The ignorant Xie Fuyin once gently opened his arms towards Wen Qingci, asking him to hug him, and reached for the bird-scare bell in the corner of the room.
But in the end, Wen Qingci was unable to fulfill the little girl's wish.
That day, he touched the tip of the little girl's nose with his fingertips, and comforted Xie Fuyin, who was pouting and looking unhappy, with a little embarrassment, saying: "Little prince, do you still remember our secret? My arm is injured and I can't hold you."
Xie Fuyin nodded, not quite understanding.
She silently kept Wen Qingci's words in her heart - Mr. Wen was seriously injured, not only did his hands often hang down by his side and he couldn't move, but he also didn't have enough strength to hug her...
The bird-scare bell hanging quietly under the eaves of the Imperial Medical Bureau made a crisp sound.
The sound struck everyone's heart.
"—What did you say?!" Xie Bufeng subconsciously retracted his strength. He stared at Xie Fuyin and struggled to squeeze out a sentence, "Wen Qingci's arm was injured?"
The cold wind blew, lifting the long curly hair that was scattered behind her head.
It entangled the young man like a chain, making it difficult for him to breathe.
His eyes were red, making him look like the bloody evil ghost in the legend, but also with a bit of indescribable pity.
Xie Fuyin, who was hurt by Xie Bufeng's hug, could not help but burst into tears: "Wow... Yes, I'm hurt..." and then he couldn't stop sobbing.
There was chaos outside the Imperial Medical Bureau.
"Stop crying, stop crying." Lan Fei hurried over to comfort the crying Xie Fuyin, but Xie Bufeng, who was hugging her tightly, had already left this world.
Wen Qingci's arm was injured.
I never knew it myself.
Nearly two years of separation, hundreds of days and nights.
How did Wen Qingci spend his time
Is he in pain
Xie Bufeng led his troops to victory in every battle, and everyone praised him as a natural general with a mature mind that ordinary people could not imagine.
But now he just felt that he was childish and stupid.
He slowly loosened his arms, suppressed his excitement, and wiped away Xie Fuyin's tears.
Then he asked the little girl as gently as possible: "Mr. Fu Yin...Mr. Wen, is his arm seriously injured?"
Xie Bufeng's tone was extremely cautious.
Xie Fuyin didn't want others to see her crying, so she leaned on her brother's shoulder and wiped all her tears onto Xie Bufeng's body.
"… Heavy."
The muffled voice passed through the fabric on his shoulders and reached Xie Bufeng's ears.
The young boy was the only one who heard his sister's answer.
Xie Fuyin sniffed hard, and while adjusting her breathing with difficulty, she recalled, "... I, I came to the Imperial Medical Bureau before, and when I was catching rabbits... I accidentally fell... Mr. Wen originally wanted to raise his hand to hold me, but his hand just raised this, this little bit - and then it fell down."
As he spoke, Xie Fuyin raised his hand and gestured in front of Xie Bufeng while hiccuping.
—The height is only three inches.
After saying this, Xie Fuyin couldn't stop crying again.
He no longer leaned on Xie Bufeng's shoulder like he did just now, but straightened his body, with red eyes, and looked at his brother and asked very seriously: "Brother, do you think it will hurt Mr. Wen?"
This was an innocent and careless question from the little girl.
But it was like a rusty and dull knife, chopping straight towards Xie Bufeng.
In the past, "pain" was just an abstract concept to Xie Bufeng.
But now he understood what "heart-wrenching" meant.
Even at this moment, he felt pain even when breathing.
“…Yes.” Xie Bufeng whispered softly in Xie Fuyin’s ear, in a voice that only he could hear, “It must be very painful.”
But I didn't know it until today.
The little girl was at an age where she said whatever she thought without any logic, not to mention that she was crying so hard that she felt dizzy.
After asking that question, Xie Fuyin sniffed again and muttered softly: "... He was obviously seriously injured... He lied to Fuyin and said, it was just a minor injury."
"But, but Fu Yin clearly saw that he never raised his left hand."
—Wen Qingci’s left hand has never been raised.
The scenes that happened in the past were replayed rapidly in the minds of everyone present like a kaleidoscope.
