Chapter Summaries

Lin Taichu exposed Su Mingyuan’s staged death and followed him to a ferry dock, where Su summoned poisonous beasts to block their way. The confrontation ended as the Ink Claw appeared.

• Lin Taichu discovered that Su Mingyuan had used Turtle Breath Powder to fake his death and persuaded Wang Xiaohu to pretend they believed the deception.
• Lin Taichu and Wang Xiaohu followed Su Mingyuan and a gray-clothed man from the cave to a ferry dock.
• Su Mingyuan noticed Lin Taichu and Wang Xiaohu, then revealed that a boat was waiting to take him away.
• Su Mingyuan blew a black whistle, summoning poisonous beasts called Ink Claw.

Lin Taichu and Wang Xiaohu defeated Su Mingyuan’s poisonous Ink Claws and stopped his escape at the ferry. Wang Xiaohu pinned Su Mingyuan down and demanded to know who his superior was and where the boat was headed.

• Lin Taichu and Wang Xiaohu used antidote powder and the Peachwood Staff to fight Su Mingyuan’s three Ink Claws, while Lin Taichu stopped his snakes with Snake Repellent Powder.
• Lin Taichu and Wang Xiaohu killed all three Ink Claws by targeting their vulnerable mouths, eyes, and throat.
• Su Mingyuan tried to escape through poisonous smoke, but Lin Taichu protected himself with a gas mask and struck Su Mingyuan’s leg as he ran toward the boat.
• Lin Taichu jammed the boat’s oar with a throwing knife, while Wang Xiaohu pinned Su Mingyuan down and questioned him.
• Su Mingyuan denied having a superior and claimed the boat was only for his escape.

Lin Taichu forced Su Mingyuan to reveal that Vice Director Zheng Xiuyuan planned to poison the King during the Birthday Festival, but realized the confession alone could not expose Zheng. He returned to Qinghe Town to prepare to enter the palace and investigate Zheng from close range.

• Lin Taichu threatened Su Mingyuan with truth serum and the danger to his family, prompting Su Mingyuan to identify Zheng Xiuyuan as his superior and reveal the planned poisoning at the Birthday Festival.
• Su Mingyuan disclosed the location of Zheng Xiuyuan's stronghold and his other subordinates, while the gray-clothed man surrendered and claimed Su Mingyuan had coerced him.
• Lin Taichu ordered Wang Xiaohu to take the two prisoners to Master Zhang, then rode toward the capital with Su Mingyuan's secret letter.
• Lin Taichu reconsidered and returned to Qinghe Town, deciding that Su Mingyuan's testimony was not enough to move against Zheng Xiuyuan without corroborating evidence.
• At the Healing Immortal Medical Hall, Lin Taichu told Chen Zhiming he would enter the palace, get close to Zheng, and search for a weakness; he requested official robes, medical case records, and items from a secret room.

Lin Taichu entered the capital to investigate Zheng Xiuyuan and secured a chance to join the Imperial Hospital so he could gather evidence against him from within. After the King agreed to support his assessment, Wu Qian revealed Zheng Xiuyuan’s suspicious activities and confidants, leading Lin Taichu to focus on the Imperial Pharmacy.

• Lin Taichu went to the Imperial Hospital and used a rare poison case to test Zheng Xiuyuan, who identified the poison and described its antidote.
• Lin Taichu asked to join the Imperial Hospital, and Zheng Xiuyuan agreed to arrange an assessment in three days.
• Lin Taichu told the King about Su Mingyuan’s confession and proposed gathering irrefutable evidence against Zheng Xiuyuan from inside the Imperial Hospital.
• The King agreed to help Lin Taichu pass the assessment and told him to report any danger through Manager Li.
• Wu Qian met Lin Taichu and reported that Zheng Xiuyuan had been meeting with the steward of the Imperial Pharmacy, along with naming his other trusted followers.
• Lin Taichu concluded that the Imperial Pharmacy could be key to proving Zheng Xiuyuan was refining poison.

