Chapter 43: It Is Still Not Too Late to Change Your Mind

Su Yunqing stared at her in silence for a long while. The others in the room also noticed something was amiss, and soon everyone's gaze turned toward the maid.

Before Su Yunqing and Madam Cheng could speak, the maid abruptly dropped to her knees with a thud.

Her face was full of panic. "Spare my life, Madam! Spare my life, Miss!"

Madam Cheng looked at the little maid in utter confusion. "Xiaolian? What have you done?"

Xiaolian first kowtowed heavily a few times, then spoke slowly with tears streaming down her face. "Madam, it is all this servant's fault. I lost the medicinal herb."

Madam Cheng was furious. "You—I entrusted you with something so important. How could you possibly lose it?"

Xiaolian knelt on the ground, trembling as she stared at her own knees, her voice shaking slightly.

"Madam, it is all my fault. On the way to deliver the medicine, I was curious and opened the brocade pouch to see what such a magical herb actually looked like. Right at that moment, I accidentally tripped, and the herb fell into the pond. By the time I wanted to go down and retrieve it, it had already been swallowed by a large carp."

Such a bizarre story sounded like a lie the moment one heard it.

Yet Su Yunqing kept her patience and asked her, "So to cover up your negligence, you found two fake herbs and mixed them in? May I ask, where did these two fake herbs come from?"

"I picked them up on the road." Xiaolian swore repeatedly. "I swear, I really picked them up on the road. I originally wanted to come and confess, but when I turned back, I found two identical herbs in the bushes by the roadside. I thought perhaps I had just dreamed that fall earlier, as if it had never happened at all."

Since the intention was clearly to cover up the truth, asking further questions was pointless.

Su Yunqing looked at Madam Cheng and said, "Madam, since Xiaolian has said so, and less than two hours have passed, we might as well go to the edge of the pond, catch that carp, and slit open its belly to inspect it. The truth will naturally come to light."

Madam Cheng replied, "That is the only way; there is no other choice. Hurry, if we fish it out now, perhaps the Dragon Saliva Grass can still be of use."

Led by Xiaolian, the group arrived at the pond alongside the path leading to the kitchen.

Xiaolian pointed to the largest, completely blood-red carp and said, "Madam, it is that one. When I got up, I saw with my own eyes that its mouth was still open, and inside was the herb I lost."

Madam Cheng instructed the manservant beside her, "Quickly, catch it and cut it open."

Without even taking off his shoes, the manservant quickly waded into the water. After a brief flurry of splashing, he hauled the large carp ashore.

He then took a knife and sliced open the fish's belly. When the entire fish stomach was exposed to the setting sun, everyone was stunned.

The leaves of the two Dragon Saliva Grass plants had already dissolved, and only some of the roots could still be recognized. Su Yunqing squatted down to examine them closely; the tiny beads at the ends of the roots appeared even more brilliant against the roots that were already half-melted.

Therefore, Xiaolian had not lied.

It was only natural that she panicked after losing the medicine. Just at that moment, two identical items miraculously appeared before her, so even she became confused.

To avoid taking responsibility, she simply passed off her found items as genuine to muddle through, thinking at worst it would just be ineffective. She had no idea the Snake Orchid was toxic and would be exposed so quickly.

"Xiaolian," Su Yunqing asked her, "who did you run into along the way? Do you remember what tripped you up?"

Xiaolian shook her head. "I didn't meet anyone on the road."

Then she lowered her head and searched around on the clean, flat bluestone pavement. "At the time, I only felt like I stepped on something very hard, and then I fell. Because the path is always clean and we walk back and forth here every day without ever needing to watch our step, who would have thought... That is why afterwards I felt as if I had been dreaming."

By this time, Su Yunqing was already certain in her heart that this matter had been orchestrated by Concubine Zhang.

As Cheng Xiao's biological mother, she was the biggest beneficiary after Cheng Ji fell ill. As long as Cheng Ji remained bedridden, the entire Cheng family would be in Cheng Xiao's hands.

The Snake Orchid originated from her courtyard, and she just happened to be turning the soil at this exact time.