All the memories hidden behind the gray fog became clear at this moment.
Wen Qingci always carries the medicine box with his right hand.
His left hand was always quietly hidden under his wide sleeves, and it did not move even when he saluted.
It's not just Xie Bufeng.
Everyone around who heard Xie Fuyin's words felt a chill in their hearts.
Worried that Xie Fuyin would be cold, Concubine Lan stuffed a small hand warmer in her arms.
At this time, the warmth from the hand warmer also passed through the clothes and reached Xie Bufeng's body.
But the boy just felt cold.
Bitingly cold.
The little girl was still sobbing, but Xie Bufeng found that he could not shed even a single tear.
Panic and sadness, complex emotions wrapped in memories, surging like the water in a canal.
When Wen Qingci was bleeding to save Xie Bufeng, he injured his left hand.
But the boy clearly remembered that when he left, Wen Qingci's injuries were not that serious...
What exactly happened during the more than one year that I was away
"Do you know how he was injured?" Xie Bufeng asked almost without hope.
Xie Fuyin was stunned for a moment, then slowly bit his lip.
At this moment, footsteps suddenly came from the other end of the Imperial Medical Bureau.
Xie Guanzhi, who had not yet had time to change out of his Buddhist monk's clothes, appeared on the other side of the palace road, panting.
—Horses are not allowed in the palace, so Xie Guanzhi ran here on foot.
—
The emperor's carriage, carrying a wooden coffin, rolled through the long streets of Yongdu and headed out of the city.
Wherever they passed, people stopped and looked toward the street.
The scene of the imperial carriage carrying the coffin was so rare that everyone's first reaction was that the emperor had passed away.
"… Could it be that the late emperor has passed away?"
"That shouldn't be the case. The news from the palace today is that he was deposed by the new emperor and imprisoned. I haven't heard that he died."
"It definitely can't be the late emperor. He has been deposed. Even if he died in prison, it's impossible for him to use such a big show!"
"And this is not the direction of the imperial mausoleum at all."
"…Besides, there is only one coffin, not even a single burial object."
Yes, how could there be no burial objects
The scene before my eyes was truly bizarre.
Although the highest-standard ceremonial equipment was used, there was nothing in the entire team except a coffin.
Even the wood used for this coffin was only slightly better than that used by ordinary people, and it didn't look like something from the palace at all.
Those who escorted the wooden coffin out of Beijing were Xie Bufeng's confidants. They had just come down from the battlefield and were filled with a murderous aura.
As they approached, the people on both sides of the long street retreated one after another.
The funeral procession did not go directly out of the city gate, but circled along the long street for a while and first arrived at the gate of Wangtanyuan, Wen Qingci's residence outside the palace.
After a short stop, they slowly drove out of Yongdu City.
This was the custom of the Wei Dynasty. Before the deceased was buried, he should be taken back home to "take a look".
"It's Wen Qingci!!!"
"The imperial physician Wen Qingci has passed away," the people who knew who the owner of this mansion was, looked incredulous, "Why was his funeral so grand? If you didn't know, you would have thought—"
Those who don’t know would think that the emperor and empress have passed away…
The man forced the words back into his heart.
Although he did not say these outrageous words, the same feeling arose from the bottom of everyone's heart at this moment.
The scene of the imperial carriage carrying the coffin was also deeply engraved in the hearts of countless people in Yongdu.
As it grew dark, the wooden coffin was moved onto the dragon boat.
After a busy day, the eunuchs and palace maids had set up a mourning hall in the dragon boat.
After placing the coffin in place, Song Junran sent Xie Bufeng's personal guards away on the pretext that he "wanted some time alone with his brothers", leaving only himself and a medicine servant who had been waiting outside the palace to keep watch.
In order to take care of the family's feelings, the guards said nothing more and immediately retreated out of the cabin as instructed by Song Junran.
The huge dragon boat weighed anchor and headed south along the canal.
The sound of rolling waves penetrated the cabin wall and fell into everyone's ears.
Under the cover of the sound of waves on the boat, Song Junran no longer hesitated. He walked quickly to the coffin and slowly pushed the carvings on the side panel.
