Chapter 11: The Adulterous Couple

Chapter Eleven: The Adulterous Couple

The silver needle instantly turned black. Seeing this, the bodyguard recoiled in terror, his hands trembling as he held the bowl of medicinal soup, spilling some onto the floor. The spilled medicine began to corrode the floorboards beneath it. Clearly, this was a highly toxic concoction; if anyone drank it, even Qin Yu might not be able to save them.

The bodyguard fell to his knees, crying out, “Master, we only did this because our captain told us to. He said if we killed you, we could split one-twentieth of the Chu family’s wealth.”

“That scoundrel!” The master of the Chu family’s face was pale, coughing violently from rage. He was still alive, yet a mere bodyguard captain dared to covet his estate.

“Doctor, can I get out of bed?” he asked.

“See for yourself—if you can stand, then get up,” came the reply.

With effort, the Chu family master slowly climbed out of bed. Though his legs trembled, the fury burning within him kept him upright.

Led by the bodyguard, Qin Yu accompanied the Chu family master directly to a room on the second floor. From within, sounds of pleasure echoed out. The Chu family master’s face darkened with anger.

He pushed the door open slowly, revealing Xiang Ling and the security captain, both drenched in sweat atop the bed. The Chu family master’s blood surged, and he spat out a mouthful of blood, pointing at them, speechless with rage, before fainting again.

The two, stunned by the Chu family master’s sudden appearance, froze in place.

Qin Yu swiftly sealed the master’s vital channels with a silver needle and looked coldly at the pair. “The master’s illness is cured. Hand over the medicinal herbs.”

Qin Yu wanted nothing to do with their affairs; all he cared about was his red thread branch.

Xiang Ling, recovering from shock, flew into a shameful rage. “Do you know how to handle things? Look at you, a pauper! Useless! And you dare ask for herbs? Dream on. Get out of here, or I’ll make you regret it.”

Qin Yu sighed in resignation. Knowing the herbs were in their hands, he realized there was no point in asking further; it would be better to seek them elsewhere.

He sneered, flicked his silver needle onto the Chu family master, and after pulling it out, the master slowly opened his eyes.

“You adulterous pair! How dare you! Get out—leave my house and never think of inheriting a single cent from the Chu family!”

Xiang Ling hadn’t expected Qin Yu to revive the master so easily. This time, she recognized Qin Yu’s skill and looked at him pleadingly, but he ignored her.

Hesitating, Xiang Ling moved to Qin Yu’s side and whispered, “If you kill the master, we’ll split the family fortune fifty-fifty.”

“Sorry, I refuse,” Qin Yu replied, then turned to the master with a smile, “I’ll wait for you outside.”

He didn’t wait long downstairs before Xiang Ling and the security captain came down, crestfallen. Both glared at Qin Yu with resentment.

“Just you wait! I’ll make sure you die for this!” Xiang Ling spat, striding out.

The Chu family master descended the staircase slowly, offering Qin Yu an apologetic smile. “Forgive me for exposing you to such family disgrace.”

“No matter,” Qin Yu replied, “but I did agree with your wife that upon reviving you, you’d give me the red thread branch. About that…”

“The red thread branch? That wretch promised even that?” the master erupted in anger—it was his family heirloom.

“Sir, perhaps you’d accept something else?” he asked hopefully.

“No, that’s all I came for,” Qin Yu answered decisively.

Seeing his refusal, the master gritted his teeth and quickly brought out the red thread branch. He looked at it, his heart filled with reluctance. He remembered his father’s dying words, reminding him the branch could save a life and was of utmost importance, urging him to keep it safe.

Qin Yu took the branch, examined it, and found that though it appeared withered, inside it was plump with sap—truly a prime specimen.

“Thank you,” he said, turning to leave.

“Divine Doctor, may I know your name?” the master asked.

“Qin Yu,” he replied, then departed the villa.

The master murmured Qin Yu’s name, feeling it was familiar. Suddenly, he remembered Sun Qian from the Sun family, and his face changed. He immediately dialed a phone number.

“Hello, son, come home quickly! That man has appeared…”

Qin Yu returned to the Sun family villa, where Old Master Sun had already gathered all the medicinal ingredients, lacking only the red thread branch. When Qin Yu brought it in, Old Master Sun’s face lit with excitement.

Qin Yu took out his silver needles, swiftly targeting Sun Qian’s acupoints, and sliced open the red thread branch, letting a drop of its purple sap fall into Sun Qian’s mouth. He carefully put the branch away—the sap was precious and life-saving, and he couldn’t bear to use it all at once.

After checking the placement of the needles, Qin Yu stood and instructed Old Master Sun and Sun Zhen, “Do not, under any circumstances, remove the needles. No matter what happens, leave them be. If you pull them out, all our preparations will have been in vain.”

Both nodded solemnly.

Qin Yu went to the kitchen to prepare the decoction. At that moment, a middle-aged woman in a cheongsam rushed in from outside. Seeing Sun Qian lying on the sofa, she broke down in tears.

“Qian’er, what’s happened to you? Open your eyes, look at your mother!”

She sat by Sun Qian’s side, weeping bitterly.

Old Master Sun’s face turned stern. “So you remember to come home. Sun Qian’s cancer is the responsibility of all of you. Where’s Sun Wuji? His own wife has cancer and he’s still busy with business, not even coming home to see her?”

“Father, Wuji will be back soon—he’s still on the plane. With Qian’er like this, what business could be more important?” the woman sobbed.

As she spoke, Sun Qian slowly opened her eyes, struggling to breathe, feeling as if a heavy stone weighed upon her chest.

Seeing her mother, Sun Qian whispered weakly, “Mother, why have you come back? I’m fine, don’t worry.”

“How can you say you’re fine? You have cancer! Of course I had to return. If only you’d listened to me and married into the Chu family, none of this would have happened. The Chu family owns a large hospital—no matter what illness you have, you’d get the best treatment.”