Chapter 342: Setting a Trap

“You…” She finally gave a bitter laugh. “You really are something else. It seems they followed Zhenzhen to find you.”

“This also proves that they really are plotting something against Xiao Zhen,” Li Yang said lightly. “By the way, I’ve looked into Xiao Zhen’s background. The future heir of the Xiao Family, right? But the Xiao Family is gone now…”

Zhao Xuechu pondered for a long time before finally nodding. “That’s right. That’s exactly how it is.”

“Let me ask you, is anyone in the Xia Family in poor health?” Li Yang asked.

Zhao Xuechu didn’t quite understand what he meant at first. After a moment, she said, “That… I’m not too sure. But poor health… There are so many people in the Xia Family, that’s a perfectly normal thing.”

Li Yang slapped his forehead. ‘What kind of question was that?’ he thought. He then said, “That’s not what I mean. I mean, is any important figure in the Xia Family unwell? The kind of… abnormally unwell.”

Zhao Xuechu thought about it, then finally shook her head. “That… I don’t think I’ve heard anything. Why?”

“Xiao Zhen’s condition is what’s called a Fire Tripod!” Li Yang stated bluntly. “I don’t know if she’s lucky or I am, but I happened upon an ancient book and saw it mentioned. Otherwise, I’d have no clue. A Fire Tripod can be artificially created, but its sole purpose is to benefit someone else. It can be used to treat diseases, alter one’s physical constitution, and has other functions… I suspect someone in the Xia Family has a peculiar illness, so they turned Xiao Zhen into a Fire Tripod to save their life.”

“Huh?” Zhao Xuechu was horrified. “This… I’m not really sure. But is Zhenzhen’s body really one of those… things?”

“There’s no mistake,” Li Yang said calmly. “From what I can see now, and based on my previous judgment, Xiao Zhen has been turned into a Fire Tripod.”

For a moment, Zhao Xuechu was speechless.

“Alright…” Li Yang said after a moment of silence. “This doesn’t have much to do with you. I think you should stay out of it. I’ve already found the iron-wire grass. When Xiao Zhen comes back, I’ll brew the medicine for her, remove the Fire Tripod from her body, and that’ll be that.”

Zhao Xuechu gave a bitter laugh. “If it’s really as you say, why would the Xia Family ever let her come back?”

Li Yang was startled. ‘That’s right, I overlooked that problem.’

He was dumbfounded, unsure of what to do.

“Uncle Chai already warned you, which means the Xia Family is already suspicious…” Zhao Xuechu said again. “You should think this through carefully. You’ve been exposed, too.”

Li Yang’s expression turned grim. After a moment, he said, “How about this? You go to the provincial capital, give the medicine to Xiao Zhen, and have her brew and drink it herself?”

“Let me think of a foolproof plan!” Zhao Xuechu said after a moment of thought. “I’m her best friend, after all. I won’t just stand by and watch them get her killed.”

With that, Zhao Xuechu hung up.

Li Yang gave a bitter laugh. ‘Xiao Zhen is lucky to have a friend like you.’

The next day, Zhong Lin took Li Yang to buy mountain ginseng seeds early in the morning.

Arriving at a shop, Zhong Lin called out, “Boss, you’ve got a customer!”

The owner quickly ran out. “Boss Zhong! So, have you decided to buy our mountain ginseng seeds?”

“He’s the real boss,” Zhong Lin said. “Come on, show our boss your best stuff.”

The owner went inside and brought out the mountain ginseng seeds.

Li Yang took one look, and his expression changed.

“Boss, are these what you call mountain ginseng seeds?” Li Yang retorted.

The owner’s face changed slightly. “Boss, what do you mean by that?”

“What do I mean?” Li Yang laughed in anger. “What do you think I mean? Did you think I wouldn’t recognize Forest Ginseng?”

“Huh?” Zhong Lin was startled. He immediately went forward to take a look and instantly flared up. “Hey, Boss, you’re trying to rip us off, aren’t you?”

The owner, not expecting to be exposed by the young man, hardened his expression and said, “Forest Ginseng, mountain ginseng, I don’t know what you’re talking about. These are wild mountain ginseng seeds. Just say if you want them or not.”

“Let’s go!” Li Yang’s expression darkened.

However, this was someone else’s territory. Although Li Yang was unhappy, he had no intention of arguing further. He just pulled Zhong Lin and left.

Zhong Lin was furious. He considered himself an expert, yet he’d been tricked. If Li Yang hadn’t seen through it, he would have been utterly humiliated.

The owner watched Li Yang and Zhong Lin leave, his own expression turning ugly.

Forest Ginseng was nowhere near as expensive as wild mountain ginseng. It was much cheaper, and so were the seeds.

Passing off Forest Ginseng seeds as wild mountain ginseng seeds—the price difference was quite significant.

‘Who would’ve thought they wouldn’t fall for it?’

“Damn it! So you want to buy wild mountain ginseng seeds? I’ll make sure you can’t buy them anywhere!” the owner spat viciously.

Meanwhile, Zhong Lin had no other choice but to lead Li Yang to another shop.

“This one isn’t just some stall. It’s a very famous shop. I doubt they’d try to rip us off…” Zhong Lin said seriously. “Come on, let’s go in and see.”