Chương 132: The Visit

Dong Manor. Dong Zheng furrowed his brow, his expression stern and frighteningly gloomy as he stared at the tightly closed doors of the room ahead. Sitting beside him, several women sobbing and hugging each other made him feel incredibly irritable.

"Enough! What does crying solve?! Be quiet and let the doctor treat Bo'er!"

"Dear, you must save Bo'er! If anything happens to him, I won't be able to live!" Madam Lan, Dong Bo's mother, leaned against him, weeping as if her heart were broken. Old Dong's heart also twisted in pain, and he quickly tried to console her:"Alright, don't be afraid. It's just a sting from a Killer Bee! Bo'er is a martial artist, after all; he will be fine." He said this, but Old Dong felt guilty and unsure in his heart.

His Dong family lineage only had this single heir, and he had been treasured beyond measure since childhood. It could be said they 'held him in their hands, afraid he would shatter, and kept him in their mouths, afraid he would melt'. Whatever his son demanded, he had always obliged. This was exactly what led to the boy's current character: ignorant, greedy, lecherous, and dallying with women. But Old Dong wasn't displeased by this. It's a man's true nature!

As long as his old man shoulders the burden, the son doesn't need to suffer like the previous generation. Just diligently plow the fields, sow the seeds, and expand the Dong family's population; that's enough! Yet today, his precious son had barely left his sight before he was carried back! Recalling the scene from earlier, Dong Zheng still felt his limbs go weak. At this moment, the steward walked in from outside and stood respectfully beside him.

"Is the caning finished?" Dong Zheng asked coldly.

"Master, each person has received a hundred strokes." If it weren't for the fact that those men's parents also held some status in the city, Old Dong would have had them beaten to death today! These scoundrels taking the lead in enticing his son to learn bad habits was one thing, but today they had put him in critical danger! They truly deserved to die ten thousand times over!

"If anything happens to Bo'er, their entire families can wait to be buried with him." The old steward didn't doubt his master's resolve for a second. He merely bowed his head respectfully and committed his master's words to heart. Waiting is always a torment. After an agonizing, unknown amount of time, the door finally opened, and a weary-looking doctor emerged. Dong Zheng and the women hurriedly stepped forward and asked:"Doctor Meng, how is my son?"

Doctor Meng shook his head in shame:"My Lord, forgive this old man's incompetence. This might be a mutated Killer Bee. The venom is extremely fierce and violent; this lowly one is completely helpless against it." Hearing this, Old Dong and the others felt their vision darken. Madam Lan only had time to let out a shriek before fainting. With the steward's help, Dong Zheng barely managed to stay standing. Unable to hold back tears of blood, he wailed in grief:"Bo'er...!" Doctor Meng panicked!

Knowing his habit of frightening patients' families had caused this lord to misunderstand, he hurriedly reassured him:"Do not rush, Lord Dong, Young Master Dong is still alive! Although this lowly one cannot cure this venom, I have found a method to suppress it, ensuring his life will be safe for ten days! My Lord can use this time to seek a more brilliant physician!"

Finding a path to life in a dead end, Old Dong was overjoyed and didn't bother reprimanding Doctor Meng, hurriedly asking:"Doctor Meng, I wonder if there are any renowned, highly skilled physicians nearby you could introduce to me?"

"My Lord, in this Qinghe County, you need not harbor any hope." Old Meng still had enough confidence in his own abilities. If there was a case in this county town that he was helpless against, then whoever else came would be useless.

"I can introduce someone to you: Divine Physician Ji Ling in Lingjiang Commandery! If this person personally intervenes, Young Master Dong still has a chance to awaken. Whether or not you can invite him will depend on you, My Lord."

"Very well! Thank you, Doctor Meng! Steward! See Doctor Meng out for me!" Seeing hope, Dong Zheng joyfully began looking through his connections. The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.... Although he had decided to go to the Commandery City to seek medical help, Dong Zheng hadn't given up hope yet. He invited doctors from all over the city to examine his son, hoping someone might be able to cure this poison.

Unfortunately, besides the Killer Bee's venom, this poison had also been laced with numerous unknown toxins from the Peacock Plume's hidden needles by Grandee Song! Furthermore, the wound was on the eye! If it could be cured so simply, this hidden weapon could just be sold at school gates for children to play with! The Dong Manor saw a constant stream of people coming and going, with doctors changing one batch after another until late at night.

Having tried all the physicians in the city, Dong Zheng accepted his fate and pinned all his hopes on that Divine Physician Ji. He didn't know any martial world friends in the Commandery City, but wasn't there the Lingjiang Gang—the overlord sect?! Recently, Hall Master Lin had been in contact with him frequently; asking the other party to lend a hand shouldn't be a problem. Anxious for his beloved son, Dong Zheng couldn't wait any longer.

In the dark of the night, he took a carriage out of the city to seek an audience with Lin Ping. On the road, the occasional loud noises echoing in his ears made him exceptionally irritable. Frustrated, he called for the steward to inquire:"Steward, what is that noise outside making such a racket?" The old steward's face shifted, and he hesitated for a moment before gritting his teeth and answering:"To answer Master, it is the sound of firecrackers being lit." Motherf ckers! A bunch of lunatics!

