Chapter 263: Produced a Pill!

　　“It’s good that you think this way. It’s not too late for you to go over and thank her when you feel better,” interrupted the Empress suddenly.

　　Even though she was smiling, she glanced at Rong Jin with much warning.

　　Rong Jin’s lips moved, but he finally swallowed his remaining words. Now that Father has changed his view toward me, it might be better if I talk about it when the situation is better.

　　Emperor Jiawen looked at Rong Jin with much meaning. From his understanding of his son, the past Rong Jin wouldn’t admit he was wrong in front of everyone else, even if he was saved by Chu Liuyue.

　　His change in attitude is strange. I wonder what he’s planning.

　　“Mm, I heard that Chu Xianmin has personally been taking care of you for the past few days?”

　　Rong Jin carelessly nodded.

　　Emperor Jiawen smiled. “This kid is not bad too, and she’s genuine towards you. Wait for a while longer, and you can upgrade—”

　　“Your Majesty, the Gu family and the Chu family are still in a tense situation,” reminded the Empress softly.

　　Emperor Jiawen paused and then remembered that Chu Xianmin’s mother—Lu Yao—had done many ‘good deeds’ recently. Not only did she secretly take the Chu family’s money, but she had even instigated the Gu family’s madam to cause a scene at Tian Lu Academy.

　　If it weren’t because the Gu family thought of the Lu family and Crown Prince Mansion, Lu Yao might not have left the Gu family alive. Even if so, she was still harshly taught a lesson.

　　With this kind of marital home and parents, Chu Xianmin’s reputation was affected as well. It really was not a good time to upgrade her status.

　　Emperor Jiawen swallowed his remaining words. “… Just treat her well.”

　　“I will.” Rong Jin agreed on the surface, but he did not care about it in his heart.

　　Father can say this so easily because he hasn’t seen Chu Xianmin’s face. I also want to treat Chu Xianmin better, but every time I look at her, I inevitably think about the horrifyingly ugly face I saw that night. I can’t like her a single bit.

　　Besides, the Chu family’s situation has changed. Lu Yao and Chu Yan aren’t in favorable positions either. It is already very kind of me not to find fault with the troubles Chu Xianmin brought to me. How can I possibly still treat them well?

　　…

　　Ding!

　　A crisp sound was heard from the competition venue. This sound would only be made when someone successfully refined medicine!

　　The crowd hurriedly looked over and discovered that it came from He Yang—who was the first person to choose a formula.

　　Due to his nervousness and emotional state, He Yang’s forehead was covered in sweat, and his face was red.

　　At this moment, he carefully placed the bowl of medicine he made into the jade box he prepared at the side.

　　An intense herbal fragrance permeated the air.

　　“It looks like his refinement was very successful! I think his bowl of medicine is pretty effective!”

　　“I heard that he broke through and became a stage-three heavenly doctor last year. If he progresses by another step, he’ll become a true heavenly doctor!”

　　“Hah, as long as he can’t produce a pill, he will never become a true heavenly doctor! He might not even pass this obstacle. You need to know that some people will forever be stuck as a stage-three physician.”

　　“That’s easy for you to say! There are only a handful of true heavenly doctors in Country Yao Chen. It’s already not bad for someone to become a stage-three physician. How can you ask for everyone to become a true heavenly doctor? In this arena, perhaps not even three of them have the ability to produce pills! It’s hard to say who will succeed in the end!”

　　The young man carefully passed the jade box to the three heavenly doctors seated at the side. These three judges came from the three academies, respectively, so that the judgment was fair.

　　The person in the middle was Tian Lu Academy’s Elder Feng Yi. On his left and right were Nan Feng Academy’s Elder Cheng Lixue and Tai Yan Academy’s Elder Mo Cang, respectively.

　　Elder Feng Yi opened the jade box, took a look, and said, “Stage three, middle-grade.”

　　He Yang’s smile stiffened. He was a stage-three physician, so the medicine he produced was a stage-three one as well.

　　But even physicians in the same stage would have varying standards.

　　He Yang originally thought that his medicine was a stage-three, superior-grade product. Hence, he was disappointed with Elder Feng Yi’s judgment.

　　He took a deep breath in and looked at the other two elders. However, the remaining two gave the same judgment after looking at the medicine.

　　Seeing that the judges were about to record the results, He Yang hurriedly said, “Three elders, please take another look at it! Is my medicine really considered middle grade only?”

　　Elder Feng Yi smiled and shook his head. “Are you doubting the three of us?”

　　“I wouldn’t dare! But—” He Yang immediately looked down. But if they really conclude that it is middle-grade medicine, I definitely won’t get a good ranking!

　　“Actually, you should know very clearly what grade your medicine is. Even though you successfully refined the medicine according to the formula, you weren’t clean in handling the ingredients, and there’s some residue inside, which affects the medicine’s effectiveness. You should be able to see the impure color, right?”

　　He Yang’s face flushed red, and he did not dare to rebut any further. He could only softly and hurriedly say, “Thank you for the enlightenment, Elders.”

　　Then, he quickly left.

　　The trio looked at each other and smiled. They were all experienced heavenly doctors and could tell the grade of the medicine with one look and one sniff. How could they possibly judge wrongly?

　　“I’m afraid that we’ll need to wait for a while before stage-three, superior-grade medicine shows up.” Elder Cheng Lixue stroked his beard.

　　Elder Mo Cang chuckled. “Haha, if there’s anyone who can produce a pill here, I’ll be more than willing to wait on!”

　　Elder Cheng Lixue and Elder Feng Yi exchanged glances.

　　Who can’t tell that he is secretly praising Situ Xingchen? Judging by his tone, it seems like he is certain that Situ Xingchen can produce a pill!

　　Buzz!

　　At this point, a commotion was heard from the competition venue.

　　The crowd hurriedly looked over and realized that the noise came from the cauldron in front of a young man.

　　“Is he… producing a pill?” asked Elder Cheng Lixue in surprise.

　　This young man was from Nan Feng Academy like him, so he was naturally happy to see him produce a pill.

　　Elder Feng Yi stared at the young man for a while and did not say anything.

　　However, Elder Mo Cang poured cold water on Elder Cheng Lixue. “He’s producing a pill already? Isn’t he too anxious? If anything happens…”

　　Cheng Lixue knitted his brows in frustration. “Mo Cang, I have never said anything bad about your Tai Yan Academy’s students.”

　　Mo Cang shrugged his shoulders. “Can’t you tell? The fire in his cauldron can’t be sustained for much longer.”

　　Cheng Lixue was shocked. When he looked over, he indeed discovered that this was the case.

　　The young man’s face quickly turned pale, and his body slightly trembled as if he had reached his limits.

　　The smile on his face gradually turned cold.

　　As expected, the fire in the cauldron completely extinguished after a short while. Even the herbs that were merging into a pill became ashes!