The Living Yama (Part Two)

“I know.” Huai Xu nodded. “We’ve talked to Uncle Lin about it.”

Feeling a little relieved, I composed myself and said, "Feng Qiao, why don't you cook? Let Auntie take care of the horse feed."

Feng Qiao readily agreed, "Okay."

After gathering the hay, the sky grew increasingly overcast, and a light drizzle began to fall. Lin Zhong still hadn't returned.

I immediately felt a pang of panic and waited at the entrance of the inn. As I looked around, I finally spotted a familiar figure slowly approaching from the southwest. From a distance, I could see that Lin Zhong was hunched over and walking with heavy steps, as if he were carrying something heavy on his back.

My chest tightened, and I rushed over: "Are you alright, Lin Zhong!"

"I'm fine." Lin Zhong's voice was as calm as ever.

I breathed a sigh of relief, and then I saw that he was indeed carrying someone on his back.

The man lay supine on Lin Zhong's back, covered in blood. An arrow pierced through his soft armor and struck his right chest; it appeared he had been wounded by a powerful bow.

I quickly took the bamboo basket from Lin Zhong's arm and glimpsed that there were quite a few "fighting roosters" among the half-basket of mushrooms. I was really annoyed: "I told you not to go to Daqingyan! Don't think that just because you picked up a half-dead person, I won't have time to scold you!"

I ran back to the inn and said to Huai Xu, "Quick! Your Uncle Lin carried a seriously injured person back. Go and tidy up Feng Qiao's room!"

Huai Xu responded and left. A short while later, Lin Zhong also arrived.

"Watch out, don't touch the arrow!"

"Go down slowly, go down slowly."

Huai Xu and I worked together to move the injured person from Lin Zhong's back to the bed.

"Godmother, here." Huai Xu handed over a wrung-out towel.

I reached out and took it, sat down on the edge of the bed, and wiped the wound on the injured person's face. Upon closer inspection of the bloodstains, I saw a face that seemed familiar, and I was shocked.

Seeing that my gesture had stopped, Huai Xu asked curiously, "Godmother, do you know him?"

I shook my head: "I wouldn't say I know him. But I did see him when I went to Changning Army last time."

At that moment, Feng Qiao heard the commotion and rushed over from the kitchen. Upon seeing the unconscious injured man on the bed, he exclaimed in shock, "How...how could it be him?!"

Three pairs of eyes in the room turned to Feng Qiao. Huai Xu stamped his foot in frustration: "Who is this person? Tell me!"

Feng Qiao stammered, "It's Xiong... Xiong Tu, Xiong... sir..."

This is actually a bear butcher?!

I grabbed Feng Qiao and pulled him to the edge of the bed, saying sternly, "Look carefully! Is it really him?"

Feng Qiao was half-squatting, their faces less than a foot apart. He stared wide-eyed, shrinking back as he stammered, "It's...it's him..."

Huai Xu leaned closer, tilted his head, and looked at him, saying, "So this is what Xiong Tu looks like. He doesn't look that fierce. Godmother, look, his eyelashes are so long!"

"The longer the eyelashes, the more malevolent the aura!" I suddenly turned my head and glared at Lin Zhong: It's one thing to disobey and go to Daqingyan, but you also brought me back a "living Yama"!

Lin Zhong lowered his eyes: "Should I drag the person away and bury them?"

Feng Qiao's face changed, and he said in a trembling voice, "Aunt, you, you wouldn't—really not want to save him, would you?"

I sighed, pressing my forehead: "We have to save him, whether we want to or not. He is the prefect of Luzhou and the military commander of Changning Army. If he dies here, Lord Wei will be in trouble. Huai Xu, go to Yanziping immediately and invite Doctor Liu here. Feng Qiao, go to the prefectural government office and inform Lord Wei."

The two of them left quickly.

I held a handkerchief and handed it to Lin Zhong: "You're the one who picked him up, so you can help him clean up."

