The Splendid Brocade of the Painting Physician – Chapter 99

Chapter 99: Chen Shuling’s Coercion

On the pleasure boat, after Gao Changgong left, Xiao Jinyu formally presented her request to Lady Wei.

“I need your intelligence here, this is my condition.”

After speaking, she took out a handwritten note from her sleeve and handed it to Lady Wei.

“What is this?” Lady Wei asked as she opened it to read. Her eyes gradually lit up. “Young Lady, did you write this? Your handwriting is so beautiful! Although I don’t understand characters, it’s just so pleasing to the eye!

You ladies from aristocratic families are truly different. Not only are you elegant and interesting, but your handwriting is also so beautiful. And the content written here is…”

The more Lady Wei read, the more astonished her eyes became!

“During the Warring States period, a hundred schools of thought contended. Regarding pre-Qin scholarship, it can be divided into twelve schools: Yin-Yang, Confucianism, Mohism, Logicians, Legalism, Daoism, Diplomats, Miscellaneous, Agriculturists, Novelists, Military Strategists, and Physicians.

Lady Wei, this book I’ve given you is about miscellaneous techniques. It will teach you how to integrate the strengths of various schools to accomplish anything, even in your area of expertise, business.

Naturally, this is just one aspect of it. If you want to learn, you can learn it. If you don’t want to, I won’t force you.

As for your Apricot Blossom and Misty Rain Tower, although it’s a place of entertainment for the powerful and wealthy, and there’s no shortage of people who spend lavishly here, it’s not as if you have such good business every day. Moreover, there’s the Prince of Shixing, an Inspector, increasing the commercial taxes here. This is not a long-term solution, am I right?”

Lady Wei nodded in admiration while reading the handwritten note.

“Therefore, you need to frequently change some of your approaches. For example, the rules of the games in your Apricot Blossom and Misty Rain Tower. The same thing, the first time is novel, the second time is interesting, but if played too many times, it will become boring!”

“Yes, you’re right!”

“I’ve also written down how to do it in this note. As for Chen Shuling, the Prince of Shixing…”

She paused, her eyes suddenly turning cold. “I will make him pay for everything he has done!”

Lady Wei was deeply engrossed in the note when she suddenly heard this last sentence. Startled, her hand trembled, she sat up straight, and instantly became alert!

“Young Lady, what did you just say?”

She couldn’t believe her ears.

“I said, Chen Shuling, the Prince of Shixing, I will make him pay. He won’t be able to act recklessly in Jiankang City for much longer!”

Lady Wei was so frightened that she quickly got up and covered Xiao Jinyu’s mouth.

“He is the Prince of Shixing, the Inspector of Yangzhou, His Majesty’s most beloved son. It’s not as if Censors haven’t impeached him before, but every time His Majesty raises his hand high, he puts it down gently, only punishing those around him and the Censors. Afterward, he still promotes and rewards him. Otherwise, why would he be able to walk sideways in Jiankang City!”

“Young Lady, be careful of what you say. I’ll pretend I didn’t hear anything today, and you shouldn’t say it again!”

“This handwritten note you gave me is already enough!”

In this era where knowledge is monopolized by the nobility and ordinary people don’t even have the right to literacy, for her, Wei Qi, to obtain a handwritten note passed down from an aristocratic family, it’s already a godsend!

Moreover, after several encounters, she had developed some goodwill towards Xiao Jinyu.

Out of concern, her eyes were full of warning, but she saw that Xiao Jinyu’s eyes, like deep pools of ink jade, remained calm and unruffled, with a faint smile.

How calm she is!

“So, Chen Xu is not unaware of his wrongdoings, but he’s just indulging him, right?”

Upon hearing Chen Xu’s name, Lady Wei was even more frightened and covered Xiao Jinyu’s mouth even tighter.

“How dare you even address His Majesty by name! You, young lady, are truly not afraid of death!”

Lady Wei was so scared that she broke out in a cold sweat, but she saw that Xiao Jinyu was still smiling calmly. Fenghuang, who had appeared from somewhere, saw this and rushed over, pushing Lady Wei away.

“Let go! If you keep covering her mouth like this, how can my Qing Gege breathe!”

✿✿✿

After reaching an agreement with Lady Wei, Xiao Jinyu walked out of the pleasure boat and planned to return. Similarly, today she also gave Xiao Xian a book, which recorded the “Thirteen Strategies for Rejuvenation.” This was the result of her discussions and research with her grandfather in her previous life, addressing the political shortcomings of the Southern Liang Dynasty. It also included some biographical notes left by an ancestor of her Xie family.

Regarding the current Southern Chen Dynasty, she and Xiao Xian had also summarized some political shortcomings and national policies that could benefit the country and enrich the people. To stabilize the dynasty and fill the empty treasury, eliminating Buddhism was the first and foremost step.

She believed that with Chen Xu’s ideals and aspirations, although he believed in the Buddhist concept of karma and reincarnation, he would never tolerate Buddhist temples harboring evil or even becoming a threat to the imperial court!

