Starting with a blind date with a female constable, you acquire the Nine Swords of Dugu.

Chapter 75 Reunion with Yan Wangchuan

Upon seeing the visitors, Lin Yourong bowed slightly and said, "Second Uncle, Second Aunt." Then she looked at Lin Youfeng and whispered, "Youfeng!"

Lin Yuanhu and Liu Su both nodded in response, and then hurriedly went to Lin Youhui's side to show their concern.

Lin Youfeng returned the greeting to Lin Yourong, her eyes somewhat furtive, and said, "Sister Yourong, you've come too!"

Lin Yourong nodded slightly.

"I—I'm going to see my brother first!"

As she spoke, Lin Youfeng fled to the bedside.

After a while, Lin Youhui finally finished telling Lin Yuanhu and the other two what had happened.

Upon learning that Gu Guanqi had cured Lin Youhui of the poison, Lin Yuanhu quickly stood up, turned to Gu Guanqi, clasped his hands in a deep bow, and said sincerely, "Hero Gu, I am Lin Yuanhu. Thank you for saving my son and the Lin family's martial arts masters. I will remember your great kindness."

""

Gu Guanqi waved his hand and said, "It was nothing, not worth mentioning."

Lin Yuanhu then looked at Lin Yourong and Lin Youcai, cupped his hands in thanks, and said, "Yourong, Youcai, thank you!"

Lin Yourong quickly said, "Second Uncle, we weren't much of a help. It was mainly Guan Qi who helped Gu Daxia detoxify the poison."

Lin Yuanhu quickly replied, "Our whole family will always remember the great kindness of Master Gu. If there is anything I can do to help you in the future, please don't hesitate to ask."

Gu Guanqi nodded slightly and said, "You flatter me."

Lin Yourong said, "Second Uncle, Second Aunt, please take good care of Youhui here. Well, we'll be leaving now. We still need to investigate the matter of Youhui's attack."

"Alright, take care!" Lin Yuanhu cupped his hands in greeting.

Immediately afterwards, Lin Yourong, Lin Youcai, and Gu Guanqi left the clinic.

"Sister, brother-in-law, I won't bother you any longer!"

After saying that, he walked in another direction.

Lin Yourong chuckled and said, "Never mind him, he's probably out with his cronies again."

Gu Guanqi nodded slightly, then extended his hand.

Lin Yourong naturally reached out and placed her hand on Gu Guanqi's hand, and slowly got into the carriage.

The carriage curtain fell, plunging the interior into darkness with only a few rays of sunlight filtering through the gaps. The carriage slowly began to move, its wheels churning over the cobblestones with a dull thud.

Lin Yourong sat down next to Gu Guanqi, remained silent for a moment, then suddenly sighed and said, "My second uncle has had a hard life."

Gu Guanqi turned his head to look at her and asked, "Why do you say that?"

Lin Yourong sighed again and slowly said, "My second uncle had great talent in martial arts when he was young, no less than my seventh uncle."

"Hmm—my seventh uncle is Lin Changqing, one of the eight great heroes of Qingzhou, also known as the Finger Vajra."

Gu Guanqi nodded slightly and said, "I know your seventh uncle's name."

Lin Yourong said, "Second Uncle and Seventh Uncle were the most outstanding members of the Lin family in that generation. They were personally taught by Grandpa, who had very high expectations for them. It is said that he set very strict training methods for them and did not allow them to have contact with outsiders."

To push them to their limits, Grandpa would test them every now and then, and whoever lost would be severely punished. According to my dad, back then, my second and seventh uncles only had the chance to come back for the New Year's Eve reunion each year. And every year when they came back, the progress they made in martial arts was terrifying.

Once, everyone in the clan believed that the Lin family would produce two grandmasters in their generation, and would flourish to the extreme, even surpassing the Wenjian Sect, the number one sect in Qingzhou. However, fate is unpredictable. About twenty-four or twenty-five years ago, a powerful enemy broke into the place where the second and seventh uncles were cultivating. The second uncle's dantian was destroyed, and all his martial arts skills vanished overnight.

Uncle Seven also developed inner demons during that battle. For the next twenty years, he struggled to make any breakthroughs in his martial arts. Therefore, even now, his Great Calamity Finger technique remains stuck at the eighth level, unable to break through and thus unable to reach the Grandmaster level.

Gu Guanqi frowned slightly: "Your second uncle's dantian was also destroyed?"

Lin Yourong nodded and said, "That's why I said my second uncle has such a hard life. All his talent was ruined in an instant, and now, Youhui has encountered the same thing. Alas!"

"That's pretty unfortunate!"

Gu Guanqi pondered for a moment, then asked, "After that accident, did he encounter any other major changes?"

Lin Yourong thought for a moment, then shook her head and said, "No. After that incident, my second uncle focused on managing his business and never got involved in martial arts again. The family has taken good care of him, and he has lived a peaceful life all these years without any major incidents."

Gu Guanqi then asked, "Did he get married and have children before or after the tragedy?"

