Min, who had heard Jian Ruonan's thoughts from beginning to end: "..."
Nan Nan's train of thought really was a roller coaster.
Thankfully, Nannan hadn't actually wanted to lick him.
She still had some boundaries.
Min felt utterly exhausted.
After learning the whole story, Dantai Mo pointed at the Ibuprofen and asked, "What medicine is this?"
Dantai Mo considered himself well-informed, yet this was his first time seeing medicine the size of a fingernail.
Jian Ruonan said quietly, "A secret formula passed down by my teacher. I can't disclose it."
You wouldn't know it even if I told you.
Dantai Mo asked, "May I ask who your teacher is, miss?"
Jian Ruonan replied, "My teacher won't let me say."
Dantai Mo: "..."
"It will take effect in just an hour?"
In an hour, a medicinal decoction wouldn't even be ready, yet this tiny pill could already take effect?
Jian Ruonan replied, "Yes."
Everyone present was astonished. Jian Ruonan looked young and shy, not like someone telling a lie.
Did Great Xia really have such a mysterious master?!
Madam Wang volunteered, "Enough, stop arguing. I'll try it. You've been debating for nearly an hour already."
Madam Song tried to stop her. "Please be cautious, Sister Wang. This pill looks rather strange. I've heard some pills won't kill you, but they can make you wish you were dead."
"Wasn't it Madam Cao who asked me to examine the general's wife?" Jian Ruonan blinked, a touch of childlike innocence in her eyes. "Now that I've examined her, you won't let her take the medicine. How strange you are, Madam Cao."
Madam Song's husband was surnamed Cao and served as a censor at court.
Dantai Mo was extremely curious about the pill's effectiveness. He immediately ordered the eunuchs behind him, "Someone throw this hypocritical woman out."
Two eunuchs seized Madam Song by the arms and threw her out of the reception hall in full view of everyone.
Madam Song: ??
Jian Ruonan couldn't tear her eyes away.
The fourth prince is so handsome and so badass!
The more I look at such a straightforward hottie, the more I love him!
Boohoo, even his voice sounds lovely. Why did he have to fall off his horse?! Why?!!
Heaven is so unfair!
Min: "..."
They had only just met, and her love was already this intense?
Forget it. I might as well lie flat. Hotties are just there to be admired.
Min: *...*
Wasn't she giving up a little too quickly?!
Consort Yan was an expert in palace intrigue. Having absorbed her influence since childhood, Dantai Mo saw through Madam Song's petty tricks at a glance.
Ever since his fall from his horse, he had become increasingly willful and ruthless, sparing no one's dignity. The emperor indulged him, too, granting him a rich fief at an early age.
Though Dantai Mo was young, he already had a reputation for brutality.
No one dared casually criticize his actions.
After Madam Song was dragged out, silence fell over the reception hall.
Everyone turned their attention back to the pill in Jian Ruonan's hand.
Was Madam Song a professional contrarian in her past life? All she does is stir up trouble. No wonder Dad didn't fancy her! If a home-wrecker like her married into the Jinyang Marquis's Residence, the whole household would be finished!
Actually, the Jinyang Marquis's Residence is pretty much finished anyway. Boohoo, my life as a marquis's legitimate daughter has only just begun...
Min: "..."
Why did she have to blurt out such blunt truths?
What juicy scandal was there about Censor Cao, anyway? Nan Nan, you still hadn't told her!
Why don't we get Dad to pick us up? Let Madam Song see how loving Mom and Dad are and seethe herself to death!!
Min thought, Now that's an idea.
She immediately instructed a serving woman to send someone to ask Jian Zhang to pick them up later.
Meanwhile, the general's wife was wonderfully decisive. She took the pill straight from Jian Ruonan's hand and swallowed it with tea.
Madam Wang said, "One pill won't kill me!"
Jian Ruonan said, "Your headache should ease within an hour. I'll give you two more. If it still hurts, take another pill four hours later. If it doesn't, don't bother. Save them for your next headache."
Everyone then stayed in the reception hall, waiting to see the result.
Since there were quite a few female guests, the Duke's Madam had a screen set up in the reception hall to separate the men from the women.
