My brother entrusted his child to me, and I livestreamed raising the baby, making the Empress cry wi

The elders of Java and Yali were clearly seen through by Fujiwara no Shūjin.

Moreover, judging from their appearance, this trump card is probably quite significant.

Fujiwara no Shūjin smiled; these were the words he had been waiting for.

And that is my main purpose today.

"Your Majesty."

His voice wasn't loud, but every word was pronounced clearly, carrying steadily through the empty hall.

"My secret weapon is not very useful in combat, but it will be extremely useful in the post-war period and in controlling the entire Great Flame."

He didn't reveal the answer directly, but instead kept it a little secret for a moment. A glint of something unfathomable flashed in his small eyes, like a long-planned game of chess about to make its most crucial move.

As expected, Ashina's interest was piqued even more. He leaned forward slightly, his right index finger pausing on the red agate, and stopped tapping.

Inside the hall, someone's foot lightly rubbed against the floor, making a very faint rustling sound.

The newly added frankincense in the incense burner seemed to burn even more fiercely at this moment. A spark burst out from the perforated part of the lid, drew a very short arc in the air, and then went out.

The slightly sour and spicy woody aroma suddenly intensified for a moment, then faded away.

Fujiwara no Shūjin continued, his eyes lowered slightly, his gaze falling on a tiny crack in the floor tile in front of him, recalling something from long ago.

"Several years ago, I rescued a man on the beach. This man was a wandering alchemist who claimed to have traveled to several continents and seas and seen countless rare treasures, medicines, secret techniques and ancient methods."

He spoke slowly, as if telling a story, but no one interrupted him, because even the most unruly among them couldn't help but feel curious.

The wind outside the hall picked up again, this time stronger, causing the wooden lattice of the high window to tremble slightly. The sunlight also flickered, and the spots of light cast on the ground shattered into a swaying shadow.

"The Taoist priest, grateful for my life-saving grace, recuperated at my residence for half a month. Before parting, he took out a very small jade box from a hidden pocket close to his body and presented it to me."

When Fujiwara no Shūjin said this, his gaze became somewhat unfocused, as if it were penetrating the walls of the main hall and returning to that seaside dusk many years ago.

"And inside the jade box was a snow-white pill."

"The alchemist said this medicine is called 'Bone-Setting and Marrow-Regenerating Pill,' which he refined using all his life's knowledge. There is only one of its kind in the entire world. As for its effects—"

Fujiwara no Shūjin paused, his tone becoming more serious.

"Although it cannot regenerate severed limbs, as long as the limbs are still intact and the bones and tendons are not rotten, as long as the injured person takes this pill, the injured bones can be restored to their original state in at most seven days, just like before the injury."

Ashina paused, his doubts growing stronger rather than diminished.

Although it can only be used for bone injuries, it can restore an injured person to full health within seven days, making it undoubtedly a miraculous medicine.

He had fought in so many wars and had seen too many soldiers who had lost arms and legs on the battlefield.

Those who survive until the end of the battle will have their wounds splinted by a witch doctor, and will then need to lie in bed for at least three or four months before they can move around with difficulty.

And most people never fully recover to their pre-injury state; they can't lift heavy objects, walk with a limp, and experience excruciating pain in their bones on rainy days.

If this miraculous medicine could be produced in large quantities and used in war, it would indeed be extremely effective, but there is only one available.

A pill.

It is the only one of its kind in the entire world.

What can a single pill do? Save a person?

On a battlefield where soldiers number in the tens of thousands, the life or death of one person is but a drop in the ocean.

Even the commander-in-chief cannot easily decide the course of a battle when the strengths are roughly equal.

Moreover, it can only treat bone injuries, not save lives, as most bone injuries, except for those that are fatal, are not life-threatening.

However, Fujiwara no Shujin himself said it was not for war, so what could it be used for?

He cast a questioning look at Fujiwara no Shujin, his eyes filled with scrutiny and urging.

Da Shiman frowned and turned to look at him.

What kind of trouble are these Japanese trying to cause?!

He couldn't help but curse under his breath, his back teeth clenching unconsciously, the muscles of his jaw slightly bulging and then relaxing.

But he maintained his calm and composed demeanor, only his fingers, hanging at his sides, subtly curled, his nails digging into his palms.

The sunlight shifted slightly by an inch.

The dust in the beam of light continued to tumble silently, so slowly that it seemed to be held up by some unseen force, and it didn't fall to the ground for a long time.

Dashiman's mind began to race—

A pill.

A pill that claims to restore any bone injury to its original state has been linked by Fujiwara no Shūjin to "controlling the great flame".

What is he trying to do? Who is he trying to save? Could it be that some important figure on the Great Flame side has broken a bone?

Da Shiman went through the list of important figures still alive in the Great Flame in his mind, including those with bone injuries...

Suddenly, his pupils involuntarily contracted.

A person suddenly flashed through his mind, like a lightning bolt illuminating a mountain ridge in the darkness. Although it was only for a moment, that silhouette was enough to startle him.

Could it be her?!

As if to confirm his guess.

Fujiwara no Shūjin met Ashina's questioning gaze and slowly uttered a name.

"Shu Jingwei!"

Da Shiman was suddenly startled—it really was her!

Fujiwara no Shūjin explained, "Your Majesty, according to the latest intelligence, many people within the Great Flame are dissatisfied with passing the throne to Ye Fan's daughter, and there are even rumors that the natural disasters are divine punishment for this dissatisfaction."

"In my opinion, that rumor must have been deliberately spread by some force that covets the throne of the Great Flame Dynasty."

"What they want is to rightfully bring down Wang Meng and Ye Fan's daughter so they can seize power for themselves."

"Therefore, as long as they don't want to be branded as traitors, they will inevitably choose to support that former Second Princess of the Great Flame Kingdom—Shu Rou!"

Ashina understood. The path these people had chosen was similar to the method they had devised in the Western Regions during the previous internal strife in the Great Flame: to control the Great Flame by controlling Shurou.

Fujiwara Shujin continued, "And now that Shurou is right under their noses, we can't let anyone get close to her."

Ashina nodded. Indeed, these people certainly didn't seem to be Shu Jingwei.

Shu Jingwei didn't care much about her daughter, which is why they were able to get close to Shu Rou so easily back then.

However, since these people are using Shu Rou as a cover, they will definitely have someone keep a close watch on her to prevent anything from going wrong.

"But now that we have successfully conquered the Great Flame, we need a legitimate authority for the time being, since internal strife and foreign invasion are two different things."

"If we just swagger onto the throne like this, there's no guarantee that those ignorant people won't fight us to the death without regard for anything else."