The Sichuan Tang Clan's Scheme
Elena became a superstar in Sichuan almost overnight.
It was all thanks to the people who had received her absurd treatments spreading the word far and wide.
“That person didn’t even touch my body, but I was completely cured!”
“Is that really true?”
“Haha, take a look! Behold my beauty!”
“Good heavens. You really did lose weight and become handsome!”
Farmers and Man-geum and others talked endlessly about their experiences until their mouths went dry. Soon, people who heard the stories began showing up as new patients. And that was how the legend began.
“Doctor, could you… could you possibly treat my baldness too?”
“Let’s give it a try.”
“H-hair! It’s growing!”
She cured conditions that seemed impossible, and when someone said,
“Doctor, the truth is I don’t have any money, so I probably won’t be able to buy medicine.”
“That’s fine. I wasn’t planning on making any medicine anyway.”
“Pardon?”
“There. You’re now completely cured—so much so that you won’t need any medicine!”
She healed them on the spot so they could recover without having to buy expensive remedies. When someone dispenses miracles like that so freely, how could they not become famous?
And it wasn’t just her medical skills. Her character seemed saintly as well.
“We’ve received another huge batch of gifts from Mister Man-geum today. Even though he already paid, he sent a gold necklace and everything… Half of these will go to the assistant doctors who worked so hard.”
“Us?!”
“And to that patient over there who said he’s going hungry because he has no money—the other half is for all of you.”
She was dividing up the expensive gifts sent by the wealthy patients she had treated and sharing them with the people around her and those who had nothing.
‘Money’s not exactly in short supply, so I’ll treat the gifts I receive as emergency funds or use them like this to win people’s favor. That way, even if I slip up a little, Geum-gang will cover for me. My reputation will go up too.’
Of course, the person in question, Elena, was doing it purely for personal gain. It was money she had essentially obtained for free and didn’t need right away. Since it wasn’t coming out of her actual wealth, she figured it was fine to put it to other effective uses.
Though her actions stemmed from such materialistic thinking, she had succeeded in winning the people’s hearts.
“She truly is the Saint of Medicine.”
“Not only her medical arts, but her character is that of an immortal!”
“The Saint of Medicine has descended upon Sichuan!”
Her plan to gain fame had succeeded, but the public reaction was so overwhelmingly positive that it almost felt excessive. Before anyone realized it, the title of Saint of Medicine had spread throughout all of Sichuan. In just a few months, Elena had become a renowned figure whom no one in Sichuan didn’t know. Everyone praised her as the Saint of Medicine and looked up to her with admiration.
All except for one place.
“…What did you just say? Our Sichuan Tang Clan’s income is decreasing?”
“What in the world are we supposed to do about this!”
“Hmm…”
Inside a secret room where no outsiders could enter, two men were having a discussion. One was a well-dressed man who appeared to be in his forties. The other was an elderly man who looked to be in his sixties, dressed somewhat more modestly than the first.
“If things continue like this, the entire Sichuan Tang Clan will be in danger.”
“Indeed. Even the Sichuan Tang Clan cannot match the medical arts she’s displaying.”
Their conversation kept mentioning the Sichuan Tang Clan. The Sichuan Tang Clan! Along with the Qingcheng Sect, it was one of the prestigious orthodox factions that divided Sichuan into three parts. Despite being an orthodox sect, it was uniquely known for its mastery of poison and hidden weapons. Its poison techniques surpassed those of the unorthodox factions and were considered the best in the entire central plains.
These two men were the most important figures in that very Sichuan Tang Clan. The current Family Head, Tang So-cheon, and his uncle, the Chief Manager of the Tang Clan, Tang Seo-cheon.
The two people who held influence over not only the Tang Clan but all of Sichuan were currently suffering headaches because of one single person.
“The Saint of Medicine. That westerner who suddenly appeared is muddying the waters of Sichuan,” Tang So-cheon said with a sour expression.
“Uncle, ever since the Saint of Medicine appeared, the number of patients visiting our Tang Clan has noticeably decreased.”
Poison and medicine were two sides of the same coin. Mastering poison meant one was also well-versed in medicine and medical techniques. Therefore, the Sichuan Tang Clan had also been Sichuan’s foremost medical clinic. It had always been packed with visitors, bringing in enormous profits. Now, a single individual was threatening all of that.
“It hasn’t even been that long since she appeared, yet things have already reached this point. If more time passes, her Eunseonwon might even surpass our Tang Clan.”
Tang So-cheon, whose patients had been stolen by Elena, spoke with grim determination. Even if it was only in the field of medicine, surpassing them would be threat enough.
“It’s not just about money. The damage to our reputation will be severe. People will definitely gossip about how even the Sichuan Tang Clan was defeated by a mere individual.”