Lin Taichu passed the Imperial Hospital assessment and uncovered evidence that Zheng Xiuyuan was preparing a poison intended for the Emperor’s Birthday Festival gift. He and Wu Qian decided to keep watch until they could catch Zheng Xiuyuan in the act.

• Lin Taichu learned that the Imperial Pharmacy had issued large quantities of aconite and prepared aconite without records of the stated insect-repelling medicine.
• Lin Taichu passed Zheng Xiuyuan’s assessment by identifying and treating a patient poisoned with Heart-Rot Poison.
• Wu Qian gave Lin Taichu a copy of the pharmacy ledger, which showed suspicious withdrawals signed for by Zhang Qi.
• Lin Taichu and Wu Qian searched the Imperial Pharmacy and found poisons and a ledger entry naming the Emperor as the target of a Birthday Festival gift.
• Lin Taichu hid a poison bottle and the ledger, then decided with Wu Qian to wait for a chance to catch Zheng Xiuyuan preparing the gift.

Lin Taichu tried to expose Zheng Xiuyuan’s plan to poison the king with a Longevity Pill at the Birthday Festival. Zheng Xiuyuan countered with official records and evidence that undermined Lin Taichu’s accusation, leaving Lin Taichu’s position in jeopardy.

• Zheng Xiuyuan tested Lin Taichu with a forged medical record, then gave him access to Imperial Pharmacy inspections.
• Lin Taichu discovered Zheng Xiuyuan was gathering poisonous herbs for a Longevity Pill and alerted the king, who approved a plan to expose him.
• Lin Taichu secretly prepared Detoxification Pills and added antidotal herbs to the Longevity Pills while pretending to follow Zheng Xiuyuan’s instructions.
• At the Birthday Festival, Lin Taichu accused Zheng Xiuyuan of poisoning the king and presented a bottle, an account book, and Wu Qian’s testimony.
• Zheng Xiuyuan produced official approvals and challenged the account book’s authenticity, revealing that it lacked the Imperial Hospital’s watermark.
• Zheng Xiuyuan called Lin Taichu’s evidence forged and appealed to the king as a loyal physician.

Zheng Xiuyuan cleared himself by swallowing the supposedly poisoned Longevity Pill, and the King ordered the investigation to continue while allowing him to return to the Imperial Hospital. Marginalized at work, Lin Taichu found a child’s case that suggested Heart-Rot Poison was spreading through the capital.

• Zheng Xiuyuan swallowed the Longevity Pill and remained unharmed, while Imperial Physicians confirmed his pulse was normal.
• The King declined to punish Zheng Xiuyuan, ordered further investigation into Su Mingyuan’s case, and sent Lin Taichu back to work more cautiously.
• Zheng Xiuyuan returned to the Imperial Hospital and used his influence to isolate Lin Taichu and transfer him to the external clinic.
• Lin Taichu refused Wang Xiaohu’s suggestion that he leave, since he wanted to keep investigating Zheng Xiuyuan.
• Lin Taichu found a case file describing a child whose symptoms resembled early Heart-Rot Poison, and Wu Qian concluded the poison might already be spreading through the capital.

Lin Taichu secretly treated a section chief’s child and discovered that Zheng Xiuyuan had distributed poison disguised as insect repellent powder. He gained evidence and support for exposing Zheng, but Zheng confronted and threatened him at the Imperial Hospital.

• Lin Taichu arranged through Wu Qian to visit the sick child privately, despite the need for Zheng Xiuyuan’s approval to treat an official’s family member.
• Lin Taichu diagnosed the child with early-stage Heart-Rot Poison and treated him with an antidote and silver needles.
• Lin Taichu showed the section chief the black powder, and the section chief recognized it as the insect repellent powder Zheng Xiuyuan had distributed.
• Lin Taichu explained Zheng Xiuyuan’s poisoning scheme, and the section chief agreed to gather other recipients and supplied a receipt bearing Zheng’s signature and the Imperial Hospital’s seal.
• Zheng Xiuyuan confronted Lin Taichu at the Imperial Hospital, accused him of meddling, and threatened to end his medical career.
• Lin Taichu stood his ground and warned that poisoned households would expose Zheng Xiuyuan, who left after threatening him again.

