Liu Bian at the start, so you're called Dong Zhuo, right?

Liu Bian still didn't let Wang Ming finish the second half of his sentence.

He simply raised his hand and pressed the secret report under the candlestick; the candle wax dripped down the corner of the paper like drops of cold sweat.

"Save the people first," he said, his voice not loud, but it made everyone in the hall freeze. "Then save the name."

-

Before dawn the next day, the area in front of Tongsheng Medical Clinic was already packed with people like a boiling pot of porridge.

Some people lay on the ground groaning, some clutched their stomachs and cried out, and some shouted "May you be childless and have no descendants!" The shouts rose in waves, as if they wanted to tear down and smash the "Tongsheng Medical Clinic" signboard.

Xiahou Dun stood in front of the door, his face ashen, and several times he tried to draw his sword.

Cao Cao raised his hand and pressed him down.

"The moment the knife was drawn, Tongsheng Medical Clinic's guilt was confirmed," he said calmly. "That's exactly what they wanted."

Hua Tuo also arrived.

He glanced at the "patients" on the ground, didn't ask a single question, then squatted down and placed three fingers on the first person's wrist.

The next moment, he raised an eyebrow.

Then the second and third.

He stood up, clapped his hands—the sound wasn't loud, but it was like a needle piercing the noise:

"It's an act."

The crowd was taken aback.

Someone immediately shouted, "You quack doctor..."

Hua Tuo didn't argue, but pointed to the man's throat: "You can't swallow dry, you're not short of breath, but your pulse is as weak as the wind—you're not sick, you're afraid."

The man's face turned pale.

Hua Tuo raised his hand again: "Spit out what's in your mouth."

That person stubbornly held on.

Hua Tuo turned to Liu Bian and said, "Young master, may I borrow a bowl?"

Liu Bian didn't speak, but Wang Ming had already handed him the bowl.

Hua Tuo walked to the side, opened a packet of fake medicine, pinched a little powder with his fingertip into the water, and stirred it gently.

The soup instantly turned cloudy, and a layer of fine oil rose to the surface.

Hua Tuo took a sniff, and his eyes suddenly turned cold:

"Is this medicine?"

"This is a 'random prescription' that's mixed with lime, lead powder, and some spicy, sweat-inducing ingredients."

He pushed the bowl forward:

"If you drink it, you'll vomit even if you're not sick, and when you vomit, people will shout 'Tongsheng is harming people'—is this what you call medicine?"

The crowd stirred.

Some people started backing away.

Only then did Liu Bian step forward, standing beneath the plaque, his gaze sweeping across the crowd as if surveying a game of chess:

"Everyone says that Tong Sheng Medical Clinic is harmful."

"Then today, right here—we'll test the medicine in public."

With a wave of his hand, the inner room of Tongsheng Medical Hall was opened, several small stoves were set up, and rows of medicine cabinets were revealed, as if the suspicion of "hiding" was being exposed on the spot.

"Yuanhua," Liu Bian said, "you brew it yourself."

Hua Tuo nodded.

He dispensed the medicine, weighed it, and cooked it in front of everyone, his movements as steady as writing.

When the medicinal soup was served, Liu Bian did not let the patient drink it first.

He picked up a cup himself first.

Wang Ming's face turned deathly pale: "Young Master!"

Liu Bian simply raised the cup to his lips and took a sip.

The cool medicinal aroma entered his throat, but his eyes remained unmoved, as if pressing the words "I dare" directly onto people's hearts.

The crowd fell silent for a moment.

"If it really is a deadly drug," Liu Bian put down his cup and said calmly, "I'll die first."

There's no need to shout this.

But in that instant, everyone understood: the fact that he dared to drink it meant that the drug was not afraid of being investigated.

-

at night.

The preparation room has completely turned over the "road".

The trail led back along the paths of footsteps, incense shops, talisman stalls, and paper shops, eventually leading to a place that should never have appeared: under the name of a certain "clerk" outside the Ministry of Personnel.

A clerk is worthless.

What's valuable is the "official" behind him.

Wang Ming knelt before the table, his voice trembling: "Your Highness... if this thread is extended further, it might reach important figures in the court."

Liu Bian pressed his fingertip against the name, his gaze gradually darkening.

There were two people in the history books whom he remembered very clearly—

Zhongchangshi Fengxu and Xu Feng.

Before the Yellow Turban Rebellion, the most dangerous thing in the capital was not talismanic water, nor slogans.

He was an inside man.

