In times of chaos and famine, I traded one pound of rice for two royal flushes.

"Quick! Bring the wound medicine and gauze!" he shouted at the Blood-Clad Guards.

Just as he was holding his master and bending down to treat his wounds, the old man, who was already "unconscious," drew several symbols on the back of his hand with his fingers hanging at his side at an extremely fast speed.

That wasn't writing, but an extremely simplified... map.

The end point of the map is marked with an X.

And the starting point was none other than the Imperial Pharmacy!

The dungeon was in chaos.

Qin Shaolang held his "unconscious" master in his arms, while loudly directing the Blood-Clad Guards to fetch water and medicine, and cleverly using his body to block everyone's view.

His back was directly facing the eyes hidden in the shadows outside the prison door.

And his hand was tightly holding his master's hand.

The touch of my fingertips clearly conveyed the final message that my master had drawn with his life.

The Imperial Pharmacy has a secret passage!

"Quick! Get out of the way! Get out of the way!" Qin Shaolang's voice was trembling with tears, sounding extremely anxious. "My master is old and can't take this kind of trouble! If you delay any longer, I'll never forgive you if something happens!"

His performance was so sincere and genuine that no one could see any flaws in it.

The two Blood-Clad Guards were stunned by his shout and genuinely thought the old man was about to die, so they hurriedly tried to help him.

Taking advantage of the chaos, Qin Shaolang quickly sent a few signals to his master's palm to indicate that he understood.

Immediately, he took out the old-fashioned needle case from his pocket, picked up a silver needle, and without saying a word, pierced the Baihui acupoint on his master's head.

The old man's body trembled slightly, and he slowly woke up.

"Where...where am I...?"

"Master, you're awake!" Qin Shaolang cried tears of joy.

The old man opened his eyes and saw Qin Shaolang. The "anger" in his eyes had not yet dissipated. He pushed Qin Shaolang away and struggled to stand up.

"Get out! I don't have a traitor like you!" He pointed to the door, his voice weak but firm. "Get out of here!"

Qin Shaolang was "invited" out of the dungeon by the Blood-Clad Guards, looking "distraught".

This drama of master and disciple turning against each other was performed flawlessly.

The news quickly reached Wei Zhongxian's ears.

"Oh? That old man really turned against Qin Shaolang?" Wei Zhongxian listened to his subordinate's report and a satisfied smile appeared on his face.

"Absolutely true. That old man berated Qin Shaolang mercilessly and even slammed his head against the cell door, nearly killing himself. We saw it clearly; it didn't seem like an act."

"Hehe, good, very good." Wei Zhongxian was in high spirits. "It seems there's no one in this world that we can't control."

He waved his hand: "Pass on my orders. From today onwards, the guards in the dungeon can be relaxed. Get that old fellow a clean cell, and serve him three meals a day with good wine and meat. Don't let him die."

"Yes, Godfather."

Wei Zhongxian picked up his teacup. He believed that Qin Wentian's son would ultimately not escape the curse of "bringing glory to his ancestors."

He has already leashed this most loyal dog.

……

Inside the villa, however, the atmosphere was heavy.

"Sir, you said Master... is he really..." The monkey looked at Qin Shaolang, but stopped mid-sentence.

Qin Shaolang did not answer. He locked himself in his study, spread out a sheet of white paper, and copied the map that his master had drawn on the back of his hand from memory without any error.

That was an extremely secretive route.

Starting from the innermost room of the Imperial Pharmacy, behind the secret medicine cabinet where Tian Shan snow lotus is stored, there is a hidden passage that bypasses all the guards and leads directly to a side hall deep within the inner garden of the Imperial Palace.

At the end of the diagram, the master marked the side hall with an X and wrote two words in code next to it.

"Medicine source".

The source of the poison that the Emperor was poisoned with is right there!

"This is too risky." Wei Qing looked at the map, his brows furrowed. "The imperial palace is teeming with experts and riddled with traps. Going there alone is tantamount to suicide."

"Nothing ventured, nothing gained." Qin Shaolang's eyes were unusually firm. "This is a clue that my master risked his life for; I cannot let him down."

He has already made up his mind.

Tonight, he will sneak into the palace.

As night fell, Qin Shaolang changed into a set of night clothes that would allow for easy movement.

Wei Qing handed him the half of the tiger tally and a dagger that could cut through iron like mud.

"Be careful in everything you do," she said, only four words.

Qin Shaolang nodded, and with a flash, disappeared into the night.

With the help of the palace guard rotation map given to him by Imperial Censor Liu, and his extraordinary agility, Qin Shaolang managed to sneak into the vicinity of the Imperial Pharmacy without any major incident.

The guards at the Imperial Pharmacy were even more heavily armed than during the day.

Like a gecko, he silently clung to the shadows of the roof, patiently waiting for his chance.

At 11:45 AM, during the break between shift changes.

It's now!

Qin Shaolang drifted silently into the courtyard like a falling leaf and slipped through the gate of the Imperial Pharmacy.

Following the map's directions, he easily found his way to the deepest secret chamber.

The huge rosewood medicine cabinet stood quietly against the wall.

Qin Shaolang went around to the back of the medicine cabinet and groped along the wall.

Soon, he found a slightly protruding brick.

Following the master's instructions, three strokes to the left and five strokes to the right, starting lightly and gradually increasing the pressure.

"Click".

With a very slight click, the medicine cabinet silently slid aside, revealing a dark opening just wide enough for one person to pass through.

A musty, earthy, and herbal smell wafted out of the cave entrance.

Qin Shaolang took a deep breath and, without the slightest hesitation, slipped inside.

The passageway was pitch black; you couldn't see your hand in front of your face.

Qin Shaolang could only move forward with difficulty by touching the walls with his fingertips and by following the map in his mind.

After walking for an unknown amount of time, a faint glimmer of light finally appeared ahead.

We've arrived at the export point.

He carefully pushed open the door to the secret passage, which led to the interior of a long-abandoned artificial hill.

Outside is the side hall marked on the map.

It was an unremarkable palace, without even a plaque. The doors were locked and the windows were boarded up, and it looked like it had been abandoned for many years.

Qin Shaolang went around to the back of the side hall and quietly slipped in through a crack in a broken window.

The interior of the hall was completely different from what he had imagined.

There was no dust or cobwebs here; in fact, it was almost too clean.

In the center of the hall, there were no tables, chairs, or beds, but rows of shelves filled with all sorts of bottles and jars.

The air was filled with a strong, strange smell that was hard to describe as either fragrant or foul.

Qin Shaolang walked to a shelf, picked up a celadon bottle, uncorked it, and smelled it.

It's Qinghe aconite!

He then opened another bottle.

It is a powder made from a mixture of dried earthworms, leeches, and Panax notoginseng!

This place is actually a workshop that specializes in making slow-acting poisons!

Just as he picked up the third bottle to examine it, a cold, sharp blade silently pressed against his back.