"How is Ayan doing?"
Song Xizhi replied, "His injuries have been treated, but he has been subjected to too much torture and interrogation, and his body is too weak. Even after taking medicine, he has not yet woken up."
Pei Yunyi nodded, finally letting out a sigh of relief: "Tell me when he has recovered somewhat. Marquis Anding is eager to see him."
Song Xizhi naturally understood the Marquis of Anding's eagerness: "He can come anytime he wants. Just standing far away and taking a look will put his mind at ease, even though the person hasn't woken up yet."
After saying that, she inquired about the situation in the cellar: "How's it going on your end?"
Upon hearing this, Pei Yunyi took a long breath, and his expression turned serious: "It's very bad."
"After the identities of the mummified corpses on the crosses were clarified, it was discovered that they were all people of great importance."
Song Xizhi's heart skipped a beat, but then he heard Pei Yunyi continue, "Officials in the capital are doing great things, as are wealthy merchants along the coast; such cases are everywhere."
"And those fake people, at this moment, are still impersonating them and living well in Da Gan, becoming the nails that the Empress Dowager has planted in Da Gan, as if they are about to pierce through Da Gan's throat."
Upon hearing this, Song Xizhi couldn't help but feel a lingering fear.
The Empress Dowager had been lying low for more than a decade, and her actions were not simply about establishing a base in a temple and developing her power.
They even went so far as to directly kidnap high-ranking officials, hypnotize them, and replace them with these fake puppets, subtly turning them into spies for the Western Rong.
No wonder they were in such a precarious situation before; it turns out that their major undertaking had been riddled with loopholes.
Thinking it over, Song Xizhi hurriedly showed Pei Yunyi the two dissected corpses:
"Perhaps the Empress Dowager created such people. They have flesh and skin, but their bones are made of metal. Someone used these soft things to create identical faces, and then let these puppets with memories swagger around and lie in wait in the Great Gan."
Pei Yunyi bent down and looked in the direction Song Xizhi was pointing. His eyelids twitched: "There... is such a thing in the world?"
Song Xizhi pursed his lips and nodded: "It is truly beyond our imagination. Even Master has never seen it before."
“However, my master said that Bai Lizi, who is my biological father, once mentioned these things... Before he disappeared, he also mentioned that he knew a fellow villager.”
Pei Yunyi's eyes darkened for a moment, then he slowly raised his head again: "You mean to say..."
Song Xizhi nodded: "Perhaps it's my own selfishness, but I don't want to imagine that the man my mother loved was such a bad person. But everything before us tells us that there may still be many unknown things in this world."
Pei Yunyi looked at Song Xizhi's face and couldn't help but smile again, his gaze carrying a hint of heat:
"Zhizhi, do you really want to explore these unknowns?"
Song Xizhi's eyes lit up. She hadn't expected him to see through her thoughts so easily. Her whole body felt hot: "Yes."
"What could be more mysterious than hypnosis, or the black bones inside the human body?"
"And my father... how could he know so many mysterious things?"
Pei Yunyi nodded and grasped Song Xizhi's hand: "The world is vast, and whatever it is, is more interesting than that cold, lifeless prison of the palace."
"If you want, we can go together to find them, find your father and my mother, and find those unknown secrets."
Song Xizhi felt the warmth from her palm and a sense of warmth welled up in her heart. She hadn't expected that Pei Yunyi's thoughts would coincide with hers.
She looked up at Pei Yunyi again: "What happened to you in the palace?"
Pei Yunyi remained noncommittal, only smiling: "Father Emperor was very happy to learn about the cellar and that we had found He Jingyan. He said he would reward us."
Seeing the gloom in his eyes, Song Xizhi chuckled and said, "You're rewarding me with the position of a concubine?"
Pei Yunyi's hand tightened: "How did you know?"
Song Xizhi smiled and wasn't angry at all: "It's okay, when he rewards me, I'll reward you too. I'll reward you with the position of a concubine."
Pei Yunyi's throat tightened, but he still managed a forced smile: "That's good, at least I have a proper status now."
Seeing Pei Yunyi's embarrassed expression, the Divine Physician Rihua couldn't help but burst into laughter.
She said that this Pei family boy was perfect for the position of a concubine!
As they were talking, they heard a noise coming from the room where He Jingyan was. They rushed over to see what was happening and found that He Jingyan had slowly woken up.
The group pushed open the door, and he was on the bed. The first thing he saw was Pei Yunyi's face.
He Jingyan struggled to get up, but Pei Yunyi rushed forward and stopped him again: "Ayan, your injuries are serious, don't move."
He Jingyan couldn't help but shed tears again: "Your Highness, I never thought I would see you again. I thought it was all just a dream."
Seeing his red-rimmed eyes, Pei Yunyi couldn't help but tear up as well: "He's alright, that's enough."
He immediately sent someone to summon the Marquis of Anding.
Pei Yunyi explained to He Jingyan what had happened during the days he was hypnotized.
He slowly raised his head and looked in Song Xizhi's direction: "Is this the Imperial Physician Song?"
Song Xizhi stopped the acupuncture he was performing and nodded to him: "It's me."
Looking at him now, Song Xizhi also felt like crying.
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