HomeAfter I Bloom Hundred Flowers DieChapter 21: Miss Shen, I Have Learned My Lesson

Chapter 21: Miss Shen, I Have Learned My Lesson

Snake gallbladder still needed to undergo several years of complex soaking processes…

Though it appeared to be only nine medicinal ingredients, preparing these nine ingredients required many more components.

“The golden eagle bone was passed down from my ancestors, and the rest of the ingredients took me fifty years to gather,” the white-haired elder said. “This old one experienced ten failures before successfully refining it…”

Speaking with some pride to this point, the white-haired elder then cautiously continued, “Without materials to refine more, this old one scraped off a layer to test on both humans and wild creatures. For humans, it indeed has the effect of cleansing tendons, transforming marrow, and metamorphosing the body, but whether there are other harmful effects, this old one no longer has the time or materials to verify.”

The implication was clear – whether there were side effects or not would only be known after taking it.

Regardless of the potential effects, Shen Xihe had no intention of giving up. Her gaze turned to Hua Fuhai: “Hua Taoyi, while it’s true that you gathered this item, it fell into my hands, not through forceful seizure. Though my argument may be somewhat forced, this is a matter of life and death, and I am unwilling to simply hand it over.”

Hua Fuhai nodded slightly: “Miss Shen could have simply denied that this item was found by the riverside.”

If she had insisted it came from elsewhere, he would have had no proof.

*If you weren’t so peculiar, I naturally wouldn’t have admitted it.*

Though thinking this, Shen Xihe’s expression remained unchanged as she gave a slight bow: “Master Hua shows great righteousness.”

The white-haired elder looked back and forth between them, suddenly smiling: “People outside would fight themselves bloody over this old one’s little thing, yet you two remain so calm. Why don’t this old one arrange a contest, and you two can compete based on your abilities?”

Shen Xihe and Hua Fuhai’s gazes met once more, then calmly moved away in unison as they both nodded to the white-haired elder.

The white-haired elder had spent his entire life dealing with medicine, so he wasn’t going to pose any medical questions. His eyes moved between the two of them before finally settling on Shen Xihe: “Since Master Hua obtained this item first, we shall favor him slightly.”

Turning to look at Hua Fuhai, he asked: “What is Master Hua’s specialty?”

Hua Fuhai’s eyes swept over Shen Xihe – if he were to say his specialty was martial arts, how could this princess possibly stand against him?

“Unworthy as I am, I excel at the game of wei qi,” Hua Fuhai answered.

“A game of wei qi then – would Miss Shen be willing?” the white-haired elder inquired of Shen Xihe.

Shen Xihe felt that Hua Fuhai was indeed acting as a gentleman: “I am willing.”

“Very well, then let it be wei qi,” the white-haired elder clapped his hands. “But let’s not be rigid with back-and-forth moves – this old one would fall asleep watching that. Since it’s Master Hua’s specialty, let Miss Shen set up an endgame position for Master Hua to solve. I can also discuss some matters with Miss Shen in the meantime.”

Though the elder claimed to favor Hua Fuhai, he had managed to keep things quite balanced.

“Please, Miss Shen, set the challenge,” Hua Fuhai agreed with grace.

“You take Miss Shen to set up the position, while I check Master Hua’s pulse,” the white-haired elder instructed his old servant.

Following the old servant’s guidance, Shen Xihe went to an elegant room. Sitting before the go board, she pondered for a long while, hesitating to make her first move.

Hua Fuhai wasn’t the real Hua Fuhai. If he had wanted to give her the Bone-Shedding Pill, he would have said so directly. Therefore, his claim about excelling at wei qi couldn’t be false – his skill must be profound.

To win this match, she would need to rely on wit.

Having made up her mind, Shen Xihe picked up the go stones, one hand holding black and one white, and began setting up the position.

Halfway through arranging the pieces, Shen Xihe’s face began to pale, and sweat appeared on her forehead. Her body was too weak – even slight mental or physical exertion would leave her gasping for breath.

“Zhenzhu, *cough* *cough* *cough*… go fetch my fragrance pouch,” Shen Xihe instructed.

