The Nine Heart Begonia Family Head Tests a Disciple

"The Nine Heart Begonia Family estate is ahead. If you seek treatment, turn left and go to the Nine Heart Prescription Hall. If you are here to visit, please present your visiting card!"

Looking at the guards blocking his way, Duan Qingya finally breathed a sigh of relief.

After all those twists and turns, he had finally found the Nine Heart Begonia Family!

He had initially assumed the Nine Heart Begonia Family was close to Heaven Dou City, only to learn upon arriving that their fief was nowhere near it.

With no other choice, Duan Qingya had found somewhere to hire a carriage and spent almost two days riding here.

"This is a Nine Heart Begonia Family Family Token. Please take it inside and inform the family of my arrival."

"Tell them a disciple of an old acquaintance has come expressly to visit!"

Unsure whether the Nine Heart Begonia Family head still remembered Boss Ling, Duan Qingya did not give his name right away.

Looking at the token in Duan Qingya's hand, the two guards exchanged a discreet signal, then hurried into a corner to confer in hushed voices.

"Big brother, that kid's Family Token looks fake. I've never seen one like it!"

Hearing his younger brother claim that Duan Qingya's token was fake, Liu Da smacked Liu Er on the head without another word.

"Idiot! I told you to memorize every design of our Family Tokens!"

"The token that kid has was carved when the previous family head was still alive. Of course it looks different from the new ones."

"Keep waiting here. I'll go ask the family head to verify it."

Having settled on a course of action, Liu Da returned to Duan Qingya and held out his left hand.

"Honored guest, I need to take this token to the family head for confirmation. Please wait here!"

Having used his spiritual power to overhear their conversation, Duan Qingya offered no further comment.

He placed the Family Token Boss Ling had given him into Liu Da's hand, then waved to indicate that he could go.

Once Liu Da left, only Duan Qingya and Liu Er remained at the gate.

Liu Er, who had only just been assigned to guard the gate, kept watching Duan Qingya out of the corner of his eye as he stood there.

"Excuse me, is there something dirty on my face?"

Just as Liu Er stole another glance at him, Duan Qingya stepped forward and asked him directly.

Faced with Duan Qingya's question, Liu Er pretended not to hear, straightened up, and continued staring ahead.

"Well? What did your family head say?"

At Duan Qingya's question, Liu Er, who was already struggling to contain himself, immediately turned to look inside the gate.

Only after looking around and finding no sign of his elder brother did Liu Er realize he had been tricked.

"So, your family's Pharmacy stocks a very comprehensive selection of Medicinal Herbs?"

"Yes. The family head said that even members of the Nine Heart Begonia Family who don't have healing Soul Skills must learn how to treat people with medicine."

"That's why our family's Nine Heart Prescription Hall stocks an even more comprehensive selection of herbs than the pharmacies in Heaven Dou City."

Unable to keep up his pretense, Liu Er began answering Duan Qingya's questions seriously, though these were not what interested Duan Qingya most.

"Do you have rare Medicinal Herbs too? Blue Wind Grass, for example?"

"Of course our family stocks Medicinal Herbs like Blue Wind Grass. If you're interested, young friend, you may come with me and take a look."

Before Liu Er could answer, Liu Da appeared before Duan Qingya with the Nine Heart Begonia Family head.

Looking at the middle-aged man before him, Duan Qingya felt the oppressive presence of a Titled Douluo so directly for the first time.

"Since you've extended the invitation, Senior, how could a junior like me refuse?"

Seeing Duan Qingya agree, Ye Han personally led him toward the Nine Heart Prescription Hall.

"Big brother, was that Family Token real?"

"Once you finish today's shift, get your backside back to the stables and feed the horses! If I hadn't been on duty with you today, you might have stirred up a world of trouble."

Seeing that Liu Er still had not caught on even now, Liu Da decided it was best to send him back to feeding horses.

Hearing that he could return to feeding horses, Liu Er immediately began dancing with delight.

"How has Ling Zhi's health been recovering?"

On the way to the Nine Heart Prescription Hall, once there were finally no outsiders present, Ye Han quietly asked about Ling Zhi's current condition.

Judging by Ye Han's reaction, Duan Qingya decisively chose to present himself as Boss Ling's disciple.

"Thank you for your concern, Senior. Master has been in good health lately. Apart from treating patients, he spends his days exercising and reading."

"Then did he say why he left without saying goodbye back then?"

"I clearly left him a token and a letter. My grandfather was critically ill, so I had no choice but to return. By the time I came back, he was already gone."

Finding that Ye Han's account differed from Boss Ling's, Duan Qingya first suspected that Ye Han was testing him, but his expression showed no trace of pretense.

"Master told me that when he woke up, he only found the Family Token. He didn't find any letter."

"How could that be? I clearly told Xiao He to put the letter and token together."

Hearing Duan Qingya say that Ling Zhi had not seen the letter, Ye Han's first reaction was disbelief.

He had written that letter himself. Had his subordinates not kept urging him to leave, he would certainly have handed everything to Ling Zhi in person.

But Ye Han, now the head of the Nine Heart Begonia Family, immediately realized that his letter had likely never been delivered to Ling Zhi's room.

"Heh, no wonder Xiao He died in the attack afterward. Once Xiao He was dead, by the time I returned, Ling Zhi, who had received only the token, would already have left with his heart turned to cold ashes!"

Ye Han had already harbored suspicions about what had happened back then, but without being able to find Ling Zhi or any evidence, he had not investigated further.

Standing beside him and piecing together roughly what had happened, Duan Qingya suddenly felt that he had waded into muddy waters.

An attack on the heir of the Nine Heart Begonia Family—regardless of whether outside forces had been involved, the family's own ranks were certainly not clean.

"Since Ling Zhi accepted you as his disciple, you must have outstanding talent in medicine-making, correct?"

When Ye Han suddenly asked him that question, Duan Qingya immediately realized that Ye Han wanted to bring him into his own faction.

"I wouldn't call it outstanding. I'm just passable!"

Naturally, Ye Han did not believe that Duan Qingya's talent for medicine-making was truly ordinary. As Ling Zhi's master, he knew better than anyone what kind of person Ling Zhi was.

"If you want to use the Nine Heart Begonia Family's influence to enter Heaven Dou Royal Academy, don't hide your talents later. The bigger a splash you make, the easier it will be for me to arrange things!"

Duan Qingya was not particularly surprised that Ye Han had seen through his goal. His intentions were so clear that it would have been strange if he had not.

"Family Head, what brings you here today?"

Seeing Ye Han arrive, the manager of the Nine Heart Prescription Hall stepped forward to welcome him personally without the slightest hesitation.

"Go make the preparations. I've just accepted a disciple today, and I intend to let everyone see his talent."

"W-what?"

Upon hearing that Ye Han had accepted a disciple, the manager of the Nine Heart Prescription Hall first wondered whether something was wrong with his ears.

Ever since that incident, Ye Han had shown no desire to take a disciple for over a decade. Even Ye Fanxing, the medicine-making prodigy currently enjoying such fame, had failed to catch his eye.

"What, have you been a manager so long that your ears have stopped working? Or do you need me to teach you what to do?"

"I wouldn't dare. I'll go make the preparations right away!"

Before leaving, the manager of the Nine Heart Prescription Hall glanced at Duan Qingya behind Ye Han. He had never seen that face before.

Apart from Duan Qingya's decent talent, the manager could find no other merits in him.

Hearing that Ye Han had accepted a disciple, everyone nearby turned their eyes in unison toward Duan Qingya behind him.

They all wanted to know how this child, who looked even younger than Ye Lingling, had managed to become Ye Han's disciple in a single day.