Great Sheng Dynasty, Jingde 26th Year, Winter
The slanting morning light at the Hour of Si fell across the streets of Suzhou, yet it could not dispel the heavy, oppressive air before the Zhang residence.
Two faded red lanterns hung on either side of the vermilion gates. A yellowed bounty notice was pasted to the gate pillars, the ink still showing fresh creases:
“My son, Zhang Xuan, has suddenly fallen ill with a strange disease. Every day at noon he suffers convulsions and vomits blood. Whoever can cure him will be rewarded with one thousand taels of gold!”
Several itinerant physicians gathered before the notice, shaking their heads and sighing. One of them stroked his beard and said, “I went to see him yesterday. His pulse was as chaotic as tangled hemp. Even the imperial physicians are helpless—this illness is… difficult.”
Outside the crowd, Lin Feng stood in a dark gray short jacket, a black belt tied at his waist. His gaze swept over the words “one thousand taels of gold,” yet there was a trace of understanding hidden in his eyes. Two days earlier, he had followed Wen Yinyue to Suzhou to purchase medicinal herbs to stockpile winter supplies for Xiaoyao Pavilion. He had not expected to encounter such an “opportunity.”
He turned and hurried toward the teahouse at the street corner. When he pushed open the door to a private room, he saw Wen Yinyue seated by the window, holding a green bamboo folding fan, her fingers lightly tracing the herbal diagrams painted on the fan’s surface.
“Pavilion Master, the bounty notice at the Zhang residence—” Lin Feng had barely begun when Wen Yinyue looked up. The usual gentleness in her eyes was gone, replaced by calm calculation.
At this moment, Wen Yinyue was no longer the plainly dressed woman of the mountain valley. She wore a moon-white scholar’s robe, pale orchid patterns embroidered along the collar. A jade belt of matching color circled her waist, and a green jade hairpin secured her hair. A thin layer of disguise paste, light as cicada wings, covered her face—soft features now sharpened into a handsome, refined look, her brows slightly raised with a scholar’s elegance. Even her voice was deliberately lowered, carrying the clear brightness of a young man.
“It’s time for the identity of ‘Moon Hidden’ to make its debut.”
She closed the folding fan. A small character “Hidden” was carved into the fan handle.
“The Zhang family has shops in the capital. If we can use this matter to obtain management rights, we’ll have a foothold when we return to the capital.”
Lin Feng immediately understood. This was not merely about curing an illness—it was a move Wen Yinyue was making to pave the road for her revenge.
He bowed. “I will go reply at once and say that ‘Physician Moon Hidden’ is willing to treat Young Master Zhang.”
Half an hour later, Wen Yinyue, under the identity of “Moon Hidden,” entered the Zhang residence with Lin Feng.
The stone paths inside the estate were spotless, yet not a single servant smiled. Even the birdcages under the corridors were covered with black cloth, exuding a sense of lifelessness.
The wealthy merchant Zhang was already waiting in the main hall. He wore a brocade-lined cotton robe, but much white had crept into his temples. When he saw Wen Yinyue, the anxious light in his eyes brightened for a moment, then quickly dimmed again. This scholar before him looked barely twenty—could he really cure an illness that even imperial physicians could not?
“Sir, can you truly cure my son?” Merchant Zhang’s voice trembled. Without waiting for an answer, he pulled Wen Yinyue toward the inner courtyard. “Please, follow me! Xuan just finished another seizure and is still unconscious!”
In the bedroom, the air carried a faint smell of blood. Ten-year-old Young Master Zhang lay on the bed, his face pale as paper, lips tinged with blue. There were still bloody scratch marks on his wrists from his convulsions the day before.
Wen Yinyue stepped to the bedside and motioned for Lin Feng to stop the maid who wanted to approach. She sat on the edge of the bed and gently placed her fingers on the boy’s pulse.
At first touch, the pulse felt weak and floating, like a candle flickering in the wind. But as she probed deeper, she sensed a faint abnormality—a rapid vibration hidden between the beats, as if something alive were wriggling within the blood vessels.
She frowned slightly and lifted the boy’s robe. On his chest was a faint red mark, like a mosquito bite, yet it carried a subtle dark hue.
“Master Zhang, has your son recently come into contact with any unfamiliar objects? Or met any suspicious people?” Wen Yinyue withdrew her hand and asked calmly.
Merchant Zhang froze, then thought carefully. “Last month, I received a batch of jade from the Western Regions. Xuan was curious and played with a jade pendant carved in the shape of a silkworm for several days. Later it went missing, and soon after, Xuan fell ill… Could it be because of that pendant?”
“It was a Golden Silkworm Gu,” Wen Yinyue said. Her words struck like thunder, leaving Merchant Zhang stiff.
“The jade pendant contained Golden Silkworm Gu eggs. When your son wore it close to his body, the eggs seeped through the skin and grew into Gu insects. At noon each day, when yang energy is strongest, the Gu becomes active and gnaws at the internal organs, causing convulsions and vomiting blood.”
“Gu… Gu insects?”
Merchant Zhang’s legs nearly gave out. He braced himself against the bed to remain standing.
