Gourmet Girl: Becoming a Royal Merchant Started from Selling Buns

Jian Yi took the order and took a step forward. He stood as straight as a pine tree, and his black tights showed off his sturdy figure.

"Messenger, please come in. Don't disturb my master's rest."

"I am under the order of His Majesty. It is not so easy to drive me away."

Seeing this, Jian Yi didn't waste any more words and rushed towards the messenger in an instant.

The sword in his hand turned into a stream of light and pierced the opponent's arm, as if to directly cripple this person.

This time it was no longer a fight with bare hands, but a fight with swords and knives, a test to find out the bottom line.

The messenger's eyes changed, and his body leaned back. At the same time, the soft sword came out of the cave like a snake, and instantly wrapped around Jian Yi's abdomen.

One was tough and the other was gentle, and they started fighting directly.

Everyone around held their breath and tacitly stayed away from them, leaving enough space for the two of them.

The swords clashed back and forth, making crisp clashes, and for the time being no one could tell who was winning.

But just as Jian Yi was entangled and had to retreat, preparing to attack again, a sinister look appeared in the messenger's eyes.

As the sword approached, he suddenly shot out several hidden weapons from his sleeves.

The surfaces of those hidden weapons flashed with a faint blue light, and they were obviously poisoned. They flew towards Jian Yi like raindrops, and the speed was astonishing.

"Despicable!" Jian Yi cursed inwardly and swung his sword to block it unexpectedly, but there were many hidden weapons and their angles were tricky. Although he avoided most of them, one still cut his arm.

Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain in his tendons and veins, and Jian Yi knew that he had been poisoned.

Now that you are poisoned, if you mobilize your internal energy to fight, it will only worsen the poison!

Jian Yi frowned, but could only retreat back to Fu Zhun's side in anger and reluctance, "Sorry, Master, I underestimated the enemy!"

Looking at Jian Yi who was shot by an arrow, the messenger showed a sneer of success in his eyes, and retreated unexpectedly without pestering him anymore.

"I'll let you go today, and we'll see what happens!"

After saying that, he flashed and flew out of the inn with his guards. After a few takeoffs and landings, he disappeared from everyone's sight.

Su An was stunned by the direction of the plot.

It seemed like the other party was holding on to Fu Zhun just now, so how come he suddenly hurt someone and left so easily?

She looked at Fu Zhun in confusion, but Fu Zhun's eyes were a little gloomy, and he frowned as he looked at the purple-black wound on Jian Yi.

Now that there were no outsiders around, Jian Yi immediately told the truth:

"According to my deduction, this poison is the method used by the palace to train Shadow Guards. Rumor has it that it is made by combining nine of the most poisonous substances in the world. The toxins gnaw at the Shadow Guards' flesh and blood, thereby tempering their will and unleashing their potential. However, it also shortens the poisoned individual's lifespan, to no more than ten years."

Fu Zhun nodded, half-closed his eyes and pondered.

But Su An was greatly shocked when he heard this. He looked at Jian Yi with shock and sympathy, "The emperor is trying to build up his own power. He doesn't even treat people as human beings!"

Then he thought again, gritting his teeth in anger: "Damn this bastard messenger, it's fine if he died young, but he resorted to such dirty tricks when he couldn't win, trying to drag Brother Jian down with him!"

No wonder he ran away so quickly after poisoning!

Fu Zhun was silent for a moment, then said, "The envoy's features look familiar, and there's resentment in his eyes. I guess he has an old grudge against us."

"An Yi, go investigate his identity and make sure you find out his origins."

"Yes!" A voice responded from the dark, and then disappeared without a trace as if it merged into the darkness.

As soon as he gave the order, Jian Yi suddenly began to feel unsteady and his body swayed.

The veins on his forehead bulged, and he seemed to be in great pain, letting out a muffled groan.

Xie Qingfeng happened to arrive. He was originally called by Su An to examine Fu Zhun, and now he started to take Jian's pulse first.

After a moment, Xie Qingfeng frowned, then relaxed again, "This poison is indeed tricky, but it's not incurable."

"What a coincidence! The prince has been assassinated many times by the Shadow Guards before, and he has been poisoned by a similar poison. The antidote I developed at that time can be used here. Combined with my acupuncture technique, the poison will be eliminated in a few days."

When Su An heard the news, the worry in his heart just fell to the ground, but suddenly it rose again.

She looked at Fu Zhun in disbelief and said hesitantly, "Survived multiple assassination attempts? How dangerous must your past experiences have been..."

Even someone as strong as Jian Yi was tortured by the poison and turned pale in an instant, but Fu Zhun had encountered this many times before?

This... a trace of heartache spread from her eyes.

Fu Zhun didn't expect Su An's focus to be on him. After a moment of daze, he chuckled softly: "Time has passed, it's all in the past, not worth mentioning."

The lighter his tone, the more heartbreaking it was.

Who wouldn't be afraid of death? However, Fu Zhun's expression was one of calm numbness, having experienced so many life and death situations.

But whether he is truly numb or is forcing himself not to show weakness, it is obviously not a good sign.

Su An's head got hot, and he held up Fu Zhun's calm and cold face with both hands.

"Some pains won't go away with time. There's no need to carry it all on your own. You're not a god. Scream when it hurts, and rest when you're tired."

When Su An thought of the life-and-death experiences Fu Zhun had had, she pursed her lips and stroked his face repeatedly as if coaxing a child.

"Oh, you poor thing, it doesn't hurt anymore. You are a prince after all, why do you always risk yourself? When you are in pain, no one can help you."

Su An frowned and muttered, saying that even if Fu Zhun could listen to him a little, it would be better if he would not take risks alone in the future.

Fu Zhun rolled his throat in silence.

I just felt that her hands were so soft and gentle, like the warm spring breeze, silently moistening my heart.

Jian Yi, who was standing by, suddenly felt numb all over and his eyes felt stinging and painful.

Xie Qingfeng didn't even try to hide the twitching of his eyes, and covered his mouth with his hands, looking like he was about to vomit.

"Alright, alright, don't disturb their love. I'll accompany you, my friend, to find a place to detoxify!"

Jian Yi: "Agree."

Fu Zhun and Su An finally reacted and their faces suddenly turned red.

"Well, I'll help you go back to your room to rest!"

Su An touched his nose with a laugh, and Fu Zhun coughed lightly. The joy in his eyes disappeared in an instant and no one noticed.

……

The next day, the seemingly peaceful morning was soon broken by a burst of noise.

The messenger was still dressed in black, with his face covered, revealing only his sinister eyes, which showed his ruthlessness to not give up until he achieved his goal.

The group was about to step into the inn in high spirits, but was rudely stopped by the soldiers guarding the door.

Compared with the royal guards, this group of soldiers and confidants stood as tall and straight as pine trees, clad in armor that gleamed coldly in the sun, revealing a majestic fighting spirit.

"Messenger, please go back. The prince does not welcome guests!"

The leading envoy suddenly frowned.

After poisoning Jian yesterday, he left with great confidence, thinking that he could wait for Fu Zhun to show weakness and ask for the antidote, but he ended up waiting in vain for a whole day.

I came here today to find out what was going on, so how could I be stopped?

"How dare you! Now you dare to stop this envoy. Are you, everyone in the Zhenbei Palace, going to openly defy the will of the emperor?"