To put it more seriously, of all the wealth in the world, Buddhism already occupied seven-tenths. The nobility, believing in Buddhism, would unscrupulously plunder the people’s wealth and build Buddhist temples to seek happiness in the afterlife. The common people, to escape taxes, would also become monks and hide in Buddhism.

Therefore, if there were people with rebellious intentions within Buddhism, the mob they could gather would be a considerable number.

Why did Chen Shuling, in her previous life, when he was defeated and knew there was no escape, push his dozens of beautiful concubines into a deep well? It was because he delusionally hoped that he would still have glory, wealth, and beautiful companions in the afterlife.

This debauched, tyrannical, and bloodthirsty Prince of Shixing was actually a devout Buddhist believer!

Just as Xiao Jinyu, with Fenghuang and Xiao Ruoling, left the pleasure boat and were walking along the banks of the Qinhuai River, a young boy suddenly stumbled towards them and fell at their feet with a thud.

“Save me, save me…”

The boy extended his blood-stained hand towards Xiao Jinyu, his eyes filled with pleading. He used all his strength to utter these four words before vomiting a mouthful of black blood with a “wah” sound and fainted!

Xiao Jinyu immediately squatted down to examine the boy’s injuries. She discovered that this child, who was only eight or nine years old, was covered in bloodstains, as if he had just been severely beaten with military rods.

“Is he dying?”

Suddenly, a burst of mocking laughter came. Xiao Jinyu looked up and saw that it was the procession of Chen Shuling, the Prince of Shixing, heading towards them.

✿✿✿

It was Chen Shuling who had spoken, stepping out from his sedan chair.

A guard ran over and checked the boy’s breathing, then reported:

“Your Highness, he still has a breath, but he’s almost dead!”

“That’s good! Almost dead, but not completely dead, perfectly fitting the Divine Physician’s rule of not treating anyone who is not seriously injured, disabled, or dying!”

Chen Shuling said, looking at Xiao Jinyu with a sinister smile:

“Am I right, Young Lady? Your rule, I remember it. This boy is at most nine years old, just a vagrant without a household registration, but pure-hearted. He hasn’t done anything bad in his life, hasn’t killed anyone, and now he’s dying.

Young Lady, you have a benevolent heart, please save him!”

Xiao Jinyu raised her head and looked at Chen Shuling coldly.

“Did you injure him?”

It was already sunset, and the glow of the setting sun cast a brilliant array of colors on the Qinhuai River.

But it was far less dazzling than the ever-changing brilliance in this young lady’s eyes!

It was a kind of icy brilliance!

Interesting!

“Yes! I beat him!”

He said, walking forward and looking at Xiao Jinyu.

“A filthy vagrant, wanting to beg, but he bumped into my carriage. Shouldn’t he be taught a lesson?”

“What, Young Lady, do you want to kill me?”

He laughed heartily, enjoying Xiao Jinyu’s expression of anger and restraint.

“So what if I kill you?”

Fenghuang shouted, throwing a punch at Chen Shuling. Two guards simultaneously drew their swords, and Xiao Jinyu immediately pulled Fenghuang aside.

“Don’t mind him, Fenghuang. Get my gold needles and the pills!”

She didn’t specify which pills, but Fenghuang, who had been following Xiao Jinyu and treating people with her, had already developed a tacit understanding with her. She immediately took out gold needles from a sheepskin scroll she carried with her, retrieved a pill from a small porcelain bottle, and handed them to Xiao Jinyu.

Xiao Jinyu quickly fed the pill into the boy’s mouth and was about to apply the needles when Chen Shuling unexpectedly reached out and grabbed her wrist.

“Young Lady, to prevent your skills from being learned by others, why not save him at my Prince of Shixing’s Residence?”

“Let go of my Qing Gege!”

Fenghuang pushed his hand away, and the two guards behind Chen Shuling were about to step forward with their swords.

“Stand down!”

He ordered with a stern expression, stood up, and looked at Xiao Jinyu.

“Young Lady, I won’t force you. I’ll give you two choices. First, you come with me to the Prince of Shixing’s Residence and save him. And there’s another person in my residence waiting for you to save, also a child, a girl…

Second, you can save this boy here, but I can’t guarantee that after you save him, I won’t beat him to death again?”

“How about it? My rules are reasonable, aren’t they?”

“Chen Shuling!”

At this moment, Xiao Jinyu could no longer control herself and shouted, her eyes fixed coldly on the Prince of Shixing.

Chen Shuling couldn’t help but grin, laughing heartily and triumphantly!

Angry, huh!

This is truly rare!

The setting sun illuminated the river surface, casting a particularly solitary and ethereal glow on the figure in white standing by the river, facing the wind.

Gradually, a crowd gathered to watch, but they dared not approach, fearing Chen Shuling’s tyrannical and intimidating presence.

Lady Wei also stood on the pleasure boat, watching from afar, both anxious and afraid, but she didn’t dare to come over to intervene.

Finally, after a period of extremely dangerous and tense confrontation, the noise and wind gradually subsided, leaving only Xiao Jinyu’s voice on the entire Qinhuai River bank.

“Alright, I’ll go with you to the Prince of Shixing’s Residence!”