Help! The cunning and treacherous minister and I were reborn together!

It was freezing cold, and there were few pedestrians on the road, all walking lazily.

Upon seeing the knife-wielding assailant, the leader paused for a moment, then turned and shouted as he ran away, with the others taking off after him.

Fearing trouble, the shop owners in the surrounding area quickly closed their doors and windows, while those who were curious only dared to peek out from under the doors.

suddenly!

From afar came the clanging of golden armor and longswords, and someone shouted:

"The Leopard Guards are here!"

The shopkeeper and his staff were greatly encouraged. They grabbed abacuses, rolling pins, and other items, opened the door, and rushed out.

"You villains! The Leopard Guards have arrived! Lay down your weapons and surrender immediately!"

One of Wu's subordinates grabbed Chen Qing's shoulder with one hand and held a knife to his neck with the other, saying, "Don't come any closer, or I'll kill him!"

One of the shop assistants was skilled at hunting birds. He snatched the shopkeeper's abacus and threw it at the masked man without saying a word.

The Wu King's subordinate instinctively dodged, and Chen Qing seized the opportunity, grabbing the man's wrist holding the knife and twisting it sharply. The thief cried out in pain, his hand loosened, and the long knife fell to the ground.

Chen Qing grabbed the knife handle and was about to slit the other man's throat when the blade touched his skin. He suddenly stopped, twisted his wrist, and knocked the man unconscious with a single blow.

The shopkeeper and his assistant quickly stepped forward and tied the thief's hands and feet with rope.

"Kid, you're pretty good!"

Chen Qing gave a weak smile, then collapsed to the ground with a thud, knife and all.

"Hey! What's going on?"

"Chen Qing!"

Luo Mei dropped her shovel and ran over to help Chen Qing up. Her palm touched a warm, sticky liquid, and she tremblingly held it up to her eyes, seeing that her hands were covered in blood.

Tears welled up in her eyes. "Chen Qing, hang in there, I'll take you to see a doctor!"

Everyone was stunned, never expecting that an eleven or twelve-year-old boy, despite being so badly injured, could still subdue the thief.

"Where are the Leopard Guards? They have horses; they can get them to the clinic faster!"

Luo Mei carried Chen Qing on her back. "There were no Leopard Guards. I made a commotion just now to scare away the thieves."

The shopkeeper and his staff were astonished, marveling at the woman's composure and resourcefulness in the face of danger.

"You're a woman, you can't carry him far, let me do it!"

“I have a carriage in my backyard. You go to the clinic first, and I will catch up with you later.”

Someone mentioned that the military police were nearby, and one of the shopkeepers immediately went to fetch them, while the others stayed behind to guard the thieves.

The Wei Yan Lou was also in complete chaos. The doctor had only heard that there were patients, but when he went to the door, he was stunned to find five people lying on the ground.

He observed the patient's complexion, smelled his breath, and took his pulse one by one, and his heart sank.

"All five have been poisoned by the poisonous herb, Gelsemium elegans... I'm afraid they can't be saved!"

"The informant" grabbed him by the collar, "Whether he can be saved or not can only be known after the rescue is completed, otherwise why did we ask you to come here!"

The doctor noticed that the patients were dressed in fine clothes and did not seem to be from ordinary families. He knew that if he couldn't save them, he would suffer the consequences himself.

He quickly said, "Young man, calm down. I have a folk remedy here. You can try it."

"Say!"

"Get some charcoal ash, mix it with soapy water, and force-feed it to them." He wrote down a dose of emetic, instructing, "Get the medicine according to the prescription, decoct it, and bring it over. Also, see if there are any mung beans in the kitchen; if so, boil a pot of mung bean soup, it can help detoxify!"

One of the men said, "I'll go, I'm fast on my feet!"

Remembering her master's words, the maid stepped forward to stop her, "I can ride a horse, I'll go!"

The waiter scratched his head and chuckled awkwardly, "That works too!"

The maid called the other maids downstairs. She went to the backyard to fetch the horse, while the others ran to the kitchen to get busy.

