Chapter 47 The Sharp Sword Army Annihilated? She Goes to Save Her Man!
As autumn arrives in Beijing, the weather grows cooler day by day.
The 70th birthday of the Yan family patriarch was considered a major event in the upper-class circles of Beijing.
Although the Yan family has not regained its former glory as a family of scholars a hundred years ago, the scholarly heritage accumulated over hundreds of years still makes the family's status in the cultural and academic circles very important.
Those who came to offer birthday wishes were mostly white-haired scholars and esteemed figures, or high-ranking civil officials, and the entire Yan family mansion exuded an elegant scholarly atmosphere.
Su Wanqing's arrival created an invisible ripple among the calm guests.
She did not ride in the Lu family's Hongqi sedan, but instead rode with Lu Yao in an ordinary jeep, which Uncle He personally drove them to the alley entrance.
She wore an elegant, moon-white modified cheongsam, with a matching cashmere cardigan over it. Her long hair was loosely tied back, secured with a single wooden hairpin.
Even without makeup, her exquisite and refined beauty was undeniable.
Her temperament was calm and serene, creating an inexplicable harmony with this ancient and simple house.
"That's the Lu family's granddaughter-in-law? I heard she grew up in the countryside?"
"It doesn't look like it. The air about her is even more impressive than that of the socialites and heiresses in the capital."
"Shh, keep your voice down. I heard that she saved that soldier who came back from the brink of death at the military hospital a few days ago. Now all those senior specialists at the hospital are practically worshipping her like a goddess."
The whispers among the guests did not affect Su Wanqing in the slightest.
Yan Shaocheng was already waiting at the door. Upon seeing her, he immediately strode forward to greet her.
His face was still somewhat pale, but his eyes were surprisingly bright, and his energy and spirit were completely different from when he was in the ghost market last time.
"Mr. Su, you've arrived."
He bowed deeply to Su Wanqing with utmost respect.
The address of "Mr. Su" aroused even more curiosity among the surrounding guests.
“Young Master Yan, there’s no need for such formalities. Today is the old master’s birthday, and I’m already intruding by coming here.” Su Wanqing nodded slightly and handed over a long, rectangular sandalwood box.
"This is just a small gift, nothing more."
"It is an honor for the Yan family to have you here, sir." Yan Shaocheng carefully accepted the wooden box and personally led her inside.
Lu Yao followed behind Su Wanqing, watching her sister-in-law move with ease among the wealthy and powerful guests, and felt a surge of pride in sharing in the moment.
After passing through the screen wall and going around the corridor, you arrive at the main hall of the birthday banquet.
At the head of the hall sat an elderly man with white hair and beard, dressed in a dark red burial robe.
He was slender, but his eyes were sharp, and there was a scholarly air of authority between his brows.
It is none other than the current head of the Yan family, Old Master Yan.
“Grandpa, this is Mr. Su whom I mentioned to you.” Yan Shaocheng stepped forward and introduced Su Wanqing to his grandfather.
Su Wanqing stepped forward and bowed slightly, neither humble nor arrogant: "Junior Su Wanqing wishes the old master boundless happiness and longevity."
Old Master Yan's gaze fell on her, scrutinizing her, and he slowly nodded: "Yes, sit down."
His attitude was not warm; in fact, it was somewhat distant.
Clearly, he still harbored doubts about the unidentified "female teacher" his grandson had met on the black market.
Yan Shaocheng felt a little awkward and quickly opened the wooden box that Su Wanqing had given him, hoping to ease the atmosphere with a gift.
When the wooden box was opened, it did not contain gold and jewels, but rather a beautifully framed scroll.
As the scroll was unfurled, a powerful and vigorous painting titled "Longevity of the Pine Tree" was revealed to the audience. In the painting, a sturdy ancient pine tree was rooted on a cliff, its branches gnarled and its needles as hard as iron, full of vitality.
"Beautiful calligraphy! Beautiful painting!" An elderly professor wearing reading glasses couldn't help but exclaim in admiration. "The strength of the brushstrokes, the spirit of the painting—it's the work of a master!"
What's even more surprising is that in the blank spaces of the painting, there is a densely written essay titled "On Nourishing Life in the Four Seasons" in tiny regular script.
