Princess, Spare My Life - Chapter 12

Chapter 12: Inside the Godly Medicinal Sect

After listening to his disciples’ report, the old man declined to comment and instead, he unenthusiastically stated, “Since that’s the case, then it is fine. If someone becomes sick, then the patient will simply come to our doors. You may leave now!”

“Yes!” The middle-aged doctor displayed polite and respectful courtesies before departing. 

When Yuan Zhen saw the middle-aged doctor’s mannerisms, salutations, and speech, she noticed that they were extremely formal. Those actions had similarities with the bearings of a prince consort. The old man sat beside the medicinal herb garden but did not move. A noble aura emanated from him and it didn’t seem as though he was a simple person at all.

While she was thinking about her misgivings, she suddenly became vigilant; her body hastily moved to the left.

Pssh—

The old man was still sitting beside the medicinal herb garden, and he didn’t even lift his head.

Yuan Shang inwardly said, “In the end, I always seem to have a case of bad luck. By chance, I ended up meeting with another expert. Is it just me or are experts in the Dayan dynasty a dime in a dozen? First, there is a servant who is a martial arts master, then I find a wife who is also a master. When I go out, I come across an expert assassin and now, even this old man I found after running away from home is also an expert!”

Yuan Shang knew that she couldn’t hide from him, so she stepped out from her hiding spot. Displaying etiquette Jianghu scholars, she cupped her fist and said, “I’m sorry for disturbing you!”

When the old man heard her voice, he finally turned to look at her. With a look of dissatisfaction, he stated, “Go back and tell your master, my Godly Medical Sect exists to treat the common folk of this world, not to act like imperial doctors who only give treatment to royalty! If I enter the imperial palace, my master would expel me from the sect!”

Yuan Shang was at a loss, but she also knew that the other party misunderstood her. She said, “Uncle, you have mistaken my intentions. I am simply a passerby.”

The old man said coldly, “A passerby? Why would a passerby trespass into someone else’s home? you pass Next time you try to lie, don’t forget to change your shoes. You are still wearing those gold-lined shoes that the royalty wear!”

Yuan Shang glanced down and sure enough, although her shoes were covered with mud, they still had a hint of golden silk. It was not because Yuan Shang was being careless since she was a very cautious person. It was just that her clothes, food, shelter, and transportation were all taken care of by her servants. A modern person like her couldn’t know all the trivial things in this era during the limited time she was here. Therefore, she simply didn’t know that only the royalty would wear these decorative shoes. 

Yuan Shang said, “I truly didn’t come to seek your assistance…”

“Don’t even think about looking for my master! My venerable master’s whereabouts are unclear even to me. Furthermore, it is even more impossible for him to enter the palace, so you should leave and tell His Majesty that we shall not comply!”

Yuan Shang bitterly laughed and explained, “I was poisoned and since I saw a lot of herbs here, I wanted to borrow some medicinal ingredients and nothing more.”

“Huh?” This time, the old man was astonished. He grabbed some mud and stood, stepping forward towards her. Unlike a normal old man, he was strong and healthy. He carefully scanned her and said, “What?” Hold her wrist, he diagnosed her pulse. When he reached out, he moved at the speed of lightning, and even Yuan Shang, who had always been on her guard, did not react in time as he firmly gripped her hand.

“Oh…how curious, how curious! Judging by this pulse, it is like the Thousand Jade Pagoda’s ‘Fragrance of an Incense Stick’. However, you have been poisoned by this for a long time, yet you are still not coma…good heavens! It is rather baffling!”

Yuan Shang watched as he stroked his beard while rambling about how strange her situation was. She did not know how long he would inspect her, but she couldn’t wait much longer since it might become too late to cure the poison. Therefore, she interrupted, “Uncle, may you please allow me to take some medicinal ingredients? Could I cure the poison first?”

The old man snapped back to reality and said, “It was this old man’s oversight! What medicinal ingredients do you require?”

After Yuan Shang listed the names of several herbs, the old man’s eyes brightened. “So you could actually use those medicinal ingredients in this way? That’s genius! Absolutely genius! Who was the one who came up with this prescription?”

Yuan Shang said, “I was the one who thought of it! Uncle, let me take some medicine first, and then you slowly study it afterward.”

The old man patted his forehead. “Dear me, I accidentally forgot about everything as soon as I heard about the prescription! Come with me!”

The old man took her to a large room in the rear court and opened the door. Yuan Shang observed her surroundings and saw the whole room was like a huge Chinese medicine shop, filled with thousands of medicinal herbs and ingredients.

The old man took her to a large room in the rear court and opened the door. Yuan Shang observed her surroundings and saw the whole room was like a huge Chinese medicine shop, filled with thousands of medicinal herbs and ingredients.

The old man walked to the end of the room, stopped in front of an incense table, and turned it. Immediately, some mechanisms from underfoot started to make some noise, alarming Yuan Shang to the point that she jumped in surprise. Staring at the old man, she noticed the old man was laughing out loud. He said, “This young lady is quite timid!”

The incense table slowly moved away, gradually revealing a secret entrance to a passage.

Yuan Shang’s eyes widened. “How do you know that I am a woman?”

The old man laughed even more happily and said, “Give this old man a pulse and everything becomes clear. How could I be fooled? Young lady, what is your name?”

Yuan Shang replied, “My name is Yuan Shang, number thirteen.”

The old man caressed his beard, and after pondering deeply, he said, “Yuan Shang… Oh, this name is quite good… Shang means ‘death’ and Yuan means ‘beginning’. After entering Nirvana, one could become reborn. I will keep your secret and call you ‘Shang’er’. In return, you can call me Grandpa Chen San!”

“Yes, Grandpa San!” On the outside, Yuan Shang had willingly accepted the old man’s suggestion, but in fact, she had no feelings of respect towards the old man. Big Sis Yu Ling had once said that when the situation was unfavorable, it was necessary to lower her head and endure the situation silently. Back then, Big Sis Yu Ling also had to go down on her knees to that bastard, Gu Chuan. Therefore, Yuan Shang had imitated her mannerisms. She lowered herself in front of the princess, remained quiet in front of the princess’s maid, and even had to patiently bear with this eccentric and expert martial artist.

In her mind, Yuan Shang knew that her name did not refer to the meanings that Chen San had referred to. The original meaning of her name meant that once she stepped into the world of professional killers, she was destined to die from the start. In fact, she died before she reached thirty-years-old, which was a testament to the true meaning of her name.

“Shang’er, let’s move on!”

At this moment, the passageway completely opened, revealing a stone staircase. As Yuan Shang walked down the staircase, what she saw below her was similar to an ordinary study. However, instead of bookshelves, there were medicine cabinets.

Here, the old man found out the medicinal ingredients that Yuan Shang asked for and said, “Did you want to check to see if this was what you wanted?” Yuan Shang took the medicine and placed it under her nose, smelling it. Then, she replied, “Yes!” After the old man found the medicinal ingredients she needed, he returned to the courtyard and ordered a boy to go to decoct the medicine immediately.

Yuan Shang stopped the boy and asked him to tell her where she could take the medicinal ingredients to make a pill for herself.

Once the old man heard about her method of decocting, his eyes brightened. “You can do that? Make the medicinal powder into a pill? Why didn’t I think of it before? Powdering those herbs can create a medicinal powder, but how can I turn medicinal powder into pills…”