13 What are you hiding from?

◎Saving a poisoned child◎

The inn is not far away, with two superior rooms facing each other.

1:15 PM.

Just as Cui Xun's hand touched the door panel, his sleeve tightened; it turned out that Hua Yao had grabbed it.

"Wait a minute," her voice was urgent, "you promised to take me to that person when we get there, let's go now."

He didn't turn around immediately; his gaze fell on the sleeve she was gripping tightly.

“No rush,” he said calmly, his voice devoid of emotion. “It’s already late.”

"You didn't say you wanted to check the sky." Hua Yao took a step closer, looking up at his profile. "You're not just trying to fool me, are you?"

Cui Xun was lightly bumped by her. He turned to the side and was about to speak when he saw her looking at him with a sincere expression.

There was a moment of silence between them.

The light and shadow under the eaves were dim, but her eyes shone brightly... Cui Xun looked away, "I didn't say I wouldn't look at the sky."

"You!" Hua Yao was furious. Suddenly, she raised her foot and stomped hard on his boot.

Cui Xun let out a muffled groan.

Hua Yao herself was stunned, probably not expecting to do something so childish. But when she met his slightly raised eyebrows and those unfathomable eyes, her guilt was immediately overshadowed by her greater anger.

She immediately released her grip on his sleeve, turned and walked away. With a loud bang, she pushed open and closed the door across the hall; the sound wasn't loud, but her anger was palpable.

Only Cui Xun remained in the corridor.

He slowly lowered his head, glanced at the inconspicuous gray mark on the dark boot, and then looked up at the tightly closed door opposite.

After a long pause, he chuckled very softly before pushing open the door and entering his room.

--

A gust of wind blew, causing the candlelight to flicker.

Inside the official residence, Hua Yanbo sat at his desk. The ink on the official document in front of him had long since dried, but he hesitated to put pen to paper, only letting his gaze drift to the window frame.

He lightly pressed his fingertips against his brow, his mind filled with the scenes of Yao'er and Cui Xun together during the day.

Cui Xun, a man of immense power and unfathomable character, was surrounded by countless people in the court who sought to curry favor with him while secretly harboring resentment. How could such a person be connected to Yao'er?

Hua Yanbo closed his eyes. Cui Xun had tested him, both openly and subtly, more than once. Since the matter was of great importance, he could only feign ignorance and brush it off with trivial remarks. After this happened several times, Cui Xun stopped seeking him out.

I thought that was the end of it.

Unexpectedly, he turned his gaze to Yao'er.

A man like Cui Xun always has a deeper meaning in his every move. He approached Yao'er, intending to use her as bait to pry open her mouth.

A chill ran down Hua Yanbo's spine.

He walked a few steps to the bookshelf against the wall. In the shadowy corner where the bookshelf met the wall, it seemed perfectly sealed and without any abnormalities, but in fact, it concealed a hidden mechanism.

He reached out and pressed hard, and a wooden board silently popped out from the side of the bookshelf, revealing a narrow hidden compartment where a jade pendant lay quietly.

He took it out and held it in his palm.

In the candlelight, the jade pendant was revealed. The jade was of ordinary quality, not of superior quality, and the carving was simple.

What's unique is that a thin red line naturally grows within the texture of the jade.

This wasn't originally his.

Many years ago, a woman hurriedly shoved it into his hand.

Over the years, he has carefully hidden himself away, not daring to show himself to anyone.

Now that Cui Xun has come looking for him again, with this jade pendant and that old scroll... should he continue to hide them, or hand them over?

--

The next day.

When Hua Yao came downstairs, there were some people sitting in the lobby of the inn.

She spotted Cui Xun sitting at the table by the window at a glance.

She paused. Remembering her merciless kick last night, she looked away, intending to pretend she hadn't seen it, and walked straight out.

"come over."

Cui Xun's voice was not loud, but it was clear and easy to hear.

Hua Yao stopped and turned to look at him. He was looking at her calmly, as if he wasn't the one who had been stepped on last night.

He gestured to the spot opposite him, "Have breakfast before you go out."