With a slight sound, the side panel that was originally fixed and could not be opened or closed suddenly opened.
—This coffin was prepared by Song Junran a long time ago, but he made the excuse that he had just bought it today. There was chaos in the palace and no one investigated the matter carefully.
The medicine servant at the side hurriedly held the wooden board.
The magnolia flowers that filled the entire coffin scattered all over the ground like a waterfall.
Song Junran gritted his teeth, walked forward and carried the person lying inside out, then quickly injected his internal energy into Wen Qingci's body to protect his organs and meridians.
At the same time, he slowly stimulated his internal organs, trying to wake Wen Qingci up.
Although Wen Qingci was only a medicine man who changed his career, the traditional treatment methods were still of little use to him, so Song Junran could only rely on external forces to pull him out of the gate of hell.
The medicine servant took out silver needles and inserted them into various acupuncture points on Wen Qingci's body. While he was inserting the needles, his fingers were trembling with nervousness.
The two held their breath and observed Wen Qingci nervously.
The pill that Wen Qing swallowed when he quit the palace was not a medicine, nor was it a poison.
Rather, it is the treasure of the Valley of Divine Doctors, the "Miao Heng Pill" that was once coveted by countless people in the world.
Even in the Valley of Divine Doctors, there are only five.
Every Miao Heng Dan that appeared in the world before had caused a huge bloody storm in the martial arts world, causing countless people to die for it.
Therefore, a hundred years ago, the Divine Doctor Valley has deliberately concealed the existence of Miao Heng Dan.
Until now, few people, let alone Yongdu, even in the martial arts world, know of its existence.
—Miao Heng Dan is a thing for survival in desperate situations.
After taking the pill, it does not take effect immediately.
It will only suddenly take effect when the user's internal energy is exhausted or when the person is about to die.
No matter how good the person taking the medicine was in martial arts before, within twelve hours after the Miao Heng Dan takes effect, he will possess the deepest internal strength in the world.
Last night in Taishu Palace, Miao Heng Dan took effect at the last moment.
In the second before his consciousness fell into darkness, Wen Qingci urged the powerful and seemingly endless internal force that suddenly emerged in his body.
Finally, he used his inner strength to hold his breath and fell into a deep sleep.
People in the martial arts world would stay in seclusion for months at a time, during which time they would not eat or drink, and all their physiological functions would be reduced to the weakest. They relied on the technique of holding their breath.
Holding the breath is not difficult, and many martial arts schools teach this method.
But how long you can hold on depends entirely on your internal strength.
This is the limit.
There was silence in the cabin.
Only the sound of water kept echoing in my ears.
Time passed by minute by minute, but the person lying in the magnolia flowers still had no life at all.
There was silence under Song Junran's fingers, no body temperature, no pulse.
Wen Qingci is like an exquisite porcelain figurine, with only a beautiful shell left...
quick.
Quick effect.
The effect of the Miao Heng Pill was about to wear off. If Wen Qingci continued to hold his breath, he would probably fall into a deep sleep forever...
Song Junran increased his internal strength and continued to attack Wen Qingci's inner palace, trying to make him come out of his breath-holding state.
The medicine servant saw that the Valley Master, who was usually carefree and unrestrained, had countless cold sweats on his forehead.
He didn't move, his face full of tension.
Ships are still moving south along the canal.
The waves hit the side of the ship, making loud noises and disrupting the heartbeats of those on board.
The medicine servant's heart sank deeply.
He didn't dare to make any sound, but couldn't help thinking in his heart... So much time has passed, and Wen Qingci still hasn't made any movement, could it be that a disaster has already happened
Bah, bah, bah, don’t talk nonsense!
The night outside the window deepened little by little.
After an unknown amount of time, Song Junran's tightly furrowed brows finally relaxed: "... I can feel the pulse."
His hand was always tightly clasped around Wen Qingci's wrist. In addition to continuously transferring internal energy into the other person's body, he was also taking Wen Qingci's pulse.
The huge stone that had been weighing on his heart all day rolled off to the ground with these words.