From nourishing the liver in spring to conserving essence in winter, the book draws on classical texts and explains complex concepts in a simple and easy-to-understand way. Several of the dietary therapy recipes are unheard of, yet they are deeply in line with medical principles.
Old Master Yan had initially glanced at it casually, but when his gaze fell on the "Treatise on Nourishing Life in the Four Seasons," his expression suddenly froze.
He grabbed the scroll, put on his reading glasses, and began to read it word by word.
The more he looked, the more shocked he became, until finally his hands trembled with excitement.
"Wonderful! Absolutely wonderful!"
He slammed his hand on the table, stood up abruptly, and his gaze towards Su Wanqing completely changed, transforming from scrutiny to amazement and admiration.
"This...this really is something you wrote?"
"I've made a fool of myself," Su Wanqing replied calmly.
"Girl, come here." Old Master Yan beckoned to her.
Su Wanqing stepped forward as instructed.
The old man took her hand and made her sit beside him. Pointing to a detail in the prescription, he asked, “I understand that ‘autumn dryness injures the lungs, so they should be nourished with sweet and moistening foods.’ But what is the reasoning behind the ‘Polygonatum odoratum paired with Aster tataricus’ in your prescription? Polygonatum odoratum nourishes yin, while Aster tataricus resolves phlegm. One tonifies and the other drains, so don’t they conflict?”
“Grandpa, you may not know this,” Su Wanqing explained calmly. “Autumn dryness coughs are mostly dry coughs, seemingly without phlegm, but in reality, the dry phlegm is deeply hidden in the lung channels. If you only use Solomon's Seal to nourish yin, the yin will stagnate and the phlegm will become stagnant, and the cough will only get worse. You need to use the pungent and dispersing properties of Aster to pave the way for Solomon's Seal, first to promote the lung qi and dissolve the deeply hidden dry phlegm, and then use the sweet and moistening properties of Solomon's Seal to repair the damaged lung channels. This is the method of ‘opening first and then nourishing, promoting and moistening simultaneously’.”
His words were clear, logical, and insightful.
The hall was filled with guests, and there was complete silence.
Those who had previously doubted Su Wanqing's identity now looked at her with nothing but admiration.
Old Master Yan nodded repeatedly as he listened, and his gaze toward Su Wanqing was as if he were looking at a rare gem.
"Excellent! What a brilliant 'open first, supplement later' approach! I have learned a great deal today!"
He held Su Wanqing's hand tightly and refused to let go. He even had his servants move his chair next to Su Wanqing, clearly treating her as a close friend of equal standing.
The Yan family's attitude determined the overall atmosphere of the banquet hall.
For a moment, Su Wanqing became the focus of the entire audience.
Scholars and celebrities kept coming up to her to discuss painting techniques or ask for advice on health preservation. Su Wanqing responded with ease, each answer perfectly apt, revealing her talent without being overly ostentatious.
Just as the banquet atmosphere reached its climax, an untimely voice suddenly rang out from the doorway.
"I thought she was someone important that Grandpa Yan valued her so much. Turns out she's just a wild girl who crawled out of the muddy fields in the countryside."
The voice was sharp and sarcastic, filled with undisguised contempt.
Everyone looked in the direction of the voice and saw a young man wearing a sharp suit and with his hair slicked back, walking in with his arms crossed and a mocking expression on his face.
"Song Jianfeng from the Song family? What brings him here?"
"I heard he and Yan Shaocheng have always been at odds. Is he here to cause trouble today?"
The visitor was Song Tingyu's cousin, Song Jianfeng.
The Song family made their fortune through speculation and profiteering, and were well-known nouveau riche in the capital. They had always looked down on the Yan family, these aloof "poor scholars".
Song Jianfeng's gaze lingered on Su Wanqing, filled with undisguised malice: "I heard you cured a patient that even the military hospital couldn't cure? What, did you rely on shamanistic rituals? Or some kind of ancestral talisman water from your village?"
His henchmen burst into laughter.
Yan Shaocheng's face flushed red instantly, and he was about to lash out when Su Wanqing held his hand down.
