First Entry into the Spirit Void 108. The Peculiar Maidservant

Gao Yunxiang stood up and said, “Today is our happiest day. Even if we wanted to rush on, it’s impossible. I’ll instruct the innkeeper to prepare several delicious dishes and two pots of fine wine so we can celebrate properly.”

Just as he finished speaking and was about to leave, he noticed a seventeen or eighteen-year-old girl dressed as a maid peeking at the door.

Gao Yunxiang smiled and asked, “Little sister, are you here to see someone? There are four of us in this room. Which one are you looking for?”

The girl in maid’s attire first appeared secretive, but when she noticed their attention, her demeanor changed instantly. She smiled charmingly and said, “I’m a newly arrived servant. The boss told me to ask the guests whether dinner is included with the lodging or if they would like to order separately?”

“You’re clever and quick-witted,” Gao Yunxiang said as he stepped aside to the door and smiled. “Come in, I’ll tell you.”

The girl nodded and stepped inside. As she crossed the threshold, Gao Yunxiang deliberately extended his right foot forward to test if she knew any martial arts.

Anyone skilled in combat would react immediately. The girl, quick and alert, sensed his movement and promptly withdrew to her original position.

Gao Yunxiang laughed. “Miss, you’re not from around here, are you?”

The girl countered, “Young master, how do you know I’m not from here?”

Gao Yunxiang smiled faintly. “If you were local, I would know if a girl had studied martial arts. You’re sharp and alert—you must have learned some fighting skills.”

The girl disguised as a maid smiled. “Young master is exceptionally wise. Indeed, I’m not local; I come from north of the river. I travel with my father, who performs arts for a living. We came here recently, but my father’s old illness flared up. We are currently staying with a kind family. Without money for medicine, I had no choice but to work here to earn some funds to treat my father.”

Gao Yunxiang smiled warmly. “Pardon my rudeness. You truly are a filial daughter.”

The girl smiled and said, “It’s nothing special. My father and I depend on each other. Since he is ill, helping him is simply what a child should do.”

Gao Yunxiang nodded. “Go tell the boss to prepare two pots of good wine and bring them to us when ready.”

The girl nodded, lowered her hands, pressed her right palm against her left, and bowed slightly to Gao Yunxiang. “Very well.”

With that, she stepped out and headed toward their room.

After the girl left, Meng Biyu whispered, “Judging from this, it seems we are being watched.”

Gao Yunxiang nodded. “If they’re watching us this clumsily, like oxen, we’ll be targeted everywhere we go. No need to panic.”

Li Hao wrote on the table, “Tracking them down won’t be easy. They’re practically coming to their deaths on their own—too convenient for us.”

Feng Guzhen said, “From now on, we must remain vigilant everywhere to avoid being ambushed.”

Meng Biyu nodded. “Fourth sister, I’ve finished mending Third Brother’s cloak. What about your cloak?”

Feng Jiezhen replied, “I’ll finish sewing it before dinner.”

Meng Biyu called Li Hao to stand and draped the cloak over him. The cloak had a hood, which she pulled up, then looked at him from front to back and said, “Second brother, take a look. Is anything amiss?”

Gao Yunxiang examined it carefully. “Very good. Only one thing—there’s no bamboo hat on your head. I’ll buy two immediately. Wearing a bamboo hat will make you look very imposing.”

Meng Biyu smiled. “Second brother, among the four of us sworn siblings, you’re the one who suffers most.”

“To those capable, more work is fitting,” Gao Yunxiang responded with a slight smile.

Feng Jiezhen said, “Second brother, although you pride yourself on your talents, since none of us can go out on errands, no matter how capable you are, you’re the only one who can handle them.”

By the time Gao Yunxiang returned with the bamboo hats, dinner was ready.

The first dish brought in was by the girl posing as a maid. Gao Yunxiang observed her expression—it seemed somewhat unnatural—and suspected she had secretly poisoned the white-cut chicken.

Picking up a chicken leg, he smiled at the disguised girl. “Miss, I have always respected those who are filial. You are very devoted. I want to honor you by offering you this chicken leg to show my respect. Please don’t refuse.”

The girl forced a smile and shook her head. “I am but a servant attending guests. How dare I accept gifts from guests? Please, you enjoy it. I need to serve the other dishes.” Saying so, she started to leave.

Meng Biyu called out, “Miss, don’t be in such a hurry. We still need to drink wine. It’s alright if the dishes come slowly.”

She took the chicken leg from Second Brother’s hand, stepped up to the girl, and smiled. “My second brother is a man, and you might feel embarrassed to accept from him. I am your sister, and I respect you as well. Please don’t be polite. Accept this small token of my respect.”

The girl, realizing her plot was uncovered and that refusal was impossible, thought secretly: “I have the antidote. What am I afraid of? If I accept and eat the chicken leg, they won’t suspect I poisoned it.”

She smiled and said, “Sister, your sincerity is clear. If I don’t accept, it would be rude.” She reached out and was about to take the chicken leg to her mouth.

Gao Yunxiang swiftly reached out, snatched the chicken leg from her hand, and casually threw it outside the door. A dog standing there jumped forward, grabbed the fragrant chicken leg, wagged its tail, and ran into the neighboring room to eat it.

The dog had just eaten the meat but had not finished the bones when it suddenly jumped up, howled wildly twice, rolled onto the ground with eyes turned white, and died immediately.

Gao Yunxiang looked at the disguised girl and smiled. “Miss, what is going on here?”