Zhenzhu immediately rushed outside toward their carriage.

With intermittent breaks, Shen Xihe took an entire hour to set up the endgame position, then invited them to come in.

“The Thousand-Layer Formation…” Hua Fuhai began after one glance, but quickly corrected himself, “No, not the Thousand-Layer formation…”

Shen Xihe’s expression remained calm: “Please proceed, Master Hua.”

“Miss Shen’s board setup is exquisite. Does it have a name?” Hua Fuhai showed great interest in the position.

“The Moon Palace formation.”

“Two-quarters of an hour will be the time limit,” the white-haired elder favored Shen Xihe in the rules, then led her to another side.

Shen Xihe was short of breath and spirit, so the white-haired elder began applying acupuncture while Zhenzhu carefully took notes nearby.

In the room, there was only the soft sound of stones being placed on the board. Shen Xihe seemed truly exhausted, falling asleep during the acupuncture treatment.

Only when the final stone was placed did Hua Fuhai announce: “The position has been solved.”

Shen Xihe slowly opened her eyes at Zhenzhu’s gentle nudging, her expression still somewhat drowsy.

“Miss Shen, this old one has only a few months left to live. I notice your maid here has some foundation – would you like to leave her here to learn from me?” the white-haired elder asked upon seeing Shen Xihe wake.

Shen Xihe looked at Zhenzhu and nodded: “Indeed, I hope the elder will provide much guidance.”

“Then leave her here,” the white-haired elder nodded. “Miss Shen, please go check the board position.”

Shen Xihe felt less fatigue and breathlessness now. She stood and walked over slowly. The position had indeed been solved, and she nodded: “Master Hua’s wei qi skill is remarkable.”

As Hua Fuhai reached to collect all the captured white stones, Shen Xihe raised her hand to stop him: “Wait.”

Hua Fuhai’s hand hung suspended above the board as he slightly raised his head, his deep ocean-like eyes meeting Shen Xihe’s gaze.

If earlier it had been just intuition, now this single glance convinced Shen Xihe that Hua Fuhai was indeed the embroidered messenger from the previous night.

With a faint smile, Shen Xihe’s two slender jade-like fingers picked up a white stone from the edge and dropped it into her previously used teacup. A pale white color dispersed, and the white stone turned black. She placed the stone back in its original position.

What had appeared to be a position where all white stones were captured suddenly became one where all black stones were defeated. Shen Xihe humbly spoke: “Master Hua, I appreciate your courtesy.”

Watching the board position completely reverse, amusement spilled from Hua Fuhai’s deep ocean-like eyes: “How interesting.”

He picked up that wet black stone: “How did Miss Shen make it appear white?”

Though the elegant room had ink and brushes, he had checked all the black stones and found nothing unusual. The black stones represented him.

He hadn’t expected Shen Xihe to make black stones as glossy as white ones in such a short time, causing him to let down his guard once.

“Fragrant cream,” Shen Xihe explained. “I had my maid fetch medicine.”

This demonstrated her tacit understanding with Zhenzhu. Before entering the elegant room, Ink Jade had mentioned people keeping watch outside, so rather than giving Zhenzhu direct instructions, she had used a hint. When Zhenzhu went to fetch her fragrance pouch, there was scented cream she had prepared from aromatics in the carriage.

The cream was milky white like lacquer – apply a light layer and dry it over the incense burner.

As she spoke, Shen Xihe brought out both the fragrant cream and the incense burner.

The cream was held in an exquisite palm-sized porcelain container, while the incense burner was originally part of the elegant room’s furnishings.

Under time pressure, normal thinking would assume that if she were to employ trickery, it would be with the white stones – perhaps using ink to turn white stones black.

While changing white to black would be easy, changing black to white would be extremely difficult.

“In warfare between two armies, planting spies is not particularly clever. Making the enemy execute their trusted advisors – that is the superior strategy.” Shen Xihe’s eyes, seeming to hold a trace of frost, sparkled with profound depth.

“Miss Shen, I have learned my lesson.” Hua Fuhai stood and gave Shen Xihe a deep bow.

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