She had sent someone to wait by the roadside for the little maid to pass by, seizing the opportunity to swap the herbs in her possession, while coincidentally running into the overly curious Xiaolian who took out the herbs to inspect them...

Su Yunqing glanced around her surroundings. Several clumps of phoenix-tail bamboo grew by the roadside, which happened to be perfect for hiding.

She was the one who did it. However, there was no proof.

Neither human witnesses nor physical evidence existed.

Under such circumstances, making her confess was impossible. Master Cheng was ill, and Cheng Xiao was busy outside all day with various affairs and rarely at home. How could she make her show her true fox tail and then catch her red-handed?

Given her current status, without sufficient evidence, even Madam Cheng would have to hesitate out of concern and tolerate her somewhat for Cheng Xiao's sake.

"Madam, since this incident was Xiaolian's mistake, let her parents come and take her away as punishment. As for the medicine... matters have reached this point, and saying anything more is useless. We can only send people out to search for it again."

Hearing this, the resentful look in Madam Cheng's eyes reignited with a glimmer of hope.

"Can it still be found?"

Su Yunqing nodded. "I believe it can. We might as well return and discuss this at length."

Xiaolian was driven away.

The group returned to Cheng Ji's room once more.

Su Yunqing had Madam Cheng dismiss everyone else before speaking softly, "Madam, I cannot guarantee that we will be able to find the Dragon Saliva Grass a second time."

The perils she had faced in the sea with Meng Hu that night were still vivid in her memory.

Madam Cheng was baffled. "Then what do you mean?"

Su Yunqing continued, "However, I can expose the person who deliberately destroyed the Dragon Saliva Grass. We drove Xiaolian away simply to make the other party feel that their suspicion has been cleared, thereby letting down their guard."

"You also suspect that there is someone else behind this?"

"Of course. Otherwise, how could it be such a coincidence that the moment the Dragon Saliva Grass was lost, the Snake Orchid immediately appeared before us?"

"Do you have a plan?"

Su Yunqing nodded. "Madam only needs to find someone you trust implicitly to make a trip outside, and simply tell the people in the courtyard that he has gone out to search for the Dragon Saliva Grass. When that person returns in a couple of days, the truth will naturally come to light."

Madam Cheng's eyes lit up, and she immediately understood and nodded.

Taking Su Yunqing's hand, she said, "My brain is getting less and less reliable by the day. If not for you here, I truly wouldn't know what to do."

At that moment, the evening meal was announced outside.

Madam Cheng tucked the quilt around Cheng Ji and pulled Su Yunqing toward the door. "You've been tired all day. Have a good dinner and go back to your room to rest and get a sound sleep..."

Cheng Ji suddenly spoke up, "Mother, please step outside first. I have a few words to say to the Third Sister."

After Madam Cheng left, Su Yunqing gracefully seated herself on the embroidered stool by the bedside, looking at Cheng Ji with a smile.

"What does Eldest Brother wish to say to me?"

"You..." Cheng Ji pressed his lips together, lifting his dark, clear eyes to look at her. "I have wronged you."

Su Yunqing had not expected him to say such a thing out of nowhere, and her expression froze slightly. "How could that be? I am very well here; Madam treats me like her own daughter."

Because of his vomiting, Cheng Ji's lips were somewhat dry and his complexion rather pale. Though he looked sickly, his smile remained remarkably handsome.

"Third Sister!"

"Hmm?"

"In my current state... I... perhaps I will remain like this forever."

"How is that possible? The Dragon Saliva Grass was found once, and in such a large patch of black copper stone, there are definitely more than just two stalks. As long as we don't give up, we will surely find more. By then, your illness can be cured."

Hearing this, Cheng Ji fell silent for a moment before looking at her again.

He said very earnestly, "If I remain like this always, it will delay your life. Our grand wedding is approaching; it is still not too late for you to go back on your word."

Hearing the words "grand wedding" and meeting Cheng Ji's utterly sincere gaze, Su Yunqing felt her cheeks grow somewhat warm, and she unconsciously lowered her eyelids and cast her gaze downward.

"You will not remain like this forever. I will find a way to cure you."