Zhou Yu said, "Father-in-law, have you noticed the white-robed general standing behind Liu Qi today?"
"General in white robe?" Qiao Xuan nodded and said, "This man has a dignified appearance and a majestic demeanor, and has the demeanor of a great general, but I don't know who he is."
Zhou Yu said, "This man's surname is Zhao Yun, and he is from Changshan, Zhending, Hebei. He fought against Wen Chou single-handedly in the Battle of Panhe and saved Gongsun Zan's life. Later, he followed Liu Bei to Jingzhou and served Liu Qi. He fought with Xu Chu for nearly a hundred rounds at Bowangpo and there was no clear winner. Liu Qi praised this man for his courage and his martial arts skills were not inferior to Guan Yu and Zhang Fei. He dared to retreat alone from Cao Ren with an empty camp, all because of Zhao Yun's presence."
"How could this man be so secretive?" Qiao Xuan was surprised. Zhou Yu always looked down on others, and the only person he praised so highly was Sun Ce.
Thinking about Zhao Yun's behavior just now, he stroked his beard and said, "He is neither arrogant nor impatient, but calm and steady. He can be Liu Qi's right-hand man, and he will not disgrace my son..."
Zhou Yu smiled and said, "During the banquet just now, I have already privately asked Xu Yuanzhi about this. Zhao Yun and Bo Fu are of the same age, but he has not married yet. Isn't this God's will?"
"He's a good person!" Qiao Xuan nodded in satisfaction, but sighed, "It's a pity that Da Qiao didn't listen to my kind advice. I'm afraid..."
Zhou Yu said, "If you find another man from Jiangdong, I'm sure you'll have reservations, but if you marry to Jingzhou, you won't have such concerns."
Qiao Xuan nodded secretly and asked in confusion: "Why is Gongjin suddenly concerned about this matter today?"
Zhou Yu's mind has always been on military and national affairs. He even rarely returns to Jianye, and has never asked about Da Qiao's affairs. But today he took the initiative to talk about this matter, which is really not in line with his temperament.
Zhou Yu sighed, "Xiao Qiao has often mentioned that my elder sister is getting thinner and thinner. She is so young and beautiful, but she lives in the dark. How can I bear it? I dreamed of Bo Fu again yesterday. He said that he had something on his mind. Maybe it was because of this that he was so sad."
Qiao Xuan thought of Zhou Yu's expression in the morning, and he also sighed in his heart, nodded and said: "In this case, I will go and persuade him again!"
Zhou Yu smiled and said, "If my elder sister agrees to return home, my father-in-law will hold a banquet at my house and invite Liu Qi to come over to discuss the marriage. Wouldn't that be a double blessing for Jiangdong?"
"It would be great if her mother were still alive..." Qiao Xuan sighed and left.
Zhou Yu's expression turned cold. He looked out the window at the dojo and took a deep breath.
What happened last night is still vivid in her mind. Da Qiao told others that she refused to marry again because she was afraid of bringing trouble to the people around her. But if she left Jiangdong, she would not have this concern. She was anxious to get away and would definitely agree.
Now it all depends on the attitude of Sun Quan and Wu Guotai. If they agree to this, then it's fine. But if they try to obstruct it...
Zhou Yu's eyes narrowed and he didn't dare to think any further.
Liu Qi and Sun Quan went down the mountain and returned to the city. As they were saying goodbye at the inn, they saw a family general running over and reporting, "General Taishi's injury relapsed and he kept vomiting blood. He wants to see the Marquis of Wu!"
"Zi Yi!" Sun Quan was shocked and quickly sent orders to rush to Taishi Ci's home.
Liu Qi said, "I have admired General Taishi for a long time. Can I go and meet him?"
Sun Quan had no time to say more. He nodded, mounted his horse and went ahead. Liu Qi and Zhao Yun went with him. After thinking about it, he decided to take Ji Miao with him, hoping that he could be of help.
When they arrived at Taishi Ci's mansion, they saw that all the doormen and servants looked anxious, some of them were crying silently, and there were bursts of crying coming from the back hall.
Sun Quan ran straight to the backyard, where a young man hurried out with tears streaming down his face. It was Taishi Xiang, the son of Taishi Ci.
"Ziyi!" Sun Quan saw several pools of blood on the ground at the door and rushed into the room and shouted, "I harmed you, I'm sorry..."