Lin Yourong was slightly taken aback, not understanding why he asked this, but still answered truthfully: "Afterwards, when the tragedy occurred, my second uncle was not yet married. Later, his dantian was destroyed, and he lost all his martial arts skills, so he lost his pursuit of martial arts. The following year, the elders in the family arranged a marriage for him, and he married my second aunt. Youhui and Youfeng were born after that."

After listening, Gu Guanqi remained silent.

The carriage fell silent.

Lin Yourong tilted her head to look at Gu Guanqi and asked, "Guanqi, why are you asking this?"

Gu Guanqi hesitated for a moment before slowly speaking, his voice very low: "You Rong, there's something, um—how should I put it—"

Seeing Gu Guanqi's hesitant expression, Lin Yourong became even more curious. She took Gu Guanqi's arm and said softly, "Just say what you want to say. Why are you beating around the bush?"

Gu Guanqi pondered for a moment before slowly saying, "It's your second uncle—he's a eunuch."

Lin Yourong was stunned.

She stared at Gu Guanqi, her eyes wide, and exclaimed in surprise, "You—what did you say? How is this possible?"

Gu Guanqi's expression was calm, but his tone was very firm: "I am a doctor, and, how should I put it, my medical skills might be better than you think. I can tell you very clearly that your second uncle is impotent; I can tell at a glance!"

Lin Yourong found it hard to believe, but she also knew Gu Guanqi's personality well and knew he wouldn't make baseless accusations.

"This—maybe something else happened later? Youfeng looks a lot like Second Aunt—hmm?!"

At this point, Lin Yourong's eyes turned somewhat strange, and she whispered, "I'd better pretend I don't know. Some things, if you dig deeper, if Second Uncle—is impotent—then he'd definitely know best what really happened between Youfeng and Youhui. Oh well, let's not talk about this!"

"Alright, let's not talk about this anymore," Gu Guanqi smiled slightly and asked, "Why does Lin Youfeng seem so afraid of you? Doesn't she see you as her mortal enemy?"

Lin Yourong chuckled, "It's not that serious. It's just that she likes to show off in front of me, and she comes to provoke me all the time. She's so silly. I usually scare her a little and she quiets down. I don't know what's wrong with her today. Maybe I overdid it last time? I don't think so!"

The following morning, at Jinxiu Medical Clinic.

Gu Guanqi was fiddling with the alchemy furnace, preparing to refine pills.

However, he was alone today. Lin Yourong was busy dealing with the attack on Lin Youhui and others yesterday and couldn't get away.

This made Gu Guanqi feel a little uncomfortable.

As the sun gradually rose higher, it slanted in through the window, spreading a warm patch of light on the blue brick floor.

Gu Guanqi poured the ground medicinal powder into a small cauldron and simmered it over a low flame, stirring it occasionally with a bamboo stick. The liquid in the cauldron gradually thickened, its color changing from light yellow to dark brown, and it emitted a unique fragrance.

He stared intently at the changes within the cauldron. Today, he was refining the Turtle Breath Pill, a pill that could sustain him even in the most severely injured situations.

Qi is the most practical elixir for those who travel the martial world.

As time slowly passed, the medicinal liquid in the cauldron had been boiled into a thick paste. He poured it into a white porcelain dish next to him, then mixed it into pills. After it cooled and solidified, he put it into a porcelain bottle.

This went on for so long that it was noon before we knew it.

The bright autumn sun shone into the courtyard, casting the shadows of the green bamboo on the ground, which swayed gently in the wind.

Gu Guanqi was just about to take a break when he suddenly heard a series of noisy footsteps coming from outside the courtyard.

Then, Lin Yourong rushed in and said, "Guanqi, something has happened again. Today, another member of our Lin family was attacked. Just like those people yesterday, they were first poisoned, and then their internal energy was neutralized. Could you please help them detoxify again?"

Gu Guanqi nodded and said, "Let them in!"

Lin Yourong hurriedly went out to greet them, and soon a large group of people came in, carrying four stretchers. On each stretcher lay a person, their face ashen, breathing rapidly, and spitting out poisonous blood.

Gu Guanqi walked to the stretcher.

Four men, all around thirty years old, were lying on the stretcher. They all had the same symptoms: their faces were as pale as paper, their lips were bluish, fine beads of sweat were seeping from their foreheads, their breathing was rapid and weak, and their chests were heaving.

"Did you take the Hundred Herbs Pill?" Gu Guanqi asked.

"I ate it," Lin Yourong replied immediately.

Gu Guanqi nodded slightly, squatted down, reached out and felt the pulse of the nearest person, focused his senses, and then examined the person's eyes, tongue, and so on.

A moment later, he walked over to the other three people and examined them one by one.

"This poison is different from the poison used on those people yesterday." Gu Guanqi stood up, his expression calm. "Today's poison is much more troublesome and much more potent. It is made by combining several mutually exclusive yet complementary poisons. If even a slight mistake is made, it will have the opposite effect."