Su Wanqing slowly stood up, looked at Song Jianfeng, and said calmly, "Mr. Song, the benefit of words is of little use to either oneself or others. If you are in good health, I am happy for you. If you are unwell, please tell me, and I may be able to offer some advice."
Her composure and magnanimity made Song Jianfeng seem like an unreasonable clown.
Song Jianfeng's expression froze for a moment, then he sneered, "I'm in excellent health! However, I have brought a true miracle doctor with me today."
He clapped his hands, and an old man with a goatee, wearing a long robe, and exuding an air of otherworldly wisdom walked out from behind him.
"This is Zhang Banxian from Hong Kong. He's a master of acupuncture, capable of bringing the dead back to life and healing flesh and bone!" Song Jianfeng proudly introduced. "Zhang Banxian, come and show everyone just how skilled this 'Miracle Doctor Su' from the countryside really is!"
The fortune teller stroked his beard, glanced arrogantly at Su Wanqing, and let out a cold snort.
A perfectly good birthday banquet instantly turned into a tense standoff.
Old Master Yan was trembling with anger and was about to reprimand him when Su Wanqing shook her head at him, signaling him to calm down.
She looked at the so-called "Master Zhang" and said calmly, "Since you are a senior, please enlighten me."
Seeing her so composed despite her young age, Zhang Banxian was surprised, then said, "I won't deceive you. Let's each find someone to administer acupuncture on the spot and see whose treatment is more effective, shall we?"
"No need."
Su Wanqing shook her head.
"The search is too slow. I see that Senior Zhang, your forehead is dark, your eyes are bluish-black, your voice is weak, and your steps are unsteady. You must have been working hard for many years, which has depleted your kidney essence, leading to liver and kidney yin deficiency and upward flaring of deficiency fire."
She paused, then her voice reached everyone's ears clearly.
"Do you often experience dizziness, tinnitus, and palpitations?"
Zhang Banxian's expression changed instantly.
The symptoms Su Wanqing described were exactly the same as his.
These were the root causes of his illnesses from years of indulging in sensual pleasures, kept secret and unknown to outsiders.
"How...how did you know?" he asked in a trembling voice.
"Observation, auscultation, inquiry, and palpation are just common medical practices," Su Wanqing said calmly. "For your illness, acupuncture can only treat the symptoms. To cure the root cause, we need to address the underlying problem and then use Liuwei Dihuang Wan (a traditional Chinese medicine formula) with modifications for six months to see results."
She pinpointed the root of the man's illness and his private matters in a single sentence. The fortune teller's face turned pale and then red, and cold sweat beaded on his forehead. He could no longer utter a word.
Song Jianfeng never expected that the "deity" he had invited would have his secrets exposed in a single meeting, and he immediately lost face.
"You...you stop spreading these lies!" he roared, his voice trembling with fear.
Just then, the banquet hall door was suddenly pushed open with a "bang".
A young guard in military uniform rushed in, looking flustered, his hat brim still damp with rainwater.
Ignoring the standoff in the hall, he rushed straight to the end of the banquet and stood before a general with a gold star on his shoulder who was talking quietly to someone.
The guard whispered something in his ear, in a voice only the two of them could hear.
The general's face drained of all color in an instant.
He suddenly stood up, the movement so forceful that it knocked over the chair behind him.
The wine glass slipped from his hand and shattered on the smooth floor with a loud crash.
The once bustling banquet hall fell into a deathly silence due to this sudden turn of events.
All eyes were focused on the general whose face was ashen.
"southwest……"
"Sharp Sword Squad..."
"completely annihilated……"
A few broken words floated out from the general's lips, which trembled slightly with shock.
The sound was extremely soft, yet it exploded like thunderclaps in Su Wanqing's ears.
Sharp Sword Squad!
completely annihilated!
Su Wanqing's mind went blank for a moment, the world before her eyes lost its color, and her hands and feet became ice-cold.
She swayed, her fingertips gripping the edge of the table beside her to keep from falling.
impossible……
Impossible...
The warning talisman on her chest did not generate heat, nor did it react in the slightest!
He's still alive! He must still be alive!
The general clearly realized he had lost his composure. He took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down. His gaze swept across the room, finally settling on Su Wanqing.
That gaze was incredibly complex.
There was shock, there was regret, but more than anything, there was an indescribable sorrow.
