With the Great Success Medical Dao came the Qi Observation Skill.

Though he was only at the Initial Insight stage, Chen Yi could already discern a person’s physical condition with a single glance.

At the very least, he could tell if a source of illness was present, then combine that knowledge with observations of their complexion, eyes, lips, and posture to make a more specific diagnosis.

Normally, his experience wouldn’t have been enough to diagnose the specific illness of the short, rat-faced man.

But the man’s symptoms were just too obvious.

’Profuse sweating, cold limbs, a pale complexion, and weak breathing... This is Detachment Syndrome.’

’According to the *Treatise on Cold Pathogenic and Miscellaneous Diseases*, Detachment Syndrome is categorized by qi, yang, and blood. If a person suffering from it is frightened or subjected to external force, their heart-yang and qi can be instantly extinguished.’

’To put it bluntly, if that rat-faced little man so much as bumped into something, he would drop dead on the spot.’

’Forget about hitting him—even a good scare could cost him half his life.’

That was why Chen Yi had called out to stop Ge the Third.

"Young Master?"

The leader, a burly man of an Exotic Race, glanced at Ge the Third before his gaze fell on Chen Yi, sizing him up. "The Xiao Family Medicine Hall?"

The short blade in his hand wavered. He was clearly more hesitant than before.

He looked suspiciously at the small man behind him. Seeing the sweat pouring down the man’s face, he asked, "Are you sure this is the Medicine Hall that made you so sick?"

The pale, rat-faced man nodded and said weakly, "I... I’m not lying to you. It was him..."

Before the man could finish speaking, Chen Yi stepped back into the Medicine Hall and, with a flick of his wrist, tossed out a handful of white powder.

The small man’s eyes rolled back, and he collapsed, stiff as a board.

The burly man froze for a second, his eyes locked on Chen Yi. With a roar, he lunged forward with his blade.

Chen Yi took a Step back and gestured to Ge the Third. "Take them down."

Without a moment’s hesitation, Ge the Third stepped in front of him and sent the burly man sprawling with a single kick.

For an Upper Ninth Grade Martial Artist, dealing with these local thugs was laughably easy.

He had them all on the ground in a matter of moments.

Chen Yi glanced at the now-quiet small man and put away the porcelain bottle in his hand.

’No wonder this is the Knockout Drug Miss Pei used to raid the Marquis’s Mansion at night. It’s truly potent.’

’Perhaps I should research some Poison as well.’

’After all, medicine and poison have always been two sides of the same coin. As a physician, it’s only logical to have some Poison on hand for protection, right?’

As these thoughts crossed his mind, Chen Yi glanced at the crowd of onlookers outside. He vaguely spotted a short, hunched figure gradually disappearing into the distance, and his brow furrowed slightly.

’Uncle Gui?’

’Did the Hidden Guard send these thugs?’

It dawned on Chen Yi.

’The Hidden Guard must be unhappy that I’ve become the Shopkeeper of this Medicine Hall.’

Just then, Ge the Third dusted off his hands and came over to ask, "Young Master, what’s next?"

Chen Yi replied casually, "Report them to the authorities."

He paused for a moment before asking, "With the Xiao Mansion’s connections, can we get the Lord Prefect to be... accommodating?"

Ge the Third stared blankly. "Accommodating how? Young Master, you’re not planning on letting them off easy, are you?"

But to his surprise, Chen Yi shook his head. "I meant I hope the Lord Prefect will punish them severely. Preferably sentence them to immediate execution."

The moment he said this, not only Ge the Third, but also the Physicians and apprentices inside the Medicine Hall—and even the onlookers crowded at the door—all gave him a strange look.

A moment of silence.

It’s unclear who spoke first, but someone muttered a curse, "Damn, that’s cold. Even if those guys deserve to die, wanting them executed just for stirring up trouble? That’s too ruthless."

Someone else chimed in, "This Shopkeeper is a hard man."

"A hard man? You guys don’t know who he is, do you?"

"The live-in son-in-law from the Dingyuan Marquis’s Mansion. They say he frequents brothels like it’s a daily meal, and he even nearly stole the wife of the Third Place Scholar."

"Oh, it’s *him*? No wonder..."

Hearing the crowd’s gossip, Ge the Third asked cautiously, "Young Master, you... you’re not serious, are you?"

Chen Yi’s gaze flickered over to Qian Kuan, the Shopkeeper of the neighboring Linglan Pavilion, and he said with a smile:

"Of course I’m joking. In any case, go report them first. We’ll let the Lord Prefect decide everything."

’These thugs are just blades in someone else’s hand. Whether they live or die is of no consequence.’

’I said that purely for the benefit of the onlookers.’

Before the men from the Government Office arrived, Chen Yi crouched down, patted the still-wailing burly man, and asked:

"My good man, I don’t believe you’ve mentioned why you came calling today?"

