Poison Genius Consort

Seeing Fourth Young Miss Ren’s startled expression, Han Yunxi quickly signaled her with a look, leaving her puzzled. But Bai Yanqing suddenly cried out, “Someone come, quickly! Go get someone to retrieve that prescription! Hurry!”

What’s going on?

Had Bai Yanqing realized the prescriptions could reveal his secrets? But he’d just checked them himself, hadn’t he? Su Xiaoyu and Ning Jing exchanged looks, afraid to think any further. Han Yunxi was still calm and remained lying on the bed, pretending to act hopeless. Only Fourth Young Miss Ren was left to be both afraid, stunned, and lost. She had just taken care of a mother with a difficult birth and cleaned herself up to go home when someone kidnapped her. The culprit was a black-robed man in a mask who’d blindfolded her. She had no idea who she offended or why she’d been captured. But she understood everything as soon as she saw Ning Jing!

Even now, no one knew publicly that Ning Jing and Su Xiaoyu hadn been kidnapped except for the young master.[1] Moreover, Han Yunxi’s kidnapping was even less well known. She was clueless until three months ago, when Academy Head Gu wrote a letter for her to help search for the missing woman. That’s when she realized the severity of the situation.

Academy Head Gu Beiyue had told her to tell the various obstetrics doctors to pay attention to every patient and prescription coming their way. If there was anything strange about them, they weren’t to bring it up in public, but report it immediately. Thanks to Gu Qishao’s matters, Gu Beiyue had established a complete and rigorous system for obstetrical studies as soon as he took the mantle of medical academy head. On the one hand, this prevented doctors and their rights to examine pregnant women as they wished in favor of a more professional obstetrical department. Strict standards were put in place for usage of drugs so that no one except for professional obstetrics doctors could write prescriptions for expectant mothers. On the other hand, he teamed up with Medicine City to set strict rules for medicine sales. Unless a prescription was written by an obstetrics doctor or approved by one in person, no pharmacy was allowed to provide them with any medicine.

Although methods like this were foolproof against freaks like the deviant Gu Yuntian, it gave a certain measure of control and prevented faulty prescriptions and treatment accidents. This was the lesson Gu Beiyue had learned from Gu Qishao’s experiences and the first big undertaking he did in his position as Academy Head. Besides setting up a professional obstetrics department. Gu Beiyue also had Fourth Young Miss Ren manage the institution. This would not only make the medical academy’s obstetrical department the base of all operations, but also allow them to expand and take in students. Moreover, it also helped to organize the older doctors into a unit that specialized in researching drug safety for pregnant mothers. While they busied themselves with research, Fourth Young Miss Ren took care of everything else. Moreover, the backing of her Ren Clan over the past two years meant she’d already made a name for herself in both rank and reality. All of the different obstetrics departments were all under her control. It was a simple thing for her to pass on Academy Head Gu’s secret orders.

The reason Academy Head Gu had told her to have all the doctors pay attention to their patients and prescriptions was because Han Yunxi was pregnant! Of course, she hadn’t spread the news. Even Long Feiye didn’t know. Heaven knows whether he’d go insane with worry if he found out?!

Academy Head Gu had said that they could only raise safeguards against an uncertain clue like this. By now, the princess would have found out about her pregnancy too. Her body would demand drugs by the time she reached the halfway point of her pregnancy. Bai Yanqing was a poisons master, not a poisons doctor, and none of his men understood obstetrics. If the princess needed medicine, she would do her best to sabotage the prescription somehow.

Fourth Young Miss Ren had been waiting all this time for someone to send her a suspicious looking prescription, but never thought she’d be kidnapped and brought to the princess face-to-face. How could she feel anything except surprise and shock? Right now, her mind was blank.

Meanwhile, the clueless guards immediately went out to chase after the first prescription. Bai Yanqing walked over to Fourth Young Miss Ren and examined her coldly.

“Where did you kidnap her from?” he asked.

“Right by the medical academy’s obstetrics department. It was so late that she was the only one around,” the guard reported.

Bai Yanqing only laughed coldly. “Fourth Young Miss Ren!”

The more he looked at her, the more familiar she grew. He finally recalled her as the woman who had been called upon by Gu Beiyue at the medical skills competition. This was the Ren Clan’s daughter and one of Gu Beiyue’s people, a famous physician herself. If she went missing, all of Medical City would be in an uproar. But that was fine. He was certain no one would be able to find this place. Still, once Fourth Young Miss Ren’s handwriting went out, someone might recognize it. The same went for Su Xiaoyu’s writing.

Long Feiye’s group had set a net across the world. Unless extenuating circumstances demanded it, he never left this hideaway. Just then, he’d been too panicked to do more than skim over the prescription and its contents to remember the issue of handwriting. Seeing Fourth Young Miss Ren alerted him to the potential slip.

Fourth Young Miss Ren looked at Bai Yanqing. “Y-you...just what do you want to do?”

“The West Qin princess was poisoned to induce miscarriage. The poison’s already been treated, but I’ll need a doctor to check on her current status now. After all...this is a matter of human life!” Bai Yanqing said politely.

“Bai Yanqing, why did you call back the prescription? If the medicine doesn’t come soon, we’ll lose the baby!” Su Xiaoyu cried desperately.

“Someone come, gag them for me!” Bai Yanqing said icily.

