The Power of Capital
Tang Hwi, the deeply filial son, had become the most promising candidate for the position of Young Patriarch. From Tang Ga-hui relinquishing her claim to the title, to Tang Ga-in's half-hearted competition, and finally to the surging support for Tang Hwi himself—everything pointed in his direction. Standing tall and unchallenged, how could he not catch everyone's eye? Today, as usual, Tang Hwi gathered all the medicinal ingredients he could claim as the Patriarch's son from the Poison Medical Pavilion and mass-produced stamina pills... officially named the Immortal Pill. From the batches to be delivered to the Hao Sect to the supply promised to Ak Bi, the King of the Green Forest, Tang Hwi meticulously utilized every single leftover ingredient, leaving absolutely nothing to waste.
"Young Master... is this that... *gulp*... medicine?"
"Indeed. A single pill of this will keep you standing for at least an hour."
"I see. So this is the legendary... the one that's incredibly good for men...!"
Tang Su-guk, a researcher from a branch family who had worked in the Poison Medical Pavilion for a long time, swallowed hard as he stared at the Immortal Pill Tang Hwi held out. Initially, he belonged to the faction that doubted Tang Hwi, believing that the once-useless youth couldn't have changed so easily. However, rumors had begun to spread among the Young Master's supporters. If you back him, you can receive stamina pills as a reward! And with just one of those pills, your wife will scream with joy until she's half-dead! Such scandalous whispers had begun to circulate within the Poison Medical Pavilion.
Although Tang Su-guk had stubbornly remained in the opposition faction despite the rumors, his resolve began to waver as he watched his colleagues defect to Tang Hwi's side one by one. Besides, his stamina had been flagging lately due to his advancing age. Just the other day, during their marital relations, his wife had openly nagged him, asking why he had become so pathetic in bed. In the patriarchal society of the Central Plains, such treatment was shocking, but it couldn't be helped—his wife was from the direct line of the clan, making her far superior in status. It was a marriage born of mutual attraction, but one where the power dynamic was heavily skewed. Regardless, a man was still a man. Being ridiculed by his wife for his poor performance in bed had utterly shattered his pride. Just as he was desperately wishing to hear his wife squealing in ecstasy again, the rumors reached his ears.
"The effects are immediate," Tang Hwi said smoothly. "First, engage in your usual business. Once you feel yourself flagging, take this pill. It will rise proudly once more, and you'll be able to drive your hips relentlessly for at least an hour."
"Is... is there really no side effect?"
"I have already signed an exclusive contract with the Honglu. Thanks to that, I've been raking in a fortune lately."
"...*Gulp.*"
He had indeed heard rumors that the Honglu's recent spike in revenue was entirely due to this medicine. Tang Su-guk salivated at the thought. The courtesans had started offering services packaged with the pill, and men were practically losing their minds over it. Staring at the Immortal Pill in Tang Hwi's hand, Tang Su-guk's eyes trembled wildly. He felt as though he finally understood the madness of martial artists seduced by the forbidden power of demonic arts. Even without personal experience, the sheer weight of the rumors was enough to prove the pill's miraculous efficacy. If he were to experience it firsthand, how ecstatic would it feel? A brief moment of hesitation followed, but...
"I hear you have a wife," Tang Hwi whispered, his voice dripping with temptation. "Don't you want to see her waking up before you in the morning, preparing a lavish table, calling you 'husband' in a sweet voice, and acting all coddling and affectionate?"
"I... I want to see that..."
Prompted by Tang Hwi's words, a vivid fantasy bloomed in Tang Su-guk's mind. His wife, being from the direct line and managing the clan's merchant group, had never properly trained in martial arts. However, as expected of someone in commerce, she knew exactly how to find and use the best health supplements; despite being in her forties, her skin remained as smooth and fair as a woman in her early thirties. To have such a woman treat him with tender affection and coo in his ear? Picturing such a future, Tang Su-guk decided that throwing his support behind Tang Hwi wasn't such a bad idea after all.
"In exchange, you must divert ten percent of the medicinal ingredients allocated to you in the Poison Medical Pavilion to me, and align yourself with my faction. I trust you understand the terms."
Will you accept the Immortal Pill regardless? Under Tang Hwi's calculating gaze, which silently posed this question, Tang Su-guk reached out as if possessed and snatched the pill. A few days later, the ranks of Tang Hwi's enthusiastic supporters grew by one more.
Tang Si-eon, the Head of the Poison Hall, stood frozen, his jaw practically hitting the floor. He had only stepped away for a few days to adjust the defensive arrays sealing the Tang Clan's premium ingredients. Yet, upon his return, he found the researchers of the Poison Medical Pavilion funneling every single scrap of raw material meant for poison development straight to Tang Hwi! To make matters worse, Tang Hwi wasn't even brewing poisons with those precious ingredients. Instead, he was churning out the infamous Immortal Pills and supplying them exclusively to the Honglu.