“Sir, can you cure it? Please save Xuan! As long as he can be cured, I’ll give you anything!”
Wen Yinyue nodded. She took out a wooden box from her blue cloth medicine pouch. Inside was a row of golden needles as fine as hair.
“I will first use golden needles to seal the Gu’s range of movement, then lure it out with Gu-attracting grass. The process may be painful. Master Zhang, please hold your son steady and do not let him move.”
Lin Feng immediately stepped forward to restrain the boy’s shoulders. Merchant Zhang held his son’s legs tightly, his eyes full of tension.
Wen Yinyue picked up a golden needle and lightly pierced it beside the red mark on the boy’s chest at the Shanzhong acupoint. Her movement was lightning-fast. The moment the needle entered the skin, her fingers moved slightly, internal energy flowing through the needle. The boy’s tightly furrowed brows slowly relaxed.
“The golden needle can temporarily paralyze the Gu and protect the internal organs,” Wen Yinyue explained as she placed needles into the Qimen and Zhangmen acupoints.
“With these three points sealed, the Gu can only move between the liver and lungs and will no longer spread.”
After placing the needles, she took out a dried herb from her pouch—the Gu-attracting grass unique to the mountain valley. Once dried, it carried a faint fishy smell and was the bane of the Golden Silkworm Gu. She soaked it in warm water in a clay bowl, then dipped a cotton swab into the liquid and gently applied it to the red mark on the boy’s chest.
Before the time it took to drink half a cup of tea, the boy suddenly groaned, his brows knotting in pain.
Wen Yinyue’s eyes sharpened. She quickly pulled out the needle at the Shanzhong point. At the instant the needle left the skin, a tiny black shadow wriggled out of the red mark and fell into the bowl. It was a small insect, completely golden and only as long as a finger, struggling in the liquid.
“The Gu is out!” Lin Feng exclaimed softly, awe filling his eyes. He knew Wen Yinyue’s medical skills were exceptional, but he had not expected her to be able to cure Gu poison as well.
Wen Yinyue immediately poured the remaining Gu-attracting liquid over the insect. It stopped moving at once.
She then took out a black pill and fed it to the boy.
“This is a Gu-clearing pill. It will remove any remaining Gu poison. Have him take it for three consecutive days, and he will recover.”
After swallowing the pill, color gradually returned to the boy’s face. His breathing steadied, and he slowly opened his eyes, weakly calling out, “Father…”
Merchant Zhang burst into tears and fell to his knees before Wen Yinyue.
“Sir, you have saved my son’s life! I have no way to repay you! I’ll have the thousand taels of gold sent immediately—no, I’ll give you ten thousand taels!”
Wen Yinyue quickly helped him up, her tone still calm.
“Master Zhang, there is no need for such courtesy. Healing the sick is my duty. I don’t want the gold—only one favor. I’ve heard you have three shops in the capital. I’d like to borrow the management rights. Within three years, I guarantee their profits will double. After three years, I will return them to you.”
Merchant Zhang was stunned, then burst into laughter.
“You want shops? Not just three—if you wanted ten, I’d give them to you! You saved Xuan’s life; what is this compared to that? I’ll draft the documents at once and give you the deeds and account books!”
Three days later, Young Master Zhang was fully recovered. Not only could he get out of bed, he could even stroll through the garden with Wen Yinyue.
Merchant Zhang honored his promise and handed over the management rights to three shops in the capital. He also hosted a grand celebratory banquet at the busiest restaurant in Suzhou, inviting local gentry and prominent figures.
At the banquet, Wen Yinyue attended under the identity of “Moon Hidden.” Dressed in a scholar’s robe, folding fan in hand, her speech was elegant and refined. She explained the principles of treating Gu and even diagnosed hidden ailments for several of the guests, quickly earning the title of “Divine Physician.”
When someone asked who her teacher was, Wen Yinyue merely smiled and waved her fan.
“A person of the mountains, fortunate to come across a few medical texts—nothing worth mentioning.”
After the banquet, Lin Feng walked through the streets of Suzhou with Wen Yinyue. Hearing the common folk all discussing the “Divine Physician Moon Hidden,” he couldn’t help asking, “Pavilion Master, now that ‘Moon Hidden’ is becoming famous, won’t the capital start paying attention?”
Wen Yinyue stopped and looked toward the direction of the capital. A cold glint flashed in her eyes.
“That’s exactly what I want. Mrs. Liu and Wen Wanru harmed the original owner and seized control of the marquis’s household. It’s time they knew someone is coming back to settle accounts.”
She touched the jade pendant at her waist—the mutton-fat jade taken long ago from the man in the dark brocade robe.
“Once the shops are running smoothly, I’ll take Junye and Lingxi back to the capital. Xiaoyao Pavilion’s influence should extend there as well.”
The winter evening wind carried a chill, yet it could not shake the determination in Wen Yinyue’s eyes. Lanterns gradually lit up along Suzhou’s streets, illuminating her handsome scholar’s figure—and the upright silhouette of Lin Feng behind her.
The name “Divine Physician Moon Hidden” spread like the wind, blowing from Suzhou across Jiangnan, drifting steadily toward the capital.