What neither Jiang Chen nor Jiang Ying had expected was that the injuries sustained by Marquis Jianghan, Jiang Feng, were far more severe than they appeared on the surface — and certainly not the minor wounds they had seemed.
The attacker had actually coated the blade with poison, and the toxin's onset was terrifyingly rapid!
In the short half-hour Jiang Ying had been away to greet Jiang Chen, Jiang Feng's condition had deteriorated drastically.
By the time Jiang Chen returned to the estate, the Marquis had already fallen unconscious, his face black as charred coal.
"Young Master! Uncle Ying, you're finally back — the Marquis, he—" Jiang Fu, the Grand Steward of the Marquis's estate, was so frantic that tears were streaming down his face.
Jiang Chen took three rapid strides forward and rushed to Jiang Feng's side. "Father!"
Jiang Feng's consciousness had already slipped into a coma. He let out a faint groan, but couldn't even open his eyes.
Jiang Ying's fierce eyes brimmed with deep remorse. As the head of the Jiang family's Iron Guards, he had failed to protect the Marquis. This was his dereliction of duty.
"My lord, your subordinate has failed you. I can only repay this with death." Jiang Ying's voice rang sharp as he drew the saber from his waist and slashed it toward his own neck.
Jiang Chen's elbow struck lightly, landing squarely between Jiang Ying's ribs. Jiang Ying's arm went numb, and the saber slipped from his grasp, clattering to the floor.
"Jiang Ying — dying is easy for a man. Living through hardship, struggling to survive when things are at their worst — that's what's truly difficult. Don't tell me the commander of the Jiang family's Iron Guards is a coward?"
Jiang Chen's voice was cold, carrying a tone of reprimand.
Jiang Ying felt as though he had been struck by lightning. The scene was almost absurd. When had this young master learned to lecture like that? When had this wastrel youth — the very one Jiang Ying had always found headache-inducing — become so formidable? A casual elbow strike, and Jiang Ying couldn't even hold his own saber?
Jiang Chen paid Jiang Ying no further attention. Instead, he turned to Jiang Fu. "Have you called a physician?"
"I have — I called three or four. But the moment they saw his condition, they turned around and left without a word. Their faces all went green with fear." Jiang Fu's voice trembled on the verge of tears.
This poison wound had come on with such ferocity. If Jiang Feng hadn't been a powerhouse with Nine-Meridian True Qi, an ordinary person would likely have been dead already.
How could an ordinary physician, who had never encountered such a toxin, possibly cure it?
"Weren't there any Spirit Medicine Masters who came to look?" Jiang Chen asked.
Jiang Fu looked distressed. "Your subordinate went to the Pill King Court personally, only to be mocked and ridiculed. The other two houses — I don't have connections there."
The Pill King Court and the Jiang family had long maintained a cooperative relationship. So Jiang Fu hadn't thought twice about going there directly to summon a Spirit Medicine Master, only to be insulted and ridiculed until he was shaking from head to toe.
Jiang Chen was exasperated. Jiang Fu really was grasping at straws in his desperation. If the Pill King Court were willing to treat Jiang Feng now, that would be the real surprise.
For all anyone knew, this poison attack might even have the Pill King Court's fingerprints on it.
After all, the current situation was clear — the Pill King Court had already thrown in its lot with the Dragon Ascension Marquis, becoming his snarling attack dog.
Jiang Chen didn't waste time. He placed his fingers on Jiang Feng's pulse and furrowed his brow slightly.
In his previous life, Jiang Chen had studied the art of poison extensively.
After a moment of contemplation, he rose to his feet and asked Jiang Fu to bring paper and brush. He quickly wrote out a list.
"Jiang Fu, go to the Medicine Master Hall. Give this list to the Third Hall Master, Qiao Baishi, and ask him to bring the items on the list and come here at once."
Jiang Chen reached into his robes and produced the dragon-shaped gold medallion, handing it to Jiang Ying. "Uncle Ying, take this with you. Accompany Jiang Fu on this errand."
Jiang Chen remained calm in the face of chaos, issuing orders with precision.
For some reason, after being reprimanded by Jiang Chen earlier, Jiang Ying suddenly found himself harboring a strange surge of confidence in this young master.
"Your subordinate obeys." Jiang Ying knew that saving a life was like fighting a fire. He grabbed Jiang Fu in hand and dashed out the door.
It had to be said that Qiao Baishi truly showed his respect. In less time than it took to drink half a cup of tea, he arrived at the Marquis Jianghan's estate with all the spiritual medicines on the list.
Seeing Jiang Feng's condition, Qiao Baishi was visibly shocked.
After a brief diagnosis, his expression grew even graver — tinged with bewilderment, deep thought, and a sense of helplessness.
"Young Master Jiang, the Marquis has been poisoned — that much is certain. However, the principle behind this toxin is something I find extremely difficult to fathom. I'm afraid my humble cultivation is insufficient to provide a cure. The Grand Hall Master possesses extraordinary abilities, but he departed on a long journey just yesterday…"
Qiao Baishi's tone carried both regret and apology as he looked at Jiang Chen, at a loss for how to console him.
Moreover, he was inwardly shocked. He hadn't expected the situation in the royal capital to deteriorate so rapidly. A feudal lord guarding the frontier — attacked right at his own doorstep!
"Third Hall Master, in your estimation — how many people in the royal capital could use this kind of poison?"
Qiao Baishi knitted his brow in deep thought, and after a long silence replied: "The three great Spirit Medicine powers in the royal capital — none of them are particularly skilled in the use of poison. Based on my deduction, I'm afraid this was not the work of any poison master in the capital."
"Young Master, the poison has invaded your father's meridians. We must take measures as soon as possible. Why not follow conventional treatment — use silver needles to stimulate the acupoints and draw out the poisoned blood first?"
Though Qiao Baishi couldn't decipher the principle behind the poison, the standard approach to treating toxic injuries was essentially this: first draw out the poisoned blood. At minimum, it could slow the toxin's advance toward the heart.
But Jiang Chen shook his head. "No. Using silver needles to stimulate the acupoints would play right into the enemy's trap. This toxin is not a poison of the blood — it is a poison of the nerves. Stimulating the acupoints with needles would only accelerate its onset."
"What?" Qiao Baishi was greatly alarmed. This was the first time he had ever heard such a claim.