Lin Yourong quickly asked, "Can you solve it?"

"able."

Gu Guanqi nodded in agreement. Upon hearing this, Lin Yourong breathed a slight sigh of relief and quickly said, "Then I'll have to trouble you."

Gu Guanqi waved his hand, turned around and walked into the medicine room. He took out several medicinal herbs from the cabinet, placed them on the table, and began to prepare the medicine.

His movements were extremely fast; he weighed the herbs with a mortar and pestle, and boiled them in a pot, all in one smooth and effortless motion.

Lin Yourong stood aside and watched without making a sound to disturb them.

About half an hour later, Gu Guanqi poured the prepared medicinal soup into several bowls, took out silver needles, and walked to the stretcher.

He first gave each of the four people a bowl of the medicinal soup, and then began to administer acupuncture.

The silver needle pierced the acupoint, and the Purple Cloud True Qi flowed slowly through the needle tip, gradually forcing out the toxins lurking deep within the meridians. Black poisonous blood slowly flowed from the needle hole and dripped into the copper basin.

Lin Yourong helped by handing over needles and wiping away sweat; the two worked together seamlessly.

After another half hour, the four people's complexions gradually regained their color, and their breathing became steady.

Gu Guanqi removed the last silver needle, let out a long breath, stood up, and said, "I'll prescribe some more medicine later. Take it three times a day, morning, noon, and night, for ten consecutive days, and the poison will be completely cleared. However, the dissipation of their internal energy and damage to their dantian are up to their own fate."

Lin Yourong walked over and unabashedly wiped the sweat from Gu Guanqi's forehead, saying, "It's already a blessing that you were able to be detoxified and save your life."

Gu Guanqi asked, "What's going on with them?"

Lin Yourong sighed, her expression grave. "They are my cousins, of the same generation. They've been running businesses in other places all these years and rarely get together. They only came back this time because of Youfeng's engagement."

She paused, then continued, "Since it was a rare opportunity for us to get together, we decided to go to a tavern in the city for drinks. Who knew that while we were eating and drinking, we would suddenly be poisoned? Then, a man in black robes appeared, quickly neutralized the four of our internal energy, and then swiftly left the scene."

Gu Guanqi frowned slightly and said, "Like Lin Youhui yesterday, are you a direct descendant of your Lin family?"

"Hmm," Lin Yourong said, "Moreover, we both practice the Great Calamity Finger, a martial art passed down in our Lin family. The fact that the opponent could easily neutralize the Great Calamity Finger's power suggests that it was a martial art specifically created to counter the Great Calamity Finger."

Gu Guanqi said, "Then the scope has narrowed down, which means that the other party has a great grudge against your Lin family. Otherwise, they would not have created a martial art specifically to deal with the Great Calamity Finger. Moreover, it also means that the other party is very familiar with your Lin family, has seen your Great Calamity Finger manual, and may even have practiced it. Otherwise, they would not have been able to create or find such a martial art that can counter the Great Calamity Finger so accurately."

Lin Yourong nodded slightly and said, "The other party is secretly attacking our Lin family's younger generation. Their purpose is self-evident: to destroy the Lin family."

"Are there any suspects?" Gu Guanqi asked.

Lin Yourong shook her head slightly and said, "I have already sent someone to inform Grandpa. I have only been in charge of the Lin family for a few years, and I am not clear about many of the grudges and grievances of the older generation. However, the Lin family must have offended quite a few people to have reached this point, otherwise it would not have been able to grow so powerfully."

Gu Guanqi nodded slightly and asked, "Have you found out how the poisoning occurred?"

Lin Yourong nodded and said, "The people from the Six Doors have already investigated. The food and wine were all poisoned. They deduced that the poison was added on-site. Because the food could be prepared and poisoned in advance, but the wine was just something they took from the tavern after they arrived. However, all the other wines in the tavern were not poisoned, only the bottles they drank were poisoned. And at the scene, only they were poisoned, and no one was injured by accident."

She shook her head, her tone tinged with helplessness: "But the tavern is always bustling with people, there are so many customers, it's impossible to pinpoint who the killer is."

Gu Guanqi pondered for a moment and said, "Take me to see this place. I'll see if I can find any clues by investigating the poison."

Lin Yourong nodded: "Okay."

Immediately afterwards, Lin Yourong instructed a few guards to take care of the patients, and then left the clinic with Gu Guanqi.

The tavern, located on a bustling street in the east of Tianping City, was now sealed off by the Six Doors.

Several constables with swords were standing at the entrance. After Lin Yourong stepped forward and explained the reason, the constables let her pass.

The two entered the tavern.

The tavern was a mess, with tables and chairs askew, vomit and bloodstains on the floor, and a strong smell of alcohol and an indescribable sour odor filling the air.

The site is well preserved and has not been damaged.

Several constables from the Six Doors were investigating inside.

Gu Guanqi looked around and was suddenly taken aback, because he saw a familiar face walking out of a room—it was none other than Yan Wangchuan!

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