At this time, the female doctor reminded softly, "Sir, your wound has split several times and needs to be treated as soon as possible."
"Is the wound serious?"
"Yes, the wound is nearly four inches long. You need to use your left shoulder as little as possible, otherwise it will easily tear again."
If the wise man is in the capital as she expected, tonight will be a tough battle. It is not something she can decide not to use. Hua Zhi lowered her eyebrows and said, "Your Highness, please invite the genius doctor Yu."
"I have sent someone to invite him, Master, please wait a moment."
"I still need some strong liquor."
The prince immediately ordered someone to get it. Hua Zhi was not idle while waiting, "Your Highness, where are the things that Wu Xing sent back earlier?"
"Here." The prince took out the rolled-up brown paper from the secret cabinet, "Master, do you plan to use it?"
"This is the only thing we can rely on now, but it is too threatening. Your Highness, please give it to someone you trust."
"Is Qisusi suitable?"
"But, let them make it right away. Make as many as they can. We might need it tonight."
The others didn't know what the two were talking about, which showed that since the prince didn't say anything, they didn't dare to ask more.
Qisusi knew about the existence of black gunpowder. When Wu Xing started to research it, Qisusi had found all the materials. Later, when the power was tested in Shibuya, many people went to watch. Now, after getting the recipe, he immediately prepared it skillfully without any delay.
Behind the screen, Hua Zhi instructed the female doctor to use strong liquor to clean the wound. It was so painful that Hua Zhi took the liquor and took a big gulp, gritting her teeth and not making any sound.
Doctor Yu saw this scene as soon as he arrived. He pointed his finger at her but could not say a word of blame. If possible, who would be willing to endure such physical pain? It was just that they were forced by the situation.
"Please sew my wound with catgut."
Doctor Yu was speechless for a moment. Suturing the wound would indeed make the recovery better, but the disadvantages had also been mentioned. The first was pain. The needle and thread when sewing clothes usually went through the skin and flesh, and most people could not endure that kind of pain. So over the years, he had only used this method on the prince's people. Of course, his daring disciple had also used it, and used it extremely roughly.
"Peony should have told you that it would hurt."
"I can bear it." Hua Zhi leaned forward and sat down with her back to Doctor Yu. She took a few more sips from the wine jar, then asked the female doctor for a piece of fine cloth for bandaging the wound and stuffed it into her mouth, demonstrating her determination with her actions.
At this time, the prince's voice came, "Suture?"
"Yes, use needle and thread to sew up the wound. This will prevent the wound from splitting open easily and aggravating the injury." Doctor Yu sighed, opened the medicine box and took out needle and thread. To prevent infection, he soaked the catgut in wine before threading it into the needle.
"here we go."
Hua Zhi nodded, took a deep breath and held her breath.
It really hurts! Her body froze when the needle pierced her. Doctor Yu didn't tell her to relax. This was her body's instinctive resistance. She couldn't relax, but she kept her hands steady and used her best skills to speed up so that she would suffer less.
“Hmm!”
Hua Zhi's muffled groan fell into the ears of the people outside, and they all felt uncomfortable. The prince, who had been listening carefully, took a few steps forward anxiously and asked through the screen, "Master, are you okay?"
"To answer your question, Your Highness, the lord has something in his mouth and cannot speak." The female doctor wiped the sweat off Hua Zhi's forehead, and her admiration for the lord was evident in her tone.
The prince paced back and forth, looking as if he couldn't wait to rush in.
No one spoke for a while, and the occasional muffled groans seemed even clearer.
After a while, Doctor Yu's voice was heard, "Alright, I'll make you a patch of medicine. Try not to move your left shoulder."
"Thank you, Mr. Yu." Hua Zhi's voice was tired and hoarse, "Your Highness, I need a cloak to cover my body."
"Yes, yes." Without calling anyone, the prince quickly went to get his cloak and put it on the screen.
After the rustling sound, Hua Zhi walked out from behind the screen with a straight figure. Her hair was wet and her face was pale, but she saluted to the prince as if nothing had happened. "I have drunk a little wine. I am sorry for the impoliteness."
"No, it's okay." The prince's voice was tense. He turned back and sat down behind the imperial table. "Come here, please take a seat."
The seat was given to everyone, but everyone knew who the prince wanted to sit. Shen Qi, the only one who was not qualified to sit, could not help but admire this young lady. She had done something that even a man might not be able to do.
"I seem to have heard someone come to report earlier. Is this the news from Prince Ling's Mansion?"
The prince nodded, "Xiao's mother is here, but her father is nowhere to be found. I have asked the Seven Constellations to conduct a thorough investigation. Lai Fu has also found out that Xiao's father came to the capital to visit his daughter eight years ago. He came alone at that time. Xiao's mother has always been in poor health and rarely goes out."
"That is to say, he is very likely a wise man." Hua Zhi felt anxious, as she couldn't imagine what the wise man's next move would be.
The Grand Master looked over and asked, "Is it possible to break through from Xiao's mother?"
Hua Zhi hesitated for a moment and said, "It's possible. If she has been controlled all the time, maybe we can learn something from her."
The prince glanced at Lai Fu, who understood and walked out immediately.
Zhu Bowen suddenly spoke up, "Let's not talk about the other party's confidence in attacking the tiger's lair. The most important thing in the capital is the imperial palace. From the perspective of manpower, it is not practical to attack from outside the palace. Is it possible that there are people in the palace to support them?"
"I have also considered this point. After Shen Qi sent back the message, I have already ordered that no one in the palace should move around at will. Those who violate the order will be executed."
"You are the most important person in the palace, Your Highness." The Grand Master cupped his hands. "Even if the Chaoli Clan has the ability to break into the palace, as long as you are here, you will be the legitimate heir. If they want to succeed, they must get rid of you first, so the people around you must not touch them."
"Grandmaster is right. Even if we are short of people outside, the people around you must not be moved." The Minister of War continued, "As long as you are here, Daqing will be here."
The prince's heart warmed, "I will live and die with Daqing."
Hua Zhi listened to their conversation while thinking about the tactics the other side could use. Just as the Grand Tutor said, the other side had limited manpower and it was impossible for them to break into the palace openly. The biggest possibility was to disintegrate Daqing from within, and where could that be deeper than the palace
But the palace has been cleared several times. If there really is a spy, his position must not be low, and he must be a very trustworthy person.
News from outside kept coming into the palace.
Prince Ling seemed to be crazy. He did not believe that Xiao was the remnant of Chao Li. He sent a message to ask to see the Queen Mother. Xiao's mother was dead. The Hua family was safe and sound with their doors closed. Jia Yang and Yu Mu... were dead.
Hua Zhi turned her back. This result was not surprising. There was no way they could have held on under that situation. She just... thought there would be a miracle. As long as they were alive, it didn't matter if they were injured or disabled. She would support them, find wives for them, and raise wives and children for them, as long as they could survive.
But they died.