Green Mountain
Chapter 285 - 227, poisoning

Chapter 285: 227, poisoning

In the dimly lit, barracks-like room arranged in a herringbone pattern, Chen Ji stood calmly beside the bed. Holding an oil residue lamp, he bent over to observe, only to find that blood tears were flowing from everyone’s eyes.

The blood tears were not running down the tear ducts, but instead flowing to the sides, over the Taiyang acupoints to the temples, indicating that these people had died lying in their beds, during sleep.

Chen Ji raised the oil residue lamp in his hand and looked up at the roof beams.

No one was hiding there, and the assassin could not be found.

The sudden footsteps in the corridor had come and vanished abruptly, as if a wronged soul was trapped in this inn, having killed dozens of people.

The maids and servants of the Chen family, a total of thirty-four people from the two barracks-like rooms, had been overjoyed at the prospect of going to the Imperial Capital just over ten days ago, yet today they met their mysterious end in Guyuan.

How fickle the world is.

Xiao Man stood at the door, hesitating to enter the room, "Young Master...they died so miserably. How come they’re all bleeding from the seven orifices, as if someone sucked out their souls?"

Chen Ji turned to glance at her, "I thought you were fearless."

Xiao Man’s voice shook as she asked, "Aren’t you afraid, Young Master?"

Chen Ji could no longer pretend in front of Xiao Man. He reached out and felt one of the corpses’ carotid artery, there was no pulse. The body was still warm, indicating death hadn’t been long.

Thud, thud, thud—the sound of footsteps came from the stairs.

Mrs. Liang, being supported by Dongzhi, descended the stairs leisurely, "What was the alarm just now? This place isn’t like our own mansion. Don’t shout or call out loud. If outsiders hear, they’ll say the people of the Chen family have no manners... Ah!"

As soon as Mrs. Liang stepped into the herringbone-patterned barracks, she was struck with horror and retreated again and again, her composure gone. Thankfully, Dongzhi caught her; otherwise, she would have fallen to the ground.

After breathing deeply for a while, Mrs. Liang managed to swallow and, looking at the dark doorway, asked, "What...what happened here?!"

Chen Wenzong and Chen Wenxiao rushed down the stairs when they heard her exclamation, "Mother, what happened?"

When Chen Wenzong tried to enter the herringbone room, Mrs. Liang grabbed his sleeve tightly, "Wenzong, don’t go in there, it’s unclean!"

Chen Wenzong said calmly, "Mother, I am a scholar with a reputation, filled with strong and upright True Qi; ghosts and demons cannot come near me."

With that, he wrenched free from Mrs. Liang’s hand and went inside to look.

At first sight of so many corpses lying together with blood tears, Chen Wenzong’s body swayed, but he quickly steadied his mind.

He looked at Chen Ji, "Was it this matter that made you hurry downstairs just now?"

Chen Ji nodded, "Xiao Man wanted to get a new blanket from the post station assistants, but discovered the post station assistants dead behind the counter, bleeding from their seven orifices."

Despite his fear, Chen Wenzong checked the corpses one by one.

Zhang Xia took two steps forward and asked Chen Ji in a low voice, "How did they die? This room originally housed twenty servants; now there are only nineteen bodies..."

Before he could finish speaking, footsteps were heard again from the corridor.

Xiao Man quickly hid behind Chen Ji and peeped out from behind him at the corner of the corridor.

Mrs. Liang panicked and retreated, pulling Dongzhi in front of her. Chen Wenxiao fell to the ground and clumsily crawled backwards.

The next moment, Wang Gui’s figure emerged from around the corner, and he was taken aback when he saw everyone, "Madam, Young Masters...what are you doing here?"

Chen Wenxiao asked hysterically, "Are you a human or a ghost?!"

Wang Gui was completely baffled, "What’s the meaning of this, Second Young Master? I’m Wang Gui! Don’t you recognize me?"

Chen Ji strode forward, first touching Wang Gui’s wrist to feel the temperature, then looking down at his shadow to confirm it was undoubtedly Wang Gui, "Where did you go just now?"

Wang Gui puzzledly replied, "I went to the latrine."

Chen Wenxiao got up from the ground and asked loudly, "Everyone in the room is dead; how come you alone are unharmed?"

"Dead?" Wang Gui raised his voice in astonishment, "Who did the Young Master say is dead?"

Chen Wenxiao pointed to the dark doorway, "Go in and see for yourself!"

Wang Gui walked into the room suspiciously, then came out screaming, his legs trembling, "What happened, they were all right just before!"

Everyone retreated to the courtyard, staying far away from those rooms. Mrs. Liang stood in the cold wind, muttering, "Could it be that this inn is haunted? Let’s quickly leave this place and head to the Governor’s Mansion to seek help from the master."

Chen Wenzong shook his head, "Mother, Guyuan is not peaceful at night. They dare to rob in broad daylight, even more so at night. If we rashly go out now, we might encounter another thief on the road."

Chen Wenxiao suddenly spoke, "We must send someone to inform father about this big incident, to ask him to come back and take charge."

But who should go?

Everyone looked at each other, none of them spoke first.

Wang Gui looked at Chen Ji and shakily said, "Third Young Master, you go. You have that chestnut horse, which runs fast!"

Immediately, Xiao Man pointed at Wang Gui’s nose, glaring angrily, "Why should my Young Master go? Didn’t your mother teach you..."

With a finger point, start with mom.

Xiao Man was truly infuriated this time, and she unabashedly cursed Wang Gui as if drenching him in dog’s blood.

Mrs. Liang snapped with indignation, "Enough! When has Chen Mansion ever had such a vulgar maid? Tomorrow, you will be sold off and left behind in Guyuan."

