Chapter 10
Plotting to Slay the Poison Demon
“If it’s poisoned, aren’t you a dead man?” Nangong Xue’s voice quavered.
The meat buns weren’t big, Lucky ate one in one bite, and two or three more later they were gone. He took a handkerchief and wiped his mouth. “If you can think that Poison Eighteen will poison them, can he not think that you will anticipate that?”
“I don’t get your meaning.”
“No one dares eat anything a poisoner touches. Poison Eighteen ought to know that better than anyone.”
“Right.”
“So then, why would he poison the buns? Wouldn’t that be really stupid?”
“This is his chance, would he just give that up for no reason?” Nangong Xue looked doubtful.
“Of course he won’t. An intelligent person would never pass up any opportunity.” Lucky folded his handkerchief and put it into his sleeve as her spoke. “But he won’t let his opportunity go to waste on something you can see through. What I mean is, he would never poison the buns.”
Lucky looked at the panic-stricken Nangong Xue and continued, “You can think of beating him at his own game by pretending to eat the buns, can he not do the same? Since he knows full well that you won’t really eat the buns, if it were you, would you poison them?”
“No.” Nangong Xue had an ugly look on her face.
“In that case, where do you think he will put the poison?”
“Paper, the paper the buns are wrapped in!” Nangong Xue’s slender hands suddenly trembled and the buns fell to the ground.
With a grieved look on her face, Nangong Xue felt the palms of her hands go numb. She glared at Lucky angrily. “When we bought the buns you took out a handkerchief to wipe off your sweat, then used the handkerchief to line the oilpaper used to wrap up the buns. You already anticipated Poison Eighteen putting poison there.”
“Yes.”
“Then why didn’t you say anything earlier?”
“I thought you already knew.” Lucky laughed strangely. “I thought a stupid person like me thought of it, how could you not? If I spoke too much and you told me to shut up again, that wouldn’t be good, would it?”
Nangong Xue gnashed her teeth in anger but said nothing.
But she quickly composed herself and put on a smiling face.
“How come you’re not scared?” Lucky looked at her uncertainly.
“The poisoned one might be me, but the one who ought to be scared is you, because if I die you won’t see Silver Sabre. Since you’re not scared, why should I be scared?”
Lucky smiled too.
“Now,” Nangong Xue said, glancing at him, “I already know you’re not stupid and won’t tell you to shut up again. Can you tell me how to make my hands stop feeling numb and tingling?”
Actually Nangong Xue’s hands had now gone from numb and tingling to a sharp, piercing pain. Though she acted calm, inside she was uneasy.
But Lucky just shook his head. “I don’t know how.”
“Poison Eighteen knows, he has an antidote.”
“He doesn’t.”
“How do you know?” Nangong Xue couldn’t help getting scared again. “No antidote means I’m a goner, doesn’t it?”
“You afraid to die?”
“Aren’t you?” Nangong Xue glared at him angrily.
Lucky smiled at her as if nothing was the matter. “If you’re afraid to die then don’t move around, then you won’t die.”
“Why do you always beat around the bush?”
“There are three kinds of poisons: the most formidable and the most effective is the kind you eat. That kind often penetrates one’s bowels and you die. Next to that is poison powder. Though it can also be fatal, it’s not easy to use. The wind can carry it off or even disperse it, so it’s not easy to be effective with it. After that is the topical kind you are poisoned with now. None of this kind is fatal, it’s just a slow-acting poison. You have to be in contact with it for a long time for it to be fatal. You ought to understand what I mean, right?”
Taking a deep breath, it was a like a weight had fallen off Nangong Xue. “Turns out poison isn’t as frightening as they say.”
“Poison in general is not really that frightening. A lot of people who know medicine sometimes use poisons to treat people! It’s called using poison to fight poison.”
Lucky said, “Poison Eighteen wants you to go get his antidote. Then you really will die.”
“Why?”
“Because the antidote he gives you then will be the real poison.”
“Wouldn’t I just make him ingest it first?”
“Wouldn’t he just take the antidote first?”
Nangong Xue sighed. “How come you know so much about Poison Eighteen? You mean to tell me you’re a poison expert too?”
“I’m not, I learned it from Dugu Mei.”
“Dugu Mei?”
“She’s the beloved daughter of ‘Master Celestial Poison’, the pearl in his palm.”
“Master Celestial Poison?” Nangong Xue’s mind was jolted. “Isn’t that the most knowledgeable master of poisons in the martial world?”
“At least more so than Poison Eighteen.”
