The World's Number One Medical Hall

Chapter Sixty-Five: The Sound of the Wind

"This is absurd! The newspapers have already written it clearly: the assassination of Prince Ming was carried out by the Crown Prince. Don't you all consider that both the Crown Prince and Prince Ming are sons of the Empress, and both are of noble birth? Although the Crown Prince's position as heir apparent was decided long ago, Prince Ming, though raised among commoners, has achieved the level of a martial arts grandmaster and is even married to a first-rank vice minister of the Ministry of Revenue. It is conceivable that his influence has already surpassed that of His Highness the Crown Prince, and he is a potential successor. How could the Crown Prince not be wary of him? Therefore, it is not surprising that he committed this act of fratricide."

"This is absurd! How can you believe everything you read in the newspapers? Why don't you mention that His Majesty has already ordered Prince Ming to be transferred from Pingjing to my Mingzhu to become the Prince? It's clear that he can no longer threaten the Crown Prince's position. The Imperial Court has already issued a decree that this case is Lin Huayao's treason."

"This is reasonable. As the father-in-law of the Prince of Ming, Lin Huayao must be loyal to the Prince. Driven by his wolfish ambition, he actually used the Prince of Ming's case to frame and murder the Crown Prince, hoping that the Prince of Ming would have a chance to inherit the throne in the future. He disregarded the impact that the death of the Crown Prince and the vacancy of the heir apparent would have on the country. He only cared about his own selfish interests and disregarded the people of the country. He is a traitor to the country and should be executed..."

"This is utterly absurd! Lord Lin is a veteran of two reigns, a first-rank official in the Ministry of Revenue, and has always been known for his integrity and uprightness. He is a rare and wise minister in the court, and you are not allowed to slander him!"

"Indeed, you all know only empty talk, yet you do not understand that the Prince of Ming and the Crown Prince have actually been vying for power for a long time. The court has long been engaged in open and covert struggles over the succession. Even His Majesty actually favors the Prince of Ming. The reason for summoning the Prince of Ming out of the capital is that the country is currently beset by internal and external troubles, and the succession struggle is no longer possible. Therefore, His Majesty temporarily summoned the Prince of Ming out of the capital for the sake of the overall situation. However, the Crown Prince knows His Majesty's intentions, which is why he committed this heinous act of fratricide. Lord Lin has been loyal and upright all his life. From the attack on the Prince of Ming, he was not afraid of powerful figures. He testified against Zhang Bangli, the Minister of the Imperial Censorate, and then against Shang Qingshan, the leader of the Taoist sect. In the end, he was not afraid of the authority of the entire court, only seeking justice. In history, which wise minister has had the courage of Lord Lin? Knowing that he would die, he still wanted to frame the Crown Prince. This is a clear conscience, and heaven and earth can bear witness. Now the country knows the truth, but in order to cover up the ugliness of the royal family's fratricide, it sacrifices Lord Lin..."

"Bah! This is utterly ridiculous! If Lin Huayao were truly so loyal, why would he abandon his family and flee? The nation has already proven that Lin Huayao had long intended to escape, which is why he was able to break through the nation's heavy pursuit. It is said that he has already fled to the south, colluding with the disloyal warlord Chen Shixun in Guangdong, intending to overthrow the nation and establish himself... You all speak eloquently, proving the struggle between the Prince and the Crown Prince, but have you not heard that the Prince has only been back in the capital for two years? Everyone in the capital knows that he is illiterate and arrogant. Even if he is a master of martial arts, what use is it? Can he govern the country with just a knife? How can he compete with the Crown Prince? Why would the Crown Prince risk the wrath of the world and slaughter his own brothers? Isn't this utterly ridiculous? Even His Majesty has personally issued a decree, proving that Lin Huayao is a wolf in sheep's clothing, intending to collude with the rebels to disrupt the nation's rule. He is truly the greatest traitor of all time!"

……

It was midday, and the inn was packed with guests, creating a tense atmosphere.

It turns out that the heated argument was sparked by the news of the killing of Crown Prince Heijing in this morning's newspaper.

It was obvious that opinions differed, with both groups holding their own views and arguing heatedly.

