Chapter 495 Hou Family’s Kindness

Lin Mengya glanced at the stage, surprised that these four men had the guts to plot harm against the members of the royal family.

Zuo Qiuchen had long cultivated himself to be a composed person, unlike the temperamental commoners. He had completely calmed down after getting all worked up just a moment ago.

“Back then, they colluded with Prince Qing in an attempt to poison us out of their greed for power. When we’d taken in the poison, Qiuyu’s master made himself the guinea pig to try out the poison in order to find the antidote. For this reason, Qiuyu’s master was plagued with illnesses all over. All the more, due to his frailty, he finally succumbed to the poison and died. From then on, Qiuyu started traveling the world in search of the eldest princess.

There was a deep implication for Zuo Qiuyu taking notice of Lin Mengya.

She finally understood why Zuo Qiuyu had tried to draw close to her back in the palace.

“So Cousin Yu will try to stop them from taking the position of the Chief Elder at all cost. Am I right?”

Zuo Qiuchen nodded as he turned to look at those complacent old bastards.

“That’s right. If they were to take over the position of the Chief Elder, there would not be a moment peace in the future.”

Zuo Qiuchen’s tone of voice turned severe because, at this moment, he was no longer in the mood of humoring anyone.

While there was corruption in the Pavilion of Herbs, it was after all a well-established and vigorously developing organization. It would not be so easily stirred or moved.

If they had the audacity to poison the princess a decade ago, would they not dare to kill the emperor after a decade now?

“I get it now. You rest assured now.”

Back in Dajin, Lin Mengya had clearly seen the fighting that went on in the palace.

There was no talk of kinship at all. For the sake of fighting for power, they were even ready to sacrifice those closest to them.

At this moment, Lin Mengya was starting to understand why her mother had chosen to run away back then.

“What do you intend to do with Li Yuan?”

Li Yuan might appear to be harmless on the surface, but she was certain that he already harbored the intention to revolt.

However, while he still needed to rely on Zuo Qiuchen’s power, he had not rebelled against him for the time being.

Lin Mengya did not know him very well, but since Cousin Chen had made this arrangement, she believed that Cousin Chen would have something on him to keep him from backbiting Cousin Chen.

“He is going to be a wasted chess piece. Based on my understanding of him, he will initiate contact with you and Qiuyu once the finals begin. At that time, you just have to act accordingly.”

How would an ambitious person choose to be subordinate to another?

If he could revolt against Zuo Qiuchen, he would also revolt against his master.

However, Lin Yuan would definitely be delighted to see Zuo Qiuchen and Nan Rui cutting one another’s throat.

That way, he would be able to reap benefit from that situation.

“I get it now. However, I need your help with something right now. Long Tianyu had been abducted by Zhu Qiyun. I would like you to help investigate this matter in secret. I’ve to save Long Tianyu regardless of what happens.”

This was the first time ever that Lin Mengya made a request to Zuo Qiuchen so seriously.

The latter also knew the severity of this matter. While he nodded at Lin Mengya, Zuo Qiuchen had something else on his mind.

“Zhu Qiyun is a very cautious man. I believe that the fact he risked his life to abduct Long Tianyu says that he had worked on every detail in his plan. We should not act impulsively. You should not get yourself involved in this matter. Just leave it to me,” instructed Zuo Qiuchen.

Although Lin Mengya was an intelligent girl, this was not her home ground after all.

What if she fell into the enemy’s snare? Everything would be ruined if that happened.

Lin Mengya’s mind was set at rest at Zuo Qiuchen’s assurance.

She lightly squeezed her slightly cold left hand with her right hand. Cousin Yu had promised her that he would bring her to visit Chang Tianhua after the preliminary rounds of the competition were over.

How she wished the day would come for her arm to be fully recovered.

Lin Mengya should not stay on any longer. After saying a few more words to Zuo Qiuchen, she allowed Yu An to lead her back to the cordoned out space for them.

“You’re back, come and see!”

An excited Zuo Qiuchen immediately waved Lin Mengya over and as he pointed at the twelve round tables.

It was then she saw that the man who was dipping the herbs in the water had moved to another table by now.

Lin Mengya wondered what he was whispering into the ears of the other candidates, but while he dipped the herbs into the water, not only did no one try to stop him, those candidates who were working faster also began tossing the herbs they had identified into the wooden basin.

“This is very strange. While the others are attempting to identify the herbs, he had started to wash the herbs.”

Like Zuo Qiuchen, Lin Mengya found it perplexing, but gradually, she discovered the oddity.

The herbs which the men had dipped into the water appeared bright, limpid, and even a little transparent.

After pondering for a moment, Lin Mengya seemed to come to a realization and the corner of lips turned up into a smile instinctively.

“What a kind heart he has. Cousin Chen, regardless of whether this young man passes this preliminary round of competition, you must recruit him to serve you.”

Zuo Qiuyu did not understand what Lin Mengya meant, but she refused to give him an explanation.

With doubts in her heart, Lin Mengya watched as this young man silently went around the twelve tables to have all the herbs washed.

After that, he carried the basin with the leftover water and returned to his own round table.

The other two candidates were left with only one mixture to identify.

