Inside the room, silence reigned.
For merely speaking a sentence, they were now expected to kneel and beg for forgiveness?
Chu Fan's demand was too much for the assembled people to bear. They felt he was petty beyond measure, quibbling over such a trivial matter.
With no one taking the lead, they all feigned ignorance, hoping to slip by unnoticed.
Nan Ziyun, unwilling for his father to pass away, rebuked them, "What are you all still standing for? Get down on your knees!"
As soon as he spoke, someone beside him chimed in, "Big Brother, you spoke just now, didn't you?"
"You ought to as well..."
Uh...
Nan Ziyun’s expression froze. He felt like crying but had no tears.
He had indeed forgotten that he too had spoken out in anger earlier.
Seeing everyone looking at him, clearly waiting for him to set the example.
If he didn't kneel, they wouldn't either.
For his father's sake.
Nan Ziyun gritted his teeth and knelt on the ground.
With a clatter...
Two-thirds of the people in the room knelt down.
Facing this situation, Qin Xue and Nan Zian found it difficult to say anything. They turned their backs to the crowd.
Out of sight, out of mind.
Although they had a good relationship with Chu Fan, they couldn't influence his thoughts.
As for Qin Xue, she also had her own selfish motives.
Earlier, the others had criticized Chu Fan. Now, they should pay the price for their misdeeds.
"Master Chu, we were wrong earlier. Please, examine my father."
Nan Ziyun looked at Chu Fan expectantly.
Chu Fan's expression was unreadable as his gaze swept over the other members of the Nan family.
So many people had spoken, yet only one was apologizing and begging?
Did he think they were all fools?
Nan Ziyun, already extremely frustrated, understood Chu Fan's intention and turned to yell, "Damn it, are you all mute? Weren't you all louder than each other before?"
"Apologize quickly!"
"If Master doesn't agree, then all of you kneel!"
Under duress, everyone had no choice but to grit their teeth and admit their mistakes, pleading for mercy.
Nan Baixuan had already retreated to a corner. Her delicate face was pale, her expression dazed, as if she were in a stupor.
Uncle, cousin, brother-in-law…
They all knelt before Chu Fan.
This scene was something she had never imagined.
Could it be that he was not as incompetent as she thought?
Could it be that what he said earlier was true?
The more she thought about it, the more chaotic Nan Baixuan’s mind became.
"Except for my aunt and the one surnamed Luo, everyone else, get out!"
Witnessing Chu Fan's demeanor,
The crowd dared not utter another word. They sheepishly got up and left.
"Xiao Fan, can you really make the old man wake up?"
Qin Xue was filled with anxiety, desperate to know the outcome.
To get him to act, Nan Ziyun had personally knelt and begged, which was a great humiliation.
If the old man woke up, everyone would be happy, and no one would dwell on the kneeling and apologies.
But if he couldn't wake up, Qin Xue knew that Nan Ziyun and the others would surely cause trouble.
At that time, the conflict would escalate even further.
"The poison has not yet completely invaded the heart meridian. There is still hope."
"Another two hours later, and you could have started preparing the mourning hall."
Qin Xue's heart trembled.
She was not surprised that the old man would die if delayed, but rather astonished that Chu Fan could predict the outcome just by standing and looking. She couldn't fathom how he did it.
In the normal understanding of medicine, experience was paramount.
Experience, in turn, required time to accumulate.
Therefore, the more skilled a doctor, the older they were.
How old was Chu Fan?
How could he possess such advanced medical skills?
"Master, what do you need me to do?"
Luo Wuwen stepped forward proactively, his face filled with reverence.
He knew that Chu Fan had kept him behind not just to watch from the sidelines; he didn't have the qualification for that.
"I say, you do!"
To be personally instructed by a master, Luo Wuwen was overwhelmed with excitement.
As he took out the silver needles, Chu Fan rapidly named one acupuncture point after another. Luo Wuwen quickly inserted the needles.
The old man, clearly trying to learn secretly, mentally noted the acupuncture points and the order of insertion.