"I have served you faithfully... I deserve it!" Taishi Ci managed a smile, his voice weak, "I... have failed your trust—"
Liu Qi stood at the door. Seeing Taishi Ci reluctantly bowing, he vomited blood again and his face turned pale. He no longer had the demeanor of a great general.
Sun Quan shouted, "Ziyi, you must take good care of yourself. Jiangdong cannot live without you, doctor—"
Several doctors were busy in the room, the women were sobbing beside them, and Taishi Xiang stood at the door blankly, at a loss as to what to do.
"My Lord!" Taishi Ci pushed away the doctor who came forward to feel his pulse and shouted, "A real man born in troubled times should carry a three-foot sword and accomplish unparalleled feats. Now that my ambition has not been fulfilled, what can I do..."
"Wait a minute!" Liu Qi was startled when he heard this, and rushed in with a loud shout, "General Taishi, I think we can still save him."
Taishi Ci's spell was interrupted, and he slumped on the bed, breathing barely a thread, blood foam constantly flowing out of the corners of his mouth, and his throat made a wheezing sound as if a broken bellows.
Liu Qi called Ji Miao in and said, "He is the son of the imperial physician Ji Ping. He has great medical skills and may be able to bring the dead back to life."
Sun Quan was stunned for a moment, then hurriedly said, "Please come in!"
At this time, Taishi Ci had fallen into a coma. Ji Miao pried open his eyelids and observed him for a while, then immediately opened the medicine box, took out a brocade bag and spread it out. He saw that it was densely covered with silver needles of various sizes. He first inserted seven or eight needles into his forehead, temples and neck.
Sun Quan pointed at the silver needles and asked in surprise, "Acupuncture is needed to heal injuries?"
"Just save lives!" Saving lives is the most important thing. Ji Miao did not hesitate to speak politely at this time. He directly instructed the two doctors, named a dozen acupoints, and asked them to clean them.
The maidservant gently untied his clothes, only to see several shocking wounds on Taishi Ci's waist, abdomen, and chest. Some of the wounds had already formed scars, while others had cracked and were oozing pus.
Sun Quan seemed unable to bear to watch, so he closed his eyes, took a deep breath, stood up and said, "Healing is more important, let's stay away for now!"
Only the doctor and two maids were left to serve, and everyone else left the room, staring at the door silently, waiting for the result.
After a stick of incense had passed, basins were seen being carried in and out continuously, pouring out blood. Sun Quan was so anxious that he paced around in circles in the yard. Later, Taishi Xiang invited him to the study to have a rest.
Liu Qi didn't want to be alone with Sun Quan, so he sat casually at the stone table under a tree. Although Taishi Ci belonged to the Jiangdong camp, he was also a general he admired. Seeing the star general fall, he felt very sorry.
Sun Quan did have talented people under his command, but unfortunately they all died young, especially the Grand Commander, which was a high-risk position. If you rely on mountains, the mountains will fall; if you rely on people, they will run away. If you want to rely on yourself, you don't know how to lead troops!
If any one of Zhou Yu, Taishi Ci and Lu Meng could live longer, the situation in Jiangdong would not be so passive.
After drinking a pot of tea, the person inside still didn't come out. Liu Qi was in a hurry to pee, so he went to the toilet in the backyard.
At the back, several maids were washing clothes and burning the bloody cloths used to bandage wounds. There was no disinfection technology in that era, so to avoid infection, they burned the clothes and buried the ashes in the ground.
When Liu Qi came out to wash his hands, his whole body suddenly froze. He saw several ants carrying finger-sized pieces of cloth in the corner. Four or five of them fell in the corner and twitched, and two of them were still struggling to carry them.
If he hadn't had the previous conversation with Da Qiao, he would definitely not have taken it seriously. The piece of cloth was soaked in blood and the ants next to it were dead, as if the scene was replaying itself.
Seeing that there was no one around, Liu Qi took out his handkerchief, carefully put away the scraps of cloth, and walked back to the front yard without making a sound. He saw that the door was open and Ji Miao was washing his hands and wiping his sweat at the door.
Sun Quan looked concerned and asked anxiously, "What's the situation? Can Ziyi be saved?"
"The wound is too severe, the wound has already festered!" Ji Miao shook his head and sighed, "He is just barely able to keep a glimmer of hope."
"That's good, that's good!" Sun Quan felt relieved and thanked him repeatedly.