Before he knew it, even Song Junran broke out in a cold sweat.
"Great!" Yao Pu's eyes lit up.
If you can feel the pulse, it means that Wen Qingci has successfully come out of his autistic state!
"Okay, remove the needle." Song Junran slowly stood up.
"Yes!" The medicine servant hurriedly took out the silver needle from Wen Qingci's body. "Old Valley Master, please bless me. Old Valley Master, please bless me!" He couldn't stop muttering to himself.
Finally, he sniffed again and said with a frightened look on his face: "I saw that such a long time had passed and there was no movement at all. I thought something had happened to the Second Valley Master..."
After saying that, he helped Wen Qingci up and placed him on the couch beside him.
A day passed and Wen Qingci's bleeding had stopped, but Song Junran still turned around immediately and searched for the silver needle in the medicine box carried by the medicine servant, ready to suture his wound.
"… It's so light. If the old valley master were still alive, how heartbroken he would be."
Song Junran frowned, feeling distressed and annoyed, and said, "If Dad were still alive, how could he allow him to make himself look like this?"
As he spoke, Song Junran's heart was filled with regret.
The people in the Divine Doctor Valley are knowledgeable and experienced. To them, as long as the person is still able to breathe, it is not a big deal.
Therefore, even at this moment, Yao Pu still couldn't help but say: "I heard from them that the Second Valley Master originally had time to leave the palace. But in the end, when he heard that someone was going to assassinate Xie Bufeng, he turned back halfway and even blocked the arrow for the other party... Valley Master, do you think the Second Valley Master would also..." have some interest in Xie Bufeng
Before he could finish his words, he quickly shut up when he saw that Song Junran, who had always treated Wen Qingci as his own brother, had a bad look on his face.
But in his heart, Yao Pu couldn't help thinking: Wen Qingci has always been easy to get along with, but anyone who has known him for a long time can feel that this person is warm on the outside but cold on the inside, and it is difficult for him to open up to others - this may be related to the changes in his childhood.
However, after coming to Yongdu, Wen Qingci seemed to have changed a lot.
For example... it's easier to be sincere to others than before
Although there is Miao Heng Dan, Wen Qingci's physique is very special, and no one can say for sure whether something unexpected will happen along the way.
Wen Qingci gave up a clear way to survive and chose to take the blame for Xie Bufeng, risking his own life.
Looking at it this way, the new emperor does have some weight in his heart.
It started snowing again on the Yinchuan Grand Canal.
The dark clouds continued, and the snow and wind lingered over Yongdu.
Outside the Imperial Medical Bureau, Xie Guanzhi stared blankly at the empty space in front of him. After a long while, he realized that he was still one step too late.
Accompanied by a burst of nasal soreness, tears rolled out of those beautiful fox eyes without warning.
At the same time, Xie Fuyin's childish voice penetrated the air and fell into his ears.
Xie Fuyin shook his head at first.
Then, as if he suddenly remembered something, he said to Xie Bufeng while hiccuping, "Mr. Wen said... he caught a cold, so his hand, his hand can't move."
"Cold?" Before Xie Bufeng could react, Xie Guanzhi suddenly widened his eyes, as if he had thought of something, and slowly turned around to look at Xie Fuyin with an incredulous look on his face.
"Are you talking about Wen Qingci?" he asked.
"Yes, yes..." The little girl didn't recognize the person in front of her. She hesitated for a moment, shrank into Xie Bufeng's arms, and then nodded.
Xie Guanzhi asked again, "You mean, Wen Qingci's hand got cold and can't move anymore?"
His reaction was too weird. Xie Fuyin was a little scared of this strange person in front of him. This time, the little girl stopped talking.
The boy's mind went blank. After a long while, Xie Guanzhi clenched his palms, finally gritted his teeth, smiled and lowered his head and said, "How stupid... How could you be so stupid... You are obviously an imperial physician, but you never cherish your own body."
His smile at this moment was uglier than crying.
Xie Guanzhi looked like this, and he knew something.
Xie Bufeng slowly put Xie Fuyin on the ground and walked towards Xie Guanzhi: "What do you mean by that?"