Are these bastards out of their minds? How could they abandon their research on poisons and antidotes just to donate their own personal shares of ingredients to Tang Hwi for stamina pill production? Granted, it was impressive that Tang Hwi had briefly studied the nymphomaniac women of the Celestial Pole Merchant Group to formulate a flawless, side-effect-free aphrodisiac. It was also brilliant of him to secure an exclusive contract with the Honglu, using it to bring local tycoons and high-ranking officials under his thumb. But this... this was just wrong.
"You absolute fools!" Tang Si-eon roared. "I am terrified that rumors will spread that the great Sichuan Tang Clan has abandoned poison and antidote development to peddle stamina pills! How do you think the rest of the Jianghu will look at our clan?!"
At this rate, the Sichuan Tang Clan would become synonymous not with deadly poisons, but with sexual virility. Tang Si-eon was genuinely terrified of this prospect. The researchers of the Poison Medical Pavilion were practically foaming at the mouth, their eyes bloodshot with the desperate desire to obtain the stamina pills, shamelessly flattering Tang Hwi at every turn. Tang Si-eon's face flushed a violent crimson, looking as if he might collapse from a sudden stroke. Seeing this, Tang Hwi offered a wry smile and stepped forward to calm him down.
"Please calm down, Hall Master."
"You cheeky brat! You've ruined my Poison Medical Pavilion! These men were once promising young talents, researching poisons with dreams and hopes in their hearts...!"
"?"
Tang Hwi wondered if he had misheard. Having lived through countless reincarnations and experienced various lives, no matter how generously he tried to view them, the researchers of the Poison Medical Pavilion reminded him of overworked, miserable graduate students under an imperial academic advisor. It was true that they contributed greatly to the Tang Clan by brewing and developing poisons. However, their efforts were essentially sacrifices wrung out of them by Tang Si-eon's relentless nagging and abuse.
It's no wonder these guys are so frail. There was a reason the men of the Poison Medical Pavilion were constantly nagged by their wives for being useless in bed. Handling toxic substances all day depleted their vital essence, and pulling all-nighters destroyed their physical stamina, utterly wrecking their virility. To remain healthy under such conditions, one needed an extraordinary talent for poison arts, like Tang Ga-hui. While the researchers weren't entirely untalented, they were far from exceptional. Even Tang Ga-hui had suffered Qi Deviation and ended up scarred while recklessly practicing the Poison Butterfly Divine Art. What hope did these ordinary researchers, cooped up in this dark pavilion all day, have?
Well... not that the Hall Master would ever understand. Still, Tang Hwi had a plan.
"Hall Master. Why don't you take a look at this first before you say anything else?"
"What on earth am I supposed to—! ...Huh?"
Tang Si-eon's eyes widened as Tang Hwi thrust a document into his hands. It was the financial ledger of the Poison Medical Pavilion. The number of zeroes written on the paper was on an entirely different level than before. While it wasn't an astronomical increase of several fold, the budget had swelled to a point where the pavilion could operate with immense luxury. The very budget that Tang Si-eon had failed to squeeze out of the Secretary Pavilion, no matter how much he begged and threatened, was now overflowing right before his eyes.
"W-What on earth is this...?"
"It is the profit from selling the stamina pills made with the ingredients generously provided by the wonderful researchers of the Poison Medical Pavilion. The revenue generated from those sales has been directly funneled back into the pavilion's budget."
In truth, Tang Hwi's personal allowance of ingredients was more than enough to fund his own endeavors. However, the volume of Immortal Pills ordered by the Honglu—or more precisely, the Hao Sect—far exceeded his personal supply. He had the skill to refine as many as needed, but he lacked the raw materials. Thus, Tang Hwi had killed two birds with one stone: he secured the support of the Poison Medical Pavilion's researchers and used their allocated ingredients to fulfill the massive influx of orders. Furthermore, he routed the proceeds of the Immortal Pills through the clan's official treasury. Once rumors spread that even the King of the Green Forest's flaccid member had risen proudly after consuming the Immortal Pill, demand skyrocketed. The Secretary Pavilion rejoiced at the sudden, massive influx of funds, and in accordance with clan regulations, they allocated thirty percent of the earnings back to the Poison Medical Pavilion. By law, thirty percent of any revenue generated by a specific pavilion was to be returned to its own operating budget.
"You no longer have to worry about being tight on funds, Hall Master."
"......"
"Because we are rich now."
"...Young Master."
The researchers wondered if they had suddenly gone deaf. Who was Tang Si-eon? He was a man so stubborn and proud that he would boldly tell the Patriarch, Tang Su-ryeon, to fire him if she didn't like his attitude. Where had that arrogant, unyielding personality gone, replaced now by such a polite, deferential title as 'Young Master'? While the researchers stood frozen in sheer disbelief, Tang Hwi simply offered a bright, satisfied smile. Indeed, money never lied.