Hua Yao walked over and sat down opposite him. On the table were several plates of light breakfast, a bowl of porridge, and two sets of bowls.

She silently picked up her spoon and ate in small bites.

"After you finish eating, I'll take you to see that person."

Hua Yao suddenly looked up. "Really? Let's go now."

"Hmm." He looked at her face, which suddenly came to life, and a hint of tenderness, which he himself did not notice, flashed in his eyes.

...

On the street, Cui Xun walked with ease, Hua Yao following half a step closely beside him, "Is that scholar easy to talk to..."

Before he could finish speaking, a commotion broke out ahead, accompanied by a woman's heart-wrenching cries, "My son! Doctor, save my son!"

A woman with disheveled hair and tear-streaked face rushed frantically toward the clinic, carrying a boy of about four or five years old. As she passed Hua Yao, she stirred up a flurry of wind.

With just one glance, Hua Yao's heart tightened.

The child's face was frighteningly pale, with yellowish-green vomit hanging from the corner of his mouth. His body convulsed violently, and his breathing was heavy and intermittent.

Poisoning! And it's quite serious.

Hua Yao turned around and followed her into the clinic. Cui Xun's eyebrows twitched slightly, and he followed her in as well.

The clinic was in complete chaos.

The senior doctor in the clinic hurriedly took the child and laid him flat on the examination table. He opened the child's eyelids to check and then took his pulse, his expression becoming increasingly serious.

The woman knelt by the bed, crying her heart out, "Doctor, please, please save Cheng'er! He was perfectly fine before, and suddenly he's like this."

"It seems to be poisoning." The old doctor's forehead was covered in sweat, and his voice was urgent. "The poison is very strong. I... I need to carefully consider the medicine, but in this situation, I'm afraid we can't wait for the medicine to be prepared and decocted."

"Let me try."

A clear female voice rang out, and everyone was taken aback. A young woman dressed in a light purple dress quickly walked to the side of the bed.

The old doctor was stunned, "Young lady, you..."

Hua Yao didn't look at him, her gaze sweeping over the child. She spoke rapidly, "The poison of the Heartbreak Grass takes effect as soon as it enters the throat. We can't wait any longer." As she spoke, she began to unbutton the child's clothes, turning his head to one side to prevent him from choking on his vomit.

She shouted to the crowd, "I need lightly salted water, clean water, wooden chopsticks, a clean feather, five qian of licorice root, and a liter of mung beans. Boil them quickly."

One of the apprentices, intimidated by her imposing manner, subconsciously replied "Yes" and hurriedly ran to the back room.

Having obtained what she needed, Hua Yao had the woman help support the boy's head, gently pry open his clenched teeth with wooden chopsticks, first giving him two mouthfuls of lightly salted water, and then inserting a feather deep into his throat.

"Ugh." The boy coughed violently, vomiting more vomit mixed with grass. Hua Yao patted his back to prevent aspiration and said urgently, "Give him another bowl until he vomits only clear water."

"Give me the silver needles," she continued.

The old doctor was startled and uncertain. He hurriedly took some silver needles from the counter and handed them to her. "Heartbreak grass? How do you know?"

“Vomiting, convulsions, and difficulty breathing are different from ordinary febrile convulsions.” Hua Yao said concisely, her hands moving without stopping. After the child was laid flat, the silver needles fell precisely from her fingertips, piercing several key acupoints on the child.

After inserting the needles, she used her fingertips to press and push on several key acupoints on the child's chest and abdomen with a unique technique.

The child's violent convulsions visibly subsided; although his face was still pale, the terrifying blackness had faded considerably, and his heavy breathing gradually calmed down.

Just then, the licorice and mung bean soup was ready. Hua Yao had the woman let the soup cool to a warm temperature and then feed it to the boy spoonful by spoonful. "Feed him the soup every half hour, keep him lying flat, and don't touch his limbs."

The old doctor hurriedly stepped forward to take her pulse again. After a long while, he let out a long sigh of relief and looked at Hua Yao with eyes full of amazement and admiration. "She's steady! Young lady, your skills are truly divine. I am ashamed."