Lin Taichu and Wu Qian used an audit to search Zheng Xiuyuan’s hidden storeroom for evidence of poison-making, but Zhang Qi and Zheng blocked their questions about suspicious records. The audit uncovered a concealed cellar that appeared empty, leaving Lin Taichu with doubts but no proof.

• Wu Qian told Lin Taichu that children in three households had developed symptoms linked to Zheng Xiuyuan’s Insect Repellent Powder, and that the families would testify against him.
• Lin Taichu proposed auditing the Imperial Pharmacy’s accounts to gain access to its hidden storeroom, and Wu Qian secured signatures from five senior Imperial Physicians.
• Zheng Xiuyuan agreed to the audit on the condition that Zhang Qi accompany them, and Lin Taichu noticed a locked room with no recorded medicinal use.
• Lin Taichu uncovered a cellar beneath discarded herbs, but his inspection found only dust and broken jars, and Zhang Qi quickly covered the entrance again.
• Lin Taichu found records for aconite and cinnabar that did not match their stated uses, but Zhang Qi and Zheng Xiuyuan produced explanations that the senior Imperial Physicians accepted.

Lin Taichu and Wu Qian uncovered a hidden cache of poisons and Zheng Xiuyuan’s signed refining notes in the Imperial Hospital warehouse. They escaped with the evidence, but Lin Taichu decided they still needed to make Zheng Xiuyuan confess before the Emperor.

• Lin Taichu suspected the warehouse cellar concealed evidence and arranged to borrow the room beside it so he could investigate.
• Lin Taichu found a hollow section of wall, and he and Wu Qian used it to enter the cellar at night.
• Lin Taichu discovered three poisonous substances and a booklet titled “Qianji Yin Refining Notes,” bearing Zheng Xiuyuan’s signature and seal.
• Zhang Qi arrived with guards, but Lin Taichu and Wu Qian hid their search and left the warehouse with the evidence.
• Wu Qian called the notes irrefutable, while Lin Taichu said they needed to make Zheng Xiuyuan confess before the Emperor.

Zheng Xiuyuan attacked Lin Taichu, Wu Qian, and Wang Xiaohu to seize the evidence against him, but Zhao Feng rescued them and led them out of the palace. At a ruined temple, Zhao Feng revealed his history with Zheng Xiuyuan, and the group realized they would soon be branded imperial fugitives.

• Zheng Xiuyuan stormed the lounge with palace fighters and ordered them to kill Lin Taichu and the others for the notebook and poison.
• Lin Taichu used the semi-finished Qianji Yin to poison an attacker, while Wang Xiaohu and Wu Qian were injured defending him.
• Zhao Feng burst in, defeated Zheng Xiuyuan's fighters, and forced Zheng Xiuyuan and his men to retreat.
• Zhao Feng carried the injured Wang Xiaohu as Lin Taichu helped Wu Qian escape with him to a ruined temple outside the city.
• Zhao Feng told Lin Taichu and the others that Zheng Xiuyuan had framed him ten years earlier and that he had secretly investigated Zheng's crimes.
• Lin Taichu and Zhao Feng warned that Zheng Xiuyuan would use his influence to frame them and send government troops after them.

Lin Taichu and Zhao Feng tried to send evidence of Zheng Xiuyuan’s crimes to Manager Li, but soldiers raided the inn and captured the innkeeper. Lin Taichu decided to return to the city to rescue him and recover the evidence, and Wu Qian insisted on going with him.

• Zhao Feng gave Lin Taichu a jade pendant and planned to accompany him to contact Manager Li through the Yue Lai Inn.
• Lin Taichu gave the innkeeper Zheng Xiuyuan’s poison-making notes and a bottle of poison to pass to Manager Li, but soldiers led by Zhang Qi surrounded the inn.
• Zhao Feng and Lin Taichu escaped through a dog hole and returned to the ruined temple, where Lin Taichu suspected the innkeeper had hidden the evidence.
• Lin Taichu proposed sneaking back into the city to rescue the innkeeper, while Zhao Feng agreed to set fire to Zheng Xiuyuan’s residence to draw soldiers away.
• Lin Taichu prepared to go to the prison, and Wu Qian refused to stay behind, choosing to accompany him.

