Chapter 35 [VIP]

Chapter Summary: Bandaging.

Xie Xuan found a relatively flat clearing under the rock and carefully laid Yu Jing down. The rain was pouring down harder. Suddenly, Xie Xuan remembered something and reached for his waist. Fortunately, he still had his tinderbox. Due to his habit of marching on the frontier, he always carried a tinderbox close to his body when he was out. In this situation, having a fire would make things much easier.

The ground was cold and hard, and Yu Jing's right chest wound throbbed with pain. Suddenly, she felt a pang of grievance. Truly, having descended to the mortal realm, she had not only been stabbed twice, but now she was stuck in this desolate wilderness, in the middle of nowhere. It was raining, her clothes were soaked through, and the sky was darkening, making her feel gloomy. A sense of desolation welled up within her, her eyes instantly reddened, and tears streamed down her face uncontrollably.

"Your Majesty the Empress Dowager." Xie Xuan saw Yu Jing's tears and was momentarily at a loss. He thought Yu Jing was in pain, so he quickly said, "Your Majesty the Empress Dowager, please bear with it. I will pull out the arrow and bandage it for you."

Upon hearing this, Yu Jing opened her tear-filled eyes, reacted for a moment, and then nodded. She knew where the arrow was embedded, and she knew that if Xie Xuan were to remove it, he would see her body. But there was no other way now; Sheng Hua's body had already lost too much blood, and if it wasn't bandaged soon, Yu Jing feared she would return to Heaven first. Besides, this body belonged to Sheng Hua; even if Xie Xuan saw it, it wouldn't concern her. Thinking this way, Yu Jing felt much better.

Xie Xuan reached out and slowly tore open the clothes on Yu Jing's shoulder. Xie Xuan's movements were very gentle, but they still aggravated the injury, and Yu Jing gritted her teeth in pain. She subconsciously wanted to reach out and brush Xie Xuan away, but her mind wouldn't allow it. Her hand paused in mid-air, and finally fell down, tightly clutching a pebble.

The rain outside intensified, pouring down relentlessly. The sky had darkened to almost nothing. Xie Xuan tore open his clothes, careful not to use too much force, a thin layer of sweat beading on his forehead. Finally, his wound was exposed. The arrow had pierced him, not deeply, but the bleeding was profuse, making it appear quite serious.

Xie Xuan knew that removing the arrow would be an agonizing ordeal. He glanced at Yu Jing and then said, "Your Majesty, please bear with it."

"Mmm." Yu Jing responded softly, unconsciously swallowing. It had already hurt a lot when she was tearing her clothes, so the pain of actually pulling them out was unimaginable.

Xie Xuan reached out and tore several long strips of his clothing together, placing them aside for later use. He then moved his hand to the arrow, placing his other hand on Yu Jing's chest. Suddenly, Yu Jing felt the arrow being pulled from her wound, and she gripped the pebble in her hand tightly. She began to tremble uncontrollably; though she had felt terribly cold just moments before, she was now covered in a cold sweat.

Xie Xuan pulled out the arrow, tossed it aside, and then picked up the strip of cloth he had just prepared to bandage Yu Jing's wound. Without medicine, Yu Jing's wound would likely be very dangerous, but the rain didn't seem to be stopping anytime soon.

Yu Jing was in so much pain that she couldn't speak. Her brows were furrowed, her eyes were closed, and she was breathing heavily. She lay on the ground, completely exhausted. She had just come out of the water; her clothes and hair were soaked, and she felt sticky all over. It was already completely dark outside. Listening to the sound of the rain outside, Yu Jing felt like a small boat adrift.

"Your Majesty the Empress Dowager." Xie Xuan called out with some concern when he saw that Yu Jing's face was deathly pale.

Yu Jing was too weak to move, so she slightly moved her head as a response to Xie Xuan.

Xie Xuan breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing that Yu Jing was still alive, and glanced around. The rock above them was huge, and there was still a long way to go before the rain stopped. Xie Xuan peered inside and seemed to see bundles of firewood. Because it was too dark to be sure, he stood up and said to Yu Jing, "Your Majesty, I'll go see if I can find some firewood."

Yu Jing blinked slowly, still clutching the pebble tightly in her hand.

Xie Xuan got up and walked towards the direction where he had seen the firewood. He picked up a tinderbox and lit it, only to find two bundles of firewood inside, neatly arranged, as if someone had carefully placed them there. Xie Xuan had seen this before when he went hunting with Xie Jin in the mountains; hunters would gather a large amount at once, unable to carry it back, and store it in a hidden, dry place, returning the next day or a few days later to retrieve it. Seeing this, there must be hunters in the mountains; he could take Yu Jing to look for them tomorrow.

Xie Xuan didn't dare delay. He blew out the tinderbox, carried a large stack of firewood back, and went to Yu Jing's side. Yu Jing was still lying there, feeling terribly cold. Although the weather had warmed up, it was still raining, and Yu Jing was still soaked.

"Cold." Yu Jing shivered from the cold, which aggravated her wounds, causing her to gasp in pain.