Nangong Xue had a thought, “Since Poison Eighteen wants to lure me to go get his antidote, if we don’t go won’t we make him suspect that we’ve already seen through his scheme?”
“Now of course you can go.” Lucky warned Nangong Xue, “He’s already led us to a secluded area and is in fact already waiting for us to go to him.”
Nangong Xue indeed had not noticed that they were already far away from the market street.
X X X
When Nangong Xue leapt over in front of Poison Eighteen, he did not look the least bit afraid but instead said coldly, “You’ve been following me half a day, what is it you’re trying to do?”
“Send you to the Western Paradise!” Nangong Xue’s pretty face was covered with a layer of frost.
Poison Eighteen was confident in his plan. In a composed manner he said, “Nangong Xue, you’ve already contracted my flesh-rotting poison. Even if you can kill me, you won’t escape death yourself.”
“So I need to kill you before I die.”
“Wait!” Poison Eighteen saw she was about to attack and hastily said, “Rather than us both die, why not think of a way that’s good for us both?”
“What way?” Lucky slowly walked up to them.
Poison Eighteen said calmly, “I give you the antidote, you all let me go.”
“A good method!” Nangong Xue said, “But how do I know that you aren’t giving me poison?” She was having fun.
“I can ingest it first and show you.” Saying that, he took out a small porcelain vial and dumped out a raven-black pill and put it in his mouth.
“If it’s poison, I’ll die before you two will.” Poison Eighteen tossed the vial to Nangong Xue.
Nangong Xue pretended to swallow a pill, then handed the vial to Lucky.
“You gave me the antidote and I didn’t kill you. Why aren’t you leaving?” Nangong Xue said, pretending to be serious.
“Because if I just leave like that I won’t be able to see how you look when you die a painful death.” Poison Eighteen had a satisfied look on his face, as if he’d just taken a gorgeous wife.
“Why? Didn’t you give us the antidote? Didn’t you take it too?” Nangong Xue was faking it well.
“I did.” Poison Eighteen laughter got louder and louder. “You ought to know that I would take the antidote first.”
He turned to Lucky. “It’s really surprising that not even the renowned playboy wouldn’t know.”
Lucky smiled nonchalantly. “Poison Eighteen, you’re always the most careful person. What makes you think we fell for your ruse?”
“Simple,” Poison Eighteen said in a loud voice. “I correctly calculated that you would think I poisoned the buns, so I pretended to make you think I poisoned them to lure you into thinking I was no longer strolling about the market so that you would attack sooner, but you didn’t expect that I had actually poisoned the wrapping paper. You would naturally turn pale with fright, especially after your hands were poisoned and the excruciating pain began, like being poked with needles or bitten by ants. Anyone would be alarmed and flustered in such a situation! When people are alarmed and flustered they can’t keep their cool and naturally wouldn’t think that I would take the antidote before tricking you.”
“Makes sense.” Nangong Xue sighed.
“However,” she continued, “do we look alarmed and flustered?”
“No, not at all.” Poison Eighteen laughed loudly. “Your calm is admirable and also laughable. You think you can deceive me like last time?”
“Isn’t it precisely because I deceived you before that you think I would use the same method to deceive you again?” Nangong Xue remembered the last time she was poisoned by him, she was so calm it made him think she hadn’t been poisoned. She found it funny in spite of herself.
“Last time, I thought you were extremely clever. This time, you’re certainly really stupid.” Poison Eighteen threw his head back and laughed maniacally.
His laugh was like a neighing horse and it kept on going.
“Since we’ve already contracted your flesh-rotting poison, why poison us again? Wasn’t that unnecessary?” Nangong Xue was copying his caution and was making her final confirmation.
“I’ll tell you,” Poison Eighteen said, laughing so hard he was shaking. “The poison on your hand is called ‘Bee Sting’. Right now you’re palm is feeling intense pain like bees stinging you or ants biting you, like ten thousand needles piercing you, but it won’t take your life. The pain will wear off after about three double-hours or so, but what you just ingested was the incredibly deadly ‘Flesh Rot’. In a short while, your intestines will burst, your liver will split open, and you’ll die! Understand?”
“I don’t quite understand.” Nangong Xue sneered, “Why haven’t my intestines burst and my why hasn’t my liver split open yet?”
“Drop the act. This time I’m definitely not falling for it, Nangong Xue. Why aren’t you wailing and moaning? Perhaps someone will come save you?” Poison Eighteen glanced sidelong at Lucky. “Liu Huahua, last time you saved this whore, who’s coming to save you this time? Ah, you always like sticking your nose into other people’s business, in the next life you ought to learn from this experience.”
