Chapter 70 - Poisons

[Continued ~]

"What happened to him?" Jiang Ying Yue asked as she moved closer to the bed to check the pulse of the little boy.

"Are... A-are you a physician?" Jun asked when he noticed her checking his younger brother's condition.

Jiang Ying Yue remained silent as she checked the health condition of the young boy before stepping back and turning her attention towards the young man who was still kneeling on the ground.

"I'm not." She answered truthfully and noticed the ray of hope leaving Jun's eyes as if her answer disappointed her. A small twitch appeared on her lips as she observed him for a while. "Though I'm not a doctor, it doesn't mean that I can't save your brother." 

As soon as she said those words, the sparkle returned to Jun's eyes as he looked up at her with hope. "Can... C-can you really do that? Can you save my brother? Please... Please... Save him... S-save my brother..."

Jiang Ying Yue walked closer to where he was kneeling and helped him to stand up. "Stop crying. Your tears are not going to cure your brother. Tell me how did he end up in this situation in the first place." 

Jun Yong stood up and wiped away the tears that were rolling down his cheeks. "A few nights after the great fire in Jun residence a year ago, I found out that all of it was a planned incident by Manager Bai. I wanted to run away with my brother before that man could have decided to finish us off too. But I did not expect to be raided on our way out of the county. That's when Xiantong got hurt and it was too late when we finally realized that the weapon was carrying poison."

"I had no money, no place to stay, and no food to eat. I tried my best but could not find a good doctor to take a look at Xiantong's condition. Those whom I could afford were not good enough to save him and I could not find enough money to find the good ones. Over the months, the poison invaded deeper into his body, and he entered this state of unconsciousness. If not for Master who found me a few months ago, my brother would probably have..."

Jun Yong could not find the courage to speak anymore. He sobbed while doing his best to keep more tears from rolling down his cheek.

Jiang Ying Yue let out a sigh as she returned her attention to the sleeping boy. She felt movements behind her and the next second, the Third Prince came to stand next to her.

"Why are you so interested in their story? Want to take revenge for them?" Wu Xie asked while looking at her with arched eyebrows.

His questions made Jiang Ying Yue scoff as she rolled her eyes as a response. "Don't overthink. I'm just curious about the poison that is currently running through the body is this child. It's one of the most powerful poisons that I've come across in both my..." She trailed off at the last part but there was little left to the imagination as to what she would have said.

"Poison? Why? Whom are you planning to poison?" Wu Xie asked as he could not help but become more curious about whatever was going on in her head.

Jiang Ying Yue turned her eyes at the Third Prince as she replied with a soft smile, "Who knows? Maybe I'll end up using it on you." 

Just like she expected, her words made a small twitch appeared on Wu Xie's lips as he found her reply not only funny but also expected. "Poisons are probably the last thing that could help you to harm me. You will need to work hard to find something even more powerful than poisons if you want to hurt me."

"Though it sounds tempting, I don't have that much free time to waste on such things." Jiang Ying Yue replied in a calm tone before she looked away, not waiting to see the smirk on his lips.

While these two were busy bickering, Jun Yong was having a hard time believing his ears. He knew that his Master was the Third Prince of the Empire and seeing a woman talking to him with such fierceness made him both praise her and at the same time, worry for her. She dared to talk so brazenly to the Prince, who knew what kind of trouble she would face as a punishment.

"Jun Yong, are you even listening to me?" Jiang Ying Yue asked in a loud voice as she flicked the young man on his forehead, successfully bringing him out of his thoughts.

"I... I apologize for my behavior." He hurriedly said while bowing his head, making Ying Yue sigh as she lightly scratched the tip of her nose.

"It's alright. Now listen carefully. I'll appoint you as the new manager of my store tomorrow morning. You will work there and will stay in the little house in the backyard of the store. Leave your brother here as it's a good place for him to rest. I'll bring you here every weekend to meet your brother. Give me three months and I promise to cure your brother completely. He will be like any other normal child of his age by the time these three months will come to an end." 

There was pin-drop silence following her words as Jun Yong stared at her with a shocked look on his face. She could see the dilemma in his eyes as he struggled to believe her words. After all, even Third Prince could not help him save his brother and she was an unknown person who wasn't even a doctor.

"You have the entire night to think about my offer. I'll wait for you tomorrow morning. If you end up accepting my offer, be there on time. We will be opening the store around ten o'clock." She told him and immediately turned around to leave the room. She didn't want to give the young man any time to bombard her with questions that were popping up in his mind.

She spotted a door on the other side of the room and stepped out. She found herself facing a small garden that led to another small courtyard. 

"Can you really cure him in three months?" The Third Prince asked as he followed her out of the room. For the very first time in a while, he genuinely seemed curious.

Jiang Ying Yue could not help the smile tha5 bloomed on her lips as she replied to his question, "I can cure him in less than three minutes." 

That was surely not the answer that the Third Prince expected to hear but it was the truth. With her actual abilities, Jiang Ying Yue could easily detoxify the poison in the kid's body. However, her current state was too weak for her to use her powers and that's why she asked for three months.

Even though she could not return to her full potential in three months but if she succeeded in regaining even ten percent of her actual powers, then she would easily cure the kid. As for the situation where she failed in regaining even ten percent of her powers after three entire months, well... she still had Silver. 

All in all, she was not going to break her deal with Jun Yong if the young man ended up accepting it. As long as he would accept her offer, she would complete her part of the deal.

"You can't even heal your own injuries and you are talking about curing others. Besides, he's a special case. Are you sure that this is the right situation for you to show off?" Wu Xie could not help but point out exactly how weak and powerless she was in reality. He was still struggling to find that one thing that could make him accept her as the chosen one - that one person who was destined to help then in stopping the Empress Dowager from destroying the three realms. 

"Your Highness, since you have already given him to me, you don't have to worry about the deal. I'll settle it on my own accord. As for now, please send me back to the Star Lake Manor." Jiang Ying Yue politely reminded the Prince that she was not interested in his opinions and inquiries.

"You really don't know how to be grateful, do you? I just solved such great trouble of yours and look at how you are treating me." Wu Xie chastised her as he looked at her with a complaining gaze.

"Your Highness..." 

Jiang Ying Yue trailer off when she was suddenly pulled into the arms of the Third Prince. She felt his hands once again wrapping themselves around her waist before she was pulled into the void. 

She found the world around her changing and the very next second, she was standing in the back garden of the Cold Palace.