Xie Xuan heard this, glanced at his still-wet clothes, quickly piled up the bundle of firewood, and lit it with a tinderbox. The firewood must have been cut before the rain; it was very dry, and the tinderbox lit it with a single touch. As soon as the fire started burning, Yu Jing's vision brightened, and perhaps because of the warmth, the pain in her wounds lessened.

Xie Xuan took off his outer clothes and placed them by the fire to dry. He glanced at Yu Jing hesitantly and said, "Your Majesty, I will take off your outer robe and dry it by the fire so it will dry faster."

Yu Jing nodded gently, and having received her consent, Xie Xuan knelt down beside her and gently removed her outer robe.

The clothes dried quickly near the fire. Xie Xuan took the clothes and walked to Yu Jing's side. Her wounds still hurt, but they were much better than before; she still had no strength at all. Yu Jing watched him walk ahead, wondering what he was going to do. Suddenly, she felt a warmth on her head. Xie Xuan was using the clothes he had just dried to dry her still-wet hair. The soft rustling of her hair against the fabric was right next to her ear, and even though it was raining outside, Yu Jing could hear it clearly.

Yu Jing's hair was almost dry, so Xie Xuan took the clothes to dry again. Once Yu Jing's clothes were dry, Xie Xuan covered her with the outer robe he had just taken off and dried, as well as his own outer robe. Yu Jing looked at Xie Xuan, who was only wearing a snow-white undergarment, and said with some concern, "Xie Xuan."

Xie Xuan didn't know what she was going to say. Her voice was very soft, so Xie Xuan leaned closer.

"Are you cold?" Yu Jing asked as Xie Xuan approached.

"I'm not cold." Xie Xuan shook his head and asked, "Is Your Majesty still cold? Should we light more fire?"

Yu Jing gently shook her head and softly replied, "I'm just a little tired."

"Your Majesty, please take a nap. I will stay here and keep watch."

"Okay." Yu Jing felt reassured when Xie Xuan said this. Her eyelids were very heavy, and she fell asleep in no time.

Xie Xuan watched Yu Jing fall asleep, pondering what to do next. Yu Jing was injured, and they didn't know if the pursuers would catch up. Tomorrow, they would find a farmer's house to stay with. Yu Jing's injury needed immediate treatment; although it wasn't deep, in this weather, if it festered and became infected, it would be extremely serious.

Their trip to Wanjiang Mountain to pray for blessings was likely known only to those within the palace. They knew their route, the number of people they brought, and their skill levels. Xie Xuan had examined their martial arts; each of them was a master. Finding such a group of experts was no easy feat. Their objective was also very clear: Yu Jing. Xie Xuan suddenly recalled the assassination attempt in the palace last time. The two assassination attempts were too close together, which was highly suspicious.

If it's the same person, then Li Guangwei is just a decoy; if it's not the same person, then who is trying to assassinate her this time?

Yu Jing heard the crackling sound of burning firewood and groggily woke up from her sleep. Opening her eyes, she saw Xie Xuan sitting in front of the fire; it was already getting light. Yu Jing tried to move her right hand fingers; she could still move them, but they were terribly numb.

Xie Xuan noticed that Yu Jing had woken up and quickly went over to her, saying, "Your Majesty the Empress Dowager."

His voice was terribly hoarse. After calling her name, he cleared his throat.

Although Yu Jing knew it wasn't appropriate to order Xie Xuan around, she was really thirsty at the moment, so she said, "Xie Xuan, I'm thirsty."

The rain had subsided considerably. Xie Xuan got up and went outside. He glanced around, casually picked a leaf, and filled it with water. He carefully carried it to Yu Jing's side. Yu Jing was lying on the ground and difficult to feed, so Xie Xuan slowly squatted down. He carefully helped Yu Jing sit up, and she slowly rose, her brow furrowed and her breath caught in her throat as she leaned against Xie Xuan. Xie Xuan handed her the water, and Yu Jing drank it. The cool water slid down her esophagus like a thin stream into her stomach.

After drinking the water, I felt instantly revived. However, I hadn't eaten anything all night, and even after drinking the water, I was still extremely hungry.

A sudden noise came from afar, and Xie Xuan immediately turned around alertly: "Who's there!"

A middle-aged man with a full beard and a robust build, dressed in coarse cloth, with a scabbard at his waist, a quiver of arrows on his back, and a bow slung over his shoulder. Sensing danger, he drew his knife and held it in his hand. His eyes held a mixture of probing and wariness as he discreetly observed Xie Xuan and Yu Jing.

Xie Xuan immediately recognized him as a hunter, there to collect the firewood he had bundled up the day before. Xie Xuan was still carrying Yu Jing, and since they had finished their water, he couldn't make any sudden movements. Xie Xuan went straight to the point, saying, "Brother, we encountered bandits while passing through this area. All our goods were stolen, and my wife was wounded by an arrow. Could you please do us a favor and provide her with a place to recuperate? We promise to repay you handsomely once we return to the capital!"

The man relaxed his guard slightly and moved closer. Only then did he see that the woman in Xie Xuan's arms was pale. Although she was wearing men's clothes, the bandage on her right chest was still visible.