The rain was pouring so hard that Tian Hua wasn't sure he'd heard correctly. "What did you just say?"
Luo Jialin sat up. "I'll take that as a yes."
He reached out and pulled Tian Hua up from the ground. "Want to grab a drink?"
"Let's go," Tian Hua hooked an arm around his shoulders. "Your place."
Shu Lanzhou had no idea that rejecting Tian Hua had unexpectedly helped ease the tension between him and Luo Jialin. By then, she and Mu Side had already returned to the Mu estate.
By the time they got out of the car, the rain had begun to lighten.
Mu Side had just put away his umbrella and was gesturing for her to go inside when his phone rang. His expression turned serious as he answered the call.
Shu Lanzhou was already inside when he caught up to her, gently taking her hand.
After hanging up, he told her, "Luo Jialin has officially changed the equity structure of his company. Looks like he's split from Xiao Anning. Zhang Chengyou may be planning to start his own cosmeceutical company."
"You mean they're cutting Luo Jialin out?" Shu Lanzhou frowned. "I doubt it. Just wait—my guess is Han Weicheng won't let go of him so easily. The Zhang family has no name recognition in China, but Luo Jialin…"
Even if the Luo family seemed to have cast him out, his surname still opened doors. Decades of accumulated prestige and connections—he could still leverage all of it.
And with Han Weicheng's ruthless, ends-justify-the-means approach, he would never pass that up.
"Are you forgetting that Zhang Chengyou has his sights set on you?" Mu Side's voice turned cold. "If you agreed to work with them, Luo Jialin would be the first one they'd toss aside."
Shu Lanzhou was backed by the Mu family, and these days, their name far outshone the Luo family's.
Shu Lanzhou let out a soft laugh.
"Then they've seriously miscalculated. There's no way I'll work with them. Even if they hadn't tried to manipulate me through Tian Hua—if they had come openly and sincerely, I still wouldn't agree."
She would never again have anything to do with Han Weicheng.
And Zhang Chengyou? He was after the Mu family all along.
"Tian Hua's probably just the first pawn. They won't give up so easily. You need to be careful," Mu Side gently squeezed her palm. "Let me pick you up from work for a while, okay?"
Shu Lanzhou nodded obediently. "Got it!"
She didn't take it too seriously. After what she'd been through in her previous life, she knew one thing for certain—no matter what tricks they tried, she'd never go back.
After dinner, they headed up to the attic. Unlike before, this time they knew what poison they were dealing with. Their goal was to find a cure or treatment.
They combed through books on toxicology and traditional medicine but found no antidote for the specific compound.
"I remember coming across an acupuncture technique that focuses on detoxification…" Shu Lanzhou stood and began flipping through an old tome of acupuncture techniques.
It was the Mu family's acupuncture compendium, documenting every needle method developed by generations of Mu family healers since the inception of their tradition.
"I've always wondered something," she said as she scanned the index, pausing at the timeline of inheritors on the front page. "Why are the gaps between each generation of heirs so short? In less than 300 years, there've been over a hundred successors?"
Mu Side moved to sit beside her. "According to my grandfather, very few people have ever mastered the complete Mu acupuncture method. To do so, you need not only immense talent but also to be young—with slender, agile fingers."
"Some techniques require not just precision but lightning speed—multiple needles at different points nearly simultaneously. Once you're older and your hands aren't as nimble, you just can't do it anymore."
"But here's the thing—if you're too young, you don't have the experience or knowledge. So actual qualified heirs are incredibly rare."
"To prevent the techniques from being lost, our ancestors compiled the Mu medical system into a broader practice, passing it down generation by generation."
"To find more suitable candidates, every Mu child starts learning to handle needles by age four or five. And if someone hasn't mastered the methods by thirty, the next successor is chosen."
"Sometimes there are overlapping generations of successors. But the book itself? There's only ever one holder."
So every inheritor only had a few short years as the official guardian of the techniques. Once they couldn't handle the needles with speed and precision, it was time to pass it on.
Shu Lanzhou's gaze dropped. "But… I'm not that young anymore. I might never master the full system."
Did she need to start looking for her own successor already?
"My grandfather didn't master it. Neither did my aunts. Even I only understand the theory—I'm not proficient in practice." Mu Side gave her an encouraging smile.
"Out of over a hundred inheritors, only a dozen or so truly learned it all. My grandfather used to say that those born with both the talent and passion for acupuncture are one in a million."
"Our job is to preserve these methods and find the true master who can carry them forward—to help more people."
"Shushu, believe me—you're more suited for this than either of my aunts or even me. It's only been a few years, and you've already worked through most of this book. That's impressive."
"Besides, your small frame, nimble fingers—you're already well suited. Give it time. I believe your skill will rival even Grandpa's someday."
Shu Lanzhou nodded firmly. "I'll do my best. I won't let this technique go to waste."
Her hands were still steady. She still had years left with the needle.
"That's the spirit." Mu Side lightly tapped her nose with a fingertip.
"You mentioned detoxification through acupuncture—good idea. Uncle's poison has been in his system too long. If we keep using drugs, there could be side effects."
"I remember reading about those techniques too, but they're all extremely complicated. And the treatment takes time. Uncle…"
Shu Lanzhou considered. "Then let's tell Grandma the truth. Ask her to help convince Uncle. Even if the course is long—half a year, a full year—it doesn't matter. He's survived this long."
"You're right. I'll go talk to Grandma." Mu Side stood up.
"I'll look for the right technique to treat Uncle's condition," Shu Lanzhou said, rifling through the books.
With their tasks divided, they headed to Uncle Mu Rongxie's room that night.
Shu Lanzhou didn't know what Mu Side had said to convince him, but when she entered, Mu Rongxie was already asleep.
"Grandma gave him a sedative. It won't last long, so let's get started."
"…Wait, this is how we're doing it?"
She quickly stepped forward. "This set of acupuncture points focuses on the lower back and thighs. I'll handle the lower back, you do the thighs?"
"Got it." Mu Side nodded. "Give me the acupoint diagram."
Turns out, teamwork worked wonders. Just as the last needle went in, Mu Rongxie woke up.
He let out a faint hiss, eyes opening to lock right onto Shu Lanzhou.
"What are you doing?"
Flustered, Shu Lanzhou didn't have time to withdraw her hand before he began to shift.
Thankfully, Mu Side reacted quickly and pressed him back down. "My wife just learned an insanely complex needle technique. Practicing on a model wasn't cutting it."
"Grandma said since you're the family invalid anyway, it doesn't matter if we screw up. So she told Shushu to use you for live practice. Don't move—we just finished the last needle. We haven't tested its effect yet."
Mu Rongxie stared at him, caught between disbelief and exasperation. "…Did Grandma really say that?"
"Swear to God. If you don't believe me, ask her yourself after the treatment's done." Mu Side looked like he'd grow a tail if he were lying.
Mu Rongxie narrowed his eyes, scrutinizing Mu Side. "Fine. Since Grandma gave the order, I'll cooperate. But did you really have to knock me out?"
"Tell me honestly—what kind of technique is this?"