Without a doubt, he wanted to hear Fourth Young Miss Ren’s diagnosis first and whether it matched with Su Xiaoyu’s. Both Su Xiaoyu and Ning Jing were summarily gagged while a complicated look flickered past Fourth Young Miss Ren’s face. She glanced at the two and asked, “Miscarriage? The princess is pregnant?”

The reason Gu Beiyue could take interest in Fourth Young Miss Ren and pass on his teachings to her was because of her good innate talent, but also due to her intelligent and meticulous mind. Although fear made her legs like jelly, she still stood firm. Judging from the current situation, Bai Yanqing definitely wouldn’t let her go. Their only chance at reinforcements laid in sending out a prescription. To make Bai Yanqing do that, she had to dispel his suspicions while exaggerating Han Yunxi’s current condition.

Bai Yanqing had been speculating whether Long Feiye knew about Han Yunxi’s pregnancy all along; hearing Fourth Young Miss Ren’s remarks convinced him that the man was clueless. However, he said nothing in return. Fourth Young Miss Ren hastened forward to take Han Yunxi’s pulse. Bai Yanqing stood by her side, making it impossible for Han Yunxi to signal the girl with more looks. She stared at the ceiling with despair while her heart was surging like the sea. Fourth Young Miss Ren was a girl who had caught Gu Beiyue’s attention, so she truly hoped Gu Beiyue hadn’t misjudged the lass. This woman needed to be quick-witted and nimble!

Fourth Young Miss Ren’s medical skills were much more powerful than Su Xiaoyu’s. She soon determined Han Yunxi’s situation. Although it really was a miscarriage of sorts, the condition wasn’t serious. If she guessed right, Han Yunxi’s massive blood loss was all a sham to make the miscarriage appear more serious.

In other words, Han Yunxi and the rest had tricked Bai Yanqing!

But why would Han Yunxi risk her baby to do that? And Bai Yanqing had even asked to get Su Xiaoyu’s prescription back. This made Fourth Young Miss Ren understand a lot of things. She released Han Yunxi’s hand and said urgently, “She needs medicine soon! The faster the better!”

“No matter what, Your Highness Princess, you have to hold on! The baby is innocent, you must persevere!”

Her reaction was similar to Su Xiaoyu’s, alleviating much of Bai Yanqing’s suspicions. Abruptly, Fourth Young Miss Ren fell on her knees and cried, “Old senior, I’m begging you to save the baby. It’s an innocent lie! The princess’s enmity with you is only the affair of adults and has nothing to do with a child who can’t even speak!”

“Someone come, bring brush and paper!” Bai Yanqing ordered as he personally helped Fourth Young Miss Ren to her feet. Like a hypocrite, he added, “Don’t worry. As long as you save this child, this old man will let you go.”

Fourth Young Miss Ren’s hands were shaking in her sleeves, but she persisted with a nod. “Hurry and bring over medicine, then I’ll preserve the baby for sure!”

When the guards came with the items, Fourth Young Miss Ren hastily scribbled down ingredients. Both Su Xiaoyu and Ning Jing could only stare, never expecting the doctor who’d been “scared to tears” could cooperate so well with their play. Han Yunxi was still staring at the ceiling as if none of this had anything to do with her. Still, her heart had finally settled in her chest. She didn’t know whether to thank Gu Beiyue or Fourth Young Miss Ren. Did this also count as protection from the Shadow Clan?

Once Fourth Young Miss Ren finished the prescription, Bai Yanqing took a glance at the contents and saw that it differed from Su Xiaoyu’s in only two to three ingredients.

“Someone come, make a copy of this and go get the ingredients!” Bai Yanqing ordered.

Now Han Yunxi almost wanted to laugh! She originally thought it’d be difficult to get the prescription out, or that Bai Yanqing would find the ingredients himself instead of sending it off to a pharmacy, but now she knew she was mistaken. Bai Yanqing was only concerned about the handwriting on the paper.

He really is detail-oriented!

But no matter what, as long as the prescription reached a pharmacy, they had hopes of spreading the news! Having Fourth Young Miss Ren here meant they would have more ways to think up new ideas. After her prescription was copied down, a guard was immediately sent off to retrieve the items.

“You must hurry! Quickly!” Fourth Young Miss Ren emphasized again before telling Bai Yanqing, “Old senior, I’ll use acupuncture on the princess for now as an emergency procedure. Even if the medicine doesn’t come in time, it’ll buy us a reprieve!”

Even Ning Jing and Su Xiaoyu were sold on her intent expression, to say nothing of Bai Yanqing. He agreed and Fourth Young Miss Ren added, “Find a servant girl, I need an assistant.”

Bai Yanqing had no female servants under him right now, so he hesitated before saying, “Ning Jing can stay, but escort Su Xiaoyu away!”

Although Su Xiaoyu was 10 years younger than Ning Jing, Bai Yanqing trusted her less. The girls’ temper was extremely similar to Bai Yuqiao’s, but her brain was much smarter.

Meanwhile, he naturally withdrew so the needle treatment could take place in privacy.

Once he and Su Xiaoyu left the room, she simply gave him a ghastly stare the entire time. She’d already vowed multiple times in her heart to “serve” Bai Yanqing well if he ever fell into her hands!

1. I think this must be an oversight from the author. I clearly recall Tang Li and Gu Qishao offering up the Tang Clan and Pill Fiend Valley to anyone who could get them news of Ning Jing or Mu Linger. Su Xiaoyu’s kidnapping might still be unknown, but not Ning Jing’s, at least...or did I miss something too?