Chapter 207

Chapter 207: Isn’t that asking for a beating?

Tian Meng Da reported: “Boss, haven’t we been trying to help a family in the north suburbs? At first they didn’t believe we truly wanted to help. We visited several times to win their trust.”

“Yesterday we agreed to bring them in today for registration. But before we even reached their place, a group rushed out of an alley and jumped us, pinning us down and beating us.”

“Li Da Shi and I have learned martial arts, so we at least kept them from landing hits on us. But Lian Yong Chao wasn’t trained. Two of them held him and pummeled him.”

“We saw they were vicious and going for deadly spots. Afraid something bad would happen, we pulled the daggers we carry for self-defense.”

“The moment they saw weapons, they ran.”

The north suburbs covered a wide area. Besides the street where Old Man Zhang had lived, there were several more streets filled with people in very hard times. If Yiluan Charity wanted to do work nearby, the fastest way was to find poor families there.

In fact, the shop had already solved many problems for north-suburb residents these past weeks. For elders with limited mobility who could not care for themselves, Steward Wu and others placed them in the newly prepared Yiluan Elderly Home. For poor families who could not afford treatment and were only waiting for death, Yiluan Charity found physicians and paid for the care. Orphans were sent to the Yiluan Orphanage, where their food and clothing were secured, and where a teacher taught them reading, conduct, and the skills to live better in this world.

In all, the shop had helped dozens of people. Aside from a young man whose illness was too severe for ordinary physicians and some elders with irreversible conditions, everyone else received proper care. The younger orphans now wore warm new clothes and, with full meals, had already grown taller. Two of the children even showed real talent in their studies.

As more people were rescued, Yiluan Charity’s name spread fast. Given that Yu Zhi Yi, a fifth-rank official, stood behind it, no one should have dared to make trouble. That made this matter unusual. Something was off.

Yu Zhi Yi fixed her eyes on the man on the stretcher, then suddenly reached toward his chest. Everyone froze, unsure what she intended.

They soon realized she seemed to be pulling something out of him. As she worked, Lian Yong Chao let out a howl of pain. Yu Zhi Yi quickened her movements and made a sharp, forceful yank.

Princess Consort Ping thought she heard a soft pop. Unsure if it was her imagination, she began to glance at her maid, but before she could turn, a ball of black vapor appeared in Yu Zhi Yi’s hand.

The black mass writhed like a living thing. The instant it showed, the room’s temperature plunged. Princess Consort Ping, wrapped in a heavy fur cloak, shivered from the cold that cut to the bone. Yu Zhi Yi seemed not to feel it at all. In a plain, thin dress, her face stayed calm.

She kneaded the black mass, then produced a sheet of talisman paper seemingly from thin air and slapped it onto the thing. The next second, a single piercing scream ripped out of the blackness.

Everyone except Yu Zhi Yi blanched. The sound was like countless blades thrusting into their hearts, sharp and numb, and then a heavy fear rose in all who heard it. Thankfully, it was only one scream. A streak of golden light burst from the talisman paper, wrapped the black mass, and the thing vanished before their eyes.

“All done,” Yu Zhi Yi said. She took out a handkerchief and wiped her hands, then looked at the two stunned workers and added, a touch apologetic: “I forgot you were still here.”

She patted each of them on the shoulder. Like people shaken awake, they came back to themselves, then showed the shaky relief of survivors and stared at Yu Zhi Yi with open admiration.

Yu Zhi Yi turned to Princess Consort Ping and her maid and lightly patted their shoulders as well. Both flinched and, after returning to their senses, looked at her with complicated eyes.

Princess Consort Ping had come with a “try anything” mindset. She had already invited monks and Daoists to check her manor, but all of them said they found nothing wrong. Only then did she think of the widely rumored, almost mythical Official Yu. She hadn’t dared hope much and had even sent people to search for hidden masters elsewhere. She had not expected Yu Zhi Yi to give her such a lesson on the spot. Her doubts vanished.

With awe in her heart, she had no objections to Yu Zhi Yi’s next arrangements. Yu Zhi Yi told the workers to carry Lian Yong Chao back to his room and asked Steward Wu outside to fetch a physician, then said to Princess Consort Ping: “Let’s go.”

The princess consort did not truly care about a small servant’s life, but out of courtesy she asked: “Will he be all right?”

Yu Zhi Yi said: “His injuries are not serious. Once the yin energy hidden in his body is removed, he’ll be fine.”

Princess Consort Ping could not follow the details, but she sensed great skill.

When their talk ended, the air in the room grew awkward. The princess consort wanted to find a topic, but she and Yu Zhi Yi had nothing in common. Her first impression of Official Yu came only from that loud scandal about the real and fake daughter. She could hardly ask: “How do you feel about being driven out of the Yu Clan?” [Isn’t that asking for a beating.]

Yu Zhi Yi did not mind the silence. Before long, their carriage stopped outside Prince Ping’s Manor.

Yu Zhi Yi lifted the curtain and glanced at the sky above the manor, frowning a little.

Princess Consort Ping asked: “Official Yu, did you notice something?”

Yu Zhi Yi said after a pause: “Let’s go in and see.”

Led by the princess consort, they toured the manor and finally reached Prince Ping’s study. Two guards stood outside. When they saw Princess Consort Ping bringing someone in, they jumped forward and said: “Princess Consort, the prince ordered that no one is allowed in the study.”

Princess Consort Ping’s face chilled: “Impudence. I am the mistress of Prince Ping’s Manor. How am I ‘no one’?”

The two guards looked troubled, yet they still refused to move aside.

Seeing the princess consort about to press them, Yu Zhi Yi caught her eye and gave a small signal. Princess Consort Ping frowned, but held back and did not force her way in.

After they had walked some distance away, the princess consort asked: “Official Yu, did you see that there’s nothing inside?”

Yu Zhi Yi shook her head: “No. I just don’t want to startle the snake.”

As she spoke, she took out two talismans, stuck one on the princess consort and the other on herself.

Princess Consort Ping watched Yu Zhi Yi vanish before her eyes. She forgot her usual poise, her red lips forming a perfect O.