Poison Genius Consort

Seeing the situation getting worse and worse, Shaoyao hollered, "Make way! You'll shoulder the consequences if you get hit!"

She gave up and pushed the wheelchair frantically forward, forcing everyone to get out of the way. But they still trailed after them all the way into an alley. The carriage was parked there, so it'd be easier to get in there. But under the eyes of the crowd, Qin Min couldn't very well climb onto the carriage by herself. Nor did Shaoyao have the strength to help her on. The driver was one of Gu Beiyue's underlings and only a thirteen to fourteen year-old youth. He couldn't help her either!

What now?

Qin Min looked at Shaoyao, who stared back blankly. The medical academy was in the north, so they took a carriage here before switching to a wheelchair. Was Shaoyao supposed to push her all the way back?

Seeing the situation was amiss, the youth whispered to Shaoyao, "Hurry and find someone, I'll hold the fort."

Shaoyao didn't dare leave until she saw Qin Min nod. She didn't remove her face veil, but remained with her head bowed and silent. The young boy shielded in front of her while shouting, "What are you all doing? Scatter, scatter!"

"What are you looking at? Treating the Madam of the Academy Head rudely, are you trying to rebel? You and you, and that one over there, what are your names? Whose family are you from?"

Everyone backed off from the aggressive youth, but a middle-aged man suddenly stepped forward from the crowd.

"This one is Li Zhao (李钊) and I've long heard of the Madam of the Academy Head's name. Meeting you today is my good fortune accumulated over three lives. Madam..."

"Madam of the Academy Head needs to rest. Please leave and don't disturb her," the youth interrupted.

Li Zhao ignored the boy and continued, "Madam of the Academy Head, I've gotten a strange disease. Day by day my chest hurts and I can't eat at day or sleep at night. I hope that Madam will show compassion to examine me."

Qin Min could tell at a glance from the man's complexion that he was faking it. His health was perfectly fine. She wasn't fool enough to argue and said, "Go to the medical academy, a novice will arrange an appointment for you."

But Li Zhao suddenly clutched his chest and shouted, "Ouch, it hurts!" Then he fell on one knee to the ground and pretended to have difficulty breathing. "Madam of the Academy Head, save...save me! Save me!"

"Lin Yue, take his pulse," Qin Min instructed the boy, who immediately stepped forward to examine the man.

"Madam, his pulse is fine. He has no strange ailments."

Before Qin Min could reply, Li Zhao began to roll around on the ground, shouting that he was in pain. She ignored him and readied to call another doctor from the crowds to take a pulse when a voice of dissatisfaction rose from the mob.

"Sheesh, how can a medical novice know there's nothing strange? Madam of the Academy Head, life is more important. Hurry and save him."

"That's right. Madam of the Academy Head, you can't be like your father and stand by to watch people die!"

"He's already in so much pain. Madam of the Academy Head, a doctor should have the heart of a father or mother. What's your heart made out of?"

Qin Min was secretly alarmed. She realized that Li Zhao hadn't come alone but had a whole group supporting him! And they...were very malicious! Heaven knows what might happen if she personally took his pulse. As she hesitated, a man suddenly stood out from the crowd. Qin Min recognized him as the fourth son of the Wei Clan, a fifth-rank Divine Doctor.

Fourth Master Wei took Li Zhao's pulse and laughed coldly. "Pretending to be sick when you're fine to make things difficult for the Madam in the middle of the street. What are your motives?"

"Ouch...ouch...!" Li Zhao persisted in moaning in pain as he curled up on the ground.

"How could it be so easy to diagnose a strange disease? Otherwise, he wouldn't need to find the Madam of the Academy Head."

"Heheh, the Qin Clan is all the same. They don't bother saving the dying. If the Academy Head knew this, he can't just protect his wife and ignore the public good!"

"Look at how much pain he's in. Madam of the Academy Head, do a good deed and hurry and check him!"

Li Zhao's cohorts kept talking nonstop, some making accusations, other pleading for his case, until they infected the entire crowd. With no way to retreat, Qin Min simply said, "Help him over here and I'll have a look! Quick!"

If they were going to keep acting, she'd accompany them to the end!

A few men hurried forward to lift Li Zhao in front of Qin Min. She took his pulse before crying out in astonishment, "Ah! He really is severely ill!"

As she spoke, she took out her acupuncture needles. "I'll use needles on him right now. It's more effective if it's more painful. If you want to life, you'll have to endure it."

A lewd gaze flickered past Li Zhao's eyes before he said, "Thank...thanks to Madam of the Academy Head."

Of course he knew she was countering his ploy to torment him, but his boss had already told him: the goal wasn't to cause difficulties for Qin Min, but bully her and thus humiliate Gu Beiyue! Gu Beiyue wanted to hand over the medical academy to imperial rule. They had to make him pay so he knew the great clans weren't so easy to boss around!

Just as Qin Min prepared to use needles, Li Zhao broke free of the men who held him and shouted, "It hurts so much!" before throwing himself at Qin Min...

She finally realized his motives and closed her eyes in fright, too late to get out of the way.

