Chapter 121: "The Rampage of Demonic Aura"

"Five households have already been affected, and all of them are babbling nonsense and behaving in the most absurd ways."

He heaved a sigh.

The local physicians had come and gone multiple times, yet none could identify the problem. The consensus among them was that the victims had been frightened, but this explanation clearly did not hold water.

"Would you mind letting me take a look?"

"What?" Han Qing had spoken up abruptly.

Magistrate Gao clearly did not take him seriously. "You students preparing for the imperial examinations should not come here to cause trouble. You would be better off reading a few more books; perhaps you might even guess the exam topics correctly."

"My Lord, you are being biased. How do you know I cannot figure this out? Perhaps these families aren't suffering from any supernatural affliction at all." He spoke with nonchalance.

But Magistrate Gao paid him no mind, waving his hand to urge him back to the courtyard. *Could he be possessed by the same evil spirit too?*

"Magistrate Gao, you might as well let him look. You cannot solve this anyway. Why not treat a dead horse as if it were a living one?" Young Master Zhu interjected, offering them a way to save face.

Magistrate Gao nodded. His own position was already precarious enough; perhaps there was still a glimmer of hope.

Han Qing observed the several people who were rambling incoherently. Although they were bound to their beds, they kept muttering incessantly. Their eyes were unfocused, as if staring at something unseen. After examining their mouths and tongues, he found no physical abnormalities, yet there were clear signs of poisoning. The local physicians were evidently unable to recognize it.

He went on to inspect the food they had consumed. It appeared perfectly normal—just standard, home-cooked dishes.

"Isn't this just ordinary food that any commoner would eat?" Young Master Zhu asked slowly, feeling more bewildered the more he looked.

"Yes, there is no poison in the food itself, but their symptoms are consistent with a form of toxicity," Han Qing said calmly. In his experience, such a condition was likely caused by eating poisonous mushrooms. It was not difficult to deduce that these families had all been foraging for vegetables on the mountain.

It was highly probable they had consumed the same ingredients. Sure enough, he discovered mushrooms in their meals. They had been thoroughly stir-fried, and to the untrained eye, they looked no different from edible varieties.

"Grind melon pedicels and adzuki beans into a powder, mix it with water, and have them drink it to induce vomiting three times. That should suffice. Afterward, administer a few doses of warming, restorative medicine..." Han Qing instructed.

The others had never heard of such a remedy and looked at him in confusion. However, once the concoction was prepared and administered, the patients did indeed vomit several times and their spirits improved significantly. Though they still felt groggy, they were no longer delirious.

Upon hearing the news, the physicians were filled with astonishment and intercepted Han Qing.

"So, those patients were not possessed by evil spirits?"

"No, they simply ate poisonous mushrooms. This area is quite remote, and wild mushrooms often grow on the mountainside behind the village. It is only natural that the locals would not know the difference," Han Qing explained slowly.

The physicians nodded in belated realization. They felt ashamed of their earlier dismissiveness, having thought that Han Qing, a nobody, was merely stirring up trouble.

"These are the prescriptions I wrote. If you encounter similar patients in the future, you will know what to do." Han Qing handed them the prescriptions. The physicians were deeply grateful.

Magistrate Gao watched this scene in amazement. "Good, excellent! Young Master Han, thanks to you, otherwise the entire population of Luojing might have remained in a state of terror. With the superiors constantly pressuring me, I was nearly at the end of my rope."

"It was nothing. You should inform the local people not to eat mushrooms they do not recognize, and to be as careful as possible," Han Qing reminded him. Though it was not a major crisis, the desire to try new foods always carried inherent risks.

The mysterious "demonic" incident that had kept everyone in a state of panic turned out to be nothing more than mushroom poisoning. Some treated the matter as a joke, even finding it quite ridiculous.

"It’s not just talk; I went to the back mountain to pick some bamboo shoots this morning and saw some beautiful mushrooms. I’m lucky I didn’t pick and eat them," Brother Liu remarked with hindsight.

"You’re one of the lucky ones. My wife ate some last time and lay in bed, dazed, for days. All the farm work fell on my shoulders..."

With some rejoicing and others complaining, the rumors were successfully dispelled, and Han Qing’s reputation in Luojing grew higher. Yet, some failed to understand why he had given the prescriptions away for free. Would it not have been better to charge a high price?

"Is it not a bit of a loss to just give them away like that? We put in all the effort," Young Master Zhu asked, slightly puzzled.

"Doing this will only make the local people truly grateful, and it may even trigger a positive chain reaction. Besides, my primary goal is to take the imperial examination; I have no interest in doing business," he replied, shaking his head.

That was the truth. The chain reaction did not take long; within a mere week, it had already earned him the resentment of certain officials. If someone with no power could receive such high praise, what would happen if he gained real authority later? Would he not end up riding over their heads? Some officials naturally sought to suppress him, a move Han Qing had already anticipated.

Five days later, he went as scheduled to take the imperial examination. Most of the candidates arrived feeling confident. The first session tested the Four Books; the questions were difficult and the essays challenging. He then sat for two more sessions, covering the Five Classics and policy questions. These topics leaned more toward current affairs within the imperial court, differing slightly from the provincial examinations.

After nine days, it was all over. He waited patiently for the results. Young Master Zhu was full of confidence, certain that Han Qing would pass with flying colors.

However, when the list of successful candidates was posted, his name was not among them. Young Master Zhu scanned the names, utterly baffled. Given Han Qing’s talent, it was impossible for him not to have qualified as a tribute student. Something was definitely wrong.

"This is wrong... why isn't your name here?"