"What?" the old lady coughed into the phone a few times.
Only then did Lin Xiao Tian react and hastily corrected himself, "Are you still alive, old lady?"
"If I were dead, how could I be calling you?" The old lady didn't seem to mind Lin Xiao Tian's rudeness, and her tone softened considerably.
"Is the antidote ready?"
"It's ready."
"Good, then I'll wait for you at the Lin family's."
After speaking, the old lady hung up the phone.
Lin Xiao Tian felt as if he were dreaming, but he still decided to return to the Lin family to check. The assassination could wait; if the old lady couldn't be saved, he could still act later.
Thus, Lin Xiao Tian returned to the Lin family once more.
Xiao Ming came to greet Lin Xiao Tian, and he was also a bit bewildered by Lin Xiao Tian's sudden return.
"Did you finish your business?" Xiao Ming asked.
"Yes, nothing urgent for now," Lin Xiao Tian didn't offer many explanations. "Take me to the old lady?"
Xiao Ming nodded and didn't probe further.
Not long after, Lin Xiao Tian saw the old lady again in the previous attic.
The old lady appeared much weaker, but there was no immediate danger to her life.
Lin Xiao Tian wondered if the Lin family had some kind of miracle elixir that was preventing the spread of the Gu poison.
But Lin Xiao Tian didn't have time to ponder too much. He administered the antidote to the old lady and then began the treatment, just as he had in the morning.
Time ticked by, and finally, at midnight, the treatment concluded.
"Success!" Lin Xiao Tian was overjoyed.
He had already prepared for the worst, never expecting his luck to be this good. With the old lady now alive, it was the best possible outcome for him.
"Well done!" The old lady's face showed a kind expression.
Lin Xiao Tian was still unaccustomed to the old lady's kindly demeanor, always feeling as though she was plotting something mischievous.
"Then please rest well. If there's anything, just have someone call me anytime."
After giving a few more instructions to the surrounding medical staff, Lin Xiao Tian left the attic.
That night, nothing untoward happened.
The next day, the old lady had completely recovered.
The recovered old lady convened a family meeting, summoning her two daughters and the various branches of the Lin family.
Strangely, the old lady did not invite her sons-in-law, but instead, she invited Lin Xiao Tian.
Upon seeing Lin Xiao Tian in the Lin family's conference room, the heads of the various branches became restless.
"Old lady, this Lin Xiao Tian is an outsider after all. How can he attend our family meeting?" one branch head stated with clear dissatisfaction.
"Exactly! Even Mr. Fang and Mr. Jiang didn't come, yet he did. Isn't the old lady being too partial to Lin Xiao Tian?" another branch head chimed in.
But the old lady merely glanced at him indifferently and then said, "Xiao Tian is my savior. With him by my side, I feel more at ease. You all may not know, but I nearly died yesterday."
As she spoke, the old lady's gaze swept sharply over everyone present.
Lin Liwen heard this and was immediately surprised, asking, "Mother, what happened?"
Lin Liping also echoed, "Mother, how could you not mention such a significant event?"
It had to be said that Lin Liping was quite adept at feigning ignorance; she was the one who had acted, yet her expression showed no hint of panic.
The other branch heads present also had varied expressions.
"Old lady, what exactly happened?"
"You are the head of the Lin family, so who dared to do such a thing?"
The old lady suddenly turned her gaze to the speaker. "How did you know that someone else tried to harm me?"
The man immediately tensed up, but after glancing at Lin Xiao Tian, he made a sudden decision.
"I see that you specifically called Lin Xiao Tian here, so I presume this matter is not simple. If it were an ordinary affair, you wouldn't have Lin Xiao Tian participate in the family meeting. Therefore, I boldly guess that an outsider must have harmed you. Of course, this is just my speculation."
The old lady snorted coldly and ignored him.
"That's right, someone did try to harm me."
Everyone present was shocked to hear this.
"Who exactly? To dare harm someone from our Lin family, this matter must be investigated thoroughly."
"Yes! It must be investigated. They dared to attack the old lady, isn't that equivalent to slapping our Lin family in the face?"
"Old lady, please tell us, what exactly is going on?"
In an instant, a wave of indignation swept through the room.
The old lady looked at the hypocritical crowd before her. She knew that these people were likely involved in this matter, but she did not state it directly. Sometimes, resolving problems required more than just ruthlessness; it also required a strategy of striking the bush to scare the snake.
In the following time, the old lady recounted her recent experiences to everyone.
"Everyone, I have investigated this matter. It was the work of people from Miao Jiang. I have already taken punitive measures, and I presume they will not dare to do the same thing again in the future."
"However, the one who cast the Gu has died, and with no one to testify, I don't know the reason for this grievance. But in the end, this matter cannot be investigated further."
"I dislike wasting time, especially since I am standing here safe and sound. In the days to come, I hope you all can remain vigilant and avoid making the same mistake I did."
The old lady's tone was calm, showing no hint of joy or sorrow.
But every word she spoke carried immense weight.
Apart from Lin Liwen and Lin Liping, most people's expressions were somewhat unnatural.
Those who were involved in this assassination attempt naturally understood that the old lady was using a tactic of striking the bush to scare the snake, warning them to behave themselves in the future.
Not long after, the meeting concluded.
The old lady's two daughters helped her out of the conference room.
Lin Xiao Tian was about to leave, but the old lady called out to him, asking him to follow as well.
The two sisters were both surprised.
Normally, when they were with the old lady, she would dismiss outsiders, even Old Wu would obediently follow behind.
But the old lady, of all people, was allowing Lin Xiao Tian to follow along.
Even the two sons-in-law didn't receive such treatment.
Why was the old lady suddenly so good to Lin Xiao Tian?
Lin Xiao Tian was also puzzled.
Could it be that the old lady's mind had been addled by the poison?
She, who was so cautious, would do something like this?
Lin Xiao Tian began to retrace his steps, wondering if he had administered the wrong medicine.
But throughout their walk, the old lady behaved perfectly normally, except at the very end, when she suddenly made a request to Lin Liping.
"Liping, I recall that Jiang's jewelry business hasn't been doing very well in recent years, right?"
Lin Liping's heart tightened, and she quickly replied, "The market was sluggish a few years ago, but it's much better this year."
"Oh, oh..." The old lady paused. "But how did I hear that you recently bought a common stone at a high price when purchasing raw stones?"
"This, this..." Lin Liping stammered. "Mother, judging raw stones is inherently difficult. We did our best, and in the jewelry business, such risks are unavoidable."
But the old lady shook her head. "In my opinion, you lack talent in this area."
"Mother, you are right. I will have people replace those incompetent ones as soon as I get back," Lin Liping said hastily.
"Hmm... that's not necessary. It's hard to recruit these gemologists, isn't it? How about this, I'll recommend someone for you."
After speaking, the old lady looked at Lin Xiao Tian.
"What do you think of Lin Xiao Tian?"