Chapter Five: Revival from Death

“Why not come and see for yourself—has the master of the Lian family truly recovered from his illness?” Yan Yuanqing knew well that Shi Tianle was mocking him.

By now, Yan Yuanqing had been seized by the house servants, who were beating and cursing him as a lunatic. All day long, he uttered nothing but mad ramblings!

Yet Yan Yuanqing paid no heed, and shouted toward the hall, “You don’t believe me? In just a few more minutes, the master of the Lian family will certainly cough blood and collapse!”

“His eyes will lose all vitality, his limbs will grow weak, his pulse will fade away! Not even a celestial immortal could save him then!”

“If you treat him blindly, without assessing the true situation, it’s no wonder disaster will follow!”

“Outrageous!” Ji Chunyan scolded sharply, hurried down from the platform, and slapped Yan Yuanqing several times in succession.

“You worthless thing! I’ve tolerated you once, twice, but here you are, shouting shameless nonsense—do you take my Shi family for a troupe of actors, free for you to command?”

“For three years now, you’ve been nothing but deranged, never doing anything proper. Today you bring blood ginseng, and I thought perhaps your madness had finally broken! But instead, you come here to disgrace my Shi family?”

The surrounding guests shared the same sentiment.

“I’ve heard this Yan fellow married into the Shi family three years ago, but he’s been nothing but a lunatic, never serious. The Shi family has been gracious enough not to reject him, but now that he’s regained his senses, he disturbs his elder’s birthday feast?”

“He deserves a beating!”

“Bah! He’s nothing but a good-for-nothing. He ought to be thrown out of the Shi family. Who in Cangzhou doesn’t know Miss Yurou is the most beautiful woman? To marry such a scoundrel—what a flower planted in a dung heap!”

In an instant, everyone turned their words and scorn upon Yan Yuanqing—spittle alone could drown him.

Only Shi Yurou blinked her beautiful eyes and finally shook her head.

Three years ago, when she first met Yan Yuanqing, he showed some talent. She thought he might one day rise to greatness, but three years passed—his madness only deepened, and her hopes faded.

She was naturally aloof, indifferent to fame and fortune, rarely speaking much. But after all, he was her husband; seeing this, if she didn’t step forward, there would be no end to it. She moved ahead a few steps to stand protectively before Yan Yuanqing.

“Mother, don’t take things too far. Let it go,” she said.

Ji Chunyan saw the icy frost settle on her daughter’s face and knew well her temperament. After all, this was a family scandal—if exposed too much, it would only harm the Shi family’s reputation.

“Hurry up and divorce him!” Ji Chunyan snapped.

But just as Shi Tianle stepped down, ready to scold Yan Yuanqing thoroughly, a maid’s shrill scream from the hall startled everyone.

When the crowd rushed to the central hall, they found Lian Yixian lying on his back, blood spilling from his mouth, eyes vacant, limbs weak.

“Master Lian!” the guests cried.

“What happened? Wasn’t he just fine a moment ago? How did this happen?”

Shi Tianhe quickly ordered the servants to help him up and checked his breathing—his old face paled in shock.

His breath was barely a thread!

He took Lian Yixian’s pulse—faint and wavering, as if it might vanish at any moment.

Shi Tianhe’s face clouded with worry, brows tightly knit. He could not fathom how this could happen.

Meanwhile, Shi Yurou arrived and saw that Lian Yixian’s symptoms matched Yan Yuanqing’s prediction exactly.

“Could it be…?”

She hesitated, but with a life hanging in the balance, she hurried from the hall.

“Do you have a way to save him?”

Yan Yuanqing was about to put on airs, hoping those inside would invite him in, but Shi Yurou dragged him over forcefully.

“Hurry, or he’ll truly die!”

Yan Yuanqing was helpless before his wife; though he’d recently regained his sanity, her temper remained unchanged.

As they entered the hall, Shi Yurou ordered everyone to step aside, saying Yan Yuanqing had a way to treat him.

“Hah! Old Shi has no solution, and this scoundrel thinks he does? What could he possibly do?”

Shi Yurou retorted immediately, “Then does anyone else here have a method? Anyone who does, step forward!”

The guests retreated, and she pushed Yan Yuanqing ahead.

Yan Yuanqing stepped forward. Though Shi Tianhe was not fond of him, he still yielded his place, albeit without much expectation.

After all, he was the descendant of his old friend Yan Wencheng! Shi Tianhe knew Yan Wencheng’s medical skills rivaled any master in the field. But Yan Yuanqing had sorely disappointed him; he’d matched him with Shi Yurou as his friend’s last wish, only to see him mad for three years, recently showing some improvement.

“What treatment will you use?” Shi Tianhe asked in a low voice.

Yan Yuanqing frowned and answered plainly, “The Thirteen Ghost Gate Needles.”

His words stunned the room, and moments later laughter erupted.

“The Thirteen Ghost Gate Needles? You brat! To utter such nonsense—the technique has been lost for ages. Do you really think you’re a descendant of the Ghost Gate?”

“Absurd! What a clown!”