At the same time, within the Jade Flute Palace.
A beautiful woman with a pleasant countenance sat in the palace, drinking wine. This woman was the Virtuous Consort of the current Heavenly Martial Emperor.
Although the Virtuous Consort was one of the four consorts, she did not receive the Emperor's favor. This was because her maternal family was the Wei family, whom the Heavenly Martial Emperor feared the most. She was the youngest sister of Wei Wen Song. The Virtuous Consort was only twenty-seven years old this year, just two years older than Wei Wen Song's eldest son, while the current Heavenly Martial Emperor was forty-five.
To consolidate the Wei family's power, Wei Wen Song had sent the Virtuous Consort, who was only seventeen at the time, into the imperial palace. At that time, the Virtuous Consort already had a beloved, but she had to obey for the sake of her family.
The Heavenly Martial Emperor at that time was extremely wary of the five great aristocratic families and had no choice but to accept the Virtuous Consort. As a result, the Emperor only gave the Virtuous Consort superficial affection to appease the Wei family. In reality, within the first month of entering the palace, the Virtuous Consort's health was damaged by tonics sent by the Heavenly Martial Emperor under the guise of rewards, and she had not had any children since.
The Virtuous Consort did not actually care about the Heavenly Martial Emperor's favor. She entered the palace solely to consolidate her family's influence, and she understood this clearly. Therefore, she harbored no complaints about the Emperor's neglect.
However, she resented being sent into the palace like an object. She resented herself, the imperial family, and even more so, the Wei family. Especially after learning of her beloved's death, the Virtuous Consort hated the culprit who had sent her into this golden cage even more!
But she also knew that her current status was entirely dependent on the Wei family. If the Wei family fell, she would not fare well either. Since she could not obtain love, she decided to seize power and enjoy the benefits it brought.
Now, she did not need to inquire about the Wei family's tragic state; good-natured people would naturally come to mock her. From their gloating tones, she learned that her elder brother, whom she had always hated, was dead. She no longer had anyone to hate.
The Virtuous Consort drank pot after pot of wine, trying to get drunk. But why did she become clearer-headed the more she drank? As her mind cleared, chaotic thoughts began to surface.
The Wei family had fallen, would it be her turn next?
The Wei family had fallen because of the Ling family. The Ling family had taken revenge, and she should congratulate them. But they had destroyed her family!
Why had Wei Wen Song let the Ling family go?! Why hadn't he simply annihilated the Ling family?! If he had annihilated them directly, the Wei family would not be in this state, and she would still be the high and mighty Virtuous Consort!
Thinking about how, in the past few days, those with lower ranks and inferior backgrounds had come to the Jade Flute Palace to mock her, the Virtuous Consort was furious. The more she thought about it, the angrier she became, and she couldn't help but smash the wine bottle in her hand, causing a sound of shattering porcelain.
The loud noise attracted the attention of the palace maids outside, who rushed in. Seeing the Virtuous Consort, who had lost her balance and fallen to the ground, they quickly helped her back to her seat.
"Your Highness, what is wrong? Don't scare your servant!" the palace maids cried pleadingly.
The Virtuous Consort paid no attention, lost in her own thoughts.
If Wei Wen Song had annihilated the Ling family, the Wei family would have been fine, and she would not have had to endure these humiliations.
If the Ling family had been eliminated, the Wei family would still have been the foremost of the five great aristocratic families in the Heavenly Martial Kingdom. None of the women in the palace had a better background than her. Perhaps she would even be elevated to Noble Consort later, and becoming Empress was not impossible.
The more the Virtuous Consort thought, the more she descended into madness, even contemplating the annihilation of the Ling family to avenge the Wei family.
However, the curse that Ling Luo Yi had placed on Wei Chu Zhan would be transmitted to all those who possessed the Wei family bloodline through their bloodline connection. This meant that even if Ling Luo Yi had not directly cursed the Virtuous Consort, she was still under the curse. The Virtuous Consort's thought of annihilating the Ling family had triggered the curse.
Thus, the two palace maids watched in confusion as the Virtuous Consort's eyes suddenly widened, and she then fell rigidly onto the table, unaware of what had happened.