Dantai Mo waited quietly on the men's side, while the Black Tortoise System kept chattering. Your Highness, when you were speaking to Fifth Miss just now, I sensed a great deal of lamp oil on her.
Dantai Mo: "..."
The Black Tortoise System grew so excited that it crackled with electrical static. Your Highness, quick, go steal! Lamp! Oil!!
Dantai Mo: ... Useless.
Could you be a little more refined and less vulgar? What was all this talk of stealing?!
The Black Tortoise System said, Your Highness, could you interact with Fifth Miss a little longer? Give me a chance to establish a lamp-oil borrowing channel.
Dantai Mo asked, ... How?
The Black Tortoise System replied, Just talk to her.
As long as he didn't have to do the stealing himself, Dantai Mo could grudgingly accept it.
He approached Jian Ruonan. "May I ask, Fifth Miss, does this medicine only treat headaches?"
Jian Ruonan replied, "It treats all kinds of pain-headaches, back pain, joint pain, toothaches. It also treats fevers."
Dantai Mo: !!
Such a tiny pill had such miraculous effects?!
Could this be the legendary miracle medicine?!
It was easy to take and convenient to carry. If used in the army, who knew how many wounded soldiers it could treat!
After all, many soldiers died every year because the army lacked doctors and medicine.
Dantai Mo had genuinely developed an immense interest in this medicine. If it truly worked wonders, he wanted to use it for his elite troops. "Fifth Miss, may I ask whether this medicine can be purchased in bulk? Money is no object."
At the mention of money, Jian Ruonan's eyes lit up, but this medicine really couldn't be mass-produced.
She sighed. "Making this medicine depends entirely on luck."
More precisely, it depended entirely on the luck of the draw.
Dantai Mo: ??
This was the first time he had heard of making medicine depending solely on luck. Truly unfathomable!
Men and women had to observe propriety, so they couldn't talk for long. After exchanging a few brief remarks, they returned to their respective places.
Back in the men's seating area, the fourth prince excused himself on the grounds of feeling unwell and went to rest in a side room.
Once the door was shut, Dantai Mo dismissed the servants and immediately spoke to the system. I felt sensation in my thighs just now.
The Black Tortoise System replied, !! My lamp oil replenished a little, too!!
When Your Highness was talking to the Fifth Miss of the Jinyang Marquis's Residence, I felt a rush of lamp oil wash over me! Your Highness, spend more time with her. The day my lamp oil is full will be the day you recover.
Dantai Mo said, This must remain a secret.
The Black Tortoise System replied, Yes. As a high-tier system, it didn't want anyone knowing it was stealing energy from a little system, either.
Jian Ruonan sipped tea and ate pastries as she waited for Madam Wang's medicine to take effect.
The system said, Nannan, I feel like I'm running low on energy and might disconnect at any moment.
Jian Ruonan asked, Isn't that normal for a useless system?
The system replied, ... No, I'm usually full of energy!!
When the fourth prince was talking to you just now, I nearly crashed!
Jian Ruonan said, ?? There's something strange about that fourth prince. For your safety, let's stop trying to win him over.
The system: *...* She was so clever and quick-witted, so why was she so lazy?!
[Ding-] [Congratulations, host. The fourth prince's favorability has increased. Points +10.]
Jian Ruonan: ??
[Ding-] [Congratulations, host. The fourth prince's curiosity has increased. Points +20.]
Jian Ruonan: ??
Her debt was paid off in an instant.
Are you sure my mission is to win over the fourth prince?
The system: ??
Jian Ruonan asked, Why do I feel like the fourth prince is here to win me over?
The fourth prince had approached her himself. They had exchanged only a couple of remarks, and the points came pouring in.
The system: *...* That did seem to make a tiny bit of sense.
Huh? No, that wasn't right. The system interface clearly stated that Nannan's mission was to win over the fourth prince!!
The host had started hoodwinking the system just so she could slack off!
Jian Ruonan thought, Hehe, I can slack off and earn points at the same time. The system's so useless today that it's almost cute.
The system: *...*
Before you continue