Chapter Summaries

Chen Yi arranged to expand the pharmacy business and continued learning medicine at Jishi Pharmacy, while Xiao Wan'er heard him settling into his new role. Elsewhere, Liu Lang accepted a job to intercept a Xiao Family shipment escorted by Shen Huatang and hoped to challenge Xiao Jinghong afterward.

• Chen Yi instructed Wang Ji to relocate and expand the medicinal-herb shop, use the recovered Silver Coins as capital, and keep the Medicine Hall's affairs secret.
• Chen Yi reassured the staff at Jishi Pharmacy that the embezzled Silver Coins would be returned, then spent the afternoon studying diagnoses and acupuncture.
• Chen Yi returned to Chunhe Garden, joked with Xiao Wuge, and Xiao Wan'er felt relieved to hear him laughing next door.
• Liu Lang learned that he was to intercept a Xiao Family shipment guarded by Shen Huatang of the Tianshan Sect.
• Liu Lang accepted the assignment and said he wanted to challenge Xiao Jinghong afterward.

As rain raised the Chishui River, Chen Yi studied medicine at Jishi Pharmacy and began improving its prescriptions while Wang Ji prepared a new herb shop, Hundred Herbs Hall. He returned to the manor, where he learned Hua Tang was bringing medicinal herbs to the Prefectural City, though the turbulent river might delay her.

• Yang Ye inspected the rising Chishui River and ordered preparations for possible flooding, while Chen Yi paid the Yamen Runner's fee to clear East Market's drainage ditches.
• Chen Yi spent three days studying medicine at Jishi Pharmacy and advised Old Li to reduce the white peony root in a prescription to save patients money.
• Ge Laosan brought Xiao Wuge and Xiao Die to the pharmacy, and Chen Yi took Xiao Wuge back to the manor after showing him around.
• Chen Yi said Wang Ji's new medicinal herb shop would be called Hundred Herbs Hall, and Xiao Wuge told him that Sun Fu had been testing him on classics and histories.
• Xiao Wan'er told Chen Yi that Hua Tang had joined an Escort Agency party carrying medicinal herbs toward the Prefectural City and might be delayed by the turbulent Chishui River.

Chen Yi advanced to the Eighth Rank Realm after unblocking his Four Limb Meridians and forming True Essence. At midnight, his Daily Intelligence warned that Liu Lang would attack the Xiao Family convoy transporting medicinal herbs by the Chishui River.

• After dinner, Chen Yi noticed Xiao Wan'er's sickly pallor but left with Xiao Wuge without asking about her condition.
• Chen Yi practiced the Great Spear Stance Cultivation in the Purple Bamboo Grove and reached Four Elephant Strength, breaking bamboo with his fist.
• As he cultivated, Chen Yi drew Heaven and Earth Spirit Qi into his Qi Seas, formed True Essence, and broke through to the Eighth Rank, Lower Stage.
• Chen Yi tested his new strength and produced fist wind that snapped four Purple Bamboo stalks, then continued practicing his techniques.
• At midnight, Chen Yi received intelligence that Blade Maniac Liu Lang would assault the Xiao Family medicinal-herb convoy by the Chishui River, and he recognized Liu Lang's name.

Liu Lang and members of the Phantom Sound Sect attacked an Xuanwei Escort Agency convoy carrying Xiao Family medicinal herbs near Shu Prefecture, killing the escorts and taking the cargo while Shen Huatang fought Liu Lang away from the station. Chen Yi learned of the massacre through a Fortune notice and, sensing the figure in Jiaxing Garden, realized trouble was approaching.

• Shen Huatang discovered that the Xuanwei Escort Agency night watch had vanished and warned Chief Escort Li that she smelled blood.
• Liu Lang identified himself as the Blade Maniac and fought Shen Huatang, who drew him away from the post station.
• Phantom Sound Sect flute music drove the escorts to attack one another, and the ambushers killed the survivors and stole the medicinal herbs and horses.
• Chen Yi received a Fortune notice reporting that Liu Lang and the Phantom Sound Sect had slaughtered the escort convoy.
• Chen Yi headed toward the Wooden Tower, then saw a figure in a white cloak near Jiaxing Garden and sensed danger approaching.