One of them tentatively placed a hand under the Virtuous Consort's nose. Not feeling her breath, she hastily withdrew her hand.
The other palace maid watched, asking her what had happened without understanding. Receiving no answer, this palace maid extended her own hand under the Virtuous Consort's nose. She also felt no breath and was startled, letting out a cry.
"The Virtuous Consort has passed away!"
In an instant, the news spread. Upon hearing it, the Heavenly Martial Emperor's expression remained unchanged. He merely ordered that the matter be handled according to regulations.
Hearing the Emperor's reply, others in the palace paid no mind. They were all aware that the Virtuous Consort was not favored. Even her position was a reward from the Heavenly Martial Emperor out of consideration for the Wei family. If the Emperor did not care about her death, why should they?
Therefore, the news only circulated in the palace for a short while, without causing any stir, and then subsided.
The next day, Ling Hua Yu and the others had still not emerged from their seclusion. However, collateral disciples like the Grand Elder had already come out. Seeing this, the three ladies felt some concern and inquired of Ling Luo Yi. Ling Luo Yi simply said it was nothing and told them not to worry. But how could they not worry? Yet, upon seeing that Ling Luo Yi was not worried at all, they could only persuade themselves to be at ease.
Ling Luo Yi and Qiu Yuan Xi, along with Zhu Xue and Zhu Shuang, left and boarded a carriage. When the coachman asked where they were going, Ling Luo Yi replied, "The Pill Pavilion." Thus, the carriage drove towards the Pill Pavilion.
"Miss, why are we going to the Pill Pavilion?" This question was clearly from Zhu Xue.
"Didn't I say before that I would give one ninth-grade pill to each person who helped? I'm going to fulfill that promise now."
"Miss, do you really have ninth-grade pills?" Seeing Ling Luo Yi look over, Zhu Xue quickly explained, "Your servant is not doubting Miss, your servant absolutely believes in Miss!"
Ling Luo Yi smiled faintly, unconcerned, and said, "Zhu Xue, Zhu Shuang, when we arrive at the Pill Pavilion later, you will tell them to collect the pills from the Pill Pavilion."
"Yes."
"Yes. But Miss, what if someone tries to take advantage of the situation?"
"Then their hands will be chopped off."
Ling Luo Yi said this casually, but it made Zhu Xue tremble and dare not speak.
"Miss, because your identity as an alchemist has spread, people coming to the Pill Pavilion to buy pills are endless every day, and the numbers are increasing. However, the Pill Pavilion's daily supply of pills is limited, and problems may arise in the future."
The higher the grade of a pill and the better its quality, the higher its price. The Ling family's Pill Pavilion accepted orders for at least a thousand pills. Some people could not buy so many at once and could only focus on retail pills. But with so many people, retail pills were not always available. Especially since pills were consumables; once eaten, they were gone.
"Little Luo'er, this is indeed a problem. Yun Yuan City is only so large. You cannot open all your shops within it, or others will have no way to make a living," Qiu Yuan Xi also said.
"I know, there is already a solution."
"What solution?"
"After these two busiest days pass, it will be time to act." Calculating the time, the old man should be arriving soon, and then there would be more to do.
Qiu Yuan Xi frowned and said displeasedly, "Little Luo'er, you still haven't told me your solution."
"You'll know when you get there, why are you so anxious?"
Qiu Yuan Xi turned his head away, not wanting to see this person who was being so secretive.
The Pill Pavilion was not far from the Ling Residence, and they were traveling by carriage, so they arrived quickly.
A token was hung in front of the carriage, bearing the character 'Ling,' indicating it was a carriage from the Ling Residence. Many people saw the carriage as it passed and followed it.
Ling Luo Yi alighted from the carriage and, with Qiu Yuan Xi, went upstairs, leaving Zhu Xue and Zhu Shuang to inform them.
The Pill Pavilion had not closed these past few days. However, it was now past the hour of Si (9-11 AM). Others knew that the Ling family had been very busy recently, so at this moment, there were only Steward Li, who was keeping accounts, and the shop assistants in the Pill Pavilion, with no customers.