Hearing this, Xie Guanzhi laughed miserably twice, and when he raised his head again, his eyes were empty.
He paused for a while, and finally spoke slowly.
"I met him once before I was imprisoned."
Before Xie Guanzhi was imprisoned...
This timing was too sensitive, and Xie Bufeng's heart was slightly shaken.
That was the day I was sent to the battlefield.
That was also... the day when Wen Qingci and I "broke up".
At this moment, the only words left on Xie Guanzhi's body were "disoriented".
He said in a hoarse voice: "… It was raining heavily on the Yinchuan Grand Canal that day, and it was freezing cold. After Xie Zhaolin interrogated me, he sent someone to take me to other ships in a small boat. That was when I saw Wen Qingci."
Xie Guanzhi's voice had no ups and downs, like chanting a spell.
But every word was as heavy as a thousand pounds, striking Xie Bufeng's heart.
"He jumped off the boat and desperately picked up a piece of tattered fur from the water. He held it tightly. If you didn't know, you would think it was some treasure." Xie Guanzhi closed his eyes slowly with a tired look on his face, as if he was lost in the memories of that day. "... But it was easy to jump off the deck, but it was difficult to go back in the heavy rain."
"When I saw him, he was just about to... sink to the bottom of the Yinchuan Grand Canal."
Xie Guanzhi had a blank expression on his face, but his tears kept falling.
Nearly two years of confinement did not make him forget the scene of that day.
That day left him with too many shocks.
Even the heavy rain and cold weather that day were engraved deep in Xie Guanzhi's memory.
Along with this, there is also the indelible sadness in Wen Qingci's tone.
—tattered fur.
Xie Guanzhi didn't know what that thing was.
But Xie Bufeng knew it clearly.
It was a hand warmer, the one I gave to Wen Qingci.
Before leaving, he threw it far into the Yinchuan Grand Canal.
Xie Guanzhi didn't notice that Xie Bufeng's body was shaking uncontrollably.
He was still talking to himself.
"That day... I told him that I was sorry for you."
"Then Wen Qingci smiled at me and said 'yes'."
Xie Guanzhi opened his mouth and wanted to say something, but he saw Xie Bufeng, who was standing opposite him, turned around as if in a trance and ran towards the small courtyard of the Imperial Medical Bureau.
He pushed open the thin wooden door of the bedroom and began to search inside like crazy.
Wardrobe, desk, and treasure cabinet.
Finally, I found the hand warmer that was carefully pressed under the mattress...
It was carefully cleaned by its owner, and its fur was soft and fluffy, with no sign of having ever floated in the canal.
Even... Wen Qingci returned it to himself and carefully sewed it up with needle and thread.
Xie Bufeng let out a painful whimper.
My whole body was shaking uncontrollably.
Overwhelmed, he buried his face in the softest fur on the snow wolf's belly.
This is the last gift I give to Wen Qingci.
But in the end, this gift failed to bring Wen Qingci the warmth that he wanted to give him.
Instead, it gave him endless pain and coldness.
This realization instantly crushed the young man.
The tremendous pain seemed to pull his soul out of his body.
regret.
Xie Bufeng has never regretted as much as he does now.
He curled himself up into a ball, nestled in Wen Qingci's bedding, greedily sniffing the familiar bitter fragrance around him.
In less than two years, a ditch appeared before Xie Bufeng's eyes.
The cold waves of the Yinchuan Grand Canal passed through time and swallowed him at this moment.
He seemed to have returned to that day and saw a young man in black clothes throwing something in his sleeves into the canal.
No matter how childish Yu Wenqingci was, a light kiss was placed on his ear.
-stop!
—Don’t throw it!
He roared at his past self across time and space.
But the boy, feeling hopeless, ignored it.
Xie Bufeng saw that he gave Wen Qingci his last kiss on his lips and left without looking back.
Then, Wen Qingci jumped into the rolling waves right in front of him.
—Wen Qingci, don’t jump!
Xie Bufeng roared loudly.
But he tried his best and couldn't stop this from happening.
Xie Guanzhi was right, it was clearly just a piece of tattered fur, why, why did you do that
(End of this chapter)