Lin Taichu and Wu Qian rescued the steward and her evidence from prison, but Zhang Qi’s men cornered Lin at the city gate. Imperial Guards arrived to arrest Zhang Qi’s men, and the king revealed that he had used Lin’s conflict with Zheng Xiuyuan to gather evidence before moving against him.

• Lin Taichu and Wu Qian infiltrated the prison after Zhao Feng’s fire alarm drew guards away, then rescued the steward and recovered her evidence.
• Zhang Qi and his fighters blocked the escape route, so Lin gave Wu Qian the evidence and held them off while Wu and the steward fled through a drainage ditch.
• Zhang Qi defeated Lin and demanded the evidence, but Imperial Guards arrived and surrounded Zhang Qi’s men.
• The general told Lin that the king had long monitored Zheng Xiuyuan and had let Lin’s investigation draw out evidence of his crimes and allies.
• Manager Li escorted Lin to the palace, where the king explained that Zheng’s lawlessness had finally given him grounds to act.

Lin Taichu learned that the King had orchestrated Zheng Xiuyuan’s downfall and received permission to leave the Imperial Hospital and return to the Healing Immortal Medical Hall. Back in Qinghe Town, he found the medical hall thriving and resumed treating patients.

• The King told Lin Taichu that the evidence against Zheng Xiuyuan would destroy his influence, then agreed to let Lin return to the Healing Immortal Medical Hall.
• Lin met Wu Qian and Wang Xiaohu at the Imperial Hospital; Wang returned with Lin, while Wu stayed to remove Zheng Xiuyuan’s allies.
• Lin and Wang left the capital and returned to Qinghe Town, where the Healing Immortal Medical Hall’s elders welcomed Lin and told him they had opened a successful branch.
• Lin declined an official position and chose to continue practicing medicine at the hall.
• The next morning, Lin saw patients as townspeople crowded into the consultation room to greet him and seek treatment.

After the capital cases were settled, Lin Taichu planned to practice medicine in Qinghe Town, but a plague in the Prefectural City drew him into a new crisis. He identified the illness as a miasma plague and began treating patients, leaving the outbreak’s outcome uncertain.

• Zhao Feng visited Lin Taichu, reported that Zheng Xiuyuan had been sentenced to death and Su Mingyuan exiled, then set off to help people elsewhere.
• A Prefect’s messenger asked Lin Taichu to come to the Prefectural City, where a plague had killed more than twenty people, and Lin Taichu agreed to go with Wang Xiaohu.
• On the journey, Lin Taichu suspected a contagious miasma plague and advised the Prefect to quarantine patients and disinfect the streets with mugwort.
• Lin Taichu arrived in the sealed city, examined patients at a ruined temple, and confirmed the plague was caused by miasma.
• Lin Taichu ordered licorice, Coptis Chinensis, Isatis Root, mugwort, and sulfur, then prepared medicinal soup and gave severely ill patients the soup and his Detoxification Pills.

Lin Taichu brought the plague under control, then rushed back to Qinghe Town after learning that masked attackers had wrecked the Healing Immortal Medical Hall and injured its elders. He discovered the attack was a threat tied to Zheng Xiuyuan's remaining followers, while the town rallied to help repair the hall.

• Lin Taichu treated the plague patients until most had stabilized, then left the remaining doctors instructions to continue treatment.
• An apprentice told Lin Taichu that Masked Men had attacked the medical hall, injured the elders, and threatened to burn it down if he did not return.
• Lin Taichu hurried to Qinghe Town with Wang Xiaohu, the apprentice, and several Soldiers, where he treated the elders and found a warning against investigating Zheng Xiuyuan's remaining followers.
• Lin Taichu stopped Wang Xiaohu from pursuing the attackers and organized repairs, while local merchants and townspeople helped restore the medical hall.

