Chapter 109: A disjointed half with champagne, a grueling ending with instant noodles (see author's notes...)

Changsun Qingjing placed his hands in front of his chest, hooking his little fingers together to form the coded signal "things will go smoothly." Li Shimin then bowed to thank Mr. Wei. A young man with a high nose and deep-set eyes also stepped into the room. Everyone guessed that this was Cao Yuhan, who was in charge of collecting the corpses with the white pill. Of course, everyone also remembered Duan Zhixuan's instructions and tried not to look too closely at the Sogdian's face to avoid unnecessary trouble.

Li Shimin approached Li Fanniang, whose face was filled with anxiety and anticipation, and gently comforted her, "Zhang Liang has already headed to the ferry. He will hide in Hedong for a few months. We will reunite when things have calmed down."

Li Fanniang nodded silently, then turned around and took out various pills, powders, and ointments from the medicine box to give Cao Yuhan medical advice.

Cao Yuhan repeated Li Fanniang's instructions in perfect, standard Heluo dialect to ensure everything was in order. His pronunciation was so flawless that everyone felt as if they were listening to a master's lecture.

Everyone looked at each other, wanting to laugh but not daring to make a sound.

"Ah, Cao Yuhan. Can you please change your tone of voice? Don't be so serious. The moment you opened your mouth, I was so startled that I thought a proper interpreter was about to read out the imperial edict ordering my execution. I almost rolled off my sickbed!" Duan Zhixuan's sudden awakening surprised and delighted everyone.

"You're alright!" Everyone crowded around.

"You look very energetic!" Duan Zhixuan was about to demonstrate his nimble arms when Mr. Wei firmly held him down. He could only ask mysteriously, "Guess which miracle doctor brought you back to health?"

As Cao Yuhan packed up the medicine box, he complained, "You're far too arrogant. You haven't sent me a single message since we parted ways in Luocheng. If it weren't for Li Shimin and Zhang Liang coming to inform me, I would almost have been left to collect your corpse... A court attendant proclaiming an imperial edict? How could you be so optimistic? Someone like you doesn't deserve poison and a white silk ribbon. You'd be better off being chopped into eight pieces and roasted outside the Golden Light Gate. Even dogs wouldn't eat you..."

"So you can speak human language!" Duan Zhixuan suddenly perked up and started arguing with Cao Yuhan, who had been out of contact for many days.

“Yuhan, the ‘Yuhan’ of the Dharma King Yuhan…” the Sogdian boy corrected earnestly. Because these people in front of him had saved his life, this young man, who was related to the Cao family of Qiao County and was very concerned about the strange looks of others, maintained the utmost politeness and restraint.

“Alright, when I have time, I’ll ask the abbot of Jingyin Temple about this Dharma King’s background…” Before Cao Yuhan could explain again, Mr. Wei checked Duan Zhixuan’s wound one last time, gently squeezed his hand and said, “Remember to let us know if you steal the Jade Dragon Stone!”

"Why send a message? By then I'll be famous all over the world!"

Upon hearing this, Li Fanniang's lips parted into a shallow smile.

Changsun Qingjing thought she would inquire about Zhang Liang's arrangements after arriving in Hedong, but to her surprise, this resolute woman simply stepped aside to make way for Li Shimin, allowing him to carry Duan Zhixuan to the carriage.

Mr. Wei was still quite frightened by the people who had been waiting last night, and even after leaving the hut for a short while, he reminded everyone to take their daggers and quivers with them.

"Let's go," the elder reminded Li Fanniang, Changsun Qingjing, and Li Shimin. "We shouldn't stay here any longer; let's lay low for a while."

The sky was pale gray, and the stars had lost their luster.

The young people laughed and joked about their plans to meet again in the future, and then prepared to part ways.

"Dr. Gao, when I return to Hedong, I will surely spread the word about your healing arts to all the heroes." Duan Zhixuan thanked Changsun Qingjing loudly through the curtain.