Chen Yi considered who had orchestrated the robbery of the Xiao Family’s Medicinal Herbs while Xiao Wan'er remained unaware of the loss. Shen Huatang arrived at Jiaxing Garden and revealed that the herbs had been robbed, ending Xiao Wan'er's hopeful morning.

• Xiao Die prepared breakfast early, but Chen Yi had already gotten up and eaten before she could serve him.
• Chen Yi weighed the possible motives behind the herb robbery and rejected the idea that the Hidden Guard was responsible, deciding to wait for more evidence.
• Chen Yi took Xiao Wuge to Jiaxing Garden, where Xiao Wan'er instructed her servants on how to store the incoming herbs.
• Xiao Wan'er advised Chen Yi about managing a Medicine Hall while he concealed his concern that she had not heard about the robbery.
• Shen Huatang arrived in bloodstained robes and told Xiao Wan'er that the Medicinal Herbs had been robbed.

After the Xiao Family’s medicinal herbs were stolen and its escort guards killed, Chen Yi considered the threats gathering around the family while staying out of its internal meeting. Old Master Xiao organized an investigation and reassured Xiao Wan'er and Xiao Wuge that Shuzhou would remain stable.

• Shen Huatang told Xiao Wan'er that Liu Lang and Phantom Sound Sect members had robbed the medicinal herbs and that Liu Lang planned to challenge Xiao Jinghong.
• Chen Yi urged Xiao Wan'er to inform Old Master Xiao and Madam, then sent Xiao Wuge to listen to the family meeting.
• Chen Yi hosted Duke of Gan Zhang Xuan and Sun Fu in Chunhe Garden, where Sun Fu asked for his judgment of the Xiao Family’s situation.
• Old Master Xiao ordered Xiao Wang to investigate through the Disciplinary Hall, Xiao Shen to enlist the Prefectural Yamen, and Xiao Xuanshuo to handle visitors to the residence.
• Xiao Wuge repeated Chen Yi’s saying that abnormal events pointed to a hidden culprit, and Old Master Xiao told him and Xiao Wan'er to carry on as usual.

Chen Yi learned how the Xiao Family was responding to the robbery of its medicinal herbs and discussed the strange incident with Xiao Wan'er. He wrote a poem in a letter to Xiao Jinghong, leaving their reunion and the mystery behind the robbery unresolved.

• Duke Zhang reminded Chen Yi of his promise to provide calligraphy for a birthday banquet, while Sun Fu asked for more calligraphic works and said he planned to travel to Jinling.
• Xiao Wuge told Chen Yi how the Xiao Family had arranged to investigate the stolen herbs, and Chen Yi assessed the roles of the family members involved.
• Shen Huatang confirmed that the Blade Maniac had challenged Xiao Wan'er, and she said Xiao Wan'er could kill him.
• Xiao Wan'er told the Medicine Hall shopkeepers to count their stocks and report them every half month, then asked Chen Yi to write to Xiao Jinghong.
• Xiao Wan'er and Shen Huatang discussed the suspicious robbery, but Chen Yi concealed his suspicions.
• Chen Yi wrote Xiao Jinghong the poem “Thoughts on a Summer Night” for his letter to her.

Chen Yi continued investigating the stolen herbs while preparing Hundred Herbs Hall to open, and a rival medicine shop appeared beside the Xiao Family’s halls. In Wumeng Mountain, Xiao Jinghong received Chen Yi’s letters and planned to leave the next day to choose a location.

• Rumors about the Xiao Family’s stolen herbs spread, while Chen Yi concluded that someone in Shuzhou had helped the thieves and waited for the investigation to develop.
• Chen Yi advanced his medical skills and prepared new prescriptions as Wang Ji and Yan Hai arranged Hundred Herbs Hall and secured distribution agreements with many medicine halls.
• Chen Yi sent pastries and gifts to the newly opened Linglan Pavilion, then learned that it had opened beside all five of the Xiao Family’s medicine halls.
• Xiao Wan'er worried about the missing herbs and Linglan Pavilion’s arrival, while privately wishing Xiao Jinghong were home.
• At a gathering in Wumeng Mountain, Xiao Jinghong told Pei Guanli to have Granny Shan arrange the people for a trip to choose a location the next day, then reread Chen Yi’s letters and smiled shyly.

