The patriarch then got news about a kind of poison whose symptoms could only be held at bay by using one's cultivation to purge its constituents out of one's body.
But though the greedy clan patriarch had the intention of healing the little girl afterward, he never knew that the poison had no cure at that point in time.
Long story short; the heir won the battle, but Old Lao's granddaughter died causing the Royal Family to grieve with him, and as such, they took him away from his clan and gave him a noble title whilst appointing him as the Royal Physician as well.
The clan on the other hand lost a master physician, which was not only a very important member of their clan in terms of healing their wounded but also the reason why they had many good connections with other families and even clans.
Furthermore, the merchant severed any connection between them, and even demanded several compensations, claiming that they tried to dupe him.
This accusation caused his clan to suffer a loss that was even greater than what they wouldn't have gained if they hadn't arranged the marriage.
"About that favor, when the time comes, I really hope you will not go back on your words." Old Lao added whilst gazing towards the Ji trio.
"My words shall stand for as long as my grandson lives." Ji Tang replied whilst Old Lao simply ignored the hidden terms within his words.
"Alright, let's not waste any more time; I believe you have gathered all the ingredients I asked for?"
"They are all here, Master Lao." Ji Tang handed a pouch which was a storage device to the royal physician.
"I will surely cure him completely, but it would certainly take a while before he can be completely cured." Old Lao explained.
"Like how much time are we looking at?" It was Ji Fang who spoke this time around; he also loved Ji Min as if he was his own.
Old Lao simply replied by raising three fingers.
"Since we cannot use our initial method, then I would have to slowly detoxify each venom one after the other, just to prevent any unforeseen issues."
"Does that mean you will be taking the little boy with you?" Master Li asked as Old Lao nodded.
Ji Tang frowned slightly at the situation; whilst he was willing to save Ji Min, handing him over to someone he had just met wasn't really a sweet pill to swallow.
"Tang, I believe letting Old Lao leave with the boy is much better than allowing your grandson to continue suffering and eventually die." Master Li said from the side.
Though he knew his old friend had many responsibilities being the royal physician of their neighboring empire, he still couldn't tell why the royal physician couldn't simply create these antidotes and prescribe them to the Jis.
"I can sense your unwillingness, but the reason why I want to take the boy with me is so that I can be around to quickly come to his aid should any deviations occur during his treatment." Old Lao explained.
"Also based on what I've heard about your situation from Old Li, you can also think of it as me protecting my investment, after all, I wouldn't want to lose my unconditional favor because of another assassination attempt." He added as the rest of the group sighed.
"To make you rest easy, Old Li can come with me or visit regularly; that way, he would be able to update you on our progress." Old Lao added whilst Ji Tang simply nodded.
"Alright, now that everyone understands, I will give him something to wake him up, so you all can say your goodbyes; we will be leaving at dawn."
Old Lao concluded as he walked up to Ji Min who was already waiting to be touched so he could open his eyes.
Old Lao then whipped out a small bottle out of thin air and poured a little into his mouth before looking towards everyone so that they can know its content isn't harmful.
Ji Tang sighed when he realized that they had been a little too strict in trusting the royal physician, but then he thought to himself; who wouldn't?
After emptying the contents of the bottle into Ji Min's mouth and rubbing his chest so that the potion could go down his throat, Old Lao stepped back and waited for the medicinal potion to kick in.
Cough! Cough!
The Ji trio felt their hearts and body tremble as they witnessed the first sign of Ji Min showing that he was still alive after almost a week.
"Min'er, are you alright?" Ji Tang rushed towards the bed before helping Ji Min sit up and lean on his chest.
"Grandpa? Uncle Fang, is that you?" Ji Min revealed his acting skills as the sworn brothers felt tears stream down their faces.
"Little brat, it is indeed I."
Ji Fang added whilst Ji Wang who wasn't known for speaking more than a sentence or two daily, simply walked over and sat by his side.
Old Lao looked to Master Li, and the latter nodded before they both left them to their family reunion and emotional farewells.
"Why did you request three years?" Master Li asked the moment they were an earshot away from the family.
"As I said earlier, I am simply protecting my investments; moreover, you know I don't have a disciple yet, so if the boy is willing, then I should at least pass on my knowledge to the next generation." Old Lao answered with a sigh whilst Master Li gasped in shock.
"You are finally going to take in a disciple; I thought you were going to take that great mind of yours to the grave?" Master Li was truly shocked.
He knew just how knowledgeable Old Lao was in the field of medicine and alchemy.
As a matter of fact, the only person who could claim to be better than him within the entire Yun Empire would be the Imperial Physician himself, and the gap between them wasn't that wide at all.