A muscle in Ge the Third’s face twitched. ’He wanted to sentence them to immediate execution without even knowing what it was all about. The Young Master truly is... is... ’

’Spontaneous and casual, unconcerned with trivialities.’

’That was the most charitable description he could come up with.’

Having been soundly beaten, the burly man knew he was no match for them and answered honestly:

"’Little Monkey’ said your Medical Skill was terrible and made him sicker, so..."

After listening, Chen Yi shook his head. "In that case, your deaths wouldn’t be an injustice."

’Dying of stupidity.’

’Still, this matter couldn’t really be blamed on them.’

’Uncle Gui must have found that small man somewhere and told him to bring people here to cause a scene.’

’Once a fight broke out, the little man would get a fright—or just drop dead—right here in the Medicine Hall. Then I, the Shopkeeper, would have no choice but to find a new line of work.’

’These Hidden Guards are really scheming hard to make me climb the ladder.’

’Of course, there was a second possibility—Linglan Pavilion.’ 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

’But if Linglan Pavilion had hired these goons, that would be a completely different scenario.’

’Jishi Medicine Hall’s Medical Skill proves incompetent; Linglan Pavilion’s renowned doctor works a miracle.’

’Heh, impossible.’

’The small man’s Detachment Syndrome is already terminal. Even with my Great Success Medical Dao, I’d be helpless, let alone anyone at Linglan Pavilion.’

’Chen Yi refused to believe Linglan Pavilion employed a Physician capable of raising the dead.’

’If they did, he would absolutely persuade Xiao Wan’er to close the Medicine Hall and find another livelihood.’

Before long, the government officials arrived.

After a brief round of questioning, they hauled all the local thugs away.

Chen Yi cupped his hands and smiled. "I’m grateful for your assistance."

The government officials were naturally aware of Jishi Medicine Hall’s background. One smiled and said, "Shopkeeper Chen, rest assured. This group already has a record at the Government Office."

"Even without this incident, the Lord Prefect was going to have us arrest them soon anyway."

Chen Yi smiled upon hearing this and had Ge the Third go along with them.

’They might not get immediate execution, but locking them up for a few years will still be a service to the public.’

After the government officials led the men away,

Chen Yi looked at the staff in the Medicine Hall, his gaze falling on Liu Quan’s face. "How many silver coins are left in the register?"

Liu Quan, holding his face, said forlornly, "Shopkeeper, there are only sixty-eight taels of silver coins left in the register."

Chen Yi nodded and said with a smile, "Go ahead and take five taels of silver coins for yourself. Consider it compensation for that slap you took today."

"Me?"

After confirming several times, the pain in Liu Quan’s face instantly vanished. He said with delight, "Thank you, Shopkeeper! Thank you, Shopkeeper!"

Chen Yi waved a hand. "Alright, open up for business. Get busy."

Busy?

For a full hour, Jishi Medicine Hall remained deserted. Not a single patient came through the door.

Business was already bleak due to the presence of Linglan Pavilion.

After the ruckus with the thugs, word of Chen Yi’s "immediate execution" comment had spread all over the East Market, driving away even more potential customers.

In contrast, the neighboring Linglan Pavilion had a constant, bustling stream of people, whether their ailments were serious or minor.

Seeing this, Chen Yi smacked his forehead. ’I’m such an idiot,’ he thought.

’I’m only staying at Jishi Medicine Hall to practice the Medical Dao. If we don’t have any patients, the ones at Linglan Pavilion will work just as well!’

With that thought, Chen Yi grabbed a stool, sat down at the entrance of Jishi Medicine Hall, and stared unblinkingly at the entrance of Linglan Pavilion.

’That one has caught a chill—a minor illness. A prescription to expel cold will cure it.’

’That woman is clearly pregnant. I’d give her a prescription to ensure a stable pregnancy.’

’And this one... sallow and gaunt, with puffy bags under his eyes. That’s a sign of kidney deficiency. He needs to abstain from all worldly pleasures for half a year, supplemented by a yang-warming medicinal soup...’

While welcoming and seeing off customers at his entrance, Qian Kuan kept observing Chen Yi, unable to figure out his intentions.

’This fellow... he’s not planning on making trouble, is he?’

’Judging by what he said earlier, he’s clearly not someone to be trifled with.’

’If he plans to leverage his connections with the Prefectural Magistrate’s Office, we at Linglan Pavilion had better prepare ourselves.’

Chen Yi couldn’t care less what he was thinking. Seeing that Qian Kuan was blocking his view of a slow-moving patient, he frowned and said with annoyance:

"Shopkeeper Qian, business at your Linglan Pavilion may be good, but you can’t just block the view, can you?"

Baffled, Qian Kuan moved aside a little, only to see Chen Yi nod with a smile.

"..."

’Has Jishi Medicine Hall’s poor business driven him mad?’