Chen Yi let Jishi Pharmacy’s business collapse without reacting, then took time off and met Wang Ji to discuss Linglan Pavilion’s origins and give him prescriptions for Hundred Herbs Hall. The chapter ended with Chen Yi warning Wang Ji to hire powerful Jianghu guests once the new hall gained momentum, leaving Wang Ji worried that someone might target him.

• Linglan Pavilion drew most nearby patients away from Jishi Pharmacy, and Liu Quan urged Chen Yi to take action as the pharmacy’s income plunged.
• Chen Yi asked whether Liu Quan and the others had handed their previous earnings to Wang Ji, then told them to keep working and wait.
• After only three patients visited that morning, Chen Yi said he would rest for several days and left the medicine hall; his staff complained that he took ten days off each month.
• Qian Kuan recorded Linglan Pavilion’s success and Jishi Pharmacy’s decline, noting that Chen Yi remained courteous throughout.
• Chen Yi met Wang Ji near Black Pond and learned that Linglan Pavilion came from Jingzhou, with an introduction from a Provincial Administration councilor.
• Chen Yi gave Wang Ji prescriptions for Hundred Herbs Hall and advised him to hire Jianghu guests with profound Cultivation Bases once the hall prospered.

Chen Yi prepared for Li Huaigu’s wedding while spending the day with Xiao Wuge and the elders, as Xiao Wan'er investigated the falling business at Jishi Pharmacy. After cultivating, Chen Yi learned Li Huaigu would marry Yunxiang the next day and worried that Guiyun Academy’s teachers would demand his Calligraphy Copybook.

• Chen Yi returned home early, and Liu Si'er told Uncle Gui that the Harrier Eagle's plan was still proceeding.
• Chen Yi joined Xiao Wuge, Sun Fu, and Zhang Xuan in Chunhe Garden, where Sun Fu explained that his history lessons were meant to prepare Xiao Wuge for becoming a Hostage in Jinling.
• Xiao Wan'er noticed Jishi Pharmacy's income had fallen and sent Shen Huatang to have the Second Steward prepare medicinal herbs while she considered whether Linglan Pavilion was involved.
• Chen Yi prepared a Calligraphy Copybook and an inkstone for Li Huaigu's wedding, then invited Xiao Die to attend with him and asked Xiao Wuge to keep Xiao Wan'er company.
• Chen Yi cultivated the Mysterious Turtle Breath Concealment Art until midnight and learned that Li Huaigu would marry Yunxiang the next day.

Chen Yunfan woke early to serve as best man at Li Huaigu's wedding and wondered whether his father had sent him to Shuzhou as part of a plot. Chen Yi prepared to attend the wedding after checking in with Xiao Wan'er about Linglan Pavilion, while Liu Si'er hurried off after learning where they were going.

• Chunying woke Chen Yunfan and reminded him that he had promised to be Li Huaigu's best man.
• On the way to the wedding, Chen Yunfan told Chunying he suspected his father had a hidden purpose for sending him to Shuzhou and pressed her about her own assignment.
• Chen Yi dressed up for Li Huaigu's wedding, then told Xiao Wan'er that Linglan Pavilion's business appeared normal apart from a shortage of silver.
• Xiao Wan'er blushed after Chen Yi understood that she was asking about Linglan Pavilion, then sent Xiao Wuge to make up his missed lessons.
• Chen Yi told Liu Si'er they were going to Luoyi Lane for Li Huaigu's wedding, and Liu Si'er abruptly ran back, worried that Uncle Gui had already gone too far.

Chen Yi joined Li Huaigu’s wedding procession and unexpectedly reunited with his elder brother, Chen Yunfan. The brothers traded barbs while appearing close, then hurried off together after Right Envoy Yang overheard them.

• Chen Yi recalled the contemptuous voice from the day he fled his marriage and wondered whether its owner knew he was alive.
• Chen Yi and Xiao Die watched Li Huaigu’s wedding procession and followed it toward Luoyi Lane.
• Chen Yunfan left his horse to greet Chen Yi, and the brothers exchanged pointed jokes about Chunyu Tower and their achievements.
• Chen Yunfan revealed that the Emperor had asked whether he wanted to be Zhuangyuan, and he had answered no before becoming Zhuangyuan anyway.
• Right Envoy Yang overheard the brothers and told them to continue, so Chen Yi and Chen Yunfan bowed and hurried away together.
• Chen Yunfan explained that Yang Ye had accepted Li Huaigu’s wife as his adopted daughter.