Chen Ji spoke without changing his expression, "Lady, please calm your anger. Now is not the time to be selling off maids; let’s focus on how to survive."

Zhang Xia suddenly pulled Chen Ji aside and whispered, "Four years ago, there was an unsolved case in the Imperial Capital. A seventh-rank Imperial Censor suddenly died a gruesome death in his home, bleeding from all seven orifices, and six family members died along with him; seven years ago, in Shan State, there was also an unsolved case where a Fifth-rank Prefect died in the same grisly manner within his concubine’s private residence, with four people dead. Such deaths are extremely rare, and rumors spread that avenging ghosts were to blame, but I believe it was poison—only, I’ve never heard of such a potent poison before."

Chen Ji thought for a moment, then turned to Chen Wenzong, "Brother, did you eat dinner at the rest station?"

Chen Wenzong shook his head, "No."

Chen Ji then looked at Mrs. Liang, "Lady, did you eat?"

Mrs. Liang replied, "No."

Chen Ji turned to Wang Gui again, "And you?"

Wang Gui, looking pale, answered, "No, the food at this station is too rough and unbearable to eat."

Chen Ji stated calmly, "It must have been poison."

Assassins can be quite meticulous in their use of poison.

Storytellers in teahouses often tell tales of people who bled from all seven orifices after being poisoned, adding a touch of horror to their stories. But in reality, achieving such an effect with poison is not easy.

However, Chen Ji knew of one poison that could do this: Cardiotonic glycosides.

An overdose of cardiotonic glycosides would lead to rapid contraction of the cardiac muscle, multiple organ failure, and a dramatic increase in blood pressure, causing the blood to burst through the capillaries.

When combined with a strong sedative, it could silently induce death by bleeding from all seven orifices.

Chen Ji was certain that the killer poisoned the food at the rest station, and Chen Wenzong, Chen Wenxiao, Mrs. Liang, Wang Gui—those accustomed to a life of luxury—naturally would not fancy the station’s fare and had, fortunately, escaped unscathed.

He and Zhang Xia, among others, didn’t eat dinner simply because they were too full from the mutton eaten at noon.

A thought crossed Chen Ji’s mind, was it the border army that poisoned them?

Was the sudden offering of mutton coincidental, or did they, out of regard for Mr. Wang, deliberately lead them to overeat earlier to avoid the poison?

Chen Ji bowed his head and pondered: If it really was the border army trying to poison the Chen family, what would be their motive?

The Chen family had only recently arrived, with neither new grudges nor old enmities with the border army. Some difficulties at the city gate were understandable—it was, after all, a minor issue, and no one could do much about these soldiers from the frontier.

But now, the poisoning of thirty-four family members of a Secondary Fourth-rank official would create an uproar if word reached the Imperial Capital. This was no longer a matter concerning only the Chen family; it involved the court’s reputation and would inevitably be investigated thoroughly.

What did the border army stand to gain by doing this? Was it merely to cut off the Crown Prince’s wings?

The situation was not so simple.

At that moment, Chen Wenxiao said to Xiao Man, "Since you don’t want Chen Ji to go, you will go to the Governor’s Mansion yourself."

Xiao Man rolled her eyes, "I won’t go. I’m the young master’s maid. I will go only if the young master asks me to."

Chen Wenxiao angrily said, "Chen Ji, look at the maid by your side, lacking any manners, speaking like this to her masters!"

Chen Ji remained calm, "You should be more concerned with how to survive this night. Assassins aimed to poison the entire Chen family, and we were lucky to survive because we didn’t eat the station’s food. If they learn of their failure, they may strike again. If you want to live, send someone to the Governor’s Mansion immediately, while the rest of us stick together here, waiting for Mr. Chen to lead the Prince’s personal guard to our rescue."

Zhang Zheng spoke carelessly, "You all are too long-winded. If it doesn’t work out, I’ll ju—ouch!"

Before he could finish, Zhang Xia twisted the flesh around his waist fiercely, and whispered urgently, "Brother, shut up. Let’s follow Chen Ji’s plan. Now is not the time for your rashness."

Chen Wenxiao looked at Wang Gui, "You go!"

Wang Gui shrank back, "Me? Second Young Master, I don’t even know where the Governor’s Mansion is."

Chen Wenxiao fumed, "If you don’t go, who will? The Chen family has supported you for so many years; even if you were but a dog, you should know to bark at a time like this!"

Chen Wenzong rebuked in a low voice, "Chen Wenxiao! A gentleman speaks cautiously!"

Chen Wenxiao muttered quietly, "I’m not wrong, though..."

Wang Gui’s expression changed several times. He looked to Mrs. Liang, but she averted her eyes and remained silent.

Biting his lip, he said, "Second Young Master is right. I shall go..."

Before he could finish, Chen Wenzong quietly said, "Confucius once said ’Do not impose on others what you yourself do not desire.’"

He then turned to Zhang Xia and said, "Second Miss Zhang, may I borrow your war horse? I need to go to the Governor’s Mansion to request my father to lead the Prince’s personal guard back."

Zhang Xia contemplated and replied, "Zaozao would not willingly let you ride her, you can take my brother’s horse instead."

Chen Wenzong nodded, "Alright."

Mrs. Liang hurriedly stepped forward and grabbed his wrist, "Wenzong, absolutely not! You are precious, and a gentleman does not stand beneath a tottering wall..."

Chen Wenzong took a deep breath and explained with forced composure, "Mother, ’a gentleman does not stand beneath a tottering wall’ is not applicable here. It means that one should prevent problems before they arise, not that one should be cowardly. No need to say more, Chen Ji is right—we cannot afford further delay, lest the assassins return to strike again."

Having said that, he led a war horse out of the stable, ignoring Mrs. Liang’s attempts to stop him, mounted it, and hastened into the night.