"Take good care of yourself and get back to Hedong as soon as possible. I'll be grateful if you don't run around anymore. I don't want to stitch up another person's wounds in this lifetime. Forgive me for not entertaining your chivalrous friends." Changsun Qingjing peeked out from outside the carriage and laughed. "Zhixuan, take care of yourself. After you return to Hedong, take good care of Zhang Liang. Shimin and I will take good care of Lady Li. Once things have calmed down, we'll try to reunite the couple..."

"Stop acting like children. We'll meet again." Everything went incredibly smoothly last night, and Li Shimin had a bad feeling, so he urged Cao Yuhan to set off as soon as possible.

The air seemed to be constricted and then suddenly released, with strange air currents surging through it.

Upon hearing the sound of the bowstring, Changsun Qingjing grabbed Li Fanniang and lay down behind the carriage.

Cao Yuhan roared, wiped the blood from his cheek, and the arrow whizzed past his body and landed on the carriage.

"Hurry! Don't waste a moment! We'll hold off the pursuers!" Mr. Wei used his knife to deflect the arrows and urged Cao Yuhan onward.

"Take care, everyone!" Cao Yuhan sheathed his drawn sword, hesitated no longer, and painfully pulled on the reins to ride away at full speed.

Li Shimin and Mr. Wei pressed their backs together, and Li Shimin nocked an arrow and shot back.

"Xiaojing, take Fanniang to the cellar!" Mr. Wei urged.

Changsun Qingjing shielded Li Fanniang and rushed into the house.

"It was my carelessness," Li Shimin said regretfully. "I must have been so engrossed in chatting and laughing with Cao Lang on the way back that I didn't notice that the guards were watching us."

"Not necessarily." Mr. Wei stared at the fence and the woods, knife in hand. "They're after me!"

"Whether they are soldiers or servants, deal with them all and leave no future trouble!" Li Shimin was determined to fight to the death as five or six unidentified pursuers rushed forward.

Amidst the chaotic sounds of close combat, Changsun Qingjing dragged Li Fanniang into the inner room, and several arrows pierced through the window, nearly hitting them.

"Lie down." Changsun Qingjing helped Li Fanniang squat down, curling up against the wall.

The girl, flustered and helpless, pushed Changsun Qingjing away and frantically searched the room for a weapon: "Don't stop me, fight them..."

Li Fanniang then remembered the important matter and quickly ran into the cellar, packing all the valuable ointments, pills, and powders into a medicine box. As the two left the cellar, they heard Mr. Wei cursing, "That brat got away."

"It's not easy for us to be alive... Quickly call the two ladies and we'll retreat together!" Li Shimin said, looking at his blood-stained body.

"You two, hurry up and come with us to escape!" Mr. Wei shouted, brandishing his knife.

“Young Master Gao, you are…” Li Fanniang recalled Changsun Qingjing’s strange behavior and asked in confusion, “Are you my wife?”

Changsun Qingjing nodded in agreement: "I'll explain later. I'll take you away on horseback!"

She snatched the clothes that Li Fanniang had prepared to carry with her: "No need, it's too much trouble to carry them."

Li Fanniang tied the medicine sash to her side, and Changsun Qingjing helped her onto the horse.

"Let's go, let's go up the mountain first!" Li Shimin and Mr. Wei took out their flint and steel, lit the velvet cloth, and threw it into the room. The two of them decided on their next move in unison.

"Fan Niang, don't cry. Cheer up!" Mr. Wei clutched his chest and staggered onto his horse.

"Qingjing! Hurry up and keep up!"

"Why?" Li Fanniang asked in her hasty escape, "Won't he come back?"

"There were probably items in the house that would reveal Mr. Wei's identity when he was a noble young master in Luoyang. Burning them would leave the servants clueless and clean..." Changsun Qingjing didn't dare to tell Li Fanniang her speculation about Mr. Wei's true identity, but comforted her, "It's alright, we'll go into the mountains and hide for a while. Once the servants have all left, we'll hide in the Duke of Tang's manor. No one will come to investigate..."

Li Fanniang glanced back at the raging fire one last time, sighed, and felt as if she were in another world, even though the wedding had only just ended.

Mr. Wei led the way, while Li Shimin brought up the rear, protecting the two young women in the middle. The group sped off along a secluded mountain path.