Yuan Zhi vomited after drinking the soapy water, within the time it takes to drink a cup of tea. Her face was pale, and she leaned back in her chair, trying hard to open her eyes, but she could only open them a crack.

"How are they...?"

The message said, "Still in a coma."

Yuan Zhi felt as if a huge stone was pressing on his head, and he slumped helplessly. "It's good that he's not dead."

No sooner had he finished speaking than the people from the Six Doors ran upstairs.

"Who was poisoned?"

A group of people made way, and the constable, who was usually quite worldly, almost knelt down after seeing who was in the room.

The Commander's wife, the siblings of the Marquis of Changping, the daughter of the Minister of Works, and... the Ninth Prince!

Yuan Zhi caught sight of him out of the corner of his eye and called out, "Brother Constable, may you come closer?"

The constable stepped forward, squatted down, and said, "Madam Xiao."

"All the food and drinks in the restaurant are provided by the kitchen and then served by the waiters. I suspect that someone tampered with the food. Apart from a few maids, everyone else is here. The ladies are of noble status. After the constable has questioned them, let them leave."

The head constable nodded. "I understand what you mean, Madam."

He asked the doctor when the poison would take effect and then had all the staff come downstairs to gather in the lobby.

After counting the number of people, Manager Li said to the head constable, "Not a single one is missing."

The constable asked, "Who served the food and drinks in Boss Yuan's room?"

A thin fellow replied, "Yes, it's a villain."

"Did you poison me?"

"No, no, no, Your Excellency, you are wise! I was only responsible for serving the dishes; I know nothing else!"

The head constable's eyes sharpened. "Did you run into anyone while serving the food?"

The waiter thought for a moment and said, "Yes! There were two! In the backyard, Hu San'er walked alongside me, and we exchanged a few words. When we were going up the stairs, I almost bumped into Sun Laoliu. He cursed at me a couple of times, pushed me aside, and left."

Who are Hu San'er and Sun Laoliu?

Two men stepped forward. The shorter one called himself Hu San'er, while the shrewd-looking one called himself Sun Laoliu.

The head constable ordered his men to take the three men into custody. After questioning the cook and finding no issues, he inquired about who had been to the second floor before and after the poisoning occurred. Two waiters stepped forward, and after the head constable matched the witnesses with the individuals seen by the customers, he escorted the suspects back to the Six Doors (a government agency).

After seeing off the distinguished guest, Manager Li went upstairs to visit his employer.

The maid who went to fetch the medicine had already returned while the constable was interrogating her. She went straight to the kitchen to brew the medicine and then, along with several other companions, carried the medicine bowl and mung bean soup upstairs.

When Manager Li pushed open the door, Yuan Zhi's bowl of mung bean soup was empty, and the Chu siblings, Miss Liang, and the Ninth Prince had also woken up, vomiting violently while holding spittoons.

He wiped his sweat. Such a big thing had happened, yet the boss's expression remained calm. She was truly an extraordinary woman!

Yuan Zhi regained his composure and asked in shock to Manager Li, "Did the guest pay before leaving?"

Manager Li: "..."

Is now the time to care?

Yuan Zhi could tell from his expression that he hadn't paid. She felt an unusual tightness in her chest and said to the maid, "I still feel like the poison hasn't been completely cleared out. Bring me another bowl of mung bean soup!"

doctor:"……"

This isn't just a matter of not cleaning up the poison; it's about valuing money over lives!

The maid was straightforward and curtsied, saying, "Please wait a moment, Master, I'll go get it right away!"

King Kang finally stopped vomiting, rinsed his mouth, and then lay on the table laughing loudly.

"Don't be sad, Mr. Yuan. You were poisoned today, and you may have been implicated by me. I will have my servants bring you ten ingots of gold as compensation!"

Yuan Zhi said, "Your Highness came to the restaurant on a whim. This scheme by the thieves was clearly aimed at me. Luckily, we didn't drink much, otherwise, we would be meeting the King of Hell by now!"

"Life and death are commonplace, Elder..."

Li Ji was only halfway through his sentence when he suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood.

Yuan Zhi was shocked: "Your Highness!"