Chapter 49 "My people are none of Mother's concern..."
She didn't know which word had touched her heart, but a faint blush suddenly rose at the corner of Shen Xi's eyes.
He paused for a moment, then hugged the person in front of him even tighter.
He had come in the rain, and most of his clothes were soaked. Now, with their bodies pressed together, Shen Xi felt the chill coming through the damp fabric.
The heartbeat beneath my firm chest was exceptionally clear, each beat reaching my ears.
After not seeing him for several months, Shen Xi was somewhat reluctant to part with his familiar scent, but unexpectedly, she caught a faint smell of blood.
Shen Xi was startled, then suddenly looked up, staring straight into those eyes: "You're injured?"
The redness at the corner of her eyes hadn't faded yet. Xie Chengyan's rough fingertips lightly touched that spot, his deep eyes scrutinizing her as if to confirm something.
"Let's go home."
No sooner had he finished speaking than the servants who had been left behind him hurriedly caught up.
"Young Master!"
Upon hearing this voice, Xie Chengyan's aura instantly turned cold, and he didn't even glance to the side.
The servants all knelt down: "Young Master, the Duke learned of your return to the manor and specially sent us to invite you over."
Xie Chengyan ignored this, gave Shen Xi a deep look, held her wrist in his palm, and turned to leave with her.
Although Shen Xi didn't know what had happened, seeing the current situation, she knew something was wrong and without hesitation, she obediently followed him.
Before they could take two steps, the servants blocked their way: "Young master, please go see the Duke first!"
Xie Chengyan pushed aside the person blocking his way and continued walking without stopping: "If Father wants to see me, we can talk about it tomorrow."
The tone was as if it were immersed in ice, chillingly cold.
Shen Xi glanced at him sideways. The lanterns on both sides of the corridor emitted a dim, yellow light, almost completely obscuring his face. She couldn't see his expression.
But he could sense that the hand gripping his wrist was tightening, as if it were in a hurry.
He was eager to take her away from the Duke's mansion.
Shen Xi felt a pang of anxiety, belatedly realizing that she had been deceived by Xue Shi without her knowledge, which probably caused Xie Chengyan some trouble.
Ahead, many servants were still blocking the two people's way out.
Xie Chengyan, expressionless, pushed through the crowd and led her forward, his face dark and silent.
The heavy rain cascaded down in chains, its pattering sound mingling with the cacophony of voices, continuously reaching our ears.
The noise was so loud that it made people feel completely confused.
Perhaps annoyed by this group of people, Xie Chengyan suddenly drew his sword, its blade flashing coldly in the dark night as it swept across the rain.
He shielded Shen Xi behind him, lowered his eyebrows, and glanced around with a cold and fierce look, but had not yet spoken.
Suddenly, the atmosphere froze, the voices ceased, and only the sound of rain remained.
Seeing that Xie Chengyan was truly angry, the servants dared not stop him any longer and immediately knelt down, falling silent in unison.
A few drops of rain drifted into the corridor. Xie Chengyan flicked his wrist, wiping the water off his sword, before saying in a deep voice, "Tell my father that I will definitely pay him a visit tomorrow."
Having said that, he didn't linger and strode away, grabbing Shen Xi's wrist.
But just as they passed through that section of corridor, Madam Xue, who had arrived unnoticed, suddenly called out, "It's so late, why don't you stay? Besides, your daughter-in-law is feeling too stifled alone in the General's mansion; staying for a few days will help her relax..."
Before Madam Xue could finish speaking, Xie Chengyan interrupted her, his words showing no mercy whatsoever.
"My people are none of your concern, Mother."
He didn't even pause, simply uttering those words before leaving the Duke's mansion with Shen Xi.
Therefore, he did not notice that Xue's eyes were turning red and that she was slowly clenching her fists behind him.
As they stepped out of the Duke's mansion, Liang Tuo was waiting outside. Upon seeing them, he quickly opened his umbrella and went forward to escort the two onto the carriage.
The heavy rain has not stopped yet.
Dry clothes were prepared in advance inside the carriage. As soon as Shen Xi sat down, a robe was draped over his head.
Xie Chengyan's deep voice rang out in the carriage: "Be careful not to catch a cold."
Shen Xi paused for a moment, then peeked out from under the robe with both hands, blinking her eyes. Only now did she have time to properly examine him.
With just one glance, Shen Xi realized that the person in front of him was pale, and his tightly pursed lips had lost all color, yet he seemed to be unconsciously forcing himself to stay upright.
However, the stench of blood in the carriage grew stronger in a short while.
Chen Xi paused, then frowned: "What happened to you? Where are you hurt?"
Upon hearing this, Xie Chengyan half-lifted his eyelids and stared intently at her: "Why did you still go to the Duke's mansion?"
Perhaps knowing that he was now safe, his voice sounded hoarse and strained.
Shen Xi sensed something was wrong and, without waiting for his question, went straight over to check.
Xie Chengyan blocked her wrist, pulled her into his arms, and sighed softly without saying a word.
He used a lot of force, holding her tightly, but Chen Xi was oblivious.
His brows furrowed even more. Just moments ago they had kept a distance, but now, as he drew closer, the stench of blood emanating from Xie Chengyan became increasingly pronounced.
Shen Xi struggled to push him away: "Xie Chengyan, stop making a scene. Where are you injured? Take care of your wound first..."
Before she could finish her sentence, Shen Xi noticed that the force holding her loosened, and Xie Chengyan's arms were only loosely draped over her shoulders, his weight pressing down on her weakly.
Shen Xi's heart sank, and she glanced to the side.
Sure enough, within just a few words, Xie Chengyan lost consciousness and fainted.
