Shangguan Hanshan came in a whirlwind of energy and left just as swiftly.
Jiang Xingyan let out a huge sigh of relief.
She seriously doubted that he had anything in common with the man in the painting.
So rude and uncultured, so coarse!
What on earth did Mother see in him? Honestly!
She pouted, her heart and eyes filled with disapproval of her biological father.
“Miss, in the future… could you please not keep any male concubines?”
Jiang Xingyan looked up at the sound of his voice and found herself staring straight into Yun Chunfeng’s pitiful, puppy-dog eyes.
He looked just like a little dog afraid of being abandoned by its owner at any moment.
Jiang Xingyan couldn’t help but laugh. “Keep male concubines? I can barely even hold your hand right now, Brother Yun.”
Yun Chunfeng lowered his head, shy and bashful.
Miss really spoils him; she always keeps him in her heart!
When he gets the chance, he’s definitely going to have a serious talk with his master. Why on earth did he have to make things even harder for him?
Hiding in the inner room, Huo Ci felt both relieved and heartbroken.
It’s great that A Yan won’t keep male concubines.
But then again, she won’t fall in love with him anymore either.
Wait a minute—shouldn’t he be encouraging A Yan to keep male concubines, then?
Just to drive that Yun guy crazy!
He’ll do it!
From now on, he’ll definitely send as many handsome men as possible to A Yan’s side.
Wah wah wah.
“Alright, stop hiding. Come out and discuss the formation adjustments with Brother Yun.”
“A few days ago, Tieshi improved the crossbows to make them more powerful. We can add a Divine Machine Battalion—”
Jiang Xingyan shared her ideas with the two of them, then left the details for them to discuss. She hurried out of the tent and walked toward Xin Zhui’s direction.
Last night, he had taken a full hundred lashes, and they were all delivered with real force.
He had lost consciousness on the spot.
When he was carried back to the camp, it nearly caused a mutiny.
Fortunately, Xiao Mi and Old Man Zhang managed to calm the soldiers down, and they waited until “Huo Ci” returned.
“Oh, General, please go quickly and take a look at Deputy Commander Xin. I’m afraid he might not make it!”
There were already tears at the corners of Old Man Zhang’s eyes.
Jiang Xingyan’s heart skipped a beat. Was it really that serious?
Xin Zhui had been beaten many times before, and although Jiang Xingyan had been worried, she hadn’t paid too much attention to it.
But hearing Old Man Zhang say this now, she couldn’t help but quicken her pace.
Xin Zhui was usually loud and brash, often acting on impulse.
But at critical moments, he had helped her a great deal. How could she not be anxious?
Luckily, ever since Jiang Xingyan gave Imperial Physician Sun his own clinic, his attitude toward “Huo Ci” had improved by at least half, and the time it took him to come to the camp for house calls had sped up by eighty percent.
This was the power of gold and silver!
Years of medical experience allowed him to tell at a glance what was wrong.
“Deputy Commander Xin, have you offended anyone in the palace recently?”
Imperial Physician Sun’s question was strange.
Jiang Xingyan answered bluntly, “He offended the Emperor. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have been beaten.”
Imperial Physician Sun shot “Huo Ci” a fierce glare.
Oh, so you’re the only one who’s capable, huh? You’re the only one who knows it was the Emperor?
“What I meant was, other people. Anyone who might want to harm General Huo could have done something this sinister.”
“After all this talk, what exactly is this sinister thing?”
“Night soil. The boards used to beat him were smeared with night soil.”
Jiang Xingyan’s face turned pale.
She had read about it in storybooks and knew the power of night soil. Basically, once it gets into a wound, there’s no surviving it.
She grabbed Imperial Physician Sun’s arm tightly. “Save him!”
The pain made Imperial Physician Sun grimace. He squeezed two words out through his teeth: “Let go!”
He grumbled inwardly: It’s not like I said he couldn’t be saved!
Realizing her loss of composure, Jiang Xingyan quickly let go and apologized.
Rubbing his sore arm, Imperial Physician Sun snorted angrily and couldn’t speak for a long time.
That is, until two ten-thousand-tael silver notes were placed in front of him. Then he felt much better.
He stuffed the notes into his shirt and grumbled, “Don’t think I’m just greedy for money. His condition really is treatable. It’s just that the patient will have to suffer a bit.”
“Hey, it’d be great just to save his life! Never mind whether he suffers or not! Imperial Physician Sun, please treat him quickly!”
Old Man Zhang was frantic as he looked at Xin Zhui, who was hanging on by a thread. He had watched this boy grow up; he was as good as his own son.