The girl, adept at improvisation, feigned surprise. “Ah! I was careless. The boss told me to place rat poison in the storage room. I handled the rat poison and forgot to wash my hands. It was very dangerous. If the young master hadn’t gotten angry at me, I’d be dead.”

Gao Yunxiang laughed. “We’re humans, not rats. Show me the poison. I won’t harm you.”

The girl shook her head, “I dare not deceive you. I don’t have any poison on me.”

Feng Jiezhen said, “If you won’t show it willingly, we will search you.” She then clapped her palm sharply on the girl’s ‘Qihu’ acupuncture point.

The girl’s delicate body tilted backward. Feng Jiezhen caught her before she fell, then looked at Gao Yunxiang. “Second brother, what shall we do with her?”

Gao Yunxiang replied, “Press her ‘Taiyi’ point again, lay her on the bed, and search her thoroughly to see if she’s hiding any secrets.”

Following his instructions, Feng Jiezhen searched the girl and found two bottles of medicine—one containing liquid and the other powder. They also found a dagger on her thigh and a round copper token engraved with a flying dragon on one side and the characters “Female Armor One” on the other.

Handing the items to Gao Yunxiang, Feng Jiezhen said, “Second brother, examine these carefully. Which one is poison?”

Gao Yunxiang took them and said, “It’s obvious. The liquid is poison; the powder is the antidote. This poison is extremely potent, originating from the Bai Men Sect. This girl posing as a maid is undoubtedly a Bai Men agent sent to assassinate me.”

Meng Biyu furrowed her brows and asked, “What does this copper token signify?”

Gao Yunxiang answered, “From what I know, the Bai Men Sect is composed of traitors from the nine major sects. It has several sub-sects, each recruiting its own disciples, making it complex and difficult to identify members. The nine sub-sects are Dragon, Lion, Tiger, Leopard, Wolf, Snake, Monkey, Rooster, and Rabbit. This girl is the top disciple of the Dragon sub-sect. The character ‘One’ indicates her rank.”

Li Hao nodded and wrote, “Makes sense. Second brother’s analysis is correct.”

“This is a shady inn! Should we expose this?”

Gao Yunxiang shook his head. “Cover the girl with a blanket and pretend we don’t know. We’ll just drink and skip the dishes. Later, when another server comes, we’ll question them carefully.”

Meng Biyu said, “There might be poison in the wine. Let’s test it first.” She pulled a silver hairpin from her hair, dipped it into the wine pot, and took it out. The hairpin’s silver did not change color, so the wine was not poisoned.

Gao Yunxiang laughed, “We have the antidote on hand, so even if the wine were poisoned, we wouldn’t be afraid.”

Soon, a waiter brought a plate of sliced beef tripe. Looking around, they noticed the girl who had just served them was nowhere to be seen and wondered silently, “Where did she go?”

Gao Yunxiang noticed the waiter’s eyes darting about and asked, “What are you looking for?”

The waiter said, “Our boss sent a new maid to serve the guests, but she went to the kitchen to get dishes and hasn’t come back for a long time. She’s very irresponsible.”

Gao Yunxiang asked, “What’s her name?”

The waiter shook his head. “She just arrived today; I don’t know her name.”

Gao Yunxiang asked again, “Who recommended her to work here?”

The waiter shook his head. “No one introduced her. It was rather coincidental. This morning, after the distinguished guests arrived, our boss sent a worker to a grocery store to get oil, fermented soybeans, vinegar, and seafood. That worker didn’t return for a long time. Instead, the girl who brought wine and chicken to the guests said the worker was out on a blind date and asked her to help for a day or two. Our boss didn’t question her and just let her serve.”

Gao Yunxiang smiled slightly. “Your worker didn’t go on a blind date—he was probably sent into the black room.”

Meng Biyu added, “Sent into a dark room with no sunlight. Taking a break isn’t bad, but I’m afraid he went to meet the King of Hell.”

The waiter was startled. “Sir, I don’t understand what you mean. Is my coworker in danger?”

Gao Yunxiang said, “Don’t worry. Once you find your coworker, you’ll know if he’s alive or dead.”

The waiter turned to report to the boss. Meng Biyu called out, “Waiter, take the white-cut chicken back.”

The waiter turned back and said, “Our head chef’s white-cut chicken is a favorite dish. If you don’t eat it, is it not to your taste?”

Gao Yunxiang smiled faintly. “If we eat that chicken, your boss will be in big trouble. Four coffins are nothing; when the magistrate comes to inspect the bodies, your boss will go bankrupt.”

The waiter laughed. “Sir, don’t joke. People go out hoping for good luck.”

“Joke?” Meng Biyu pointed at the dog lying dead in the next room. “Who’s joking? That dog only ate one chicken leg and now lies there unmoving. You should go see for yourself.”

The waiter hurriedly carried the white-cut chicken and ran over, shouting loudly, “Boss! Boss! Something terrible has happened in the shop!”

Hearing the commotion, the boss came forward angrily, “Xiao Cheng, are you crazy? What nonsense are you causing?”

The waiter said urgently, “I don’t know who poisoned the white-cut chicken, but a dog in the shop ate a chicken leg and died from poison. The girl who came to work here has vanished, too.”

Hearing this, the boss’s face turned tense. He widened his eyes, stared at the chicken in the waiter’s hands, and stammered, “Is… is this true? Who poisoned the chicken? Call the head chef!”