His eyes were tightly closed, his face was pale, and he was unconscious, but he still held her wrist tightly and refused to let go.
Shen Xi had to use her other hand to support his body and maintain his balance, so she couldn't free her hand for a moment. She could only lean over and gently touch his forehead with her own.
It was scalding hot, and his breathing gradually weakened.
Shen Xi was startled and immediately laid him down. He loosened his belt and saw that his broad chest was wrapped in a thick bandage, which was now soaked in blood, turning it into a patch of red.
So he hurriedly called out to the car window, "Liang Tuo! Change course and go to Renfeng Hall immediately!"
Knowing Xie Chengyan's injuries, Liang Tuo realized something was wrong upon hearing this and immediately changed direction.
The carriage sped towards Renfeng Hall. When Shen Xi knocked on the door, Wen Tingmao had already gone to bed. After a while, he slowly came out, still sleepy, wearing his clothes.
"Who could it be in the middle of the night?"
As soon as the door opened, I was surprised to see Shen Xi's anxious face. She was soaking wet and her hands were covered in blood as she stood in front of me.
Wen Tingmao pointed at her hands and asked in surprise, "What happened to you?"
"It's Xie Chengyan's blood; his wound has reopened."
As Shen Xi answered, she jogged back to the carriage, opened her umbrella, and helped Liang Tuo lead Xie Chengyan down from the carriage.
Upon seeing this, Wen Tingmao instantly woke up from his drowsiness, quickly put on the clothes he was wearing, and ushered the people in.
Shen Xi wanted to help Wen Tingmao treat his wounds, but she was chased away by Wen Tingmao after only standing there for a short while.
After a period of chaos and confusion, she finally had the mind to inquire about the source of Xie Chengyan's injuries.
Liang Tuo stammered for a long time before finally speaking under Shen Xi's persistent questioning.
"The general was assassinated in Mozhou half a month ago. Those assassins were all death warriors. When the assassination failed, they committed suicide. We do not know who sent them."
"However, the relationships in Mozhou are complicated, and the matter of military pay that the general wants to investigate involves a wide range of people. He is probably venting his anger by offending someone."
Shen Xi frowned: "If the injury from half a month ago had been properly healed, how could it have ended up like this?"
Liang Tuo lowered his head: "It was because the general heard from the secret guards in the capital that you had been taken to the Duke's mansion. In his haste, the general insisted on compressing three days' journey into one day to return. The bumpy ride caused the wound to reopen. To save time, the general did not re-bandage it, and that's why..."
Upon hearing this, Shen Xi's heart sank.
She had a suspicion when Xie Chengyan appeared tonight, and now it was confirmed that it was indeed because she had gone to the Duke's mansion.
A wave of bittersweet guilt washed over Shen Xi, who was momentarily at a loss for words. After a long while, she finally murmured, "I understand."
After waiting for an unknown amount of time, Wen Tingmao finally stopped Xie Chengyan's bleeding and bandaged his wound.
Shen Xi, who was waiting outside, saw him and stood up: "How is he?"
As Wen Tingmao washed the blood off his hands, he sneered, "This kid is lucky to have met me; he won't die for now."
As she spoke, she gestured with her chin to the side and said, "Go and get some paper and pen. I'll give you the medicine. Write it down and go get the medicine and decoct it."
Without much hesitation, Shen Xi quickly wrote down a prescription as Wen Tingmao instructed.
But when she put down her pen and glanced at the prescription, she was immediately stunned: "Master, this medicine..."
Seeing her doubt, Wen Tingmao smiled and said, "You have indeed made a lot of progress these days."
Shen Xi immediately understood, and turned back to ask Liang Tuo to confirm, "He's been poisoned?"
Liang Tuo no longer concealed anything: "The swords used by the assassins were all coated with poison. The general was injured without realizing it. The doctor said that this poison is difficult to cure and will leave residual poison, but it will not have any effect on daily life."
After listening, Wen Tingmao waved his hand and said, "If you take this lightly, it is not wrong. This poison is really strange. Although the remaining poison does not harm the body and is harmless, if it comes into contact with another medicinal herb in the future, it will become a deadly poison and there will be no cure."
"That's why I say he's incredibly lucky to have met me."
Shen Xi stared at the prescription in his hand, his brows furrowing even more tightly.
But she didn't say much, only nodded to Wen Tingmao: "Master, I'll go and brew the medicine first."
His tone was calm, and his expression was composed without the slightest sign of panic, except that he quickened his pace.
Wen Tingmao watched her move around in front of the medicine cabinet, his eyes narrowed slightly, and he smiled with satisfaction.
Xie Chengyan's high fever persisted all night, and Shen Xi stayed by his side all night.
Xie Chengyan was a military officer by birth, and his body was covered with scars. In the past, when Shen Xi saw him, she would deliberately avoid looking at him and forcing herself not to look at him or investigate further.
But that night, while keeping watch by his side, perhaps out of boredom, Shen Xi began to examine the scars on his body for the first time.
Only then did they realize that, in addition to the sword wounds, he also had a burn on his shoulder.
It seems to be a scar left from long ago. Over the years, the jagged and uneven marks have gradually faded and are almost imperceptible.
The sky was beginning to lighten, and the torrential rain that had fallen all night had finally stopped, leaving only a few drops of rain occasionally falling from the eaves and tapping on the ground.
Having not slept all night, Chen Xi's mind was somewhat dazed.
Staring at the burns on Xie Chengyan's shoulder, I reached out as if possessed. The uneven surface under my fingertips clearly proved the existence of the wound.
Suddenly, her mischievous hand was grasped.
"So curious?"
A deep voice fell, tinged with a hint of weariness and hoarseness.
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