He’d heard something about some so-called princess coming, and no matter what Xin Zhui said, His Majesty had him beaten a hundred times without a second thought.
His heart ached so much!
Usually, when punishments were carried out in the camp, everyone had a sense of measure. He never expected the people in the palace to beat him like they were trying to kill him!
And why add night soil?!
The soldiers were all fuming.
If Xin Zhui couldn’t be saved, Old Man Zhang’s old face wouldn’t be enough to smooth things over. The soldiers would definitely demand an explanation from His Majesty.
“To treat this stubborn affliction, you must use the sharpest blade, heat it red-hot over a charcoal fire, and then scrape away the rotten flesh bit by bit. Then, apply a thick layer of wound medicine mixed with detoxification powder. For the first seven days, change the dressing three times a day. The most dangerous day is the first. If he doesn’t wake up from the fever, even if he survives, he’ll be left mentally disabled!”
Sun Miao stroked his long beard and spoke eloquently.
Swish!
When he turned around, Old Man Zhang had already pulled a large, spark-spewing chopping knife from the fire.
“Imperial Physician Sun, use this one!”
Beside him, Jiang Xingyan nodded solemnly.
Imperial Physician Sun: …?
Is there not a single normal person in this entire military camp?
“With a knife this big, are you planning to cook him alive and eat him, is that it?”
Old Man Zhang looked dumbfounded. “Imperial Physician Sun, didn’t you say to use the sharpest blade? This is it. And the General was kind enough to part with it!”
“…You fools! You absolute fools! Hurry up and get me a small knife!”
Imperial Physician Sun was so angry his beard quivered. He scolded Old Man Zhang and Jiang Xingyan like they were his grandsons.
The two didn’t dare show the slightest dissatisfaction. They bustled about, and finally managed to prepare everything Imperial Physician Sun needed.
“Watch closely. I’m going to make the cut now!”
Imperial Physician Sun carefully picked up the knife, ready to start scraping away the rotten flesh on Xin Zhui’s back.
“Hold on!”
Jiang Xingyan’s sudden shout made Imperial Physician Sun’s hand tremble, and he almost threw out his back.
He gritted his teeth and glared at the jumpy “Huo Ci.”
“You’d better have a good reason for interrupting me, or I’ll make you pay!”
Jiang Xingyan took a small brocade box from her sleeve.
“This is the wound medicine the Imperial Preceptor gave me. I want to give it to—”
“Give it here, you!”
Imperial Physician Sun snatched it away. He stared at Huo Ci and Old Man Zhang with a warning look and threatened them, speaking slowly and deliberately:
“From the moment I start cutting, if either of you dares to startle me again, I can’t guarantee where this knife might end up!”
Old Man Zhang covered his mouth and took a big step back.
Jiang Xingyan was about to move away too, but Imperial Physician Sun had already made the first cut.
Hiss!
Xin Zhui, unconscious, was jolted awake by the pain.
He instinctively reached out and happened to grab Jiang Xingyan’s wrist. He held on tightly, refusing to let go.
Jiang Xingyan instinctively tried to pull her hand back, but seeing how much he was suffering, her heart softened.
After all, he was still just a half-grown boy, and he had already endured so much.
She patted the back of his hand gently and comforted him in a low voice, “Xin Zhui, hang in there. Imperial Physician Sun is trying to save you.”
She didn’t know if Xin Zhui heard her, but when Imperial Physician Sun made the second cut, Xin Zhui was already drenched in cold sweat.
With the last of his strength, he shouted, “A Xing! A Xing!”
Jiang Xingyan was startled. She instinctively turned to look at Imperial Physician Sun.
She hadn’t noticed when, but he had taken two balls of cotton from his sleeve and stuffed them into his own ears.
“See no evil, speak no evil, hear no evil! I understand better than anyone. Go ahead and talk freely!”
His voice was loud, a clear sign that his ears were plugged.
Jiang Xingyan’s face turned bright red.
It made it seem like there was something going on between her and Xin Zhui.
She looked up to find Old Man Zhang.
He was nowhere to be seen. He had already run off, covering his eyes.
Old Man Zhang: “I’m just too kind-hearted. I can’t stand to see this sort of thing.”
Jiang Xingyan had no choice but to stay by Xin Zhui’s side alone.
Xin Zhui kept his eyes closed, still lost in a painful nightmare, but he didn’t loosen his grip on Jiang Xingyan’s hand for a moment.
“A Xing, I truly… truly love A Xing.”