The environment was also beginning to become more intense. Every candidate was trying their best to look for that one medicinal herb.

Nevertheless, the young man did not seem to be anxious. He merely gently searched through the pile of herbs.

Under the watch eyes of all the people, he systematically picked out the four herbs he was looking for and placed them into his own small boxes.

It was only then that the young man, who had busied himself this entire, lifted up his head.

He hit the little gong beside determinedly. By now, three-quarters of the duration of the test had passed.

There were very few who were able to complete the task.

With all the people watching him, the young man carried the four boxes and handed them to the disciples of the Pavilion of Herbs on the stage.

The disciples brought the boxes before the five elders. Before they even put down the boxes, Qian Yuming, sitting on the second seat, instantly turned ashen.

“There’s no need to look at this man’s boxes. He’s directly disqualified!”

The whole audience burst into an uproar, including Lin Mengya and Zuo Qiuyu, who were behind the curtain of bead gasped.

“May I ask the elders if I have picked the wrong herbs?”

The young man did not panic but inquired in an unhurried manner,

Qian Yuming took a sip of the tea in front of him, raised his eyebrows, and shot a look of disgust at the young man.

“How dare the unworthy descendant of the Hou family participates in this medical competition. Your family had long been chased out of the Pavilion of Herbs twenty years ago! Taking considerations for the sensibilities of the past, I did not have you arrested!”

At Qin Yuming’s words, the young man suddenly lost a bit of control over his emotions.

Nevertheless, he continued standing straight and unyielding at the spot even though his eyes were filled with an unyielding stubbornness.

“May I ask what wrong has the Hou family committed? If you want to chase the Hous out, there has to be the special seal impression of the Chief Elder of approval. May I know if you are in possession of that?”

Lin Mengya was immediately drawn towards the sudden turn of events. Who was the Hou Family?

She turned around to look at Zuo Qiuyu, only to see that he, too, was looking perplexed.

“The Hou Family was in charge of the Thousand Herbs Shop before Qian Yuming took over. This young man had employed the secret used by the Hou Family called freezing and solidifying water. It was said that all herbs would be covered with a thin layer of transparent membrane after being dipped into this water. It has the efficacy of preserving its quality for a long time. Currently, many long-standing precious herbs have been preserved in this way.”

Lin Mengya nodded. In fact, she could already tell from a moment ago that the young was trying to save those herbs.

Moreover, while he was working very fast, it was observed that he handled the herbs gently in fear that they would be damaged.

It was no wonder that there were a few people who willingly helped him. The herbs which he handled remained useful.

Lin Mengya was grateful for his kindness, on the contrary, there were some people who treated him as a thorn in the flesh.

“Shut up! How dare the descendent of the Hous tries to make irresponsible remarks! Back then, it was the unanimous decision of all the elders here to chase the Hou Family out! While your family guarded the Shop, you actually robbed the Shop. You’ve brought shame on the Pavilion of Herbs and ought to perish. If not for the compassion of the elders, how would you have remained and been here behaving atrociously?”

At this moment, Qian Yuming was agitated, but there was a hint of guilt in his voice.

Back then, he had put in much effort trying to take over the management of Thousand Herbs Shop.

Never would he expect the descendent of the Hou Family would be back, trying to start all over again.

How could he give the Hou Family this chance?

“Talking about the matter concerning the Hou Family, I’ve never been agreeable. Elder Qian, I see that this young man is merely a child. Moreover, there was also the absence of solid evidence against the Hou Family back then. Secondly, even if the Hou Family had committed a mistake, it was the fault of the previous generation. Why would you fuss about with this child and compromise your magnanimity?”

Chang Tianhua commented as a look of disdain flashed in his eyes.

It had been a while since he could not stand how the ugliness of the three powers ran the Pavilion of Herbs.

Moreover, he did not have disciples or anyone close to him. Even his relatives had all passed away.

In addition, he had Zuo Qiuchen backing him up and protecting him in secret so the other four did not dare to attack or rebuke him.

The other four elders were helpless in dealing with him while he was like a nuisance they were unable to get rid of.

Moreover, he would not let slip of any opportunity to make Qian Yuming upset.

However, Chang Tianhua’s words had won the hearts of many people.

Regardless of the situation, Qian Yuming was an elder after all.

If words got out, it would not reflect well on an elder to be petty and calculating with someone of the younger generation.

Qian Yuming, who having been rebuked, almost vomited blood. He glared at Chang Tianhua for a moment, then he turned to look at Nan Rui with a ghastly pale face.

Nan Rui laid back on his chair, opened his eyes as if he had just woken up from sleep.

He gazed at the young man from the Hou Family, then Qian Yuming, who was fuming. Then a calm smile was revealed on his dry, wrinkled face.

“Alright alright, being the elder, why do you make a scene in front of the younger generation? This is so unbecoming. I would say just let the young man from the Hou Family pass the test. Twenty years had passed since that incident. Even if they had committed a mistake, they must have reflected on it. From now on, make sure you’re a good, young man. Don’t repeat your fathers’ mistakes, do you get it?”

Nan Rui’s words had become the final decision.

Even if Qian Yuming was reluctant, he had no other choice but to suppress himself at this moment.