Chapter 7: The Terrifying Trial of the Drug

His face turned pale. In terms of courage, he could be considered among the bolder few among hundreds of children. However, when faced with these skilled young men in brocade, he could only stand there dumbfounded, trying to find a way to hide deep within the group of children, making every effort to avoid being caught

Ye Qin noticed that Chief Steward Zhang suddenly took action, stuffing a small pill into the mouth of the chubby boy, and then ordered several young men in brocade to escort him away. It seems that the bag of silver leaves given by that local gentry had some effect after all

Ye Qin glanced at the little fat boy from a distance, pondering to himself how this chief steward would take care of the little fat boy

Soon, several other children of the local gentry also ran out, eager to be among the first batch of test subjects for the medicine

Chief Zhang selected five or six individuals from among them, instructing them to sign a life-and-death contract along with the children of several local gentry, and then sent them into the small wooden house to test the medicine

The little chubby boy was quite bold, as he was the first to run over, saying, "I'll do it, I'll be the first to try the medicine." Relying on the fact that his father had once given money to Chief Zhang, he was completely unafraid of this medicine trial

Chief Zhang sneered, saying that while it is easy to enter the Medicine Gathering Hall, it will be quite difficult to leave

Ye Qin felt somewhat frustrated; he had previously been contemplating how to give a good beating to this little chubby boy who spat at him, but he did not expect to be driven away so soon

That chubby boy, his face mottled from the poison, was so frightened that he wet his pants on the spot. His gaze was vacant, and he shouted incoherently, "Dad... Dad, where are you?" It seemed he was not far from being completely stunned by fear.

Chief Steward Zhang noticed that only a few people responded, and there were still a significant number missing. He was not anxious; with a smile, he raised his voice and said that anyone who entered the wooden house first to test the medicine would be directly rewarded with a fragrant chicken leg after completing the task

In the afternoon, the drug trial continued. This time, not a single child was willing to participate; everyone knew that this was essentially a matter of life and death. Not to mention a chicken leg, even a whole fat chicken would not suffice. They all cried out, wanting to leave

Those children who were expelled from the residence were sternly silenced by the well-dressed youths, who issued a strict warning: if they dared to mention the matter of the medicinal trial at the pharmacy to outsiders, they would directly pay a "visit" to their entire family, bringing them trouble. The expelled children fell silent, too frightened to refuse, merely nodding in agreement, assuring that they would not speak of the medicinal trials at the pharmacy to anyone.

The child, foaming at the mouth, collapsed to the ground with a thud right before the eyes of the crowd. However, he did not die immediately; instead, he continued to convulse violently.

The hundreds of children present on the field, even the bold little boys, were trembling all over, their hair standing on end in fright. The little girls, even more so, turned pale and began to cry in terror. They had already understood that this drug test could be fatal, and the deaths would be horrific

Until a quarter of an hour later, a piercing scream suddenly came from one of the small wooden cabins. A child from that cabin ran out in a frenzy, frothing at the mouth, with their body faintly flushed, shouting loudly, "Help, save me—"

The process of drug testing is somewhat lengthy

Ye Qin looked around in confusion. Among the hundreds of children on the field, at least half were crying loudly in fear, while a small portion were so frightened that they wet themselves. The remaining more than ten brave children were just as bewildered and at a loss as he was. A few children attempted to escape but were caught by the surrounding young men in brocade, who publicly beat them, causing them to cry out for their parents.

In the morning, the first group of ten children who participated in the drug trial all came out

Among the first group of ten, only one passed the test. That was a twelve-year-old commoner boy who consumed ten herbs and barely managed to get through the drug testing phase. He was officially included in the ranks of the herbal gatherers and was rewarded with a chicken leg. This boy who passed the test had a pale complexion, weak legs, and was trembling all over—not from poisoning, but from excessive fright.

Ten children entered the small wooden house, under the supervision of those middle-aged individuals, and consumed something.

He gave a glance to several young men.

The chief steward, with a smile, sat steadily on the platform, holding a large bamboo pipe, exhaling clouds of smoke, and said in a calm voice: "Testing the medicine is entirely voluntary; life and death are unrelated to others! Those who are poisoned by fewer than nine plants do not belong to our sect's herbal gatherers; even if they are poisoned to death, no one will come to their rescue. Only those who consume nine or more plants and become herbal gatherers of our sect will have a chance for rescue"

Ye Qin stood among the group of children, quietly observing the chief steward on the stage. He felt a sense of familiarity; upon closer inspection, wasn't he the same Chief Steward Zhang who had taken the money pouch from the local gentry at the side door of the Herb Gathering Hall's residence yesterday

The cabin is semi-open and semi-closed, and inside each cabin sits a middle-aged man supervising the drug testing

However, the young boys and girls displayed indifferent expressions, with not a single one intending to take action to save others

As soon as this temptation was presented, dozens of children rushed out to try the medicine. For these impoverished children, a single chicken leg was enough to entice them to take the risk

The other children were also somewhat suspicious and did not dare to approach and try easily

Ye Qin also very much hoped to become a herbal medicine gatherer, living a life free from worries about food and clothing. However, he would never be foolish enough to step forward and sign this life-and-death contract. He wanted to see what this drug testing was really about

The young men in splendid attire understood immediately and swiftly pounced into the group of children, skillfully capturing ten of them and bringing them to the front of the high platform. Grasping their hands, they forcibly pressed down the bright red handprints of the life-and-death contract, sending them into the small wooden house for testing.

In the initial quarter of an hour, there was no response from the ten small wooden cabins, which caused a sense of unease.

Hundreds of children stood in shock, gazing up at Chief Zhang on the high platform, hoping for him to take action and save them

Ye Qin had wandered and begged in various parts of the county for over half a year, and had long experienced the malice of human nature. He learned to read expressions and gauge intentions. He kept a close watch on the expressions of the big overseer and those youths; whenever he sensed something amiss, he would immediately shrink back and hide among the hundreds of children, skillfully avoiding the grasp of those youths.

Hundreds of children outside were watching from a distance, able to catch a glimpse of the situation inside, though not very clearly. They all stretched their necks and held their breath in anticipation

Within less than an hour, four children from the small wooden drug-testing huts rushed out in terror, collapsing onto the ground. The poisons they had been exposed to varied. Some showed no visible symptoms, yet their bodies itched unbearably, to the point of nearly tearing their skin. Others were covered in red sores, festering and oozing, emitting an unbearable stench. Additionally, a little girl staggered out of one of the huts, saying not a word, coughed up a mouthful of black blood, and collapsed lifelessly to the ground

One of the impoverished children died from severe poisoning and was ordered by Chief Steward Zhang to be taken directly to a desolate graveyard over ten miles outside the county for burial. Four others who were poisoned but survived were expelled from the residence; if they could find a doctor in time for treatment, they might have a chance of survival. Additionally, three others were affected by mild poisoning; although they were not in serious condition, they lost their eligibility to join the Herbal Gathering and were also expelled from the residence.