At Li Huaigu and Yunxiang’s wedding, Chen Yi and Xiao Die encountered gossiping scholars, and Mr. Yue Ming made them apologize and copy Guiyun Academy’s precepts a thousand times. Yue Ming then invited Chen Yi to teach calligraphy at the academy, but Chen Yi put off answering; the chapter ends with Yue Ming opening Chen Yi’s wedding gift, a glowing Calligraphy Copybook.

• Li Huaigu and Yunxiang completed their wedding bows and were escorted to the bridal chamber as Chen Yi and Xiao Die watched.
• Several scholars whispered that Chen Yi had forcibly taken Yunxiang, but Mr. Yue Ming rebuked them and ordered them to apologize to Chen Yi.
• Chen Yi accepted Xiao Die’s suggestion that the two students copy Guiyun Academy’s precepts a thousand times, and Mr. Yue Ming confirmed the punishment.
• Mr. Yue Ming invited Chen Yi to teach calligraphy at Guiyun Academy and said he had already written to Chen Yi’s teacher, Ju Yi; Chen Yi deferred his decision.
• Mr. Yue Ming opened Chen Yi’s wedding gift and found a glowing Calligraphy Copybook.

At Li Huaigu and Yunxiang’s wedding, Chen Yi’s calligraphy and poem drew criticism before Mr. Yue Ming defended him and renewed his invitation to Guiyun Academy. Chen Yunfan later warned Chen Yi not to interfere in the Xiao Family’s affairs, while Chunying revealed that the White Tiger Guard had also warned him about Chen Yi.

• Guests admired Chen Yi’s Running Script but criticized his poem, and Mr. Yue Ming explained that it was meant to advise Li Huaigu before defending Chen Yi’s gesture.
• After Li Huaigu and Yunxiang completed their wedding rites, Mr. Yue Ming urged Chen Yi to consider joining Guiyun Academy, but Chen Yi gave no answer.
• The Light Screen rewarded Chen Yi for witnessing the wedding and criticized him for lacking ambition, so he shut it off and prepared to leave with Xiao Die.
• Chen Yunfan privately warned Chen Yi not to interfere in the Xiao Family’s affairs, but Chen Yi thanked him and left, believing he was already tied to the family.
• Chunying told Chen Yunfan that the White Tiger Guard might object to his warning and urged him to stay away from Chen Yi; Chen Yunfan threatened her and told her not to tarnish the name of the “White Robe Prime Minister.”

Chen Yi stayed home, cultivated his Chess Dao, and learned that the Xiao Family was facing financial and medicine-supply problems. The chapter left him reassuring Xiao Wuge that Xiao Wan'er would find a solution to the merchant’s refusal to supply herbs.

• Liu Si'er wondered why Chen Yi was not going to Jishi Pharmacy, while a figure watched from the Inverted Seat Room.
• Chen Yi overheard Xiao Wan'er tell Cui'er to pawn her jewelry to cover the residence’s shortfall in funds.
• Chen Yi practiced chess and advanced his Chess Dao to minor accomplishment.
• Xiao Wuge told Chen Yi that a merchant had refused to supply the Xiao Family with medicinal herbs after someone offered to buy the merchant’s entire stock.
• Chen Yi comforted Xiao Wuge and said Xiao Wan'er would find a way to resolve the supply problem.

Xiao Wan'er reviewed Jishi Pharmacy's mounting troubles while Chen Yi quietly considered the new Hundred Herbs Hall and Linglan Pavilion. After she learned that Jishi Pharmacy had earned only two taels the previous day, she blamed Chen Yi for neglecting his duties and left with the account books.

• Ten days after Li Huaigu's wedding, Shuzhou's officials shifted from flood prevention to diverting water as the heat intensified.
• Scholars and pleasure quarters spread Chen Yi's lyrics, and ten leading Qingguanren sent him an invitation to visit their establishments.
• Xiao Wan'er visited Chunhe Garden and heard that Wang Ji's Hundred Herbs Hall had opened, selling low-priced herbs and offering complimentary tea drinks.
• Chen Yi recognized that Wang Ji and Yan Hai had bought nearly twenty thousand taels' worth of herbs, while he continued to wait for Hundred Herbs Hall and Linglan Pavilion's plans to unfold.
• Juan'er reported that Jishi Pharmacy had earned only two taels the previous day, so Xiao Wan'er scolded Chen Yi and left with her attendants.

