A divine healer, a general, a young marquis! Who can rival them!

The difficulties imposed by the government officials grew more and more severe each day.

Within ten days, the once bustling atmosphere of Jichuntang had become largely deserted. Merchants, fearing trouble, flocked to other shops; several long-term contracts for medicinal herbs that had been signed were canceled under various pretexts. Even the wealthy families who had previously vied to associate with Jichuntang now kept their distance, afraid of getting involved in the slightest. The thirty-year-old brand suddenly began to teeter on the brink of collapse.

Su Qing saw this and was anxious. She understood better than anyone that these difficulties were no accident; they were clearly aimed at the lead Yang Hu was investigating. Jichuntang had become a tool used by that hand to undermine Yang Hu.

Boss Su was both shocked and furious. His body, already weakened by thirst, finally gave way after this ordeal. One afternoon, in his accounting room, he clutched his left chest, couldn't catch his breath, and collapsed to the ground.

Su Qing was terrified and immediately invited Yang Hu over.

When Yang Hu arrived, Boss Su's face was ashen, he was clutching his left chest, so short of breath that he couldn't even utter a coherent sentence, and his forehead was covered in cold sweat.

Yang Hu took Su's pulse; it was deep and irregular, with frequent pauses. He then examined Su's tongue, which was dark purple with prominent, bluish-purple veins beneath. Seeing Su clutching his left chest and curling up in pain, Yang Hu already knew what was going on.

He had seen this disease far too many times in his previous life. When qi and blood are blocked in the heart vessels, the pain is like being twisted or stabbed, and in a dangerous situation, it can take a person's life in an instant. In ancient times, most doctors only regarded it as a common "heartache" and used some qi-regulating medicines to deal with it superficially, without curing the root cause at all.

"It's chest pain," Yang Hu said in a deep voice. "Anger, worry, and anxiety have blocked the flow of qi and blood in the heart meridian. This disease is dangerous; when it flares up, it can be fatal."

He took out silver needles and inserted them into several acupoints on Boss Su's chest, such as Tanzhong and Neiguan, to promote blood circulation, relieve chest tightness and pain. At the same time, he asked Su Qing to decoct a medicine to warm the heart yang, remove blood stasis and relieve pain.

This time, Su Qing didn't need Yang Hu to give her any instructions; she quickly and efficiently prepared the medicine and brewed it without making any mistakes.

As the needles were inserted, Boss Su's tightly furrowed brows relaxed slightly. The needles at the Tanzhong and Neiguan points were crucial for relieving chest congestion, regulating Qi, and clearing the heart meridian. While administering the acupuncture, Yang Hu had someone bring warm water, dissolved several emergency medicine powders, and had Boss Su drink them.

About half an hour later, the effects of the acupuncture and medicine took hold. Boss Su's hand, which had been clutching his chest, gradually loosened, his breathing became smoother, and his ashen face slowly regained its color. He slowly woke up.

Another dangerous situation was averted by Yang Hu.

After catching his breath, Boss Su took Yang Hu's hand, tears streaming down his face, but he couldn't utter a single complete sentence. He just kept shaking his head.

Su Qing knelt before her father's bed, looking at the family that had been gradually cornered by the government and whose father had even fallen ill from the illness. Then she looked at the young, miraculous doctor who had repeatedly reached out to them in dire straits. The thoughts that had been building up in her heart for so long could no longer be suppressed.

These past few days, she had stayed by Yang Hu's side, watching him diagnose intestinal abscesses, examine corpses to clear injustices, and repeatedly pull people back from the brink of death with effortless ease in situations where others were helpless. His medical ethics and sense of responsibility had long since won her heart. Now, seeing her family business on the verge of collapse and her father critically ill, she suddenly felt that if there was still a place in this world where she could entrust her life and fortune, it was behind this young, miraculous doctor.

She stood up, bowed deeply to Yang Hu.