With just a glance, Su Wanqing understood everything.
The news is true.
Lu Zhanting and his group are really in trouble.
Song Jianfeng was also taken aback by the scene. He didn't know what had happened, but judging from the general's reaction, he knew that something terrible must have occurred. His provocative thoughts vanished instantly, and he stood there, at a loss for what to do.
"Elder Yan, there are urgent matters at the military, so I must take my leave!" The general hurriedly clasped his hands in a fist salute to Elder Yan, then led his guards and strode away from the banquet hall.
The atmosphere in the entire hall was extremely heavy.
Everyone realized that something terrible had happened.
Grandma Yan looked at Su Wanqing, whose face was deathly pale, her eyes filled with worry: "Girl, you..."
"I'm fine."
Su Wanqing interrupted him.
She slowly straightened up, and her hands and feet, which had been icy cold just moments before, now surged with strength.
Her face showed no tears, no panic, only a chilling calmness.
She walked up to Old Master Yan and bowed slightly: "Old Master, an emergency has suddenly occurred at my home, and I need to rush back immediately. I apologize for disturbing you today, and I will come to apologize another day."
Her voice was clear and steady, without any discernible emotional fluctuation.
After saying that, she didn't look at anyone else, turned around, and walked towards the door.
Lu Yao quickly followed and supported her arm, only to find that her arm was as hard as iron.
As Su Wanqing passed by Song Jianfeng, she paused for a moment.
She didn't even glance at him, leaving behind only a cold remark.
"Mr. Song, instead of engaging in idle talk here, you should pay more attention to the Song family's business. I heard that your family recently lost a large order in the south."
Upon hearing this, Song Jianfeng was struck dumb, his face turning deathly pale.
Su Wanqing didn't linger and quickly walked out of the Yan family mansion with Lu Yao.
As soon as she stepped out of that vermilion gate, cut off from the warmth inside the house, the cold autumn rain mixed with the chilly wind instantly enveloped her.
Su Wanqing's body finally swayed slightly.
"Sister-in-law!" Lu Yao quickly helped her up.
"I'm fine."
Su Wanqing pushed her away, strode to the jeep at the alley entrance, opened the door, and got in.
"Uncle He, get to the military hospital as fast as you can!"
Her voice was suppressed as much as she could, but there was still a barely perceptible tremor at the end.
Uncle He looked at her pale face in the rearview mirror, felt a pang of pain in his heart, asked nothing, stepped on the gas, and the jeep plunged into the rain.
Su Wanqing leaned back in her chair and closed her eyes.
One thought after another flashed wildly through her mind.
The warning talisman did not respond, proving that Lu Zhanting was not in mortal danger.
Was the total annihilation of the army a slip of the tongue by the general in shock, or... the worst possible outcome?
Heart-devouring vine.
Mind control.
She found records about the "Heart-Eating Vine" in the ancient books in the space.
It is an evil creature born in extremely yin places, feeding on the essence and fear of living beings.
It is not scary in itself, but what is most scary is that it can create illusions, control people's minds, and make them kill each other.
Ancient texts say that to destroy this thing, one must use "true fire of the sun" or something of extreme yang and strength to destroy it from its root and core.
Thermite incendiary bomb!
Lu Zhanting must have attacked its core with an incendiary bomb!
That's why the warning talisman didn't get hot!
However, at the end of the ancient book, there is a line of small print.
"The Heart-Eating Vine: if the mother plant does not perish, the offspring plants will regenerate."
what does that mean?
He may have destroyed only a sapling.
But the mother entity remains lurking deep underground.
He didn't die, but he must have been seriously injured and trapped!
Su Wanqing suddenly opened her eyes.
There was no longer a trace of confusion in those clear, cold eyes; only an iron-like resolve remained.
She knew what she had to do.
She was going to find Lu Zhenguo.
She wanted to tell him that the enemy was not human, but a monster.
She wanted to tell him that the conventional rescue method was to send him to his death.
She has a way.
She can concoct a special potion that, when applied to the body, can temporarily shield her from the mind control of the Heart-Eating Vine.
She's going to the southwest.
She was determined to go, no matter what.
This time, she wasn't waiting for someone to come and rescue her.
She was going to save her man.
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