After the epidemic ended and the Healing Immortal Medical Hall recovered, Lin Taichu set out with Wang Xiaohu to travel west and improve his medical skills. They reached Rice Country, where Lin Taichu treated a child who had fainted from the heat.

• The emperor sent word that imperial guards would eliminate Zheng Xiuyuan's remaining followers, while Lin Taichu continued overseeing the medical hall and the epidemic response.
• A messenger reported that the epidemic was completely under control, and Lin Taichu declined a reward before telling the elders he wanted to travel and learn more medicine.
• The elders supported Lin Taichu's plan, and he agreed to let Wang Xiaohu accompany him on the journey west.
• After more than a month on the road, Lin Taichu and Wang Xiaohu entered Rice Country and rented rooms at an inn.
• The innkeeper asked Lin Taichu to treat a fainted child, and Lin Taichu revived him with Silver Needles and gave him heat-relieving medicine.

Lin Taichu continued treating the people of Rice Country and refused the City Lord’s demand to become his exclusive physician after learning the City Lord deliberately kept the population sick. The City Lord retaliated against the clinic, and Lin Taichu stopped Wang Xiaohu from confronting his men as they considered what to do next.

• Lin Taichu visited a local clinic, exchanged medical knowledge with its old doctor, and decided to stay in Rice Country to help its people.
• Lin Taichu treated patients at the clinic for half a month, attracting crowds from the capital and surrounding towns while improving the old doctor’s skills.
• The City Lord summoned Lin Taichu and offered him a generous salary to become his personal physician, but Lin Taichu refused and learned the City Lord wanted the people to remain sick and easier to control.
• Lin Taichu returned to the clinic and told Wang Xiaohu and the old doctor about the City Lord’s plans, then urged them to keep treating patients.
• The clinic’s medicinal herbs were stolen, and its apprentice was beaten; Lin Taichu stopped Wang Xiaohu from seeking revenge, suspecting the City Lord had sent the attackers.

Lin Taichu uncovered the poison causing Prince An’s daughter to lose consciousness and promised to cure her. He prepared to begin a three-day detoxification treatment with his Silver Needles.

• Lin Taichu used a sleeping potion to catch another herb thief, then brought the unconscious man to the City Lord’s Mansion, discouraging the City Lord from openly attacking him.
• Wang Xiaohu told Lin Taichu that Prince An’s daughter suffered mysterious daily bouts of unconsciousness, and Lin Taichu agreed to examine her.
• Lin Taichu and Wang Xiaohu traveled to Prince An’s residence, where Lin Taichu examined the Princess despite other doctors’ doubts.
• Lin Taichu found black traces beneath the Princess’s nails and discovered that her Phoenix Hairpin’s gemstone was coated with Sleepy Fragrance Poison.
• Lin Taichu proved the gemstone was poisoned with his testing powder and told Prince An that he could cure his daughter in three days.
• Lin Taichu took out his Silver Needles and told the maid to roll up the Princess’s sleeves so he could begin treatment.

Lin Taichu cured Prince An’s daughter and won Prince An’s support for improving medical care in the capital. When the City Lord tried to arrest him as a spy, the king’s envoy arrived to summon him to treat the Empress Dowager.

• Lin Taichu treated the Princess with acupuncture and medicine, and Prince An kept him at the residence to monitor her recovery.
• Lin Taichu told Prince An about the City Lord’s attempts to obstruct him, and Prince An promised to report the City Lord to the king.
• The Princess recovered enough to walk, and Lin Taichu declined Prince An’s gold, asking instead for better medical care; Prince An agreed to build a clinic and hire him as a consultant.
• The City Lord arrived with Soldiers, accused Lin Taichu of spying, and ordered his men to seize him, but Prince An’s Guards stood in their way.
• The king’s envoy summoned Lin Taichu to the palace to treat the Empress Dowager, leaving the City Lord powerless as Lin Taichu departed.