Chapter 2155 — The Medicine King's Scheme
The Blossom Guardian · Page 2 of 2
"An enemy?" Elder Pi was startled and did not react for a moment. "Whom do our Hidden Pi family count as enemies? We seldom make enemies at all..."
"Heh heh, it is Wei Zhao!" Zhao the Medicine King said. "And Wei Zhao alone, I hear, can dissolve others' true qi. But mark you, I once fell foul of a similar technique myself—a far milder case than Pi Zhitao's—and Wei Zhao never helped dissolve mine... So you see, this matter has a way, which is the same as having none!"
What Zhao the Medicine King deliberately omitted was this: the true qi he had been struck by was in fact Wei Zhao's own! He had been instructed by Elder Zhao to deepen Elder Pi's hatred of Wei Zhao. Among all the heaven-rank experts, Elder Pi alone had never clearly stated his stance on dealing with Wei Zhao.
Every heaven-rank expert counted for hope in the campaign against Wei Zhao, so Elder Zhao wished to win Elder Pi over. In truth, Zhao the Medicine King had no idea whether Wei Zhao could actually heal the man; he was simply speaking at random.
"This..." Elder Pi's heart gave a jolt. Wei Zhao indeed bore no goodwill toward their Hidden Pi family, and to seek healing from him—Zhao the Medicine King was right—would likely meet with flat refusal. Otherwise, if Wei Zhao had been willing to treat him, why had he said not a word before?
No matter how many rare treasures had been demanded, Elder Pi would have agreed on the spot—yet Wei Zhao had remained unmoved, which indirectly confirmed Zhao the Medicine King's words.
At that thought, resentment did indeed rise in Elder Pi's heart, but it was as quick to fade as to arise. He was a clever man; how could he fail to hear that Zhao the Medicine King's words were meant to steer him into joining the campaign against Wei Zhao?
Yet what occupied Elder Pi's mind was something else entirely! The Hidden Pi family had indeed lost some experts at Wei Zhao's hands, but that did not matter; they were not direct blood descendants of the Hidden Pi family, and so the enmity between the Hidden Pi family and Wei Zhao was not beyond reconciliation!
If he lowered his own posture a little, found some way to gratify Wei Zhao's tastes, and went to plead with him, perhaps there really might be hope for Pi Zhitao! Killing Wei Zhao would gratify him for a time, but from a long-term view, making peace with Wei Zhao was the better bargain.
"Elder Pi, when all is said and done, it all comes back to Wei Zhao. The hatred between your Hidden Pi family and Wei Zhao cannot be dissolved—so many have died at his hands, and Wei Zhao has no fondness for your Hidden Pi family either. Do you think he would still lift a finger to help?" Zhao the Medicine King pressed on. "So the pressing task is to think of how to kill Wei Zhao and be avenged!"
"Mmm... what you say has some reason. I will go back and think it over..." Elder Pi nodded, gathered Pi Zhitao in his arms, and walked out of the Zhao family's side hall, while a cold smile flickered at the corner of Zhao the Medicine King's mouth, so faint it was all but imperceptible...