Chapter 84

Feng Jueyu grew increasingly anxious the more he thought about it. If his suspicions were correct, the crisis facing the Shangguan family in Tiannan Kingdom had reached a critical point. In other words, even if the Shangguan family obtained the Chamber of Commerce president, they would not be able to live in peace and prosperity forever. On the contrary, it would only hasten their downfall...

"Feng brother, Feng brother..."

Feng Jueyu was so engrossed in guessing the emperor's and Shangguan Lingyun's intentions that he failed to notice the two people beside him. When Shangguan Ruowen called out to him, Feng Jueyu immediately regained his composure and absentmindedly replied, "Oh, younger brother, is there something else?"

Shangguan Ruowen was exasperated. It was he who had been questioning them, yet Feng Jueyu was asking if they were okay. Well, if he couldn't deal with it, he could at least avoid it.

"No, nothing. Feng brother, you go ahead and busy yourself. We should head to the shop as well."

"Oh, oh."

Feng Jueyu nodded, and Shangguan Ruowen and Ruowu left the Shangguan residence with great relief.

As he walked out of the Shangguan residence, Feng Jueyu pondered the news Shangguan Ruowen had brought and analyzed the events. The more he thought, the more anxious he became.

If things were really as he suspected, whether to help the Shangguan family or not would need to be carefully considered based on the situation. If the emperor truly had intentions against the Shangguan family, unless one had a power surpassing the imperial authority, the outcome would certainly be tragic.

The Xu family, the Chen family, the emperor... What secrets were hidden behind all this?

He hoped he was wrong. The emperor wouldn't be so ungrateful as to turn against those who had helped him. Otherwise...

With this thought, Feng Jueyu quickened his pace and headed directly to the southern part of the city...

Upon arriving in the southern part of the city, Feng Jueyu noticed a phenomenon. At some point, all the pharmacies and clinics in the southern part of the city had changed their appearance, hanging red silk and new signs. Each sign bore the three large characters "Miaoshan Hall." It seemed the Xu family's monopoly plan had been implemented very well, and now all the pharmacies in the southern part of the city belonged to the Xu family.

The streets were bustling with people, and the front of each pharmacy was crowded with those seeking medicine, consultations, and medical treatment. The "Miaoshan Hall" pharmacies were doing brisk business, with long queues of people anxiously waiting to be seen. The queues moved very slowly, likely due to the slow pace of the doctors.

"Go, go, go. If you don't have money, what are you here for? Save your coins to buy a coffin and go home."

Feng Jueyu was about to leave and head to the opposite Jishi Hall when he saw several surly clerks pushing a woman in her sixties out of the pharmacy.

The old woman was dressed in tattered clothes, with numerous patches, white hair, and tears in her eyes. Even as she was insulted by the Miaoshan Hall clerks, she did not dare to speak back. Pushed to the ground by the clerks, she scrambled to pick up her few coins and then knelt down.

The people in the nearby queues looked worried. Some wanted to intervene but feared that Miaoshan Hall would refuse to dispense medicine, so they held back.

The old woman cried pitifully, "Mr. Manager of Miaoshan Hall, please, I only have this one grandson. For the sake of good karma, please give me some medicine."

Feng Jueyu frowned and stopped. He heard passersby pointing and commenting, "What a bunch of scoundrels. Just because they have a few pharmacies, they think they're so great. Damn, I've never seen such wicked people."

A middle-aged woman carrying two pounds of fatty pork muttered under her breath.

At this point, a crowd had gathered, and someone asked, "What's going on?"

Another person replied, "It's Miaoshan Hall again. They've recently taken over all the pharmacies in the southern part of the city, leaving only them. Now, the cost of medicine and consultations has skyrocketed, and they won't treat anyone without money."

"Is there no justice in the world? Tiannan City only has them."

"Tiannan City has many pharmacies, but it takes an hour to get to the city center. The old lady's grandson has an acute illness, and she can't afford to see a doctor, so she's begging for medicine. Who would have thought it wasn't enough?"

"So they just kicked her out?"

"What do you think? They only care about money, not people..."

"Damn, what a bunch of scoundrels."

The crowd was indignant, and many criticized Miaoshan Hall's unrighteous actions. The young clerk, who seemed to be a supervisor, glared at the crowd and shouted, "Listen up, Miaoshan Hall is a business. If you don't have money, don't come in. If you can't stand it, you can use your money to help her. Otherwise, stop your whining."

This was too much for the crowd, and someone immediately retorted, "Young man, that's not right. We all live in the southern part of the city. Show some compassion."

"Exactly. Running a pharmacy is a business, but practicing medicine is also an act of good karma. Without medical ethics, what kind of 'Miaoshan Hall' is this?"