Lin Zhong stood still and remained silent.

I glanced at him and nodded, saying, "Fine, I can't boss you around anymore. You can go now, I'll do it myself." As I spoke, I reached out to pull at the belt around Xiong Tu's waist.

Lin Zhong flashed forward, grabbed my right wrist with his left hand, pulled me off the bed, snatched the cloth from my left hand with his right hand, and led me to the door. He pushed me out with one arm and said in a helpless tone, "Go boil some water, master."

Not long after, Huai Xu led Liu Yu to the scene in a hurry. I had already boiled hot water and prepared the wound cleaning supplies.

After a brief exchange, Liu Yu learned that the seriously injured person was an important official of the imperial court in the southwest. He was deeply moved and left Lin Zhong in the room to help. He immediately began to stop the bleeding and remove the arrow.

While they were busy, Huai Xu and I went to the kitchen for dinner. After we were full, we returned to find that Liu Yu had already removed the broken arrow and bandaged the wound.

I laughed and said, "In just the time it takes to eat a meal, Doctor Liu has snatched someone back from the King of Hell!"

Liu Yu wiped the sweat from his forehead, his expression still filled with lingering fear, and said, "If the arrow had been half an inch off, he would have been dead long ago; if the rescue had been half an hour later, his life would still have been in danger. It's only because he was seriously injured that he managed to make it to Qingcheng Inn that he was destined to survive."

"However, although there is no immediate danger to his life, he is severely deficient in qi and blood and needs to be well cared for to avoid developing chronic illnesses in the future."

After speaking, he took out paper and pen from his medicine box, sat down at the table, and began to carefully consider the prescription.

I looked at Lin Zhong and said, "You've worked hard too. I'll stay here and keep watch, so go and rest for a while."

Lin Zhong didn't answer. He walked straight to the side of the bed, reached out and pulled the quilt up to Xiong Tu's neck, tucking it tightly on both sides as if afraid of revealing anything.

Seeing this, Liu Yu quickly spoke up to stop her: "No! External injuries can cause internal heat. If you cover yourself up too tightly, you'll get a fever."

I suppressed a laugh and pushed Lin Zhong out the door: "There's some mushroom soup left in the pot, go and eat something." I turned back to the bedside, lifted the blanket, and leaned against Xiong Tu's shoulder.

Under the dim light of the oil lamp, Liu Yu picked up his pen and put it down again, repeating this several times, but not a single word was written on the paper, and his expression gradually became anxious.

I adjusted the wick and asked, "Since his life has been saved, what else does Doctor Liu have to worry about?"

Liu Yu frowned deeply: "Lady Qing, you may not know this, but this Master Xiong's constitution is somewhat...unusual, making the choice of medicinal ingredients extremely difficult. We need to nourish his qi and blood without harming anything else. Otherwise, I fear—"

Seeing his hesitant expression, I said nonchalantly, "Dr. Liu is truly a compassionate healer. In my opinion, why bother with so much effort? Just keep him hanging on until Lord Wei arrives, then get rid of him and be done with it."

Liu Yu sighed, got up and walked to the bedside. He pulled back a corner of the blanket, took Xiong Tu's arm, and used his fingers to feel the radial artery to carefully examine the pulse. After a moment, he slowly released his grip, placed Xiong Tu's arm back under the blanket, returned to the table, and wrote down the prescription.

“Salt…salt…” Xiong Tu on the bed suddenly uttered soft murmurs.

Liu Yu looked in the direction of the sound, his face showing surprise, and whispered, "He woke up quickly."

I chuckled and said, "This gentleman is indeed of extraordinary constitution. While others ask for water when they are half-awake, he asks for salt."

Liu Yu nodded: "Now that he's awake, we should give him some water." As she spoke, she walked to the edge of the bed, sat down, reached out and helped Xiong Tu sit up, letting him lean against her, and gently pried open his jaw.

I followed him with the bowl in my hand, scooped up more than half a spoonful of water, and was about to feed it to Xiong Tu when a hand reached out and took the teacup from my hand.

