Resplendent – Chapter 540

Chapter 540: The Mastermind

A hint of mischief played across Gu Ye’s face, her clear eyes glinting faintly. She crept closer to the ‘corpse’ on the ground, enunciating each word deliberately. “You see, I have this one little quirk. I absolutely detest being wronged! And the consequence for wronging me is… turning that wrong into reality!”

The corpse beneath the tattered sheets showed no initial reaction. Then, someone noticed the sheets trembling faintly. Suddenly, the corpse sprang up from the bed frame, frantically scratching at his own face, hands, and neck, leaving trails of bloody marks.

“Impossible! That man clearly had no breath just now!” murmured the young shop assistant to Doctor Liang.

Young Master Bai Zhi had approached him unnoticed, muttering as if to himself: “Some people can hold their breath for a very long time. There’s a technique in the martial arts world called the Turtle Breathing Art. Even your pulse becomes undetectable, making you look exactly like a corpse! Miss Gu merely applied an itching powder. Had it been me, I would have turned that fellow into a genuine corpse…”

The assistant shrank his neck, stealing a glance at his young master—Young Master Bai is not someone to cross! Case closed.

The gathered crowd erupted like a boiling pot: “He’s not dead! This is clearly a frame-up! Who could be so vicious as to target the Gu family’s young pharmacist?”

“I knew it! We’ve been using Gu’s medicines for over a year. How could it possibly be their fault? Whoever this heartless villain is, trying to ruin Gu Pharmaceuticals… If the pharmaceutical shuts down, won’t we all have to suffer through bitter herbal concoctions again?”

“Miss Gu, we absolutely cannot let them off! The punishment for framing and slandering an apothecary ranges from flogging to exile!”

“That’s right, that’s right! Such deeds demand severe punishment! Not only did he try to discredit Gu Pharmaceuticals, he nearly injured Miss Gu, a senior apothecary. Charge them with multiple offenses; both must be handed over to the authorities!”

“Go to the South District and investigate their background thoroughly! Have the Apothecary Guild blacklist their family. No pharmacy should sell their medicines to them! Such vile people don’t deserve to be healed…”

“No, please don’t! We brothers were blinded by greed and led astray by others into doing this! Pharmacists, please show mercy and spare us!” The younger brother knelt before Gu Ye, pleading for mercy as he stared at his elder brother, whose flesh was already torn and bloody from scratching. The echoes of the crowd’s words reverberated in his ears, rattling his nerves.

These two brothers were originally thugs from the South District. Someone had offered them a hefty sum to discredit Gu Pharmaceutical. Ideally, they were to lure out the pharmacist behind Gu’s operations and destroy him! Given the involvement of a pharmacist and the sensitive timing of the convention, the brothers were unsure if the job would even go through.

But the target’s status… combined with the truly generous reward offered had swayed them. They planned to pull off this one job, then move their entire family out of the capital to settle in some small county town as wealthy gentlemen. Little did they expect that it would all end so quickly…

“Who sent you? Spill it. Maybe if I’m in a generous mood, I’ll show mercy and let you off…” Gu Ye waved at the man pretending to be dead. His scratching abruptly stopped. But now, his face, neck, and hands were covered in bloodstains, a truly terrifying sight.

The onlookers shook their heads in disapproval, not a single one showing sympathy. A pharmacist, who devotes herself in preparing medicines to relieve the suffering of common folk, is instead betrayed—such treachery truly deserves punishment!

The young man looked utterly distressed. No matter how Gu Ye threatened or tempted him, he refused to reveal the mastermind behind it all. 

Gu Ye’s expression shifted to one of understanding: “You won’t name them because they’re also a pharmacist, aren’t they? And a high-ranking one at that, or one with powerful connections?”

The young man’s head snapped up, his eyes widening in shock and suspicion. Gu Ye knew he had guessed correctly.

“You dare not offend the mastermind behind this. But have you considered whether you can afford to offend this pharmacist? I suspect that person has concealed my true identity and background from you.” Gu Ye regarded him coldly, a faint, mocking curve playing at the corners of his mouth.

“You… aren’t you the pharmacist behind Gu Pharmaceutical? But that person told us brothers you were just some lowly apprentice alchemist preparing for the assessment…” The blood-streaked man slumped weakly to the ground as if he had just been tortured and muttered, “He deceived us. Had we known you were a senior pharmacist, no amount of greed would have made us take this job…”

“That person wasn’t entirely wrong! When I first arrived in the capital, I was indeed an uncertified pharmacist awaiting examination. After all, the pharmacist assessment at this convention has already reached the eighth level. Incidentally, the day after tomorrow, this lady here will be taking the ninth-level exam. I doubt whoever sent you anticipated that, did they?” Gu Ye’s face twisted into an even more scornful sneer.

Jiang Zhongtian snorted coldly. “Do you know that my Aunt Master is a disciple of the Sage Apothecary? She’s the junior sister of both Grand Pharmacist Jiang and Grand Pharmacist Baili. Could the mastermind behind you possibly have a more formidable background than my Aunt Master?”

The onlookers grew even more animated upon hearing Jiang Zhongtian’s words: “Good heavens! The junior sister of both Grand Pharmacist Jiang and Baili? No wonder she founded Gu Pharmaceutical at such a young age!”

“The direct disciple of the Sage Apothecary? Definitely extraordinary. No wonder Gu Pharmaceutical rose so swiftly. No wonder the pharmacist behind it all has such impressive credentials.”

“What? Is the Sage Apothecary that famous?” asked a young man in his early twenties.

“The venerable Sage Apothecary surpassed even the status of a Grand Pharmacist over twenty years ago. Grand Pharmacist Jiang is his foremost disciple, while Grand Pharmacist Baili is his junior nephew. Talk about formidable!”

“So this young pharmacist from the Gu family has such a powerful background? No wonder every medicine produced by Gu Pharmaceutical is top-notch with outstanding effects! I must check if Jimin Pharmacy still has any Gu medicines left. I’ll stock up now. It’s better to keep some at hand!”

“Except for pediatric ones, Gu Pharmaceutical’s medicines sell out the moment they hit the shelves. You might not even get them even if you queue up. Stop daydreaming! Oh, and a friendly tip—on the 6th of every month, get to Jimin Pharmacy early. If you’re lucky, you might snag one or two items…”

Hearing Jiang Zhongtian’s words, the brothers’ faces turned ashen, and they collapsed to the ground. The younger brother whipped his head around, his eyes like a dying beast scanning the crowd.

Gu Ye followed his gaze. With so many onlookers, she couldn’t make out anything at first glance. She merely murmured indifferently, “Yin Hong, drag that man out here!”

Bearing the scorching glare of his leader, Yin Mei, Yin Hong swept through the crowd. He grabbed a young man attempting to slip away in the chaos by the collar and hauled him before his mistress.