Mysteries of the Great Zhou Dynasty

Chapter 207 Encountering the Dream Eater Flower Again

“I think I should know where he planted the flowers!” Yu Nishang seemed to remember something, and her eyes lit up.

Everyone turned to look at her.

"There's a hidden door in the wall behind his study, leading to a previously abandoned courtyard. All I know is that after he bought that courtyard, he went there every day, but he never took anyone else with him. Oh, no, a junior physician from the Imperial Hospital went there once, but I haven't seen him since. The two courtyards are separated by only one wall," Yu Nishang said as she recalled.

“Then we’ll go take a look tomorrow!” Yan Mingzhang said.

"Or should we go now? Tomorrow during the day will attract too much attention, and the five-day deadline will be here soon. Once the time comes, will we hand over the imperial seal or not?" Rong Wanyin was a little worried. The sixth prince was meticulous and vicious. The sooner the better.

"Alright!" Yan Mingzhang pondered for a moment, made up his mind, and said to Mo Yun and Chang Feng, who were driving the carriage, "Mo Yun, go to the Sixth Prince's residence!"
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"Miss Rong, do you think this dark patch is a Dream Eater Flower?" Mo Yun leaned over the wall and looked down. "Should we throw down a tinderbox to light it up?"

Changfeng slapped Moyun on the shoulder: "Are you stupid? If it really is a Dream Eater Flower down there, wouldn't it all be burned? It's a Dream Eater Flower, and its poison will spread in the wind!"

Mo Yun suddenly realized: "It's a roar... What should we do then?"

Rong Junye looked around at the surroundings, hesitating: "If it's daylight, it will be easy to be discovered. But if we go down now rashly, what if there are Dream Eater Flowers below? If we get poisoned, we'll lose all our memories of today!"

Everyone: "..."

"Changfeng, what did you do yesterday?" Moyun looked at Changfeng with a mischievous grin. "If your memories of yesterday weren't important..."

“Why isn’t my memory of yesterday important!” Changfeng retorted. “If you ask me, you might as well go down. You didn’t do anything yesterday, so if you have amnesia, so be it. It’s okay, I’ll tell you what I did.”

Just as Mo Yun and Chang Feng were joking with each other, the sky slowly brightened, and the scene in the courtyard almost stunned everyone. There was only one small house in the courtyard, and a circle of dense locust trees was planted around the high wall, presumably to block the view.

"Shh, be quiet, someone's coming." Changfeng patted Moyun's shoulder lightly and said. Everyone immediately fell silent.

The door of the small hut creaked open, and a person emerged. The person was dressed in a long robe, hunched over, and looked very frail. Because it was still somewhat dark, his face was not clearly visible. The person staggered and filled half a bucket with water, then laboriously lifted the bucket and began to water the Dream Eater flower.

The man watered the flowers very carefully and slowly, pouring the water onto the roots of the tapir flowers while avoiding the leaves and buds. He took good care of these flowers.

"Isn't this person afraid of being poisoned?" Mo Yun asked curiously.

Changfeng shook his head, indicating that he didn't quite understand either: "Look, these flowers are still just buds, not in bloom, so there's no pollen. Could that be why they haven't been poisoned?"

“I remember the master said before that as long as you don’t touch the white sap of the Dream Eater Flower when it’s not blooming, there won’t be any problems. But look at him, his eyes are dark, his lips are purple, his body is thin and weak, and he can barely lift half a bucket of water. If he’s not sick, he must be poisoned.” Rong Wanyin stared at the man’s every move and said.

"Huh? So far away, Miss Rong, how did you see that?" Mo Yun was somewhat surprised, and before she knew it, her voice had become a little loud, "Your eyesight is amazing!"

To everyone's surprise, the man was very cautious. Hearing the noise, he turned around and looked at the wall where the group was, asking, "Who's there? Who's there?"

Everyone quickly lowered their heads and lay on the wall, not daring to make a sound, hoping he wouldn't notice.
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Unexpectedly, the man put down the water ladle and walked this way. By then, it was already broad daylight, and the wall could no longer conceal anyone. Mo Yun, Chang Feng, and Rong Wanyin turned around nimbly and climbed down the wall. Rong Junye had never done such a petty theft before and was momentarily stunned. Rong Wanyin quickly turned back and tugged at Rong Junye.

"Run!" Rong Wanyin rolled her eyes at her older brother, grabbed Rong Junye, and quickened her pace.

"Why are you running?" Rong Junye asked, puzzled.

"Don't run! Don't run!" The man opened the courtyard gate, saw the four people fleeing, and chased after them.

"Hey...we...we can't win?" Rong Junye was full of questions. "Why are we running away?"

Fortunately, the four of them were highly skilled in martial arts and quickly shook off the man. They turned back, and once the man was out of sight, they stopped at the corner. They could have easily defeated him, but… well, they had a guilty conscience after all…

But this person was stubborn and insisted on chasing after us: "You..."

Before he could finish speaking, he collapsed to the ground, vomiting blood and losing consciousness.

Mo Yun turned around and saw the person lying on the ground, utterly shocked: "We didn't even lift a finger, how could they die so easily?"

Rong Junye quickly stepped forward and turned the man over. He saw that the man's face was pale. Rong Junye checked his breath and said, "Thank goodness, he's not dead."

"Quick, save him! He's not dead!"

The group quickly lifted the person onto the carriage parked not far away. Mo Yun explained the whole story to Yan Mingzhang in a few words, and then asked, "Sir, what should we do with this person? Should we find a doctor? Who should we look for?"

"Don't ask so many questions at once. Let the master take a look first. After all, the master is a disciple of the Medicine King." Changfeng interrupted Moyun, indicating that he should not interfere with Yan Mingzhang's examination.

However, since Yan Mingzhang was self-taught through medical books and not personally taught by the Medicine King, Mo Yun wanted to speak, but was stopped by Changfeng with a look.

Yan Mingzhang pried open the man's eyelids. Although his pupils were clear, there were faint blood vessels in the whites of his eyes, and his lips were purplish. Yan Mingzhang then carefully took his pulse. Afterward, he put his hand down, shook his head, and said, "This man is deeply poisoned, but my medical skills are limited. I don't know what kind of poison he has been poisoned with, nor do I know how to treat him."

"Poisoning?" Everyone recalled the yard full of Baku flowers. "It seems to be related to the Baku flowers!"

“I remember that Physician Zhuang’s residence was nearby. He resigned from his position at the Imperial Hospital some time ago and is now retired!” Rong Junye suddenly remembered this. “He was the best physician in the Imperial Hospital!”

Yan Mingzhang and his group only returned to Beijing a few days ago, so they naturally didn't know what had happened before.

"Moyun, Changfeng, quickly go and fetch some Dream Eater Flowers so that Physician Zhuang can examine them and see if he can concoct an antidote!" Yan Mingzhang instructed.

"My lord..." Mo Yun hesitated, stammering, "That Dream Eater Flower... for such a stranger..."