"Boss, let me do it."

I hummed in agreement, handed the spoon to Lin Zhong, and stepped back to the table.

After being fed a small bowl of water, Xiong Tu's eyelashes trembled slightly, and he let out a weak groan before slowly opening his eyes.

Upon seeing this, Lin Zhong immediately picked up his bowl, stood up, and stepped aside; Liu Yu also hurriedly got up, supported Xiong Tu's shoulder, carefully laid him down on the bed, and tucked the blanket in.

The room fell silent for a moment.

Xiong Tu's unfocused gaze gradually sharpened, sweeping over the people and objects in the room. He asked in a hoarse voice, "Who saved... me?"

Liu Yu and Lin Zhong exchanged a glance, then both pointed to me beside the table and said in unison, "It's her."

Hmm, it seems no one wants to be the benefactor of this "living Yama" (a powerful and ruthless figure in Chinese mythology)...

Xiong Tu turned his gaze to me: "I am deeply grateful for your kindness, Madam. I will repay you handsomely in the future."

I chuckled dryly, got up and walked to the bedside, looking down at him and said, "We'll meet again someday, Lord Xiong, no need to be so polite. Five years ago, you showed mercy and spared my nephew Feng Qiao. My help this time evens things out."

Xiong Tu's gaze sharpened slightly: "I met you in the army—you're from Zhou Hong's hometown."

I nodded and said, "Lord Xiong has a good memory."

“This is Qingcheng Inn, so I should address you as—” Xiong Tu paused slightly, “Madam Feng.”

I leaned down slightly and looked at him, saying, "Qingcheng Inn is correct. However, I do not take my father's surname. You may call me Lady Qing or Qingcheng."

A sharp glint flashed in Xiong Tu's eyes, but he quickly regained his composure after a quick glance at his long eyelashes: "Lady Qing, I have something to discuss with you."

As soon as she finished speaking, Liu Yu turned and walked out of the house. Seeing Lin Zhong still standing there, she reached out and gently pulled him. I also glanced at him. Lin Zhong silently put down his teacup and followed Liu Yu out.

The sound of their footsteps faded into the distance.

I crossed my elbows, walked straight to the bedside and sat down, looking directly into Xiong Tu's eyes, and asked with a smile, "Prefect, what are your orders?"

Xiong Tu glanced sideways, his expression restrained, and said, "I dare not give orders, but I would like to ask Qing Niangzi for a favor."

Tsk tsk, this "living devil" really is a handful...

I said "Oh," without commenting, "Lord Xiong has just escaped danger and is still very weak. If there's anything, we can talk about it after his injuries have healed a bit."

Xiong Tu said urgently, "This matter concerns the peace of the border. If Qing Niangzi is willing to help, Xiong Tu will definitely reward her handsomely!"

I suppressed my smile and slowly said, "What if I don't want to?"

Xiong Tu lowered his eyes, his eyelashes trembling violently: "Is Lady Qing acquainted with Deputy Military Commander Zhou?"

I thought to myself that the "Living Yama" was quite angry and might be taking it out on Zhou Hong, so I replied, "When I was young in Qingcheng, I received a great favor from General Zhou, which I will never forget."

Xiong Tu paused for a moment, then said, "I've heard him mention you before."

I asked casually, "What did he say about me?"

Xiong Tu's eyes were piercing: "He scolded his subordinates for their behavior, saying they were far less righteous than Qing Niangzi of Ba Ting Dao."

"He's quite good at praising people," I laughed. "It seems that if Qingcheng doesn't help Lord Xiong today, he'll be acting disloyally."

Xiong Tu spoke rapidly: "I am not this—" Before he could finish the word "meaning," he suddenly coughed violently, and a trickle of blood foam appeared at the corner of his mouth.

I grabbed a towel from the bedside table and quickly wiped the blood from his lips, frowning as I asked, "Speak, what is it?"