Not long after entering the mountains, Li Fanniang cried out in surprise. Changsun Qingjing's mount nearly slipped and fell on the narrow mountain path because Mr. Wei's mount suddenly stopped.

"Mr. Wei!" Changsun Qingjing calmed the horse and, together with Li Fanniang, helped Mr. Wei, who had fallen to the ground.

On his chest remained the arrowhead left after he severed the shaft...

Li Fanniang was on the verge of tears. The misfortunes that had befallen her in the past two days were beyond her capacity to bear.

Li Shimin managed to move Mr. Wei to a flat area. The three young men sat around the old man, whose life had been full of hardships and who was mysterious, and were at a loss for what to do.

“Mr. Wei,” Li Shimin said, bending down, “please bear with me. I will take you back to my villa via a side path that the soldiers don’t often take. There is a doctor there to treat your injuries. Just bear with it. We won’t hide in the mountains anymore. I will take you away! You will be alright.”

"I'm dying..." Mr. Wei looked at Li Fanniang, who was constantly wiping away his blood, and said with his last breath, "Remember to bury me, don't build a grave, don't erect a tombstone, so that Yang Guang, Yuwen Shu, and Fan Zigai will never guess that I'm already dead..."

Li Fanniang knelt beside him, sobbing softly, "Mr. Wei, you will be alright. I have the best wound medicine with me, I will definitely heal you."

“Fan Niang, don’t worry about my injury anymore, it can’t be healed.” Mr. Wei reached out with difficulty to touch the girl’s hair and said lovingly, “After Yang Guang dies, carve a tombstone for me. Inscribe your name and Zhang Liang’s name on it.”

Suddenly realizing something, Changsun Qingjing rushed to Mr. Wei's side and exclaimed, "Han Shi'e, you are Han Shi'e?"

Mr. Wei blinked in agreement.

"You must survive! Master Li has been searching for you everywhere, risking the safety of his entire family." Changsun Qingjing gently lifted his shoulders and said, "I will definitely take you to Daxing this time so that you can see him one last time, and it will not have been in vain for the care he and Madam Changsun have given me over the years..."

“Young Master Gao,” Han Shi’e gently pushed away Changsun Qingjing’s arm and forced a smile, “you really are a wife now, so fond of daydreaming. Isn’t that right, Madam Changsun?”

Author's Note: What a strange creature Yang Guang was! He managed to bring together high-ranking nobles, low-ranking officials, and ordinary people all into the same trench. [666]

Mini-Theater (Part 1)

Ah Jing: I hereby announce that I have my own big son now!

Erfeng: How much Xielu wine did you drink today?

A-Jing: Duan, show him your muscles!

Erfeng: …………

Ah Jing: Come on, let's show off to each other! Let's have a fight, you two big boys!

Wuji: Just how crazy were you guys in Luoyang?

Mini-Theater (Part Two)

Erfeng: Use a few simple and clear words to describe the position of me and the Empress in your heart.

Xiao Duan: His Majesty is a super good boss, and the Empress is my godfather...

Erfeng: What's the difference between you, the boss and the godfather?

Xiao Duan: There are still some differences. For example, when His Majesty asks me to bring breakfast, I advise him to maintain a regular schedule, and I'm sure His Majesty can do it...

Erfeng (secretly pleased): Oh my, I didn't know you cared about my health! You're so outspoken! Not bad, not bad. What if the Empress asks you to bring breakfast?

Xiao Duan: Of course, I'd bring a different dish every day for four years, rain or shine, and I'd add an extra egg to the pancakes, extra meat and lettuce to the spicy hot pot...[666]

Erfeng: What if I want to go hunting?

Short passage: He earnestly and patiently persuaded His Majesty to return to the palace.

Erfeng: What if the Empress wants to go hunting?

Xiao Duan: Fence up the piece of land she's interested in...

Erfeng: Brother, thank you! [Angry]

Mini-Theater (Part 3)

Reader: Why was Cao Yuhan sent to pick up Duan Zhixuan? Shouldn't Erfeng have escorted him herself?

Fishbone: Because Yuhan (Yuhan) and Zixuan (Zhixuan) are the true official couple of the late 90s and early 00s!! 600 AD is also the year 00.