Someone passed a tinder into the palace walls.

He slowly exhaled: "Since the fire is in the heavens, let the heavens rise on their own."

"Wang Ming".

"exist."

"Please let Zhang Rang."

-

Zhang Rang arrived very quickly.

He entered the hall still smiling, but there was a scrutinizing look in his eyes: "It's strange that Your Highness would invite me tonight."

Liu Bian didn't mince words; he placed a packet of fake medicine, a sealed label, and a travel log on the table.

"Zhang Changshi," he said calmly, "is using the name of Tongsheng Medical Clinic to commit murder in the capital."

Zhang Rang's smile remained unchanged, but his eyes narrowed slightly: "What does Your Highness want me to do?"

"Do what you do best." Liu Bian looked at him. "Bring out the 'rules'."

"The rumors circulating in the capital are unsettling and misleading. If we do not investigate them, we will be slapping His Majesty in the face."

Zhang Rang stared at Liu Bian for a moment, then suddenly sighed softly: "Does Your Highness want me to speak for you?"

"It's not on my behalf," Liu Bian said, "it's on behalf of His Majesty."

He paused, then handed out an even sweeter fruit:

"After the investigation is completed, Tongsheng Society is willing to set aside 10% of its profits each month specifically for the dogs and horses of the West Garden and the rewards of the Imperial Garden—the specific items will be determined by Zhang Changshi."

Zhang Rang's gaze finally softened.

He slowly smiled and said, "Your Highness is quite sensible."

"it is good."

"I will go back and tell His Majesty what I have said."

-

That night, the lights in Zhangde Hall remained lit.

After hearing this, Emperor Ling of Han asked only one question: "Right under my nose?"

Zhang Rang lowered his hands and said, "Yes."

The next moment, the table was slammed shut with a loud thud.

"How dare you!"

"How dare they use 'medicine' to spread heresies and 'the capital' as a stage for their own drama!"

"Tomorrow at court—I will personally ask: Who will handle this matter!"

-

The next day, there was a court meeting.

The wind in the Golden Hall was as cold as a knife.

The officials bowed their heads, none daring to speak first.

Emperor Ling of Han swept his gaze across the capital, his voice laced with suppressed anger: "Rumors are rampant in the capital, and the people are filled with anxiety. Some are using names to harm others, while others are using rumors to stir up trouble."

"Who will handle this?"

Silence weighed on everyone's head.

Just then, an official stepped forward, knelt down, and kowtowed, his voice resounding:

"I am willing to accept this assignment."

When he looked up, his expression was calm, as if he had been prepared for it all along.

"I have been secretly investigating for several days and have already made some progress."

Emperor Ling of Han narrowed his eyes: "Speak."

The official remained calm and composed, cupping his hands in greeting:

"Although the rumors originated in the streets, their source was not in Taiping Road."

"A new chamber of commerce has recently sprung up in the capital, named the Tongsheng Association."

"They amass wealth and attract people, opening clinics and setting up charitable granaries, ostensibly to help the sick and poor, but in reality..."

He paused for a moment, as if giving the people in the hall room to imagine.

"In reality, it is the easiest place to gather the affairs of the masses."

A low commotion arose inside the hall.

"quiet."

Emperor Ling's gaze turned cold: "You're saying the rumors originated from the Tongsheng Society?"

The official raised his hand, as if he had prepared a knife beforehand:

"Yes."

"More importantly—I have discovered that behind the Tongsheng Association, it seems that someone is taking advantage of the Crown Prince's position to seize the seal and act on orders to the merchants."

He raised his eyes to look directly at the throne, his voice suddenly rising:

"Your subject dares not speak presumptuously."

"But this Tongsheng Society—is likely related to His Highness the Crown Prince."

As soon as those words were spoken, it felt as if someone had suddenly grabbed the throat of someone in the Golden Hall.

All eyes turned to the seat in the Eastern Palace.

Emperor Ling of Han stopped his hand on the jade tablet and applied slight pressure.

Zhang Rang stood to the side, his smile unchanged, but he secretly glanced at Liu Bian.

It's like saying:

Your Highness, your fire has burned you.

Liu Bian slowly raised his head, facing the scrutiny of the entire hall, without the slightest hint of panic on his face.

This attack directly stabbed him in the back at his "status".

Change "help" to "form a party".

Change "济民" to "聚众".

All the walls he had built over the past two years were turned into "evidence" overnight.

He finally realized that the real counterattack wouldn't come from the streets.

In the imperial court.