It's neither a holiday nor a festival today, nor is there a midnight wedding! What the f ck are they lighting firecrackers for?! And the whole city is lighting them! Thinking it over, Old Dong suddenly understood and flew into a towering rage.

"Rebellion! These unruly commoners are actually cursing my son to die early!"

"Men! Order the entire city under martial law! Anyone caught lighting firecrackers or causing a loud disturbance without authorization is to be arrested and brought to the military camp!"

"Understood, My Lord!"... The next morning. Grandee Song was sitting comfortably in a chair enjoying his tea, listening to Zhong Hong recount the recent events in the city.

"Hehehe, that Young Master Dong ultimately had his life preserved by someone, but it's hanging by a thread! You didn't see it; today, the streets in the city were paved red with firecracker remnants! The county troops tried to arrest the people lighting them but couldn't do a thing!"

"Haha, evil begets evil. The net of heaven is vast, and its meshes are wide, but nothing escapes it. He has committed so many sins; eventually, he couldn't escape his retribution!" Song Que said with a faint smile. After finishing the deed yesterday, he had already sent his separated soul back to the Black Iron Stronghold to continue monitoring and caring for the Golden Bone Fruit. If this incident hadn't been so infuriating, Boss Song wouldn't have lowered his guard during this critical time.

The Golden Bone Fruit remained his number one priority. Naturally, his anger wouldn't dissipate so simply. Taking action this time was merely claiming a little interest in advance on Li Xin's behalf, and to stop that kid from going out and harming people. If he dies, great! If he doesn't die and just lies there, that's fine too. The Golden Bone Fruit would mature in over a month. At that time, Grandee Song would have plenty of time to play the Dong father and son to death.

"Brother Hong, you don't need to pay attention to those wicked young masters anymore. Since he's bedridden, the city is relatively safe now. Later, take Er Nya back; don't let Aunt Li worry. As for Li Xin, guide him more from now on; this kid needs more tempering."

"No problem. Er Nya will surely be thrilled to hear the news; the little girl has been crying for her mother a lot these past few days." Zhong Hong was fairly certain this was Song Que's doing. Although he didn't know how, being a smart man, he didn't ask much and conveniently changed the subject.

"Squeak... squeak..." At this moment, Mengmeng, lying in Boss Song's arms, squeaked uncomfortably towards Zhong Hong.

"Haha, does it want to chase me away?" Brother Hong asked, amused.

"Indeed. It's complaining that we're being too loud and affecting its rest."

"Then I'll head into the city to prepare supplies. Goodbye, Princess Mengmeng." Without even bothering to open her eyes, Mengmeng just gave a soft snort to indicate she heard him. Feeling her status severely threatened recently, Mengmeng was determined to cling to Song Que! As long as he had free time, she would immediately entangle him and act cute, making Boss Song extremely frustrated.

But thinking that if he couldn't restore his appearance in the future, he would have to rely on this creature to pick up girls, he couldn't bring himself to beat her away, so he just let her be. In a little over a month, he could consume the Golden Bone Fruit. During this time, he had to make the most of it to train the external chapter of the Immaculate Glass Sutra to perfection! Only then could he best absorb the medicinal properties! Although the time was a bit tight, it should be achievable.

Song Que didn't think much further, assuming a posture and beginning his cultivation in the room.... Perhaps the heavens didn't want Grandee Song to have a moment of peace. Not long after he sat down, a servant reported from outside that Yun Shan of the Sea of Clouds Pavilion wished to see him. Since Old Yun was here, he naturally had to receive him. Song Que quickly walked to the reception room.

Seeing that both Yun Shan and Yun Jiu were present, he laughed loudly and cupped his hands:"Haha, Steward Yun, Brother Jiu! How is it that dragons have come to a shrimp's house today?"

"Young Master Song!" The two smiled and returned the greeting.

"Young Master Song, you moved into a new home and I haven't come to congratulate you yet. Today, having some business, I also wanted to visit and take a look around. The scenery here isn't bad at all; quiet and airy. Young Master Song truly knows how to pick a spot."

"Haha, this youngster merely bought it from someone else. I wonder what business the Steward refers to?" Hearing his question, Yun Shan picked up his teacup, took a sip, and slowly said:"Last time, didn't we mention suspecting someone was directing Dong Zheng? I went back and secretly investigated the results. Does Young Master Song know who it is?"

"It should be the Lingjiang Gang, right?" Song Que curled his lip. Yun Shan was surprised and curious:"Young Master Song, you already knew about this?"

"I was just guessing, but from Steward Yun's tone, it seems I wasn't wrong?"

"Young Master Song truly has a quick mind! The mastermind is indeed the Lingjiang Gang." Song Que wasn't very surprised by this. In this place, the number of people who could command Dong Zheng were few and far between. Furthermore, combining this with Lin Ping's previous threats, it wasn't hard to guess that this was a trap they had set. Now that Yun Shan had confirmed it, Boss Song sneered coldly. Consider this grudge firmly established! First there was Old Nie's matter, and now this!

If I don't smash the Lingjiang Gang from the bottom up, I, Grandee Song, swear I will not let this go!