“I have no idea where such a monster came from,” the Family Head muttered.
“What do you plan to do, Uncle?”
Tang So-cheon asked his sighing uncle for his opinion. He had called his uncle to this isolated secret room precisely to discuss how to deal with the Saint of Medicine.
After pondering for a moment, Tang Seo-cheon put on a cold expression.
“Family Head, let’s assassinate that woman.”
“…Uncle?”
Tang So-cheon looked at his uncle with disbelief. Even if he had suggested cutting off the Heavenly Demon’s head, it wouldn’t have been more shocking.
“What nonsense are you saying! We are an orthodox prestigious sect!” Tang So-cheon cried out as if screaming. Although the Sichuan Tang Clan was famous for poison and hidden weapons, they were still part of the orthodox faction. Assassinating a competitor just because they interfered with business? Such a wicked act must never happen.
“Besides, the Saint of Medicine is already one of Sichuan’s most prominent figures. She is also a benefactor of the Qingcheng Sect! The entire province of Sichuan will swarm our clan like a hive of angry bees.”
“We can just secretly administer poison. That’s why it’s called assassination.”
“A person so skilled in both medicine and martial arts that she’s called the Saint of Medicine gets poisoned to death in Sichuan? Who do you think everyone will suspect as the culprit!”
Given the clan’s specialty, they would be suspected even if they were innocent. Since the Tang Clan had been wrongly suspected many times before, Tang So-cheon vehemently opposed the idea.
“No matter how much it is your opinion, Uncle, I cannot allow this. You seem to have become more extreme lately, but this time you have crossed the line.”
“…Then what exactly do you plan to do?”
When his nephew, the Family Head, dismissed his suggestion, Tang Seo-cheon narrowed his eyes.
“If we leave that woman alone, it won’t be long before all medical matters in Sichuan fall into her grasp.”
“That…”
“Do you not realize how enormous the losses our Sichuan Tang Clan will suffer?”
His uncle’s repeated persuasion shook Tang So-cheon’s heart. He felt a sense of crisis, but he still could not resort to such extreme measures as assassination.
“…We must confront the Saint of Medicine only through official means.”
“How?”
“We will go to Eunseonwon and challenge her in front of everyone.”
Challenging Elena where everyone could see. It looked like an honorable frontal assault, but in reality, it was quite a cunning method.
“If she accepts our challenge in front of people and loses, the news will spread quickly. It will travel as fast as the attention she has received. The news that even the Saint of Medicine ultimately couldn’t stand against the Tang Clan!”
“What if she refuses the challenge?”
“Then the rumor will spread that the Saint of Medicine feared our Tang Clan and avoided the challenge.”
Tang Seo-cheon was dumbfounded by his nephew’s casual words.
“Assassination is dirty, but spreading baseless rumors is acceptable?”
“Why would it be baseless? If that happens, it would be true that she avoided the challenge. And rumors always get embellished as they spread.”
“Haha.”
Tang Seo-cheon let out a short, hollow laugh before his eyes filled with curiosity.
“What exactly do you have in mind? This challenge surely won’t involve competing in martial arts, will it?”
“Of course not. Since the Saint of Medicine is threatening us with medical arts, we should fight back with medical arts as well.”
“But even if we challenge her with medicine, there’s a problem. Her medical skills seem almost divine!”
Just from the rumors, one might doubt whether the Saint of Medicine was even human. Restoring lost martial arts, curing qi deviation, turning the sick into peerless geniuses in an instant!
“She even makes people lose weight and become more attractive through medicine. How are we supposed to defeat such a monster with medical arts?”
“Uncle, I haven’t been sitting idle all this time either.”
Tang So-cheon whispered the information he had gathered to his uncle.
“About the Saint of Medicine. She doesn’t prescribe medicine.”
“What?”
“After treating them, she simply sends them away saying they’re already cured. Even when they ask for medicine, she refuses with all sorts of excuses.”
She even refused to explain their symptoms, so Tang So-cheon had come to a conclusion.
“The Saint of Medicine… she might not actually know medical arts at all.”
“What are you saying? Her medical skills are shaking all of Sichuan!”
“That might not be medical arts, but perhaps the effect of some special internal energy technique. They say she always treats people using only qi.”
If that were the case, the Sichuan Tang Clan still had a chance of winning.
“I plan to challenge the Saint of Medicine in the field of medicinal concoction.”
It was a scheme based on the belief that if the Saint of Medicine truly didn’t know medical arts, she wouldn’t be able to make medicine either, ensuring their victory.
Moreover—
“For this matter, I will not entrust it to anyone else. I will handle it myself!”
The Family Head of the Tang Clan and a Peak Master in both martial arts and medicine, Tang So-cheon himself, intended to step forward personally.