"Dr. Yang." Her voice wasn't loud, but every word was clear. "My Su family can't weather this storm on our own. I see clearly that in this city, only you can protect Jichuntang."

She looked up, her eyes glistening with tears, yet surprisingly bright.

"I dare to make a request. I wish to follow you, Divine Physician, to learn medicine from you, and to manage your medicinal herbs. From now on, all the medicinal herbs, connections, and information of Jichun Hall will be at your disposal. I only ask that you protect my Su family of dozens of people and give us a way to survive."

The room was completely silent.

Yang Hu looked at her and remained silent for a moment.

He knew perfectly well that taking in Su Qing and Jichuntang was not just about having another medical assistant or another medicinal herb business. Jichuntang controlled the lifeline of the city's medicinal herbs, and Su Qing was knowledgeable in both medicine and the ins and outs of the pharmacy business. She was the assistant he desperately needed to investigate and manipulate.

But this also meant that he would drag the entire Su family even deeper into this murky water of life and death. Su Qing's blessing was not only about following him in the medical field, but also about betting the lives and fortunes of her entire family on his boat. This trust was heavy and weighty, leaving him no choice but to weigh it carefully.

He didn't agree immediately, but asked first:

"Have you thought this through? By following me, you're not protecting an ordinary family business. The trail I'm investigating leads to a force capable of poisoning the living and stirring up trouble in the government. The difficulties Jichuntang faces today are nothing compared to what it will face in the future. Once you step into this world, there's no turning back."

Su Qing's gaze remained unwavering.

"My father's life was saved by the miracle doctor. The reputation of Jichuntang was also saved by the miracle doctor. Now, this calamity also stems from the miracle doctor's investigation into that line." She said, word by word, "I, Su Qing, am not the kind of person who only knows how to avoid trouble. I'm determined to wade into this muddy water."

Looking into her clear and determined eyes, Yang Hu finally felt at ease.

"Alright," he said slowly. "I'll take on this hardship for Jichuntang."

He immediately went to the Zhou family residence. Because of the life-saving grace of Old Master Zhou, the Zhou family readily agreed, exerted some effort, and used the influence of a major grain merchant in the city to plead on behalf of Jichuntang at the yamen. The pretexts used to make things difficult for Jichuntang disappeared one by one within three to five days. Seeing that a major grain merchant like the Zhou family was intervening, and considering the reputation of the renowned physician in the east of the city—a reputation even Magistrate Zhao dared not easily offend—the officials in the yamen also went along with it, quietly withdrawing their baseless accusations.

Jichuntang finally caught its breath. The merchants who had initially backed out gradually returned; the sealed medicinal herbs were all unsealed. After several days of recuperation, Boss Su's chest pain, carefully treated by Yang Hu, improved day by day. With this back and forth, the people of the city understood: Jichuntang was backed by that legendary doctor from the east of the city; anyone who dared to mess with it in the future would have to think twice.

Boss Su was moved to tears and, in front of Yang Hu, wanted Su Qing to formally become his apprentice. Yang Hu, however, stopped him. The situation was tense right now; the matter of formal recognition wasn't urgent.

After this incident, everyone at Jichuntang had completely staked their lives and fortunes on Yang Hu's ship.

After settling Jichuntang in, the moon was high in the sky. Only then did Yang Hu take Qin Ying and Liu Ye back to their home in the east of the city.

It was late at night, and Yang Hu stood by the window.

The pawn, Jichuntang, had firmly fallen into his hands. With Su Qing's medical skills and Jichuntang's connections in medicinal herbs, he now had another pair of eyes and another hand to investigate that line of inquiry.

But he also knew that the little relief he had given Jichuntang tonight was merely a temporary withdrawal of that hand, a ploy to plan for the future. The real battle was still waiting for him in that bottomless military camp, at the end of that line.

And that day, step by step, drew closer, to the rhythm of the night's drumbeats.