After the seventy-seven forty-nine silver needles were inserted into Nan Xiuming, Nan Xiuming's skin color began to turn red, and then black.
Dark blood surged out along the silver needles.
A foul odor permeated the room, causing Qin Xue's eyes to water.
"He really was poisoned!"
Luo Wuwen rubbed his slightly stinging eyes, his respect for Chu Fan's medical skills growing.
Even after personally examining him, he couldn't figure out why Nan Xiuming was unconscious.
Chu Fan, merely by standing and looking, had determined he was poisoned.
The difference was self-evident.
Qin Xue murmured upon hearing this, a pleased smile gracing her lips, genuinely happy and proud.
Her nephew, it turned out, was not as incompetent as she had imagined.
Possessing medical skills that even the divine doctor Luo couldn't match, he was truly remarkable.
Seeing no more dark blood flowing out, Chu Fan instructed, "You can withdraw the needles now, in the order they were inserted!"
After Luo Wuwen finished withdrawing the needles, Qin Xue went to the doorway and instructed the servants to bring hot water to clean Nan Xiuming.
Nan Ziyun and the others, with bated breath, entered the room.
Seeing that the old man was still unconscious, Nan Ziyun couldn't help but ask, "Why hasn't my father woken up yet?"
His tone was accusatory.
"I am only responsible for expelling the poison. I never said I could make him wake up!"
"Whether he wakes up or not, what business is it of mine?"
Chu Fan maintained his usual indifferent demeanor.
"You..."
Nan Ziyun was filled with indignation, feeling that he had been tricked by this young man.
"Xiao Yun, you must not be disrespectful to Master Chu."
"Your father was indeed poisoned, and with a poison I haven't even seen before."
"If not for Master Chu's assistance in expelling the poison, you would be preparing funeral arrangements for Xiuming by now."
To ingratiate himself with Chu Fan, Luo Wuwen would not miss any opportunity.
His words carried more weight than Chu Fan's.
Nan Ziyun believed that the divine doctor Luo would not speak falsely and respectfully asked, "Divine Doctor Luo, do you know what poison my father ingested, and who administered it?"
Anyone who dared to poison the old man, attempting to kill him silently, must be thoroughly investigated.
Luo Wuwen looked at Chu Fan, implying that only Master Chu would know.
Nan Ziyun hesitated to speak.
The words were on the tip of his tongue, but glancing at Chu Fan's cold expression, he knew that Chu Fan paid him no mind, and speaking would only invite further humiliation. He could only cast a glance at his younger brother.
Just as Nan Zian was about to speak, Chu Fan said to Qin Xue, "Auntie, I have some matters to attend to, so I'll be leaving now!"
Before Qin Xue could respond, Chu Fan departed at extreme speed.
The Nan family was too opportunistic. If it weren't for his aunt, he wouldn't bother to get involved.
Time should not be wasted on such useless people.
One other person followed him out.
"Chu Fan, stop right there!"
Nan Baixuan ran after him, but couldn't catch up, so she called out to stop him.
Just now, she had been thinking a lot.
She thought about all the events that had transpired recently.
Her earlier, long-ignored suspicion resurfaced in her mind.
She was not someone who could keep her thoughts to herself. If she didn't get to the bottom of it, she would be very uneasy.
Chu Fan stopped and turned around. "Is something the matter?"
"I'm asking you, were the things you said earlier true?"
Nan Baixuan's eyes were fixed on Chu Fan's face, not missing any subtle shift in his expression.
"I said many things. I don't know which ones you're referring to."
Nan Baixuan took a deep breath, suppressing her impatience.
"You said that the five Great War Emperors would have to kneel before you."
"You said that the Shanhai Building belongs to you!"
"You said that the Shanhai Pavilion is your territory!"
"Are these words true or not?"
At this moment, all she wanted was to clarify whether she was ignorant of the world, looking at people through a crack in the door, or if she was overthinking things.
"Whether it's true or false, does it concern you?"