Chapter 255: The Truth About the Mad Blood Disease!

Li Qingluo couldn't help but wonder what Li Kechuan's expression would be when he woke up and learned the truth after discovering he had been slept with by a gang of beggars, the Qu family's young man, and his own guards.

She couldn't help but let out a cold laugh.

He schemed against me, so let him taste the consequences himself first.

Que'er: "Miss, it's said that after the young master woke up and went mad, he had the servants who saw him that day at the ruined temple beaten to death."

Li Qingluo: "He would indeed do such a thing. However, their deaths were not unjust."

Li Qingluo recalled her past life, in which she had often been bullied by these servants and the old retainers of various factions.

Since her rebirth she had not yet acted personally; she intended to first deal with these masters, after which the servants would naturally reap what they sow.

"By the way, what about those beggars? Will he let them off?"

Que'er chuckled: "When the young master sends people to arrest them at the ruined temple, those beggars will already have been cleaned up by the Qu family."

"Besides, I heard that the Qu family's young master suffered serious injuries below, likely unable to get out of bed for a month."

"Pah, serves him right. With his appearance, he dares to covet the miss? He's nothing but a diseased toad."

"He doesn't even know to piss and look in the mirror to see if he's worthy."

Li Qingluo gave a cold snort: "The Qu family still wants him to take the provincial exam and pass with honors; this beautiful dream won't come true this year."

"However, the Qu family's retribution is still far from enough."

"They dared to scheme against grandmother and me, and with their deep conspiracies, they must prepare to be hit by successive blows of retaliation."

"So, a single Qu Daoxun is merely just the beginning."

Li Qingluo saw that the time she had arranged with Nan Gongdi was about up, so she rose and brought Que'er to walk toward grandmother's main hall.

On the way, Li Qingluo continued asking Que'er: "You didn't say the General's Manor was in great chaos, did you? Keep going."

Que'er still hadn't said enough, having held back a bellyful of words, she hurriedly added: "I heard that when Li Kechuan was sent back to the manor, his robes were just haphazardly wrapped around him. Not only was his whole body filthy, but his mouth and lower parts were too."

"Moreover, his lower parts were a bloody mess, likely the worst outcome of that absurd affair."

"The attendants said, food remnants were leaking everywhere; he had become incontinent beyond control."

"Upon seeing this scene, the lady let out a startled cry and fainted on the spot."

"After Doctor Jiang arrived, the servants had already cleaned Li Kechuan up, but his lower injury was severe, and Doctor Jiang didn't know for a moment how to treat it..."

"It was said that Doctor Jiang himself said the young master should best stay in bed for two months, rest well, and must not arouse lustful thoughts or evil energy, otherwise he might never recover."

Que'er followed Li Qingluo; by now she had also seen quite a bit of the world, and without Deng Mama present, when it was just mistress and servant, her speech grew bolder, she would say anything that came to mind.

Both ladies' faces showed no blush or breathlessness, as if they were truly just speaking about something utterly ordinary.

The lady's eyes were swollen from crying, she couldn't find the master, the whole General's Manor was in chaos, and she simply couldn't hold up.

The second and third branches also seized the chance to cause trouble, saying the manor's usual monthly stipends for each branch were too little, utterly insufficient; they said they'd storm the Lancang Courtyard to demand an explanation, frightening the lady into several near-faints, and, angry and anxious, she had no choice but to agree to raise the expenses for all branches and courtyards, only then sending them away.

Those second and third branches are no good; now that the old lady and miss have left the General's Manor, they actually want to sneakily take advantage and bring back Elder Concubine Deng.

However, the people we left at the Daoist temple discovered them, detained them on the spot, and gave them a good scolding.

Li Qingluo laughed "pfft".

"Really? Those second and third branch folks actually still want to bring Elder Concubine Deng back, thinking I and grandmother have completely stopped caring about manor affairs?"

Li Qingluo's eyes turned cold: "However, Elder Concubine Deng's old habits should also be fully exposed. Have people keep a close watch on her lately; this old hag's good days are coming to an end."

Since Li Yunchu disappeared, Li Qingluo has felt she will surely go look for Elder Concubine Deng again; then, following the vine to melon, she might actually uncover the secret behind Li Yunchu.

Que'er grew a bit excited: "Yes, miss."

"Right, miss, the servant hasn't finished speaking yet."

After the young master woke up, he said he just stared blankly at the bed curtains for a whole shichen without moving.

When the lady came in to see him, he went mad, ignoring the bleeding from his lower body, got up and ran to the courtyard, had the servants bring the last few attendants who had gone out today, and personally watched them be beaten to death one by one.

However, he only had Wu Da locked up, and hasn't yet punished him.

Li Qingluo raised her eyebrows high upon hearing that.

"Is he still reluctant?"

As they were speaking, Nan Gongdi, standing outside Pei Lao Furen's courtyard with his hands behind his back, spotted Li Qingluo.

Luo'er, come over quickly. As your master, I've been waiting for you; now I only lack you.

Li Qingluo whispered: "Let's talk later."

Then she brought Que'er forward quickly: "Luo'er greets master; sorry for keeping you waiting, it's my filial failing."

Nan Gongdi: "No matter, let's go."

Master and disciple entered the courtyard; Pei Lao Furen was sitting under the lush green winter jasmine vines, drinking tea with Luo Shen Yi.

On the vines, some sporadic yellow flower buds had already begun to sprout.

Believe that in a few days, this place will be a picture full of spring scenery.

Thinking of such a scene, Li Qingluo's heart warmed.

"Grandmother."

