The next morning, Jiang Chen opened his eyes, and there was a vitality in his bright gaze that hadn't been there before.
He rose and sat up, stretching his limbs. His entire body was suffused with a sense of explosive power.
The thirty to forty percent of the Divine Show Creation Pill's medicinal potency had proved remarkable enough. It had healed Jiang Chen's injuries to eighty or ninety percent, and on top of that, with the breakthrough through his fourth meridian, a night of four-channel true qi tempering his flesh had elevated his physical condition by several levels overnight.
Jiang Zheng arrived first thing in the morning, his whole demeanor brimming with energy. The thought of how he'd reasserted authority at home yesterday, scolded his wife into lowering her head and admitting fault, and then displayed his prowess between the sheets — it filled him with boundless delight.
But the moment he saw Jiang Chen step out of his room, he was completely dumbfounded.
"Young Lord, you... you..." In his astonishment, Jiang Zheng couldn't even find the right words. Because the change in Jiang Chen was simply too obvious.
The old Jiang Chen had been a slacker through and through — sometimes brazenly arrogant, sometimes utterly dejected. In short, he'd never had any composure.
But today, the young lord's appearance was entirely transformed.
His whole bearing was like a sword freshly tempered in a furnace, radiating sharp edge.
"Jiang Zheng, ready the horse. I'm heading out."
"Yes!" Jiang Zheng was only too happy to comply. He used to think running errands for the young lord was a thankless chore, but starting yesterday, he'd burned with fresh enthusiasm.
Once they were outside, Jiang Zheng gingerly asked, "Young Lord, where are we headed?"
"The Apothecary Hall, of course." Jiang Chen chuckled, flicked his whip, and spurred his horse into a gallop. His mood today was truly splendid — riding high on the spring breeze with swift hooves beneath him!
"Hey, Young Lord, wait for me!" By the time Jiang Zheng reacted, Jiang Chen had already vanished in a cloud of dust.
The grand structure of the Apothecary Hall soon materialized before Jiang Chen's eyes.
The moment Jiang Chen appeared at the entrance, the customers coming and going all looked as if they had seen a ghost.
Jiang Chen was, after all, the son of a feudal lord and carried some renown in the Royal Capital. And that incident of his at the Sacred Temple had made him the number one topic of gossip across the entire Royal Capital for the past two days.
Farting at the Heaven-Worship Grand Ceremony — Jiang Chen was truly one of a kind.
So these past two days, his name had been on everyone's lips, synonymous with utter absurdity.
The story that Jiang Chen had farted at the Heaven-Worship Grand Ceremony, blasphemed against the gods, and been sentenced to death by flogging on the King's orders — that was news the entire Royal Capital knew about.
As for the fact that Jiang Chen had survived his death sentence — that was something very few people knew.
Therefore, his sudden appearance was inevitably going to stir up a massive wave of gossip.
"See that? That guy — isn't he that profligate young lord from Jiang Han's territory?"
"So what if he's a young lord? The Royal Capital's crawling with nobles. You thinking about currying favor?"
"Hug my ass — I'm talking about that Jiang Chen! Didn't they say he farted at the Heaven-Worship Ceremony and got beaten to death?"
"What? Jiang Chen — you mean that weirdo who farted? Where is he?"
Conversations like these were happening everywhere in and around the Apothecary Hall, with groups of three or five all discussing the same topic.
Jiang Chen, the very subject of all this gossip, naturally couldn't be bothered with such idle stares, much less lower himself to stoop to their level.
He had come to the Apothecary Hall for important business.
In just two days, he'd be entering the palace for a joint diagnosis with the princess. No matter what, he needed to make some preparations. It wouldn't do to show up empty-handed — that would be hard to justify.
Regarding Eastern Zhiruo's condition, Jiang Chen already had a rough plan in mind. Today he was here to lay the groundwork.
The shop assistants at the Apothecary Hall had clearly been straightened out after the lesson of Jiang Zheng's incident the day before. Their attitudes had improved considerably.
Jiang Chen placed a list on the counter. "Shopkeeper, fill this order for me."
The assistant took the list and nodded, but when he saw the last spiritual medicine on it, his brow furrowed slightly. "Dragon Bone Supreme Yang Grass? A sixth-grade Spirit Grade spiritual medicine? Sir, are you certain you want this particular medicine?"
"Fill the order as written," Jiang Chen said with a faint smile.
"But this medicine…" The assistant hesitated.
"What? Too low-end? You don't carry it? In that case, the Nine-Fire Polar Light Fruit would work as a substitute."
The assistant was nearly struck speechless on the spot, forcing out a strained smile. "Sir, what is a Nine-Fire Polar Light Fruit? We don't carry that here. The Dragon Bone Supreme Yang Grass is a supreme-yang substance, extremely rare — one of our signature medicines. We currently have only a single stalk in stock. It's extraordinarily valuable, and the price…"
"What, worried I can't afford it?" Jiang Chen raised an eyebrow.
The assistant chuckled to himself, thinking the guy at least had some self-awareness — they really were worried he couldn't afford it. But the lesson from the assistant who got slapped around yesterday had taught them all: never judge a book by its cover.
"You see, this medicine is so valuable that even a deacon-level person can't authorize its sale. It requires approval from one of our elder-level figures before a transaction can be made."
The assistant explained patiently, instinctively leaning his head back a little, wondering if this lord might also slap down a dragon-engraved gold medallion and deliver a resounding slap to his face.
"Such a trivial thing as a single stalk of Dragon Bone Supreme Yang Grass — does it really need to be this complicated? Then where's your elder? Just call him out. I don't have time to waste standing around."
Jiang Chen truly didn't want to waste time at the Apothecary Hall.
The assistant had no choice but to go inside to report. While Jiang Chen was waiting in boredom, he suddenly heard a commotion at the entrance as several people surged in.
At their head was a young man of sixteen or seventeen, dressed in fine brocade and sable fur. He strode in with great urgency, taking two or three steps to reach the counter, and slammed his hand down on it. "Get me someone in charge — I need a stalk of Dragon Bone Supreme Yang Grass, and it's an absolute emergency. Hurry up! If you delay my business, not a single one of you can bear the consequences."