"Bang!" Just as the two sides were locked in a fierce argument, one of them slammed his hand on the table, stood up, and cried out in anguish, "Why are you all so concerned only with this sordid matter, and not with the fact that our nation is on the verge of collapse? The centuries-old prestige of our great Xia Dynasty will be destroyed in the blink of an eye. How can you all remain indifferent?"

"Clang, clang, clang!" Accompanying his voice were the cups, bowls, chopsticks, and plates falling to the ground on the table.

The entire arena fell silent amidst the clinking and jingling, all eyes turning to the madman in his long robe.

Then the arrogant young man's eyes widened, reddening, unable to contain his excitement. He raised the newspaper in his hand, looked at everyone, pointed to the huge headline, and continued to lament: "The throne is vacant, and infighting is raging in the court!"

As soon as he finished speaking, he threw the newspaper aside, picked up another one, and continued pointing to the headline: "Lin Huayao seems to have fled to eastern Guangdong. Chen Shixun, the general commander of eastern Guangdong, sent a telegram to the Guangdong army overnight, urging them to be on high alert and ready for battle!"

"Smack..." After saying that, the arrogant scholar slammed his hand on the table again: "Gentlemen, do you see this? Do you see this? Tens of millions of people in our Great Xia are enduring humiliation and living in fear under the humiliation of foreign enemies, hoping that the dynasty will work hard and restore our dignity as soon as possible. But what is this? Huh?"

"This is because the important officials in the court do not care about the safety of the country, but only care about wealth and glory, and factional struggles break out for the succession."

"This shows that domestic warlords are not thinking about resisting foreign enemies, but are instead preparing for war to break out at any moment in their struggle for the throne!"

"Gentlemen, our Great Xia Dynasty is in such a state that it has reached the brink of destruction!"

"Who will save the country? Who will save the country...?"

……

The argument in the inn didn't stop because of Kuang Sheng; it just changed the topic and became even more intense.

Save the country?

Everyone rose up for these two words.

It must be said that this era is admirable. So many people are so sincere, only wanting the country to prosper, only worrying about dignity, and fighting for it!

No one noticed that in a corner of the inn, two people sat quietly, without uttering a single word.

One of the pale, sickly-looking young men slowly put down his chopsticks and said softly to the man beside him, "We're done eating, let's go!"

Without a doubt, these two were Mo Bai and Tie Xiong.

Tie Xiong's gaze had been fixed on Mo Bai's expression the whole time. Although Mo Bai remained calm as he ate, he could still sense the terrifying depth of the light in Mo Bai's eyes.

"Sixth Master, let's change inns and stay here for now. You can rest first. I don't know if Ah Jiu and the others have settled in yet. I'll go and find out the situation before making any arrangements," Tie Xiong said softly after thinking for a moment.

"No need, let's just go directly!" Mo Bai gently shook his head.

However, Tie Xiong hesitated slightly. He hadn't told Mo Bai about his fellow disciples' attitude, but he was actually a little worried. In addition, Mo Bai's complexion looked obviously not good. He knew that Mo Bai had been going through a lot in the past few days.

With this major event happening today, I'm afraid Mo Bai's mind is disturbed, and if he goes directly to his fellow disciples' place later, something might go wrong...

"Sixth Master, this is my first time in Mingzhu, and I'm not familiar with the roads. I don't know if Ajiu and the others are at the agreed location. There might be more twists and turns. You're not fully recovered yet..." Tie Xiong continued to persuade him.

Mo Bai raised his eyes slightly and glanced at his face. Clearly, Tie Xiong was not someone who would question his opinions casually.

Surely something was up. A glint flashed in Mo Bai's eyes, and he didn't refuse again. He glanced at the people who were still arguing and nodded, saying, "Let's stay here. No need to change locations."

Tie Xiong glanced at the people who were still criticizing the dynasty, and his lips moved slightly.

Mo Bai's voice rang out again: "It's the same everywhere, it doesn't matter!"

Tie Xiong remained silent, knowing that today the entire Pearl River Delta would likely be the same: "Fine!"

Instead of checking into the inn directly, Tie Xiong first went to several neighboring shops to find out about the inn before deciding to stay.

It was done very quickly.

"Sixth Master, please rest first. I will definitely be back before dark!" Tie Xiong said in a deep voice.

Mo Bai sat by the window, gazing at Mingzhu, which resembled an ancient painting, and gently nodded, saying, "Go!"