“Keep plowing!” Mo Sigui tapped his apprentice with his fan before entering the house.

Mei Yanran sat with her eyes closed, while An Jiu stood beside her. Mo Sigui closed his fan and pretended to check Mei Yanran’s pulse, gradually furrowing his brow.

After a moment of contemplation, he prepared some herbs and placed them on the stove outside. He called to his apprentice, who was still plowing, “Come watch the fire!”

The apprentice dropped the plow, wiped his sweat, and ran to the porch.

This medicine was different from usual, with a strong aroma and dense white steam. As the kettle boiled, a thin mist enveloped the thatched cottage.

Nearby Konghejun Shadow Agents, unable to see the kettle, grew suspicious of the heavy smoke. However, they rationalized it as wet firewood from the recent downpour.

As the smoke thickened without any acrid smell, one agent realized something was amiss. Unfortunately, as he stood up, he fell from the tree, struggled briefly on the ground, and lost consciousness.

“Time should be about right. Now, tell me—” Mo Sigui’s words were cut short as Mei Yanran removed her human skin mask.

He gaped for a moment before remembering to bow to Mei Yanran. “Aunt.”

“We’re family; there’s no need for such formalities,” Mei Yanran said, making a gesture to stop him.

“Sigui, you’ve lost weight,” Mei Yanran observed gently. “You must have suffered a great deal.”

If An Jiu were to respond, she would likely have said, “Aunt, you’ve aged a lot too. You must have suffered as well.”

Instead, Mo Sigui smiled ruefully. “Indeed! But it’s because I’m young that a bit of hardship feels like a mountain collapsing. Aunt, you must have endured much in the Konghejun, yet you still look as radiant as ever!”

An Jiu pursed her lips, thinking to herself that he was lying, as fine lines had appeared at the corners of Mei Yanran’s eyes.

After brief pleasantries, Mo Sigui addressed the main issue. “Aunt, have you left the Konghejun?”

Mei Yanran nodded with a smile.

“We’ve come here to lay low and to cure…” An Jiu almost said “mother” but corrected herself, “…to cure Lady Mei’s poison.”

Hearing An Jiu’s change in address, Mo Sigui understood the situation. He calculated that even if An Jiu had met Mei Yanran when she was sent to the border, it had only been three or four months. How terrible must her acting be to be discovered so quickly without any change in appearance?

He looked at An Jiu disdainfully. “Aunt can stay here. You, get lost.”

Da Jiu, seeing Mo Sigui’s attitude towards An Jiu, bared its teeth at him.

Mo Sigui casually picked up his pipe and tapped Da Jiu twice. “You ungrateful creature, I won’t feed you anymore!”

Da Jiu seemed to understand the threat. It shook its ears and trotted over to Mo Sigui, rubbing its head against his leg and whimpering like an abandoned kitten.

An Jiu frowned at its fawning behavior. Continuing from Mo Sigui’s previous statement, she said, “There are many houses here. I can stay at the former Yuwei Residence.”

Observing their interaction, Mei Yanran knew they weren’t truly at odds and didn’t intervene.

“The poison in Aunt’s body isn’t from me or Elder Qi. It’s a bit tricky,” Mo Sigui said, cleaning his pipe. Changing the subject, he added, “But it’s not beyond my abilities. I need to take some blood first.”

“Alright, thank you for your efforts,” Mei Yanran replied.

Mo Sigui retrieved a box and a small vial from a nearby shelf. He took out a needle three times thicker than an acupuncture needle and quickly pricked Mei Yanran’s index finger, collecting the blood drops in the vial.

After about four or five drops, the bleeding stopped.

“How often does the poison flare up, Aunt?” Mo Sigui asked.

“Sometimes every 27 days, sometimes every 29. It’s been ten days since I last took the antidote,” Mei Yanran explained.

This gave Mo Sigui between 17 and 19 days to work with.

Though confident in his medical skills, Mo Sigui didn’t underestimate this poison. Any toxin used by the emperor to control Shadow Agents was certainly not ordinary.

“Please don’t stay too far away, Aunt. I’ll need to check on you regularly to observe the poison’s changes,” Mo Sigui advised.

When Meihua Village was attacked, Elder Qi’s area had been a primary target. The raging fire had destroyed the original thatched cottage and damaged surrounding buildings.

After some thought, Mo Sigui suggested, “Let’s all move to the island. The residences of the Old Madam and Second Old Madam are still intact. It’ll be easier to defend ourselves there.”

This seemed the most prudent option, and both Mei Yanran and An Jiu agreed.

They decided to leave immediately. Mo Sigui had only recently moved in, so he didn’t have many belongings. They packed everything into four baskets, pairing them up for Da Jiu and Xiao Yue to carry.

Mo Sigui instructed An Jiu to carry the unconscious apprentice on her back.

The four headed straight for the lakeside. Considering that the Second Madam’s treatment in the mansion had been comparable to that of the Empress Dowager, they chose to go to Chayun Residence.

Chayun Residence was built on a small island in the lake. When An Jiu first arrived in Meihua Village, it had been autumn, with red maples and yellow ginkgoes making the island look like a flame on the water. Now, both maple and ginkgo leaves were still green.

They found a barely usable small boat to cross the lake.

Passing through maple and ginkgo groves, they came upon a verdant bamboo forest. The outer woods had become overgrown due to neglect, but the bamboo forest had little undergrowth.

Following a stone path, they soon entered Chayun Residence.

The Mei family was extremely wealthy and never stingy with household expenses. The second branch of the family had flourished, and the Second Old Madam naturally enjoyed her children and grandchildren’s filial piety. While not as large as other buildings, Chayun Residence was cleverly designed, practical, and exuded luxury.

Intruders had once breached this place but were repelled by the island’s guards.

Mo Sigui offered the main house to Mei Yanran and took up residence in the adjacent courtyard, not concerning himself with where An Jiu would stay.

An Jiu first circled the entire island, discovering that Chayun Residence was just the main part of the building complex. Besides servants’ quarters, there were seven small courtyards. Mo Sigui’s place was called Yalan Yougju.

She ultimately chose the area closest to Yalan Yougju, separated only by a rockery. An Jiu’s space was about one-tenth the size of Yalan Yougju, with just two small rooms. The two areas could be considered part of the same courtyard, distinguished only by a plaque with ornate calligraphy that An Jiu attempted to read before silently entering her room.

An Jiu’s chosen space might have been a study, with a small spare bed. This was sufficient for her needs.

Although An Jiu knew her thinking was somewhat ostrich-like, she felt safer in this small space compared to more open rooms.

After the three settled into their respective places, Mei Yanran found it too quiet and decided to move to Yalan Yougju, occupying one of Mo Sigui’s side rooms.