SC Chapter31

Old Zhou went around the neighborhood asking. Because it was raining yesterday and pitch black, no one saw anything. At the very last corner, a household said they vaguely saw someone heading towards Third North Street. Old Zhou’s heart sank. Following that road led directly towards his medical hall.

Old Zhou’s expression changed slightly. He hurriedly went back to find Xiao Ning. If Shen Yunjie was heading to the medical hall, it was highly likely that the poison of ‘Wang Duan Chang’ had flared up again. If so, with him being pregnant and the poison flaring up to the point of unconsciousness, it was very likely that something had truly gone wrong.

Xiao Ning had just finished settling Xiao Yuan. He left him at a nearby house and offered the neighbor some loose silver to show his gratitude, but the neighbor quickly refused. “We are all neighbors. I’ll watch the child for you. It’s no big deal, you don’t need to give silver.”

“Auntie, Xiao Yuan is very well-behaved and won’t cause you any trouble. Please take the silver and consider it for a few of his meals. When I find Ah Yun, I’ll come back to pick him up.”

Xiao Ning pressed the silver into her hand. The neighbor auntie feigned a stern face, saying, “It’s just adding a pair of chopsticks for the child. What trouble could that be? If you keep insisting, Auntie will really get angry. Hurry up and find your wife. Where could he go with that big belly? Listen to Auntie, couples argue, but you shouldn’t really get angry and kick him out. When you find him, coax him properly. There’s no such thing as overnight grudges between husband and wife.”

Xiao Ning’s nose felt a bit sour. He managed to suppress his chaotic emotions, lowering his gaze and saying, “Auntie… I’ll trouble you with Xiao Yuan.”

The neighbor auntie held Xiao Yuan’s hand and watched Xiao Ning stumble away. Just then, Old Zhou rushed over, panting as he grabbed Xiao Ning’s sleeve: “I asked around. Last night, he might have been planning to go to my place, but somehow disappeared.”

The wind scattered the warmth from Xiao Ning’s body. His gaze slowly followed from his doorway to the side. The main door of his neighbor, Zhao Sheng’s house, was open, creaking in the wind. Old Zhou sensed something was wrong with Xiao Ning’s expression. Just as he was about to ask, he saw him lift his leg and walk into the neighbor’s house.

Xiao Ning couldn’t explain why he walked into Zhao Sheng’s house, perhaps he had been suspicious of this neighbor for a long time. Zhao Sheng seemed not to be home. The courtyard was messy with scattered items. Xiao Ning reached out and pushed open the house door. Inside, it was empty and filthy, and a wooden bed was piled with threadbare bedding.

A glint of white caught his eye amidst the dark bedding. Xiao Ning reached out and pulled it, it was a crumpled inner garment of fine satin, smeared with dried dirt.

“This…” Old Zhou glanced at Xiao Ning with some confusion, only to see the other party’s eyes turn instantly cold, seething with anger.

Xiao Ning gritted his teeth: “This is Ah Yun’s clothes.” A few days ago, Shen Yunjie had casually mentioned losing an inner garment, perhaps it wasn’t blown away by the wind.

Old Zhou’s expression was strange. It was truly upsetting that a neighbor separated by just a wall had such vile intentions. Xiao Ning turned and walked out. Old Zhou then followed him, asking, “Where are you going?”

Xiao Ning looked at him: “Qianshui Alley.”

Qianshui Alley, to find the Third Master.

A ragged beggar with his hands in his pockets looked at the person in front of him: “Third Master is not here.”

Xiao Ning pulled out several large-denomination silver notes from his sleeve and said, “Urgent matter.”

The beggar was stunned. He didn’t take the silver notes, only saying, “What is your last name?”

“Xiao.”

In the time it takes to steep a cup of tea, someone came to lead Xiao Ning. They bypassed the narrow alley and arrived at a small courtyard. Pushing open the door, Third Master was sitting in the courtyard waiting for him. Third Master’s name was Lu Sanjue. He was once the leader of a beggar gang branch and had retired to this corner to spend his later years.

Although the Third Master had been out of the martial world for a long time, he still had some influence in this area. The Beggar Gang’s disciples were scattered across the land, so if someone needed to be found, they would be the quickest to do it.

“What trouble has Young Master Xiao encountered?” Lu Sanjue asked amiably.

Xiao Ning explained his purpose, rolled the silver notes into a purse, and pushed it towards Lu Sanjue. The Third Master smiled and said, “It’s a rare occasion for Young Master Xiao to come to me. It’s just a small favor, no need to be so polite.”

Xiao Ning pushed the purse with the silver notes back again, his face frosty: “Third Master, my wife is pregnant, and I truly cannot wait anymore.”

Lu Sanjue no longer refused. He accepted the purse and, after issuing instructions, said, “Young Master Xiao, don’t worry. Please wait here for a moment. If the brothers have any news, they will notify you immediately.”

Xiao Ning’s cold expression remained unchanged. He added, “Third Master, please also have the Beggar Gang brothers help me find Zhao Sheng’s whereabouts.”

Lu Sanjue readily agreed. The Beggar Gang was always well-informed. About half an hour later, someone came to the small courtyard and spoke softly in Third Master’s ear. Lu Sanjue waved the person away, turned to Xiao Ning, and said, “Young Master Xiao, a brother said that last night in the Empress Temple in the mass grave area outside the city, he bumped into a… dead person.”

Xiao Ning abruptly stood up, looking coldly at Lu Sanjue.

Lu Sanjue quickly said, “Young Master Xiao, a man of great fortune will be safe. Your wife and child will surely be fine. However, according to the brother’s recollection, he only said the person died strangely. It was dark, so he didn’t see clearly who it was. I’ll send someone over to investigate right away.”

“No need, I’ll go myself.” Xiao Ning said, “If there is any other news, please trouble Third Master to send someone to inform me.” He couldn’t sit and wait any longer. His heart was suffering like it was being fried in oil. If he waited any longer, he was afraid he would go mad. He had completely forgotten last night’s quarrel, forgotten the turmoil and struggle within him. Only a single thought filled his mind. He could not lose Shen Yunjie again.

Old Zhou, who was afraid that he would lose control, tucked his silver needles and followed behind him, quickly rushing toward the mass grave area using his light qinggong skills.

In the Empress Temple, water continued to drip from the broken roof, and the smell of blood was mixed with the damp scent of the post-rain earth. Shen Yunjie no longer knew how long the pain had lasted. His once-raised abdomen felt unbearably heavy, and each contraction sent a faint tremor through his body.

He had truly reached his limit. Shen Yunjie stared blankly at the exposed, broken roof tiles above his head. Using the last of his strength, he lifted his waist and managed to sit up halfway. His clothes were ragged and soaked with blood and sweat. The cramping pain in his abdomen showed no sign of stopping, and his waist felt as if it were splitting apart. It was nothing like when he gave birth to Xiao Yuan, though that had been hard, it was nowhere near as miserable as this.

Shen Yunjie bit his teeth with a pained expression. He gathered some strength and raised the dagger at his fingertips. The sharp, cold blade was stained with blood. He could not wait any longer…

The blade cut into his pale, swollen belly, leaving a streak of blood. It also smeared Shen Yunjie’s lowered eyelashes, shadowing his dark eyes. The fingers gripping the dagger didn’t shake at all, moving with deadly precision and speed from his upper abdomen downward—one inch… two inches…

He heard a dang sound. The dagger flew from his blood-red fingertips, and at the same time, a small stone was embedded in the wall.

Shen Yunjie groaned as he clutched the wound on his belly, and fell backward. He didn’t hit the wet pile of weeds as he had expected—an arm caught him tightly instead.