Chen Yi raised his Medical Dao to Great Accomplishment and decided the Xiao Family Medicine Hall’s problems could be overcome. The next day, he went to Hundred Herbs Hall and met Wang Ji privately to give him an assignment.

• Chen Yi used 200 Fortune to raise his Medical Dao to Great Accomplishment and absorbed its extensive medical knowledge.
• Chen Yi reassured Xiao Wuge that the residence’s troubles were only a hurdle, despite hearing that Xiao Wan'er had pawned her jewelry to cover the monthly allowance.
• Chen Yi set out the next morning, sent Xiao Wuge to Jiaxing Garden with Xiao Die, and redirected his carriage from the East Market to the West Market.
• Chen Yi visited Hundred Herbs Hall, where Wang Ji was working with Yan Hai, and summoned Wang Ji to the second floor for a private conversation.
• Chen Yi told Wang Ji that he had come to give him something to do.

Chen Yi expanded Hundred Herbs Hall’s business and continued preparing for the forces gathering in Shuzhou. At Jishi Pharmacy, he arrived as gang members threatened Liu Quan and spotted a man surrounded by an unusually dark aura.

• Wang Ji reported that Hundred Herbs Hall had earned a profit and received Chen Yi’s recipes for Strawberry Tea and Beauty Tea.
• Chen Yi urged Wang Ji to quickly find physicians to preside over the Xiao Family’s medicine hall, then left with bottles of Wang Ji Tea.
• On the carriage ride, Chen Yi considered Shuzhou a chessboard where someone was positioning pieces toward the momentum of a great dragon.
• Chen Yi directed Ge Laosan to take him to Jishi Pharmacy, where a gang was demanding the shopkeeper and threatening Liu Quan.
• Ge Laosan rushed in to confront the gang, but Chen Yi stopped him and noticed Pointy-Faced Little Man had a thick black aura.

Chen Yi exposed a scheme to disrupt Jishi Pharmacy, subdued the thugs, and sent them to the authorities. With his own shop empty, he decided to practice medicine by observing patients at Linglan Pavilion, leaving its shopkeeper puzzled by his behavior.

• Chen Yi recognized the Pointy-Faced Little Man's Collapse Syndrome and stopped Ge Laosan from attacking him, then knocked him unconscious with Meng Han Medicine.
• Ge Laosan defeated the strongman and his men, while Chen Yi suspected Uncle Gui and the Hidden Guards had arranged the disturbance.
• Chen Yi told Ge Laosan to report the thugs to the authorities, and Yamen Runners took them away after confirming they were already known troublemakers.
• Chen Yi compensated Liu Quan for being slapped, but Jishi Pharmacy remained empty after rumors spread about Chen Yi's demand for immediate executions.
• Chen Yi sat outside Jishi Pharmacy to assess patients entering Linglan Pavilion, confusing Qian Kuan when he challenged him for blocking a customer.

Chen Yi visited Linglan Pavilion’s clinics to improve his medical skills and uncovered their targeted competition against the Xiao Family’s medicine halls. After receiving Xiao Jinghong’s letter about the Mutual Market and an invitation to teach at Guiyun Academy, he was left considering her request while her return remained delayed.

• Chen Yi learned that the man Ge Laosan had nearly struck died from Collapse Syndrome, and Qian Kuan and Liu Si'er privately wondered whether Chen Yi had diagnosed him.
• Chen Yi visited four Linglan Pavilions across Shuzhou City, mastered the Four Diagnostic Methods, Qi Gazing Technique, and acupuncture, and recognized how Linglan Pavilion targeted the Xiao Family medicine halls.
• Duke of Gan Zhang Xuan departed for Guangyue Prefecture after giving Chen Yi one thousand taels' worth of Gold Notes for calligraphy copybooks.
• Xiao Wan'er told Chen Yi that former shopkeeper Wang Ji had brought famed physicians and old prescriptions and proposed cooperation between Hundred Herbs Hall and the Xiao Family medicine halls.
• Xiao Wan'er gave Chen Yi Xiao Jinghong's letter, which reported progress on the Mutual Market, delayed her return, and urged him to consider teaching at Guiyun Academy.