CHAPTER 240: CHAPTER 240: ONE PARALYZED, ONE FOOLISH

The two were none other than Gu Jinli and Qin San Lang, but they had disguised themselves, altering some of their features.

At this moment, Qin San Lang looked like a middle-aged man with a full beard and deeply furrowed brows and frown lines.

Gu Jinli, on the other hand, appeared as a lean young man with facial pockmarks and a ’missing’ front tooth, not dressed as a girl.

After returning the items, they headed towards the Jiang Residence.

On the way, they took the back alleys to avoid the patrolling government officials.

"Will this implicate Xu’s Restaurant?" Qin San Lang asked Gu Jinli. Xu’s Restaurant had done nothing wrong, and he didn’t want to harm them.

Gu Jinli said, "It won’t. The poison was meticulously crafted by me. It takes five days to take effect, so it won’t trace back to Xu’s Restaurant."

If the Li Family reports it for investigation, they would only examine what Old Master Li and Elder Li Si ate on the day the poison took effect, not suspecting that they had consumed the poisoned food five days prior.

They also wouldn’t suspect them, as they would be returning home two days later. By the time the poison affects the Li father and son, they would have already left the prefecture, leaving them without the opportunity to commit the crime.

"That’s good," Qin San Lang nodded.

Gu Jinli looked at him and suddenly asked, "Do you think I’m too ruthless?"

Qin San Lang was stunned for a moment, then shook his head, "No, you’re just seeking revenge."

The Li Family caused significant harm to Gu Daya and her family. If not rescued in time, Gu Daya and her daughter would have been forced into prostitution, and the Qi Panzi family would have been sent to work in the mines, suffering till their deaths.

Moreover, Xiao Yu had already informed him that the poison she concocted wouldn’t be lethal, only causing Old Master Li and Elder Li Si to live in agony, suffering for the rest of their lives.

Hearing this, Gu Jinli didn’t respond and simply kept her head down, hurrying on their way.

Qin San Lang, watching her, asked, "Why do you ask? Does it bother you?"

If it did concern her, then he would take her place in dealing with people the next time she wanted to settle a score.

Gu Jinli replied, "I’m not bothered. I was just asking casually, worried you might fear that I’d poison you one day."

Such a useful ally, she didn’t want to scare him away.

Hearing this, Qin San Lang paused, suddenly stopping in his tracks.

Gu Jinli frowned, "What are you stopping for? Let’s keep moving."

Qin San Lang, however, looked at her quite seriously and said, "I’m not afraid you’ll poison me." She wouldn’t harm someone without cause, only if she had been wronged first.

"Ha!" Gu Jinli laughed, "Quite brave, aren’t you?" Having said that, she already proceeded on her way.

Qin San Lang hurried after her, and they walked briskly. Half an hour later, they finally returned to the Jiang Residence.

Inside the Jiang Residence, Gu Dashan and the others were unaware that they had gone out, assuming they had just gone to sleep.

But Jiang Jiao knew, and he even opened the door for them. Seeing that they returned safe and sound, he didn’t ask any questions and simply told them to rest up as it was getting late.

Over the next two days, Gu Jinli and the others took great care of the Qi Kangming brothers. During this time, Qi Kangping developed a slight fever, which Gu Jinli promptly managed with remedies to prevent it from turning into a high fever.

Two days later, Qi Kangping and Qi Kangming, who had not developed a fever, were also seeing their wounds healing. They were then ready to return home.

Before going back, they got a half month’s worth of medicine from Qingshan Medical Hall.

Gu Jinli also purposefully bought some medicinal herbs that were not available at Xuanhu Fang, as these were for making scar removal medicine. Qi Kang Le’s facial wounds would surely scar, so she needed to prepare a scar removal remedy for her, otherwise, her face would be ruined.

Master Qi found out that the Gu Family was leaving and hurried over, saying he wished to bid them farewell. In reality, he wanted to discuss the spice business with Gu Jinli.

Gu Jinli asked Master Qi, "I heard that Elder Li San of the Li Family is somewhat capable?"

Master Qi was taken aback but shook his head: "That Elder Li San is merely more intelligent than Old Master Li and Elder Li Si. He can manage what’s handed down to him, but lacks the ability to truly prosper. Moreover, like Old Master Li and Elder Li Si, he’s selfish and greedy. When times are good, he shows some affection for relatives; but, when faced with difficulties, he can act even more shamelessly than Old Master Li and Elder Li Si."

This time, it was for his own sake that Elder Li San betrayed Old Master Li and Elder Li Si.

Hearing this, Gu Jinli laughed and said, "It seems that Master Qi does not intend to associate closely with this Elder Li San, am I correct?"

Master Qi nodded: "Master Qi has many relatives and friends, and does not need to go out of his way to associate with Elder Li San."

Gu Jinli nodded in satisfaction upon hearing this, but added, "I want the Li Family to never rise again!"

After giving this statement to Master Qi, she sent him away.

As for the spice business, she also told Master Qi that they would have no goods until before May. If Master Qi was interested in the business, he would have to wait until after May, when they could talk again.

Master Qi, feeling frustrated, thought he had put a lot of effort into courting Jiang Jiao’s favor, but this daughter of the Gu Family was even more astute, making use of him and yet telling him nothing substantive.

Yet, with the Lei Family’s Trading Team protecting Gu’s Workshop, Master Qi dared not do anything, only able to wait until after May.

After Master Qi left, Gu Jinli and the rest boarded the carriage and left the prefecture city to return home.

Two days after their departure, chaos ensued at the Li mansion on Jiqing Street. After creating a ruckus for two days, Old Master Li and Elder Li Si were finally untied and could move freely in the house.

Feeling stifled in the house, they summoned their concubines and concubine maids for amusement. As they were enjoying themselves, Old Master Li and Elder Li Si suddenly began vomiting and suffering from diarrhea, and after a day and night of agony, they fainted from exhaustion.

By the time Master Qi received the news and sent the old housekeeper to the Li mansion to check on them, Old Master Li had already had a stroke and was paralyzed. Elder Li Si had not been paralyzed, but he remained unconscious.

Elder Li Si remained unconscious for six days and nights. During this time, he was feverish and delirious. When Elder Li Si awoke, his brain had been damaged by the fever, and he became an idiot.

The concubines and concubine maids of Old Master Li and Elder Li Si wailed and lamented, but Elder Li San’s household rejoiced.

Mrs. Qu was overjoyed and set up an altar to thank the gods that very night, "God has blessed us, the old man and Li Si are finally rendered powerless."

From now on, the Li Family would belong to their family.

Mrs. Qu was nearly ecstatic. Being a concubine daughter herself, she knew that with a legitimate son present, a concubine’s offspring could never hope for prominence.

When she married into Li San’s family, she was already prepared to remain subservient all her life. Unexpectedly, God had opened his eyes; a drought had come, which first led to the death of the two most promising legitimate sons of the Li Family on the road to escape famine, and now the old man and Li Si were incapacitated. The Li Family’s wealth had unexpectedly fallen into their laps, and Mrs. Qu could not help but wake from her sleep laughing.

After the Li Family lost two of its leading men in quick succession, Master Qi felt that something was amiss and sent people to investigate, but nothing came of it.

They also called for several doctors to examine if the father and son of the Li Family had been poisoned.

However, the diagnosis was that there was no poisoning. Rather, the Li Family’s men had suffered great physical deficits on their escape from famine coupled with excessive sexual indulgence, leading to their severe illnesses.