The entire courtyard knelt before him as Elder Huiyi grieved and lamented. If the Master chose to wilfully insist on his way, there would be an upheaval in the Xia Family and the Xia Family cannot bear an upheaval at a time like this.
Master Xia's face turned a few shades darker. Forget about Lord Lingxiao's commands, even if she were not involved in Lord Lingxiao's affairs, he was not going to execute Gu Ruoyun for the sake of curing Xia Zixi's illness.
Furthermore, the Master staunchly believed that Gu Ruoyun would never do such a thing.
"Father!"
Noticing the increasingly ugly shade on Master Xia's face, Xia Qi, who stood beside him, quickly spoke up in a gentle voice, "I also believe that Lady Gu is not a heinous person, except that many people had witnessed the incident. If we do not wash this injustice off her hands, I'm afraid that it would be difficult to convince the masses. So, I have a suggestion - have Gu Ruoyun locked in the dungeon. When we have evidence of her innocence, we shall set her free. What do you think?"
Xia Qi gave a pretty fair suggestion, he was on his father's side and did not believe that Gu Ruoyun would have poisoned Xia Ying. But with so many accusations from so many people, a show of favoritism would sorely disappoint the members of the Xia Family. So it's best to have her locked in the dungeon before making a decision.
Of course, once she was thrown into the dungeon, he would have many ways to have her mysteriously killed off then tell everyone else that she had committed suicide in a bid to escape punishment.
No one would ever suspect it was him!
"No!" Master Xia rejected Xia Qi's suggestion without a second thought and shot him a glare before speaking coolly, "Do not involve yourself in this matter. When has the punishment of criminals in the Xia Family been of your concern? You take care of your own conduct, that's good enough."
Xia Qi's body shook and his hands, hidden in his sleeves, balled up into fists. He took a deep breath and calmed his fury. The warm smile on his face remained unchanged.
"Father, I am merely trying to help you with your worries. Seeing as you are not willing, then I will not speak. Only, if this matter was not properly resolved, many members of the Xia Family will become extremely bitter."
When no one was looking, a sneer appeared on the corners of Xia Qi's lips. But it quickly disappeared and he returned to his warm and courteous facade.
Xia Qi and Dongfang Shaoze both have a similar characteristic. However, Dongfang Shaoze was warm to the bone while Xia Qi's body was made of ice. Underneath his mask of warmth was an undetectable layer of malice.
"I only have one thing to say," Gu Ruoyun looked at Xia Qi, then retracted her gaze and smiled calmly, "Xia Ying has indeed been inflicted with a deadly poison and his time is short. But only I can cure him. If you all insist on dragging this on, it would be impossible to save him. When that happens, do not accuse me of refusing to save a dying man."
Master Xia paused, "Are you saying that you have a cure for Xia Ying?"
"I can only try." Gu Ruoyun shrugged her shoulders and smiled gently, "Aren't you all curious to know who actually poisoned him? Just ask him when he awakens. I believe he probably knows better than any of you."
"Haha!"
When she finished speaking, the crowd burst into laughter. One Xia Family brother glared at Gu Ruoyun with ridicule, "Gu Ruoyun, we've seen you attack him with our own eyes unless that was a hallucination? I don't think you actually want to save Xia Ying, you want to further shorten his life! Master, this woman cannot be trusted!"
When the brother had finished his jeering, Gu Ruoyun calmly glanced at him, "Don't end up like Xia Ying — being used by another person and ending up dead, without anyone knowing what had truly happened."