The woman seemed to awaken from a dream, and knelt down with a thud, kowtowing to Hua Yao. "Thank you, young lady, for saving my son's life! Thank you, living Bodhisattva! If it weren't for you, my son would be..."

Hua Yao helped her up, saying, "Madam, please get up. It is a doctor's duty to save lives."

Then he turned to the senior doctor and explained in detail the prescription of several detoxifying and heart-protecting herbs, following a gradual approach. The senior doctor nodded repeatedly and hurried to consider and prescribe a formula.

...

Hua Yao went to the side to wash her hands, scrubbing them carefully. She didn't notice that one of her sleeves had slipped down, and the cuff had soaked into the water at the edge of the basin, leaving a small wet patch.

She turned her head and realized that Cui Xun had been standing by the door watching her.

When he noticed her looking over, he started walking towards her. "You were so eager to see that person before, but you're not in a hurry now?"

His eyes were so deep and dark that Hua Yao looked away uncomfortably and whispered, "No matter how urgent things are, no one's life is in such a hurry."

Cui Xun hummed in agreement, his gaze lingering on her slightly damp sleeve for a moment before he reached out and gently grasped her forearm.

She was startled and instinctively tried to pull her hand back. "What are you doing?"

He didn't let go; his grip wasn't strong, but it wasn't easy for her to break free. With his other hand, he was already pulling up her soaked sleeves layer by layer, his movements somewhat clumsy and awkward.

His dark sleeves clung to her fair wrists, creating an inexplicably alluring effect.

"Why are you hiding?" He lowered his eyes, focusing on rolling up his sleeves, his tone flat. "You didn't even know to roll up your wet sleeves? Where did your quick thinking go when you were saving people?"

His fingertips, calloused, brushed against the skin on the inside of her wrist, making Hua Yao feel a little itchy. A tingling sensation spread from the point of contact, and a faint redness appeared behind her ear.

Cui Xun only let go after securing her hand, as if she had done something completely ordinary.

"Dry it off." He pulled a hand towel from the side and handed it to her.

Hua Yao quickly took it, hastily wiped her hands and arms, and turned to walk out of the clinic.

...

"Young lady! My benefactor, please wait." The two had just stepped out of the clinic when they heard hurried footsteps and calls from behind.

The commotion attracted the attention of people on the street, and many were already looking in this direction.

It was the woman. She chased after them, her face full of gratitude. "Young lady, you are truly a living Bodhisattva. Please tell me where your house is, and I will definitely come to thank you in person." As she spoke, she was about to kneel down again.

Hua Yao quickly helped her up, "Madam, there's no need for such formality. It was nothing, please don't worry about it. You should go back and take care of your child."

"How can this be? You saved my life! How can I not even know your name?" The woman was very stubborn, her gaze darting earnestly between herself and Cui Xun. Seeing that Hua Yao was dressed in extraordinary clothes and had an extraordinary bearing, and that the man beside her was also dignified and reserved, she knew that they were no ordinary people.

Cui Xun's gaze fell on Hua Yao's slightly embarrassed profile, and she spoke softly, "My daughter, Hua Yao."

Hua Yao. Was she referring to the second daughter of the Prime Minister's residence, or herself?

The woman was taken aback at first, then her eyes widened suddenly. "The surname Hua? Are you from the Hua family?" There weren't many people with the surname Hua in Daze. The only one she knew was the Hua Prime Minister, who was honest, loved the people, and often spoke up for ordinary people.

Seeing that she did not deny it, the woman bowed to her repeatedly, "So you are the young prime minister's daughter. No wonder you have such a kind heart and skillful hands. Prime Minister Hua is a good official, and his daughter is also a living bodhisattva. We have truly met a benefactor today."

She was moved to tears and wanted to thank him again, but Hua Yao quickly helped her up. However, she felt a mixed warmth in her heart because her father's reputation was being so appreciated. She whispered, "Go back quickly, the child is the most important thing."

The woman then returned home, profusely thanking him.