Jiang Linyin stood on the high city wall. The wind roared loudly. His jet - black hair fluttered in the wind, and his robe flapped noisily. He silently watched Qing Xuan and the others withdraw from the territory of Jin City.
Ji Yunxi sat on her horse, grasped the reins and turned the horse around. The horse's hooves kicked up clouds of dust. She looked up at Jiang Linyin on the high building. The latter hooked his lips and waved at her with a hand on his forehead.
"Let's go!" Ji Yunxi shouted, clamped her horse's belly, whipped the horse and galloped away.
The army followed her in great numbers. Amid the cold black - gray armors, her colorful figure stood out.
Jiang Linyin strolled down the city tower. The white jade porcelain bottle in his hand hurt his palm, as if reminding him of what he was going to do next.
By the moat, the waterweeds were lush, and the river flowed smoothly, nourishing the local people and protecting the living beings in the city. But at this moment, the river, once regarded as the guardian god, was filled with poison. Jiang Linyin squatted down and scooped up a handful of water. Although it still looked clear to the naked eye, it had been contaminated by poison, and the waterweeds on the bank were faintly withering.
Jiang Linyin opened the stopper of the porcelain bottle and threw the whole bottle into the river. A small splash rose, and the bottle slowly sank to the bottom. The pink powder inside floated out and merged with the river water.
He lifted his feet and left. The bank was deserted, and soon returned to its original tranquility.
The water quality in the city became clean again, and the water supply returned to normal. But some people lost their lives because of this. Some were happy while others were sad.
"Jiang Linyin!" Rishou listened to the report of the casualties in the army and punched the map heavily.
Jiang Linyin forced Lu Shu and the others to withdraw from Jin City without a single soldier. This move won the hearts of a large number of people of the Shennong Clan, and there was a faint intention among them to recommend him as the king.
However, there was still a small number of people who, because of the kindness of the old king, were still loyal to Jiang Yao and Ji.
"The king should be a capable person regardless of his origin. Anyone who can lead our Shennong Clan to prosperity should be appointed."
"This man is so vicious that he treats the common people like this. How can he take on great responsibilities? How can we allow such a villain to mess around with the hard - won foundation of the old king!"
People had different opinions, and the Shennong Clan was divided into two factions. This matter soon reached Jiang Yansui.
The moon rose above the willow branches. The stars were bright, and the Milky Way was dazzling. Everything was silent under the night sky, and the chirping of the cicadas in the willow trees weakened.
When the maid saw Jiang Yao and Ji, she was about to announce their arrival. Jiang Yao put a finger to her lips, and the maid understood and stepped back.
"Brother, have you heard about Jiang Linyin?"
"Yes. This matter has been widely spread. I really can't figure out what he wants to do." Jiang Yansui, who was originally standing by the window, turned around when he heard the voice. A faint look of worry lingered between his eyebrows.
"But the pills he forced us to take that day..."
"I'll go and meet him tomorrow." Jiang Yansui rubbed his eyebrows. "Success or failure depends on this. Let's take a chance!"
"Okay. We'll go together tomorrow."
In Jin City
Jiang Linyin sat on the main seat, listening to the noisy discussions below. He found it extremely annoying. These old - fashioned people didn't submit to him and kept talking about legitimacy. It was really a nuisance.
Jiang Linyin played with the string of beads on his wrist. There was an air of arrogance in his eyes as if he could dominate the world. How boring. It turned out that power was nothing special.
The guard announced that Jiang Yao and Jiang Yansui were asking for an audience. Jiang Linyin propped up his palm, put on the string of beads, and used his internal energy to leave the mansion.
"I have something to attend to. I'll be back soon!"
When Jiang Yao saw Jiang Linyin, she was filled with anger. Her chest burned with rage, and she pointed her sword at him.
"What do you want from me?"
"Cut the crap. Hand over the antidote!"
"Don't be in a hurry. Let me tell you a story."
Jiang Linyin's eyelids trembled. He would never forget those past events. The things around him became blurred, and his thoughts drifted far away.
In the beautiful spring of March, when the grass grew and the orioles flew, a young boy was practicing martial arts in the yard with a tree branch as a sword.
"Take my sword!"
"Hahaha, Yin'er, go wash your hands and come for dinner. Stop playing with those sticks." A woman took the boy's hand and pushed him to wash his hands.
"Okay, mother. I know."
"My son is so talented. He will surely achieve great things in the future."
Hearing this, the woman playfully slapped the man on the shoulder. "Swords and spears are dangerous. I only hope my son can live a carefree life. Besides, our ancestors of the Shennong Clan tasted all kinds of herbs to save the people in the world. It's also good to be a doctor."
"A good man should aim high. How can he be confined to this small place?"
"What? Do you think I'm holding you back from making achievements?"
"You... you shrew, you..."
"What about me? Say it!"
"Unreasonable." The man waved his sleeve and went to serve the meal.
The young boy watched his parents bickering and showed a happy smile on his face.
"Is this Jiang Linyin's memory?"
"Yes. We are in the state of spiritual bodies now. They can't see us."
The young boy passed through Jiang Yansui's body and sat down at the table to have dinner. The whole family was happy and harmonious.
"Brother, doesn't this young boy look familiar to you?"
"He does look a bit familiar, but I can't remember for the moment."
The surrounding buildings disappeared. Jiang Yao looked around in confusion. When she came to her senses, they were standing on a broad street.
"This is the main street of the capital of the Shennong Clan." Jiang Yao exclaimed in surprise.
"Yes. Look, it's Father."
"You have great talent in pharmacy. Would you like to come back to the palace with me to study and serve the country? I'll pay for your mother's medical expenses." A man in a yellow robe squatted down with a kind smile.
"Really? You're willing to pay for my mother's medical expenses?"
"Yes."
"Okay. I agree!"
The young boy returned home to say goodbye to his parents, shouldered his bag and came to the palace.
"I don't know why, but I feel inexplicably scared." The mother covered her chest and watched the young boy walk away. She tightened her grip on her husband's hand.
"Our son is making progress. Don't worry. We'll go and see him when we have time."
"Yes. I hope everything will be okay."
In the blink of an eye, the young boy grew up. But instead of becoming a doctor, he became a master of making poison and was quite favored by the king.
The king's children deliberately made trouble for him, so the young boy didn't have a good time in the palace.
Later, a war broke out. The young boy helped the king make poison again and again. When his mother found out, her old illness relapsed, and she vomited blood and died. His father also committed suicide.
The king hid this from the young boy for fear that he could no longer control him. But the truth couldn't be hidden forever, and the young boy eventually found out.
In the last scene, the king was poisoned and fell to the ground. He grabbed the young boy's corner of his clothes and begged for the antidote.
The young boy pulled out his corner of the clothes, squatted down and looked down at the king. "This is what you deserve." Then he took out a dagger and stabbed it into the king's chest. The warm blood splashed on the young boy's fair face. The young boy lowered his eyes and wiped the blood off his face, then walked out of the palace indifferently.
"Father!" Although Jiang Yao knew she couldn't catch anything, she still rushed forward to stop the king's bleeding. Unfortunately, her hand passed right through. "Father, wake up. Someone, come quickly!"