The sacred tree is about to pass, and the cannon fodder's wish countdown is coming

When Lu Shi was summoned into the palace by Emperor Sheng Zhao, he was still confused and had no idea why he was summoned by the emperor.

After seeing Qi Hou beside Emperor Sheng Zhao, he had a guess. The current emperor had been feeling weak recently and had been coughing incessantly in the court. He was afraid that it was because of this.

"I see your Majesty."

"No need to be polite, my dear, please stand up."

Emperor Sheng Zhao smiled like Maitreya Buddha, showing kindness but not majesty.

"I heard that you are from Changping Village in Qingning Town and are good at making medicine. I will have to rely on you to help me take care of my old bones from now on."

"It is my good fortune, and I will certainly live up to your trust."

Lu Shi raised his eyes slightly and met Qi Jin's eyes. Qi Jin smiled and winked at him.

Lu Shi smiled back, thinking that this golden thigh was really thick enough to think of him for all the good things. It was unimaginable how great the merit and benefits of treating Emperor Sheng Zhao were.

With the title of Emperor Sheng Zhao's savior, he was truly second to none in the capital and could do whatever he wanted without any problem.

The two walked out of the palace together, and Qi Jin was accompanied by the eldest prince Qi Qian.

Lu Shi clasped his hands and saluted, "Thank you, Your Highness, for your support. I will keep it in mind."

"Why should we be so polite to each other?" Qi Jin felt a little unhappy when he heard Lu Shi's unfamiliar and polite words, but he also knew that Lu Shi might not dare to show much intimacy with him because of the presence of his royal brother, so he held back his anger and endured it.

"I just mentioned this casually. The most important thing is that you are capable and worthy of your reputation. Otherwise, I would not have made such a boast to my father."

Qi Jin did not claim to be the prince in front of Qi Qian, so Qi Qian was trustworthy.

Lu Shi nodded, indicating that he had received the signal.

"I have to go make medicine for His Majesty, so I'll go ahead." Lu Shi raised his hand to say goodbye and prepared to go to the imperial pharmacy. Although he was not short of medicinal materials, he would not take them for free. This was a good opportunity to make a lot of them.

Lu Shi's mind was filled with calculations, and then he suddenly realized, when did he become like this? It seemed like he had learned bad habits from the monkey system!

Monkey System: I suddenly felt like I was carrying something on my back...

Qi Qian, who had been silent since Lu Shi left, suddenly spoke up: "You are the one behind Changping Village, right?"

"It's me." Qi Jin thought there was nothing to hide from Qi Qian.

"Do you know how much effort I put into getting this business? I didn't expect you to snatch it away so early." Qi Qian's face fell, and his tone gradually collapsed. "Ahhh, silver, gold, how come all of it went to you!"

"Haha, haha..." Qi Jin touched his nose, feeling a little guilty. He was just supporting the company, and the money wouldn't go into his pocket. But he didn't argue. Qi Qian wouldn't get even more mad if the money went into his own hands. Otherwise, Lu Shi would be in trouble.

"That's not right. With the business in Changping Village, you should have made a fortune long ago. Why do you still look so poor these past few years?"

"..."

"Then let me ask, what do you consider not poor?"

"Like me."

"..." He didn't deserve the position of the richest man. According to him, no one in Shengzhao Kingdom was not poor except Qi Qian.

……

During the next few days of rest, Lu Shi was making medicine. Qi Jin couldn't find a chance to get close to him, so he could only find a roundabout way. He would buy him some snacks or send him a gift from time to time. Anyway, he had to make his presence felt, for fear that Lu Shi would be too busy to forget about him.

But what he didn't know was that all the snacks he had spent so much effort to buy went into the monkey system's stomach, leaving nothing for Lu Shi.

"You've gained a lot of weight recently."

After Lu Shi finished refining the pills, the monkey system gained a lot of weight.

The monkey system held its big belly that had just been filled and received Lu Shi's death stare, then ran away in panic.

……

Today was Lu Shi's first day at court. He had originally been given a sinecure—a Hanlin Academy editor—which, while lacking real power, held a promising future. However, thanks to Qi Jin's appreciation and recommendation, and his contributions to Emperor Sheng Zhao's health, he was successfully promoted to Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, responsible for national finances and economic affairs such as household registration, land, and taxation, earning him the emperor's trust.

Of course, Emperor Sheng Zhao had entrusted his life to him, so how could he not trust him?

Because of his previous achievements in Changping Village, Lu Shi's promotion was very smooth, and almost no court officials stood up to oppose him.

After the court was dismissed, the officials surrounded Lu Shi as soon as they left the palace. They asked Lu Shi indirectly whether he had any medicine that could cure their illnesses. However, when they saw the man approaching, the area around Lu Shi gradually cleared out.

The person who came was the wise king. He walked forward with a warm and harmless smile and talked to Lu Shi.

"I have come specially to congratulate Lu Shilang on his successful promotion. I hope he has a promising future."

Lu Shi looked at the man carefully. His kind face seemed to make people let down their guard easily, but the darkness and turbidity in his eyes could not deceive people. Lu Shi noticed that the dirty soul was turning black and smelly, which made Lu Shi take three steps back.

"I wonder if I would have the honor to visit Minister Lu's residence and ask for a cup of tea to quench my thirst?" Not long after the conversation, the wise king showed his obvious attempt to win over others.

But it's true that the virtuous king has been doing a lot of things recently. He wanted to use Xiao Muyu to disturb General Xiao's mansion, but he was rescued unexpectedly in the middle of the journey, and his plan was shattered. He was also caught by Qi Jin and had to cut off one of his arms. Even the Minister of Revenue was demoted for improper management of his subordinates, and Qi Jin's people took his place.

He has been unlucky recently. Qi Jin is a little irritable and deliberately makes trouble for Lu Shi because Lu Shi is too busy refining medicine to pay attention to him.

The officials under him were dismissed from their posts one after another because of their mistakes, and now he is in urgent need of recruiting talents.

Among the many new officials, he chose Lu Shi first. It must be said that he had a sharp eye.

"I'm afraid I'll disappoint Your Highness. I've just moved into the mansion bestowed upon me by the Emperor, and I'm just about to start preparing the meals. Furthermore, the facilities here aren't quite complete, and I'm afraid I'll be neglecting my distinguished guest. Therefore, I'll allow you to take care of the affairs of the mansion before entertaining Your Highness. Then, I'll naturally present the invitations to everyone to join me."

Lu Shizhao greeted the officials who had not yet left, his voice a little louder, "My lords, I hope you will all come to visit my humble abode when the time comes."

"It's natural. Why shouldn't we go?" Everyone agreed.

"Then I will be here to visit you." The virtuous king responded with a smile, as if he didn't care at all that Lu Shi had humiliated him in public. He still chatted and laughed with the officials with a gentle face.

But the moment he turned and left, the dark side burst out from his black eyes, like a poisonous snake spitting out its tongue, trying to kill people.

Talent will be fought over by those in higher positions, and naturally will attract hatred.

If he can't get the talent, no one else can get it.

That night, Lu Shi, who was being harassed by Qi Jin, faced the first wave of assassinations since he arrived in the capital. Fortunately, he was well prepared.

On the first day Lu Shi entered the mansion, he planted several poisonous thorn grasses on the walls inside. After being nourished with spiritual power, the poisonous thorn grasses covered the walls in a few days and grew very well.

The roots, stems, and leaves of these grasses are covered with densely packed small poisonous thorns. If you have a wound on your body or are pricked by the thorns, the juice from the thorns will seep into your body, and within an incense stick of time, your whole body will be paralyzed and you will fall into a coma.