The young clerk glared and cursed, "Damn, what are you all? Do you need to meddle? What's wrong with doing good? Do you think medicine falls from the sky? Stop your nonsense. If you have money, get treated; if not, get lost. If you cause a commotion, I'll report you to the authorities and have you all arrested..."

The crowd was furious but held back when they heard about the authorities. Some good-hearted people stepped forward and reluctantly gave the old woman a few coins, while others suggested, "Old lady, why don't I take you to the west part of the city? There's the Huichun Hall."

"Don't go to Huichun Hall. It's the same there," someone called out.

The crowd: "Damn, what kind of world is this?"

...

Feng Jueyu stood to the side, listening and understanding the situation. It seemed that the monopoly of Miaoshan Hall and Huichun Hall was not only well-implemented but also inhumane.

Feng Jueyu, who despised such bullying and wicked behavior, was furious. After some thought, he moved to the back of the crowd and said, "Is there no other pharmacy in the southern part of the city?"

A man turned and, seeing Feng Jueyu's kind face, explained, "Sir, you don't know. There's no other pharmacy in the southern part of the city except for Jishi Hall."

"Why not go there?"

The crowd turned, and a woman said, "Who dares? It's haunted. If you get possessed, it's trouble."

Feng Jueyu: "..."

At this point, the young clerk had gone inside. The old woman, seeing her pleas were in vain, came out, limping and sobbing.

Feng Jueyu, unable to bear it, stepped forward and supported the old woman, saying, "Old lady, if you're really in a hurry, go to Jishi Hall."

The crowd looked up in shock, including the old woman, who appeared frightened.

In this era, the belief in ghosts and spirits was deeply ingrained, and people were terrified of them. Even in the face of great difficulties, they did not want to have anything to do with ghosts.

The old woman didn't speak, but Feng Jueyu understood her thoughts. He smiled bitterly and said, "Old lady, listen to me. Is your grandson's life more important, or are you more afraid of being possessed?"

The old woman said, "Of course, my grandson's life is more important. But he's my only grandson. I'm not afraid of death or ghosts, but if I get possessed and die, what will happen to my grandson?"

The crowd nodded...

Feng Jueyu was speechless. Superstition was truly a curse. He patiently explained, "Old lady, your grandson's illness is the most important thing right now. Even if you're not possessed, what good is it if you can't save him? Besides, have you ever done anything wrong? As the saying goes, 'If you don't do wrong, you don't fear ghosts.' You haven't done anything wrong, so why be afraid? Your love for your grandson is enough to move heaven. The saying 'Good deeds bring good rewards' is not false. Do you think heaven would let a ghost possess you?"

Feng Jueyu didn't believe in ghosts, but he had no choice but to make up stories, even invoking heaven. Damn, heaven must be more powerful than ghosts.

Hearing Feng Jueyu's words, the crowd was enlightened and said, "That's right. This young man is right. We don't do wrong, so why fear ghosts? Old lady, saving your grandson is the most important. If you don't want to go inside, you can stand outside and beg for medicine. They can send it out. Old Mr. Li at Jishi Hall is a good person and often helps us."

Encouraged by this, the old woman was deeply moved and immediately decided to act. She knelt down and kowtowed to Feng Jueyu, "Young sir, I can't repay your kindness. Please accept my gratitude."

"Old lady, get up. Saving a life is urgent. Go quickly." Feng Jueyu helped the old woman up.

A kind young man pushed a cart over, sweating, and said, "Old lady, your legs are not good. Get in my cart."

The crowd helped the old woman onto the cart and headed to Jishi Hall...

There are still good people in the world. Feng Jueyu watched the kind-hearted crowd and nodded silently. Looking back, he saw the gilded sign of Miaoshan Hall, and his eyes flashed with a cold, piercing light.

Miaoshan Hall, Xu family...

He coldly muttered a few words and headed to Jishi Hall...

In fact, Feng Jueyu could have generously helped the old woman, but he believed that doing so would only support Miaoshan Hall's monopoly in Tiannan. Therefore, he didn't do it. Additionally, this was a good opportunity to promote Jishi Hall, which he couldn't miss.

Publicly, Miaoshan Hall's actions were truly despicable. If all of Tiannan were controlled by Miaoshan Hall, would the people have any way to live?

Privately, the grudge against Xu Zixiong for the brick incident had not been avenged. Moreover, this guy often caused trouble for him. If he didn't deal with him, he wouldn't know what he was dealing with.

With this thought, Feng Jueyu was determined to take action against Miaoshan Hall and help the Shangguan family.

To avoid being discovered, Feng Jueyu slipped into an alley and found the back door of Jishi Hall and went in...

Page break for ads

Page break for ads end