With that, he once again threw his head back and laughed.
—People often did that when they were at their most smug and satisfied with themselves.
He was too proud of himself, so proud he couldn’t see Nangong Xue’s pair of beautiful embroidered shoes flying at him. Even if he had seen them, he would not have believed it real, and even if he had it would have been too late.
Because the sharp blade in the embroidered shoe plunged straight into his prominent throat knot!
His laughter was suddenly cut off and blood sprayed like rain.
As Poison Eighteen breathed his last he refused to close his seemingly enchanting starry eyes—his wide eyes stuck in intense disbelief.
He couldn’t believe that a person as careful and cautious as he would end up dying so muddled and confused.
X X X
It was already past mealtime so the little restaurant was not busy, only two people sitting in a corner quietly eating.
Actually only Lucky had his head down eating. Nangong Xue hadn’t even touched a drop of water.
—Her usually soft jade-white hands were now swollen bloodred and hurt so bad she couldn’t even hold chopsticks.
Couldn’t use chopsticks, so of course she couldn’t eat, so even though her stomach was growling with hunger, she could only look on in despair.
Lucky had an excellent appetite. He had eaten three big bowls of rice one after the other, a big bowl of hot and sour soup so spicy it made one tear up, and half a stuffed duck, a steamed fish, and a pot of huadiao wine.
“How come you’re not eating?” He just now noticed that Nangong Xue was sitting there not moving. Surprised, he said, “You afraid you’ll have to pay the bill?”
“You know why.” Nangong Xue glared at him grumpily.
“Something wrong with your neck?”
“What do you mean?”
“If your neck weren’t so stubbornly stiff you could have just told me and you wouldn’t be hungry.”
“You want to feed me?”
“no, but if you just say the word I will feed you.”
“If you want me to ask you, you’re dreaming!”
“Alright, just take it as me wanting to then.” Lucky sighed and picked up Nangong Xue’s bowl and chopsticks and plucked some vegetables with the chopsticks and put it to her lips.
Nangong Xue hmphed and turned her head away.
Lucky smiled wryly. “I’m asking you, okay?”
Only then did Nangong Xue turn back and allow Lucky to feed her.
Nangong Xue ate very slowly, very refined, and Luck seemed very patient. “Is it good?”
“Your name is Liu Huahua?” Nangong Xue said, staring at him.
“I’d rather you still call me Lucky. Call for luck and luck comes.”
“Sounds like a woman’s name.”
“I think so too, but I guarantee you I’m a man through and through.”
“And you’re a playboy?”
Lucky smiled. “Do I look like one?”
“Every man looks nice on the outside.”
“I’m not a nice man, never have been.”
“You’re very frank.” Nangong Xue lowered her head to sip soup.
Lucky, no, Liu Huahua, shrugged. “And you? Are you a frank woman?”
“No.”
“However,” she continued, “sometimes I might be.”
“Are you from House Nangong?” Liu Huahua touched on the question lightly, his eyes instantly catching Nangong Xue’s expression. He seemed to want to see into her inner heart.
Nangong Xue though, kept a flat expression. “Why do you ask?”
“I want to know.”
“I won’t frankly tell you.”
“Who is your esteemed father?”
“Are you checking up on my background?” She looked irritated.
“You could say that.”
“Ask something else!” Her tone was displeased.
Liu Huahua didn’t open his mouth again, just quietly fed her. Mm, just like a gentle, romantic man serving his beautiful wife a meal.
A strange look glided over Nangong Xue’s raven-black eyes and her cheeks flushed slightly. She was actually already full, but she still let Liu Huahua feed her.
—Letting someone feed you was not a bad feeling at all.
“Dugu Mei is really beautiful,” Nangong Xue said suddenly.
“That’s what everyone who sees her says.”
“If I was a man I would definitely like her.”
“But you hate men, right?” Liu Huahua stared unwaveringly at her. “In your eyes, all men are bad?”
“You don’t seem so bad.” Nangong Xue smiled gently.
“Is Dugu Mei your wife?” She hesitated, then said, “I could see that she treats you well.”
“Friends, good friends.” Liu Huahua’s smile was nonchalant and natural. “I think will become my wife. Maybe not, it’s hard to say.”
Nangong Xue was silent for a moment, then suddenly said, “Let’s go.”
“You’re done eating? Go where?”
“Awesome Might Martial Arts Academy.”
Liu Huahua frowned. “Your hands…”
“I can kill him even without hands.” Nangong Xue’s face was livid.
