Chapter Nineteen: The Apothecary

After Ye Zhuying finished speaking, he looked at Xu Yuanming and said, “Let’s go chat over at my place.”

Xu Yuanming nodded, and the two of them followed Ye Zhuying into the carriage. Once inside, Jie Peiling asked, “Brother Ye, are you in some kind of trouble?”

Ye Zhuying nodded, grabbed a jug of wine, took a long swig, then set it down and shook his head with a bitter smile before slowly beginning to recount the story.

“There are five great clans in Yu’an Prefecture — surely you know that. Even an outsider can see who truly holds the power. The Chu family is the greatest, and their strength is overwhelming. In Yu’an Prefecture, don’t even think about one clan taking on the other four. Even doubling their numbers wouldn’t save them from the Chu’s grasp.”

Jie Peiling nodded; a newcomer, he had only learned about the Chu family from Xu Yuanming.

“The Chu family wants to swallow up the entire Yu’an Prefecture. Their young master is dazzlingly prominent, bringing many cultivators from outside, and his wife’s dowry is extravagantly luxurious.”

Jie Peiling asked, “So what do you need from us?”

Ye Zhuying took another drink of wine: “Our Ye family elders want to infiltrate the five great clans, so we’ve become subordinate to the Chu family. Once that’s secured, we’ll bring down the remaining clan.”

Jie Peiling said, “If cultivators fight openly in the city, it will cause countless casualties and upheaval. Most of the city will be thrown into chaos, and the Dajin court won’t stand idly by.”

“You don’t know,” Ye Zhuying replied. “The Dajin Empire is struggling to hold itself together; how can they care about a single prefecture? This is just a battle for one city among many. They don’t bother unless it’s something at the capital or the Eastern Capital. If you don’t follow those people there, you’re free to do as you please. The old Confucian scholars have retreated to the mountains, speaking of ‘governing the country through severity, leniency, and balance.’ The country’s ruin was caused by them. They watch silently as eunuchs and treacherous officials wreak havoc, failing to restrain cultivators, even courting disaster by cozying up to troublemakers. The realm is discontent, so much for ‘balance.’”

Jie Peiling was speechless; living a quiet life in the temple, he knew nothing of these affairs, nor did he understand anything about his own family.

Xu Yuanming asked, “Is there anything else?”

Apparently, he was not particularly concerned.

Ye Zhuying took a deep breath and said, “There’s the matter of that pharmacy. After hearing the news, an elder in charge and I went to investigate. My father and others were waiting for news from that pharmacy. When we met Mr. Wang Shiming, it seemed so casual, as if it was no big deal, just find another one. The elder and I believed him, my father believed him, and so did the rest of my family.”

Jie Peiling asked, “Then what happened?”

Ye Zhuying smiled bitterly. “At first, everyone thought Mr. Wang Shiming was just an ordinary martial artist. Otherwise, how could he have run a small pharmacy in Yu’an Prefecture for so many years? Until he single-handedly went to the Chu family estate and with one punch smashed down the centuries-old gate that no one dared touch. The Chu family nearby dared to be angry but not speak out, because the cultivator they worshipped was trampled beneath him…”

“Should we intervene?”

Ye Zhuying looked seriously at Xu Yuanming and asked solemnly.

If it were someone else, it might be taken as a joke, but Xu Yuanming was different—his backing was not the same.

After Ye Zhuying finished speaking, Jie Peiling also looked at Xu Yuanming, silently asking for his decision.

Xu Yuanming gave a nonchalant “Hmm,” which seemed to mean he intended to handle it.

Not long after, Xu Yuanming suddenly said, “Stop the carriage.”

Ye Zhuying wanted to say more but wisely kept silent.

Jie Peiling was puzzled but followed Xu Yuanming in lifting the curtain and jumping down.

After they left, Ye Zhuying opened his mouth but remained silent for a long while in the carriage.

He now clearly understood Xu Yuanming’s choice, but it differed from that of most family elders. In the end, he just shook his head, grabbed the jug of wine, leaned against the table, and stared off with a distant gaze.

...

Xu Yuanming brought Jie Peiling to the pharmacy in front of which hung a large sign bearing the characters “Hua Nian.”

The evening light was fading, casting its glow on the alley and the corner shop.

Xu Yuanming whispered, “It’s right here.”

They entered the alley and found a disheveled man sitting on a small wooden stool outside the shop, smoking dry tobacco like a statue, always the same.

Wang Shiming looked up as they approached, coughed abruptly, then glanced at Jie Peiling behind Xu Yuanming, clicking his tongue and laughing, “Isn’t this Lord Xu Yuanming? What a rare guest…”

Xu Yuanming shrugged at the slovenly man and said, “Since you call us rare guests, make something good. Don’t serve that pickled cabbage.”

Wang Shiming groaned, “I don’t even have money for myself anymore, barely scraping by. How could I treat you to anything nice?”

...

Xu Yuanming found it dull—something was missing here, something irretrievable.

Wang Shiming said, “Who was that lady you brought last time? Tell her to come by; maybe I’ll treat you to something good.”

“She’s a man.”

That sentence was like a bucket of cold water dousing his enthusiasm.

“A freak. How does the court still tolerate things like that? Is the upper society really fond of these kinds of people?”

Xu Yuanming sneered, “Isn’t that what you like?”

“Get lost, get lost… Don’t push your uncle to anger or else…”

Before Wang Shiming could finish, Jie Peiling saw Xu Yuanming’s signal and took a couple of steps past the shabby figure into the courtyard.

Wang Shiming sighed helplessly, “One mess after another. The last one’s not even settled, and here comes an even bigger trouble. Does heaven want me to die here?”

Xu Yuanming said, “Who knows?”

It seemed this was the first time Wang Shiming had seen Xu Yuanming this way. Now that they were friends, he sized him up for a while, then nodded, took another long drag from his dry tobacco, and mumbled, “Fine, fine, if you want to stay, stay. I can’t kick you out anyway. Better you leave on your own. With your talent, who knows where your cultivation will be in six months? No telling how many people here would want to kill you.”

“But I still don’t want you to get involved.”

Wang Shiming said earnestly.

Xu Yuanming gave him a knowing look and asked, “So, what exactly is going on?”