "Miss Qin, why are you covering your face with a veil?"

Qin Yutong said, "My appearance is ugly; I fear disturbing Sir Hu."

Hu Xiaotian secretly laughed, setting aside Qin Yutong's outstanding figure and demeanor; just her eyes alone could overturn all beings—this excuse is really far-fetched.

Qin Yutong said, "Sir must think I'm deliberately lying." She then, in front of Hu Xiaotian, removed the black veil covering her face.

When Hu Xiaotian saw her face, he gasped and opened his mouth wide, only to see three knife scars crisscrossing Qin Yutong's cheeks, one of them almost running across her entire face—truly shocking. Looking again, her beautiful eyebrows and eyes were exquisite to the extreme, contrasting sharply with the lower half of her face, making one wonder who could be so cruel as to inflict such harm on this girl's visage.

Qin Yutong again covered her face with the veil: "Sir, are you satisfied now?"

Hu Xiaotian blinked hard, hardly able to believe what he had just seen.

Qin Yutong said, "In my youth I suffered a clan extermination by enemies; though I managed to escape, it left a lifelong mark on my face."

Hu Xiaotian secretly sighed, thinking Qin Yutong's aloof temperament might be related to that childhood incident. He comforted Qin Yutong: "Miss Qin, appearance doesn't represent everything; a person's existence lies in what they can do for this world, not in how they look."

Qin Yutong said, "Sir Hu, you don't need to comfort me; after all this time, I've become indifferent to everything. Being able to learn some medical skills and, to my ability, relieve the ailments of a few more people is my greatest wish." Qin Yutong's wish may be modest, but it is utterly selfless; Hu Xiaotian asked himself he could not be like her, and having just mentioned Bai Qiu'en, the selfless benefactor who only helps others was right before his eyes.

Qin Yutong rose to take her leave, and Hu Xiaotian said, "Miss Qin, tonight I have a charity auction banquet at the Hongyan Tower; if you have time, do come and show your support."

Qin Yutong said indifferently, "I've never been interested in such crowded occasions."

After Qin Yutong left, Liu Kuohai came to report to Hu Xiaotian. Following Hu Xiaotian's arrangement, he had deliberately created an appearance of negligence the previous night, giving Hu Jinniu a chance to escape. He quietly tailed Hu Jinniu all the way, discovering that Hu Jinniu did not go to Heishan Village to meet with others, nor did he go to Tianlang Mountain, but instead went straight to Beigu Town outside Qingyun City, where an old lady and two children lived—likely Hu Jinniu's home. As soon as Hu Jinniu entered the door, there was wailing; seeing this scene, Liu Kuohai quietly returned.

Hu Xiaotian nodded, then had Liu Kuohai send another letter to Red Willow Manor, instructing Xiao Tianmu to allocate more manpower to closely monitor Hu Jinniu; as soon as his accomplices contacted him, they would be netted all at once, of course trying to keep some alive. Afterwards, he would deliver the invitations for tomorrow night's charity auction at Hongyan Tower one by one to those Qingyun colleagues.

After finishing everything at hand, Hu Xiaotian only then realized he hadn't seen Murong Feiyan since this morning; having grown accustomed to this girl loafing around in front of him, not seeing her for a while really felt unfamiliar.

After Liang Da Zhuang left, Hu Xiaotian's meals and daily routine had no one to look after them temporarily, so he had to do everything himself. That fellow actually cooked four small dishes himself in the evening, set out the bowls and chopsticks, waiting for Murong Feiyan to return, but she didn't come from left or right. When the food had gone cold and night was falling, Hu Xiaotian could only eat first; just as he picked up his bowls and chopsticks, Murong Feiyan returned.

Hu Xiaotian laughed and said, "Why are you back so late? Have you eaten?"

Murong Feiyan looked at the food on the table: "You made this?"

"Try it!"

Murong Feiyan went to wash her hands, and when she returned Hu Xiaotian had already served her rice. In her memory, it seemed this young master had never before taken the initiative to wait on her. Murong Feiyan didn't exclaim being favored like a surprise, but her heart couldn't help feeling a little moved; it's not easy, really not easy. What surprised Murong Feiyan even more was that the young master, whom she had always defined as ignorant of grains and lazy, actually had decent cooking skills.

Hu Xiaotian smiled narrowly and said, "How is it? Try the free-range chicken soup."

Murong Feiyan took the free-range chicken soup he handed her, took a sip, and couldn't help nodding in praise: "It's delicious, really made by you?"

Hu Xiaotian laughed and said, "Besides me, who else is there at home? This free-range chicken soup is very nourishing, perfect for drinking during the postpartum month; when you eventually sit the month, I'll stew it for you every day."