Li Qingluo followed Nan Gongdi over; Pei Lao Furen immediately reached out: "Luo'er, come quickly; grandmother has prepared the jujube paste cake you love, come try it."

Pei Lao Furen affectionately took Li Qingluo's hand; having regained her after loss, she cherished this grandmother-grandchild bond all the more.

In her heart, the only thing she has to look forward to for the rest of her life is her Luo'er.

Therefore, if Luo'er encounters anything, she would feel worse than if she herself died, and thus values Li Qingluo even more.

"How did you sleep last night? Anywhere uncomfortable?"

Pei Lao Furen rarely showed a gentle side, caring for Li Qingluo; Luo Shen Yi and Nan Gongdi beside her also gave faint smiles.

During the two days Li Qingluo was missing, Nan Gongdi and Luo Shen Yi, although they did not accompany Pei Lao Furen on her trip to the Pei Guogong Manor, also ran all over the streets searching for Li Qingluo.

Now seeing her return safe and sound, both felt naturally overjoyed; in their hearts they regarded her as their own junior, and also developed some affection.

After sending the servants away, Luo Shen Yi then spoke of the Mad Blood Disease: "I, too, over thirty years ago, followed my master in traveling the land's mountains and rivers, studying medicine everywhere, once saw this disease."

At that time, this disease was discovered in a small village at the border where the Western Regions and DaLiang meet.

At least half of the people in that village were like madmen, wielding knives and chasing and hacking at each other.

If someone was hacked to death, the others would immediately swarm over and pounce on them to suck their flesh and blood.

Yet after eating that flesh and blood, they seemed to despise each other, as if they did not like the taste.

When my master and I passed by and they discovered us, they immediately grabbed various knives and chased us, trying to take our lives; frightened, we fled without choosing a path into the deep mountains, and only after encountering another group of villagers in the mountains did we learn the truth.

It turned out that these people were the other half of the village's normal villagers.

They said that, namely, a year ago, every family had a family member who suddenly contracted this strange disease overnight—that is, a mad blood disease that causes frenzy and a craving for human blood.

They seemed to be possessed; they could still speak normally at times, but when the disease struck, they could not control themselves and would completely lose their humanity.

Later, some of them, after falling ill, unintentionally ate their family's flesh and blood, and then would become completely lucid for a few days. However, ordinary people, upon regaining lucidity, could not accept the truth, so they would immediately seize a knife and commit suicide out of guilt.

Moreover, each infected person only feels a special craving for the flesh and blood of the opposite sex; they think that any normal opposite-sex person passing by smells sweet all over, which triggers their strongest craving for blood.

To them, the flesh and blood of the same sex, animals, or even fellow sufferers have no smell, but once ingested they taste bitter.

Not long after, the normal villagers, in order to survive, had to abandon their families and hide in the mountains, where they set up some traps at the entrance, which gave them a few days of peace.

My master and I were extremely curious about this disease, so we temporarily stayed in the mountains.

At the same time, my master and I also discovered another healer here—a female shaman-doctor from the Western Regions.

Luo Shen Doctor finished speaking and then looked toward Pei Lao Furen.

Pei Lao Furen startled: "Could it be her? Zayina!!"

Li Qingluo asked: "Grandmother, who exactly is this shaman-doctor woman, Zayina?"

Pei Lao Furen also seemed to fall into recollection, her voice fluctuating with some excitement: "She is nothing but a demoness!"

Back then, your maternal great-grandfather was bewitched by her to the point of losing his soul!!

This Zayina is a person from the Western Regions, extraordinarily beautiful and full of charm.

They met on the battlefield; those Western Regions people wanted to kill Zayina, saying she was a lunatic who would stop at nothing for her goals. It was your maternal great-grandfather who, upon seeing her, was enamored for ten thousand years, as if bewitched, and not only saved her but also brought her back to the military camp.

At first, he still had some sense, knowing to lock Zayina up, not allowing her to run around recklessly, fearing she might be a spy.

But later, when a plague-like strange disease appeared in the camp, it was Zayina who voluntarily stepped forward to help and resolved the crisis.

After that, your maternal great-grandfather completely ceased to care and kept her constantly by his side.

However, Zayina, while by your elder brother's side, indeed did no evil; on the contrary, she often saved many people.

I dislike her because your elder brother has failed your maternal great-grandmother.

Your maternal great-grandmother, who is also my sister-in-law, is dignified and beautiful, graceful and generous, and has devoted her sincere heart to me and everyone in the Pei family.

But because of Zayina's appearance, your elder brother's thoughts are no longer on his sister-in-law at all.

He even brought Zayina with him on several returns to Jinling City, and even brazenly brought her back to the Duke's Residence.

His sister-in-law's heart, tormented, is like ashes; it is not that she is not broad-minded, but rather that when they were young, they too once shared a deep, loving bond like mandarin ducks—yet now your elder brother's feelings change at a whim… sometimes mental torment is even more cruel than having no feelings.

However, because that woman is from the Western Regions, your elder brother could not, as he wished, elevate her to the status of a concubine, and she herself did not want to be a concubine, so they have remained together without title or distinction.

Later, Jinling City could not accommodate that woman, so they spent most of their time at the frontier pass, living days that were not those of husband and wife yet were better than those of an immortal couple.

Not long after, your maternal great-grandmother fell gravely ill and passed away.

Two months before her death, the family wrote a letter urging your maternal great-grandfather to return, but he did not hurry back to see his wife for the last time.

Ah...

Luo Bai, you mean… did Zayina also go to that village back then?

Then could my elder brother's mad blood disease possibly be related to her?