But after a long time, he still didn't fall onto her body. The noisy crowd had quieted down as well until she could hear her own pounding heart.

What's going on?

Qin Min carefully opened her eyes and saw a face very familiar to her! Its side profile was practically flawless and very, very close. She could even see his eyelashes: long, dense, dark, and beautiful. It was a profile that spoke of incomparable reticence, but ice had replaced its unusual gentleness. No matter whether he was warm or cold, he had come.

He was Gu Beiyue!

Her heart immediately calmed down.

Gu Beiyue was leaning down in front of Qin Min with one hand behind his back while the other gripped Li Zhao by the neck, easily stopping him in place. Silence surrounded them. Nobody had seen when Gu Beiyue showed up and only felt he'd materialized out of thin air. Li Zhao was surprised. He'd clearly meant to pounce on Qin Min and was in a prime position to fall with his excuse of pain, but Gu Beiyue had appeared so quickly.

After all, they'd been following her since she left the prisons and even sent people to make sure Gu Beiyue was still teaching his classes. Too terrified to move, much less speak, Li Zhao feared that Gu Beiyue might take his life with slightly more strength.

At last someone yelled, "Academy Head is here, he can be saved!"

Li Zhao's cohorts all recovered at the words.

"Academy Head, hurry and take a look. This man was in so much pain he was rolling around on the ground just then."

"Right, right. Aish, he's so lucky, the Academy Head's personally arrived."

"Are you still in pain?" Gu Beiyue asked as gently as ever, but his hand was still gripping Li Zhao's neck.

Li Zhao didn't dare to answer, much less meet his gaze. He was so scared he was close to peeing his pants. Gu Beiyue's hand was enough to determine the ending of this story, but Li Zhao's cohorts hadn't given up.

One of them simply asked directly, "Academy Head, are you trying to save him or kill him?"

Gu Beiyue looked over and remarked, "Save him. The neck has a pulse point. Young master of the Chen Clan, you're a fourth-rank Grand Adept and still don't know this common knowledge? As this Academy Head sees it, you should start studying from novice rank again. Who gave you your rank? I'll have to interrogate them properly after this!"

The young master of the Chen Clan could only gape speechlessly. He never expected Gu Beiyue to know his origins, much less that he'd talk about a "pulse in the neck." At this point, his medical rank was all but forfeit and would even involve the person who granted him his qualifications. Immediately, everyone else shut up too.

Everyone could tell that Gu Beiyue was angry.

His long, slender fingers lightly brushed against an artery as he spoke. "It really is a strange illness. My wife cannot cure this, but this Academy Head will personally treat you. I guarantee that the medicine will be fully effective within three days."

There was no emotion in his clear, light tone, but it still sent chills down one's back. Li Zhao's legs had already turned to jelly. Gu Beiyue released him and said, "Someone come, bring him back to the medical academy and take...good care of him!"

At last Li Zhao caved in and fell to his knees. "Academy Head, this one was wrong! I was ordered to act this way! I beg Academy Head to show mercy!"

Because of the silence, his pleas were especially loud. Gu Beiyue didn't look at him but turned towards the crowd instead, where a dark dart was flying straight at Li Zhao. Without a doubt, the man behind the scenes wanted to silence him with death.

He watched quietly until the dart almost hit its mark, then kicked Li Zhao aside before using a palm strike to send the dart flying back where it came from. It struck the assassin in his shoulder, shocking him so much he turned and fled. Gu Beiyue didn't care, but the guards who followed him were already giving chase.

The crowd finally realized what had happened and didn't dare to speak. Li Zhao was scared out of his wits and allowed the remaining guards to drag him away. Qin Min observed everything and could only sigh in her heart. She couldn't imagine the consequences if Gu Beiyue hadn't shown up in time.

Gu Beiyue walked towards her and said in a gentle tone, "Madam, you've suffered a shock."

It had been too long since she heard him say "Madam," so Qin Min felt rather startled. She kept thinking he was referring to someone else. Gu Beiyue didn't say much but reached over to hug her. She was nervous as soon as he drew close, no matter whether it was the first time or today. He rested one hand on her knee while the other wrapped around her back. She was still in a wheelchair with her hands to herself, so he had a hard time picking her up.

He tried a few times without success and could only murmur in front of the crowds, "Eldest Miss Qin, forgive me. I'm carrying you to the carriage."

Qin Min's body tensed up like a rock, her previous stuffiness replaced by tension. "I'll be troubling you," she replied but still didn't budge.

Helpless, Gu Beiyue could only add, "Eldest Miss Qin, please help by lifting your hands."

At last Qin Min understood him and quickly raised her right hand, allowing Gu Beiyue to wrap around her and pick her up princess-style into the carriage. Many females present grew envious at the scene. This was probably the first time the world had seen Gu Beiyue get so close to a woman.

Everyone had always taken the "Madam of the Academy Head" as an honorable, glorious identity, but only now did they realize it was equal to the status of "Gu Beiyue's woman."

Gu Beiyue also sat inside the carriage before ordering lightly, "Lin Yue, to the medical academy."